An Army of Normal Folks - An Army of Normal Teenagers (Pt 1)

Episode Date: June 17, 2025

Ginny Manguno, a teacher at Briarcrest Christian School, assigned listening to the podcast in her high school class. And so we decided to interview Ginny and her 15 students! Support the show: https://www.normalfolks.us/premiumSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

I listen to your podcast every morning when I'm getting ready. I'm scrolling through trying to find one. I love listening to it and they inspire me because when you most every person that has done something extraordinary has had a story of some kind. Rarely do you hear someone who's had this perfect life and that's the normal people. You know what is normal I guess is different too but I was inspired by every time. And then also Wilson Society, I do that as our service club here on campus. And all of them have done something in their community

generally as well. And I thought it would be inspiring for them to listen to these and see. Rather than me just saying, pick a podcast, this way they're getting something. A lot of them are faith-based, which was again, a great segue into what we learn in our class as well.

Welcome to an army of normal folks. I'm Bill Courtney. I'm a normal guy. I'm a husband, I'm a father, I'm an entrepreneur, and I've been a football coach in inner city Memphis. And the last part somehow led to an Oscar for the film about our team. That movie is called Undefeated.

Y'all, I believe our country's problems are never gonna be solved by a bunch of fancy people in nice suits using big words that nobody ever uses on CNN and Fox, but rather by an army of normal folks. That's us, just you and me deciding, hey, I can help. Today, we have an outside the box episode, really. You're gonna meet a whole bunch of high schoolers

and their teacher who used an army of normal folks in their class. I cannot wait for you to meet this class from BriarQuest Christian School right after these brief messages from our dinner sponsors. From iHeart podcasts, before social media, before the internet, before cable news, there was Alan Berg. You dig what I do, you have a need, unfortunately you have no sense of humor,

that's why you can't ever enjoy this show, and that's why you're a loser. He was the first, and the original shock shock. That scratchy, irreverent kind of way of talking to people. You're as dumb as the rest, that's, I can't take anyone. I don't agree with you all the time. I don't want you to. I hope that you pick me apart. His voice changed media.

His death shocked the nation. And it makes me so angry that he got himself killed because he had a big mouth. KOA morning talk show host Allen Berg reportedly was shot and killed tonight in downtown Denver. He pointed to the Denver phone book and said, well, there are probably two million suspects. This guy aggravated everybody.

From iHeart Podcasts, this is Live Wire, the loud life and shocking murder of Alan Berg. Listen on the iHeart Radio app, Apple podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. A murder happens. The case goes cold. Then, over 100 years later, we take a second look. I'm Paul Holes, a retired cold case investigator. And I'm Kate Winkler-Dawson, a journalist and historian. On our podcast, Buried Bones, we reexamine historical true crime cases.

Using modern forensic techniques, we dig into what the original investigators may have missed. Growing up on a farm when I heard a gunshot, I did not immediately think murder. Unless this person went out to shoot squirrels, they're not choosing a 22 to go hunting out there. These cases may be old, but the questions are still relevant and often chilling. I know this chauffeur is not of concern. You know, it's like, well, he's the last one

who saw our life. So how did they eliminate him? Join us as we take you back to the cold cases that haunt us to this day. New episodes every Wednesday on the Exactly Right Network. Listen to Buried Bones on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. I'm Jake Hanrahan, journalist and documentary filmmaker. Away Days is my new project, reporting on countercultures on the fringes of society all across the world. Live from the underground, you'll discover no rules fighting, Japanese street racing,

resilient favela life and much more. All real, completely uncensored. This is unique access with straightforward underground reporting. We're taking you deep into the dirt without the usual airs and graces of legacy media. Away Days showcases what the mainstream cannot access. Real underground reporting with real people, no excuses. For the past decade I've been going to places I shouldn't be meeting people I shouldn't know. Now you can come along too. Listen to the your way days podcast reporting

from the underbelly on the I heart radio app, Apple podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. The American West with Dan Flores is the latest show from the Meat Eater Podcast Network, hosted by me, writer and historian Dan Flores, and brought to you by Velvet Buck. This podcast looks at a West available nowhere else. Each episode, I'll be diving into some of the lesser-known histories of the West. I'll then be joined in conversation by guests such as Western historian Dr. Randall Williams and bestselling author and meat eater founder Stephen Rannella. I'll correct my kids now and then where they'll say when cave people were here and I'll say it seems like the Ice Age

people that were here didn't have a real affinity for caves. So join me starting Tuesday, May 6th where we'll delve into stories of the West and come to understand how it helps inform the ways in which we experience the region today. Listen to The American West with Dan Flores on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. What happens when we come face to face with death? My truck was blown up by a 20 pound anti-tank mine. My parachute did not deploy.

I was kidnapped by a drug cartel. I just remember everything getting dark. I'm dying. We step beyond the edge of what we know. To open our consciousness to something more than just what's in that Western box. And return. I clinically died. The heart stopped beating. Which I in that Western box. In return. I clinically died.

The heart stopped beating. Which I was dead for 11.5 minutes. My name is Dan Bush. My mission is simple. To find, explore, and share these stories. I'm not a victim, I'm a survivor. You're strongest when you're the most vulnerable. To remind us what it means to be alive.

Not just that I was the guy that cut his arm off, but I'm the guy who is smiling when he cut his arm off. Alive Again, a podcast about the fragility of life, the strength of the human spirit, and what it means to truly live. Listen to Alive Again on the iHeartRadio app, Apple podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.

["Alive Again"] I know sitting here is a little weird and you're probably all like this is kind of cool but kind of weird too. If you don't engage with me, I'm going to make you engage with me, which is more embarrassing. So talk, engage, chill out, have fun, don't be geeks. All right. Oh, don't be geeks. All right. Oh, see, this is bad. See that, see that really uncomfortable silence.

We're not going to have that sound. We can't. I know y'all thought. Here's how this is going to go. Take your jacket off. Here's how that's going to go. We're going to engage for about 10 minutes, and then we're going to talk about a lot of the stuff you guys have done with

your assignment with the podcast and I have some excerpts of some stuff you've written. I don't know who wrote it so I'm going to read it and say who wrote it and then you go. You want to know the names of who wrote it? No, we'll have more fun this way. We'll say this and I'll say okay who are you and tell me what you were doing with it and you got to say your name and this thing is going okay, who are you? And tell me what you are doing with it. And you gotta say your name and this thing is gonna come around to you.

So you're either all pass it or if you guys are close together, you guys can pass it around. Yeah, you just pass it around. But when you speak, don't hold it over here while you're talking, actually speak into it so it picks it up because there's gonna be thousands and thousands and thousands of people

that hear this thing. So we need, yeah, you're special. So we need you to use your voice and speak up and talk with me. The other thing is don't talk quietly to me because I'm deaf in my right ear and I really can't hear you. I am too.

Are you really? Why? I got hit with a baseball last year right here and then it's like Okay, well the reason I'm deaf is because of the same thing except for football I have nerve I have nerve damage actually right now. I can hear about Four percent of any noise what brand are those? Whatever my wife told me to buy Hang on, what?

I have them too, but I don't have them in right now. Yeah, so it was nerve damage, right? No cochlear implants, nothing can fix it. You're deaf for the rest of your life. But it's either a broken cochlea bone or permanent nerve damage, so inoperable. So you're official meathead. Yep. Yep, that's the way it works. All right, I almost heard everything he said. So you gotta speak that loud

or louder when you talk with me, okay? Okay. Okay. Thank you so much. All right, you guys haven't been in a lot of these things. I do need to tell you one other thing. This guy's the producer, that's Alex Cortez. On some of the things you've listened to, you may have heard me refer to Alex before. That's who he is. He produces a show. He makes it happen. Everything else. One of the things you need to learn about showbiz is producers are complete pains in the butt. They're horrible. They're not fun to deal with. They're awful. So without me you wouldn't be here. Just ignore the weird-looking man in the

corner and everything will be fine. I gave it to them. What do you mean you see what they got? I slept those things all the way here for them and I was again you know I don't know. I'm sorry I just, you know, I don't know. I'm sorry. Just not pictures. I don't know what you're going to do with it. Give it to your dad. He can read it to you. He's got a good coach. Harrington company. Unbelievable.

Hold on. We can't start yet. What up, my brother? Yeah, that right there, y'all, was a dog back in the day. Y'all need to know. An absolute dog. What was it, 26, 27 when you got your first date, someone actually went out with you? About then?

About then? That cat right there, y'all, don't look at the old gray hair. He could go. He was an athlete. He was a good coach. Yeah, that's right. Oh, you leaving? Yeah. All right. Well, you sure are precious. All right, honey. We'll see you later.

Bless his heart. All right. So, y'all ready? We're ready. You're going to have fun? Yes, sir. You're going to be a bunch of doofuses and just sit there like knots on a log. What did you do to your wrist? Lacrosse. Lacrosse did to your wrist? LaCrosse. LaCrosse did to your wrist. My teammate, she hit me in the wrist.

You just got to speak up. My teammate hit me in the wrist with her stick. Oh, are you kidding? Yikes. Can you still play with that thing on? No. That really stinks, doesn't it? Yeah.

Sorry. Okay. Manguno. Manguno. Manguno. All right. You all ready? Yes, sir. All right, here we go.

Jenny Manguno is weird. How are you? I'm good, thank you. You're weird because you emailed Alex, and then you emailed me, and you said something like this, I've been listening to your podcast for several months, almost every weekday morning,

and I'm consistently inspired by your guest and even your story. My story is quite similar to yours. And you went on to talk about teaching a dual enrollment oral communications class at Briar Crest High School in Memphis. You invited Alex and me to kind of discuss with you that you actually, you made your students in your class listen to an army of normal folks. We found that really, really interesting. And you're

also the librarian. And you're weird because you're using a podcast in your class in oral communications. And Alex and I thought that's cool. So for those listening today, we are at Briar Crest High School in Memphis with your class, with your dual enrollment oral communication class. And there's one, two, three, four, five, six,

seven, eight, nine, ten, 11, 12, 13 eight there's about 15 kids in here say hi kids they're happy today what in the world inspired you to say I'm teaching oral communications class I'm gonna make these kids listen to an old person's podcast which had to have been miserable for these kids I think they probably thought it was going to be miserable to start, but then they wound up loving the assignment. They, through part of the curriculum that we have, they actually did their own podcast. We have a podcast small studio here on campus, and so they each had to record a podcast with a partner, one group had a group of three,

but anyhow, they were doing their podcasts, and so I was just asking, who listens to podcasts? And there weren't a lot that before this time I said then y'all need to listen to a good podcast and I love yours and so that's how that came up was like choose one of these and being a teacher I made sure it was ones I had listened to so that I would know for sure if they had done the assignment or not. What where do you come from? What's your story? Is that me? Oh my gosh. Should I answer it? No, no, I'm not gonna answer it. It's your wife. Answer it. Lisa on my on air. Oh, sweet. This is my 40th year in education. So I've been teaching since 1985 was my first year to teach. So I've been doing this a long time between high school college and now back to high school

So doing dual enrollment gets you to do a little bit of both So what brought you into teaching? Tell me how you came up. Tell me a little bit about you I'm curious because you said my story is quite similar to yours. I want to hear about that How are we alike? Okay. I don't know if the students know your whole story, and I don't know if they know my whole story, so I'll just kind of share. So I grew up, I went to high school in Pearl, Mississippi, which they know all about because

I asked them, I always ask them bonus questions about my life. Like if I say something in class, then their bonus question comes from that. Like what was my high school mascot? Do y'all remember now? Pirates. Very good. See, like they remember pirates. Yes.

Anyhow. So we, we, we use that in the class a lot. So I'm from Pearl. My parents divorced when I was nine, which is unheard of in 1972, you know, like that just was not something that happened. And then later my dad died, my mom was a teacher and I thought I would never be a teacher. She had a very unconventional life

and made a lot of poor relationship decisions that in today's world would probably be much accepted, but in Pearl, Mississippi in the 1970s was a very difficult thing. Did that put a stigma on you as a kid? Oh, absolutely. And I've said this often, I have one wonderful friend that I'm still best friends with today,

but if I invited a friend to spend the night, it was always, maybe you could come to my house instead. No one was ever allowed to come and spend the night at my house, which, looking back, I don't blame those parents. I mean, I'm a parent now and I get that. Doesn't make a 16 year old feel any better about it though? No, no.

And by that point, by the time I was like middle school, early high school, I had a great friend, her name's Diane. And my mom would say things like, find somewhere to go this weekend, you can't be here. And so pretty much every Friday afternoon, I would just go home with Diane and then on Sunday about seven o'clock my sister would come pick me up and we'd go back home. And so that's who really raised me is my friend's mom. That has to make you feel alone as a kid. I think you know in the in the 70s there was no DHS there was no talking about this these aren't things that you talk about they're just it just

was your life and you you do it and dare tell someone that your life wasn't perfect because that's not the way life was but there was no protect there there's no foster system there's no DHS there's nothing like that so you just go on but my mom was a teacher and of course I said I would never be a teacher but I had a teacher in high school. I've told them the story. Mrs. Robbins, she was my speech teacher, my most favorite teacher. I had her three years in a row and she just she was that teacher that called you out when you you know she she told everybody what they were doing right and what they were doing wrong and she didn't think twice about it and she was she made a big impact in fact I'm talking with Alex I told him she said

she had three students who became speech teachers that's just like you count yourself as one or communications yeah yeah yeah and I'm all all taught high school and college it's just been if she just made a huge impact in my life went to college didn't ever plan to be a teacher, and got certified just in case. One of my roommates said, I think you'd be a good teacher. You should just get certified.

And I was like, oh, I'll get certified. And then I did my student teaching and fell in love with teaching. Never had plans to teach, and I've been teaching now 40 years. How long have you been here? I've been full-time here 10 years. Got it. For those who don't know, my mother was married and divorced five times. My fourth father took out a 38 caliber

pistol one night after finishing off about a half gallon of usher scotch and shot at me down the hallway. I had to dive out a window to save myself that night. So I was surrounded with dysfunction, trauma, and as a person your age, was kind of lost, trying to figure out, you know, where do I fit in this world? And I'll tell you something else that happens is when people come in and out of your life consistently, and the only thing that is consistent is

Inconsistency you start to wonder about your own value You know, why are you not valuable enough that someone is willing to invest and stay in your life? And it has a profound effect and you can either succumb and be a victim to that dysfunction or you can decide to be a rock that that dysfunction breaks itself on. There's really two choices. A teacher tell you that? A teacher who passed away not long ago, actually my football coach told me that, who I love. Did you feel the dysfunction?

I think it's just one of those things where it's just your life. And again, you wouldn't talk about this. This was the 70s. There were no TV. Every TV show was, you know, the love boat or what is something? Fantasy Island. Fantasy Island. That shows they don't get it.

Or cleaver reruns. It's just everything's perfect. Google Brady Bunch. Yes, yes, yes. So you just thought, oh, well, it's just not the way I live. But you wouldn't dare talk about that. Now people talk about the dysfunction in their family

and there's ways to deal with it But I assure you there were people who had it worse than I did much worse I coach and teach and do a lot of what I do Because I still a 56 year old Feel very real About the pain I felt and I feel like in teaching and coaching you have an opportunity to maybe exact some measure of positive change on some people who may be going through maybe not exactly what you're doing too but a similar amount of suffering, pain, questions, whatever.

Do you feel like that's what draws you to continue to do this year after year? I think you hope that you're making a difference in some way. I mean, a teacher made a huge difference for me. So you hope in some way you're making, if you make a difference in one person's life, then you've done something. I mean, that's... So true. But then you look out at the people you're trying to make a difference in life and they're

a bunch of 15, 16, 17 year old meatheads like these people out here and you actually wonder if you're getting through. You do sometimes. Yeah. I mean there's this kid over here, Tucker. I don't know how you get through to that guy. This Tucker kid. Are you going to act right because your dad's in the room now? Is that what you're going to do?

You're just going to sit there? We're going to take a brief intermission in the middle of this. This is not a commercial break. Say, what up, coach? Brandon Tucker just walked in, and Brandon Tucker is one of the finest people on the face of the planet. I've coached against him, I've coached with him,

and I love him. And his son happens to be in your class. And so there's Brandon Tucker over there. Pretty good math coach, pretty fair football coach, but a pretty extraordinary human being. It's good to see you, brother. And now a few messages from our generous sponsors. But first, we're thinking about launching

a few local chapters of the Army this year. And if you're interested in potentially leading a chapter in your community, email army at normalfolks.us and Alex would love to connect with you. We'll be right back. From iHeart podcasts, before social media, before the internet, before cable news, there was Alan Berg. You dig what I do. You have a need. Unfortunately, you have no sense of humor. That's why you can't ever enjoy this show. And that's why you're a loser. He was the first and the original shock chock. That scratchy, irreverent kind of way of talking to people.

You're as dumb as the rest. I can't take anyone. I don't agree with you all the time. I don't want you to. I hope that you pick me apart. His voice changed media. His death shocked the nation. And it makes me so angry that he got himself killed because he had a big mouth.

KOA morning talk show host Allen Berg reportedly was shot and killed tonight in downtown Denver. He pointed to the Denver phone book and said, well, there are probably two million suspects. This guy aggravated everybody. From iHeart Podcasts, this is Live Wire, the loud life and shocking murder of Alan Berg. Listen on the iHeart radio app, Apple podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. A murder happens. The case goes cold. Then, a hundred years later, we take a second look. I'm Paul Holes, a retired cold case investigator.

And I'm Kate Winkler Dawson, a journalist and historian. On our podcast, Buried Bones, we re-examine historical true crime cases. Using modern forensic techniques, we dig into what the original investigators may have missed. Growing up on a farm when I heard a gunshot, I did not immediately think murder.

Unless this person went out to shoot squirrels, they're not choosing a 22 to go hunting out there. These cases may be old, but the questions are still relevant and often chilling. I know this chauffeur is not of concern. You know, it's like, well, he's the last one who saw our life. So how did they eliminate him? I'm Jake Hanrahan, journalist and documentary filmmaker. get your podcasts. all real completely uncensored. This is unique access with straightforward underground reporting. We're taking you deep into the dirt without the usual

airs and graces of legacy media. A way that showcases what the mainstream cannot access. Real underground reporting with real people no excuses. For the past decade I've been going to places I shouldn't be meeting people I shouldn't know. Now you can come along too. Listen to the your way days podcast, reporting from the underbelly on the iHeart radio app, Apple podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

The American West with Dan Flores is the latest show from the Meat Eater Podcast Network, hosted by me, writer and historian Dan Flores, and brought to you by Velvet Buck. This podcast looks at a West available nowhere else. Each episode, I'll be diving into some of the lesser known histories of the West. I'll then be joined in conversation by guests such as Western historian, Dr. Randall Williams, and bestselling author and meat eater founder, Stephen Ronella. I'll correct my kids now and then where they'll say

when cave people were here. And I'll say, it seems like the ice age people that were here didn't have a real affinity for caves. So join me starting Tuesday, May 6th, where we'll delve into stories of the West and come to understand how it helps inform the ways in which we experience the region today. Listen to The American West with Dan Flores on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

What happens when we come face to face with death? My truck was blown up by a 20 pound anti-tank mine. My parachute did not deploy. I was kidnapped by a drug cartel. I just remember everything getting dark. I'm dying. When we step beyond the edge of what we know... To open our consciousness to something more than just what's in that western box.

...and return. I clinically died. The heart stopped beating. Which I was dead for 11.5 minutes. My name is Dan Bush. My mission is simple, to find, explore, and share these stories. I'm not a victim, I'm a survivor. You're strongest when you're the most vulnerable.

To remind us what it means to be alive. Not just that I was the guy that cut his arm off, but I'm the guy who is smiling when he cut his arm off. Alive Again, a podcast about the fragility of life, the strength of the human spirit, and what it means to truly live. Listen to Alive Again on the iHeartRadio app, Apple podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows. is. Kind of give me and our listeners just a quick purpose of the dual enrollment oral communications class.

I keep having to read it because I don't even know how to remember all that. But what do y'all do? Well, because it's dual enrollment, they're getting college credit through the University of Memphis by taking this class. So they take this counts, they have to have a fine art to graduate from high school. So they take my class for one semester and then first semester they took music appreciation. My first semester class takes theater appreciation this semester. So it just depends on where they fall.

But they're getting college credit. The hope is that they don't have to take this in college. Most of them, we've the seniors and the seniors you'll see, most of those have on their senior shirts today, but we just did a, what would you call what I did last week, a seminar. I talk about college and try to help them learn how to do course equivalency. So if I took this class in high school, how is it going to help me in college? How can, how is it going to transfer? So we have a lot of dual enrollment classes, but this is just one that they can take. And so we follow the curriculum from the University of Memphis and then I do a high school portion of that as well. And they've learned how to

do an informative speech. Yesterday they did elevator pitches. I think that may have been their favorite. They're like, no, no. They did the persuasive podcast, help me out, what else? Impromptu speeches. They're just nodding. A lot of communication skills. All communication skills. All right. So in the context of understanding the class, and soon everybody, we're going to talk to

these kids and I expect that's going be fun or maybe it'll be awful Depending on how big a goofballs they are. We'll find out There's 400 there's 4 million 500 podcasts on the face of the planet. How inside of the construct of the class? Do you decide to Assign an army of normal folks as part of the curriculum. That's weird. That's why I said you're weird at the top. That's why you said I was weird? Well, because I listen to it.

Weird in the fondest sense of the word, okay? Thank you. I listen to your podcast every morning when I'm getting ready. I'm scrolling through trying to find one. I love listening to it. And they inspire me because when you, most every person that has done something extraordinary

has had a story of some kind. Rarely do you hear someone who's had this perfect life, and I guess that's part of the- There's no such thing. Yeah, and that's the normal people, you know, what is normal I guess is different too, but I was inspired by every time. And then also Wilson Society, I do that,

it's our service club here on campus, and all of them have done something in their community generally as well. And I thought it would be inspiring for them to listen to these and see. So it was very, rather than me just saying pick a podcast, this way they're getting something. A lot of them are faith based, which was again, a great segue into what we learned in our class as well. Which is interesting, by the way, all of our listeners and you guys in here, it is interesting that a lot of our guests

end up evoking faith during their conversations. But we are not a faith-based podcast. I'm a Christian, but we are not a faith-based. I'm certainly not gonna tell somebody don't speak about your faith, but we don't ask people to speak about their faith. But it has become very interesting to Alex and me that I don't know what the percentage

is, but four out of five probably end up evoking faith in their conversation. And all the time that faith is not necessarily just their Christian faith, but it is interesting to me that as we talk about a group of quote, normal folks, that the vast majority of them evoke faith when they talk about the work that they do to serve their community, which it's interesting you picked up on that. And it's not part of the context of the show, but it almost invariably comes out, which

I think is interesting when people talk about themselves. I think it speaks to the power of faith in what we do in our lives. Does that have a component of what you do every day? Yes. So, I mean, all we teach is faith-based here. We want everything to come from a Christian worldview. So hopefully when these seniors leave, that they're solid in their faith

and they know what they believe and they believe it because they believe it, not because their parents believe it. And so when they get out into the world, they are able to make the decisions that are going to support their faith. Okay, so the assignment was, listen to, pick any episode off of the catalog

of an Army Normal Folks, listen to it, and then do what? Write an essay about it. Okay, so the first one, I don't know who did what. I just got a bunch of students looking at me and I have a small piece of what each of you wrote. So I like this one. This is what was part of what was said. We're gonna go over all these,

but I'm gonna start with this one because I think it speaks to goofy 16 17 18 year olds. I went into this project not wanting to do it. I love that. But I came out enjoying it. I've learned that podcasts do not have to be strictly business talking about stuff that the average person can relate to makes it more enjoyable for the listener. I honestly did not know this is who wrote this, but I guess it fits.

So who went into this not wanting to do it? And at least I love the honesty admitted that they didn't want to do it. That would be me. Uh-oh. Speak up. No, it that they didn't want to do it. That would be me. Uh oh. Speak up. No, it's on. You've got to speak up. That would be me.

Okay, who is me? I'm Hudson Tucker. What? Hudson Tucker. Hudson Tucker didn't want to do this. Okay, so before we go on to what Hudson had to write about, who else in here, honestly, raise their hands, really didn't want to do this? The whole class.

They're seniors and I don't blame them. And tomorrow is their last day of school. They are not I remember being a senior in high school and classes ending, you're getting college fever, you're thinking about where you're applying to and what's next and everything else. And then you gotta listen to some old dude's podcast. Were you actually rolling your eyes at your teacher going,

come on, it's late in the year, this is a bunch of crud. Yeah. And they're long too, just so you know. They're not like 10 minutes long. That was their other complaint. Yeah, we make them, We know how long they are. We have to listen to these things. Yeah.

So you didn't want to do it, huh? I did not, no sir. But tell me what you found out. What did you listen to? And tell me what you found out. So I listened to God's Million Dollar Company and how he donated 50% of his profits. Yes, sir.

And then I really enjoyed just like, at first I didn't wanna listen to it, and then as I started listening, it was just like, it wasn't like it was all business. Y'all were just having a good time, just talking about life and how he kinda was able to use his platform to, everyone told him it wasn't gonna work, that he was gonna lose money

in the end, but he ended up just like trusting God and having faith and he was able to actually give money to a lot of people to help them out. Hudson, what, are you a senior? No sir, I'm a junior. You got one more year left. Yes sir. All right, did listening to that podcast

and that episode in any way make you think more deeply about what you're gonna do in your life or how you're gonna approach your life? It kind of made me just like realize that like God has a plan and then like it's not gonna be my plan like he everyone was telling him that it was not gonna work not gonna work and then he kind of just had faith in God and then it all worked out for his good and so I just think that going into my senior year and then going into like the job search that it's just gonna work out Just gotta keep believing in him and the right path will be made

What do you think about a guy that has a business that does a billion dollars year in sales and Still doesn't pay himself much more than $160,000 a year. I think that's pretty impressive. Definitely not too many people that would not give themselves a lot of money and I think it speaks to him as like a man, Mr. Allen, and like how he really cares about other people and how his whole life is just

revolving around other people and people around him. Do all you guys know the story that this guy built a business from nothing, decided with his brother that every year they were going to give away 50% of their earnings and only a couple years ago his business did a billion dollars y'all and he gave the company away. Didn't take one dollar gave it away. Yes. Yeah. So name. My name is Lance Brian, but Alan Barnhart that that name popped up. I didn't listen to the episode, but my dad is in a is in a group called C12. It's a Christian CEO group and Alan Barnhart is actually in it. So my dad has actually told me a lot about him and stuff. So I thought that was really cool that my dad is in a group

with a guy that you did a podcast with. It's pretty cool. All right, next one. Joe and Kelly Carson. I learned a lot about how easy it really is to live in a sort of comfortable bubble Inspired me to look beyond my life and to see what the norm is for other People who might not have as much as me also learned that it's very possible for ordinary people to achieve extraordinary things that

Storytelling is very powerful way to get the message across in a podcast who Who wrote that? Oh my gosh. So tell me about it. So you know I listened to that podcast and it really stuck with me that like their son went out and did something and it actually changed their mindset. So like he went out and he lived on that flat in Chicago for a year and he spent that weekend homeless. And, you know, it was really inspiring to hear that like, his parents kind of realized that like through him, that they were kind of living in a bubble in their dentistry and stuff. And they realized that God did want them to sell their business and go try to make some things happen.

And so God kind of paved the path for them and that was really inspiring to me. For those of you in the class, the takeaway here is this guy, not much older than you, part of his requirement was to go to a thrift store and get some ragged clothes and with no money in his pocket, go on the streets of Chicago and be homeless and have to ask for his sustenance to truly experience what homelessness feels like. Can you imagine doing that? No. Do you remember what his experience was? When he was on the street? Yeah. Yes. And remember now, this is a guy who comes from a background just like each of you. Affluent, nice place. He was, I believe he

was a student at Baylor, wasn't he, when he took this year off? Do you remember that from the... That's right. What was the experience like? This part actually really stuck with me. He was asking these people for money and this one lady that he had asked for money, she said, you need to go get a job, whatever. I think she actually ended up giving him two three dollars or something and she said Oh, you're probably just gonna go spend this on alcohol and drugs. I don't know why I'm giving you this money anyway, and

Kelly Carson was like She got on the call with her son at the end of the week I think they get one call a week and he told her about that and she started thinking she's like I've done something similar to that before like and now she met me on the street that day yep she said he met me on the street that day and so that really got her to thinking and then she made some change from that. So pretty cool story pretty Pretty cool takeaway. It's easy y'all Coming from affluence or relative safety

When you're driving around in some of the more urban areas to see someone That is slovenly and bedragged and on the street with their hand out. It is pretty easy to sum up based on popular narrative what that person is, an alcoholic, a drug addict, a loser, whatever. But it's a reminder that every face has a story. And since we're in a Christian school, you might remember that Christ didn't show up to a place that looks like Briar Crest. He surrounded himself with fishermen and hookers. So the question is, as young Christian folks, who are you called to interact with if you

are in fact to be Christ-like? I think there's a big takeaway there. We'll be right back. From iHeart podcasts, before social media, before the internet, before cable news, there was Alan Berg. You dig what I do. You have a need. Unfortunately, you have no sense of humor. That's why you can't ever enjoy this show.

And that's why you're a loser. He was the first and the original shock shot. That scratchy reverent kind of way of talking to people. You're as dumb as the rest. I can't take it anymore. I don't agree with you all the time. I don't want you to. I hope that you pick me apart.

His voice changed media. His death shocked the nation. And it makes me so angry that he got himself killed because he had a big mouth. KOA morning talk show host Alan Berg reportedly was shot and killed tonight in downtown Denver. He pointed to the Denver phone book and said, well, there are probably two million suspects. This guy aggravated everybody.

From iHeart Podcasts, this is Live Wire, the loud life and shocking murder of Alan Berg. Listen on the iHeart radio app, Apple podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. A murder happens. The case goes cold. Then over 100 years later, we take a second look. I'm Paul Holes, a retired cold case investigator, and I'm Kate Winkler Dawson, a journalist and historian. On our podcast, Buried Bones, we reexamine historical true crime cases

using modern forensic techniques. We dig into what the original investigators may have missed. Growing up on a farm when I heard a gunshot, I did not immediately think murder. Unless this person went out to shoot squirrels, they're not choosing a 22 to go hunting out there. These cases may be old, but the questions are still relevant and often chilling. I know this chauffeur is not of concern. I'm Jake Hanrahan, journalist and documentary filmmaker. Away Days is my new project, reporting on countercultures on the fringes of society all across the world.

Live from the underground, you'll discover no rules fighting, Japanese street racing, Brazilian favela life and much more. All real, completely uncensored. This is unique access with straightforward underground reporting. We're taking you deep into the dirt without the usual airs and graces of legacy media. A way that showcases what the mainstream cannot access. Real underground reporting with real people no excuses. For the past decade I've been going to places I shouldn't be meeting people I shouldn't know.

Now you can come along too. Listen to the Your Way Days podcast reporting from the underbelly on the iHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. The American West with Dan Flores is the latest show from the Meat Eater Podcast Network, hosted by me, writer and historian Dan Flores and brought to you by Velvet Buck. This podcast looks at a West available nowhere else. Each episode, I'll be diving into some of the lesser-known histories of the West. I'll then be joined in conversation by guests such as Western historian Dr. Randall Williams and best-selling author and meat-eater founder Stephen Rinella. I'll correct my kids now and then where they'll say when cave people were here

and I'll say it seems like the Ice Age people that were here didn't have a real affinity for caves. So join me starting Tuesday, May 6th, where we'll delve into stories of the West and come to understand how it helps inform the ways in which we experience the region today. Listen to The American West with Dan Flores on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. What happens when we come face to face with death? Apple podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. When we step beyond the edge of what we know. To open our consciousness to something more than just what's in that Western box. And return. I clinically died.

The heart stopped beating. Which I was dead for 11.5 minutes. My name is Dan Bush. My mission is simple. To find, explore, and share these stories. I'm not a victim, I'm a survivor. You're strongest when you're the most vulnerable. To remind us what it means to be alive. Not just that I was the guy that cut his arm off, but I'm the guy. You're strongest when you're the most vulnerable. To remind us what it means to be alive.

Not just that I was the guy that cut his arm off, but I'm the guy who is smiling when he cut his arm off. Alive Again, a podcast about the fragility of life, the strength of the human spirit, and what it means to truly live. Listen to Alive Again on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you listen to your favorite shows. All right. What I learned is no matter what someone has done to get themselves into prison, they still

have aspirations and they want to achieve. I just thought that once you're in prison, that's it. And that you just have to put your life on pause until you get out. The podcast showed me that it's possible to continue to live while incarcerated and that there are people out there that don't immediately need to be judged.

Yes? Hi. Hi. Name and loud. Hannah Schum. Hey Hannah, tell me about it. I thought it was interesting how he like, didn't really know what he was doing at first and then he just felt called to get a degree in ministry and then somehow got pulled into

the jail scenery and then he decided to actually do something with it and not just teach them how to actually be something more than just just like their time like in jail and how like that how he taught other people and that they're the people that he taught like continue to teach others like it was like a train don't say anything hannah what's your name zackary when you think of the people in 201 poplar i want straight talk when you. When you think of the people in 201 Poplar with a rap sheet, tell me what you envision quickly. And I picked him for everybody listening. I just picked Zachary out of the group. This was not planned. I'm putting you on the spot. Well, I actually do know a guy that went to 201 Poplar for getting in a street fight.

He now has permanent brain damage and he lives with his mother full time now. He's from Binghamton, but he is a very kind guy now that he learned his lesson, but going into it, he was angry and just probably scary, interesting guy to talk to. I can imagine. Forgive him, macro level. I would say very scary.

You know, I wouldn't wanna to surround myself with them life losers Yeah, yes, sir. Deserved what they deserved what they earned most likely. Yes, sir You break the law you go to jail and when you're in jail, you know 201 poplar People are dying in that place. The doors don't even lock. They've got six people in a cell built for two because it's overcrowded There's not good food. Do you or people around you have the mentality that well, that's what they get. They don't want to deal with that Don't break the law. I mean, yes, sir. I think I think it's you know, right that we Separate them from society So that way they just don't harm it even more

But as a group of people is it fair to say that your first instinct is kind of say too bad and look down your nose? Hannah, tell us why we have to, from what you learned, tell us why we have to be careful with that judgment. I think it's because we all were born, we're all the same. No matter where we come from, we're all human. the people in jail like they didn't they weren't born a criminal like yes they chose to like make the decision to get in jail but that doesn't like mean that they're just like forever a bad person like there is

like redemption in that and like I just think that there's like like that can be any of us I like anytime and like you never know if like you're gonna have to make a decision that's gonna get you in jail like any time and like you never know if like you're gonna have to make a decision That's gonna get you in jail. I'm like, there's like no need just to judge to judge Hannah. Where were you born? Memphis where? Carriville that's not Memphis Do you understand what I mean? Okay, tell everybody who's listening that's from all over the world where Carreville is like a suburb outside of Memphis

Suburb right are there shacks out there? No, what are there houses like what kind of houses big houses? Are there hoopties riding up down the road very often? What kind of cars like? Audi's like nice cars. Yeah Like, Audis, like, nice cars. Yeah, BMWs. Yeah. Are there many households out there that the refrigerators are empty? No.

Do most households have at least one college graduate in it? Maybe two? How many households do you think have non-high school graduates? Not a lot. Very few. Is the police department pretty robust and doing a good job? I think so. Is it safe? Yeah. Have you ever experienced a drive-by? I had a gun pulled on me one time. In Carreville? Yeah. Okay, that's weird only time But in General it's safe affluent nice. Yes, sir What if you were born in Orange Mountain? That's like a whole different area. That's like completely different

I feel like I wouldn't be me if I was born in Orange Mountain what if you had one parent in the household who did not even graduate from high school and that is what the entire block and neighborhood you lived in looked like? That wouldn't be like good I guess like it wouldn't be like like I don't know the word. So my question is, if you were hungry, and you had no future, and you had no hope, and you were disenfranchised, do you think it's possible that Hannah from Carreville in a completely different atmosphere

might have ended up in 201 Poplar herself? For sure. Would you want a second chance? I think everyone wants a second chance and I think everyone deserves a second chance. So when you say you learned that no matter what someone has done to get themselves into prison they still have aspirations that they want to achieve. Did you ever when listening to that try to put yourself in that position? I don't know if I tried to

like put myself in like the mentality of being in that position. I don't know if I tried to put myself in the mentality of being in jail because I don't want to go to jail. That's scary. But I think if I was in that position, I would definitely try my best to act, get on parole, I guess, or just get out as soon as possible. And I mean, there were some people in that story who didn't have that option and were like in jail for life, but they still like did something and were like and had like dreams and still achieve stuff while being in jail. So jail after all isn't full of society throw away zombies that we shouldn't care about. They're still human beings. Mm-hmm. Next one. I learned how easy it is to make an impact. Monica worked hard, but she framed

the story in a way that was encouraging to those who see a wrong in the world that they want to make right. Who wrote that? Who wrote that? Do you know? Oh, that may be Finley, and she had to take a test today. Yes. Okay, well she's fired. Next. She had an AP test. Oh, whatever. She's a loser for not being here. The content was interesting as it gave me an insight into a life that I do not experience. I think the speakers were able to connect to the audience.

Personally, I cannot relate to what they're talking about, but there are people out there who did. The student also talked in class about the alarming rate of students who can't read and cited the statistics that made an impact. Who's that? That was me. Okay, who's you? My name is Hunt Solomon. All right, tell me about it. So the name of the podcast was... Kahlil Sweeney. Kahlil Sweeney. The name of the podcast was the boxing gym that where no one boxes, which I found found very interesting because he realized that there was a need for helping kids graduate high school. He was, I believe in the high school, maybe he's only 20s before he learned

how to read. And someone took him in and taught him how to read. His childhood growing up was very rough. He did not grow up with his parents. And so, I thought it was interesting how he realized that I assume it was mostly young men who he was focused on, because that's what the boxing gym comes in. And so, he talked about how he had to find something to get the young man in there because if he had a reading and writing center no one would show up but if he had a boxing center he's like I will teach you how to box if you show up and do your homework first which I found very interesting. He kind of had a hook didn't he? Yes he did. When I read your comment it said said, personally, I cannot relate to what they were talking

about, but there are people out there who did. Has anybody ever heard of coaching for literacy? All right. Well there's a guy in town named John Wilfong. If you're a little older, you'd remember him. He was the shooting guard for the University of Memphis back in the day when the University of Memphis was always in the Sweet 16 Elite lead eight. He's now a financial advisor. His son was a pretty fair basketball player, ended up playing at SMU and coming up, John coached at AU basketball with his son and

a bunch of kids. And there was a kid on their team named Frank, Big Frank. He ended up playing football and playing football at LSU. But back when they were 12, 13 years old doing AAU ball, every time they'd go to a restaurant after the games, Big Frank would just order whatever John Son ordered. So if they were at Applebee's and John said, son, I want the chicken, fingers, or fries and John said, so I don't want the chicken fingers or fries and some ranch, Frank would say, that's what I want. They thought at first it was cause just Frank

and John were tight. But what they found out was Frank was 11 and couldn't read. They would talk about that in the podcast. I'd forgotten about that until you just mentioned that. But he talked about how lonely you feel when you can't read a menu and you're going out and you're like, oh man, I'll just get what you have. And so I forgot about that, but that is another part of it.

So when John found out, his son, and he started this thing called coaching for literacy. And if you ever see a coach, football or basketball coach in pros in college wearing a little lime green ribbon kind of like the breast cancer ribbon but this one's lime green that's a coach supporting coaching for literacy and here's the demographics a kid who does not read on grade level by third grade is 65% more likely by his 18th birthday to be incarcerated. Third grade. They can actually tell going into the fourth grade by the ability to read whether or not this child is going to have a job or be in prison.

So how important is the work that he's doing to teach kids to read uncountable? I mean, it's truly amazing what he was doing what he's doing. And so they talked about in his podcast by I think the age 21 you had like an 80% chance if you can read by grade 3 to be incarcerated or dead by the age of 21 and so he talked about going back to like loneliness, growing up he was, he did what he felt like doing,

which could lead to prison, things like that, because he already knew, or felt like he knew, his life was set. He was going to be dead or in prison by 21. And so him getting people into the boxing gym, getting their homework done, it may not be like straight A's, but you're teaching kids how to read,

which is getting them into the job field and keeping them out of prison or keeping them alive. And that concludes part one of my very cool conversation with a bunch of kids and their teacher from Briar Crest Christian School. And I'm telling you what, don't miss part two. It's now available to listen to. Together guys, we can change this country,

but it starts with you. I'll see you in part two. I'm going to hang up, journalist and documentary filmmaker. Away Days is my new project, reporting on countercultures on the fringes of society All across the world life from the underground you'll discover no rules fighting Japanese street racing Resilient favela life and much more all real completely uncensored Listen to the away days podcast reporting from the underbelly on the iHeart radio app Apple podcast or wherever you get your podcasts.

A body, a suspect and a hundred years of silence. Buried Bones is a podcast about the forgotten crimes history tried to leave behind. A common misperception about serial predators is that every single time they commit a crime, they commit it the same way. The past is a way of talking if you know what to listen for. New episodes every Wednesday on the Exactly Right Network. Listen to Bury Bones on the iHeartRadio app, Apple podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. In 2022, a group of divers were sucked into an oil pipe and trapped deep beneath the sea. They could have been saved, but they weren't.

Following their story has led us to lucrative contracts, failing safety standards and secretive political relationships, as we ask, why were those men left to die? This is Pipeline. Episodes are released weekly. Search for Pipeline on the iHeartRadio app or wherever you get your podcasts. OpenAI is a financial abomination, a thing that should not be, an aberration, a symbol of rot at the heart of Silicon Valley. And I'm going to tell you why on my show Better Offline, the rudest show in the industry about all the other

ways the rich and powerful are ruining the computer. Listen to Better Offline on the iHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, wherever you happen to get your podcasts.