By Terry Canady —

As good fortune would have it, in 1972, while performing on the nightclub circuit, I became very interested in my health and wanted to trim off some extra pounds. I was following the carbohydrate “Air Force” diet and started taking vitamins. My partner and I had just completed a long engagement at the Blackhawk Hotel in Davenport, Iowa, and were just starting an engagement at the Antlers Plaza Hotel in Colorado Springs, Colorado. I needed to replenish my vitamin supply, and so I started walking around town looking for a vitamin or health food store. I walked into one that sort of had a sterile “vibe,” and so I left and kept searching.

About a block or two away I “stumbled upon” a nice-looking store called the Four Winds Organic Center. They had a beautiful window display, and so that was inviting. I walked in and started looking around and the place felt very comfortable. There was classical music playing overhead, and the very high ceiling was painted a beautiful shade of violet. The place was alive and smelled great. It was like getting a nice, big dose of aromatherapy! Well, needless to say, this was where I wanted to buy my vitamins, so I loaded up with everything that had been running low. After doing that and being helped by some of the staff who were very friendly, I started to look around some more. In addition to all the shelving with a multitude of products (toward the front of the store), there was a juice bar just beyond that, and then tables and chairs throughout the store for dining. There was even a formal dining room a little further back, with a grand piano. Between the juice bar and the dining room there was a small room that was the bookstore/library/reading room. You should have seen the bright yellow couch (leather or Naugahyde) in there that you could sit on while reading! Talk about the wisdom ray!

As the days progressed, I found myself a very regular customer at the juice bar. They had a breakfast, lunch and dinner menu. That’s about the only place I ate (mostly breakfast and lunch) for the rest of our engagement at the Antlers (I think we were there for four weeks). Well, lo and behold, one afternoon I was sitting at the juice bar and this man sidled up next to me on the adjoining heavy-duty cast iron stool and said, “Well, how do you like the place?” While I responded that I really liked it, I was thinking to myself about how familiar he looked. I mean, he looked really familiar! I thought to myself, “Maybe he was in the nightclub and I saw him there, or maybe I’ve passed him or seen him on the street recently.” Either way, I knew that I knew this guy.

Well, come to find out, this was Mark Prophet, and we became best of friends right there at the health food store. Listening to him talk and explain things made me think to myself, “How does this man know all these things?” There didn’t appear to be anything he couldn’t explain. I was on a spiritual quest, and, of course, I had all sorts of questions about things for which orthodox religion really didn’t seem to have any answers (I was raised Episcopalian) – like karma, reincarnation, and all that.

Well, my friends, by God’s grace, someone was finally able to convince me to attend a Sunday evening public service at La Tourelle, the headquarters of the Summit Lighthouse, nestled in the foothills of The Rockies, about a block away from the Broadmoor Hotel. During that service, Mark lectured and a dictation from Jesus, given earlier that morning, was replayed. After the service, Mark stood at the door and shook hands with everyone who had attended. Cookies and tea were served just outside the chapel, and then we were invited into the Family Room where Mark held a Fireside Chat. The room was packed, with people seated on the couches, the floor, and standing around the room. With this cosmic “Q and A,” everyone’s questions were answered.

I attended two services like this before Mark made his transition on February 26, 1973 and became our beloved Ascended Master Lanello. How blessed I was to have known Mark. Being a singer and a songwriter, I just knew that I had to leave some footprints in the sand for others to follow through a song that would paint a picture of this most wonderful man. So, while on the road and on my way to another engagement the words to “I Shook Lanello’s Hand” began to flow.

Thank you for the opportunity to share about my dear friend, father, brother and guru Mark L. Prophet, Messenger for the Great White Brotherhood.