July 22, 2025 • 39 mins
Dr. Rhonda Smith has assigned the podcast to over 400 of her social work students at the University of Southern Mississippi. In this episode we meet 7 of them, who are sure to inspire you about this rising generation!
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:02):
One of the reasons that like for the students to
listen to an army of normal folks is so that
they can see that they can really do what we're
talking about.
Speaker 2 (00:13):
Like it's not just some idea that they have that will.
Speaker 1 (00:16):
Never come true, but that they can see that real people,
normal people can really make these things happen.
Speaker 3 (00:34):
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. And
somehow that last part, well, they made a movie about it,
and that movie is called Undefeated. Guys, I believe our
country's problems are never going to be solved by a
(00:55):
bunch of fancy talking people on seeing in in fox
wear nice clothes, using language nobody ever uses, but rather
by an army of normal folks. That's us, guys, just
you and me deciding, Hey, you know what, maybe I
can help. Doctor Ronda Smith is a past guest who's
assigned a podcast to over four hundred of her students,
(01:17):
and today we're going to meet some of them. I
can't wait for you to hear the passion of this
rising generation right after these brief messages from our general sponsors.
(01:41):
Last year, we did a episode with doctor Ronda Smith,
who is gleefully joining us. Hey, Ronda, how are you.
Speaker 4 (01:51):
I'm good?
Speaker 2 (01:51):
How are you?
Speaker 3 (01:54):
I'm great. I've been on the road probably seventeen in
the last twenty days, and I'm really glad to be
home and looking forward to this chat. We did an
episode with Ronda, doctor Smith on her life story, including
(02:14):
her family being chased out of Mexico because her father
didn't like a kid leaning his bike on her car.
Let's see, I remember the story Ronda, Ronda's Ronda's difficulty
with past relationships with her ex husband's struggle with drug addiction,
and how she overcame that abuse, which led to her
(02:36):
escaping that situation with a daughter and ultimately choosing a
career of social work, which led to her being a
professor now at the University of Southern Mississippi. What's coolest
not coolest? There's a lot of cool things about RONDEVU.
For our perspective, one of the coolest things about Ronda
is she is assigned listening to an army of normal
(02:59):
votes to over four hundred of her students. Her poor
unsuspecting students at the University of Southern Mississippi, which we're
really honored by that our podcast has struck her enough
that she has chosen to utilize it as part of
her text in many of her classes. So that's a
(03:23):
little bit about Ronda. But today's interesting because now we're
going to meet several of her students from some of
her classes last semester, and we're going to talk about
how they and their own right are an army of
normal folks and what they've learned and hopefully the inspiration
(03:43):
they've gotten from the show and the things that they
want to do possibly in their lives as a result
of some of the work they've done with Rondon and
hopefully some of what they've learned from an army and
normal self. So, Ronda, what is this class and what
is it about? And why I are you signing a
podcast as part of the sullabus.
Speaker 1 (04:06):
Well, several of the students that are here today I've
taught a couple of times, and so they may have
had this assignment more than once. I taught a couple
of y'all in undergrad isn't that right?
Speaker 2 (04:16):
Yep?
Speaker 1 (04:17):
And then I had them again in graduate school, and
so I think the first class that maybe they listened
to the Army of normal folks was in social policy,
where we talked about policy making and making changes on
a bigger and a bigger on a bigger level. And
then this the most recent class that I had them
(04:40):
in is social Entrepreneurship, and it's where they got to
work on an actual business plan project. And the Army
of normal folks, that's what we hear a lot about,
is people actually taking social projects and making making it happen, right,
(05:00):
And so one of the things that one of the
reasons that like for the students to listen to an
Army of normal folks is so that they can see
that they can really do what we're talking about, Like
it's not just some idea that they have that will
never come true, but that they can see that real people,
(05:21):
normal people can really make these things happen. And so
that's one of the reasons that I like them to
listen to at least one of the episodes of an
Army of normal folks, say that they can see that
it's attainable, that it's possible.
Speaker 3 (05:34):
What are the reasons I love here? What you say,
what you're saying now is candidly there's a vast ocean
oftentimes between academia and reality. So much of what we
learn in school, while it's applicable and important and part
of our development, much of you know, Randa, not to
(05:58):
be not. I don't want to be uh. I don't
even know what the word is. I don't want to
come off ugly. But there is an old adage those
who don't teach, and in business people often say those
who don't make it happen in teaching because and I
(06:18):
think that's a tongue in cheek way of saying that
oftentimes what's taught and the textbooks and the prevailing thought
that is running around an academia isn't always necessarily applicable
in the real world. But it seems like at least
(06:40):
in social entrepreneurship, you're really working hard to bridge that gap.
Speaker 1 (06:45):
Absolutely, many of us that are teaching in the Social
Work Arena we have done and we're teaching so that
we can pass that knowledge on to the students that
are coming through the program now, because we do know
what's out there, and we do know, you know, what
has to happen to keep these kids.
Speaker 4 (07:07):
Going and motivated and you.
Speaker 1 (07:09):
Know, we want to keep keep.
Speaker 4 (07:11):
The momentum going.
Speaker 1 (07:13):
And so that's one of the reasons that I got
into teaching, was because I do know what it takes
to you know, help the people out there street level.
We've got to encourage the new social workers that are
coming through the program just because it's a hard job.
(07:33):
Would you say so, guys, I mean they're just getting
started in their careers now and say they're seeing now
that yeah, it's not always what we think it is.
Speaker 3 (07:44):
And so so let's briefly, very briefly be introduced to
some of these students. So starting with Laura, you're at
the top of my screen. Just tell me your name,
who you are, what your degree or degrees, and just
kind of do sholf real quickly, and then we'll get
(08:06):
to kind of the work that you've done.
Speaker 5 (08:09):
Well.
Speaker 2 (08:09):
I'm Laura I.
Speaker 4 (08:13):
McNeil, Lamanil.
Speaker 6 (08:14):
I got both of my degrees from Southern they're both
in social work bachelor, undergrad and masters. My social work
experience is kind of all over the field. My undergrad
internships or internship was at CPS job Projective Services and
I was in safety and investigations, and then my grad
(08:36):
school internship was at a nursing home, so very both
opposite sides of the playing field. Loved them both, Yeah,
and I hope to do I think I want to
work with like hospice, geriatrics, that kind of stuff.
Speaker 3 (08:48):
Cool. Amy.
Speaker 7 (08:49):
Hey, I'm a Lee Evans and I got my bachelor's
and sociology, philosophy and nonprofit studies, and I got my
master's in social work. During my I was actually able
to do a really cool research project on women's addiction
and recovery experiences.
Speaker 2 (09:06):
That's the population I work with.
Speaker 7 (09:07):
I am currently the director of therapeutic programming at a
residential women's addiction work White Recenter.
Speaker 3 (09:13):
Very Me, Bailey, Hey, my.
Speaker 4 (09:15):
Name is Bailey mcplaine.
Speaker 8 (09:17):
I got my undergrad and graduate degrees in social work
from Southern mess I had Daughter Smith for Bothel. For
my undergrad internship experience, I was working with the homeless
population in Hattiesburg, and then in grad school I worked
with adolescent teenagers with intellectual disabilities. And I also participated
(09:38):
in a program through the University of Arkansas Medical Sciences
called Lend Leadership and Education and Neurodevelopmental Disabilities. But I
think I want to veer more towards working with kids.
You know know that I've had all these experiences. I
loved them all, but I love my kids a lot.
Speaker 2 (09:53):
William, and my name is William Elijah Woodward.
Speaker 9 (09:58):
And I did my undergrad at louis In or State University.
I'm from New Orleans originally. That's my That's where I
want to be long term. I love the city. And
I did my masters at University of Southern Mephafiit be
in social work, my underground experience if you were in school,
working with like troubled adolescent. And then and for my masters,
(10:21):
I worked with homeless, the homeless population and Hattie work.
Speaker 3 (10:25):
Uh sash is a Sashia, Sasha Saysia. I apologize.
Speaker 4 (10:31):
My name is Sasha Flucker.
Speaker 10 (10:33):
I got both of my degrees from Southern missis will
my undergrad and social work and my master's in social
work as well. And I had doctor Smith all the
way through. I was also a graduate assistant, so I
spent extra time with doctor Smith as will I did
my undergraduate internship at the Children's Center for Communication and
Development that work with kids who have disabilities, and then
(10:54):
I had my master's internship with the geriatric population. So
kind of White Laura, we were until two different ends
of it with my goalies. I want to have some
type of program to advocate for kids with autism.
Speaker 5 (11:07):
Tara, Hello, My name is Tara Dummaybe. I got my
bachelor's and masters and so she worked from the University
of Southern Mississippi. For my undergraduate internship, I interned at
Kids Held Child Advocacy Center. I worked with children that
were used in their families. And then for graduate school,
(11:28):
my internship he was at the Institute's a Disability Studies
at Southern miss Bailey and I actually interned together, so
I worked with adolescent disabilities and then I also participated.
Speaker 3 (11:39):
In the Lend p Friend and last but not least, Juliana.
Speaker 11 (11:43):
So my name is Julianna Stevens. I got my undergrad
at Mississi State University in social or. I worked a
couple of years in the fields in special education, child advocacy,
and in patient psych. I did that and then was like, well,
I need to give a master's. So I went to
Southern miss and got my master's in social work and
just graduated like everybody else heearched.
Speaker 4 (12:04):
So it's been good.
Speaker 3 (12:05):
I've never considered myself a scholar, but rarely do I
feel like I'm the dumbest person in the room. And
when I hear all these undergraduate and graduate degrees and
everything else, I'm struck by two things. One I feel
like a dummy, and two how encouraged I am to
see so many young faces who are inspired to spend
(12:27):
so much time learning a craft that is intended to
better society. So one, thanks for making me feel like
an idiot, But to applaud you all for working so
hard and developing a skill set that hopefully betters our culture.
And now a few messages from our general sponsors, but
(12:49):
first a thought or two from yours. Truly, at least
two teachers, doctor Ronda and Jenny Manguno, organically just decided
to use the podcast in their classroom without any encouragement
from us, and candidly any knowledge until we found out later.
But what if there was encouragement from us. It could
(13:12):
be a great resource for service clubs and all kinds
of classes social work, oral communications, english history, religion. If
you're a teacher and decide to do this or share
it with teachers in schools you know for their consideration,
let us know. And also if you have any questions,
email me at Bill at normal folks dot us and
(13:34):
I'll respond We'll be right back. So with that, certainly,
you spent a lot of money on education, you spend
a lot of time, and then this goofy doctor Ronda
(13:56):
Smith says, Okay, you've paid to school and learn, and
now I'm going to sign you to listen to a podcast.
I gotta I gotta wonder when you first heard that
you had to go listen to some goofy podcast just
part of your class experience. What was what was? What
(14:17):
was what were your first thoughts podcasts for social work? Anybody?
Speaker 10 (14:25):
I didn't know what to expect. I kind of did
when she said to do it. I'm not like a podcaster.
I don't like listen to podcasts.
Speaker 3 (14:32):
Me neither do.
Speaker 2 (14:34):
I was like, I don't know what to expect, But
then I found some.
Speaker 10 (14:39):
I kind of scrolled through to see like what it
was about, and then one that popped out was to
me about I think it was about I think his
name was John or something cood. He had something about
prisoners and the system and he got them to get
a bachelor's degree for juveniles or something, and it popped
out and then I watched it, and then I started
watching them, and then I went down a rabbit me
(15:00):
start watching others.
Speaker 3 (15:02):
So I think that would be my response if I
was going to squag, I'll listen to a podcast what
this is about? So as a class, I know you've
watched some videos about Cornbread Hustle, which is Cherry Garcio,
who's amazing, and with Chad Howser with a Cafe momentum,
(15:23):
which I think is interesting that he's a class you watched, Rhonda.
I'm curious as you noticed your students starting to listening
to episodes, did you see the episodes help them form
some of what they were thinking they were going to
(15:44):
do with their education? Or maybe I shouldn't even lead
that way, Maybe ick to say what was your goal?
Speaker 4 (15:53):
The goal was to.
Speaker 2 (15:57):
Help the ideas become more concrete because at the very
beginning of this assignment, you know, it was very they
weren't sure what they were going to create. It was
a you know, they had to come up with a
business plan. They had to come up with an idea.
What are you passionate about? First of all, what y'all
(16:20):
help me remember what population are you going to work with?
Speaker 4 (16:25):
What kind of an.
Speaker 1 (16:26):
Idea do you think the community that you're working with need.
So we go through all of these exercises to decide
what their project is going to be for the semester,
and then to kind of figure out that it's doable.
That's when I introduced the podcast. I want you to
(16:48):
know that these things are possible, and so I also
wanted them to go through and pick out an episode
maybe that's similar to what they are looking at doing.
I mean, maybe it's a if someone is interested in
working with juveniles who are incarcerated, you know, go through
(17:09):
and find an episode of someone who has already done
some work in that area. And then I encourage them
also after they've listened to the episode, reach out to
whoever the person is that has already done that work
for ideas, Reach use the resource that you have in
front of you.
Speaker 3 (17:30):
That that's really cool. So who here listened or found
an episode that fit or aligned closely with a project
that not only they were completing for coursework, but may
actually be something you want to do beyond. Can someone
tell me that did anybody align with one of the
(17:53):
episodes and something you actually wanted to do that was close.
Speaker 2 (17:58):
Well?
Speaker 3 (17:58):
What are we giving this, Bailey? Yeah, Bailey, go ahead.
Speaker 2 (18:02):
Sorry.
Speaker 8 (18:03):
I wasn't you know, like quite sure exactly which direction
I was going with like my business plan assignment and all.
But like I said, you know, when I introduced it myself,
like I have a big heart for kids, huge heart
for kids, and especially like kids in like adoption, in
foster care and things like that. And so the episode
that I listened to it was the one with Monica
(18:23):
Keltzy the Safe Haven Baby Boxes, And I was driving
home from How to Spark one day. I'm from about
an hour and a half away, and I was like, oh,
you know, I gotta do the summit for doctor Smith.
Let me just turn it on and listen. You know,
I'm driving, you know, not thinking that. Yeah, it would
really I guess like touch me the way that it did.
It was like it was encouraging, to say the least,
(18:47):
like moving into the business plan and all. I was
like just thinking to myself, like Monica, like, you know,
she took this thing that happened to her that could
have I guess ruined a person, like could really like
have sent her life in a completely different directions. She
used it for better, you know, not only you know,
to help people like her, but to make this impact nationwide.
(19:08):
And I was talking to my mom after I listened
to the podcast about it, you know, telling her about
like the safe having baby boxes and this is she
had never heard of it. And I mean she works
in healthcare, but she had never heard of it. But
I had heard of it, you know before I'd send
her on TikTok. That's where I get a lot of
my information from this TikTok. But yeah, it was just
again like kind of like what doctor Smith said, it
(19:28):
ago like you're just giving this giving us this idea,
like if we take this seriously and this assignment seriously,
like this is something that we can do, and this
is something that we can use to make an impact,
like like Monica Kelsey has made an impact and make
a difference in make a change. So it wasn't, you know,
directly related to what I ended up doing my business plan,
(19:50):
but it was such like a confidence boost of like Bailey,
like take this serious and like you can for real
do this one day.
Speaker 3 (19:58):
I love that One of the things we one of
the things we talk about all the time on an
Army normal folks is look, it's entertainment, right, So we
always have to try to make the music fit and
the breaks fit, and hopefully make people laugh and smile
(20:18):
and think, because ultimately, if you don't entertain nobody's going
to tend and to listen. But the side benefit to
that is, hopefully, if you listen long enough, you're going
to hear an episode. If it's entertaining enough, you'll keep
tuning in weekly. But if you listen long enough, not
(20:40):
only are going to be entertained, but eventually you're going
to find something that aligns with your interest and your
passions and your disciplines and abilities that then it in
turn hopefully inspires you to do something. I think classical
music is amazing, but I can't hammer out Happy Birthday
(21:05):
on a piano, much less play any kind of beautiful instrument. Therefore,
although I'm passionate about classical music and think it's beautiful,
it's nothing I'm going to ever engage in with anyone.
So while I'm passionate about it, it's not a discipline
on Both your passions and your disciplines have to collide,
and that's when opportunities happen. And if you listen long enough,
(21:28):
hopefully there's a varied enough stories that sooner or later,
something you are passionate about that you have an ability
in will inspire you to get involved. That's kind of
the whole idea. Then the second part is if you
want to get involved, the show itself is a blueprint
(21:50):
of how, and you have the very architect of that
blueprint available to you to contact, which is something Ronda said.
Dutch Smith said, Hey, if something's there, reach out. So
I'm curious, did any of you reach out to anybody
that was on one of the episodes? Just curious any
(22:11):
of you? No one? Did it? Doctor Smith?
Speaker 1 (22:15):
I know they're too chicken, and they're too Yeah, they're
too chicken.
Speaker 3 (22:21):
Okay, someone else, tell me what they listened to and
why and how it interacted with what your coursework was. Anyone? Oh,
Amy Lee, Amy Lee popping up here? Let's go Amy,
what you got?
Speaker 7 (22:39):
Even though I didn't contact anyone, I will say I
go back and look at the organizations that those individuals
have built, and I look at their framework, and I
look at that type of things, and I utilize that
when I'm working in an administrative capacity in my organization currently.
Speaker 2 (22:58):
So that really opened a door for me.
Speaker 7 (23:00):
I also think, you know, I was in the social
entrepreneurship class, and you know I have a unique story.
I grew up at a rehab so my family, I'm
a third generation. My family has run this recovery center
for twenty years. So I grew up over around women
going through the hardest season of their life.
Speaker 2 (23:20):
And just like you're talking about an army of normal folks.
Speaker 7 (23:23):
Like when I listen to your intro, I'm like, this
is this is what I feel on a cellular level,
is this is what it takes that I've worked with
an army of normal folks my whole life. So I
thought it was funny when you were like you guys
with all your degree. I went back as eight years
later as a non traditional student. So I've done, I've been.
I know that it takes an army of normal folks,
(23:44):
and I think we all know it takes the village,
you know, to help any of the people that were helping,
not just people with degrees, but like to me, one
of my favorite episodes of Yours Now it was actually
your shop talk on I think it was like what counts.
Speaker 2 (24:02):
As helping others?
Speaker 3 (24:04):
What?
Speaker 2 (24:04):
What what counts as helping others.
Speaker 3 (24:08):
Oh yeah, gosh, that was an early shot talk I think.
Speaker 2 (24:13):
I think it was in March.
Speaker 3 (24:14):
Okay.
Speaker 7 (24:16):
So the reason that one resonated with me the most
is I've spent my whole life on every side of
helping others and the heartache and the beauty that comes
with that and watching people transform their lives.
Speaker 2 (24:28):
And I love how in that.
Speaker 7 (24:30):
Episode you talked about we can help people write down
the hallway. That's that's how we start with our family
because I see all these like women and men who
rehab like one hundred residents that we serve at this point,
and they didn't have people who helped them down the hallway, right,
And I see that being a big reason why they
end up in our in our care right. And I
(24:53):
think that if I can't take that one step further
and I'm in with this, I think not only as
an army of normal faults do we are by helping
people down the hallway and our families? Just like you said,
I think what I'm realizing, especially from podcasts like yours
and for professors and mentors like doctor Smith, is that, yeah,
we actually.
Speaker 2 (25:12):
Started our heart and then we go the whole way.
Because when I take care of me, I can take
care of my family.
Speaker 7 (25:18):
And when I take care of me and my family,
I can help take care of my community. And I
have a lot more clarity about how I want to
do that and a simple ways of which I can
do that.
Speaker 2 (25:28):
So that's how you've impacted me. I really appreciate it.
Speaker 3 (25:32):
Well, that's awesome. I wasn't fishing for adulation, but you
just you guys can keep heaping it on. It's fine.
I grew up fat and redheaded, so the more you
want to heap on me, the better, the better I do.
William lsu gut A by you. Yeah, I know. Tell
me what episode you listen to and how it fits.
Speaker 9 (25:56):
I think the main impact the episode I listened to
about listening.
Speaker 2 (26:01):
I listened to like one, I listened to two.
Speaker 9 (26:04):
But the one that had a bigger impact on me
was also one of the workshop ones, I think, and
it was about listening to older people in your life
and and I think really at the time I was
working with homeless individual and the impact that that had
on me was y'all talked about not only is it
(26:26):
good to go to your elders and listen to them
for their sake, it's also good for your own sake,
and we forget about that. I had been reflecting recently
on how much I was learning.
Speaker 2 (26:39):
From the homeless people I was working with.
Speaker 9 (26:41):
I think these are people we often overlook and we
don't think they have anything to offer us. But many
of the times when I slowed down and just heard
the stories of my client, I found that it.
Speaker 2 (26:52):
Was impactful on me and I had things to learn
from them. And it really just gets.
Speaker 12 (26:58):
Back to that overall idea of not dehumanizing people, not
overlooking people, and wanting that human connection no matter the
circumstances people are in.
Speaker 3 (27:11):
I love that. Yeah, that was actually a shop talk
as well. I believe it was brought to us from
a listener who challenged us to just spend a little
time with some older folks. And what she got out
of it was not the time she spent into it,
but what she learned from the wisdom that poured out
(27:34):
of folks that oftentime didn't have anybody to share that wisdom, with,
which I think is is awesome. We'll be right back
(27:59):
and Juliana, tell me about tell me about an episode
that resonated with us as it as it pertains to.
Speaker 11 (28:08):
Your coursework, right, So with our coursework, we have to
go through an internship while we're in school, so we
do like three days of internship in two days of class,
so it's part of our curriculum. But one of the
episodes I watched was with Jessica Lamb where she was
doing tattoo cover ups with survivors of human trafficking gang violence.
Speaker 3 (28:32):
I gotta I gotta interrupt you to catch everybody up
on that one, because Jessica Lamb is one of the
bravest young ladies I've ever been around. But her for
those who hadn't heard the episode, like Juliana was explaining,
is many young women who are victims of human trafficking
(28:54):
get branded, stamped, tattooed by their pimp who is ultimately
their captor and who has complete control over their lives.
And they brand them, they stamp them, they tattoo them
that basically says you are you belong to me. And
girls that are fortunately rescued out of trafficking and go
(29:18):
through therapy and all kinds of work to break not
only the literal physical chains, they have emotional chains. And
as they're going through this therapy and working so hard
to refine their individualism and their freedom, and to break
both the figurative and the literal chains that bound them
(29:42):
to this horrific existence of servitude sexual servitude. Every time
they wake up in the morning look in the mirror
after a day of therapy trying to get over it,
they're reminded of what they were by a physical branding
or tattoo on their neck or their face, or their
arms or whatever. And so to aid in breaking from this,
(30:07):
Jessica Lamb started free tattoo removal for women who were
found and she is dealing with some of the girls
who have been the worst of the worst and the
worst of the worst. And sometimes she does this risking
her own peril because oftentimes the people that she helps
(30:28):
are not that too long away from their captors who
desperately want them back. So to hear that you listen
to Jessica Lamb's story is awesome because I think she is.
You talk about somebody nobody knows about doing unbelievable work.
There's one, So I'm sorry, go ahead. I wanted to
(30:49):
catch everybody up on them.
Speaker 11 (30:51):
That was while I was listening to this, I was
interning in a domestic abuse shelter where we also helped
in so or survivors of human traffic. And so whenever
people come into your office or come into shelters, you
kind of you don't hear a lot of the gritty details.
You don't really know exactly what they've experienced. You just
(31:13):
meet them where they are and you serve them how
you can. But I guess hearing her story and everything
that she has gone through and like the really nitty
gritty of it all, it gave me a lot of
insight into the people coming into shelters and able to
serve them better and to be more trauma informed about
some of those things that they've experienced before they've walked
(31:35):
into our doors.
Speaker 3 (31:37):
So that was really really awesome. Did you find, curiously,
did you find young women that had branded tattoos? And
did you ever were able ever to discuss that with
any album?
Speaker 11 (31:52):
So none that anyone showed me or came out and
told me about. I'm sure that somebody has come in
with something similar. A lot of it is just emotional baggage.
A lot of it is emotional. Sorry, but I never
saw one specifically that knowing that that does happen and
that is real and more real than me think.
Speaker 3 (32:11):
It is always to be on the lookout. Okay, I
don't think I've heard who else I had not heard
from Tara. You're one, Tara, tell me tell me about
your experience with an army normal folks has obtained your coursework?
Speaker 5 (32:27):
Yeah, so similar to Bailey, I listened to Marne while
driving in the car, so I kind of like scrolled
through and I clicked on one and I listened to
I find the name therapists aren't the only option or
only hold on. Therapists aren't the only answer, and I
(32:49):
found it interesting. I come from a long line of
military family from both sides, so I know firsthand of
how much mental health support is important before people something
military background. And this book's going to hand going along
(33:09):
with the project our business plan in class, I feel
very lost trying to decide what I should be my
business planing on. I feel like I have some passions,
but I do my projects on all like the same passions.
So trying to find something different to do this business
plan on was like really working me up, I guess.
(33:32):
And so after listening to the podcast, while I did
not do my my project on militiar families, I did
stick with the mental health and in the actually description
of the episode itself, it talks about how therapists aren't
the only like people that can help others.
Speaker 2 (33:52):
It's the afores us and it's.
Speaker 5 (33:54):
Like serving one another puer support. It kind of made
me realize within my business plan just at our university,
at the University of Southern Mississippi, that we need to
lean on each other and support each other more, especially
through mental health crises. And so I took that idea
and I ran with it to create my business plan
(34:15):
on treating an app to serve students with mental health crises.
Speaker 3 (34:20):
Oh, it's cool, and that actually kind of sums up
the whole idea, is that an army of normal folks
supporting one another is the way to go. Okay, So, Wanda,
I'm sorry I keep calling you on it, doctor Smith.
Let me give you your credit works. Dude.
Speaker 1 (34:41):
That's okay because we're all colleagues now, they're all graduated,
we're now, so it's all cool.
Speaker 2 (34:48):
That's good.
Speaker 3 (34:50):
So she shared with and I hope some of you
are here, and if not, maybe Roddy you can comment.
You said that one student wants to start an equan
therapy nonprofit for those dealing with substance abuse. Her family
already has a form, she's well versed horses. A good
(35:11):
example of passion and skill set meeting at opportunity. She's
actually thinking about genuinely pursuing that idea. Is that person here, No, No,
she's not here.
Speaker 4 (35:23):
She couldn't be here.
Speaker 2 (35:23):
She's she actually is working already.
Speaker 1 (35:26):
So that's Abby Donahu And so she is working right now.
Speaker 4 (35:32):
What do you want to know about her project?
Speaker 3 (35:35):
Yeah? I just want to know she's actually thinking about
pursuing it.
Speaker 4 (35:38):
Is she yeah?
Speaker 3 (35:40):
Yeah, no kidding, no kidding.
Speaker 4 (35:43):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (35:44):
They have the property and the horses, and she had
done a lot of research on equan therapy. It's still
and plans on becoming more versed in that mode of therapy.
And so I hope that she does that.
Speaker 4 (36:02):
She's happen a Jackson area That is.
Speaker 3 (36:04):
A beautiful example of what we always talk about where
passion and discipline needed opportunity. She's clearly passionate about horses.
She has a discipline, she's passionate about people's substance abuse,
and she's using what she knows where she has it
with what she loves to make a difference. It's very
very cool. Another wants to start a community garden with
(36:28):
different gardens all over the city for folks who make
night get enough food and healthy food, and people in
the neighborhood can then volunteer at the garden and get food.
Is that person here, Oh it's l hey is Yes,
that's about that. Are you doing this? What's going on here? Girl?
(36:48):
This whole gardening in the city and free food and
what do you some kind of save the world person?
What's up with you?
Speaker 11 (36:55):
Are?
Speaker 6 (36:56):
So my thought process when doing the community garden kind
of all started.
Speaker 2 (37:05):
So first off, I was having doctor smith kntest.
Speaker 6 (37:09):
I was having a hard time like with like the
the loose directions of just like follow your passion, and
I was like, I don't know, because I'd, like Tara,
I had so many things I wanted to do or
that I was interested in or passionate about. So I
guess when I really thought about thinking, like really thought
about it, I wanted to do something different that I
(37:30):
didn't see really in this city specifically, And I think
I really thought it started thinking about it when I
thought back to like my days at the CPS, and
you saw that a lot of families that were struggling
to provide for their children. Was not out of like
(37:52):
lack of care, it was out of lack of resources.
So then I started researching, and I've done a couple
projects on like like food stamps and food banks and
stuff like that, and a lot of them only except
food that has a high shelf life, which makes sense,
but when you when families go to receive those, they
(38:16):
don't get any of that fresh, leady like vegetables produce
that you need every day. And then Robert Saint John
actually came and talked to our class, and he is
the founder of Extra Table, and their mission was kind
of similar of that. Like cherry pie filling and tomato
sauce isn't like a meal, Like you can get that
from a.
Speaker 2 (38:36):
Food bank, but it's not a meal, you know, like because.
Speaker 6 (38:39):
A lot of times those things have high shelf lifts
and that's just what they are able to accept. And
a lot of time the more organic foods or fresh
fresh foods are more expensive on food stamps as well.
So sometimes when you want you have a bigger family,
you have to get different kind of foods to be
able to feed everybody on that certain amount of money.
So my thought was that there would be gardens around
(39:01):
Hattiesburg that community members could could volunteer at, and then
families that needed the produce could also volunteer there and
access have access.
Speaker 4 (39:12):
To shoot as well.
Speaker 3 (39:14):
Are you doing it?
Speaker 1 (39:16):
I might?
Speaker 4 (39:16):
I might not right now, but I might in the future.
Speaker 3 (39:20):
Don't be a wemy. Go for it.
Speaker 4 (39:21):
No, I know, I know.
Speaker 3 (39:23):
I go out raising money and get after it. It's
a great idea. It's a great idea.
Speaker 4 (39:30):
Thank you.
Speaker 3 (39:33):
And that concludes part one of my conversation with doctor
Ronda Smith's class, and you really don't want to 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 in part two.
One of the reasons that like for the students to
listen to an army of normal folks is so that
they can see that they can really do what we're
talking about.
Speaker 2 (00:13):
Like it's not just some idea that they have that will.
Speaker 1 (00:16):
Never come true, but that they can see that real people,
normal people can really make these things happen.
Speaker 3 (00:34):
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. And
somehow that last part, well, they made a movie about it,
and that movie is called Undefeated. Guys, I believe our
country's problems are never going to be solved by a
(00:55):
bunch of fancy talking people on seeing in in fox
wear nice clothes, using language nobody ever uses, but rather
by an army of normal folks. That's us, guys, just
you and me deciding, Hey, you know what, maybe I
can help. Doctor Ronda Smith is a past guest who's
assigned a podcast to over four hundred of her students,
(01:17):
and today we're going to meet some of them. I
can't wait for you to hear the passion of this
rising generation right after these brief messages from our general sponsors.
(01:41):
Last year, we did a episode with doctor Ronda Smith,
who is gleefully joining us. Hey, Ronda, how are you.
Speaker 4 (01:51):
I'm good?
Speaker 2 (01:51):
How are you?
Speaker 3 (01:54):
I'm great. I've been on the road probably seventeen in
the last twenty days, and I'm really glad to be
home and looking forward to this chat. We did an
episode with Ronda, doctor Smith on her life story, including
(02:14):
her family being chased out of Mexico because her father
didn't like a kid leaning his bike on her car.
Let's see, I remember the story Ronda, Ronda's Ronda's difficulty
with past relationships with her ex husband's struggle with drug addiction,
and how she overcame that abuse, which led to her
(02:36):
escaping that situation with a daughter and ultimately choosing a
career of social work, which led to her being a
professor now at the University of Southern Mississippi. What's coolest
not coolest? There's a lot of cool things about RONDEVU.
For our perspective, one of the coolest things about Ronda
is she is assigned listening to an army of normal
(02:59):
votes to over four hundred of her students. Her poor
unsuspecting students at the University of Southern Mississippi, which we're
really honored by that our podcast has struck her enough
that she has chosen to utilize it as part of
her text in many of her classes. So that's a
(03:23):
little bit about Ronda. But today's interesting because now we're
going to meet several of her students from some of
her classes last semester, and we're going to talk about
how they and their own right are an army of
normal folks and what they've learned and hopefully the inspiration
(03:43):
they've gotten from the show and the things that they
want to do possibly in their lives as a result
of some of the work they've done with Rondon and
hopefully some of what they've learned from an army and
normal self. So, Ronda, what is this class and what
is it about? And why I are you signing a
podcast as part of the sullabus.
Speaker 1 (04:06):
Well, several of the students that are here today I've
taught a couple of times, and so they may have
had this assignment more than once. I taught a couple
of y'all in undergrad isn't that right?
Speaker 2 (04:16):
Yep?
Speaker 1 (04:17):
And then I had them again in graduate school, and
so I think the first class that maybe they listened
to the Army of normal folks was in social policy,
where we talked about policy making and making changes on
a bigger and a bigger on a bigger level. And
then this the most recent class that I had them
(04:40):
in is social Entrepreneurship, and it's where they got to
work on an actual business plan project. And the Army
of normal folks, that's what we hear a lot about,
is people actually taking social projects and making making it happen, right,
(05:00):
And so one of the things that one of the
reasons that like for the students to listen to an
Army of normal folks is so that they can see
that they can really do what we're talking about, Like
it's not just some idea that they have that will
never come true, but that they can see that real people,
(05:21):
normal people can really make these things happen. And so
that's one of the reasons that I like them to
listen to at least one of the episodes of an
Army of normal folks, say that they can see that
it's attainable, that it's possible.
Speaker 3 (05:34):
What are the reasons I love here? What you say,
what you're saying now is candidly there's a vast ocean
oftentimes between academia and reality. So much of what we
learn in school, while it's applicable and important and part
of our development, much of you know, Randa, not to
(05:58):
be not. I don't want to be uh. I don't
even know what the word is. I don't want to
come off ugly. But there is an old adage those
who don't teach, and in business people often say those
who don't make it happen in teaching because and I
(06:18):
think that's a tongue in cheek way of saying that
oftentimes what's taught and the textbooks and the prevailing thought
that is running around an academia isn't always necessarily applicable
in the real world. But it seems like at least
(06:40):
in social entrepreneurship, you're really working hard to bridge that gap.
Speaker 1 (06:45):
Absolutely, many of us that are teaching in the Social
Work Arena we have done and we're teaching so that
we can pass that knowledge on to the students that
are coming through the program now, because we do know
what's out there, and we do know, you know, what
has to happen to keep these kids.
Speaker 4 (07:07):
Going and motivated and you.
Speaker 1 (07:09):
Know, we want to keep keep.
Speaker 4 (07:11):
The momentum going.
Speaker 1 (07:13):
And so that's one of the reasons that I got
into teaching, was because I do know what it takes
to you know, help the people out there street level.
We've got to encourage the new social workers that are
coming through the program just because it's a hard job.
(07:33):
Would you say so, guys, I mean they're just getting
started in their careers now and say they're seeing now
that yeah, it's not always what we think it is.
Speaker 3 (07:44):
And so so let's briefly, very briefly be introduced to
some of these students. So starting with Laura, you're at
the top of my screen. Just tell me your name,
who you are, what your degree or degrees, and just
kind of do sholf real quickly, and then we'll get
(08:06):
to kind of the work that you've done.
Speaker 5 (08:09):
Well.
Speaker 2 (08:09):
I'm Laura I.
Speaker 4 (08:13):
McNeil, Lamanil.
Speaker 6 (08:14):
I got both of my degrees from Southern they're both
in social work bachelor, undergrad and masters. My social work
experience is kind of all over the field. My undergrad
internships or internship was at CPS job Projective Services and
I was in safety and investigations, and then my grad
(08:36):
school internship was at a nursing home, so very both
opposite sides of the playing field. Loved them both, Yeah,
and I hope to do I think I want to
work with like hospice, geriatrics, that kind of stuff.
Speaker 3 (08:48):
Cool. Amy.
Speaker 7 (08:49):
Hey, I'm a Lee Evans and I got my bachelor's
and sociology, philosophy and nonprofit studies, and I got my
master's in social work. During my I was actually able
to do a really cool research project on women's addiction
and recovery experiences.
Speaker 2 (09:06):
That's the population I work with.
Speaker 7 (09:07):
I am currently the director of therapeutic programming at a
residential women's addiction work White Recenter.
Speaker 3 (09:13):
Very Me, Bailey, Hey, my.
Speaker 4 (09:15):
Name is Bailey mcplaine.
Speaker 8 (09:17):
I got my undergrad and graduate degrees in social work
from Southern mess I had Daughter Smith for Bothel. For
my undergrad internship experience, I was working with the homeless
population in Hattiesburg, and then in grad school I worked
with adolescent teenagers with intellectual disabilities. And I also participated
(09:38):
in a program through the University of Arkansas Medical Sciences
called Lend Leadership and Education and Neurodevelopmental Disabilities. But I
think I want to veer more towards working with kids.
You know know that I've had all these experiences. I
loved them all, but I love my kids a lot.
Speaker 2 (09:53):
William, and my name is William Elijah Woodward.
Speaker 9 (09:58):
And I did my undergrad at louis In or State University.
I'm from New Orleans originally. That's my That's where I
want to be long term. I love the city. And
I did my masters at University of Southern Mephafiit be
in social work, my underground experience if you were in school,
working with like troubled adolescent. And then and for my masters,
(10:21):
I worked with homeless, the homeless population and Hattie work.
Speaker 3 (10:25):
Uh sash is a Sashia, Sasha Saysia. I apologize.
Speaker 4 (10:31):
My name is Sasha Flucker.
Speaker 10 (10:33):
I got both of my degrees from Southern missis will
my undergrad and social work and my master's in social
work as well. And I had doctor Smith all the
way through. I was also a graduate assistant, so I
spent extra time with doctor Smith as will I did
my undergraduate internship at the Children's Center for Communication and
Development that work with kids who have disabilities, and then
(10:54):
I had my master's internship with the geriatric population. So
kind of White Laura, we were until two different ends
of it with my goalies. I want to have some
type of program to advocate for kids with autism.
Speaker 5 (11:07):
Tara, Hello, My name is Tara Dummaybe. I got my
bachelor's and masters and so she worked from the University
of Southern Mississippi. For my undergraduate internship, I interned at
Kids Held Child Advocacy Center. I worked with children that
were used in their families. And then for graduate school,
(11:28):
my internship he was at the Institute's a Disability Studies
at Southern miss Bailey and I actually interned together, so
I worked with adolescent disabilities and then I also participated.
Speaker 3 (11:39):
In the Lend p Friend and last but not least, Juliana.
Speaker 11 (11:43):
So my name is Julianna Stevens. I got my undergrad
at Mississi State University in social or. I worked a
couple of years in the fields in special education, child advocacy,
and in patient psych. I did that and then was like, well,
I need to give a master's. So I went to
Southern miss and got my master's in social work and
just graduated like everybody else heearched.
Speaker 4 (12:04):
So it's been good.
Speaker 3 (12:05):
I've never considered myself a scholar, but rarely do I
feel like I'm the dumbest person in the room. And
when I hear all these undergraduate and graduate degrees and
everything else, I'm struck by two things. One I feel
like a dummy, and two how encouraged I am to
see so many young faces who are inspired to spend
(12:27):
so much time learning a craft that is intended to
better society. So one, thanks for making me feel like
an idiot, But to applaud you all for working so
hard and developing a skill set that hopefully betters our culture.
And now a few messages from our general sponsors, but
(12:49):
first a thought or two from yours. Truly, at least
two teachers, doctor Ronda and Jenny Manguno, organically just decided
to use the podcast in their classroom without any encouragement
from us, and candidly any knowledge until we found out later.
But what if there was encouragement from us. It could
(13:12):
be a great resource for service clubs and all kinds
of classes social work, oral communications, english history, religion. If
you're a teacher and decide to do this or share
it with teachers in schools you know for their consideration,
let us know. And also if you have any questions,
email me at Bill at normal folks dot us and
(13:34):
I'll respond We'll be right back. So with that, certainly,
you spent a lot of money on education, you spend
a lot of time, and then this goofy doctor Ronda
(13:56):
Smith says, Okay, you've paid to school and learn, and
now I'm going to sign you to listen to a podcast.
I gotta I gotta wonder when you first heard that
you had to go listen to some goofy podcast just
part of your class experience. What was what was? What
(14:17):
was what were your first thoughts podcasts for social work? Anybody?
Speaker 10 (14:25):
I didn't know what to expect. I kind of did
when she said to do it. I'm not like a podcaster.
I don't like listen to podcasts.
Speaker 3 (14:32):
Me neither do.
Speaker 2 (14:34):
I was like, I don't know what to expect, But
then I found some.
Speaker 10 (14:39):
I kind of scrolled through to see like what it
was about, and then one that popped out was to
me about I think it was about I think his
name was John or something cood. He had something about
prisoners and the system and he got them to get
a bachelor's degree for juveniles or something, and it popped
out and then I watched it, and then I started
watching them, and then I went down a rabbit me
(15:00):
start watching others.
Speaker 3 (15:02):
So I think that would be my response if I
was going to squag, I'll listen to a podcast what
this is about? So as a class, I know you've
watched some videos about Cornbread Hustle, which is Cherry Garcio,
who's amazing, and with Chad Howser with a Cafe momentum,
(15:23):
which I think is interesting that he's a class you watched, Rhonda.
I'm curious as you noticed your students starting to listening
to episodes, did you see the episodes help them form
some of what they were thinking they were going to
(15:44):
do with their education? Or maybe I shouldn't even lead
that way, Maybe ick to say what was your goal?
Speaker 4 (15:53):
The goal was to.
Speaker 2 (15:57):
Help the ideas become more concrete because at the very
beginning of this assignment, you know, it was very they
weren't sure what they were going to create. It was
a you know, they had to come up with a
business plan. They had to come up with an idea.
What are you passionate about? First of all, what y'all
(16:20):
help me remember what population are you going to work with?
Speaker 4 (16:25):
What kind of an.
Speaker 1 (16:26):
Idea do you think the community that you're working with need.
So we go through all of these exercises to decide
what their project is going to be for the semester,
and then to kind of figure out that it's doable.
That's when I introduced the podcast. I want you to
(16:48):
know that these things are possible, and so I also
wanted them to go through and pick out an episode
maybe that's similar to what they are looking at doing.
I mean, maybe it's a if someone is interested in
working with juveniles who are incarcerated, you know, go through
(17:09):
and find an episode of someone who has already done
some work in that area. And then I encourage them
also after they've listened to the episode, reach out to
whoever the person is that has already done that work
for ideas, Reach use the resource that you have in
front of you.
Speaker 3 (17:30):
That that's really cool. So who here listened or found
an episode that fit or aligned closely with a project
that not only they were completing for coursework, but may
actually be something you want to do beyond. Can someone
tell me that did anybody align with one of the
(17:53):
episodes and something you actually wanted to do that was close.
Speaker 2 (17:58):
Well?
Speaker 3 (17:58):
What are we giving this, Bailey? Yeah, Bailey, go ahead.
Speaker 2 (18:02):
Sorry.
Speaker 8 (18:03):
I wasn't you know, like quite sure exactly which direction
I was going with like my business plan assignment and all.
But like I said, you know, when I introduced it myself,
like I have a big heart for kids, huge heart
for kids, and especially like kids in like adoption, in
foster care and things like that. And so the episode
that I listened to it was the one with Monica
(18:23):
Keltzy the Safe Haven Baby Boxes, And I was driving
home from How to Spark one day. I'm from about
an hour and a half away, and I was like, oh,
you know, I gotta do the summit for doctor Smith.
Let me just turn it on and listen. You know,
I'm driving, you know, not thinking that. Yeah, it would
really I guess like touch me the way that it did.
It was like it was encouraging, to say the least,
(18:47):
like moving into the business plan and all. I was
like just thinking to myself, like Monica, like, you know,
she took this thing that happened to her that could
have I guess ruined a person, like could really like
have sent her life in a completely different directions. She
used it for better, you know, not only you know,
to help people like her, but to make this impact nationwide.
(19:08):
And I was talking to my mom after I listened
to the podcast about it, you know, telling her about
like the safe having baby boxes and this is she
had never heard of it. And I mean she works
in healthcare, but she had never heard of it. But
I had heard of it, you know before I'd send
her on TikTok. That's where I get a lot of
my information from this TikTok. But yeah, it was just
again like kind of like what doctor Smith said, it
(19:28):
ago like you're just giving this giving us this idea,
like if we take this seriously and this assignment seriously,
like this is something that we can do, and this
is something that we can use to make an impact,
like like Monica Kelsey has made an impact and make
a difference in make a change. So it wasn't, you know,
directly related to what I ended up doing my business plan,
(19:50):
but it was such like a confidence boost of like Bailey,
like take this serious and like you can for real
do this one day.
Speaker 3 (19:58):
I love that One of the things we one of
the things we talk about all the time on an
Army normal folks is look, it's entertainment, right, So we
always have to try to make the music fit and
the breaks fit, and hopefully make people laugh and smile
(20:18):
and think, because ultimately, if you don't entertain nobody's going
to tend and to listen. But the side benefit to
that is, hopefully, if you listen long enough, you're going
to hear an episode. If it's entertaining enough, you'll keep
tuning in weekly. But if you listen long enough, not
(20:40):
only are going to be entertained, but eventually you're going
to find something that aligns with your interest and your
passions and your disciplines and abilities that then it in
turn hopefully inspires you to do something. I think classical
music is amazing, but I can't hammer out Happy Birthday
(21:05):
on a piano, much less play any kind of beautiful instrument. Therefore,
although I'm passionate about classical music and think it's beautiful,
it's nothing I'm going to ever engage in with anyone.
So while I'm passionate about it, it's not a discipline
on Both your passions and your disciplines have to collide,
and that's when opportunities happen. And if you listen long enough,
(21:28):
hopefully there's a varied enough stories that sooner or later,
something you are passionate about that you have an ability
in will inspire you to get involved. That's kind of
the whole idea. Then the second part is if you
want to get involved, the show itself is a blueprint
(21:50):
of how, and you have the very architect of that
blueprint available to you to contact, which is something Ronda said.
Dutch Smith said, Hey, if something's there, reach out. So
I'm curious, did any of you reach out to anybody
that was on one of the episodes? Just curious any
(22:11):
of you? No one? Did it? Doctor Smith?
Speaker 1 (22:15):
I know they're too chicken, and they're too Yeah, they're
too chicken.
Speaker 3 (22:21):
Okay, someone else, tell me what they listened to and
why and how it interacted with what your coursework was. Anyone? Oh,
Amy Lee, Amy Lee popping up here? Let's go Amy,
what you got?
Speaker 7 (22:39):
Even though I didn't contact anyone, I will say I
go back and look at the organizations that those individuals
have built, and I look at their framework, and I
look at that type of things, and I utilize that
when I'm working in an administrative capacity in my organization currently.
Speaker 2 (22:58):
So that really opened a door for me.
Speaker 7 (23:00):
I also think, you know, I was in the social
entrepreneurship class, and you know I have a unique story.
I grew up at a rehab so my family, I'm
a third generation. My family has run this recovery center
for twenty years. So I grew up over around women
going through the hardest season of their life.
Speaker 2 (23:20):
And just like you're talking about an army of normal folks.
Speaker 7 (23:23):
Like when I listen to your intro, I'm like, this
is this is what I feel on a cellular level,
is this is what it takes that I've worked with
an army of normal folks my whole life. So I
thought it was funny when you were like you guys
with all your degree. I went back as eight years
later as a non traditional student. So I've done, I've been.
I know that it takes an army of normal folks,
(23:44):
and I think we all know it takes the village,
you know, to help any of the people that were helping,
not just people with degrees, but like to me, one
of my favorite episodes of Yours Now it was actually
your shop talk on I think it was like what counts.
Speaker 2 (24:02):
As helping others?
Speaker 3 (24:04):
What?
Speaker 2 (24:04):
What what counts as helping others.
Speaker 3 (24:08):
Oh yeah, gosh, that was an early shot talk I think.
Speaker 2 (24:13):
I think it was in March.
Speaker 3 (24:14):
Okay.
Speaker 7 (24:16):
So the reason that one resonated with me the most
is I've spent my whole life on every side of
helping others and the heartache and the beauty that comes
with that and watching people transform their lives.
Speaker 2 (24:28):
And I love how in that.
Speaker 7 (24:30):
Episode you talked about we can help people write down
the hallway. That's that's how we start with our family
because I see all these like women and men who
rehab like one hundred residents that we serve at this point,
and they didn't have people who helped them down the hallway, right,
And I see that being a big reason why they
end up in our in our care right. And I
(24:53):
think that if I can't take that one step further
and I'm in with this, I think not only as
an army of normal faults do we are by helping
people down the hallway and our families? Just like you said,
I think what I'm realizing, especially from podcasts like yours
and for professors and mentors like doctor Smith, is that, yeah,
we actually.
Speaker 2 (25:12):
Started our heart and then we go the whole way.
Because when I take care of me, I can take
care of my family.
Speaker 7 (25:18):
And when I take care of me and my family,
I can help take care of my community. And I
have a lot more clarity about how I want to
do that and a simple ways of which I can
do that.
Speaker 2 (25:28):
So that's how you've impacted me. I really appreciate it.
Speaker 3 (25:32):
Well, that's awesome. I wasn't fishing for adulation, but you
just you guys can keep heaping it on. It's fine.
I grew up fat and redheaded, so the more you
want to heap on me, the better, the better I do.
William lsu gut A by you. Yeah, I know. Tell
me what episode you listen to and how it fits.
Speaker 9 (25:56):
I think the main impact the episode I listened to
about listening.
Speaker 2 (26:01):
I listened to like one, I listened to two.
Speaker 9 (26:04):
But the one that had a bigger impact on me
was also one of the workshop ones, I think, and
it was about listening to older people in your life
and and I think really at the time I was
working with homeless individual and the impact that that had
on me was y'all talked about not only is it
(26:26):
good to go to your elders and listen to them
for their sake, it's also good for your own sake,
and we forget about that. I had been reflecting recently
on how much I was learning.
Speaker 2 (26:39):
From the homeless people I was working with.
Speaker 9 (26:41):
I think these are people we often overlook and we
don't think they have anything to offer us. But many
of the times when I slowed down and just heard
the stories of my client, I found that it.
Speaker 2 (26:52):
Was impactful on me and I had things to learn
from them. And it really just gets.
Speaker 12 (26:58):
Back to that overall idea of not dehumanizing people, not
overlooking people, and wanting that human connection no matter the
circumstances people are in.
Speaker 3 (27:11):
I love that. Yeah, that was actually a shop talk
as well. I believe it was brought to us from
a listener who challenged us to just spend a little
time with some older folks. And what she got out
of it was not the time she spent into it,
but what she learned from the wisdom that poured out
(27:34):
of folks that oftentime didn't have anybody to share that wisdom, with,
which I think is is awesome. We'll be right back
(27:59):
and Juliana, tell me about tell me about an episode
that resonated with us as it as it pertains to.
Speaker 11 (28:08):
Your coursework, right, So with our coursework, we have to
go through an internship while we're in school, so we
do like three days of internship in two days of class,
so it's part of our curriculum. But one of the
episodes I watched was with Jessica Lamb where she was
doing tattoo cover ups with survivors of human trafficking gang violence.
Speaker 3 (28:32):
I gotta I gotta interrupt you to catch everybody up
on that one, because Jessica Lamb is one of the
bravest young ladies I've ever been around. But her for
those who hadn't heard the episode, like Juliana was explaining,
is many young women who are victims of human trafficking
(28:54):
get branded, stamped, tattooed by their pimp who is ultimately
their captor and who has complete control over their lives.
And they brand them, they stamp them, they tattoo them
that basically says you are you belong to me. And
girls that are fortunately rescued out of trafficking and go
(29:18):
through therapy and all kinds of work to break not
only the literal physical chains, they have emotional chains. And
as they're going through this therapy and working so hard
to refine their individualism and their freedom, and to break
both the figurative and the literal chains that bound them
(29:42):
to this horrific existence of servitude sexual servitude. Every time
they wake up in the morning look in the mirror
after a day of therapy trying to get over it,
they're reminded of what they were by a physical branding
or tattoo on their neck or their face, or their
arms or whatever. And so to aid in breaking from this,
(30:07):
Jessica Lamb started free tattoo removal for women who were
found and she is dealing with some of the girls
who have been the worst of the worst and the
worst of the worst. And sometimes she does this risking
her own peril because oftentimes the people that she helps
(30:28):
are not that too long away from their captors who
desperately want them back. So to hear that you listen
to Jessica Lamb's story is awesome because I think she is.
You talk about somebody nobody knows about doing unbelievable work.
There's one, So I'm sorry, go ahead. I wanted to
(30:49):
catch everybody up on them.
Speaker 11 (30:51):
That was while I was listening to this, I was
interning in a domestic abuse shelter where we also helped
in so or survivors of human traffic. And so whenever
people come into your office or come into shelters, you
kind of you don't hear a lot of the gritty details.
You don't really know exactly what they've experienced. You just
(31:13):
meet them where they are and you serve them how
you can. But I guess hearing her story and everything
that she has gone through and like the really nitty
gritty of it all, it gave me a lot of
insight into the people coming into shelters and able to
serve them better and to be more trauma informed about
some of those things that they've experienced before they've walked
(31:35):
into our doors.
Speaker 3 (31:37):
So that was really really awesome. Did you find, curiously,
did you find young women that had branded tattoos? And
did you ever were able ever to discuss that with
any album?
Speaker 11 (31:52):
So none that anyone showed me or came out and
told me about. I'm sure that somebody has come in
with something similar. A lot of it is just emotional baggage.
A lot of it is emotional. Sorry, but I never
saw one specifically that knowing that that does happen and
that is real and more real than me think.
Speaker 3 (32:11):
It is always to be on the lookout. Okay, I
don't think I've heard who else I had not heard
from Tara. You're one, Tara, tell me tell me about
your experience with an army normal folks has obtained your coursework?
Speaker 5 (32:27):
Yeah, so similar to Bailey, I listened to Marne while
driving in the car, so I kind of like scrolled
through and I clicked on one and I listened to
I find the name therapists aren't the only option or
only hold on. Therapists aren't the only answer, and I
(32:49):
found it interesting. I come from a long line of
military family from both sides, so I know firsthand of
how much mental health support is important before people something
military background. And this book's going to hand going along
(33:09):
with the project our business plan in class, I feel
very lost trying to decide what I should be my
business planing on. I feel like I have some passions,
but I do my projects on all like the same passions.
So trying to find something different to do this business
plan on was like really working me up, I guess.
(33:32):
And so after listening to the podcast, while I did
not do my my project on militiar families, I did
stick with the mental health and in the actually description
of the episode itself, it talks about how therapists aren't
the only like people that can help others.
Speaker 2 (33:52):
It's the afores us and it's.
Speaker 5 (33:54):
Like serving one another puer support. It kind of made
me realize within my business plan just at our university,
at the University of Southern Mississippi, that we need to
lean on each other and support each other more, especially
through mental health crises. And so I took that idea
and I ran with it to create my business plan
(34:15):
on treating an app to serve students with mental health crises.
Speaker 3 (34:20):
Oh, it's cool, and that actually kind of sums up
the whole idea, is that an army of normal folks
supporting one another is the way to go. Okay, So, Wanda,
I'm sorry I keep calling you on it, doctor Smith.
Let me give you your credit works. Dude.
Speaker 1 (34:41):
That's okay because we're all colleagues now, they're all graduated,
we're now, so it's all cool.
Speaker 2 (34:48):
That's good.
Speaker 3 (34:50):
So she shared with and I hope some of you
are here, and if not, maybe Roddy you can comment.
You said that one student wants to start an equan
therapy nonprofit for those dealing with substance abuse. Her family
already has a form, she's well versed horses. A good
(35:11):
example of passion and skill set meeting at opportunity. She's
actually thinking about genuinely pursuing that idea. Is that person here, No, No,
she's not here.
Speaker 4 (35:23):
She couldn't be here.
Speaker 2 (35:23):
She's she actually is working already.
Speaker 1 (35:26):
So that's Abby Donahu And so she is working right now.
Speaker 4 (35:32):
What do you want to know about her project?
Speaker 3 (35:35):
Yeah? I just want to know she's actually thinking about
pursuing it.
Speaker 4 (35:38):
Is she yeah?
Speaker 3 (35:40):
Yeah, no kidding, no kidding.
Speaker 4 (35:43):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (35:44):
They have the property and the horses, and she had
done a lot of research on equan therapy. It's still
and plans on becoming more versed in that mode of therapy.
And so I hope that she does that.
Speaker 4 (36:02):
She's happen a Jackson area That is.
Speaker 3 (36:04):
A beautiful example of what we always talk about where
passion and discipline needed opportunity. She's clearly passionate about horses.
She has a discipline, she's passionate about people's substance abuse,
and she's using what she knows where she has it
with what she loves to make a difference. It's very
very cool. Another wants to start a community garden with
(36:28):
different gardens all over the city for folks who make
night get enough food and healthy food, and people in
the neighborhood can then volunteer at the garden and get food.
Is that person here, Oh it's l hey is Yes,
that's about that. Are you doing this? What's going on here? Girl?
(36:48):
This whole gardening in the city and free food and
what do you some kind of save the world person?
What's up with you?
Speaker 11 (36:55):
Are?
Speaker 6 (36:56):
So my thought process when doing the community garden kind
of all started.
Speaker 2 (37:05):
So first off, I was having doctor smith kntest.
Speaker 6 (37:09):
I was having a hard time like with like the
the loose directions of just like follow your passion, and
I was like, I don't know, because I'd, like Tara,
I had so many things I wanted to do or
that I was interested in or passionate about. So I
guess when I really thought about thinking, like really thought
about it, I wanted to do something different that I
(37:30):
didn't see really in this city specifically, And I think
I really thought it started thinking about it when I
thought back to like my days at the CPS, and
you saw that a lot of families that were struggling
to provide for their children. Was not out of like
(37:52):
lack of care, it was out of lack of resources.
So then I started researching, and I've done a couple
projects on like like food stamps and food banks and
stuff like that, and a lot of them only except
food that has a high shelf life, which makes sense,
but when you when families go to receive those, they
(38:16):
don't get any of that fresh, leady like vegetables produce
that you need every day. And then Robert Saint John
actually came and talked to our class, and he is
the founder of Extra Table, and their mission was kind
of similar of that. Like cherry pie filling and tomato
sauce isn't like a meal, Like you can get that
from a.
Speaker 2 (38:36):
Food bank, but it's not a meal, you know, like because.
Speaker 6 (38:39):
A lot of times those things have high shelf lifts
and that's just what they are able to accept. And
a lot of time the more organic foods or fresh
fresh foods are more expensive on food stamps as well.
So sometimes when you want you have a bigger family,
you have to get different kind of foods to be
able to feed everybody on that certain amount of money.
So my thought was that there would be gardens around
(39:01):
Hattiesburg that community members could could volunteer at, and then
families that needed the produce could also volunteer there and
access have access.
Speaker 4 (39:12):
To shoot as well.
Speaker 3 (39:14):
Are you doing it?
Speaker 1 (39:16):
I might?
Speaker 4 (39:16):
I might not right now, but I might in the future.
Speaker 3 (39:20):
Don't be a wemy. Go for it.
Speaker 4 (39:21):
No, I know, I know.
Speaker 3 (39:23):
I go out raising money and get after it. It's
a great idea. It's a great idea.
Speaker 4 (39:30):
Thank you.
Speaker 3 (39:33):
And that concludes part one of my conversation with doctor
Ronda Smith's class, and you really don't want to 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 in part two.
Host
Bill Courtney
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