OK, I'm trying to keep a straight face...
Oh, forget it ! I can't do it ! 
And now, for your reading pleasure...
AFRN gives you...
The Bamboo PR.
American Fire Retardant Corp (OTC BB: AFRN) Last Update: 9:15:00 AM ET Sep 8, 2004
American Fire Retardant Corp. Management Optimistic
SAN DIEGO, Sep 8, 2004 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- American Fire Retardant Corp. (AFRN) shares the outcome of their bi-annual management conference and symposium today in a call with investment bankers and shareholders.
Over the Labor Day weekend, AFRC management held their bi-annual offsite meetings to discuss the anticipated year-end sales forecasts from all departments and subsidiaries and to develop new strategies to assure continued growth and development of the company. In these meetings the tone was very optimistic, the numbers impressive and the achievements noteworthy.
Mr. Stephen F. Owens, President of AFRC, said, "I understand the disappointment by the shareholders in the recent stock split and am concerned by the rapidly falling price, and the lack of confidence this has created. I only wish that shareholders could see how hard we are working to assure the success of AFRC and the strength that has developed in the company over the past year."
Mr. James R. Wheeler, Vice President of Sales and Marketing, said, "With the acquisitions in both business and team members AFRC has made over the last few months, we are positioned for what industry calls hockey stick growth."
He continued the analogy by telling an old Asian story about bamboo ...
There is a type of bamboo that grows incredibly fast, sometimes averaging two feet of growth a day. The people who grow this bamboo associate it with values such as persistence, diligence, and stability.
Suppose that the bamboo's abundant growth impressed you so much that you decided to raise a hedge. After consulting the experts, you know to plant the seeds in a barren plot and sprinkle the soil with four cups of water each day. But this is all you know.
YES! you say, as you follow instructions and eagerly await results. Day after day, you sprinkle the soil and scan the backyard for new shoots. After the first couple of weeks, the novelty wears thin. You become bored with the process. Sometimes you wonder why you planted bamboo in the first place.
After the thirtieth day, you notice how everything else is lush except your plot of ground. The neighbors start to make snide remarks. You begin to wonder, what if I skipped today? Would it make any difference?
Soon the weeks turn into months. You feel foolish and find it harder to defend your original decision. You start to doubt your environment, your skills, and everything that made so much sense before. Surely, there would be a sign of life by now. You ask yourself, if bamboo grows so fast, why haven't I seen anything yet?
After 72 days, you decide the bamboo must be dead and give up.
Would this be your scenario, or would your doubts have stopped you sooner?
The story of bamboo is not only about persistence. It is also about believing in what will happen next. The bamboo is not dead, it just doesn't send up a shoot until after the 110th day. Then it grows fast. But you didn't know that. Could you have overcome your doubts to trust the result to come?
For the first 100 days, bamboo focuses on creating an infrastructure of strong roots to support itself. Though it didn't appear to be, the bamboo was saying YES to life the whole time!
Like the bamboo, AFRC needs a strong foundation to grow, and we have to trust it to take time. How many of our well-intentioned goals and ideas get killed before we establish a strong foundation upon which to build them? Sometimes it is easier to follow through once we know what the result will be. But how often do we have the privilege of that knowledge?
In closing, Mr. Wheeler stated, "AFRC has come a long way over the past 17 years, even if many of our valued shareholders cannot see that progress at this point. I just ask that each and everyone of our management team, employees and partners work at 110% to show them that we appreciate their support."
Question to shareholders ...
"CAN OR WILL YOU WAIT UNTIL THE 110th DAY AND WITNESS THE SUCCESS OF AFRC?"
About American Fire Retardant Corp.
American Fire Retardant Corp. (OTCBB:AFRT) -- www.americanfireretardant.com, is in the business of developing, manufacturing and marketing a line of "Life Safety" products including interior and exterior fire retardants. American Fire Retardant Corp. and their American Safety Products Company also designs new technology for the Life Safety marketplace and the fire resistive applications that are being mandated by local, state and governmental agencies. Additionally, the company is active in the construction industry as sub-contractors for fire stop and fire film installations.
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