Everyone Has A Story - Hosted by Kam and Cody

What would you do if your child needed a new heart just to have a chance at life? ❤️

Episode 35 of Everyone Has a Story is one of the most emotional, powerful, and unforgettable conversations we've had yet.

This week, Kam and Cody sit down with Brandon and Kourtney Barela, alongside special guest Shawn Thomson, to hear the incredible story of a family whose strength, faith, and love have been tested in ways most of us could never imagine.

Brandon and Kourtney are parents to two children with Down syndrome. Their family's journey has included multiple open-heart surgeries, complications with pacemakers, and ultimately, a life-saving heart transplant for one of their sons.

But this episode is about so much more than medical procedures and hospital stays.

It's about the sleepless nights, the uncertainty, the emotional battles, and the strength it takes to keep moving forward when life feels completely out of your control. It's about a mother's and father's love, the importance of family, and finding hope in some of life's darkest moments.

We talk about the challenges they've faced, the lessons they've learned, and the incredible perspective their children have given them on what truly matters in life.

This is one of those episodes that will make you cry, make you grateful, and remind you just how precious life really is.

To the Barela family, thank you for trusting us with your story. Your strength and willingness to share your journey will undoubtedly touch more lives than you know.

🎙️ Everyone Has a Story — Episode 35

🎧 Available on Spotify, Apple Podcasts & YouTube.

Because behind every person, every family, and every struggle… there's a story worth telling.

What happens when life knocks you down, your business falls apart, and the company you believe in is no longer yours to build? You start over and build something of your own.

On Episode 34 of Everyone Has a Story, hosted by Cam and Cody, we welcome Chris Schuetze, founder and owner of Tracer Minerals, all the way from Cimarron, Kansas!

Chris has experienced the highs and lows of business firsthand. From owning a large feedlot that eventually crashed, to working for multiple companies and being let go, Chris has faced his share of setbacks. But instead of walking away from an industry he believed in, he took a chance and built his own company.

Today, Tracer Minerals is a family-owned business specializing in true amino acid chelated minerals, with products designed for livestock, humans, pets, and even crops.

In this episode, we dive into Chris's journey of entrepreneurship, failure, determination, and the science behind mineral supplementation. We discuss why minerals are so important, how the body absorbs and utilizes them, and the potential benefits of proper supplementation for cattle performance, reproduction, immune function, and human nutrition.

Chris takes us deeper into the chemistry behind true amino acid chelates, explaining why not all mineral supplements are created equal and why understanding what goes into our bodies and our livestock matters.

This was also a special episode for us because Chris is our first guest to travel in from so far out of state! We're grateful he made the trip to sit down and share his knowledge, experiences, and story.

Whether you're a rancher, business owner, someone interested in better nutrition, or simply someone who's had to start over in life, this episode has something for you.

Because at the end of the day, success isn't always about how many times you win. Sometimes it's about how many times you're willing to start again.

🎙️ Everyone Has a Story — Hosted by Cam & Cody

Listen on Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and YouTube.

Learn more about Tracer Minerals at www.tracerminerals.com

Everyone has a story. This is Chris Schuetze's.

This week on Everyone Has a Story, Kam and Cody sit down with Weston, Idaho local Braxton Smith for a conversation that goes just about everywhere — and that’s what made it so good.

Braxton talks about growing up in a small town, being broke, taking chances, getting into sales, and eventually finding a career at PTI Stockyard that helped change the direction of his life. We get into the reality that good things don’t always just fall into your lap — sometimes you have to take the risk, put yourself out there, and go after the opportunities in front of you.

We also talk about Braxton’s time with Search & Rescue, his leather tooling, family life, and plenty of stories and laughs along the way. We even tested out some new podcast equipment and brought Kaid Panek onto the show by phone for a conversation about some pretty wild ghost experiences.

And somehow, we also end up talking about me scoping myself while sighting in my gun. 😂

This episode really is what Everyone Has a Story is all about. No single topic. No perfect script. Just a real conversation about life, work, family, taking chances, and the experiences that make us who we are.

Episode 33 with Braxton Smith — you’re going to want to hear this one.

Everybody sees the business. Not everybody knows the story behind it. 🎙️

This week on Everyone Has a Story, Cody and I sat down with local business owner Matt Haslam, owner of Preston Electric.

Matt grew up right here in Franklin County, and we got into a little bit of everything — what childhood around Preston was like, how he ended up acquiring Preston Electric, the people who helped him get there, the support system behind him, and what it’s REALLY like carrying the responsibility of owning and running a business.

And because you can’t talk about growing up around Preston without it coming up… yes, we talked Napoleon Dynamite too. 😂

This episode is exactly why we started this podcast. Sometimes the people you see around town every day have stories you’ve never taken the time to hear.

Matt is a great example of someone who has built a life and business right here at home — but he’ll be the first to tell you he didn’t get there alone.

🎙️ Built in a Small Town: Matt Has-lam’s Story

Listen to the full episode of Everyone Has a Story — hosted by Kam & Cody.

If you enjoy it, share it with somebody local. Let’s keep telling the stories of the people who make our communities what they are.

Some episodes are entertaining. Some make you laugh. Some tell an incredible story.

This episode is different.

Tonight, Cody and I sat down with Ben and Corey Lundgren for a conversation that we believe needs to be heard.

We talk about bullying. We talk about our kids. We talk about suicide. We talk about the things happening behind closed doors, in school hallways, on phones, and inside the minds of people who may look completely fine from the outside.

These aren't easy subjects. They're uncomfortable. They're heavy. And sometimes they're easier to avoid.

But avoiding them doesn't make them go away.

A kid can be surrounded by hundreds of people and still feel completely alone. A joke that seems harmless to one person can become something another person carries home every single night. And sometimes the person who needs someone the most is the person who has gotten the best at pretending they're okay.

This episode isn't about pointing fingers or placing blame. It's about parents talking to their kids. It's about kids looking out for each other. It's about recognizing that our words carry weight. It's about asking someone “Are you really okay?” and being willing to stay long enough to hear the real answer.

Most importantly, it's about reminding people that your darkest moment does not have to be the end of your story.

Please listen to this one.

And don't just listen—talk about it.

Share it with a parent. Share it with a teenager. Share it with a teacher, coach, friend, brother, sister, or someone who has been a little quieter lately.

Because we may never know which conversation, which text, which hug, which person sitting down and simply saying “I'm here” could change the course of someone's life.

Everyone has a story. Let's make sure they get the chance to keep writing it.

— Everyone Has a Story PodcastHosted by Kam & CodySpecial Guests: Ben & Corey Lundgren

If you or someone you know is struggling or in crisis, call or text 988 to reach the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline. If there is immediate danger, call 911.

This week on Everyone Has a Story, Kam and Cody sit down with entrepreneur Travis Levitt, owner of Levitt Automotive and Cutting Edge Auto Care, and founder of his newest venture, Freedom Builders.

But this conversation is about a lot more than business.

Travis takes us through what it really looked like to build from the ground up—the risks, difficult decisions, setbacks, goals, and opportunities that helped shape the man and business owner he is today.

We talk about losing his dad to cancer and the impact that loss had on the way he looks at life, family, time, and success. Travis opens up about the life he ultimately wants to create for his family and why success means a lot more than simply growing a company or making money.

We also get into coaching, training, personal growth, chasing goals, recognizing opportunities when they come, and having the courage to take a chance even when you don't know exactly how it's going to turn out.

If you've ever thought about starting a business, making a major change, chasing a goal that scares you, or simply asking yourself “What kind of life am I actually trying to build?”—this episode is for you.

Travis has built businesses, endured loss, taken risks, and continues to chase bigger goals.

And just like all of us, he has a story.

This episode is a little different… and honestly, that’s what made it so fun.

Me, Cody, Jackson, and Shawn all got back in the same room for a good old-fashioned catch-up. No specific guest. No set story. No real agenda. Just four guys sitting around talking about life.

We covered everything from the economy and sports to jobs, family, what life looks like right now, and probably a few things we had no business talking about 😂

It was pretty cool getting everybody back together from the early days of Everyone Has a Story and just hitting record.

This one is real, raw, unscripted, and full of laughs. Sometimes the best conversations are the ones you don't plan.

Come hang out with us and enjoy the conversation. 🎙️

🎙️ He Accidentally Joined the Navy… Then Stayed 26 Years | Kirk Waldron

Kirk Waldron grew up on a dairy farm in Weston, Idaho, with seven siblings—and, according to Kirk, he absolutely HATED cows. 😂 Somehow, life took him from that small dairy farm to a place he never expected: the United States Navy.

What started almost by accident turned into a 26-year career serving aboard some of the most iconic nuclear-powered aircraft carriers in the world, including the USS Nimitz, USS Enterprise, and USS Ronald Reagan. Kirk eventually retired as a Master Chief Petty Officer after a career spent working around nuclear propulsion, deployments, leadership, sacrifice, and thousands of sailors living together at sea.

But this episode is about more than the Navy. Kirk talks about marriage, raising four kids while being gone for long stretches of time, the sacrifices his wife and family made behind the scenes, and what nearly four decades of marriage have taught him.

His son Levi joins us as well, giving us another perspective on the man behind the uniform.

Kirk has lived one heck of a story, and we were grateful to sit down and hear it.

🎙️ Everyone Has a StoryHosted by Kam Spackman & Cody Traveller

This episode truly has a little bit of everything.

Britten Atkinson grew up in Franklin, Idaho, where sports were a huge part of his life. He played basketball and spent three years as the high school quarterback. After serving nearly two years on a mission, Britton came home and made a career choice most 20-somethings probably wouldn't expect…

He became a mortician.

Britten takes us behind the scenes of a profession most of us know very little about. He talks about what life as a mortician is actually like, the misconceptions that come with the job, the difficult moments, and—most importantly—why he genuinely loves what he does and the opportunity it gives him to serve families during some of the hardest days of their lives.

But this episode goes much deeper than his career.

Britten opens up about becoming a dad and the incredibly difficult road he and his wife recently traveled to get their baby here safely. Their baby came early, his wife had to be life-flighted, and what should have been one of the happiest moments of their lives quickly became filled with uncertainty, fear, and a whole lot of emotion.

Through all of it, you get a pretty good picture of who Britton really is—a kind-hearted guy who loves his family, cares deeply about the people he serves, and is trying to make the most out of life.

And just when Cody and I thought we were running the show… Britten decided it was time for a hostile takeover and started interviewing US. 😂 Apparently Episode 27 became Britten Atkinson’s podcast somewhere along the way.

This one has sports, laughs, some behind-the-scenes funeral home talk, family, adversity, perspective, and plenty of moments we weren't expecting.

Britten, thank you for trusting us with your story and for being willing to sit down and have a real conversation.

Because at the end of the day…

Everyone Has a Story. 🎙️

Episode 27 — Britten Atkinson🎧 Everyone Has a Story PodcastHosted by Kam Spackman & Cody Traveller

From small-town Franklin, Idaho, to playing college football at Boise State, continuing his football career in the NAL, and eventually stepping into a career in law enforcement, Brennyn Dunn’s story has taken him places he never expected.

In this episode of Everyone Has a Story, Cody and Kam sit down with Brennyn to talk about growing up with a love for sports—especially football—and what it took to chase the opportunity to play at the next level.

But this episode is about a lot more than football.

Brennyn opens up about what happens when one chapter of your life ends and another begins, finding purpose outside of the game, and pursuing a career in law enforcement that he never imagined would become such a big part of his life.

We talk about the lessons sports taught him, the people and experiences that shaped him, the transition from athlete to adulthood, and how sometimes the path you never planned on taking ends up being exactly where you're supposed to be.

If you’re a football fan, former athlete, young athlete chasing a dream, first responder, or someone trying to figure out what comes next in life, this is an episode you’ll want to hear.

Brennyn’s story is a reminder that you can chase one dream with everything you have—and still discover an entirely different purpose along the way.

Everyone has a story. This is Brennyn Dunn’s.