Episode 90 of Downright Mindful features a conversation with Mike Turner, a man whose influence has been felt across Bradley County athletics for more than five decades.

Mike recently completed his 51st year in education and athletics, but his story begins long before Walker Valley High School ever existed.

After moving to the Charleston community as a young boy when his father accepted a job at the Bowater paper mill, Mike attended Charleston School from first grade through graduation before continuing his education and football career at Tennessee Tech University.

He returned home to begin teaching and coaching at Charleston High School in the 1970s, eventually becoming the school's head baseball coach. When Charleston closed and Walker Valley High School opened its doors in 2001, Mike became the Mustangs' first head baseball coach, helping establish a brand-new program from the ground up. After five seasons, he transitioned into athletic administration, where he continues to serve as Walker Valley's athletic director.

Along the way, Mike shares stories from the dugout, the classroom, and the sidelines—stories about family, coaching, leadership, and the countless relationships that have made a lifetime in education so rewarding.

Whether he's remembering funny moments from his coaching days or reflecting on the changes he's witnessed over five decades, one thing becomes clear: Mike Turner has spent his life investing in people.

It's another chapter in our ongoing effort to preserve the stories of the men and women who helped shape Bradley County.

🎙 Hosted by Matt Parris & Paul Sausville

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[email protected]

Episode 89 of Downright Mindful features a conversation with Johnny Mull, a longtime educator, coach, administrator, and community leader whose influence has been felt across Bradley County for more than four decades.

Johnny began his career with Bradley County Schools in the 1980s, teaching and coaching football at Bradley Junior High before moving on to Bradley Central High School. Along the way, he worked alongside legendary coaches including Chief Bill Robertson and Louie Alford, learning lessons that would shape his approach to leadership for years to come.

The conversation also explores Johnny's family connection to football through his uncle, Rex Dockery, the former assistant coach at Tennessee, Texas Tech, GA Tech, and Memphis State. Johnny shares memories of his uncle and reflects on being invited to join the recruiting trip that tragically ended in the plane crash that claimed Coach Dockery's life.

Beyond coaching, Johnny spent 27 years serving Bradley County Schools at the district level, overseeing areas such as energy management, maintenance services, janitorial operations, groundskeeping, and athletics. For the past eight years, he has served as the district's athletic director, helping guide and support athletic programs across the county.

But education is only part of the story.

Johnny also shares experiences from public service, including two campaigns for county mayor and his time serving on the Bradley County Commission, where he eventually became chairman.

Throughout the conversation, Coach Mull reflects on leadership, service, mentorship, athletics, government, and the people who helped shape Bradley County along the way.

It's a conversation filled with stories, history, and lessons learned from a lifetime spent serving others.

🎙 Hosted by Matt Parris & Paul Sausville

Listen on Spotify:https://open.spotify.com/show/3sANbCaTFQag9nMCnR01N7?si=d4a1f013aab04481

Listen on Apple Podcasts:https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/downright-mindful/id1776503597

Watch on YouTube:https://www.youtube.com/@downrightmindful

Contact the Show:[email protected]

Episode 88 of Downright Mindful features a conversation with Tim Riggs, one of the most respected educators in Bradley County.

Born in South Florida and raised in the Chattanooga area, Tim attended Lee University, where his father taught, and earned degrees in Biology and Physical Education. He would go on to become one of the first elementary school P.E. teachers hired in Bradley County Schools before eventually teaching at Michigan Avenue Elementary.

Along the way, Tim found mentors who helped shape his career, including Bob Taylor, who would later serve as Director of Schools for Bradley County. Those relationships eventually led Tim into administration and ultimately to Hopewell Elementary School, where he served as principal for nearly two decades.

But perhaps the most telling chapter of Tim's career came after retirement.

When he stepped away from the principal's office in 2018, Bradley County Schools placed him on a 120-day contract to mentor new principals throughout the district—a role he continues to love today.

What follows is a conversation filled with stories, lessons, and familiar names from Bradley County's educational history. Nearly every story sounds like a who's who of local education, offering a glimpse into the relationships and leadership that helped shape generations of students.

It's a conversation about mentorship, leadership, education, and the people who quietly leave a lasting impact on a community.

🎙 Hosted by Matt Parris & Paul Sausville

Listen on Spotify:
https://open.spotify.com/show/3sANbCaTFQag9nMCnR01N7?si=d4a1f013aab04481

Listen on Apple Podcasts:
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/downright-mindful/id1776503597

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Contact the Show:
[email protected]

For nearly everyone who knows Danny Coggin, there's one image that immediately comes to mind:

A pencil tucked behind his ear.

In Episode 87, Matt Parris and Paul Sausville sit down with the founding principal of Walker Valley High School to discuss a life devoted to music, education, leadership, and relationships. Along the way, Mr. Coggin shares the story behind the pencil—a habit that began in the eighth grade and has stayed with him ever since.

Born and raised in Goodlettsville, Tennessee, Danny attended Tennessee Tech University and played in the marching band before landing a dream job as a drummer with the Shabooms at Opryland USA. During those years, he even found himself sharing a stage with country music legend Roy Acuff.

Eventually, education called. Danny accepted a position as assistant band director at Bradley Central High School, later becoming head band director and serving in that role for twelve years. But as he watched students struggle to reach graduation, he became interested in school administration and the opportunity to make a broader impact.

That opportunity arrived in the form of a school that didn't yet exist.

Before a single brick was laid, Danny Coggin was selected to become the first principal of Walker Valley High School. He helped hire the staff, shape the culture, and establish the vision for a school that would become one of Bradley County's great success stories.

Ask Mr. Coggin what made it work, and his answer is simple:

Relationships.

As Walker Valley celebrates its 25th year, Danny reflects on the people, decisions, and moments that helped transform a construction site into a community.

This is more than the story of a school.

It's the story of a man whose influence can still be measured in the lives of thousands of students.

🎙 Hosted by Matt Parris & Paul Sausville

Listen on Spotify:
https://open.spotify.com/show/3sANbCaTFQag9nMCnR01N7?si=d4a1f013aab04481

Listen on Apple Podcasts:
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/downright-mindful/id1776503597

Watch on YouTube:
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Contact the Show:
[email protected]

Episode 86 of Downright Mindful starts in familiar fashion—with a few unexpected detours.

Matt and Paul begin by discussing everything from late-night Krystal runs to the recent deaths of Kyle Busch and Joe Lee Johnson, the former owner of Cleveland Speedway and NASCAR champion. The conversation also touches on Tennessee’s recent execution of Byron Black Caruthers and broader questions surrounding capital punishment.

From there, Paul introduces a much bigger question.

With several major anniversaries approaching—including America’s 250th birthday, Tennessee’s 230th anniversary, Walker Valley High School’s 25th anniversary, and Bradley County’s 190th anniversary—Paul challenges Matt to think through some of the most significant periods in American and Tennessee history.

The discussion explores major events from different eras, including:

• The Civil War
• The 14th Amendment
• The Spanish-American War
• The World Wars
• The Assembly Line
• The Development of Nuclear Weapons
• The Trail of Tears
• The Second Great Awakening
• The Rise of Memphis

Along the way, Matt and Paul debate which events had the greatest impact, how history shapes the present, and what future generations may look back on as defining moments of our time.

Like many episodes of Downright Mindful, the conversation moves between local stories, historical reflection, and the bigger questions that shape how we see the world.

Listen on Spotify
https://open.spotify.com/show/3sANbCaTFQag9nMCnR01N7?si=d4a1f013aab04481

Apple Podcasts
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/downright-mindful/id1776503597

Watch on YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/@downrightmindful

Contact the show
[email protected]

Episode 85 of Downright Mindful features a conversation with Steve Hartline, longtime local radio personality and owner of several stations serving the Cleveland and Bradley County area, including Mix 104.1 WCLE, ESPN Cleveland 101.3 “The Buzz,” Fiesta Radio 99.1, and WCLE AM 1570.

Steve has spent most of his life in local radio and has become a staple in the community along the way. In this conversation, Matt and Paul explore the people and relationships that shaped him early on, especially the influence of his grandfather, Reverend M.E. Littlefield. Steve reflects on Littlefield’s friendships and connections with figures like former Cleveland Mayor Tom Rowland, Norvel Hayes, and John Osteen.

The conversation also moves through Steve’s experiences interviewing political leaders and public figures over the years, including Bill Lee, Marsha Blackburn, Bo Jackson, and Jack Nicklaus.

One of the standout stories involves Steve’s interview with Tom Griscom and the discussion surrounding the famous “Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall” speech from the Reagan era.

Along the way, Steve shares stories from decades in broadcasting, the changes he has seen in local media, and the one interview he still hopes to land someday.

It’s a conversation about radio, relationships, local history, storytelling, and the people behind the microphone.

Listen on Spotify
https://open.spotify.com/show/3sANbCaTFQag9nMCnR01N7?si=d4a1f013aab04481

Apple Podcasts
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/downright-mindful/id1776503597

Watch on YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/@downrightmindful

Contact the show
[email protected]

Episode 84 of Downright Mindful starts with a conversation about something most people rarely think about — area codes and ZIP codes.

Paul continues one of his recurring ideas that “geography is biography,” leading into a discussion about a Harvard study suggesting that a person’s ZIP code may predict more about their future than their genetic code. That idea opens the door to stories about local communities, neighborhoods, and the experiences tied to different places around Cleveland and Bradley County.

Matt and Paul reflect on the identities and histories connected to local ZIP codes, the assumptions people make about certain areas, and how where we grow up can shape opportunities, perspective, and even relationships.

Paul also shares stories from a recent local history walking tour he led for his students, describing some of the places, stories, and forgotten details that helped bring the area’s history to life.

Like many episodes of Downright Mindful, the conversation moves between humor, storytelling, local history, and bigger questions about identity and place.

Listen on Spotify
https://open.spotify.com/show/3sANbCaTFQag9nMCnR01N7?si=d4a1f013aab04481

Apple Podcasts
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/downright-mindful/id1776503597

Watch on YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/@downrightmindful

Contact the show
[email protected]

Episode 83 of Downright Mindful starts with a simple question: Why?

Paul introduces the idea that in engineering and problem solving, there are often multiple layers beneath a decision or behavior — sometimes five levels deep before you reach the real answer. Using that idea as a framework, he begins interviewing Matt about the deeper reasons behind some of the things he loves, values, and spends his time doing.

The conversation moves through Matt’s love of music, how he unexpectedly found his way into teaching, and the experiences that shaped some of the decisions he’s made throughout life. Along the way, the two reflect on how often people stop at surface-level explanations without ever digging into the deeper “why” underneath them.

Like many episodes of Downright Mindful, the conversation moves naturally between storytelling, humor, reflection, and curiosity.

Listen on Spotify
https://open.spotify.com/show/3sANbCaTFQag9nMCnR01N7?si=d4a1f013aab04481

Apple Podcasts
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/downright-mindful/id1776503597

Watch on YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/@downrightmindful

Contact the show
[email protected]

Episode 82 of Downright Mindful features a conversation between Matt and Allan Walsh, a longtime leader in corrections who spent 36 years with the Bradley County Sheriff’s Office.

Allan started in 1983 and went on to serve as a Captain, spending many years as the jail administrator. During his career, he played a major role in the transformation of the county’s jail system, helping guide the move from a small linear jail to a much larger 408-bed direct supervision facility. He later helped facilitate the addition of a 100-bed workhouse within the same complex.

But more than anything, Allan is a storyteller.

The conversation moves through memories of working inside the jail, transporting prisoners across the country, and the kinds of moments you only get from years on the job. Allan brings humor, perspective, and a personality that makes it hard not to laugh along with him.

If you’ve ever wondered what life inside a jail really looks like from the people who worked there, this episode offers a firsthand look.

Listen on Spotify
https://open.spotify.com/show/3sANbCaTFQag9nMCnR01N7?si=d4a1f013aab04481

Apple Podcasts
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/downright-mindful/id1776503597

Watch on YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/@downrightmindful

Contact the show
[email protected]

Episode 81 of Downright Mindful dives into local politics, civic engagement, and the impact of decisions made closer to home than most people realize.

Matt and Paul talk through the reality of low voter turnout in local elections and what that says about engagement at the community level. The conversation explores how local policy decisions affect everyday life and why those decisions often receive far less attention than national politics.

Matt shares a strong perspective, explaining that while he doesn’t necessarily sympathize with the frustration people express about low voter turnout, he does feel a sense of concern over the lack of deeper engagement in local policymaking and civic involvement. Paul pushes back, leading to a more direct and honest disagreement between the two.

The result is a candid conversation about responsibility, participation, and what it really means to be involved in your community.

Listen on Spotify
https://open.spotify.com/show/3sANbCaTFQag9nMCnR01N7?si=d4a1f013aab04481

Apple Podcasts
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/downright-mindful/id1776503597

Watch on YouTube
https://www.youtube.com/@downrightmindful

Contact the show
[email protected]