June 26, 2024 • 38 mins
Welcome to Millan Foundation Conversations, where we talk all things community, philanthropy, and connect people together. We hope you enjoy our show.
In this episode, host Rylan Kean sits down with Scot Coulter, Millan Enterprises Project Manager and a passionate leader who founded La Via Missions. Scot shares his inspiring journey from Clarksville, TN, to leading impactful mission projects in Guatemala. Learn about the heartwarming story of La Via Missions, the challenges faced by communities in need, and how Scot and his team are dedicated to providing hope and lasting change.
Get ready to be moved by the heartwarming tale of this incredible nonprofit. Learn about the struggles faced by communities in need and how Scot and his team are bringing hope and lasting change and empowering locals with the tools and resources they need to thrive.
Join us for this heartfelt conversation and find out how you can support La Via Missions and other initiatives through the Millan Foundation. Visit millanfamilyfoundation.org to stay up to date with everything going on and to explore ways to contribute.
Thank you for listening to Millan Foundation Conversations. Until next time, Do The Next Kind Thing.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:00):
Welcome to Mion Foundation Conversations, where we talk all things community,
philanthropy, and connect people together. We hope you enjoy our show.
Welcome to Mion Conversations. I'm Ryland Keene. I work in the real estate side of Mion Enterprises.
Got Scott Coulter joining me as a project manager on our construction team.
(00:20):
But the real reason you're here is, man, you got some cool stuff going on. We do, we do.
Wanna hear a little bit about it. I'm ready to talk. Let's talk. Yeah.
Why don't you just open us up, man? Tell us a little bit about,
you know, the way forward and how you're kind of changing some lives and sharing hope.
Hope yeah so i'm again scott coulter i
am obviously a member of the milan team and get to
(00:43):
be a part of the neon foundation and neon enterprises but
another reason why we're doing is i would get to be part of la via missions
which is some some mission organization stuff that we're doing down in mostly
in guatemala but a little bit around the world and just get to be a part of
a cool team doing some some cool mission work so yeah so so what let's back
up a second tell me a little bit What about Scott?
(01:05):
Like, you know, I know you a little personally. People are listening.
You know, we like to joke around like you are a man of many talents and a giver in many ways.
But tell us, you know, who is Scott? You know, where did he come from?
Yeah, I was born right here in Clarksville, Tennessee. I love this community.
And I'm just a person that wants to give back, a person that wants to do cool in this community.
(01:26):
And that's exactly what I get to do as part of my job here at the Hermione Enterprises.
We're doing a lot of cool things here in Clarksville.
And then it's obviously transformed into things we're doing around the world.
And I just, part of who I am, I want to be the person that wants to give back
and wants to do the cool things both here in Clarksville and here and around the world.
So that's just part of who I am, not necessarily about exactly what I'm doing,
(01:47):
but exactly who we are as an organization.
So we strive to be a me on and we strive to do cool things and change lives.
So that's what we're doing. Yeah. Well, you know, this conversation,
you know, is not just about Lavia Missions. So, you know, it has to do with
the heart of, you know, what the Mion Foundation is.
And what I'd say is you're a very humble leader. And I'd like to brag on you for a minute.
(02:12):
You know, the people listening, you know, they probably heard that and they're
like, okay, you know, who's Scott?
Scott is a guy who is a believer in God.
He is there when the church opens, leads worship some Sundays.
I heard some stories about that, you know, where you randomly,
you know, shouted out, you know, I can't believe the piano's leading worship
one day. and that's how we discovered you've led some worship teams.
(02:33):
You're there when the door closes. Your grandfather was a preacher,
is that right? He fills in for preaching.
So yeah, he's very active in the church and the whole family.
It's been a blessing to be a part of that and be growing up in that atmosphere.
Yeah. So those values, you know, I think, you know, have carried forward.
When you joined Mion Enterprises, I remember, was that four years ago? About four years ago?
(02:55):
Yeah, a little over four years ago. Yeah. You were still at Austin Peay State University. Yes, sir.
So, you know, pretty impressive. Come work basically full-time as much as you
could and going to school full-time.
And you graduated two years ago. Is that right? In 2022. Yeah. December 2022.
Yeah. Yes, sir. So just highly successful in the fact that you can do that.
You know, you're, I think one of the most impressive things when I first met you was the work ethic.
(03:20):
I think that, you know, the humbleness, the work ethic, and then come to find
out you're a genius as well.
Far, far from it. Yeah, I know you won't tell people that, but you definitely
have a brain that works in a different way. And it's pretty, pretty amazing.
I'm glad to call you a friend. Thank you. And I'm glad we get to have this conversation
and share a little bit about what you have going on. But I think it's important to tell people that.
(03:43):
And last but not least, you now have a beautiful wife.
Yes. Yes, I do. Yeah. So one month, about one month? Month and a few days.
Month and a few days. So congratulations, Scott.
Super proud of you. And I think what you're doing with Lavia,
which we're going to learn some more about, and you as an individual are going
to do some pretty amazing things.
So thank you for being a part of this. So tell me, how did Lavia get started?
(04:08):
You know, where did that come from? Yeah, so Bitten and I, who's my pastor at
our church, and we've been doing missions to the church for many years.
I went on my first mission when I was 14 years old, and he took me to Guatemala
on my first one, actually against my own will.
Did not want to go. He bought me a plane ticket anyway and kind of forced me to go.
And immediately once I got there, you know, the whole experience changed my
(04:31):
life. It kind of, I think, changes the trajectory of what I was going to do
with my life and kind of just impacted me in ways that I had no idea could happen.
And so I spent a couple of years doing missions with the church.
And then on a trip that me and Benton and I went on in 2022,
we kind of went down to scout out some different projects for our church.
(04:52):
And we got to have a meeting with a group of principals down there in one of
the communities we were traveling with. And it was me and him and one of our
friends, Raul, that lives in Guatemala.
And I think it was principals from 10 different schools and the director of
their school district there.
And we met with them and each of them just presented us with projects that they
(05:15):
needed at their school that have really just needed help since COVID.
You know, with kids coming back from COVID and they were just,
all these schools were just in dire, dire need of different projects.
And so they presented us, we sat around a table and they presented us with different projects.
And then after the meeting, we all, we went and visited each of these schools and.
Really, we just realized that this was bigger than what our church could handle.
(05:39):
You know, we try to go down at least once every other year as a church,
and we realized that it was just more than what a church could handle.
And so we were like, we got to figure out a way to get more organizations involved,
more, you know, either churches or businesses or whatever we could to get involved.
So we started throwing around the idea of starting a nonprofit that would focus on mission work.
(05:59):
And, you know, slowly but surely, Livia started evolving. And then,
you know, kind of a year down the road, we were able to become officially formed.
We got our, you know, we formed a nonprofit through Larry Rocconi's office, helped us get started.
And we got the legal paperwork and everything done. And now,
you know, in 2023, we're able to form officially.
(06:20):
So we've taken several groups since then, including a trip, several trips from
Mion Enterprises. And so, yeah, it was kind of just a snowball effect of what
we were already doing at our church, trying to get more people involved.
And that's kind of the main catalyst that started La Via.
Yeah. And just kind of emphasize, La Via means?
(06:41):
La Via means the way. So La Via, so where we go in Guatemala,
there's a city near it called Antigua, which is like a super old city.
And all the streets are one-way cobblestone streets.
And we were there and like me and Ben, when we were there in 2022,
we're sitting around, like just talking and praying about what it is that God
has already had put on our hearts during that, during that trip.
(07:03):
And we were walking down the street and there's on the, on the,
on all the roads, there's a sign on the, on the, on the roads that say Una Via, which means one way.
And we're like, you know, Oh, that's, that's cool. You know,
Via, the way, you know, the, you know, God's our way.
I mean, they were like, what about if it was the way, La Via?
And so we were like, we found that name and we stuck with it.
(07:24):
And it's kind of already, we've
seen it kind of transform and kind of the meaning behind it a little bit.
You know, it's, you know, it's, we're, we focus on these projects of giving.
Not necessarily giving handouts, but giving the people a way to be better or
a way to improve their school or a way to do whatever it is the mission is. And so it's not about us.
(07:44):
It's not about them. It's about their future.
It's about God. At the end of the day, it's about how they can improve their lives.
And so we try to give all of our projects, we try to give everyone a way forward is what we say.
Yeah, I think that's really important when we look at not only missions,
but just changing people's lives, right? What does it look like?
(08:07):
And it's been a while since I've done a mission trip. I've not done one with
me on Enterprises yet, and I get to do my first one with you at the end of July.
So I don't know when this comes out, but if it's out beforehand, be praying for us.
I think it'll be a great time. Um, but one of the things I distinctly remember
on the few that I've been to, and there's some books that, that talk about it,
but it's this concept of, you know, God's already there.
(08:29):
You know, we're not, we're not bringing God there. Right.
And the second part of that is we're not saving anybody.
And the impact that we make is to help people, you know, get to a better place
themselves in many ways, right?
You're providing the help that they may have not got the assistance they needed
that allows allows them to create long lasting change.
(08:51):
Not, it can be immediate impact, right? Don't get me wrong. Like there's immediate,
you know, needs and things, but how do you see Lavia in that?
Like where it is kind of a long lasting change.
It's not, Hey, Scott showed up with a group and you know, they did some cool
stuff and they left. Right.
What's the, what's the impact? I mean, and really what we try to focus on is
empowering them to do, do the things that.
(09:12):
They need like to do, you know, to be in charge of their school or to be in
charge of a water project or to be in charge of whatever it is that we're doing.
It's about empowering them, not coming and giving them a handout.
It's about giving them a hand up.
It's not about, you know, us going down and saying, oh, cool, we built this school.
Now we're leaving and they're going to try to figure it out.
It's about giving them the tools and resources for them as a community or them as a,
(09:33):
you know, church or them as a school to do the projects that they want to to
do and that they already, you know, know how to do.
And just us providing some resources, just like the Mian Foundation,
our goal is to help organizations overcome obstacles.
It's the exact same thing we're trying to do is in those communities,
help them overcome the obstacles that might be poverty or that might be famine
(09:55):
or that might be whatever the case may be.
It's about us trying to go there and connect them with groups from the States
or from wherever so that they can, you know, overcome the obstacles that they're facing.
Not about us going and doing whatever. It's about partnering with them to overcome those obstacles.
Yeah. Well, let's talk about those obstacles. What do you see?
What are the major things that are hindering, you know, let's talk Guatemala, right?
(10:18):
Like it seems to be the main focus, Olivia, at least at the moment. Yeah.
So when we talk about, you know, the main projects we're doing right now,
you know, is mostly with schools.
And we talk about schools, the main obstacles they face is just lack of funding
for most, to be quite frank.
You know, when we think about school systems, We're accustomed,
especially here in Montgomery County, we have a great school system that does
(10:40):
whatever they can to better their schools and whatever the schools need,
they're there helping them out.
But in here in these communities, they really don't have that.
They don't have a school system that's backing them, especially financially,
to do Betterment projects at their school.
And so a lot of these schools, especially after COVID, they were just left and
(11:01):
kind of either with low space or with deteriorated materials in their school.
You know, we see schools with huge holes in the ceilings, kids getting rained
on while they're doing their work, you know, as far as, you know,
dogs just running around the middle of school and coming in inside classrooms.
And so, like, there's a lot of different issues that they have at their schools
(11:22):
that they would love to fix.
But it's just a lack of funds where, you know, it may take a community forever
to come up with the funds to do a project,
which we're, if, if we can help, you know, facilitate those funds or help them
fundraise some, in some way that then we jump in and try to help out.
And that's kind of what the main thing we do is help them.
(11:42):
You know, we, our whole team that does the construction is from Guatemala. We don't.
We like to say that we're not trying to bring in a bunch of American builders
to come in and build a Guatemalan school because we don't build the same here.
We don't build the same as they do there.
So all of our team there are Guatemalans that do construction every day.
(12:03):
They're a construction team and they build.
We just help them facilitate the resources as far as getting this project done.
So we don't like to say that we're going down to do the work.
We're going down to help them overcome the obstacle so that they can do the
work. Yeah, that's awesome.
There's obviously a lot of great organizations doing a lot of good stuff.
(12:26):
And I think it's always special when you find people that have that heart to serve.
It's not just about money, right? It's about giving our time sometimes and reaching
down into people's lives and meeting them where they're at.
And there's a sacrifice that comes with that. And I want to talk about that
for a second, because I think that's important for people to hear the people
that are involved in these projects.
(12:47):
You know, you talk about Benton, that was your pastor, right?
The people that are there, you know, I'm sure you have leaders down there that
you work with, right? You know, community leaders, pastors, things like that.
What does that sacrifice like for the people that are involved at,
you know, an in-depth level?
I mean, it's just like getting to take a vacation, but you don't get to take
your kids, you know, like your kids or your spouse. So everyone that's going
(13:09):
down with us is spending time away from their families, away from their work,
away from life in general.
And so it really is a time sacrifice to go down there and be part of it.
But I think it's almost like an investment to me. It's an investment in these
people's lives, but it's also an investment in us because...
You know, I will say nothing feels better than when you're down there and you
(13:29):
can see the change that you're making.
Um, it's, it's real, it's, it's tangible. It's, you can feel it.
And so, yes, it is a time away from your family, time away from your spouse
or whatever, but it is huge that the impact that it makes on yourself.
And it feels like it almost, it almost feels wrong because you're there to do
good, but it ends up doing so much good for you.
And that, you know, it almost makes you miss it. Every time you come back,
(13:53):
you're like, Like, I can't wait to go back on the next one. Yeah, yeah.
The impact on our lives, you know, I can say firsthand, you know,
in a different set of environments, I've felt that.
And I think anyone who's done these type trips, whether it be a medical trip,
a mission trip or humanitarian, the need is great.
And getting to be a part of something that is bigger than you,
(14:16):
man, it feeds the soul. It changes your perspective.
You come back. I remember when I first got back from a trip,
I think I was maybe 23, 24 years old.
And the impact it had, it was just like, why are these people mad about,
you know, the food they got at the restaurant, right?
You know, it was cold. It's like, man, you're lucky to eat.
And it's important. It's important to recognize some of that because I think
(14:40):
we have a duty since we've been on these trips, organizations like yourself,
is how do you connect the dots, right?
How do you get people that just haven't seen the other side of the world? I haven't seen that.
And how do we teach people, you know, that perspective without them getting
to share that? And that's a challenge.
I mean, I'm sure you felt that too, right? How do you get people to give money
or to go and they just don't get it?
(15:02):
What does that look like? What kind of challenges do you face with that?
Well, Leo has done a great job of, you know, selling it for us.
You know, it's not about, you know, you can make people, you can show people
a slideshow of all the lives or you can see how many people you've fed or whatever,
but until you experience it, it's really just hard to, you just can't describe it. And so,
(15:24):
you know, Leo says all the time, you know, if they, if they,
I know if this person could just feel it, they would be hooked on it.
And just like, uh, we got to take George Watson down with us,
me and Leo got to take him down and on a trip.
And then, you know, now he came back and I think it personally,
I think it changed his life of how he views those things.
And it's, there's really no way to really experience it until you're there and
(15:45):
you can, you can touch it and feel it and be a part of it.
And so like, that's my challenge to most people is like, Like,
you know, the, before I went, I was, you know, like I said, I was 14 and I was
like, you know, I didn't lose anything in Guatemala.
There's no reason for me to go there. It was dangerous, whatever.
But immediately two days into the trip, you know, I knew I was supposed to be
there and I knew that it was having a huge impact on my life.
(16:08):
And so I challenge anyone that wants to go and, and, or that maybe doesn't,
if they think they don't want to go, maybe it's a reason you should go.
It's it's beneficial for anyone of any
age of any any person across
the board it's really just a eye-opening experience and
it makes you grateful for everything you have and everything that that
happens in your life so yeah i could not agree more we do you know i tell people
(16:30):
all the time and from a non-religious standpoint right in the leadership world
you know people need to give back it's it's it's a calling that everyone should
should take up and our passions are different and different,
you know, things that we've gone through make us passionate about different
nonprofits and different groups we support.
But too many people sit on the sidelines and they like to comment,
(16:53):
right? They like to have a point of view.
But I'm always one to encourage people, find a place to give back.
And sometimes that's right down the road. Sometimes that's in the Appalachian,
which is a very poor region in America.
Sometimes that's in another country like Guatemala or Cuba or Mexico.
These are all places that I know you've been, or I don't know if you've done Cuba yet, but yeah.
So, you know, the, the need is great and it's everywhere and,
(17:17):
and to, you know, we shelter ourselves, we shelter our kids a lot,
you know, not to get on a personal level.
I look at my family, it's a young family and I've made a, you know,
a personal commitment that, you know, I want my kids to experience this as early
as, as they can, because I want them to understand what the most of the world goes through.
I think it shapes our lives in ways that, almost like on a DNA level, you're never the same.
(17:41):
You know, yes, I haven't been in years, but it changes you. And I think if you
don't get to experience that, you're almost missing out on life.
No, yeah, I went for the first time at 14 and literally, I mean,
changed the perspective of my life.
It was the reason I wanted to learn Spanish. It was the reason why I wanted to come work for Leo.
It was the reason behind a lot of different things. And without that,
(18:04):
you know, one, one, you know, bitten by me a plane ticket literally changed
the trajectory of my life and so.
It's so important for especially the young people. It's so important for parents
to, you know, you know, I think we see a lot of kids, you know,
these days with, you know, with everything, but act like they have nothing.
(18:25):
And so just the perspective that these trips bring is enormous.
And like you said, you know, it's so important for us to show that to other
people, show to our families and friends and children.
And so I think it's, you know, one of the most important things we can do for
our families. Yeah, could not agree more.
You know, I want to, you know, ask you to maybe share a personal story.
(18:46):
And I'll start it off with, you know, the experience I had and something that
I think just sat with me and is always sat with me.
It's something I remember very distinctly that really changed everything for
me when I went on my trip. And I remember maybe the second day we were, we were at a sports camp.
We were doing a sports camp down in Panama and in a very small village.
(19:08):
It wasn't really remote.
It's still, you know, kind of close to the city, but surrounded by a lot of poverty and gangs.
And so the, the little village we're in where all these kids that kind of lived
in that area and they were away from their families for a week.
And I think it was dinner time. And I remember, I don't, I don't know who said
it, but it was someone at the table and And they just made a comment about,
(19:31):
man, we're just eating rice again and beans, right?
And we all kind of joked and, you know, I'm laughing too.
And I'm like, oh man, this is kind of, you know, in my head kind of,
yeah, I wish I could have McDonald's or something, right?
Like something different. This is like our fourth meal, you know,
breakfast, lunch, and dinner. And it's all basically the same.
And I remember the leader of that group in a very compassionate way,
(19:53):
you know, sat down and said, hey guys, like, I hear you. But some of these kids,
this is the first meal that they've had in a week or consistent meal. Right.
And, and, and I think that sets at home when you're like, man,
I'm over here complaining about eating and you look around the room and there's 75 children.
Who may have not got a meal that day or a meal last week. And I think that changed
(20:17):
everything for me completely.
And I got to spend the rest of the week, you know, doing what I love playing
soccer with a bunch of kids.
You know, they kicked my butt more times than not, but man, what a blast,
but life-changing in that.
And so, you know, I opened that up, you know, I'd love to hear something,
you know, out of your long list of experiences that may have stuck in your head.
(20:37):
Yeah, probably like you said, the first trip you're on is like,
Like, you're taking so much.
And that's why every time we go on a new trip and there's a couple people there
that has never been on a mission trip, I love, you know, as soon as we get on,
I'm, like, staring at them while they're looking out the window of the bus.
They're, like, because they're all just, like, making faces.
And you can see them taking it all in for the first time.
So I love when we take new people on trips and they get to experience it for the first time.
(21:00):
But just like that, on the first trip I went on, I remember,
like, the third day we were there and playing soccer with the kids and looking
around and obviously didn't speak Spanish at that time. And I go over to one
of the translators and I'm like, hey, you know, where's, there's no kid.
I don't see any kids my age.
I just know there's only probably 10 year old and 10, 11 and younger.
It's like, where's, you know, why aren't the rest of them at school?
(21:22):
And the rest of them was like, he was pretty much just telling me like school
for them isn't free. free school for them.
Like for those kids that are that to that age, it's either really expensive.
Or they don't have enough income as a family that they can afford to one for
him to go to school or one, but it's in secondly for them not to work.
And so I was like, and that just hit me hard because I was like,
(21:45):
at my age, not being able to go to school and I got to go to work to support
my family just to see the drastic difference in what the lives we live here
and the lives that that they're living there.
As far as opportunity that those kids have.
We just, we don't, you know, you don't understand how, how lucky you are until
you're like in that instance and you feel the change, the feel,
(22:07):
you feel the difference as far as like what those people in those circumstances
are going through versus what you live every day.
And I, I joke with my wife, Elena all the time. And every time she's,
she complains about whatever I complain about, you know, Hey,
we're, you know, the TV's not working or, you know, the air conditioner's off
or it's hot in here. I'm like, that's a, that's a first world problem. Yeah.
(22:29):
But we don't realize how many first world problems really are until you see
what a third world country like Guatemala, like Mexico, like Cuba,
or any of those are, you don't see how, how drastic the difference is.
And like that on my first one, and like you mentioned that when we're in Cuba,
it's the same way as rice and beans.
And we joke all the time. It's like, Oh, we have, what are we having for dinner
(22:51):
today? Rice and beans or beans and rice.
And that's something Ted, Ted always says is like today's either rice and beans or beans and rice.
And that's, you know, you, you look back and you're like, man,
I, you know, I was ready, like you said, for some McDonald's or literally anything else.
But, but in that instance, you're like, you know, when we were in Cuba this
past December, they were going on two weeks without rations.
(23:14):
So it was the end of their second week. They were, you know,
they hadn't, they like, they're, they're, they get little ration books and then
they, they go to the, like this big warehouse once a day and they pick up,
they literally get their daily bread.
Like when, you know, we say, give us a day or daily bread, they're literally going
there to get their daily bread and they're picking up the rations and
they went on two weeks without certain rations the warehouse was
(23:35):
just empty and uh you know
we were there and you know they they had enough food to
give us to because we were you know buying other areas and
getting it there but literally everyone else
in that neighborhood where we were staying was just like they would
walk every day to the warehouse and they'd come back and we're like
hey did you get anything today and they're like no there's nothing else and it's just
like super difficult to
(23:58):
be be there and you're like okay well i'm getting fed and
i'm complaining about rice and beans just like you said but these people are literally walking down
the street hanging their head like like what am
i gonna how am i gonna give my kid they're giving their kid the only
piece of bread that they're gonna have for the whole day yeah and then we're over here
just you know complaining about having to eat whatever and it's it's really
hard some of these trips are some of the times it's difficult emotionally especially
(24:22):
when we go to the orphanages and we go to some of the areas that are a little
bit harder emotionally but the the return you get on that as far as like.
The perspective and and stuff so every time we go i take people to one of the
partnering organizations work with the foundation is an amazing organization
(24:42):
but it really is a heavy heavy.
Part of our trip to go and we spend all week hanging out with kids and their
families and then to go to an orphanage and hear the stories about how these
kids are sexually assaulted and abused and then, or, or just given up because
their parents can't afford to pay for them.
It's really, it's really, you know, it makes it hard, but then,
(25:03):
but then it's really a great end to our trip because it's, we leave with so
much perspective after that.
Yeah. There's, you know, it kind of reminds me, there's so much need sometimes
it's overwhelming Yeah.
And it reminds me of a story and I'm going to butcher it. And I don't know who
said this story and maybe some people have heard it, but it's a story of an old man,
(25:23):
you know, at the beach and he's walking down the beach and he sees a young person
throwing some starfish back into the ocean. and a bunch of starfish on the beach.
And there's hundreds of them. And the old guy, you know, says,
what are you doing? And he goes, I'm saving starfish, throwing them back.
And the old man goes, well, you can't get all of them. You know,
what difference are you going to make?
(25:43):
And the young person goes, it made a difference to this one.
Throws another one in, right?
And I think that's the same thing, right? Like we can stare at the adversity
that's in front of us, the tragedies that are in front of us.
And it's easy to say, well, I can't do anything or that's too much.
I think groups like La Via, like the Mion Foundation, like the people that support
(26:04):
them, the people that are going on these trips, they've chosen to say it makes
a difference to that person, right? I think that's really, really important.
And I think from a human perspective, which is really important,
is finding that heart of compassion and looking at people and realizing,
you mentioned the foster homes, knowing parents give up their children because
(26:26):
they thought that was the best answer, right?
That's hard. Being a parent myself now, I'm like, man, that's gut-wrenching
to know that, man, that decision had to be made.
And I think having that heart of compassion allows you to come from a place
of hopefully not judgment, in a place of like, man, I want to help how I can, right?
And realize that all people want in war-torn countries and impoverished countries
(26:49):
and places that have horrible governments and all kinds of natural disasters,
there's all those things that come to the place as as
humans in this as a father and or as
a mother you know all he wants the best for your children right
and and at that human level yeah there's all these politics and religious and
all these other things that go around you but you want that yeah you want the
(27:11):
best and that's cool that you you got to spend some time in some of those areas
you can see like in like especially casa alleluia they're so faith-based and
and you know they've every,
all their walls have scriptures on them and they're praying over the kids.
And like you said, as a, as a father, as a mother, they want what's best for
those kids. And they know that their father in heaven wants what's best for those kids.
(27:32):
And they, they show that to them. They love them. They put their arms on them. They pray with them.
They, they grow them in a way that, that heals them from their,
from their trauma, whatever the case may be. And they.
It's unlike anything you've ever experienced. Sometimes it's like,
you know, only, only God could have done, done, built something like this.
Exactly what we say, you know, only God could have, could have put together La Via.
(27:55):
Only God could have put together Mian Foundation for, for all of all the organizations
you work with, you know, faith being number one, only God could have done it.
And that's, you know, like you said, with, you know, throwing back the starfish,
one person at a time can, can make a difference.
But, you know, together, you know, we work as a collective with all these other
organizations that, you know, like Ted Barrett said at our launch,
(28:17):
you know, he said, it's not about who gets the credit.
And, you know, we can accomplish so much when no one cares about who gets the
credit, but also when God gets the glory.
And so, you know, us as La Via Mian Foundation, as a collective,
we're all just working together to throw one starfish back in the ocean.
And maybe together we can save them all.
(28:39):
And, you know, we're not the ones that's saving them. It's God at the end of
the day that's going to save them.
But God's using us just like he used Moses, just like he used David,
just like he used all these different characters.
And from the Bible, he's using us in the same way to make a difference in one
person or one group of people's lives at a time so that he can accomplish his plan.
And that's exactly what we're trying to do as people, but also as organizations.
(29:03):
Absolutely. I think, you know, my time at Neon Enterprises, that's one of the
biggest attracting things that brought me here was you could see that heart
kind of emulate through people. And we've built a culture that cares.
You know, I came about five years ago and I think.
I kind of knew this foundation was going to come about. I really didn't know how or when.
(29:23):
And, you know, fast forward, you know, about four years. So about last year,
I think the pieces just started falling in place.
And you talk about that glory to God, that that was a God thing.
I don't think Leo ever dreamed of being able to do what he's doing and Lily either.
And, but I think they, you know, the Mion family has embraced that and they've
(29:46):
embraced that heart in a way that says, you know, I'm going to give without
any expectation of a return.
And because they've done that, that investment has just blossomed into so many
different projects that have changed.
I can't imagine less than thousands of people's lives at this point.
(30:06):
So, you know, groups like you who are coming alongside and that's a big part
of what the foundation's doing is saying groups like Lavia, right?
They're saying, hey, there's YAPAX, there's LAVIA, there's probably 10 or 15
other organizations that we've invested in.
Mian is saying, hey, we don't want to reproduce what you're doing.
We just want you to be the best at what you do.
(30:27):
Clearing obstacles, providing resources, providing funding, connecting the dots.
And that's a big reason that we're talking today. day. That's,
I think a little bit about what the podcast is about, right.
Is helping connect the dots, educating people and getting people involved.
I think, you know, my, my whole goal, you know, would be for people to just
(30:50):
do something, do anything, right.
Cause it's easy to judge. It's easy to sit at home and watch TV and not do anything
else, but you scroll TikTok and you see a problem and it's easy to be like,
Oh, it's not my problem until it is your problem. right? And we saw that in
our back door with the tornadoes.
We've seen it before. And, you know, during COVID, it's a great example.
There's a lot of need during COVID.
(31:11):
You know, how many families locally didn't have food because the fuel program
wasn't going on at school.
And in this time, we are very blessed. Many of us are very blessed in our situations.
Yeah. So I'm excited for what you're doing.
We're going to kind of bring it home. I kind of want to ask,
how can we support you? How can other organizations support you? Maybe individuals?
(31:32):
What does La Via need? Yeah.
I like to say it's not necessarily about what we're doing.
Me and Ben always say it's not. A lot of organizations you work with,
not necessarily the ones we work with, But some organizations are like,
you know, give me your money and I'll go do good with it.
What we want to do, especially with Livia and the Mian Foundation,
(31:53):
what we want to be is a group that brings the good to people and lets them do it.
And that's exactly true with what we're doing in Guatemala. We want to make
it available that anyone could come and do a trip. And so that's kind of what we've done at Mian.
We were able to bring a trip that the Mian employees were able to do it and
(32:14):
go and down and be a part of.
And I think it changed kind of the organization as a whole.
It's like kind of how people think about missions and how people got involved
with what, you know, before it was just Leo and Lily kind of going down and doing mission work.
But we were able to get, you know, the whole group involved.
And I think for other business owners, other leaders of organizations,
(32:34):
the impact that a mission can have on your group and your organization is super
vast. And I think if you as an organization want to.
Do good. You know, there's amazing organizations that do like that,
that can bring stuff to you to do good.
And I think that's what we want to do as Lavia too, is we have different projects
(32:55):
that we can, you know, have teed up for you guys or teed up for whoever.
And you guys just say, hey, we're going to partner with Lavia and do this. It's not about credit.
It's not about who's doing it, but it's saying, you know, we're going to be
the ones that remove the obstacles and you guys can just partner and do it.
And we'll, you know, we get the project going, and get it to completion,
(33:16):
set it up for you guys, and then even take you guys down and be in it,
touch it, feel it, see it.
And so that's kind of what our whole model is, is having projects.
There's a million different projects that anyone could do. We just have a couple
that are already ready to go.
We have the team in place to do it. And so we set them in front of different
(33:39):
organizations, different business owners, different churches,
churches and say, hey, you know, you might not have somebody in your organization
that can lead a mission trip, especially as a church.
Some churches just don't have the person in their organization that can lead
a mission trip or even in a business aspect too.
But, you know, we want to make it possible that you can. So not every organization
(33:59):
has a Leo that was doing it before.
But, you know, what Livia can do is set it up for you guys, be the hands and
feet that that are taking care of it on the front end and invite you guys to
be a part of it and take it over from there.
And really get you and your organization involved.
And I think that's how people can partner with us.
(34:21):
Really, as far as monetary, we don't really.
You know, need a whole lot of money. We kind of only do the projects that other
organizations partner with us for.
We don't do anything more or anything
less. We do exactly what other organizations want to partner us to do.
So we can handle, you know, as many projects or as few projects as we need to.
But we try to do our best to always have a project available for anyone that wants to come along.
(34:47):
And we pray over those projects. We pray for the communities that they will
benefit. And we pray for whoever's going to partner with us in those.
And so far, it's always been a perfect match. It's always a perfect match for the project.
J-PAC is going down with us to do a project in August. And we're taking a trip
with Mian in July and then another trip with the community with Mian Foundation in September.
(35:11):
And we just have a lot of different groups that are partnering with us to do good.
And I think that's, if people want to get involved, they can,
you know, Visit our website and kind of see.
Under our projects tab, you can look at available projects.
And there's several projects there right now that you can click on and see,
hey, if I wanted to get involved, what would it cost me and my organization?
And then they can obviously reach out to me and we can figure out a way to make
(35:34):
that happen. What's that website?
It's laviamissions.org. Okay. And can you spell that out for us?
L-A-V-I-A is Laviamissions, M-I-S-S-I-O-N-S, missions. I think you got it.
Yeah. Yeah. And how can they get in contact with you? Is your email on that
website? Yeah, you can find my email and my phone number on the website.
(35:54):
And yeah, it's all there. Awesome.
Yeah. I think it's important to note, it's a little different than some other organizations.
You find a project and then when you find that organization,
they're funding that project.
It's not going into some general fund or, you know, mixed up with other resources.
And there's nothing wrong with some of those organizations who handle things
that way. But you do direct impact with the funds that are provided.
(36:17):
Pretty special. Yeah, so whatever project we have their funds are,
come through us because we're the ones that help get it there.
But everything is directly to the project.
There's nothing that goes to
Livia to run our, you know, to pay for our overhead. We have no employees.
We just do everything out of the grace of our heart. And we try to make it big
(36:38):
of an impact with their dollar as we can. Yeah, that's awesome. That's amazing.
Well, I think that's, you know, we could probably talk for hours.
Honestly, I know you have a hundred stories.
And I think maybe on episode two, if they'll have us come back, we'll talk some more.
I want to hear some of the dangerous ones. You know, I'm sure you got a few
that were a little sketchy.
There's always a Will Wyatt breaking his leg. Yeah, man, Will, you got shouted out.
(37:04):
But man, I just want to thank you. You know, I consider you a friend.
You know, I thank you for talking to us, but you know, thank you for being a leader.
Thank you for, you know, serving God and leading with your heart and really
following not what you necessarily want to do.
I know you enjoy this now, But you're following, you know, biblical principles
and a biblically led mission and dream that I think has been laid out in front of you.
(37:27):
And so we're truly proud of you. You know, you're giving a lot of hope.
You're restoring lives.
And I wish you everything, you know, but, you know, with that and all the success
that, like, can come from just being who you are and living authentically.
So thank you and thank Mion Enterprises and the Mion Foundation and the Mion family.
(37:50):
So it's been a great, great, great time. Yeah. Yeah. And Pastor Benton,
I think, you know, we got to thank him as well, right?
Yeah. He's the one that started this whole thing. Yeah. Him and God. Yeah, absolutely.
All right. Well, thank you all. And thanks for joining us today.
Did you know you can also watch our podcast? Head over to our YouTube channel to check those out.
Visit our website to stay up to date with everything going on at MianFamilyFoundation.org.
(38:16):
Thank you for listening to Mian
Foundation Conversations. And until next time, do the next kind thing.
Welcome to Mion Foundation Conversations, where we talk all things community,
philanthropy, and connect people together. We hope you enjoy our show.
Welcome to Mion Conversations. I'm Ryland Keene. I work in the real estate side of Mion Enterprises.
Got Scott Coulter joining me as a project manager on our construction team.
(00:20):
But the real reason you're here is, man, you got some cool stuff going on. We do, we do.
Wanna hear a little bit about it. I'm ready to talk. Let's talk. Yeah.
Why don't you just open us up, man? Tell us a little bit about,
you know, the way forward and how you're kind of changing some lives and sharing hope.
Hope yeah so i'm again scott coulter i
am obviously a member of the milan team and get to
(00:43):
be a part of the neon foundation and neon enterprises but
another reason why we're doing is i would get to be part of la via missions
which is some some mission organization stuff that we're doing down in mostly
in guatemala but a little bit around the world and just get to be a part of
a cool team doing some some cool mission work so yeah so so what let's back
up a second tell me a little bit What about Scott?
(01:05):
Like, you know, I know you a little personally. People are listening.
You know, we like to joke around like you are a man of many talents and a giver in many ways.
But tell us, you know, who is Scott? You know, where did he come from?
Yeah, I was born right here in Clarksville, Tennessee. I love this community.
And I'm just a person that wants to give back, a person that wants to do cool in this community.
(01:26):
And that's exactly what I get to do as part of my job here at the Hermione Enterprises.
We're doing a lot of cool things here in Clarksville.
And then it's obviously transformed into things we're doing around the world.
And I just, part of who I am, I want to be the person that wants to give back
and wants to do the cool things both here in Clarksville and here and around the world.
So that's just part of who I am, not necessarily about exactly what I'm doing,
(01:47):
but exactly who we are as an organization.
So we strive to be a me on and we strive to do cool things and change lives.
So that's what we're doing. Yeah. Well, you know, this conversation,
you know, is not just about Lavia Missions. So, you know, it has to do with
the heart of, you know, what the Mion Foundation is.
And what I'd say is you're a very humble leader. And I'd like to brag on you for a minute.
(02:12):
You know, the people listening, you know, they probably heard that and they're
like, okay, you know, who's Scott?
Scott is a guy who is a believer in God.
He is there when the church opens, leads worship some Sundays.
I heard some stories about that, you know, where you randomly,
you know, shouted out, you know, I can't believe the piano's leading worship
one day. and that's how we discovered you've led some worship teams.
(02:33):
You're there when the door closes. Your grandfather was a preacher,
is that right? He fills in for preaching.
So yeah, he's very active in the church and the whole family.
It's been a blessing to be a part of that and be growing up in that atmosphere.
Yeah. So those values, you know, I think, you know, have carried forward.
When you joined Mion Enterprises, I remember, was that four years ago? About four years ago?
(02:55):
Yeah, a little over four years ago. Yeah. You were still at Austin Peay State University. Yes, sir.
So, you know, pretty impressive. Come work basically full-time as much as you
could and going to school full-time.
And you graduated two years ago. Is that right? In 2022. Yeah. December 2022.
Yeah. Yes, sir. So just highly successful in the fact that you can do that.
You know, you're, I think one of the most impressive things when I first met you was the work ethic.
(03:20):
I think that, you know, the humbleness, the work ethic, and then come to find
out you're a genius as well.
Far, far from it. Yeah, I know you won't tell people that, but you definitely
have a brain that works in a different way. And it's pretty, pretty amazing.
I'm glad to call you a friend. Thank you. And I'm glad we get to have this conversation
and share a little bit about what you have going on. But I think it's important to tell people that.
(03:43):
And last but not least, you now have a beautiful wife.
Yes. Yes, I do. Yeah. So one month, about one month? Month and a few days.
Month and a few days. So congratulations, Scott.
Super proud of you. And I think what you're doing with Lavia,
which we're going to learn some more about, and you as an individual are going
to do some pretty amazing things.
So thank you for being a part of this. So tell me, how did Lavia get started?
(04:08):
You know, where did that come from? Yeah, so Bitten and I, who's my pastor at
our church, and we've been doing missions to the church for many years.
I went on my first mission when I was 14 years old, and he took me to Guatemala
on my first one, actually against my own will.
Did not want to go. He bought me a plane ticket anyway and kind of forced me to go.
And immediately once I got there, you know, the whole experience changed my
(04:31):
life. It kind of, I think, changes the trajectory of what I was going to do
with my life and kind of just impacted me in ways that I had no idea could happen.
And so I spent a couple of years doing missions with the church.
And then on a trip that me and Benton and I went on in 2022,
we kind of went down to scout out some different projects for our church.
(04:52):
And we got to have a meeting with a group of principals down there in one of
the communities we were traveling with. And it was me and him and one of our
friends, Raul, that lives in Guatemala.
And I think it was principals from 10 different schools and the director of
their school district there.
And we met with them and each of them just presented us with projects that they
(05:15):
needed at their school that have really just needed help since COVID.
You know, with kids coming back from COVID and they were just,
all these schools were just in dire, dire need of different projects.
And so they presented us, we sat around a table and they presented us with different projects.
And then after the meeting, we all, we went and visited each of these schools and.
Really, we just realized that this was bigger than what our church could handle.
(05:39):
You know, we try to go down at least once every other year as a church,
and we realized that it was just more than what a church could handle.
And so we were like, we got to figure out a way to get more organizations involved,
more, you know, either churches or businesses or whatever we could to get involved.
So we started throwing around the idea of starting a nonprofit that would focus on mission work.
(05:59):
And, you know, slowly but surely, Livia started evolving. And then,
you know, kind of a year down the road, we were able to become officially formed.
We got our, you know, we formed a nonprofit through Larry Rocconi's office, helped us get started.
And we got the legal paperwork and everything done. And now,
you know, in 2023, we're able to form officially.
(06:20):
So we've taken several groups since then, including a trip, several trips from
Mion Enterprises. And so, yeah, it was kind of just a snowball effect of what
we were already doing at our church, trying to get more people involved.
And that's kind of the main catalyst that started La Via.
Yeah. And just kind of emphasize, La Via means?
(06:41):
La Via means the way. So La Via, so where we go in Guatemala,
there's a city near it called Antigua, which is like a super old city.
And all the streets are one-way cobblestone streets.
And we were there and like me and Ben, when we were there in 2022,
we're sitting around, like just talking and praying about what it is that God
has already had put on our hearts during that, during that trip.
(07:03):
And we were walking down the street and there's on the, on the,
on all the roads, there's a sign on the, on the, on the roads that say Una Via, which means one way.
And we're like, you know, Oh, that's, that's cool. You know,
Via, the way, you know, the, you know, God's our way.
I mean, they were like, what about if it was the way, La Via?
And so we were like, we found that name and we stuck with it.
(07:24):
And it's kind of already, we've
seen it kind of transform and kind of the meaning behind it a little bit.
You know, it's, you know, it's, we're, we focus on these projects of giving.
Not necessarily giving handouts, but giving the people a way to be better or
a way to improve their school or a way to do whatever it is the mission is. And so it's not about us.
(07:44):
It's not about them. It's about their future.
It's about God. At the end of the day, it's about how they can improve their lives.
And so we try to give all of our projects, we try to give everyone a way forward is what we say.
Yeah, I think that's really important when we look at not only missions,
but just changing people's lives, right? What does it look like?
(08:07):
And it's been a while since I've done a mission trip. I've not done one with
me on Enterprises yet, and I get to do my first one with you at the end of July.
So I don't know when this comes out, but if it's out beforehand, be praying for us.
I think it'll be a great time. Um, but one of the things I distinctly remember
on the few that I've been to, and there's some books that, that talk about it,
but it's this concept of, you know, God's already there.
(08:29):
You know, we're not, we're not bringing God there. Right.
And the second part of that is we're not saving anybody.
And the impact that we make is to help people, you know, get to a better place
themselves in many ways, right?
You're providing the help that they may have not got the assistance they needed
that allows allows them to create long lasting change.
(08:51):
Not, it can be immediate impact, right? Don't get me wrong. Like there's immediate,
you know, needs and things, but how do you see Lavia in that?
Like where it is kind of a long lasting change.
It's not, Hey, Scott showed up with a group and you know, they did some cool
stuff and they left. Right.
What's the, what's the impact? I mean, and really what we try to focus on is
empowering them to do, do the things that.
(09:12):
They need like to do, you know, to be in charge of their school or to be in
charge of a water project or to be in charge of whatever it is that we're doing.
It's about empowering them, not coming and giving them a handout.
It's about giving them a hand up.
It's not about, you know, us going down and saying, oh, cool, we built this school.
Now we're leaving and they're going to try to figure it out.
It's about giving them the tools and resources for them as a community or them as a,
(09:33):
you know, church or them as a school to do the projects that they want to to
do and that they already, you know, know how to do.
And just us providing some resources, just like the Mian Foundation,
our goal is to help organizations overcome obstacles.
It's the exact same thing we're trying to do is in those communities,
help them overcome the obstacles that might be poverty or that might be famine
(09:55):
or that might be whatever the case may be.
It's about us trying to go there and connect them with groups from the States
or from wherever so that they can, you know, overcome the obstacles that they're facing.
Not about us going and doing whatever. It's about partnering with them to overcome those obstacles.
Yeah. Well, let's talk about those obstacles. What do you see?
What are the major things that are hindering, you know, let's talk Guatemala, right?
(10:18):
Like it seems to be the main focus, Olivia, at least at the moment. Yeah.
So when we talk about, you know, the main projects we're doing right now,
you know, is mostly with schools.
And we talk about schools, the main obstacles they face is just lack of funding
for most, to be quite frank.
You know, when we think about school systems, We're accustomed,
especially here in Montgomery County, we have a great school system that does
(10:40):
whatever they can to better their schools and whatever the schools need,
they're there helping them out.
But in here in these communities, they really don't have that.
They don't have a school system that's backing them, especially financially,
to do Betterment projects at their school.
And so a lot of these schools, especially after COVID, they were just left and
(11:01):
kind of either with low space or with deteriorated materials in their school.
You know, we see schools with huge holes in the ceilings, kids getting rained
on while they're doing their work, you know, as far as, you know,
dogs just running around the middle of school and coming in inside classrooms.
And so, like, there's a lot of different issues that they have at their schools
(11:22):
that they would love to fix.
But it's just a lack of funds where, you know, it may take a community forever
to come up with the funds to do a project,
which we're, if, if we can help, you know, facilitate those funds or help them
fundraise some, in some way that then we jump in and try to help out.
And that's kind of what the main thing we do is help them.
(11:42):
You know, we, our whole team that does the construction is from Guatemala. We don't.
We like to say that we're not trying to bring in a bunch of American builders
to come in and build a Guatemalan school because we don't build the same here.
We don't build the same as they do there.
So all of our team there are Guatemalans that do construction every day.
(12:03):
They're a construction team and they build.
We just help them facilitate the resources as far as getting this project done.
So we don't like to say that we're going down to do the work.
We're going down to help them overcome the obstacle so that they can do the
work. Yeah, that's awesome.
There's obviously a lot of great organizations doing a lot of good stuff.
(12:26):
And I think it's always special when you find people that have that heart to serve.
It's not just about money, right? It's about giving our time sometimes and reaching
down into people's lives and meeting them where they're at.
And there's a sacrifice that comes with that. And I want to talk about that
for a second, because I think that's important for people to hear the people
that are involved in these projects.
(12:47):
You know, you talk about Benton, that was your pastor, right?
The people that are there, you know, I'm sure you have leaders down there that
you work with, right? You know, community leaders, pastors, things like that.
What does that sacrifice like for the people that are involved at,
you know, an in-depth level?
I mean, it's just like getting to take a vacation, but you don't get to take
your kids, you know, like your kids or your spouse. So everyone that's going
(13:09):
down with us is spending time away from their families, away from their work,
away from life in general.
And so it really is a time sacrifice to go down there and be part of it.
But I think it's almost like an investment to me. It's an investment in these
people's lives, but it's also an investment in us because...
You know, I will say nothing feels better than when you're down there and you
(13:29):
can see the change that you're making.
Um, it's, it's real, it's, it's tangible. It's, you can feel it.
And so, yes, it is a time away from your family, time away from your spouse
or whatever, but it is huge that the impact that it makes on yourself.
And it feels like it almost, it almost feels wrong because you're there to do
good, but it ends up doing so much good for you.
And that, you know, it almost makes you miss it. Every time you come back,
(13:53):
you're like, Like, I can't wait to go back on the next one. Yeah, yeah.
The impact on our lives, you know, I can say firsthand, you know,
in a different set of environments, I've felt that.
And I think anyone who's done these type trips, whether it be a medical trip,
a mission trip or humanitarian, the need is great.
And getting to be a part of something that is bigger than you,
(14:16):
man, it feeds the soul. It changes your perspective.
You come back. I remember when I first got back from a trip,
I think I was maybe 23, 24 years old.
And the impact it had, it was just like, why are these people mad about,
you know, the food they got at the restaurant, right?
You know, it was cold. It's like, man, you're lucky to eat.
And it's important. It's important to recognize some of that because I think
(14:40):
we have a duty since we've been on these trips, organizations like yourself,
is how do you connect the dots, right?
How do you get people that just haven't seen the other side of the world? I haven't seen that.
And how do we teach people, you know, that perspective without them getting
to share that? And that's a challenge.
I mean, I'm sure you felt that too, right? How do you get people to give money
or to go and they just don't get it?
(15:02):
What does that look like? What kind of challenges do you face with that?
Well, Leo has done a great job of, you know, selling it for us.
You know, it's not about, you know, you can make people, you can show people
a slideshow of all the lives or you can see how many people you've fed or whatever,
but until you experience it, it's really just hard to, you just can't describe it. And so,
(15:24):
you know, Leo says all the time, you know, if they, if they,
I know if this person could just feel it, they would be hooked on it.
And just like, uh, we got to take George Watson down with us,
me and Leo got to take him down and on a trip.
And then, you know, now he came back and I think it personally,
I think it changed his life of how he views those things.
And it's, there's really no way to really experience it until you're there and
(15:45):
you can, you can touch it and feel it and be a part of it.
And so like, that's my challenge to most people is like, Like,
you know, the, before I went, I was, you know, like I said, I was 14 and I was
like, you know, I didn't lose anything in Guatemala.
There's no reason for me to go there. It was dangerous, whatever.
But immediately two days into the trip, you know, I knew I was supposed to be
there and I knew that it was having a huge impact on my life.
(16:08):
And so I challenge anyone that wants to go and, and, or that maybe doesn't,
if they think they don't want to go, maybe it's a reason you should go.
It's it's beneficial for anyone of any
age of any any person across
the board it's really just a eye-opening experience and
it makes you grateful for everything you have and everything that that
happens in your life so yeah i could not agree more we do you know i tell people
(16:30):
all the time and from a non-religious standpoint right in the leadership world
you know people need to give back it's it's it's a calling that everyone should
should take up and our passions are different and different,
you know, things that we've gone through make us passionate about different
nonprofits and different groups we support.
But too many people sit on the sidelines and they like to comment,
(16:53):
right? They like to have a point of view.
But I'm always one to encourage people, find a place to give back.
And sometimes that's right down the road. Sometimes that's in the Appalachian,
which is a very poor region in America.
Sometimes that's in another country like Guatemala or Cuba or Mexico.
These are all places that I know you've been, or I don't know if you've done Cuba yet, but yeah.
So, you know, the, the need is great and it's everywhere and,
(17:17):
and to, you know, we shelter ourselves, we shelter our kids a lot,
you know, not to get on a personal level.
I look at my family, it's a young family and I've made a, you know,
a personal commitment that, you know, I want my kids to experience this as early
as, as they can, because I want them to understand what the most of the world goes through.
I think it shapes our lives in ways that, almost like on a DNA level, you're never the same.
(17:41):
You know, yes, I haven't been in years, but it changes you. And I think if you
don't get to experience that, you're almost missing out on life.
No, yeah, I went for the first time at 14 and literally, I mean,
changed the perspective of my life.
It was the reason I wanted to learn Spanish. It was the reason why I wanted to come work for Leo.
It was the reason behind a lot of different things. And without that,
(18:04):
you know, one, one, you know, bitten by me a plane ticket literally changed
the trajectory of my life and so.
It's so important for especially the young people. It's so important for parents
to, you know, you know, I think we see a lot of kids, you know,
these days with, you know, with everything, but act like they have nothing.
(18:25):
And so just the perspective that these trips bring is enormous.
And like you said, you know, it's so important for us to show that to other
people, show to our families and friends and children.
And so I think it's, you know, one of the most important things we can do for
our families. Yeah, could not agree more.
You know, I want to, you know, ask you to maybe share a personal story.
(18:46):
And I'll start it off with, you know, the experience I had and something that
I think just sat with me and is always sat with me.
It's something I remember very distinctly that really changed everything for
me when I went on my trip. And I remember maybe the second day we were, we were at a sports camp.
We were doing a sports camp down in Panama and in a very small village.
(19:08):
It wasn't really remote.
It's still, you know, kind of close to the city, but surrounded by a lot of poverty and gangs.
And so the, the little village we're in where all these kids that kind of lived
in that area and they were away from their families for a week.
And I think it was dinner time. And I remember, I don't, I don't know who said
it, but it was someone at the table and And they just made a comment about,
(19:31):
man, we're just eating rice again and beans, right?
And we all kind of joked and, you know, I'm laughing too.
And I'm like, oh man, this is kind of, you know, in my head kind of,
yeah, I wish I could have McDonald's or something, right?
Like something different. This is like our fourth meal, you know,
breakfast, lunch, and dinner. And it's all basically the same.
And I remember the leader of that group in a very compassionate way,
(19:53):
you know, sat down and said, hey guys, like, I hear you. But some of these kids,
this is the first meal that they've had in a week or consistent meal. Right.
And, and, and I think that sets at home when you're like, man,
I'm over here complaining about eating and you look around the room and there's 75 children.
Who may have not got a meal that day or a meal last week. And I think that changed
(20:17):
everything for me completely.
And I got to spend the rest of the week, you know, doing what I love playing
soccer with a bunch of kids.
You know, they kicked my butt more times than not, but man, what a blast,
but life-changing in that.
And so, you know, I opened that up, you know, I'd love to hear something,
you know, out of your long list of experiences that may have stuck in your head.
(20:37):
Yeah, probably like you said, the first trip you're on is like,
Like, you're taking so much.
And that's why every time we go on a new trip and there's a couple people there
that has never been on a mission trip, I love, you know, as soon as we get on,
I'm, like, staring at them while they're looking out the window of the bus.
They're, like, because they're all just, like, making faces.
And you can see them taking it all in for the first time.
So I love when we take new people on trips and they get to experience it for the first time.
(21:00):
But just like that, on the first trip I went on, I remember,
like, the third day we were there and playing soccer with the kids and looking
around and obviously didn't speak Spanish at that time. And I go over to one
of the translators and I'm like, hey, you know, where's, there's no kid.
I don't see any kids my age.
I just know there's only probably 10 year old and 10, 11 and younger.
It's like, where's, you know, why aren't the rest of them at school?
(21:22):
And the rest of them was like, he was pretty much just telling me like school
for them isn't free. free school for them.
Like for those kids that are that to that age, it's either really expensive.
Or they don't have enough income as a family that they can afford to one for
him to go to school or one, but it's in secondly for them not to work.
And so I was like, and that just hit me hard because I was like,
(21:45):
at my age, not being able to go to school and I got to go to work to support
my family just to see the drastic difference in what the lives we live here
and the lives that that they're living there.
As far as opportunity that those kids have.
We just, we don't, you know, you don't understand how, how lucky you are until
you're like in that instance and you feel the change, the feel,
(22:07):
you feel the difference as far as like what those people in those circumstances
are going through versus what you live every day.
And I, I joke with my wife, Elena all the time. And every time she's,
she complains about whatever I complain about, you know, Hey,
we're, you know, the TV's not working or, you know, the air conditioner's off
or it's hot in here. I'm like, that's a, that's a first world problem. Yeah.
(22:29):
But we don't realize how many first world problems really are until you see
what a third world country like Guatemala, like Mexico, like Cuba,
or any of those are, you don't see how, how drastic the difference is.
And like that on my first one, and like you mentioned that when we're in Cuba,
it's the same way as rice and beans.
And we joke all the time. It's like, Oh, we have, what are we having for dinner
(22:51):
today? Rice and beans or beans and rice.
And that's something Ted, Ted always says is like today's either rice and beans or beans and rice.
And that's, you know, you, you look back and you're like, man,
I, you know, I was ready, like you said, for some McDonald's or literally anything else.
But, but in that instance, you're like, you know, when we were in Cuba this
past December, they were going on two weeks without rations.
(23:14):
So it was the end of their second week. They were, you know,
they hadn't, they like, they're, they're, they get little ration books and then
they, they go to the, like this big warehouse once a day and they pick up,
they literally get their daily bread.
Like when, you know, we say, give us a day or daily bread, they're literally going
there to get their daily bread and they're picking up the rations and
they went on two weeks without certain rations the warehouse was
(23:35):
just empty and uh you know
we were there and you know they they had enough food to
give us to because we were you know buying other areas and
getting it there but literally everyone else
in that neighborhood where we were staying was just like they would
walk every day to the warehouse and they'd come back and we're like
hey did you get anything today and they're like no there's nothing else and it's just
like super difficult to
(23:58):
be be there and you're like okay well i'm getting fed and
i'm complaining about rice and beans just like you said but these people are literally walking down
the street hanging their head like like what am
i gonna how am i gonna give my kid they're giving their kid the only
piece of bread that they're gonna have for the whole day yeah and then we're over here
just you know complaining about having to eat whatever and it's it's really
hard some of these trips are some of the times it's difficult emotionally especially
(24:22):
when we go to the orphanages and we go to some of the areas that are a little
bit harder emotionally but the the return you get on that as far as like.
The perspective and and stuff so every time we go i take people to one of the
partnering organizations work with the foundation is an amazing organization
(24:42):
but it really is a heavy heavy.
Part of our trip to go and we spend all week hanging out with kids and their
families and then to go to an orphanage and hear the stories about how these
kids are sexually assaulted and abused and then, or, or just given up because
their parents can't afford to pay for them.
It's really, it's really, you know, it makes it hard, but then,
(25:03):
but then it's really a great end to our trip because it's, we leave with so
much perspective after that.
Yeah. There's, you know, it kind of reminds me, there's so much need sometimes
it's overwhelming Yeah.
And it reminds me of a story and I'm going to butcher it. And I don't know who
said this story and maybe some people have heard it, but it's a story of an old man,
(25:23):
you know, at the beach and he's walking down the beach and he sees a young person
throwing some starfish back into the ocean. and a bunch of starfish on the beach.
And there's hundreds of them. And the old guy, you know, says,
what are you doing? And he goes, I'm saving starfish, throwing them back.
And the old man goes, well, you can't get all of them. You know,
what difference are you going to make?
(25:43):
And the young person goes, it made a difference to this one.
Throws another one in, right?
And I think that's the same thing, right? Like we can stare at the adversity
that's in front of us, the tragedies that are in front of us.
And it's easy to say, well, I can't do anything or that's too much.
I think groups like La Via, like the Mion Foundation, like the people that support
(26:04):
them, the people that are going on these trips, they've chosen to say it makes
a difference to that person, right? I think that's really, really important.
And I think from a human perspective, which is really important,
is finding that heart of compassion and looking at people and realizing,
you mentioned the foster homes, knowing parents give up their children because
(26:26):
they thought that was the best answer, right?
That's hard. Being a parent myself now, I'm like, man, that's gut-wrenching
to know that, man, that decision had to be made.
And I think having that heart of compassion allows you to come from a place
of hopefully not judgment, in a place of like, man, I want to help how I can, right?
And realize that all people want in war-torn countries and impoverished countries
(26:49):
and places that have horrible governments and all kinds of natural disasters,
there's all those things that come to the place as as
humans in this as a father and or as
a mother you know all he wants the best for your children right
and and at that human level yeah there's all these politics and religious and
all these other things that go around you but you want that yeah you want the
(27:11):
best and that's cool that you you got to spend some time in some of those areas
you can see like in like especially casa alleluia they're so faith-based and
and you know they've every,
all their walls have scriptures on them and they're praying over the kids.
And like you said, as a, as a father, as a mother, they want what's best for
those kids. And they know that their father in heaven wants what's best for those kids.
(27:32):
And they, they show that to them. They love them. They put their arms on them. They pray with them.
They, they grow them in a way that, that heals them from their,
from their trauma, whatever the case may be. And they.
It's unlike anything you've ever experienced. Sometimes it's like,
you know, only, only God could have done, done, built something like this.
Exactly what we say, you know, only God could have, could have put together La Via.
(27:55):
Only God could have put together Mian Foundation for, for all of all the organizations
you work with, you know, faith being number one, only God could have done it.
And that's, you know, like you said, with, you know, throwing back the starfish,
one person at a time can, can make a difference.
But, you know, together, you know, we work as a collective with all these other
organizations that, you know, like Ted Barrett said at our launch,
(28:17):
you know, he said, it's not about who gets the credit.
And, you know, we can accomplish so much when no one cares about who gets the
credit, but also when God gets the glory.
And so, you know, us as La Via Mian Foundation, as a collective,
we're all just working together to throw one starfish back in the ocean.
And maybe together we can save them all.
(28:39):
And, you know, we're not the ones that's saving them. It's God at the end of
the day that's going to save them.
But God's using us just like he used Moses, just like he used David,
just like he used all these different characters.
And from the Bible, he's using us in the same way to make a difference in one
person or one group of people's lives at a time so that he can accomplish his plan.
And that's exactly what we're trying to do as people, but also as organizations.
(29:03):
Absolutely. I think, you know, my time at Neon Enterprises, that's one of the
biggest attracting things that brought me here was you could see that heart
kind of emulate through people. And we've built a culture that cares.
You know, I came about five years ago and I think.
I kind of knew this foundation was going to come about. I really didn't know how or when.
(29:23):
And, you know, fast forward, you know, about four years. So about last year,
I think the pieces just started falling in place.
And you talk about that glory to God, that that was a God thing.
I don't think Leo ever dreamed of being able to do what he's doing and Lily either.
And, but I think they, you know, the Mion family has embraced that and they've
(29:46):
embraced that heart in a way that says, you know, I'm going to give without
any expectation of a return.
And because they've done that, that investment has just blossomed into so many
different projects that have changed.
I can't imagine less than thousands of people's lives at this point.
(30:06):
So, you know, groups like you who are coming alongside and that's a big part
of what the foundation's doing is saying groups like Lavia, right?
They're saying, hey, there's YAPAX, there's LAVIA, there's probably 10 or 15
other organizations that we've invested in.
Mian is saying, hey, we don't want to reproduce what you're doing.
We just want you to be the best at what you do.
(30:27):
Clearing obstacles, providing resources, providing funding, connecting the dots.
And that's a big reason that we're talking today. day. That's,
I think a little bit about what the podcast is about, right.
Is helping connect the dots, educating people and getting people involved.
I think, you know, my, my whole goal, you know, would be for people to just
(30:50):
do something, do anything, right.
Cause it's easy to judge. It's easy to sit at home and watch TV and not do anything
else, but you scroll TikTok and you see a problem and it's easy to be like,
Oh, it's not my problem until it is your problem. right? And we saw that in
our back door with the tornadoes.
We've seen it before. And, you know, during COVID, it's a great example.
There's a lot of need during COVID.
(31:11):
You know, how many families locally didn't have food because the fuel program
wasn't going on at school.
And in this time, we are very blessed. Many of us are very blessed in our situations.
Yeah. So I'm excited for what you're doing.
We're going to kind of bring it home. I kind of want to ask,
how can we support you? How can other organizations support you? Maybe individuals?
(31:32):
What does La Via need? Yeah.
I like to say it's not necessarily about what we're doing.
Me and Ben always say it's not. A lot of organizations you work with,
not necessarily the ones we work with, But some organizations are like,
you know, give me your money and I'll go do good with it.
What we want to do, especially with Livia and the Mian Foundation,
(31:53):
what we want to be is a group that brings the good to people and lets them do it.
And that's exactly true with what we're doing in Guatemala. We want to make
it available that anyone could come and do a trip. And so that's kind of what we've done at Mian.
We were able to bring a trip that the Mian employees were able to do it and
(32:14):
go and down and be a part of.
And I think it changed kind of the organization as a whole.
It's like kind of how people think about missions and how people got involved
with what, you know, before it was just Leo and Lily kind of going down and doing mission work.
But we were able to get, you know, the whole group involved.
And I think for other business owners, other leaders of organizations,
(32:34):
the impact that a mission can have on your group and your organization is super
vast. And I think if you as an organization want to.
Do good. You know, there's amazing organizations that do like that,
that can bring stuff to you to do good.
And I think that's what we want to do as Lavia too, is we have different projects
(32:55):
that we can, you know, have teed up for you guys or teed up for whoever.
And you guys just say, hey, we're going to partner with Lavia and do this. It's not about credit.
It's not about who's doing it, but it's saying, you know, we're going to be
the ones that remove the obstacles and you guys can just partner and do it.
And we'll, you know, we get the project going, and get it to completion,
(33:16):
set it up for you guys, and then even take you guys down and be in it,
touch it, feel it, see it.
And so that's kind of what our whole model is, is having projects.
There's a million different projects that anyone could do. We just have a couple
that are already ready to go.
We have the team in place to do it. And so we set them in front of different
(33:39):
organizations, different business owners, different churches,
churches and say, hey, you know, you might not have somebody in your organization
that can lead a mission trip, especially as a church.
Some churches just don't have the person in their organization that can lead
a mission trip or even in a business aspect too.
But, you know, we want to make it possible that you can. So not every organization
(33:59):
has a Leo that was doing it before.
But, you know, what Livia can do is set it up for you guys, be the hands and
feet that that are taking care of it on the front end and invite you guys to
be a part of it and take it over from there.
And really get you and your organization involved.
And I think that's how people can partner with us.
(34:21):
Really, as far as monetary, we don't really.
You know, need a whole lot of money. We kind of only do the projects that other
organizations partner with us for.
We don't do anything more or anything
less. We do exactly what other organizations want to partner us to do.
So we can handle, you know, as many projects or as few projects as we need to.
But we try to do our best to always have a project available for anyone that wants to come along.
(34:47):
And we pray over those projects. We pray for the communities that they will
benefit. And we pray for whoever's going to partner with us in those.
And so far, it's always been a perfect match. It's always a perfect match for the project.
J-PAC is going down with us to do a project in August. And we're taking a trip
with Mian in July and then another trip with the community with Mian Foundation in September.
(35:11):
And we just have a lot of different groups that are partnering with us to do good.
And I think that's, if people want to get involved, they can,
you know, Visit our website and kind of see.
Under our projects tab, you can look at available projects.
And there's several projects there right now that you can click on and see,
hey, if I wanted to get involved, what would it cost me and my organization?
And then they can obviously reach out to me and we can figure out a way to make
(35:34):
that happen. What's that website?
It's laviamissions.org. Okay. And can you spell that out for us?
L-A-V-I-A is Laviamissions, M-I-S-S-I-O-N-S, missions. I think you got it.
Yeah. Yeah. And how can they get in contact with you? Is your email on that
website? Yeah, you can find my email and my phone number on the website.
(35:54):
And yeah, it's all there. Awesome.
Yeah. I think it's important to note, it's a little different than some other organizations.
You find a project and then when you find that organization,
they're funding that project.
It's not going into some general fund or, you know, mixed up with other resources.
And there's nothing wrong with some of those organizations who handle things
that way. But you do direct impact with the funds that are provided.
(36:17):
Pretty special. Yeah, so whatever project we have their funds are,
come through us because we're the ones that help get it there.
But everything is directly to the project.
There's nothing that goes to
Livia to run our, you know, to pay for our overhead. We have no employees.
We just do everything out of the grace of our heart. And we try to make it big
(36:38):
of an impact with their dollar as we can. Yeah, that's awesome. That's amazing.
Well, I think that's, you know, we could probably talk for hours.
Honestly, I know you have a hundred stories.
And I think maybe on episode two, if they'll have us come back, we'll talk some more.
I want to hear some of the dangerous ones. You know, I'm sure you got a few
that were a little sketchy.
There's always a Will Wyatt breaking his leg. Yeah, man, Will, you got shouted out.
(37:04):
But man, I just want to thank you. You know, I consider you a friend.
You know, I thank you for talking to us, but you know, thank you for being a leader.
Thank you for, you know, serving God and leading with your heart and really
following not what you necessarily want to do.
I know you enjoy this now, But you're following, you know, biblical principles
and a biblically led mission and dream that I think has been laid out in front of you.
(37:27):
And so we're truly proud of you. You know, you're giving a lot of hope.
You're restoring lives.
And I wish you everything, you know, but, you know, with that and all the success
that, like, can come from just being who you are and living authentically.
So thank you and thank Mion Enterprises and the Mion Foundation and the Mion family.
(37:50):
So it's been a great, great, great time. Yeah. Yeah. And Pastor Benton,
I think, you know, we got to thank him as well, right?
Yeah. He's the one that started this whole thing. Yeah. Him and God. Yeah, absolutely.
All right. Well, thank you all. And thanks for joining us today.
Did you know you can also watch our podcast? Head over to our YouTube channel to check those out.
Visit our website to stay up to date with everything going on at MianFamilyFoundation.org.
(38:16):
Thank you for listening to Mian
Foundation Conversations. And until next time, do the next kind thing.
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Have you ever wondered what life might be like if you stopped worrying about being wanted, and focused on understanding what you actually want? That was the question Hope Woodard asked herself after a string of situationships inspired her to take a break from sex and dating. She went "boysober," a personal concept that sparked a global movement among women looking to prioritize themselves over men. Now, Hope is looking to expand the ways we explore our relationship to relationships. Taking a bold, unfiltered look into modern love, romance, and self-discovery, Boysober will dive into messy stories about dating, sex, love, friendship, and breaking generational patterns—all with humor, vulnerability, and a fresh perspective.
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com