BEYOND THE DREAM

Written as a love letter to his family, Mel Baron’s memoir, Beyond the Dream, recounts a colorful life without limits. He grows up during a time much simpler than today. But in many ways, much more challenging.

His outlook forms during the Great Depression and World War II when Mel witnesses his street-smart father repeatedly provide for his family by succeeding in businesses for which he has no training or experience. From operating a Los Angeles hot dog stand frequented by often combative military servicemen and Chicano pachucos (and where 10-year-old Mel cooks standing on a box)… to owning racehorses (typically only a rich man’s pursuit)… to running an illegal bookie operation out of Mel’s grandparents’ living room. 

Mel’s own path does not initially appear as bold, as he pursues a degree in the “sedate” field of pharmacy. Yet Mel defies conventional wisdom and naysayers to pioneer all types of groundbreaking services, including home IV infusions at a time when nearly nobody in the health field provides this… as well as create an extraordinary 15,000 square-foot patient-centric Health Care Center that literally evokes tears from the dean of a university pharmacy school. Mel continues to fearlessly broaden his business until it is ultimately snapped up by a Fortune 500 company. 

Then at 49, Mel embarks on an entirely new adventure and becomes a much-honored USC Professor of Pharmacy for the next 40 years. There, he continues to innovate by generating new approaches and teaching methods at the esteemed school, retiring only recently from full-time teaching at the age of 89. 

Motivated by a core desire to help others, Mel does all this while also deeply involved in civil rights starting in the late sixties and later creating health literacy programs for underserved populations.

Graced by a 70-year storybook romance with his wife, Lorraine, Mel passes down his “You can do anything” belief to his own children and grandchildren. Now his memoir will inspire future generations of his family – and others – to reach beyond limits and embrace their dreams.