Back in L.A. Shirley Brown was feeling uninspired in her job as Administrative Assistant at UCLA’s Dermatology Department. What she really wanted to do was get involved in something she loved and cared about…..you guessed it…A mutual friend at the gym introduced her to Karen…and then there were four!. Soon buzz about Karen’s efforts reached the mainstream fitness industry. In the 26 years of its existence, The International Health, Racquet and Sportsclub Association (IHRSA), a global organization representing over 7,000 fitness club owners from 73 countries, had never before had anyone step up to champion the inclusion of teens in the ‘fitness revolution!” In January 2007 IHRSA named Karen Jashinsky “one of the 25 young leaders in the fitness industry” for her visionary concept and pioneering efforts to create a club exclusively for teens. There are males in this story. Dave, Ross, Chad, Serkan, Jon, Louis and countless others (male and female) who have encouraged, brainstormed, burned the midnight oil to help shape O2 MAX. In fact, the award-winning O2 MAX business plan Karen developed at USC was scrutinized until it was airtight by an army of what Pam dubbed the ” FOKERS” (friends of Karen).