An Army of Normal Folks

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An Army of Normal Folks

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25/07/2024

“Hi Bill,

After learning about him on your Army, we’ve had a wonderful 3 day visit with Robert Hill and his fiancé Catrina here in Arizona.

I was very surprised that Robert was willing to travel over 1300 miles one way. It's almost as if we have been close friends for the past 20 years.

Robert and I have talked about possible ways that I can help him with Friends After 5, especially in expanding it to other western cities.

During our BBQ on Saturday, Robert shared with 10 of my invited Flagstaff friends about his history and challenges growing up in the South, and his current vision and ministry for young black men and women to develop friendships and become part of the middle class through social interactions with non-blacks.

At our Canyon Chapel church the next morning, Robert preached a terrific “Baptist Preacher” message on family, community and national unity. He and his message were very well received with applause.

One member approached him afterwards and said that several days earlier, she had prayed for a message on National unity to be addressed at our church… she was thrilled.

Because of An Army of Normal Folks, Robert has blessed my wife and me, Flagstaff and our congregation.

You missed out on my smoked pulled pork, that truly rivals Memphis barbecue 🤪

God bless Bill and keep up your important podcast”

—Bob Thorpe
Flagstaff, Arizona
Army member

Listen to Robert’s story at the link in the comments below! 🔗 ⬇️

24/07/2024

Thanks so much to everyone who came out to Saturday’s interview with Russell Butler, “The Dancing UPS Man”, at Grind City Brewing Company!

Especially Mitch and Steve Houck who drove from Ohio to Memphis :)

Here’s some fun highlights including Russell dancing, a group photo, and Coach Bill & Mitch at his “We The People” truck.

23/07/2024

After losing his mom to cancer, Yuri Williams was depressed and strangely enough found hope when he created an Instagram account.

Posts from Army members Officer Tommy M Norman and Rodney Smith Jr. lifted his spirits, and he even badgered Rodney to join one of his 50 state tours!

Next thing you know these guys have gone on 5 Christmas tours together.

Yuri dresses up as a superhero, Rodney dresses up as an elf, and they bring presents to kids with illnesses or disabilities in all 50 states.

And Yuri is a parole officer who does all of this, and so much more, during his off-time.

He’s the normal superhero that I cannot wait for you to meet on this latest episode of An Army of Normal Folks.

It’s the first time we’ve had 3 Army members in one episode :)

Take a listen at the link in the comments!

Afuturesuperhero And Friends

22/07/2024

“Right by my house, the liquor store was selling dope out of it, unbeknownst to me.

So a lady bought some dope there, walked across the street right by our garden, and shot up. And she overdosed and died on the bus stop bench.

The DA, FBI, and everyone comes down. There's crime tape around the liquor store.

And it just so happened to be, that was the time when we finally got something besides grass and weeds to grow in our garden.

We had our first harvest.

So one of my guys was walking in front of that bus stop bench, just a few days later, with a bag of vegetables. And one of the guys that's posted up out in front of that corner store walks up to him and says, ‘What do you have in that bag?’

He says, ‘Vegetables from our garden.’ The guy said ‘I’ll give you three dollars for it.’

And a code enforcement officer walks across the street and writes him a ticket for it.

I can sit on my front porch, watch people being sold, and nothing happens. And we get written a ticket for selling vegetables.

So I guess this passive aggressive thing still rages in me and we started calling ourselves Bonton Farms, just to poke the city.

And I lament it because people think we're about a farm, and we’re not. I mean, if you think of the word farm, what it literally means is to grow and cultivate.

It's just that we grow and cultivate people.”

—Daron Babcock
Dallas, Texas
Founder, Bonton Farms

Listen at the link in the comments! 🔗

16/07/2024

After losing his wife to cancer, Daron Babcock spiraled out of control and into brawls & co***ne.

And he found redemption in rehab.

Daron continued his successful career and was going to a Bible study in Dallas’ worst neighborhood, but God was nudging his heart that once a week wasn’t nearly enough.

So he quit his job and moved to Bonton…. without much of a plan at all.

The neighborhood “incarcerates the highest percentage of our population than any zip code in the state, we have the second highest teen birth rate, the highest infant mortality rate, average median household income was $13k when I moved in, and men live 12 years less on average.”

Daron stumbled into creating Bonton Farms, one of the largest urban farms in the country.

And it’s not really about cultivating vegetables, but cultivating people.

We cannot wait for you to meet Daron on this week’s episode.

Listen here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/an-army-of-normal-folks/id1689470062

15/07/2024

"Everyone needs a yardman... like normal people."

So said Coach Bill Courtney's daughter... and just wait until you hear his response on the latest Shop Talk.

Listen here: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/an-army-of-normal-folks/id1689470062?i=1000661987819

11/07/2024

Awesome interview with Jay Ruderman on his great podcast All About Change!

I hope you'll check it out at the link in the comments! 🔗 ⬇️

10/07/2024

Hope you can join us in Memphis!

Army member Mitch Houck is even coming from Ohio!

RSVP at the link in the comments. 🔗 ⬇️

09/07/2024

An 18-year-old boy aged out of foster care and had nowhere to go.

He began to walk until he could find the nearest freeway, threw himself in front of an 18 -wheeler, and he committed su***de.

The judge who shared this story with Susan Ramirez said that it is so problematic to never understand what that young man's life was supposed to become.

It is a disservice to all of us.

We're all robbed because of it.

And in one hour, Susan’s whole life completely changed.

She believes in that very moment God said to her, “This is your burden to bear and I want you to do something about it.”

And she left that conference “feeling the weight of the world.”

Susan started what is now National Angels, whose 19 chapters have volunteers doing life with 3,000 kids experiencing foster care and their foster parents!

We cannot wait for you to meet Susan on this week’s episode (link in the comments)! 🔗 ⬇️

08/07/2024

"Some of my happiest memories from my childhood were just hanging out in a tree.

And my love for trees really deepened when I planted some of my first trees.

I was part of a project that was inspired by the first free tree program in America that was started by David Kidd in the 80s. He raised money and gave away free trees to people all across Ohio. And I was in Iowa at the time and we started our own chapter.

This left a lasting impression on me. I got to plant little tree seedlings in my community and see them grow up over years and decades into majestic beauties. I gave free trees to kids and it was a very rewarding experience.

I spent the next 15 years working in corporate America until I had a crisis of purpose.

So after a lot of deep self reflection, I decided to rekindle my love of planting trees and giving trees to kids. And that's how I started Neighborhood Forest 15 years ago.

We started with 4 schools in Minneapolis and we're serving over 2,000 schools, libraries, and youth groups.

And we've given almost 200,000 kids their very own tree to plant.

We want to reach every child in America, filling in their hearts a sense of magic, wonder, and love for the planet."

—Vikas Narula
Minneapolis, Minnesota
Founder, Neighborhood Forest
Army member

05/07/2024

What are we going to do with these kids?

For our latest Shop Talk, Coach Bill Courtney shares a fascinating perspective about these "ragged kids" coming up.

And it’ll definitely surprise you 😳

Check out the link in the comments below! 🔗 ⬇️

03/07/2024

When some folks are taking a knee, Mike Rowe brings us "Something to Stand For".

Mike explains the tite of his new movie to Bill Courtney.

And how... the national anthem is an original protest song.

Check it out and the movie while it's in theaters this week! (Links in comments)

02/07/2024

Orrin Checkmate Hudson, the man who’s taught 100,000 kids chess!

And the goal of Be Someone, his nonprofit, is to teach 1 million kids.

None of this would’ve happened if a high school teacher didn’t make the effort to teach him chess and show him a better path than his gang life.

Orrin became the first African American to defeat the Alabama State Champion in chess.

Yet it’s not really about chess, but the life lessons that chess can teach you.

We cannot wait for you to meet Orrin on this week’s episode at the link in the comments! 🔗 ⬇️

01/07/2024

"Bill,

I really love your podcast, especially the one with Don Wettrick, which inspired the following.

I am a substitute teacher at the School of Promise in Chiang Mai, Thailand, and I have been covering classes for a teacher who has returned to her home country for the summer. She gave me a list of things she wanted to teach, but she gave me full latitude to teach and inspire the students.

So yesterday, there was flex time in their schedule, and I gave the students 50 minutes to learn about whatever they wanted. The parameters I set before we started were that you needed to tell me what you were going to learn about and why you wanted to learn about it. Then, at the end of the class, you needed to tell me one thing that you learned.

I am pretty sure the students have never had time like that before, but it was strange to me as I looked around at them to see that they were really studying and very quiet which was quite unusual.

Some of the students learned how to cook Thai or Korean Food. One student wanted to be an animal doctor, so he studied animals. One wanted to learn about Korea, and she found a website that had the Korean language with Thai letters underneath that had the definition of the Korean phrase and how to pronounce the phrase. One student wanted to learn how to play a piano piece of a famous concerto.

The children I teach are amazing and do not have the best backgrounds, but today, I believe I inspired them to learn something on their own to better themselves.

I updated the teacher on what we did, and hopefully, we can implement some time throughout the year to continue on this.

My heart is for the class to develop a service project to go out and serve others in our community.

Here is a pic of the students working hard.

God Bless you and the work that you do."

---Ken Morris
Chiang Mai, Thailand
Army member

Catch Don's story at the link below in the comments! 🔗 ⬇️

28/06/2024

Mike Rowe did something important, again.

At a time when only 38% of Americans are extremely proud of being American, Mike brings us "Something To Stand For".

In our latest Shop Talk with Coach Bill Courtney, Mike tells us about his new film and its 9 historical stories which powerfully remind us that in spite of our flaws, there’s a lot to be proud of about what our country has achieved and how far we’ve come.

These 9 stories are ones that you almost definitely haven’t heard before, will want to hear, and inspires us about the American spirit!

Something To Stand For is now in theaters everywhere through July 4th, which is perfect timing to reflect on the country leading up to Independence Day.

Check out the episode with Mike and the website to buy tickets at the links in the comments!

25/06/2024

When dropping off Christmas presents felt yucky.

Melinda and Jim Hollandsworth didn’t expect to have this feeling “helping” a lower-income family, but they did.

And they also felt weird that this would be their only encounter with them.

So they kept coming back to their largely Hispanic mobile home park and kept doing life with the family, who eventually asked for their help with the kids’ homework.

One thing led to another and their accidental nonprofit Path United is now operating community centers in 7 mobile home parks and serves 600 kids every week!

There’s so many impactful conversations in this week’s episode about “toxic charity”, the power of relationships, consistency, and a lot more.

Listen at the link in the comments! 🔗 ⬇️

24/06/2024

From Army member Keith Bauch: “Hey Alex, so you are the producer guy that Bill beats up on?

Just like Mike Rowe does to Chuck every week on The Way I Heard It.

I heard about The Army of Normal Folks when Bill Courtney was on Mike’s podcast. I have been listening for a while now and went back and listened to all the episodes. One of the few podcasts I subscribe to and listen to every week.

Keep up the good work!”

Sadly for Alex, the answer was yes 😭 But he punches back.

And says that Bill still relies on a paper calendar 🤦‍♂️

20/06/2024

Tim Ferriss once offered college students $2k if they could get to their hero that they wanted to talk to or work with.

And no one took him up on it.

But Indiana teacher Don Wettrick gave his students the same challenge… and without the prize money 🤪

They wanted to get to Tim Ferriss.

And you will love this hilarious story of what happened next!

Check out our full feature on Don at the link below! 🔗 ⬇️

STARTedUp Foundation

18/06/2024

400 college students have been assigned An Army of Normal Folks!

Thanks to Dr. Rhonda Breeland Smith, the social work students listen to and reflect on one of our podcast episodes of their choosing.

In our new episode with Rhonda, she reads aloud their writing about Cheri Chafin Garcia, Chad Houser, Luke Mickelson, Amy Crenshaw, Jessica Lamb, and Tiani Shoemaker Clyde.

And how Rhonda got to teaching social work is an amazing story in and of itself.

After escaping an addicted and physically abusive husband, she became a therapist and was seeing 40 folks a week, including a lot of difficult cases like her husband’s.

It’s incredible how trauma often leads to career paths, consciously and subconsciously, that help both those who create the trauma and those who are subjected to it.

Rhonda eventually decided that she could have an even greater impact by teaching the next generation of social workers at The University of Southern Mississippi. And we cannot express how much it means to us that she’s using the podcast in her classes.

Check out this latest episode at the link in the comments!

16/06/2024

“I Was Miserable on Father’s Day, Until…”

Coach Bill Courtney shares why it used to be the most miserable day of the year for him.

And how his wife Lisa whipped him into shape.

14/06/2024

Sparky Reardon: The Model of Servant Leadership.

For our latest “Shop Talk”, Coach Bill Courtney pays tribute to The University of Mississippi - Ole Miss’ former Dean of Students who changed his life and countless others.

If you’ve never met your Dean, that’s usually a good thing, but not in the case of Sparky Reardon.

Bill talks about him remembering names, helping get the Sigma Nu Charity Bowl off the ground, being a leader in the anti-hazing movement, and how he served those he led.

Check out the episode at the link in the comments! 🔗 ⬇️

11/06/2024

An Army of Normal Folks’ latest episode with Don Wettrick is now live!

Don is on the frontlines of challenging our broken 20th century education system with 21st century innovations.

As a teacher, he brought unheard of things like “Genius Time” and “open-source learning” to his classroom.

And his latest innovation is the STARTedUp Foundation, which has helped Indiana teachers engage over 6,000 students with the most elite entrepreneurship pitch competition!

Check out the episode at the link in the comments! 🔗 ⬇️

10/06/2024

American Essence Magazine's feature on An Army of Normal Folks is now available online!

Check it out at the link in the comments.

What an awesome title: "Can Ordinary Americans Solve the Country’s Toughest Social Issues? One Man in Memphis Is Showing the World That They Can"

Luke Mickelson (founder of Sleep in Heavenly Peace) and Pastor Lee Robbins (founder of Vital Signs) are celebrated in the feature :)

04/06/2024

A homeless man walked into Carly Rice’s garden.

And he picked the right garden to walk into.

Carly has experienced molestation, prostitution, s*x trafficking, addiction, loss, homelessness on Skid Row, and almost every trauma that you could imagine.

Her escape and recovery have fueled her radical empathy for the least among us, starting with welcoming this gentleman into her home for meals.

That led to his friends knocking on her door… and ultimately Miss Carly's feeding thousands out of her own home in Rockford, Illinois.

Most importantly, their volunteers walk alongside the homeless and have helped 200 people achieve full recoveries and life transformation!

We cannot wait for you to meet Carly on this week’s episode of the podcast.

Listen at the link in the comments! 🔗 ⬇️

03/06/2024

Makaisha was pregnant, 17 years old, and about to age out of foster care.

She was about to be on her own.

And she was terrified.

That’s when CarePortal’s care-sharing network got to work.

This story told by Adrien Lewis is such a beautiful example of doing life together.

Something that our world needs more of.... and CarePortal is helping make more common.

Listen to the full story at the link in the comments.

01/06/2024

After one of Ronda Paulson's talks on foster care and adoption, an attendee asked if he could ask her anything.

She said “Sure, as long as it’s not my weight” 🤪

Check out his pointed question and her powerful response.

Can listen to our entire episode on Ronda’s story at the link in the comments! 🔗⬇️

31/05/2024

Army members Ben Owen and Jessica Owen’s We Fight Monsters is the beneficiary of this awesome Barbecue competition tomorrow in Memphis.

It’s free to attend, BBQ plates are for sale, and all proceeds go to their mission :)

They’d love to meet you there!

30/05/2024

The Holy Trinity of Mike Rowe, Governor Bill Lee, and Jesus

The three dudes who helped grow Isaiah 117 House from 1 house to 22 houses that have served 5,000 kids experiencing foster care!

Founder Ronda Paulson tells some hilarious stories about this trinity of do-gooders.

Check out our episode with Ronda at the link in the comments!

28/05/2024

“A little girl slept on this floor last night”

Kids entering foster care often sleep in DMV-looking offices while they wait to be placed.

When Ronda Paulson learned about this, she got mad at God and said “How could you?”

And she heard him say back, “These are my children, what are you going to do?”

What Ronda did is rally her community to build a beautiful home to welcome them into.

She thought that would be it, but there’s now 22 of these Isaiah 117 Houses around the country!

And they've loved on over 5,000 kids on what can be the worst day of their lives.

We cannot wait for you to meet Ronda on this week’s episode of the podcast.

Listen at the link in the comments!

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Videos

When some folks are taking a knee, Mike Rowe brings us "Something to Stand For".

When some folks are taking a knee, Mike Rowe brings us "Something to Stand For". Mike explains the tite of his new movie to Bill Courtney. And how... the national anthem is an original protest song. Check it out and the movie while it's in theaters this week! (Links in comments)

Teaching Students to be Relentless

Tim Ferriss once offered college students $2k if they could get to their hero that they wanted to talk to or work with. And no one took him up on it. But Indiana teacher Don Wettrick gave his students the same challenge… and without the prize money 🤪 They wanted to get to Tim Ferriss. And you will love this hilarious story of what happened next! Check out our full feature on Don at the link below! 🔗 ⬇️ STARTedUp Foundation

“I Was Miserable on Father’s Day, Until…”

“I Was Miserable on Father’s Day, Until…” Coach Bill Courtney shares why it used to be the most miserable day of the year for him. And how his wife Lisa whipped him into shape.

“Prostituting on Skid Row was really dangerous”

Carly Rice is on a mission to normalize talking about the trauma that too many have faced. Listen to our full story with the founder of Miss Carly's at the link in the comments! 🔗

The Power of Being There for Someone

Makaisha was pregnant, 17 years old, and about to age out of foster care. She was about to be on her own. And she was terrified. That’s when CarePortal’s care-sharing network got to work. This story told by Adrien Lewis is such a beautiful example of doing life together. Something that our world needs more of.... and CarePortal is helping make more common. Listen to the full story at the link in the comments.

After one of Ronda Paulson's talks on foster care and adoption, an attendee asked if he could ask her anything. She said “Sure, as long as it’s not my weight” 🤪 Check out his pointed question and her powerful response. Can listen to our entire episode on Ronda’s story at the link in the comments! 🔗⬇️

The Holy Trinity of Mike Rowe, Governor Bill Lee, and Jesus

The Holy Trinity of Mike Rowe, Governor Bill Lee, and Jesus The three dudes who helped grow Isaiah 117 House from 1 house to 22 houses that have served 5,000 kids experiencing foster care! Founder Ronda Paulson tells some hilarious stories about this trinity of do-gooders. Check out our episode with Ronda at the link in the comments!

Imagine if you could see the needs of at-risk kids that surround us, but we usually don’t know about? Enter CarePortal. Adrien Lewis

Place of Hope in Haiti, the orphanage founded by Army member Andre Angie Forges, had their generator go out this fall. And they were without power for a couple months. Until, a few anonymous Army members stepped up and bought them a new one! Here is a cool video they sent us of the generator arriving ❤️ Yet another cool example of An Army of Normal Folks coming together to do what we can. Let’s keep trucking :)

Does My Identity Even Matter?

CarePortal's founder Adrien Lewis on having a black father and an Armenian mother. And feeling like he didn't fit anywhere as a kid. Then something happened, that wiped away his struggle with this. We love Adrien's vulnerability that we need more of in this world. Be sure to listen to this latest episode at the link below 🔗 ⬇️ Bill Courtney

You Are Nobody’s Victim + Love & Forgiveness.

CarePortal’s founder Adrien Lewis on two lessons from his parents that are deep inside of him. Listen to our episode with this extraordinary man at the link below!

Scott's Sobriety Journey

The ice climbing brochure that changed Scott Strode's life! And it's profound connection to his childhood that choked Scott up. Meet this extraordinary founder of a 400k person movement called The Phoenix on our latest episode. Link to episode in the comments 🔗 ⬇️ Scott Strode The Phoenix 1 Million Strong Bill Courtney

It's NOT Your Fault...

Letting go is hard to do. Wounds often go deep and the pain can be unbearable. Of course there should be time to mourn, to process through the hurt… But once that has been done, we can begin to throw off the weight of the past and work towards a better tomorrow. Hear how Scott Strode did just that on our latest episode! Link in Comments Below The Phoenix Scott Strode 1 Million Strong Bill Courtney

"I forgave the guy that shot at me.... and buried him because no one else did"

"I forgave the guy that shot at me.... and buried him because no one else did" This is one of the most powerful, raw, and redemptive stories that Coach Bill Courtney has ever told. With our friend and Army member Anne Mahlum on her great podcast, "The How To Podcast" You've gotta watch this one. It may move you to forgive someone. Anne Mahlum Bill Courtney

Seems like the Army did it again. What a privilege to even be considered as a finalist for The Anthem Awards. We want to thank the judges for awarding us Bronze in the Podcast/Audio category… But even more importantly, we want to thank YOU. While the 7 judges chose to give us Bronze, it was you guys, the “army of normal folks”, that gave us GOLD for the Anthem Community Voice award. This isn’t a win for us. It’s a win for all those out there saying “Hey! I can help.”

Army Member - Manu Meel

Manu Meel shares his unique experience around empowering and equipping the next generation to exercise conflict resolutions that lead to connection and unity! Tune in to his full episode here: https://bit.ly/415NbbE

Coach Bill Courtney on Kelly Clarkson Show

"You should have been a preacher. I would have gone to that sermon"---Kelly Clarkson on Coach Bill Courtney Catch Coach Bill Courtney's full interview with Kelly Clarkson right here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C2U7OeIovgE #AnArmyOfNormalFolks #DontBeATurkeyPerson

Coach Bill Courtney on the Oscar-winning documentary “Undefeated”! Did you miss Coach Bill Courtney's live interview with Kelly Clarkson? Don't fret! Catch the full interview right here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=C2U7OeIovgE

We are more than our labels. Manu Meel is championing a world where we delve deeper, moving beyond labels to uncover the stories and essence that define our true selves. Find out how.👇 https://apple.co/3sqzY0b

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