Dick and Ruth Foth Share How to Build True Friendships in the Modern World with New Book

In the modern world, it is easy to describe someone as a friend. Anyone can pull up a list on social media and tell you a concrete number of "friends" - hundreds or even thousands. But somewhere in the midst of all the shares, retweets and likes, many people still feel a longing for deep, lasting friendship. There is a too often unfulfilled desire to be known. 
 
Known: Finding Deep Friendships in a Shallow World (WaterBrook, June 6, 2017) by Dick and Ruth Foth steps into this longing to offer sound wisdom on finding, building and maintaining this kind of friendship.

 
"At stake in this new reality, where we have keyboard control over what we wish others to know about us is the depths of the relationships we want to build," Dick writes. "On the Internet, I can give you information, but it's hard to give you me."
 
In over 50 years of marriage, Dick and Ruth have mentored many prominent leaders, including pastor Mark Batterson. Their years of living out the message of Known saturate the pages of the book with an authentic tone that will connect with millennial readers and older generations alike. 
 
"Friendship - true, deep friendship - is found in a desire to know and the willingness to be known," Dick and Ruth share. "It is choosing to walk with another person through whatever comes. A lasting friend knows you and still likes you. And a lasting friend, at the end of the day, is quite simply there." 
 
Key takeaways from the book include:
•         Understanding how crucial being known is to having a flourishing life
•         Tools to build and maintain meaningful relationships. 
•         Advice for both extroverts and introverts on connecting deeply
•         Practical conversation steps to deepen communication
 
Writing as a mentor with years of rich relationships, extroverted Dick speaks from his experience and the example of Jesus on how to build deep connections through sharing personal stories and affirmation. Ruth offers the much-needed perspective of a self-proclaimed introvert on this same topic. Together, the Foths offer real, encouraging solutions to the frenetic and alienating nature of modern culture that will resonate with readers. 
 
Praise for Known 
 "I've been learning about extravagant love from Dick and Ruth Foth for over a decade. I asked Dick if he would come with me to a country in the middle of a civil war. He said 'yes' without skipping a beat. This is how the Foths are wired. They don't see opportunities and faith and friends as separate parts of their lives but as inseparable ones. They don't love people after they've 'arrived'; they love their friends on the way. This is exactly what Jesus did. You're going to enjoy in these pages learning about friendships from the people who have been teaching me most of what I know about them."
-Bob Goff, chief balloon inflator and author of Love Does

author: credibility, authenticity, and clarity of message. Dick and Ruth Foth have delivered on all three. Known: Finding Deep Friendships in a Shallow World is a masterpiece! Through their lives and their words, I will never look at relationships the same way again."
-Hal Donaldson, president, Convoy of Hope

"Known is a heartfelt, poignant, and inspiring read. In this day of mobile, fast-paced texting and e-mail, Dick and Ruth Foth teach us how to build deep friendships. Their lives exemplify what it means to be genuinely invested in and committed to others. This book beautifully captures their collective wisdom and is a gift to all who read it."
-Nancy and Curt Richardson, founders of Otter Products

 "This book provides insights that will enable you to become a better friend. It will guide you with a strategy for cultivating more authentic and vulnerable relationships by sharing your stories. This is a great read from two people who model this friendship strategy in an exemplary way. Read this book and find greater joy in sharing stories that enable you to know and be known."
-Dr. Barry C. Black, chaplain of the United States Senate 

 "Let me confess up-front that I'm a bit biased. Dick Foth has become one of my dearest friends over the past twenty-five years. And I know the value of having real friends. That said, this combined effort of Dick (the quintessential extrovert) and his wonderful wife Ruth (a self-described introvert) is the best book I have ever read on the subject of friendship. It perfectly balances Dick's 'salt air' nature with Ruth's 'peach cobbler' disposition. The book is engaging, readable, and enjoyable. Dick is a masterful storyteller. His deeply personal style mixes comfortably with a keen intellect and profound wisdom born from experience. With a light touch, he plucks illustrative anecdotes from across cultures, from across the centuries, and from his own story to weave together a powerful narrative and unassailable argument for a simple truth: It is not good for the man to be alone. Our primary design function is relationship. It's not a religious or cultural or ethical or moral principle; it is the fiber of our being. We are built to love God and one another. It is who and what we are as humans. Dick and Ruth offer an exhilarating voyage of discovery into this great unknown Known."
-Lt. Gen. Mick Kicklighter, US Army, ret.
  
ABOUT THE AUTHORS

Dick Foth is an author, storyteller, and popular speaker.  He holds a master's degree from Wheaton College Graduate School and a doctorate from Gordon Conwell Theological Seminary. He and Ruth have invested the last twenty-five years working in the marketplace of business and government to encourage leaders in their personal lives.  Dick also serves on the teaching teams of four congregations, including the multi-site National Community Church pastored by Mark Batterson in Washington, D. C. 
 
Ruth Foth has an English degree from Bethany College in California and she is a homemaker, gardener, and quilter.  The Foths live in Colorado and have four children and many grandchildren.  

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