Garrett Barnes is the Assistant Director at the NEA Career and Technical Center here in Jonesboro and also happens to be the Justice of the Peace in District 2 here in Craighead County. We get into the weeds with Garrett on exactly who the NEA Career and Technical Center serves, the importance of training and exposure to different trades for high school students and how the NEA Career and Technical Center is helping to bridge that gap and get kids in our area workforce ready. We also hear a little about what it's like to serve as a Justice of the Peace and what the heck they do besides, of course, marrying people. He is passionate about his role as an elected official and also his role at the NEA Career and Technical Center. 

Garrett is hosting an upcoming Town Hall at Native Brew Works on June 29th at 5:30pm that is open to the public. 

To learn more about Garrett, you can visit his website at https://www.backbarnes.com/.

What’s the Big Dill?
Pickleball is a sport that combines elements of Tennis, Badminton, and ping pong. On this week’s episode of the Legacy Lowdown Producer Andrew fills the co-host seat as we discuss what makes Pickleball fun for all ages and we also find out what it means to get “Pickled”

Dr. Lauren Hannah joins us in the studio and talks all things mental health. Dr. Lauren is a therapist and also the co-owner of Foundation, a Wellness Practice and their soon to open neighbor next door - Sana Vita Wellness. She breaks down some of the basics of going to therapy, teaches us a little bit about trauma and what that may look like for different people and talks about some of the more modern treatment options (backed by research) and how they are bringing those into their holistic approach to mental wellness. She also shares a traumatic story from her past that put her mental health skills to the test when she was attacked by a former patient with a butcher knife.

To learn more about Dr. Lauren and her practice, you can visit them online at https://www.yourfoundation.net/.

Operation BBQ Relief is a little bit exactly what it sounds like. OBR was founded after the Joplin tornado disaster in 2011 when a couple guys who liked to BBQ together came up with the idea to help volunteer their time to help feed displaced families and first responders who were working around the clock. Listen in as Dewayne tells the story of Operation BBQ Relief and its inception and how it's grown into a nationwide effort that's now provided over 10 million meals, even taking some deployments internationally.  They are now a 501(c)(3) disaster relief organization and they are always looking for volunteers - even folks that don't know the first thing about cooking or smoking meat. 

To learn more about Operation BBQ Relief, visit them online at https://operationbbqrelief.org/. 

Garrett Tyler is a drummer, producer and music director - and perhaps the most famous guest we’ve ever had on! He is originally from Pocahontas, AR but now calls Nashville home. Garrett connects the dots for us on how a small town guy from Pocahontas grew to travel the world doing what he loves: playing and directing music for groups like For King and Country, Judah and the Lion  and his own band Local Sound. We get him to name drop a few of the most famous people he’s shared the stage with and even opened for. We are so glad he stopped by while he was home for a local show and we think you’ll love getting to know him as much as we did.

Find him on Instagram @garrettptyler.

Jessica Odom joins us on the podcast this week and sheds a little light on the internet situation in Northeast Arkansas and how the company she works for, RightFiber by Ritter Communications, has built an infrastructure ready to support the inevitable growth that's headed our way. RightFiber is doing things differently - starting with something as simple as answering the phone in one of their locally staffed call centers in Arkansas and Tennessee. Jessica tells the story of how Ritter got started and has grown into the business it is today, and shares her personal story of how she worked her way into telecommunications and eventually transitioned from training to marketing. Get connected, and give this one a listen! She also explains - in layman's terms - the benefits when it comes to the speed and security of a fiber network. 

Something that wasn't mentioned on the show that Jessica explained off-air was that they really encourage people to visit them online to check the availability of their services at your address. She said if they're not currently located in your area, you can request it - and they really rely on that data to help them decide where to build next. 

To check availability or request their services, you can visit https://www.rightfiber.com/ and click "Get RightFiber".

Endurance athlete Jeff Chastain joins us this week to discuss his journey from
the couch to not just 5k - but 50 Mile treks on foot through the Ouachita Mountains and 300 mile bike rides across the state of Arkansas and beyond. He tells us his journey of losing some 80+ pounds many years ago and how his lifestyle changes have led him down many different paths. 

In this episode, we also get into the inaugural NEA 1k. If you're interested in learning more about this event, you can visit their Facebook event at https://fb.me/e/KhQlyxvo or register now through April 27th online at https://nea1k.com/.

This week we got to sit down with Former Mayor Harold Perrin, who is now the Senior Vice President of Business Development for First Security Bank of Jonesboro. When it comes to leaving a legacy, we can't think of anyone more impactful than Mr. Perrin has been in his service to our city - both during his term as mayor and in the time since then. As any good leader would, he credits many of his successes to his team and told us off the record that the key ingredient to being successful was being willing to do what other folks won't do. 

Perrin ran for mayor of Jonesboro in 2008 and began his 12-year stint in 2009. Before becoming mayor, Mr. Perrin had a long career in banking and also served on the Jonesboro City Council for 14 years. It was in his time on City Council that he credits to learning so much about the inner-workings of the city and that led to him to his successful mayoral campaign.

What does a county judge even do? Many think that they preside over courts or that they have a background in law. While they do still preside over some courts, we learned from Marvin that there's no law degree required, but there's a LOT of other jobs that fall onto the County Judge's plate. We dive into a handful of those tasks (hello county roads), how the county's responsibilities differ from the city's and exactly what it takes to become a county judge. 

Slade Mitchell is the Energy Marketing Administrator for City Water and Light in Jonesboro, where he has been for the last 11 years. We get into some of the details on their new solar projects that are in the works, and even spend some time chatting about why utilities here in Northeast Arkansas are so cheap compared to the rest of the country. Slade gives a little insight in the role that plays in our day to day world here in Jonesboro, and also the effect cheap utilities can have on our local economy when it comes to recruiting employers and talent to the area. Power up and tune in! 

To learn more about CWL, you can visit their website at https://jonesborocwl.org/ or find them on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/CWLofJonesboro.