Jim Lydon is a former firefighter, dispatcher, fire chief, city manager and current member of the All American Leadership team. We discuss starting volunteer firefighting at a very young age, the evolution of dispatching, his journey through the ranks, how he overcame losing sight in one eye, his powerful mental health story, his cancer battle, leadership in the fire service and so much more.

Jim Lydon - Episode 890

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Major James Capers is one of the most decorated Marine Recon veterans who operated on over 50 classified missions in Vietnam. We discuss his challenging childhood, racism in the South, his indominable marriage, the impact of losing men, coming home, PTSD and so much more.

Major Jim Capers (Marine Recon, Courage and Leadership) - Episode 450

Tony Long and Mark Williams are former British Armed Police Officers. Tony is the author of the book Lethal Force which documents his career. Mark now serves as the CEO of the Police Firearms Officer Association. We discuss their journeys into policing, the power of mentorship, armed unit tactics, organisational betrayal, the media, fitness standards, Britain's knife crime epidemic, the support the PFOA offers and so much more. 

Tong Long and Mark Williams (British Armed Policing, Media and Knife Crimes) - Episode 919

Ben Timberlake is a former SAS soldier, Contractor, archaeologist and the author of "High Risk". We discuss his early life, joining the British Special Forces, the horrors of war, kindness in combat, his powerful and unique addiction story, his full circle back into archaeology and so much more.  High Risk: This is a dark, raw and uncompromising tale of the human condition in extremis, drawing on the many lives of Ben Timberlake: as an archaeologist, Special Forces soldier, combat medic and drug addict. Starting with Ben’s first near-death experience—in a Nazi-themed bar in wartime Yugoslavia—High Risk is a whirlwind tour of everything from service in the SAS, combat in Iraq, and encounters with a gambling-obsessed 9/11 hijacker, to veterans blissed out on MDMA, hook-ups in the world of extreme sex, and battling a heroin habit on a remote Scottish island. Ben pursued the rush, and the chase often took him over the edge. Instead of asking why, he asked, why not? Blending confessional narrative, classic reportage and acerbic humour, this memoir takes a gonzo look at terrorists, junkies, soldiers and strippers, through the tale of one extraordinary life.  https://www.hurstpublishers.com/book/high-risk/ 

Ben Timberlake (Warfighting, Addiction and Archaeology) - Episode 918

Thomas Ansu is a former New York EMT, current FDNY Squad firefighter and the founder of The Burn Box. We discuss growing up in New York, the importance of mentorship, his experiences as an EMT, his journey into the Fire service, servant leadership, special operations firefighting, entreprenurship, The Burn Box and so much more.  Burn Box was founded in 2020 by Thomas, an active FDNY firefighter with the mission to enable people everywhere to support firefighters. Every Burn Box features a collection of items and firefighter apparel designed to raise awareness about fire safety and also about the fact that local firefighters are working hard and staying vigilant every day to keep their communities safe.  https://www.theburnbox.com/

Thomas Ansu (EMS, Entreprenurship and Firefighting) - Episode 917

Tom Hewitt MBE, is founder and CEO of Surfers Not Street Children. He has worked in the field with street children in Africa for over 28 years. In 1998 he founded the Durban Street Team which went on to be renamed Surfers Not Street Children in 2012. Tom was awarded and MBE by HRH Queen Elizabeth II in 2011 for his work with street children in Africa. Tom is perhaps most well known for his successful advocacy campaign to end the forced removals of street children in Durban, South Africa. These round-ups used to take place to “clean” the streets ahead of international conferences and events. He called for compassionate responses to street children based on psychosocial care. Tom is also well known for his model of fusing surfing with mentorship to empower street children in Durban. He assisted the national Department of Social Development in South Africa with its development of new policies around working with street children there. Tom has visited and often assisted street children projects in many different parts fo the world.

Jim Lydon - Episode 890

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