Podcasts about mobilians

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Play Episode Listen Later Mar 19, 2024 42:53

This episode of the Port City Plate Podcast is sponsored by Jawsfest! The Jazz Art Writers South Festival is coming to the campus of the University of South Alabama this spring. Find out more in this episode and how to get your tickets! In this episode of the Port City Plate Podcast, we delve into the remarkable journey of Vlad Moldoveanu, the visionary behind Mediterranean Sandwich Co. Vlad's story is a testament to hard work, innovation, and leadership, showcasing how his culinary passion transformed a late night sandwich shop in Downtown Mobile into a thriving restaurant business now expanding across the state.From humble beginnings in Romania to finding his footing in the culinary world during a work and travel program in the United States, Vlad's early experiences laid the foundation for his future success. His dedication and work ethic were evident as he climbed the ranks from dishwasher to cook, honing his skills and nurturing his love for cooking. The inception of Mediterranean Sandwich Co. stemmed from a pivotal moment in Bucharest, where Vlad drew inspiration from a late-night shawarma experience. Recognizing the potential for a similar concept in Downtown Mobile, Vlad seized the opportunity to create a unique niche in the Downtown Mobile market at the time. One of the highlights of our conversation is the story behind the iconic Redneck Gyro, a game-changing sandwich that revitalized the business and propelled it to new heights. Through some creativity, Vlad crafted a sandwich that resonated with the community, cementing Mediterranean Sandwich Co. in the hearts of Mobilians. Furthermore, Vlad's leadership philosophy shines through as he emphasizes the importance of nurturing and empowering his team. He attributes much of the company's success to his dedicated staff, embodying the belief that strong leadership begins with taking care of those around you.As Vlad reflects on the journey of Mediterranean Sandwich Co., he shares insights into future expansion plans and menu developments, underscoring his commitment to growth and innovation. With seven locations and a vision for continued expansion, Vlad's entrepreneurial spirit continues to drive the company forward, solidifying Mediterranean Sandwich Co. as a culinary staple in Mobile. Local Restaurants mentioned in this episode: Mediterranean Sandwich Co. Heroes Sports Bar and GrilleRoyal ScamThe Original Oyster HouseJerusalem Cafe7 SpiceFood PakSouthwood KitchenNoble SouthIf you enjoy the Port City Plate Podcast, consider buying Chris a coffee. (Locally owned, of course!)Support the Show Share the best dish you've had in Mobile! Join the Port City Plate Facebook GroupAll episodes are presented by Bienville Bites Food Tour. Take a guided walking tour through Downtown Mobile while tasting your way through the best food and drink in town! Book a Bienville Bites Food TourBook a tour with our sister tour company in beautiful, Fairhope, Alabama! Book a Taste of Fairhope Food Tour

Celebrating Over 100 Years: The Sweet Journey of Pollman's Bake Shop

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Play Episode Listen Later Nov 14, 2023 27:45

In this delicious episode of the Port City Plate podcast, we dive into the rich history and sweet treats of Mobile's oldest and most iconic bakery - Pollman's Bake Shop. This legendary bakery, a pillar of the community since 1918, weaves a story that's as rich and layered as its famous cakes. Michelle Pollman Hall, the great-granddaughter of founder Fred Pollman and the current steward of this culinary landmark, guides us through a century of baking, family heritage, and the sweet tradition of Pollman's.As Michelle shares her earliest memories of the bakery, you'll be transported to a world where each swirl of icing and slice of bread is steeped in history and familial love. Discover the bakery's humble beginnings and its transformation into a beacon of celebration in Mobile. From delivering essential dairy products during the Great Depression to introducing king cakes to Alabama, Pollman's Bake Shop has etched itself into the city's heart.Delight in the tales of Pollman's iconic offerings. Michelle takes us behind the scenes of creating their famous chocolate dobash cakes, petit fours, and wedding cakes. Each confection is not just a treat but a storyteller, narrating tales of generations of Mobilians who've celebrated life's milestones with a Pollman's creation in hand. Hear how these recipes, unchanged for decades, continue to bring joy and comfort to those who taste them.But it's not all sugar-coated. The bakery has faced its share of challenges, from navigating the pandemic to undergoing a rigorous health department revamp. Michelle speaks candidly about these trials and the bakery's inspiring resurgence. With a perfect health score and plans for expansion, Pollman's stands as a testament to resilience and the enduring power of community support. This episode is a delicious journey of Pollman's Bake Shop. Local Restaurants Mentioned in this Episode:Pollman's BakeryMediterranean Sandwich Co. The Blind MuleBama Bob's BBQBob's Downtown RestaurantIf you enjoy the Port City Plate Podcast, consider buying Chris a coffee. (Locally owned, of course!)Support the Show Share the best dish you've had in Mobile! Join the Port City Plate Facebook GroupAll episodes are presented by Bienville Bites Food Tour. Take a guided walking tour through Downtown Mobile while tasting your way through the best food and drink in town! Book a Bienville Bites Food TourBook a tour with our sister tour company in beautiful, Fairhope, Alabama! Book a Taste of Fairhope Food Tour

Two Icons, One Visionary: David Rasp and the Story Behind Heroes Sports Bar and The Royal Scam

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 31, 2023 70:05

In this episode, we are honored to host David Rasp, the culinary visionary behind two of Mobile's beloved dining spots - Heroes Sports Bar and Grille and The Royal Scam. Kicking things off in 1998, David transformed Heroes into a sports fan's dream haven, perfectly capturing the essence of Mobile's rich sports history. Dive into the nostalgic realm as David reminisces about the original TV setups at Heroes and shares enchanting stories of iconic celebrity visits like Jerry Rice.But David's culinary journey didn't end with Heroes. In 2006, he introduced Mobilians to The Royal Scam, a restaurant that beautifully melds the historic charm of Mobile with some of the best dishes in town. In our chat, David unravels the evolution of The Royal Scam, from its early days as a tapas bar to its present-day fine dining splendor under the culinary prowess of Chef Jonathan Stern.David delves deep into the thought processes behind both ventures, shedding light on the importance of adapting to the ever-evolving dining landscape and the art of viewing restaurants through the eyes of his patrons. Local Restaurants Mentioned in this Episode:VeetsSlurp SocietyChef SakeNixon'sAshland PubDew Drop InnNoJaThe Noble SouthButch Cassidy'sWintzell's Taco MamaDropout Bakery & CompanyIf you enjoy the Port City Plate Podcast, consider buying Chris a coffee. (Locally owned, of course!)Support the Show Share the best dish you've had in Mobile! Join the Port City Plate Facebook GroupAll episodes are presented by Bienville Bites Food Tour. Take a guided walking tour through Downtown Mobile while tasting your way through the best food and drink in town! Book a Bienville Bites Food TourBook a tour with our sister tour company in beautiful, Fairhope, Alabama! Book a Taste of Fairhope Food Tour

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Francis Bartholomé : "Produire des voitures électriques c'est une chose, encore faut-il qu'on les achète"

Les interviews d'Inter

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 24, 2023 7:00

durée : 00:07:00 - L'invité de 6h20 - par : Mathilde MUNOS - La journée de la Filière Auto se tient ce mardi au Carrousel du Louvre : Francis Bartholomé président de Mobilians, organisation qui représente 170 000 entreprises des services de l'automobile, est l'invité de 6h20 sur France Inter.

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Carburant, quelles évolutions à venir sur les prix ?

L'interview actu

Play Episode Listen Later Sep 23, 2023 7:01

Tous les week-ends sur Europe 1, Lénaïg Monier reçoit un invité pour éclairer les consommateurs sur les sujets du moment. Ce samedi, Francis Pousse, Président national distributeurs carburants et énergies nouvelles chez Mobilians.

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Scoops of Success with Cammie Wayne and Cammie's Old Dutch Ice Cream Shoppe

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Play Episode Listen Later Sep 19, 2023 39:14

In this episode, we sit down with Cammie Wayne, the heart and soul behind Cammie's Old Dutch Ice Cream Shoppe, a place that holds a special place in the hearts of Mobilians. Starting as a teenager working at the shop, Cammie later took a bold step to purchase the establishment from the original owner, Mr. Widemire. Tune in as Cammie shares the intricate process behind the creation of her distinctive ice cream, a product of dedication and hard work that clearly sets her apart in the competitive market. From taking the courageous step to start making ice cream on-site to tirelessly crafting a mind-blowing array of flavors, Cammie's journey is nothing short of inspiring.Cammie goes beyond just discussing ice cream; she shares touching narratives of how her shop has become a vibrant hub where people come together, united by the love for sweet treats. She also gives us a sneak peek into the exciting expansion plans lined up, including branching out to Fairhope, promising more folks the joy that a scoop from Old Dutch brings.Don't miss out on this episode where Cammie Wayne lays it all out - the challenges, the triumphs, and the sheer joy of running Cammie's Old Dutch. It's a story of passion, community, and, of course, the finest ice cream in Mobile.Local Restaurants Mentioned: Butch Cassidy'sTaco MamaWintzell's Oyster HouseRoostersDumbwaiterDebrisChuck's FishEllenJayBake My DayAloha Made BBQGambino's Flavors of Cammie's Old Dutch Ice Cream Mentioned:PeppermintChocolate ChipCreole PralineBischoff CookieGerman ChocolateCarrot CakeBanana Nut BreadKing CakeMoon PieChristmas Tree CakeVanillaDon't miss the 14th Food & Folly event at Ft. Whiting on September 21st, where you can indulge in gourmet samples from over 20 local restaurants and enjoy fine wines, craft beers, and spirits, all while grooving to the Excelsior Band's carnival music. Organized by the Richardson Wealth Management Group, this event promises a night of fun with a silent auction and wine grab, and supports the United Cerebral Palsy of Mobile in aiding clients with disabilities across 32 south Alabama counties; find out more and grab your tickets at ucpmobile.org.If you enjoy the Port City Plate Podcast, consider buying Chris a coffee. (Locally owned, of course!)Support the Show Share the best dish you've had in Mobile! Join the Port City Plate Facebook GroupAll episodes are presented by Bienville Bites Food Tour. Take a guided walking tour through Downtown Mobile while tasting your way through the best food and drink in town! Book a Bienville Bites Food TourBook a tour with our sister tour company in beautiful, Fairhope, Alabama! Book a Taste of Fairhope Food Tour

"Les prix des carburants seront stables cet été" avant de remonter à la rentrée selon le syndicat Mobilians

Le journal de France Bleu Azur Matin

Play Episode Listen Later Jun 29, 2023 4:50

durée : 00:04:50 - Les Journaux de France Bleu Azur - Gérard Molinès président départemental du syndicat Mobilians était l'invité de France Bleu Azur ce jeudi

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S2 EP19 Conversations with Coaches: Allison Gaillard (@runyourstory_podcast_training)

Runner's Round Table

Play Episode Listen Later Feb 10, 2023 74:13

Season two of the Runner's Round Table will feature conversations with different female run coaches. In this episode, Stephanie talks with coach Allison Gaillard about the power of community and the beauty behind exploring each person's run story. Enjoy our conversation and thanks for listening. *For the YouTube video, go here: https://youtu.be/0nj-cUO8kT0 About Stephanie: Stephanie is an RRCA (Road Runner's Club of America) and McMillan Running certified running coach with over 10 years of running experience. Additionally, Stephanie is a yoga teacher with advanced certifications in yoga for athletes, Yoga For All, and Empowered Wisdom Yoga Nidra. Stephanie believes that to be a runner is to believe in your possibility as a human through movement. Her favorite running distance is the half marathon (13.1 miles/21 kilometers). www.instagram.com/thecookierunner/ www.thecookierunner.net About Allison: Allison Gaillard is a RRCA certified running coach & has a Podcast called Run Your Story Podcast and Training Program. Her Podcast shares the stories of fellow Mobilians & their running journeys. Allison is a University of Mobile graduate with her background in injury prevention. Allison's coaching style is to help future runners and walkers overcome any misconceptions about the running community, overcome what they think they cannot do, & cross finish lines, within a group setting. Allison has an amazing team of running/walking mentors, strength coaches, & a yoga coach who believe in RYS training program and help runners and walkers become stronger and avoid injuries as much as possible. When not training or running, Allison is busy cheering on her son who is a competitive swimmer, spending time with her daughter who is beyond smart, & being a supportive to her husband who is a computer science teacher/programmer/website developer. Allison & her family enjoy life with their fur babies, star wars, coffee dates, peloton, & the list goes on. www.instagram.com/runyourstory_podcast_training https://runyourstory.com/ --- Support this podcast: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/runnersroundtable/support

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Elizabeth N. Ellis. "The Great Power of Small Nations: Indigenous Diplomacy in the Gulf South" (U Pennsylvania Press, 2022)

New Books Network

Play Episode Listen Later Dec 14, 2022 59:15

The Great Power of Small Nations: Indigenous Diplomacy in the Gulf South (U Pennsylvania Press, 2022) tackles questions of Native power past and present and provides a fresh examination of the formidable and resilient Native nations—including Biloxis, Choctaws, Chitimachas, Chickasaws, Houmas, Mobilians, and Tunicas—who helped shape the modern Gulf South. In The Great Power of Small Nations, Elizabeth N. Ellis (Peoria) tells the stories of the many smaller Native American nations that shaped the development of the Gulf South. Based on extensive archival research and oral histories, Ellis's narrative chronicles how diverse Indigenous peoples—including Biloxis, Choctaws, Chitimachas, Chickasaws, Houmas, Mobilians, and Tunicas—influenced and often challenged the growth of colonial Louisiana. The book centers on questions of Native nation-building and international diplomacy, and it argues that Native American migration and practices of offering refuge to migrants in crisis enabled Native nations to survive the violence of colonization. Indeed, these practices also made them powerful. When European settlers began to arrive in Indigenous homelands at the turn of the eighteenth century, these small nations, or petites nations as the French called them, pulled colonists into their political and social systems, thereby steering the development of early Louisiana. In some cases, the same practices that helped Native peoples withstand colonization in the eighteenth century, including frequent migration, living alongside foreign nations, and welcoming outsiders into their lands, have made it difficult for their contemporary descendants to achieve federal acknowledgment and full rights as Native American peoples. The Great Power of Small Nations tackles questions of Native power past and present and provides a fresh examination of the formidable and resilient Native nations who helped shape the modern Gulf South. John Cable is assistant professor of history at Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College in Tifton, Georgia. He earned the Ph.D. in history at Florida State University in 2020. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/new-books-network

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Elizabeth N. Ellis. "The Great Power of Small Nations: Indigenous Diplomacy in the Gulf South" (U Pennsylvania Press, 2022)

New Books in History

Play Episode Listen Later Dec 14, 2022 59:15

The Great Power of Small Nations: Indigenous Diplomacy in the Gulf South (U Pennsylvania Press, 2022) tackles questions of Native power past and present and provides a fresh examination of the formidable and resilient Native nations—including Biloxis, Choctaws, Chitimachas, Chickasaws, Houmas, Mobilians, and Tunicas—who helped shape the modern Gulf South. In The Great Power of Small Nations, Elizabeth N. Ellis (Peoria) tells the stories of the many smaller Native American nations that shaped the development of the Gulf South. Based on extensive archival research and oral histories, Ellis's narrative chronicles how diverse Indigenous peoples—including Biloxis, Choctaws, Chitimachas, Chickasaws, Houmas, Mobilians, and Tunicas—influenced and often challenged the growth of colonial Louisiana. The book centers on questions of Native nation-building and international diplomacy, and it argues that Native American migration and practices of offering refuge to migrants in crisis enabled Native nations to survive the violence of colonization. Indeed, these practices also made them powerful. When European settlers began to arrive in Indigenous homelands at the turn of the eighteenth century, these small nations, or petites nations as the French called them, pulled colonists into their political and social systems, thereby steering the development of early Louisiana. In some cases, the same practices that helped Native peoples withstand colonization in the eighteenth century, including frequent migration, living alongside foreign nations, and welcoming outsiders into their lands, have made it difficult for their contemporary descendants to achieve federal acknowledgment and full rights as Native American peoples. The Great Power of Small Nations tackles questions of Native power past and present and provides a fresh examination of the formidable and resilient Native nations who helped shape the modern Gulf South. John Cable is assistant professor of history at Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College in Tifton, Georgia. He earned the Ph.D. in history at Florida State University in 2020. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/history

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Elizabeth N. Ellis. "The Great Power of Small Nations: Indigenous Diplomacy in the Gulf South" (U Pennsylvania Press, 2022)

New Books in Native American Studies

Play Episode Listen Later Dec 14, 2022 59:15

The Great Power of Small Nations: Indigenous Diplomacy in the Gulf South (U Pennsylvania Press, 2022) tackles questions of Native power past and present and provides a fresh examination of the formidable and resilient Native nations—including Biloxis, Choctaws, Chitimachas, Chickasaws, Houmas, Mobilians, and Tunicas—who helped shape the modern Gulf South. In The Great Power of Small Nations, Elizabeth N. Ellis (Peoria) tells the stories of the many smaller Native American nations that shaped the development of the Gulf South. Based on extensive archival research and oral histories, Ellis's narrative chronicles how diverse Indigenous peoples—including Biloxis, Choctaws, Chitimachas, Chickasaws, Houmas, Mobilians, and Tunicas—influenced and often challenged the growth of colonial Louisiana. The book centers on questions of Native nation-building and international diplomacy, and it argues that Native American migration and practices of offering refuge to migrants in crisis enabled Native nations to survive the violence of colonization. Indeed, these practices also made them powerful. When European settlers began to arrive in Indigenous homelands at the turn of the eighteenth century, these small nations, or petites nations as the French called them, pulled colonists into their political and social systems, thereby steering the development of early Louisiana. In some cases, the same practices that helped Native peoples withstand colonization in the eighteenth century, including frequent migration, living alongside foreign nations, and welcoming outsiders into their lands, have made it difficult for their contemporary descendants to achieve federal acknowledgment and full rights as Native American peoples. The Great Power of Small Nations tackles questions of Native power past and present and provides a fresh examination of the formidable and resilient Native nations who helped shape the modern Gulf South. John Cable is assistant professor of history at Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College in Tifton, Georgia. He earned the Ph.D. in history at Florida State University in 2020. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/native-american-studies

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Elizabeth N. Ellis. "The Great Power of Small Nations: Indigenous Diplomacy in the Gulf South" (U Pennsylvania Press, 2022)

New Books in Early Modern History

Play Episode Listen Later Dec 14, 2022 59:15

The Great Power of Small Nations: Indigenous Diplomacy in the Gulf South (U Pennsylvania Press, 2022) tackles questions of Native power past and present and provides a fresh examination of the formidable and resilient Native nations—including Biloxis, Choctaws, Chitimachas, Chickasaws, Houmas, Mobilians, and Tunicas—who helped shape the modern Gulf South. In The Great Power of Small Nations, Elizabeth N. Ellis (Peoria) tells the stories of the many smaller Native American nations that shaped the development of the Gulf South. Based on extensive archival research and oral histories, Ellis's narrative chronicles how diverse Indigenous peoples—including Biloxis, Choctaws, Chitimachas, Chickasaws, Houmas, Mobilians, and Tunicas—influenced and often challenged the growth of colonial Louisiana. The book centers on questions of Native nation-building and international diplomacy, and it argues that Native American migration and practices of offering refuge to migrants in crisis enabled Native nations to survive the violence of colonization. Indeed, these practices also made them powerful. When European settlers began to arrive in Indigenous homelands at the turn of the eighteenth century, these small nations, or petites nations as the French called them, pulled colonists into their political and social systems, thereby steering the development of early Louisiana. In some cases, the same practices that helped Native peoples withstand colonization in the eighteenth century, including frequent migration, living alongside foreign nations, and welcoming outsiders into their lands, have made it difficult for their contemporary descendants to achieve federal acknowledgment and full rights as Native American peoples. The Great Power of Small Nations tackles questions of Native power past and present and provides a fresh examination of the formidable and resilient Native nations who helped shape the modern Gulf South. John Cable is assistant professor of history at Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College in Tifton, Georgia. He earned the Ph.D. in history at Florida State University in 2020. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

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Elizabeth N. Ellis. "The Great Power of Small Nations: Indigenous Diplomacy in the Gulf South" (U Pennsylvania Press, 2022)

New Books in American Studies

Play Episode Listen Later Dec 14, 2022 59:15

The Great Power of Small Nations: Indigenous Diplomacy in the Gulf South (U Pennsylvania Press, 2022) tackles questions of Native power past and present and provides a fresh examination of the formidable and resilient Native nations—including Biloxis, Choctaws, Chitimachas, Chickasaws, Houmas, Mobilians, and Tunicas—who helped shape the modern Gulf South. In The Great Power of Small Nations, Elizabeth N. Ellis (Peoria) tells the stories of the many smaller Native American nations that shaped the development of the Gulf South. Based on extensive archival research and oral histories, Ellis's narrative chronicles how diverse Indigenous peoples—including Biloxis, Choctaws, Chitimachas, Chickasaws, Houmas, Mobilians, and Tunicas—influenced and often challenged the growth of colonial Louisiana. The book centers on questions of Native nation-building and international diplomacy, and it argues that Native American migration and practices of offering refuge to migrants in crisis enabled Native nations to survive the violence of colonization. Indeed, these practices also made them powerful. When European settlers began to arrive in Indigenous homelands at the turn of the eighteenth century, these small nations, or petites nations as the French called them, pulled colonists into their political and social systems, thereby steering the development of early Louisiana. In some cases, the same practices that helped Native peoples withstand colonization in the eighteenth century, including frequent migration, living alongside foreign nations, and welcoming outsiders into their lands, have made it difficult for their contemporary descendants to achieve federal acknowledgment and full rights as Native American peoples. The Great Power of Small Nations tackles questions of Native power past and present and provides a fresh examination of the formidable and resilient Native nations who helped shape the modern Gulf South. John Cable is assistant professor of history at Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College in Tifton, Georgia. He earned the Ph.D. in history at Florida State University in 2020. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/american-studies

french louisiana nations native americans indigenous native diplomacy florida state university great powers choctaw pennsylvania press gulf south tifton u pennsylvania press when european mobilians

Elizabeth N. Ellis. "The Great Power of Small Nations: Indigenous Diplomacy in the Gulf South" (U Pennsylvania Press, 2022)

New Books in Diplomatic History

Play Episode Listen Later Dec 14, 2022 59:15

The Great Power of Small Nations: Indigenous Diplomacy in the Gulf South (U Pennsylvania Press, 2022) tackles questions of Native power past and present and provides a fresh examination of the formidable and resilient Native nations—including Biloxis, Choctaws, Chitimachas, Chickasaws, Houmas, Mobilians, and Tunicas—who helped shape the modern Gulf South. In The Great Power of Small Nations, Elizabeth N. Ellis (Peoria) tells the stories of the many smaller Native American nations that shaped the development of the Gulf South. Based on extensive archival research and oral histories, Ellis's narrative chronicles how diverse Indigenous peoples—including Biloxis, Choctaws, Chitimachas, Chickasaws, Houmas, Mobilians, and Tunicas—influenced and often challenged the growth of colonial Louisiana. The book centers on questions of Native nation-building and international diplomacy, and it argues that Native American migration and practices of offering refuge to migrants in crisis enabled Native nations to survive the violence of colonization. Indeed, these practices also made them powerful. When European settlers began to arrive in Indigenous homelands at the turn of the eighteenth century, these small nations, or petites nations as the French called them, pulled colonists into their political and social systems, thereby steering the development of early Louisiana. In some cases, the same practices that helped Native peoples withstand colonization in the eighteenth century, including frequent migration, living alongside foreign nations, and welcoming outsiders into their lands, have made it difficult for their contemporary descendants to achieve federal acknowledgment and full rights as Native American peoples. The Great Power of Small Nations tackles questions of Native power past and present and provides a fresh examination of the formidable and resilient Native nations who helped shape the modern Gulf South. John Cable is assistant professor of history at Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College in Tifton, Georgia. He earned the Ph.D. in history at Florida State University in 2020. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

french louisiana nations native americans indigenous native diplomacy florida state university great powers choctaw pennsylvania press gulf south tifton u pennsylvania press when european mobilians

Elizabeth N. Ellis. "The Great Power of Small Nations: Indigenous Diplomacy in the Gulf South" (U Pennsylvania Press, 2022)

New Books in the American South

Play Episode Listen Later Dec 14, 2022 59:15

The Great Power of Small Nations: Indigenous Diplomacy in the Gulf South (U Pennsylvania Press, 2022) tackles questions of Native power past and present and provides a fresh examination of the formidable and resilient Native nations—including Biloxis, Choctaws, Chitimachas, Chickasaws, Houmas, Mobilians, and Tunicas—who helped shape the modern Gulf South. In The Great Power of Small Nations, Elizabeth N. Ellis (Peoria) tells the stories of the many smaller Native American nations that shaped the development of the Gulf South. Based on extensive archival research and oral histories, Ellis's narrative chronicles how diverse Indigenous peoples—including Biloxis, Choctaws, Chitimachas, Chickasaws, Houmas, Mobilians, and Tunicas—influenced and often challenged the growth of colonial Louisiana. The book centers on questions of Native nation-building and international diplomacy, and it argues that Native American migration and practices of offering refuge to migrants in crisis enabled Native nations to survive the violence of colonization. Indeed, these practices also made them powerful. When European settlers began to arrive in Indigenous homelands at the turn of the eighteenth century, these small nations, or petites nations as the French called them, pulled colonists into their political and social systems, thereby steering the development of early Louisiana. In some cases, the same practices that helped Native peoples withstand colonization in the eighteenth century, including frequent migration, living alongside foreign nations, and welcoming outsiders into their lands, have made it difficult for their contemporary descendants to achieve federal acknowledgment and full rights as Native American peoples. The Great Power of Small Nations tackles questions of Native power past and present and provides a fresh examination of the formidable and resilient Native nations who helped shape the modern Gulf South. John Cable is assistant professor of history at Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College in Tifton, Georgia. He earned the Ph.D. in history at Florida State University in 2020. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices Support our show by becoming a premium member! https://newbooksnetwork.supportingcast.fm/american-south

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Découvrez bientôt "Tout Roule", le nouveau podcast auto d'Europe 1 Studio

Tout roule

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 14, 2022 0:48

Depuis quelques années, l'industrie automobile connaît des mutations sans précédent, qu'elles soient économiques, technologiques ou écologiques. Dans “Tout roule”, le nouveau podcast natif produit par Europe 1 Studio avec Mobilians, Pierre de Vilno vous propose l'essai immersif d'un véhicule et interroge des experts sur les grands enjeux du secteur.

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Francis Pousse, président des distributeurs carburants et énergies nouvelles chez Mobilians est l'invité de RTL

RTL Matin

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 8, 2022 5:22

Dans les zones en tension, Francis Pousse évoque 40% de stations en rupture de stock totale ou partielle. Pour y remédier, des stocks stratégiques "sont lâchés depuis une dizaine de jours".

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Francis Pousse, président des distributeurs carburants et énergies nouvelles chez Mobilians est l'invité de RTL

L'invité de RTL

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 8, 2022 5:22

Dans les zones en tension, Francis Pousse évoque 40% de stations en rupture de stock totale ou partielle. Pour y remédier, des stocks stratégiques "sont lâchés depuis une dizaine de jours".

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L'invité de Charles Matin : Francis Pousse - 03/10

RMC Bonjour !

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 3, 2022 6:27

Avec : Francis Pousse, gérant d'une station essence à Sarthe et président national de la branche Distributeurs Carburants et Énergies Nouvelles au syndicat Mobilians (ex CNPA). - Chaque matin, Charles Magnien reçoit un invité au cœur de l'actualité. De l'info, de l'humour et de la bonne humeur… Cette année, Charles Magnien gagne une demi-heure. Avec Anaïs Castagna, ils accompagnent jusqu'à 6h30 les Français qui se lèvent tôt. Nouveautés cette saison : Arthur Asquin rejoint l'équipe de Charles Matin avec une nouvelle chronique : l'info marquante du jour à ne pas manquer ; et pour ne rien louper de l'actualité sportive, Thibaud Texeire incarnera tous les matins la Story Sport.

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Automobile: le tout électrique est-il possible?

Débat du jour

Play Episode Listen Later Jun 21, 2022 29:30

À partir de ce mercredi 22 juin 2022, le géant chinois Evergrande va lancer la production à grande échelle de sa voiture électrique « Hengchi 5 ». Le marché s'accélère pour répondre aux objectifs fixés, en premier lieu la fin annoncée de la vente de véhicules thermiques neufs en Europe, à partir de 2035. Le vote au début du mois du Parlement européen sur ce point est considéré comme la plus grande mutation industrielle depuis la fin de la sidérurgie. Le délai est-il tenable ? Quels sont les obstacles ? Comment les dépasser ? Le tout électrique permettra-t-il d'atteindre les objectifs climatiques ? Pour en débattre : - Dorothée Dayraut-Jullian, directrice des Affaires publiques de Mobilians, Organisation patronale des métiers de la distribution et des services automobiles - Marie Chéron, responsable de la politique « véhicule » à Transport & Environnement France - Clément Molizon, délégué général adjoint de l'Avere France, association nationale pour la mobilité électrique.

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Automobile: le tout électrique est-il possible?

Débat du jour

Play Episode Listen Later Jun 21, 2022 29:30

À partir de ce mercredi 22 juin 2022, le géant chinois Evergrande va lancer la production à grande échelle de sa voiture électrique « Hengchi 5 ». Le marché s'accélère pour répondre aux objectifs fixés, en premier lieu la fin annoncée de la vente de véhicules thermiques neufs en Europe, à partir de 2035. Le vote au début du mois du Parlement européen sur ce point est considéré comme la plus grande mutation industrielle depuis la fin de la sidérurgie. Le délai est-il tenable ? Quels sont les obstacles ? Comment les dépasser ? Le tout électrique permettra-t-il d'atteindre les objectifs climatiques ? Pour en débattre : - Dorothée Dayraut-Jullian, directrice des Affaires publiques de Mobilians, Organisation patronale des métiers de la distribution et des services automobiles - Marie Chéron, responsable de la politique « véhicule » à Transport & Environnement France - Clément Molizon, délégué général adjoint de l'Avere France, association nationale pour la mobilité électrique.

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L'auto et les candidats à l'élection présidentielle 2022

Road Story Histoire d'Auto

Play Episode Listen Later Apr 5, 2022 19:08

Le 14 Mars 2022 Mobilians (professions de l'automobile), la PFA (constructeurs et équipementiers), la FIEV (équipementiers) et CSIAM (importateurs) ont invité les candidats à l'élection présidentielle à présenter leur programme pour l'automobile et les automobilistes.

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Marine Le Pen ( Rassemblement National ) Présidentielle 2022, son programme auto

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Play Episode Listen Later Apr 4, 2022 35:30

Réunion du 14 Mars 2022 où Jean-Philippe Tanguy, représentant de Marine Le Pen, s'exprime sur les engagements du Rassemblement National face à la filière Automobile.

L'auto et les candidats à l'élection présidentielle 2022

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Play Episode Listen Later Apr 4, 2022 18:54

Le 14 Mars 2022 Mobilians (professions de l'automobile), la PFA (constructeurs et équipementiers), la FIEV (équipementiers) et CSIAM (importateurs) ont invité les candidats à l'élection présidentielle à présenter leur programme pour l'automobile et les automobilistes.

Yannick Jadot ( Europe Ecologie Les Verts ) Présidentielle 2022, son programme auto

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Play Episode Listen Later Apr 4, 2022 56:20

Réunion du 14 Mars 2022 face à la filière Automobile, où Karima Delli, représentante de Yannick Jadot, candidat pour Europe Ecologie Les Verts, s

Emmanuel Macron ( Ensemble citoyens ) Présidentielle 2022, son programme auto

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Play Episode Listen Later Apr 4, 2022 37:16

Réunion du 14 Mars 2022 face à la filière Automobile, où Bruno Le Maire, représentant d'Emmanuel Macron, s'exprime sur les engagements de Ensemble citoyens !

Eric Zemmour ( Reconquête ! ) Présidentielle 2022, son programme auto

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Play Episode Listen Later Apr 4, 2022 38:02

Réunion du 14 Mars 2022 face à la filière Automobile, où Sébastien Pilard, représentant d'Eric Zemmour pour Reconquête ! s'exprime sur ses engagements sur le secteur automobile

Anne Hidalgo ( Parti Socialiste ) Présidentielle 2022, son programme auto

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Play Episode Listen Later Apr 4, 2022 39:27

Réunion du 14 Mars 2022 où Anne Hidalgo s'exprime sur les engagements du Parti Socialiste face à la filière Automobile.

Présidentielle 2022, programme auto de Valérie Pécresse ( Les Républicains )

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Play Episode Listen Later Apr 4, 2022 37:53

Réunion du 14 Mars 2022 où Xavier Bertrand, représentant de Valérie Pécresse, s'exprime sur les engagements des Républicains face à la filière Automobile.

Jean Lassalle (Résistons !) Présidentielle 2022, son programme auto

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Play Episode Listen Later Apr 4, 2022 36:13

Réunion du 14 Mars 2022 face à la filière Automobile, où Jean Lassalle s'exprime sur les engagements de Résistons ! concernant la filière Automobile et l'automobile en France.

Jean-Luc Mélenchon ( La France Insoumise ) Présidentielle 2022, son programme auto

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Play Episode Listen Later Apr 4, 2022 10:36

Réunion du 14 Mars 2022 face à la filière Automobile, où Eric Coquerel, représentant de Jean-Luc Mélenchon, s'exprime sur les engagements de La France Insoumise dans le domaine automobile.

Fabien Roussel ( Parti Communiste ) Présidentielle 2022, son programme auto

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Play Episode Listen Later Apr 4, 2022 33:58

Premier intervenant du 14 Mars 2022, Jacques Baudrier, représentant de Fabien Roussel, s'exprime sur les engagements du Parti Communiste Français face à la filière Automobile. retrouver Road-story une synthèse des programmes des candidats.

La MOBILITÉ PARTAGÉE, 14e métier de MOBILIANS. Avec Yohann MIMRAN, OLYMPIC LOCATION à Marseille

Play Episode Listen Later Mar 8, 2022 31:26

Pour cette 14e étape du Tour de France des métiers de MOBILIANS, je me trouve dans les Bouches-du-Rhône, à Marseille, à la rencontre des acteurs de la MOBILITÉ PARTAGÉE, et plus particulièrement des LOUEURS COURTE DURÉE. Depuis la crise du Covid, avec un tourisme qui s'est recentré sur la France, mais aussi avec les retards de livraison de véhicules de la part des constructeurs, les demandes en location des particuliers et des professionnels ont progressé. Mais tout n'est pas pour autant rose pour la profession, qui se trouve confrontée à trois difficultés majeures : tout d'abord, des marges de plus en plus réduites à cause des prix de véhicules en forte hausse dûs à l'électrification, la crise des semi-conducteurs et aux normes environnementales, une hausse qu'ils ont du mal à répercuter sur les clients. Ensuite, des flottes vieillissantes, et une incertitude quant à l'approvisionnement. Et enfin, l'évolution des usages, et le développement du carsharing et de l'autopartage. Les loueurs doivent-ils s'engouffrer dans cette voie, ou conserver leurs spécificités ? Autant de questions que nous aborderons, dans hashtag#BeMyGuest, avec mon invité Yohann MIMRAN, cogérant d'Olympic Location.

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Les CONCESSIONNAIRES VP, 11e métier de MOBILIANS. Avec PEUGEOT GUYOT à Châlons-en-Champagne

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Play Episode Listen Later Feb 27, 2022 28:03

Depuis 15 jours, #BeMyGuest parcourt avec MOBILIANS les routes de France, en Peugeot 208 électrique, à la rencontre des hommes et des femmes qui font la mobilité d'aujourd'hui et de demain. Pour cette 11e étape, je me trouve à Châlons-en-Champagne, en région Grand Est, pour parler des concessionnaires VP. Avec mon invité, Franck GUYOT, Président de la concession Peugeot GUYOT, nous évoquerons les problèmes majeurs auxquels les concessionnaires automobiles sont confrontés, à savoir l'électrification, les délais de livraison, la résiliation des contrats par le constructeur, et le recrutement.

LES CARROSSIERS, 8e métier de MOBILIANS. Avec la Carrosserie QUEMENER

Road Story Histoire d'Auto

Play Episode Listen Later Feb 22, 2022 39:08

Pour cette 8e étape du Tour de France des métiers de MOBILIANS, #BeMyGuest se trouve à côté de Saint-Malo, en Bretagne, pour parler des CARROSSIERS. En plus des normes environnementales et de l'électrification, les carrossiers sont confrontés à trois difficultés majeures : les relations conflictuelles qu'ils entretiennent avec des experts qui tirent les prix vers le bas, le refus de prise en charge des assurances, et le manque d'attractivité de la filière auprès des jeunes. Pour en parler, rencontre avec Typhaine & Anthony QUEMENER de la Carrosserie QUEMENER à Pleslin-Trigavou.

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Les STATIONS-SERVICE, 7e métier de MOBILIANS, avec Francis Pousse, directeur de la station-service Esso d'Arnage dans la Sarthe.

Play Episode Listen Later Feb 20, 2022 28:36

Pour cette 7e étape du Tour de France des métiers de MOBILIANS, #BeMyGuest se trouve dans la Sarthe pour parler de stations-service. Alors que les prix du carburant atteignent de nouveaux sommets, et que la concurrence avec les grandes surfaces est de plus en plus rude, les stations-service gardent le cap tant bien que mal, assurant un service de proximité essentiel dans les zones rurales. Avec des marges de plus en plus faibles, comment les stations-service réussissent -elles à survivre ? Et avec la suppression des moteurs thermiques programmée à 2035, à quoi ressemblera leur avenir ? Autant de questions auxquelles nous allons répondre avec mon invité, Francis Pousse, directeur de la station-service Esso d'Arnage dans la Sarthe.

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6e étape du Tour de France des métiers de MOBILIANS, Bertrand Macé, Président de VILLAGE MOTOS.

Moto Radio

Play Episode Listen Later Feb 18, 2022 38:52

6e étape du Tour de France des métiers de MOBILIANS, avec les DEUX-ROUES, en direct d'Orvault, en Loire-Atlantique. Je serai reçue par Bertrand Macé, Président de VILLAGE MOTOS.

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Tour de France des métiers de MOBILIANS : #1 Education & Sécurité routière avec CONDUITE PLUS à Lyon

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Play Episode Listen Later Feb 11, 2022 29:54

Pendant 2 semaines 1/2, #BeMyGuest part à la rencontre des différents métiers de MOBILIANS, qui composent l'organisation professionnelle des métiers de la distribution et des services de l'Automobile. Rencontre, dans #BeMyGuest, EN DIRECT de la Région Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, avec un premier métier, l'éducation et la sécurité routière, représenté par Sophie KARSENTY gérante de l'Auto-École CONDUITE PLUS à Lyon. A retrouver sur https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=srnuAqwK7fY

#BeMyGuest fait son tout de France avec Mobilians, les entreprises de la mobilité

What's Working with Cam Marston

Play Episode Listen Later Feb 9, 2022 8:45

#BeMyGuest (Stéphanie Cansell ) part pour un Tour de France, en Peugeot e-208, à la rencontre des adhérents de MOBILIANS, qui parleront de leurs métiers, de leurs difficultés, de leurs attentes, et de ce que la transition énergétique signifie pour eux ! Ils en profiteront pour poser une questions aux candidats à l'élection présidentielle ( diffusé à l'occasion d'une réunion le 14 Mars ) Vous retrouverez Stéphanie quotidiennement, et EN DIRECT, à 12h30, dès le jeudi 10 février sur les réseaux sociaux habituels :

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The Work Life of Two NYC Ballet Corps Members - Mobilians Olivia and Mary Thomas MacKinnon

Play Episode Listen Later Dec 27, 2021 49:12

Olivia and Mary Thomas MacKinnon have known since a very young age that they wanted to dance professionally at the highest level their talent would allow. Today they're members of the corps at the New York City Ballet where I chat with them them prior to their nightly holiday performance of the Nutcracker. Born and raised in Mobile, they share their daily practice schedule, their weight-lifting regimen, and their favorite things to do when returning home.

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Rob Holbert & Ashley Trice with Lagniappe

Play Episode Listen Later Oct 17, 2018 34:03

On this week's podcast, Marcus sits down with Rob Holbert and Ashley Trice. From screenwriting school to ghost writing, this duo has paved a hard-working entrepreneurial journey in Mobile, AL. Listen to this week's episode to hear all about their journey to building the weekly publication, Lagniappe! You can find this episode on , Spotify, or iTunes. Rob: I'm Rob Holbert, with Lagniappe, one of the co-publishers. Ashley: And I'm Ashley Trice with Lagniappe, the other publisher. Marcus: Yay! Well, this is awesome, to have you guys on the podcast, 'cause I know we've been talking about this for a long time. Ashley: We have, since you beat us. Marcus: No, even before that. So what she's talking about, for those of you that aren't aware, we were all along with Harper Technology. We were finalists for the small business of the year award with the Mobile Chamber, because this podcast will live in perpetuity online. But we actually, in Blue Fish, ended up winning that award, much to my surprise. I honestly, I thought you guys were a shoe in. Rob: Well, we all thought you were, and Harper was. We had ourselves kind of put third. So it was one of those things where you lose, but I was completely happy with it. Marcus: [crosstalk 00:00:59] Rob: Yeah, I was completely happy with it. It was just like, great, glad you guys did well. Everybody did well. It was fun. It was really a lot of fun. Marcus: Yeah. But it was also, I really, absolutely enjoyed getting to know you guys through that process. We got to know each other so well, we started dressing alike. So, and the reference there is, if you look at the cover, both Rob and I were wearing the same jacket. We didn't plan that, it was something that just kind of happened. We know what Lagniappe is, we know what you all do. But why don't we go back in time, and why don't you take turns and kind of share with us the story of who you are. Did you grow up here in Mobile? Where did you go to high school? Did you go to college? Did you study english or journalism? Did you start working in the journalism trade, or, you know, give us some background. Ladies first. Ashley: Well, I grew up in the sticks, in Jackson, Alabama, about an hour north of here. I came, made it to Mobile, 'cause I went to South Alabama. I graduated with a degree in communications. And then tried to find a job, which is hard to do when you're right out of college. So I was kind of drifting, decided I would go to screenwriting school. So I went to the University of Texas in Austin, spent a year doing that, and realized that was not what I wanted to do, either. But it proved to be a good move, in the sense that I really, I became a fan of their alternative paper, the Austin Chronicle. Marcus: Nice. I'm familiar. Ashley: And I came back to Mobile. Rob and I had mutual friends. He was teaching at South, and we started talking. Both of us were like, we can't believe there's not a paper like this in Mobile, it's such a big market to not have a paper. And that's sort of where we intersected. Marcus: I hate to ask this, but what year was this? Ashley: 2002. Marcus: Okay, so not too long. Ashley: Well, probably 2001 we started talking about it, so. Marcus: Yeah. Ashley: Our first issue was 2002. Rob: Yeah, we worked on that for probably a good six months before we finally got one out. My background is, I grew up over in the saw grass in Gautier, Mississippi. And shoot over the sticks, I grew up in the marsh grass. I grew up in a small town over in Mississippi, Gautier. I went to school, Spring Hill, for college. Got my masters at Loyola. But I started out working over the Mississippi press in Pascagoula, out of college, and then subsequently, went back after I got my masters, and was there. And I ended up going to Capital Hill and working with Trent Lot who was, then, the senate majority leader. Sort of to get out of Gautier or get out of Pascagoula, I had gotten married, and for some strange reason, my wife didn't like Pascagoula and didn't wanna be there. And I had this idea that I would go there and learn about politics, et cetera, but I had always wanted to jump back into media. I just wanted to do it at a different level. I fell in love with opinion writing at an early age, and for some reason, they let me write a column when I was 22 over there. And I got stuck doing that, and I really loved it, and had this grandiose idea of being a syndicated columnist. And so that was the plan. I got up there and I ended up leaving Capital Hill, was a ghost writer for a while. I wrote for just about every big newspaper in the United States with somebody else's name on it. And then came back down here thinking, I'll come to Mobile, and I'll be hired by the press register, no problem. Surely, they'll want me. And they didn't. And so I kind of washed out of journalism at an early age, and was just stuck. I mean, I didn't have anywhere to go. I ended up working at Tony Roma's, the place for ribs. Marcus: Nice. Rob: And I was doing that for a little while. But I had a masters degree, ended up out at south as the advisor to the student newspaper. And so doing that, the Vanguard, the newspaper at South Alabama. And so I was teaching classes, as well. Ashley was taking one of my classes. We also knew each other through mutual friends, so I think that's kind of where she came in and said, "Will you come write a column for us?" And I said, sure, I'll write a column. Ashley: It was gonna be named the Mobile Mirror at that point, I might add, too. Rob: Yes, that was gonna be our original name, was the Mobile Mirror. And it eventually became pretty clear, we had a group of people that wanted to do stuff with it, and the only two people who were really serious were us. So we eventually said, let's just be partners on this thing. Ashley: And let's rename it something no one can spell or say or know what it means. Rob: Right, let's, yeah. That was a brilliant move as well. Everybody knows what Lagniappe means, right? Ashley: I still have to spell it and say it to people who just call. Marcus: For those that don't know, Lagniappe is ... Rob: A little something extra. It's like when you get a box of donuts, and they give you a thirteenth one. They give you an extra. Marcus: Or a couple of extra donut holes, or something sprinkled on top. Rob: Yeah, yeah. And truth be told, we misspelled it on our mock ups for the first two weeks. Ashley: Yeah. We had the ... it said [inaudible 00:06:19]. Rob: Yeah, we did. We transposed a letter. We did. It was bad. So yeah, that was the, portending things to come on that. Marcus: So in 2001, 2002, I mean, journalism was still going strong. There really wasn't the emphasis on the web, and all that other stuff. I mean, it's ... Ashley: Well, yeah. I was telling this story the other day. When we started all of the trade industry, we had a trade magazine call us. And they were like, why on earth would you be starting a newspaper at this time? Digital was just starting, but the big thing that was happening at that point were classifieds, had gone to Craigslist. So they had lost all of the- Marcus: Which was a money maker for many newspapers. Rob: It was a huge moneymaker. Ashley: It was the second source of revenue, huge source of revenue. So we, well, we don't really have classifieds. So it's not a source of revenue. We don't really have any revenue at all, so. Rob: Can't lose it when you don't have it. Ashley: Exactly. Rob: Did we mention that? Ashley: Yeah, so in a way, it was advantageous, because we didn't have it to lose. We had to start thinking of other ways to make money. And it was in the traditional sense of display advertising. But yeah, so it was definitely a different time. But we were so small, we started out as a five thousand circulation biweekly. And we were really silly at first. We were both a bit younger, I mean, we had a hard hitting issue on Botox was the very first ... Yeah. Rob: Yeah, we didn't really have a lot of news at all. Ashley: Wrestling made it in. Rob: Midget wrestling. I'm sorry, little person wrestling. Ashley: Little person. Marcus: No, back then, it was midget wrestling. Ashley: Back then, it was. But I made this speech- Marcus: We're more enlightened now. Ashley: Yes. I made this speech just recently for a bunch of high school students, and I said midget wrestling, and they all looked at me as if I had just said ... I was like, I'm sorry. Sorry, little person. And they actually called themselves midget wrestlers. It was not trying to ... Marcus: They did. Yes, it was not. It was not- Rob: That's not PC, I guess. But yeah, it was one of those things. It's like, I think Ashley had five thousand dollars. I mean, it was really just- Ashley: And a dream. Rob: That's really what the paper was started with. And it was sort of, our first big purchase was, we went out and bought a boom box, a radio that we could listen to while we put the paper together. And cell phones to call each other. And so that was it. Those were really- Marcus: Do you still have the boom box? Did you just say that? Rob: Yeah, we do. Yeah. We still have it. Marcus: Wow. Rob: It's still there. But we just ... The concepts, if you asked both of us, we just, oh yeah, in two years, this thing is just gonna be making tons of money. Because this was the biggest city in the United States that we could find that did not have an alternative newspaper at that point. There was just, you looked around a city of this size, all of them had it. Ashley: I mean, we wrote down all of the businesses. Oh, they'll definitely have, yes, yes, yes, yes, yes. Rob: And a lot of them were like, oh yeah, make a paper, we're gonna advertise. And then, you know, when you made the paper, it was like, check back with us when you're here for a couple years. Ashley: Yeah. Rob: And we also, one of the things that was tough for us, there had been a publication that was kind of a ... It was just about food. But it was exactly the same size as us. Ashley: It was a tabloid newspaper. Rob: Tabloid. And they had gone around and done a bunch of buying ads, doing trade for ads was what they were doing. We'll give you an ad, you give us free food at your place, and give us stuff. So it turned out badly, and they ended up owing people money, and whatever else. Just didn't follow through. And when we came in, people were like, yeah, we've seen this kind of thing before. Ashley: Yeah, you'll be gone in six months. Rob: Yeah. So that was the, everybody was like, it'll be gone. Ashley: At one point, I thought that was going to be true. Rob: Many points I thought it was gonna be. Ashley: But sixteen years later, here we are. Marcus: So doesn't every business owner? So like our story isn't much different. Started in 2007, little bit later than you. But I mean, it was with a laptop and an idea. And my first website was $300 and a tattoo for David's [inaudible 00:10:21]. I'm currently looking for another tattoo artist to do a half sleeve. I'd like to get a half sleeve done. So if you're out there and you're a tattoo artist, and you need a website ... Rob: Yeah, he's your guy. Here you go. Marcus: Send your portfolio to marcus@bluefishds.com. So what was your ... Let's go back in time, though. Because we talked to people about their first jobs, and what lessons may have been learned from it. And I often give the example of, the proper way to mop a floor, or that there's paying attention. And the reason why I give that isn't just because there's the right way to mop the floor, but it's that there's detail in something as mundane as mopping the floor. And so what was each of yours first job? And I'm looking for the crap job, I'm not looking for the newspaper job. Ashley: Well, I worked at Willy's Snow Cones in Jackson, Alabama. Rob: I love that place. Ashley: They were delicious, by the way. I learned to wear steel toed shoes when making snow cones, 'cause I- Marcus: Steel toed shoes when making snow cones? Are they afraid that you're gonna like- Ashley: Well, then, you have to get a 15 rectangular block of ice and load it into the snow cone machine, which I dropped on my foot. Had to have my toenail removed. It was ... So I guess I learned to be cautious in everything you're doing. But also, deliver delicious product at the same time. Rob: My first job was teaching swim lessons to kids, I guess when I was about 14. And I don't know what we learned from that. You know, it was fun. Not to stand in a lot of urine, I guess, was the main thing. Because it was just a swimming pool full of kids all day long. You're teaching one class after another. But I wanted to work. I couldn't wait to get a job, because I'm the oldest of five, so we had ... I was out there pushing the lawnmower all the time and do that stuff, so it was kind of part of the deal, and I just was ready to go work. I wanted to make money and save up and buy a car. Marcus: You know, I think I've been lying for about 120 episodes. I'm just sitting here realizing that my first job wasn't at the bagel bakery, and my first job was actually, 'cause Jim [Nagy 00:13:08] was the episode before you all, and he mentioned that he worked illegally, or what he thinks was illegally, at like 13, 14 years old for a fish restaurant. And so they had him fileting fish and stuff like that. And now that I'm thinking back about it, I had a warehouse job for a company that my dad worked for, and we actually took, I think they were Epson printers back in the day, when you couldn't go to Best Buy and every other place to get a printer. And we would remove the labels, and remove the barcode on the back, and replace them with the company branded information. And then they would sell them as their house brand. And I literally am just now remembering that. Rob: I think you're passed the statute of limitations on that. You're okay. Marcus: Is that okay? Rob: Yeah. Marcus: So I apologize to our listeners. That is hilarious. So you've already told us about how you started your business. Now do you remember going back to that very first issue where you thought, there's something to this. We've got it, we figured out what the recipe is. We figured out how to communicate effectively with the audience here in Mobile. 'Cause let's not sugar coat it, Mobile is a very, very unique market. Rob: I would say, one of the things that sort of gave us an idea of that is, we actually did a prototype of the paper to show advertisers. And we got threats of lawsuits from the prototype, and I thought- Marcus: Seriously? Rob: Yeah. We really pissed somebody off on just the prototype coming along. And we were kind of like, well, people are fired up. Ashley: We've already been threatened to be sued, and we haven't even- Rob: Yeah, we've already been threatened to be sued, and we haven't even published yet. So that, to me, was one. Ashley: Probably the biggest early on moment that I realized the power, just, I don't know, I still sometimes have trouble grasping this. But that people actually read what we write. I'm just a writer, so I just write because it's my craft. I don't actually think about people sitting around reading it. But we had, one of our very first cuisine editors. She was a tremendous writer, she still is a professional writer, I think, in Atlanta. And she was great. But she had a wicked tongue, and she reviewed a restaurant that's now out of business here. But the owner was ... I mean, it was tough. And it really had people talking. But he read that review on the same day that his restaurant burned to the ground. Marcus: Ooh. Ashley: And so he came into our office with soot and ash on his face to express his displeasure for it. So it kind of just made me realize, you know, that's not really answering your question- Marcus: No, it is. Ashley: But just the gravity of what we're doing, and it does matter. Rob: I do think that issue was- Marcus: There's some balance. Rob: Oh, sorry. Marcus: No, I don't mean to interrupt you, but- Ashley: I mean, I think we learned this market may not be ready for that level of honesty. But I think we've tempered a little bit over the years, but I think we still remain true to that we want honest reviews, and we want honesty in the paper. But there's a way to do it. Rob: Yeah. She was a classically trained chef, and she had lived, you know, I think she was from a much larger city. And she was used to much more brutal criticism, and- Marcus: Baseball bat to the knees sort of thing? Rob: Yeah. And you know, also, another part of that issue was our office was right next door to the guy's other restaurant. And so he came in, and he was furious. So it was kind of tough, that standpoint. But people started talking about us. Ashley: I hid under the desk, I'm not gonna lie. Rob: He was ... Oh, I'm gonna have you kicked out of this building, you're gonna never, I'm gonna do everything I can to make sure you guys never survive. But it didn't work out. But I think, that was a sign that, exactly what Ashley said, that it got a lot of people's attention, but it also kind of told us ... I mean, there was some things, I know when we started, we probably were a little more liberal with profanity in the paper and things like that, because newspapers like ours that were alternative newspapers at the time, you know, there's a lot of profanity in them and that kind of stuff. But we realized pretty quickly, Mobile doesn't go in for that as much. And it cheapens some of the writing, anyway, and it's really not- Marcus: You should be able to make a point without it. Rob: Yeah. And so, over time, for us, obviously, we have shifted dramatically from being an A&E paper, an arts and entertainment newspaper, to primarily, we think, being the newspaper for Mobile. That's what we think we are. Marcus: You are. There's no other ... who else is there? I mean, there's not really another source. Unless you think to go to AL.com. I mean, there's- Ashley: We did not set out to be that. What they did is we evolved with the media landscape in this town. I thought, when we started, that we would do news, but we would be a more traditional A&E paper. And we slowly, over time, we were like, oh, this market needs investigative journalism. AL.com, I mean, they have a couple reporters here, but their primary focus is Birmingham, and everyone knows that. Marcus: They cover just a few local stories from politics, and that's about it. Rob: But we don't really call ourselves an alternative paper anymore. We are a tabloid size, but we think that's really, honestly, where newspapers will end up going anyway. Most newspapers are gonna be that way. One of the things, when we started the paper, the one thing that Ashley and I looked at and said, where is this web thing going, and where are newspapers going, and what can you do? One thing that we both agreed on is that, you have to make sure that it's locally produced content. Content's gotta be great, and we gotta really produce it locally, because then it can't be reproduced on the web. You can't buy a bunch of stuff people are reading somewhere else, and have any effect. So everything we do, even our horoscopes, are written by the staff psychic. And we have just, everything is local. And we've kept it that way, because it is, we can tell, one of the things you can tell from looking at the web at that time, and even now, is you still have newspapers that can't figure out the fact that all their content, all that syndicated content they had, all those things, people have already read all that. Marcus: Right. Rob: And so you're not, all that world news coverage and things like that they're putting in the newspaper, they don't do as much of it anymore, but it's just filler at this point. Back in the day, it was actually important to have the news from the world in the newspaper, but it's not anymore. People go to the web for that stuff. Marcus: Yeah. Too many sources for it. Rob: Yeah. Marcus: If you were talking to someone that wanted to get started in running their own business, not a newspaper, just a business, what's the one bit of wisdom that you would impart to them? Rob: Find a fantastic partner, if you can. That's great. Ashley: Aw, thank you. Rob: It's true. I mean, I think that's one of the biggest things that we've done that I look around and say ... I mean, we've been in business 16 years, and we get along great, and we very, it's so infrequent that we have any real- Marcus: 16 years to be a partner with somebody. That's almost like a marriage. Rob: Yeah, it is. It is. Marcus: I don't know how you guys have done it. Ashley: It is. I mean, we rarely ... I think we just have such a similar view on where we wanna go with the paper, and just our views on what we should be. But I think, because of that, on the rare times that we disagree, we know each other is serious. It means a lot to me if I'm arguing with this. Rob: I mean, I say that because it is, it's such a load to carry to start a business. And it really is ... I think about, so many times, just how much more tired I would be if I didn't have a great partner I could trust to do things. I think I would've died a long time ago. It's just nice to be able to go out of town and know there's somebody there who is taking care of those things, and cares about it. And that's, you know how it is. It's tough just to be the only one. Marcus: I'm gonna try to not start crying right now. Rob: I think it's tough. Marcus: The rest of the week that I've had, you know, is just like ... Yeah. Rob: But I don't know very many business partnerships that last that long and work very well. Ashley: Yeah. People don't generally ... You know, I'm gonna start stealing something. I mean, I have stolen several ... A couple of diet Cokes over the years. Rob: A couple. Maybe probably about three to four thousand. Ashley: Not that many. Maybe like 20. Rob: It's a lot. Ashley: I usually didn't. Marcus: So what's the wisdom that you would impart? And it can't be find a great partner, 'cause that one's been taken. Ashley: You know, I would just, on a really boring, practical sense, I really thought financing was gonna be a lot easier. Rob: Oh, God. Ashley: I was just stunned after we had been in business for a while, when neither of us have ... A lot of people are like, oh, they have rich relatives just backing this for them. That is not the case, I can assure you. And even after we had a proven track record, it was really difficult to get financing for a while. We finally had to have a bank that would take a chance on us. So I think building those sort of relationships, because especially what we have, and you're probably like this too. We don't have a warehouse full of widgets they can guarantee the land with, or whatever. Marcus: I was always told to go and try and get financing prior to when you need it. And so very early on, the bank that I do most of my stuff with, which I'm not entirely thrilled with them, but they offered me a line of credit. And I was like, you know, I don't need it, but it's gonna cost me $200 a year, and if I ever need it, it's there, and it provides us with some runway if I need it. Now, granted, I've never used it. I think once, I used it just to see like, okay, well, what is this like? But it wasn't because I actually needed the money, I just ... Rob: We've needed it. And what we always found, our problem was, every time we've needed it, we had a tough time getting it. And it did, it ended up being actually one of the big banks that said, yes, we'll give you a line of credit. Versus the small town banks you think are gonna really ... And it really was somebody at the big bank that said, we love your product, and we think it's important for Mobile. And that was huge. And that part is- Ashley: That allowed us to go weekly, quite frankly. We were trying to get financing while we were going weekly. Marcus: I would imagine that's a fairly large expense. Ashley: Oh, it doubled our print bill. It doubled, you know, we had to get more reporters. Marcus: Just out of curiosity, what does it cost to print the paper every week? Rob: I'll tell you this. It's close to $400,000 a year. It's our second biggest expense. Marcus: Damn. Rob: Yeah. I mean, we'd love the web to work out. Ashley: If anyone can figure that out now ... Rob: That magic day when you see me driving down the road in a pink Cadillac, man, you'll know, hey, they figured the web out. It'll be- Marcus: I appreciate your honesty. Because I mean, I'm often times curious, just what does that cost? 'Cause it is. And every place I go downtown, there's a stack of your papers. And I'm just like, that has got to ... We deal with some printing, but not at the level you guys do. Rob: We do 30 thousand a week, now. And then we had this whole issue that president Trump did a tariff on newsprint from Canada earlier this year, and that's caused a massive increase on the print bill for every newspaper in the country. And that tariff was slapped down by the international trade commission, but the prices are still up. You know how it is. Once the price is up, they're not gonna come back down. So that's been tough. So that's a big challenge. And we were fortune. One thing for us is lightning strikes all the time for us. We get lucky a lot of times. Ashley: Yeah, because I don't think that we're great visionaries by any stretch. I think like, oh, God, how have we looked into this? I can't believe this has happened again. Rob: Yeah, there at times, I think. I think the smartest thing we ever did was to stick to, come up with a plan editorially, and stick with our plan to be excellent editorially, and do that the best we can. But Ashley met a guy one time who ended up being a true angel investor, and actually bought a small piece of the company, and gave us a good infusion of money that we needed. So those things over the years have just kind of come along and helped. But it's definitely ... There are lots of times that I look at it and I'm totally surprised that we're still doing this, and that we're still rolling along. Marcus: Nice. Well, are there any books, podcasts, people, or organizations that have been helpful in moving you forward? You've mentioned a couple, but maybe go to the books and organizations side of things. Rob: Trying to think. Marcus: You're writers, so you gotta be reading too, right? Ashley: Well, everyone thinks that. Everyone thinks that if you're writer, that you read a lot. Rob: You don't. Never read anything. Ashley: Yeah, because you don't want the other people in your head. Marcus: True, good point. Ashley: So you know, I would say, as far ... I am a big newspaper reader, I'm not a big book reader, I will say. Marcus: Sure. Ashley: I read the New York Times, Washington Post, Wallstreet Journal. I like to read them all. Gosh, I sound like Sarah Palin. Would she say something like that? I read all of them. Rob: I read all of them. Ashley: I actually do read them. And I think just seeing a good template for what's good journalism has always been ... Marcus: What the high quality of writing can be, yeah. Rob: Yeah, I think that's the main thing for me, as well, is just looking at ... I'm charged up when I see other good writing. I'm sure that we've reinvented the wheel several times, because we haven't gone to a lot of seminars and things like that. Ashley: Definitely should read more books on being a CFO kind of person. Rob: Yeah, and probably, and I'm sure we've wasted hundreds of thousands of dollars doing stupid stuff because we probably should both sit down and read a few articles and know a little bit more about things. Ashley: There's always so much to do, though. When is there time to do that? Rob: There is. And I feel like this, for us, a lot of this is just gut and gut instinct and knowledge of the business. And that's having worked in the business, I mean, I've worked at a couple smaller papers. And being in DC, seeing some things with that, I think it's kind of ... I don't think this is the trickiest business in the world, in terms of managing to produce a good product. Ashley: Well, if we were more money driven, that what destroyed newspapers. It is a business, yes. We have mouths to feed, and tuition bills, and mortgages and all that, like everyone else. But when big hedge fund greats are coming in and buying large newspapers, and they're slashing all of their staff, and that destroys the product. And I think, in a way, probably being a little dumb about ... I mean, not dumb, we're not idiots. Rob: No. Ashley: But not focusing on, oh, what's our Christmas bonus gonna be this year? I think that really probably kept the quality up, too, 'cause we really are in it for the passion. Marcus: Reinvesting back in the business instead of trying to cash out. Rob: I mean, traditionally, when you looked at newspapers, you looked at conglomerate owned newspapers, the profit is over ten percent. Sole ownership papers, you know, locally owned newspapers, usually, they're two or three percent. People put their own money back into the product, and try to keep the quality higher in a lot of cases. And so that's, I mean, I think that's one thing for us, is because we're able to ... I mean, I hope that we just continue to add quality in that regard, and make it a better newspaper from an editorial standpoint. So yes, it would be great to be able to read some things that would tell us how to do things in a better way, but there's so many naysayers at this point about the newspaper industry, there's nothing really to read that isn't, in a lot of ways, that isn't just telling you that you're done, you're cooked, it's over. Marcus: Yeah, it's kind of hard to swallow that stuff. Why would you go out and seek that when it's already something- Ashley: Well, it's for people who don't do it, either. They're like ... Marcus: Easy question. How do you like to unwind? Rob: I play guitar in a band. I enjoy that. Marcus: Really? Rob: Yeah. So that's one of my favorite things to do. I enjoy doing that stuff. And glass of wine every now and then. Marcus: What's the name of the band? Rob: Glass Joe. Marcus: Glass Joe, right. Rob: Remember who Glass Joe is? Marcus: No idea. Rob: Mike Tyson's punch out, the guy you beat up at first? Marcus: Oh, yeah. Rob: Yeah, that was a pretty clever name when we came up with it. Yeah. Been doing that for 20 years, so yeah. Marcus: Very cool. What about you? Ashley: Oh, gosh. You know, I have two little ... A six and a nine year old, so unwinding is not often. But I love to cook. So on the weekends, I'll usually spend half a day cooking stuff. Marcus: Cooking, baking, or ... Ashley: Not baking. I'm not a good baker for some reason, it makes me mad. Marcus: It's too precise, probably. Ashley: I guess. Marcus: I like cooking as well, but I don't like baking, 'cause the precision takes all the fun out of it. Ashley: Yeah, and I'm like, what am I doing wrong here? Why is this not moist? I followed the directions. You know, but ... No, I like doing Indian food one weekend, and then that kind of stuff. Marcus: Nice. Well, tell people where they can find you. Rob: You can find us about 1,500 different locations all over Mobile and Baldwin county. Marcus: Sure. Rob: Any of the regal purple boxes that we have now, and some of the old, hideous pink boxes that are remaining. And of course, online at is where we live on the web. Marcus: Very good. Well, I wanna thank you again for coming on the podcast. Wrap up any final thoughts or comments you'd like to share. Rob: The only thing I would say is that we do really take seriously what we do, and we think it's important for every city to have a good newspaper. I don't think there's a great city that doesn't have a great newspaper. And so that's our goal. Marcus: I would agree. And that is why I thought you guys were gonna win. In all honesty, I did. I thought you guys were gonna win. Because I think so strongly about what it is that you all do, in spite of what is happening in your industry. So from all the Mobilians to you, I would just say keep it up. Rob: Thank you. Marcus: Because I know it's not easy, and we need a voice like what you all provide to keep the people in power honest. Rob: Oh, it's a dream come true to be able to do this. Ashley: Really. Rob: I mean, it really is for me, as a guy who started out in newspaper. I know Ashley just, coming up with an idea one day and having it be this, 16 years later, is just- Marcus: You're really just riding her coattails, let's be honest. Rob: I have been, absolutely. That's what I mean. When you pick a good partner, you gotta pick somebody who can run ahead of you and do well. Marcus: That's funny. What about you, anything you'd like to add? Ashley: No, I would just echo that. And I would just say, I remember ... Okay, there is one book I remember seeing. Marcus: Oh gosh, she's going back. Ashley: . So there is a book title. I remember picking it up, I didn't read it, but I thought the title was good. And it's true. Getting to write is a gift. There are so many people who call us every day that are like, "I'll do it for free, I just wanna write." And so being able to have a place for that is really a dream come true. Marcus: That's cool. Well, I appreciate your willingness to sit with me and share your journey as business owners and entrepreneurs. It's been great talking to you. Rob: Absolutely. Absolutely. Ashley: Yeah. And congratulations again for beating us. Rob: Yes. Marcus: We're gonna take that snippet and put it in front.

Mamun Siddiq with Remax Partners

Play Episode Listen Later Sep 5, 2018 25:21

On this week's podcast, Marcus sat down with Mamun Siddiq. From Bangladesh to Mobile, AL, Mamun quickly owned his hardships and inspired others on his way to ownership. This podcast is so motivating you might not even need coffee to get through your day! Mamun: My name is Mamun Siddiq and I'm with Re/Max partners. I'm a realtor. Marcus: Very good Mamun. Well, it's wonderful to have you here today. I know we were introduced by Ron Sivak from Lagniappe and he felt so compelled by your story that he wanted me to sit down with you and after we sat down I understand why so I'm excited to share your story with our listeners. Thank you for being here. Mamun: You are most welcome. Marcus: Yeah. Well, why don't we start with that story. Why don't you tell us where you're from. How you got here. Where you went to college. All the kind of back story of who Mamun is. Mamun: Yes. I'm originally from Bangladesh. I came as a student to USA, University of South Alabama. When I came to the University of South Alabama and at that time there's not to many place you can get a job and plus you go to school. I started working in Pizza Hut and at that time I could not speak very good English. They hired me as a dishwasher and one day I became a store manager. Marcus: Wow. Mamun: Then it was around three years period of time. I was 2003, Pizza Hut had a competition all over the United States. It's called Champs Program. I was number one Champs in the entire United States at Pizza Hut and there was 13 thousand Pizza Hut. The mayor was Mike Dow at that time and he give me a recognition and also the Pizza Hut corporation I was recognized by them with Dallas, Texas. Marcus: The additional to that story is not that that particular Pizza Hut was one of the worst. Mamun: Yes. That Pizza Hut- Marcus: You managed to turn it around. Mamun: Mm-hmm (affirmative). That Pizza Hut was suppose to be shut down within six months. The time they transferred me over there as a manager, but I took that job as just like a regular job. I turned that Pizza Hut working hard and luckily I got a great team, people working with me. We become number one in the whole country. Marcus: That's wild. So go back, you grew up in Bangladesh. Give people an idea of what's that like. I mean, it's obviously, how old were you when you arrived in the United States? Mamun: 24. Marcus: You were right about college age for what somebody even here in the states would be, but up to 24 years old you were growing up in Bangladesh. That has to be a vastly different experience than arriving in lower Alabama. Mamun: You are absolutely right. Challenge we see in Bangladesh and challenge we see over here and I see this is more opportunity in this country. I took the opportunity and tried to become like nowadays as American. How to take the opportunity and make and build the American dream. Marcus: Yeah. It's amazing to me when I talk to immigrants because my father is an immigrant and very much tried to, he was always in sales and management positions and always striving to do as well as he possible could. You made a comment when we were sitting together before of you just whatever it was, whether it was the dish washing or the managing the Pizza Hut or, and we're gonna get into a little bit about what you're doing now, that it was always your mindset to be the best that you could possibly be. Mamun: Yes. I remember when I was washing the dishes, my supervisor told me you are the best dishwasher I ever have. So, I did my best. When he told me do you want to cook? I started cooking and then he came by and said you're the best cook I ever have. What I did, I tried to put my hundred percent effort to try to be the best one. Marcus: Yeah. It's that good immigrant mentality. Mamun: Oh thank you. Marcus: I mean, it's in all sincerity because I think people that come here from other countries have a very keen awareness of the opportunity that they've been given and I think some of us that have been here for a while, no offense to majority of our audience, but we forget just what we have and we don't strive to be the best in whatever it is that we're doing. Mamun: Every day I see the opportunities over here and I use all my opportunity whenever I can to bring success in life. Marcus: Yeah. Now what was, not here in the states, but what was your very first job? Mamun: I came when I was ... came to the Mobile and I don't have enough money to pay my tuition fee or anything, then I had to go to New York and I was working in New York in a gift store. I stayed there for one year and that was my first job in the Korean Gift Store and I learned a lot of good things from there. I basically called this like a boot camp to me as a job because sometimes I had to work like 17, 18 hours a shift. Marcus: Not easy. Mamun: Not easy, but you just have to do it. Marcus: Yeah. So you didn't have any jobs when you were in Bangladesh at the time? Mamun: No. I never have a job. I just have the challenge. Marcus: Growing up in a country like that I can imagine as rife with challenges. Now what, I mean besides the long hours, were there any lessons that you remember from that first job in New York. I often times, and I'll give you some background, I often times find that when people look back to their first jobs that there's something that they learned about how you have to show up and do the work. Like I am often, and people are getting tired of hearing me say this, but I often give the example of I learned that there's a right way to do things because there was a right way to mop the floor. There was a right way to wash the dishes. Is there anything that you remember from your first job? Mamun: My first job is when you're working with Korean and they are immigrant also too. So you got to do like even when you are eating you are working to. So I just think how to use your time. Make sure a hundred percent time being used while you are working. It does not matter if you are eating, it does not matter anything else, but you are working the time you are on the clock. Marcus: Yeah. That's really good. Now you are a Re max agent, right? Mamun: Mm-hmm (affirmative). Marcus: Do you have your brokers license to? Mamun: No I do not have that myself. Marcus: Just considered an agent. How did you get started because I mean going from, and actually go back. What did you study at South? Mamun: Business administration. Marcus: Okay. That makes sense going into real estate then. So how did you get started in real estate? Mamun: Well, when I get awarded by Mike Dow, the mayor of Mobile and then I was awarded by the Pizza Hut corporation nation-wide and we have a realtor that used to come to Pizza Hut. Their name is Angie and Robbie. Mr. Robbie, he died. Mr. Robbie he basically came to me and asking me one day, "What are you doing in Pizza Hut?" I said, "I'm working." He said, "No. You need to come to see me." Mr. Robbie he basically guide me how to both become a Pizza Hut manager to become a realtor. Believe it or not, a lot of time, 60 hour class which is before you take the test to get your license. It almost take one and a half year to finish it because sometime employee don't show up so I had to leave my class to cover the shift. Marcus: Wow. Mamun: So Mr. Robbie he basically brought me in real estate. I don't know anything about real estate, but he's the man who brought it. Marcus: Now it's really cool he saw something in you and wanted to give you that opportunity as well. Mamun: I took that opportunity, yes. Marcus: Wow. To have that handed to you. Do you remember the first time that you made a sale in real estate and you thought maybe there's something to this? Because I mean checks in real estate don't come often, but when they do come they usually have a couple of zeros behind them so I can imagine. Mamun: It is a lot of hard work over there and then when I see the sales I compare what the opportunity I was working in at Pizza Hut and what is my sales team. Then I took the opportunity that I want to be full-time in real estate. Marcus: Real estate isn't an easy business I'm keenly aware because my wife is a realtor so I know that there's a lot of work that goes on behind the scenes. I'm impressed. You say it took you a year and a half because you were having to leave and cover peoples' shifts and stuff like that, but let's keep in mind you didn't know English that well and when you go to take your real estate exam a lot of that is legal documentation about contracts and fulfilling agreements and stuff like that. I mean, that had to be a challenge. Mamun: It is a challenge, but as a human, as a challenger, as a person I always believe that the bigger the challenge, the bigger the effort. Marcus: Right. Mamun: So my effort is bigger than my challenge. So I overcome the challenge. Marcus: That's very cool. Now if you were talking to someone that wanted to get started in learning their own business because I do view realtors as business owners. They're solopreneurs. If you were talking to someone that wanted to get started in running their own business, what's the one bit of wisdom that you would impart to them? Mamun: I will tell the person do your best. Whatever you do, even you cut the grass, do the best. If you give a commitment, do the best. This is what learned is ultimately you need to give whatever you have. Marcus: No holds barred, right? Mamun: No holds barred. Marcus: Yeah. Now were you currently working on anything interesting that you're trying to accomplish or any achievements that you're trying to make with your RE/Max because I know you've been quite successful as a real estate agent? Why don't you kind of brag on yourself a little bit. Mamun: Well, it's not a bragging in life. It's just that doing the job. Right now I want to do some development project in like how is eastern shore right now. They have a lot of development going on like subdivision here, there and so I want to work with developer and so we can see the Mobile, also they can grow and we can attract more quality people to live in mobile instead of go to Baldwin county. Marcus: As a Baldwin county resident I can understand why you would say that, but we like people living over on the eastern shore too. Although I will say traffic has gotten absolutely ridiculous over there lately so ... that's interesting. So if someone was to ask you what your day as a realtor typically looks like, what does a typical day look like for you? Mamun: Basically you wake up in the morning and you put yourself or what the job you need to do. Are you going to list something or you going to sell something? Then you just have to be put yourself on the map and say, "Hey. Listen. This is what my direction will be today." Marcus: Is there anything you do in the morning mentally just to kind of flip that switch and turn it on? Mamun: I run one mile. Marcus: Run one mile. That's great! Mamun: Yes, it's help you a lot to put your brain together, put your thinking together. Marcus: It's funny how physical exertion, I don't do mine in the morning but even in the evening, physical exertion has a way of taking your focus from a very obtuse into a very narrow field of vision and get you kind of laser guided on that, right? It's interesting that yo start your day that way. If you were to look to the business world, is there a person that motivates you? Is there somebody that you look to and say that person's really kind of achieved something. I want to get to where that person is? Mamun: In today's Mobile life, I always try to follow Coach Mike Godfrey [team focus 00:13:22] and coach does a lot of different thing for the kids. A lot of stuff and then being an Alabama fan I always follow Nick Saban. Nick Saban it is something he does different than other people. Other wise Alabama can not be champion. Marcus: We just lost half our audience by the way. We're evil. I agree. I mean, I think there's been a lot of new lately about Saban and whether he's a good coach or whatever, but I mean you can't look at that team and not think that there's something there. Whether it's the recruiting aspect of it or the decision making during the game or whatever, as a leader, if you just look at him as a leader, don't look at him as whether you're a fan of Alabama or Auburn or LSU, but if you just look at him as a leader there's definitely something there. If you start to pull that apart, if you start to pick it apart and just look at how he operates, it's pretty impressive. Mamun: It's different. Marcus: Yeah. It's absolutely different and I just think that's cool that you think along those lines. That's somebody that "hey, he's achieved some stuff." What do you see specifically that you kind of want to mimic or you want to bring into your own world? Mamun: I always say he's a fighter. He always want to overcome all the challenges. He always see that he can make the difference, so I try my best. It doesn't matter where I am. It doesn't matter what I do, I think I can make the difference. Marcus: No matter what kind of diversity ... Mamun: Yeah. Marcus: Are there any books, podcasts, people or organizations that have been helpful in moving you forward? You mentioned the gentleman that brought you into RE/Max, but outside of that. Mamun: Mobile Chamber of Commerce is a big time. I was serving as ambassador and I was ambassador of the year. It was 2009. Marcus: So what you're telling me is your an underachiever, right? Mamun: Well, not underachiever. Marcus: Everything he does he excels at. Mamun: It is just the way life is, you know, you try your best whatever you do and whatever your intention is you do the best. Marcus: I love that word. Intention, right? Because really that's what it's about. Mamun: Yes. Marcus: If you set your intention on something, if you set your mind on something then that is what you will achieve. Mamun: Yes. You are right. Marcus: Very much so. You mentioned the Mobile Chamber. Is there anybody or anything else? Any books that you've read or any other people that have been influential in your life that have helped move you forward? Mamun: My mom. My mom always use to tell me that some people are born with a gold spoon, some people did not, but it doesn't mean that you can not have the gold spoon. You can. Marcus: Yeah. Is she here now? Mamun: She's not. She is in Bangladesh, but sometime she visits over here. Marcus: I can imagine she's extremely proud of the opportunity and how you seized it. Mamun: Well she always said that doing good, you're trying your best. Marcus: The immigrant mom: "Yeah, well you're doing okay." It's like come on mom, give me some credit. Mamun: Yeah. But as the immigrant mom, they always think that you're son will be... way higher. Marcus: The expectations are way up here. Mamun: Either your son will be a doctor or an engineer. Marcus: Or a lawyer. Mamun: Or a lawyer. They always look that way, but unfortunately I could not be a doctor or an engineer, but I'm a real estate doctor. Marcus: That's a good way of looking at it. Now what's the most important thing you've learned about running a business? Mamun: The most important thing that when a client like I give you one example. When I was in Pizza Hut I see someone call you like it doesn't matter what time in the morning or they call you they ask you what time do you open? My message was to my client that what time do you want me to open for you? That basically changed the day for the client. The person who call you, he think different way about you also. Same way when the client that use to call at night and they use to ask hey what time do you close? My answer was not a specific time. I use to give the time that what time do you want to me to close for you? So that is basically giving impression about a person and the person who call you. They think about you that you are not a regular person. You are different. You want to make the difference and they will help you. Marcus: Where does that come from? Mamun: Well,- Marcus: Because not everybody, you understand, not everybody has that mentality. Mamun: Well, I will just always want to do something different in my life and I always use to think about that how I can attract my buyer or my client and what to expect like when even I was serving in the buffet, I use to go to my customer and I use to ask them, what do you want, what do you like to eat that we don't have in the menu in the buffet that I think I can make for you? That's basically, I give the message to your client what exactly they are looking for and fulfill their needs. Marcus: It's a sure fire way to win people over, right? Mamun: Yes. Marcus: To let them know that you actually are taking care of their needs. I worked at Lowe's Home Centers back when I think Lowe's actually gave a shit. I apologize for the language, but I'm just frustrated with and we're currently in a building project so when I listen to this 20 years from now I'll understand why I said that. We're currently in a building project and every time I go to Lowe's or Home Depot now it's just the service is poor. They're thinking more about the bottom line instead of actually about taking care of their client, a clients needs. It's showing and instead of cutting costs they should be trying to provide the best service that they possibly can. Anyway, I remember we we're told you don't point to an isle and tell somebody it's on aisle 17. You say I would be happy to show you where that is. You don't just walk away from them if they're needing to load their cart. You actually help them and put it in their cart. It was all the small things because you wanted people to know that you care and that if they come to the store that they're gonna be taken care of. I just, I love that you still carry on that customer service oriented attitude because it's missing in today's society. Mamun: You are absolutely right. Marcus: I applaud you for that. Mamun: I always look for what exactly the person looking for. What exactly the demand of the person. That's what I always try to do intention of that person. Marcus: Now how do you like to unwind? What do you do to relax? Mamun: Well, the relaxing is the family time. I have a son. I enjoy it with my son. I enjoy going to the beach and I enjoy sometime go to the woods. Marcus: Yeah. Go for a walk or something like that. Mamun: Yes. Marcus: That's good and clear your mind. Now tell people where they can find you? Mamun: Well, they can look my website, or they can call me 251-391-2047. Marcus: Very good. Mamun: My cell phone number is always there and RE/Max partners and I have my Facebook page also, and also I have a , a business page also. Marcus: Very good. And you are mostly a residential? Mamun: I do both the residential, commercial because I keep it both simultaneously and both is doing very well. Marcus: Is there a specific area that you would call yourself an expert in as far as location, geography? Mamun: I do West Mobile and Semmes area which I heavily are involved in the two part of that area and then commercial wise I do more gas station than anybody else in Mobile and Baldwin county. Somehow I do it very well. Marcus: Now that's very cool. Now I want to thank you again for coming on the podcast. To wrap up, any final thoughts or comments you'd like to share? Mamun: I will and just want to tell you thank you so much all the hard work you do and you will going to give the message for other people, for the community and people need to know that what different people is different things they are doing in our culture, in our society. Being me as a person I was thinking to tell like being a Mobilian or being Alabamian, we love this country and we are here for the purpose and will be here until we die. Marcus: Yep. I do want to address that. I think it's wonderful that what we're seeing now in Mobile is we're seeing an influx of people that are from outside of the Mobile area. We're seeing a lot of immigrants come into the area and I think we as Mobilians need to embrace and I guess it's kind of a biased things because I'm not a native Mobilian. I moved here from outside of the area. I think we need to embrace those people because there's a lot to learn from other cultures. Mamun: Yes. Marcus: By culture I don't just mean Bangladeshie. I mean also just I'm from Norther Virginia. I am very different than your native Mobilian. So I think there's a lot to be learned, but I think that also as we start to see these people come in and we embrace them, that there's something that's going to happen in Mobile that there's going to be an uprising of this entrepreneurial business community of people like you that are gonna kind of raise up and it's gonna change the way that Mobile operates. Mamun: Absolutely. Marcus: That's why we do this podcast. Mamun: Thank you and I want to also let you know that Mobile have a great future and a lot of thing happening in Mobile and I'm very optimistic about the Mobile gonna grow and grow and grow. Marcus: Yeah. Mamun: We'll have more people gonna come over here and our living standard will be much, much better. Marcus: Yeah. Well, Mamun I appreciate your willingness to sit with me and share your journey as a business owner and entrepreneur. It's been great talking with you man. Mamun: It is my pleasure that you invite me to come and to share my life. Marcus: Awesome. Thank you. Mamun: Thank you.

Jeri Stroade with Dwell Mobile

Play Episode Listen Later Apr 25, 2018 37:41

On this week's podcast, Marcus sits down with Jeri Stroade. From growing up in small farm town in Kansas to developing a heart for the displaced, she finds herself helping a special group of people right here in Mobile, AL. Tune in to hear about where she came from, her greatest life lessons, and her current role as the Executive Director at Dwell Mobile. Jeri: I'm Jeri Stroade, I'm the Executive Director of Dwell Mobile, it's a non-profit in Mobile that helps refugees. Marcus: Awesome. Jeri it's good to have you on the podcast today. Jeri: It's good to be here. Marcus: Yeah. Jeri: Thank you. Marcus: Now, I've learned a little bit about the area in which you operate and so I'm glad that we're getting, this will be able to shine kind of a light on something that people may or may not understand. But before, we get into all of that as part of this podcast we like for people to know a little bit about the person behind the effort. And so, why don't you tell us a little bit about who you are and where you're from, where'd you go to high school, college if you went, are you married? Just give us some backstory. Jeri: Okay. Well, I'm from Kansas, so the Midwest not the south. And I went to high school in a town called Pretty Prairie Kansas. Marcus: Gotta love Kansas for those names. Jeri: Yes, you do. Marcus: Yes. Jeri: And it was named after an old Mennonite woman who when she came through she said, "Oh my, what a pretty prairie." Marcus: Pretty Prairie Kansas. Jeri: Mm-hmm (affirmative). Marcus: I can imagine the graduating class was quite large at your high school. Jeri: Yes, yes. No, I think 27. Marcus: Oh my gosh. Jeri: Mm-hmm (affirmative). Marcus: Wow. Jeri: Yeah. So, the town was 600. Marcus: My graduating class had more people than your town had in it. We had I think close to 700 people in our graduating class. Jeri: Wow. Yep. Marcus: Our high school was close to 4,000 people. Jeri: Wow, yeah. Marcus: So, yeah. Jeri: Yeah, it was very small. Marcus: Anyway. Jeri: I moved around growing up and moved back there in high school and I was a little scared about how small it was, but I loved it. And went to college at Kansas State. Marcus: Very good. Jeri: University. From there got a degree in agricultural economics. Marcus: That's useful. Jeri: It is useful actually. It's very useful. I do use it all the time, you would never think that but I do. Marcus: Speaking as somebody who has an English degree. Jeri: Ha, ha. Marcus: So, I'm similarly useful. Jeri: Right, right. Yeah, you have people when you tell them that degree that everywhere from they don't have any clue what you do to, "Oh, you should know a little bit about everything because that sounds like a very useful degree." Marcus: Yeah. Jeri: I'm single, no family here, family back home. Marcus: Back home. Jeri: But, yeah. Marcus: Still in Pretty Prairie? Jeri: No, Manhattan now. Manhattan, Kansas. Marcus: Oh, wow. Okay. Jeri: Where Kansas State is. Marcus: That's a far stretch from Pretty Prairie. Jeri: Oh my goodness. Marcus: Manhattan? Phew. You gotta love it when states name a city or a town after like a major metropolitan area. I mean like Manhattan, you're like, "Oh, yeah they're in Manhattan but it's Kansas." You know, population 1,200. Jeri: That's right. Marcus: You know. So, how in the world first of all did you find yourself in Mobile, and then starting a non-profit? Jeri: Well, I never thought I would be in Mobile. You know, a funny story about Mobile. I came down here for a conference for Ag Economics. I had like a paper in it and it was down at the ... Marcus: Convention Center? Jeri: ... Convention Center. Marcus: Yeah. Jeri: And I went down, presented, came back and somebody said, "How'd you like it?" And I guess, I do not remember saying this but I guess I said, "Oh, it was nice but I would never want to live there." And this girl reminded me of that when I decided to move here. She said, "Do you remember when you said this?" Which, no. Marcus: Yeah. Jeri: My degree was in Ag Economics, International Development. Marcus: Okay. Jeri: Emphasis, and so I kind of thought I'd be overseas working with like a US Aid type of thing or something like that. And just sort of my path changed a little, I started getting interested in refugees before anybody really knew what they were, and even kind of myself. But I had always kind of had a heart for the poor, had a heart for different cultures, and it seemed to mesh that way. And then basically I came down here because friends of a friend had started this church and did this international student stuff down here. And so, I was looking at what they were doing and I liked what they were doing. I was ready to move away a little bit an I thought, "I'm going to go try that." And that was seven years ago. I didn't expect to be here this long. Marcus: Wow. Jeri: Yeah. Marcus: Yeah, no, it's funny how at times the very thing in which you don't expect to happen is exactly what happens. Jeri: Right. And I love what I'm doing. I wouldn't want to be doing anything else so it's funny to me because I would have never put myself here in doing what I'm doing. Marcus: Well, I mean you kind of answered what is normally my next question. So, I usually ask, what was your first job and were there any lessons that you still remember from that? And I guess that still applies. You talked a little bit about how you found yourself in Mobile and starting this non-profit, but go back in time to ... Do you remember your first job? Jeri: My first job ever? Marcus: Yeah. Jeri: It was probably babysitting. Marcus: Like, no, I mean your first job outside of the normal. Jeri: Like professional job? Marcus: I normally tell people, think of around when you were 15, 16, 17 years of age. Jeri: Okay. Marcus: And you were flipping burgers or making sandwiches somewhere, that job. Jeri: Okay. My job was I drove a wheat truck. Marcus: A wheat truck? Jeri: Yes. Marcus: In Kansas. Jeri: Because I was in Pretty Prairie Kansas. Marcus: Yes, I love it. Jeri: And everybody farmed. Marcus: No, that's cool. Jeri: So, I wanted a summer job and you could make a lot of money. You worked a lot because you had harvest and everything. Marcus: Right, yeah. Jeri: And there was this guy, he was like the head of our youth group sponsor or whatever and he said, "Yeah, you can come work for me." And so, I drove a wheat truck for him. Marcus: Very cool. Now, were there any lessons that you learned out of that first job that you've carried with you? Jeri: I mean, the typical one that I mean it's true, is hard work. There wasn't anything harder than sitting out there waiting. You would sit out there and then you'd work 12, 13, 14 hour days and come back and do it again the next day. I think overall I ended up working for him for like a full, that was just during harvest and then I ended up working for him for a full summer, and he was very gracious to me. I would sometimes drive through the wrong field or mess up his equipment, like hit it on the elevator when I went through, so I wasn't the best wheat truck driver. But he was always very ... I mean I think he got a little irritated but he was always very gracious and generous, and so patient. And so, I feel like I carry that with me now of even for myself being patient with myself when I mess things up. But also trying to be patient with other people I'm working with. Marcus: You know it's interesting because I don't know that I've ever explained why I ask that question. Well, one of the reasons why I ask that question is because of how you just answered. So, you talk about the patience and generousness of this man and how you still carry that with you, well that is the intention behind this. And also just to get business owners thinking about, well if you're hiring people they carry those lessons that you provide to them into their life. And how you impact their life can either be a positive impact or it can be a really negative impact because I think we've all worked for people where it's just like, "How was this person even born? They're just horrible individuals." So, I'm appreciative of how you answered because it is very true. Those lessons, they're oftentimes carried with us into our professional careers and into our adult lives. Jeri: Yeah. Marcus: Right? Jeri: That's good. Marcus: Yeah. Jeri: It's good for me to remember at this point of I'm on the other end now where people are working for me in different capacities. Marcus: Yeah. Jeri: So, it's good. Marcus: Especially anybody that's working with interns or young people of any kind. It is a testing of your patience to deal with young individuals because oftentimes they don't have the skill set and they're coming to you basically for on the job training. Jeri: Yeah. Marcus: Anyway. So, how did you get started as Dwell? And do you call it Dwell or Dwell Mobile? Jeri: Both. Marcus: Both? Okay, so I'll just refer to it as Dwell. Jeri: Yeah, that's good. Marcus: How did you get started as Dwell? Jeri: When I came down here I worked with a group of people called All Nations Community Church and they had an international church. And my question was, do you do anything with refugees? And they said, "Oh, we want to." So, I came down to help them start an outreach for refugees. And as I got into it I saw the guy I worked with was very wise and said, "Why don't you just go listen to them? Get to know them and listen to what they need." And so, I did that and I heard, "We need relationship." And so I started thinking, "How can this group of people, the church, build relationships with this group of people, these people coming as refugees?" And so, as I got into that I saw several things, one of them was it takes a lot to help one family who's coming here. They need a lot. The other one was, so many people I started meeting in Mobile, like outside of that little church, it was little, didn't even know there was refugees here, but they wanted to be involved. Marcus: So, pause there for a second, and I'm going to mess this up. From my understanding is that Mobile is one of x number of communities around the United States that refugees are regularly sent to. Jeri: That's right. I don't know the x number. Marcus: Okay, you don't know the x number either? I wanted to say that it was like one of 12 or 20 or something. I mean it's not a large number of communities that get refugees. Jeri: It's the only city in Alabama. Marcus: Okay. Jeri: I know that. Marcus: And so, I know a little bit about this in the sense that I know that when a refugee family is brought here there are cultural differences, how do they integrate themselves, how do they learn the language oftentimes? They don't know how to get around? You start thinking about if anybody's traveled overseas, that's just going for a vacation and oftentimes you have a lot of disposable income and you're going over and you can pay people to overcome your shortcomings as a member of their society. But when you're thinking about somebody who doesn't have a lot coming here. So, how do you all work with those types of folks to help them integrate? Jeri: Right. When they come they get resettled by an agency, there's nine different ones around the US that have said, "We'll resettle refugees." We are not one of them, it's like Catholic Charities is the one here in Mobile. And so, they get six to nine months of help through Catholic Charities. So, Catholic Charities sets them up with an apartment, gives them a case worker, helps them get a job, helps them get enrolled in school, things like that. We step in kind of at the end after that's over. And so, if you can imagine, I often tell people that too of just like going to a new place where you have to learn the language, any professional skills or training you've had in your former life don't apply here. And then you have to restart over, how long that would take you. And so, we're looking more in the development world. There's a relief and there's development. And sort of like Catholic Charities provides the relief and the start. We look more at trying to provide the development like helping them. And so, one of the things that we do see ... We do several things but a lot of what we do is based in the relationships, that we try to help people ... Marcus: Yeah, it can be very lonely thing to move. Jeri: Yes. And they're often coming from places were community is so much more important than here. So, that's what I hear a lot. Like I just heard, I don't know I got an email a few weeks ago and we had, had this cultural night. This guy emailed and said, "Thank you ..." He had just arrived in February and this was in March, he's from somewhere in Africa. And he said, "For the first time in my life since coming to Mobile I have been lonely. And I want to thank you for everything you're doing because for the first time in a month me and my family felt connected to people when we came to this event you guys had." Marcus: Yeah, that's amazing. Jeri: Yeah. And I think and I'm seeing this of if you ... We do some other things too, some other like practical things, but that relational network when they're come especially from those cultures, that provides a structure. And you're out there on your own, you left, you went through all these circumstances to get here and then you get here and you're on your own again. And so, if you can provide some relationship stuff, that helps them to feel like they have the network they need to try things. And helps with depression, it helps with a lot of things that in our society I think a lot of times we have a fear of some of these people. And so, one of the things that connection can help with, if there is a reason to be afraid of them being radicalized they won't. Marcus: Right. Jeri: If they feel connected to their community. Marcus: They have a familiarity and a connection then they're not going to go in that direction. Jeri: Yeah. Marcus: I know that this is news now because for years refugees have been coming here and nobody really said anything about it. And granted at some level it was a little bit scary just because of the sheer number of people that could have been brought. And there have been some issues in other countries where you bring in so many people into one area and it changes the culture of that area. Putting all that aside, that's not happening here. Jeri: Right. Marcus: And so, doing our best as a country that has a good heart and has a lot to offer, whether it's welfare or education or whatever just being good stewards of that and sharing it with those people that we've brought here, it's cool that you guys have kind of taken on that mantle to kind of help onboard them, to borrow a technolgoy term, we're onboarding you into the American way. That sounds like such a horrible thing to say but hey, it fits, you know. So, anyway, that's very cool that you do that. Jeri: Yeah. And I think one of the things as you're talking about some of that, that I'm thinking about is so many of the people that we talk to and we help we hear from them that they know their lives will not actually be better here. You're talking about acclimating and everything, but they have hope for their children. Marcus: Right. Jeri: And so, they've come and they've left. And these are people who I think that it's important to make the distinction, they have come through the UN, they've been in a refugee camp for five to seven years, they've gone through in all total one and a half to two years of screening, you know vetting. Marcus: Right. Jeri: So they didn't just wander here. Marcus: Right. They didn't land here on a boat. Jeri: Right. And so many of them come because of they see that it's an opportunity, they have opportunities here for their children that they wouldn't have. Marcus: Yeah, and we're often times talking about doctors and lawyers and professional people that you're saying they know that their lives aren't going to be better off but they're hopeful that their children are. You know they're coming here and giving up often times what they fought so hard for as their livelihood and their accepting a lesser position in life because they know that the opportunities that their children are going to have. And interesting to me because I often talk about the immigrant mentality. My father came here with the Peace Corp in the 60's if I remember correctly. Jeri: He came here? Marcus: Came here with the Peace Corp in the 60's. And it's hard for me to recognize the difference in how he raised me because I was raised by him, so I don't know any different, but the truth is that there's something very different about the immigrant mentality when you come to the United States, there's all the acclimation and stuff like that. Now, he came to teach Portuguese to people that were in the Peace Corp because they were going to Brazil in order to help people. And so he had some ability in language and stuff like that, so he didn't have that issue but he did, I'm sure there was some periods of ... I've been to the town where he grew up, there ain't nothing there. Jeri: In Alabama? Marcus: No, so my father in Brazil. Jeri: Oh, in Brazil. Marcus: I've been to the town that he's from in Brazil and no offense Dad if you're listening to this but even I guess it was 30 years or so ... when did I go? It was like 1990, so it was like 30 some odd years later, there still wasn't anything there. Jeri: Wow. Yeah. Marcus: It's a little salt mining town in Brazil in the North Eastern tip. And so, I can only imagine what it was like for him to come to the states. I think he landed if I remember correctly in Upstate New York and then he kind of migrated to Ball State, went to school got his undergrad and part of his Master's degree at Ball State, and then ended up moving out to DC. But all that to say is, I have discussions with people and I very much can tell somebody who was raised by parents who are not of the United States versus somebody that was raised ... there's this scrappiness like this understanding like, you have got to ... And it's not all, I'm generalizing, but the immigrants often times they have sacrificed a lot to be here so there's a lot of pressure put on the children because there was so much sacrifice. Jeri: Right. Well, and I'm not first, second, third generation but I think about a lot of times, I think about the difference between a Mid West culture and a Southern culture. Marcus: Oh absolutely. Jeri: Because I moved here. But, in the Mid West there was always this pioneering type of thing that's going on because that's the people who moved there. Marcus: Right. Jeri: The people who had to go settle the land and all this stuff. And actually statistically like it's real the percentage of immigrants that start their own ... you probably know this. The percentage of immigrants that start their own business is higher than the percentage of native born Americans, and then also the percentage of refugees within that is higher. Marcus: Right. Jeri: And so, you think about there's a, yeah I guess that pioneering spirit because yes these people have left because they were forced in some ways to leave but there's people who stayed too. Marcus: Right. Jeri: And so, if they're forced to leave then they have that ... I mean it's probably sort of a make it or break it, you have to, but also just some of the people I've met and I work with is just like they're just always thinking, "Oh, you could do this. You could do this as a business. You could do this. You could do this." Marcus: Right. Jeri: And that's one of the things and reasons I'm doing what I'm doing is because even more so after I've gotten into it I see, like I feel like our society is missing out on the richness that they have to offer us, if we put them in this box and stick them over here. Marcus: Right. Jeri: Like our mission statement is providing opportunities for refugees to thrive. Like, if we don't do those things then our society I think is missing out. Marcus: Right. Well, and I think there's a lot to learn. I will say that the one thing that I have very much appreciated about the South is their focus on family. Jeri: Yes. Marcus: Right. And so, growing up in the Northern Virginia area it was a very transient area and often times people were moving there because of a job and they weren't moving there because their family was there. They were just passing through, they were going to spend three to five years and then they were moving on to wherever they were going to be stationed next. And so, there's not a big web if you will of extended family but here in the South there, and so, I very much appreciated that. So, what I'm about to say does not apply here but there's a lot to be learned from those other cultures and about the importance of family and the importance of that foundation. Jeri: Yeah. Marcus: And so, I think it's cool that not being from the South but you're giving them, you're showing them the Southern hospitality that this area's known for. Jeri: Right. And one of the things ... I agree. And one of the things that has struck me about working here in Mobile specifically is how much of the focus is on family and so, there's several people I've worked with over the years, both refugees and Mobilians that you bring somebody to visit, which they love it when people come to visit their homes. But sometimes you get a family and you bring that American family to visit and you're bringing like 10 people because you have the kids and the sisters and the whatever. And there's been times that I sit there and I look at it in these little apartments and I'm thinking, "Oh, we're eating too much of their food," or, "Oh, we're really making a mess," or, "We're filling up their apartment, and it's probably too loud for them." And then I have to remember like, "No, they're from somewhere where they have seven sisters and you would visit them every day but they're not there anymore." And so I do think that's a very unique strength that Mobile and the South has as far as welcoming people is like, you bring the whole family and you welcome them as a family, and that's how they think. Marcus: Yeah, absolutely. Jeri: Yeah. Marcus: Alright so we're going to get back on track because I have these questions but I'm just so fascinated by what you really like. Yeah, I'm just wanting to dive into it. If you were talking to someone that wanted to get started and running their own non-profit ... Jeri: Okay. Marcus: ... what's the one bit of wisdom that you would impart to them? Jeri: These are the hard ones. Marcus: Oh yeah. Jeri: The one bit of wisdom? As I have done this and gotten to know myself more, I know I'm the visionary person, which means I'm the person that's not the best at details. Marcus: Sure Jeri: So I think a bit of advice that I would say is, one, you can do it. You know if you're the visionary, if you find yourself like that, because sometimes I get paralyzed cause I think, "Oh there's this huge vision," and I don't even know how to start by making it happen. No, that's not true, break it down into little pieces and do a little bit of a plan and take that next step, and you will have something before you know it. The other thing would be to get a team of people around you, or one, or two people around you who agree with your vision who are good with the details, and then educate yourself. There's so many things when you start some thing that it's just like, "Oh, there's this whole other world of this or whole other world of this," and if you know a little bit you realize how much you don't know. And I think more and more going forward I need to find people who know those things more than, "Oh, I need to just know about everything." Marcus: Yeah, there's this as you're bootstrapping something, to borrow a business term, as you're bootstrapping something there's often times the necessity to go out and learn things because you don't have the ability to have somebody handle something. But as you grow it's more important, the velocity with which somebody else can just execute on something and you hand that off as a responsibility is much more important than you actually learning everything about it and executing it. It's a switch as an organization matures. And there was something else that you said in there about being a visionary. And often times in the business world the visionary is the CEO. Jeri: Right. Marcus: And so, your description is, well the Executive Director is really that role as the CEO of a company. And so, if somebody is a visionary then that's perfectly fine, as a matter of fact starting and running an organization is probably what God intended for you to do. But you also need to be cognizant of who it is that you are and find other people like you were describing that buy into the vision and have them help you execute on the details. Jeri: Right. Marcus: So, now it's perfect. Jeri: Yeah. And the thing I'm noticing now as we're growing, which I don't know if this is going to get into other questions, but, is the structure of it the more I don't get excited about structure, but the more I see that we can have some of that, that doesn't suck the life out of the organization, like a good structure that it will take stress off of me. Marcus: Exactly. Jeri: Because then it's not on your shoulders it's on the structure that you're building. Marcus: Right. No, most definitely. I even tell the team here when I hire people it's because I'm hiring them to take over something that I am just not having time to do. Jeri: Yeah. Marcus: Right? Jeri: Yeah. Marcus: And so, the more that you can kind of hand-off those pieces of responsibility, the more effective your organization becomes. Now, what are you all currently working on at Dwell? Any efforts or anything that you can talk about? Jeri: Yes. Yeah. Well we're finishing this up but we just started our big program is cultural acclimation classes sort of. Marcus: Okay. Jeri: And we partner with Spring Hill College, the Foley Center, and we have the classes actually there because they have English classes on the other nights. And so, we were thinking some of the people going there could also come to our classes. But we restructured them a little this Spring. So, we run them for eight or nine weeks, Spring and Fall, and a lot of it is built around building community and meeting people. And so, that's what most of our programs or events are structured like that. I tell people like you go in and it feels very messy or kind of chaotic, and sometimes it is really chaotic. Marcus: Embrace it if it exists. Jeri: Right. But there's life. There's lots of life to it. So, we meet one night a week, eat dinner and this semester we have changed them so they can pick from different tracks that they want to do. And so, they can pick English, GED, citizenship classes, driving classes. And then we have a whole nother program for the kids at the same time. Marcus: That's cool. Jeri: We're finishing that up and then this summer is going to be more just getting volunteers in homes and vising and stuff like that. And then some of that stuff happening organically. Marcus: Nice. Jeri: Yeah. Marcus: Very cool. Are there any books, podcasts, people, or organizations that have been helpful in moving you forward? Jeri: Yes. Marcus: Okay. You're going to have to expand on that. Jeri: There's a lot. Books, podcasts, organizations, or people? Marcus: People, yeah. Jeri: I always go back to this book and this is not a business book but it was really helpful for me. One of the things that I look at is, I'm a person of faith so I think, how does my faith work out practically in my life? And that's what I'm talking about, how does it inform how I serve people? And there's a book called Pursuing Justice by Ken Wytsma who is a Creative Director at World Vision. Marcus: Okay. Jeri: And he writes about God's heart for justice basically. And so, that has helped me even in the thing that I call our organization is a value based organization, so we have these values we run off of and when we are looking at new things to do, does it match up to this value? And even in how we run things we have these values that we want to make sure get hit on and that we're operating from. And so, just that book has helped me see those things are legitimate. It's not just like a fluffy thing but it's ... I don't know if he would be listening to this, Todd Greer has helped me a lot. Marcus: Oh, don't do that. Jeri: Come on. Marcus: Yeah. Jeri: Yeah. Marcus: Todd can be an influential person. Jeri: Yes, he can be if he wants to be. Marcus: If he wants to be. If he so chooses. No, we love Todd. He's doing wonderful things now up at University of Mobile. Jeri: Yeah. Marcus: Now, what's the most important thing that you've learned about running a non-profit? Jeri: Wow. Marcus: I didn't tell you these were going to be easy questions. Jeri: I know, I was hoping you would send them to me before. Marcus: No, no, no, no. Jeri: So I can look smart. Marcus: I did that once or twice and you could feel it in the answers that the person gave. Jeri: Oh, yeah. Marcus: It was just too polished. Jeri: They were ready. Marcus: And I was like, "No, that's not how we're playing this game." I want everybody giving her a few more seconds here, so I want everybody that's listening to this podcast to know they have never seen these questions. Now granted the questions get asked often times on previous episodes but unless you've listened to these a lot you're not going to recognize that there's some repetition in the questions. Those of you that listen understand that there is a lot of repetition but she's never seen these questions before so she's over here in the hot seat. Jeri: So, the one most important thing? I also like to talk so I can tell you like five. I would say for a non-profit, especially I feel like the area I'm in, knowing when you need to rest is one of the most important things. Marcus: Okay. Jeri: Because I'm doing what I'm doing because I have a heart for helping people but if I don't rest then pretty soon I get bitter and I don't really want to help anyone. Marcus: Right. And giving yourself the freedom to do that. Jeri: Giving yourself the freedom to do that. And having little like ... this was actually a book I started reading that Todd recommended called Called to Create and the guy ... No, it was on something else, anyway. I heard somebody say once, "You get what you celebrate." And so, the idea is you have to celebrate the little things that happen are sometimes reflective of bigger things that are happening. So I always think ... And it's in one of our values of we're not going to meet every need and we can't, but it's more like what you're called to be doing. And so, I just have to remind myself, I can't jump if I see you need a car and a job and an apartment. Marcus: You can't just provide that. Jeri: I'm not going to be able to do all that stuff. Marcus: Yeah. But you can be a friend. Jeri: I can be a friend. Marcus: Right. Jeri: And so, if I can do that and then if I can have my limits of, "Okay, well that's great, sorry you need a car but, okay." Marcus: I'm not Daddy Warbucks. Jeri: Yeah. So, that gives me a lot of freedom to go ahead and then go be your friend. Marcus: Right. Jeri: And I think that's important otherwise I would be burnt out, I would not have any vision or passion left, and I would not be able to help others to do the things that I'm doing as well. Marcus: I think that principle applies in business too. So often times we talk on this podcast about how business owners have a tendency because it is their baby, they have a tendency to get wrapped around the axle when it comes to their business and that's all they want to focus on. And the truth is that you have to force yourself to not just focus on that but also to take time away because it's often times in those times away when you have your greatest visions, and your epiphanies about what it is that you should be doing. Jeri: Yes. Marcus: And you also start to see the weaknesses in your business or the strengths in your business. Anyway, that principle definitely applies in a number of different ways. Now, tell people where they can find you. Jeri: www. Marcus: You don't have to do that. You can leave off the www thanks. Jeri: You can see I'm a very technical person. Marcus: Okay. Jeri: We're on . Marcus: Facebook. Jeri: We're on . Marcus: Okay, very good. Does your organization have any needs? Jeri: We do have needs, yes. Marcus: Okay, what are some of those needs? So, somebody out there is listening and they're so inclined, what would be the one or two things that you would ask them to do? Jeri: Well, we ... I mean I was just telling you we have a fundraiser coming up soon that's probably passed by the time people will hear this but we're always in need of funds. Marcus: Yeah. Jeri: This is kind of what we tell people, we have a good base of starting of good programming, I like it. And we have great volunteers, we can always use volunteers. The thing about volunteering is I ask for certain levels of commitment to that because it's not helpful to hae somebody like float in and out a lot. Marcus: Good. Jeri: Because we're trying to build relationships. Marcus: Yeah. Right. Jeri: So, if you have the time and you want, volunteering is great. The fundraising part and the money part I feel like we're operating at this level right now, we're growing, it's good. We will not be able to operate at this level very long because I will burn out and so will other people if we do not get money raised. Marcus: Right. Jeri: So, that would be something people can do. Marcus: Yeah, funding and volunteering. Yeah, so if you have money and you're so inclined sometimes that's what you're called to do. Jeri: Right. Marcus: That gift of giving is definitely very strong in some people. And so, this is definitely a worthy organization. And if you just have a heart for people and becoming friends with those that are the disenfranchised of the world. They've been placed in a new place and don't really know anything about it, then this is a great organization to get plugged into. Jeri: Yes. Marcus: Well, I want to thank you again for coming on the podcast. Any final thoughts or comments you'd like to share? Jeri: I don't think so. Thank you for having me. Marcus: Yeah. Jeri: I appreciate it. Marcus: Absolutely. No, I love it. Jeri: It was fun. Marcus: We call ourselves the Mobile Alabama Business Podcast, but we also sit with people that we feel like have something great to offer and you are definitely one of those people with a heart and passion that you're pursuing the refugees in this area. So, thank you for what you're doing. Jeri: Thank you. Yep. Marcus: So, I appreciate your willingness to sit with me and share your journey as a non-profit Executive Director, it's been great talking with you. Jeri: Yes, you too. Thank you very much.

SouthSounds Music & Arts Festival 2018