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Blue Grit Podcast: The Voice of Texas Law Enforcement
2024: Ranked #1 Law Podcast
Host: Tyler Owen and Clint McNear discussing topics, issues, and stories within the law enforcement community. TMPA is the voice of Texas Law Enforcement, focused on protecting those who serve. Since 1950, we have been defending the rights and interests of Texas Peace Officers by providing the best legal assistance in the country, effective lobbying at state and local levels, affordable training, and exemplary member support. As the largest law enforcement association in Texas, TMPA is proud to represent 33,000 local, county and state law enforcement officers.
Blue Grit Podcast: The Voice of Texas Law Enforcement
#102- "National Law Enforcement Officer Hall of Fame"
In this episode of the Blue Grit Podcast, we sit down with Megan Stockburger and Adam Davenport, the founders of the National Law Enforcement Hall of Fame. They share the inspiration behind creating this prestigious honor and discuss why it’s essential to recognize the selfless service, sacrifices, and heroism of officers across the nation.
From the emotional stories of inductees to the impact this recognition has on the law enforcement community, Megan and Adam reveal their passion for ensuring that courage and dedication are never forgotten. They also explain how the Hall of Fame has grown and why it’s more than just an award—it’s a legacy that preserves the truth about law enforcement heroes.
🔥 Mark your calendars! The next National Law Enforcement Hall of Fame Induction Ceremony is for April 11, 2025, at the Omni Fort Worth. 🔥
🎧 Tune in to hear why honoring our bravest is more important now than ever. 🎧
#BlueGritPodcast #NationalLawEnforcementHallOfFame #BackTheBlue 🚔
email us at- bluegrit@tmpa.org
Yeah, so I mean we can talk about some of the different moments, but I mean there's courage and service. That's usually, you know, an act of bravery. For example, last year, carly Travis young officer, like you said, first on the job, and we still keep in touch with her and she's still struggling. She's still struggling. I feel.
Speaker 2:Blue Grid listeners, we are back this week. We've got a great episode with a couple of guests that we have been trying for several months to get on. They jet-set around, stay busy, so it's taken a bit to figure this out. I'm your co-host, Clint McNear, along with Tyler Owen.
Speaker 3:What's up TO man? What's going on? First, let's kick this off. You're I don't want to say alma mater, but you're a retired agency. Our thoughts and prayers with Garland. Today Just got news of an officer that was injured this morning, shot multiple times, I understand, and then the suspect, or dirtbag, or whatever we choose to call him, continued his acts of violence against law enforcement. Our thoughts and prayers with Garland.
Speaker 2:Yeah, officer is going to recover and bad guy won't do anything bad ever again.
Speaker 3:I take the subliminal message. But no, everything's going good, man. We're just blowing and going and getting geared up for our conference this next week which, when this episode releases, we have just surpassed the second year of our motorcycle rodeo there in Round Rock, in conjunction with Round Rock Police Association, round Rock Police and then also the Round Rock Express, and you and your team are also going to be in Galveston for the annual Mardi Gras, which I think that services. What Clint over, is it a million people that jump onto the island and law enforcement have to deal with that craziness for the week or two weeks or however long Galveston's Mardi Gras is. So you guys be just getting done with that as well.
Speaker 2:Yeah, it's the second largest Mardi Gras in the country, or? Third largest Mardi Gras in the country and literally takes agencies from all over the Golden Triangle and Houston area all over. We'll be down supporting them for three days as they navigate the craziness.
Speaker 3:Yep, yep. Well, man, who have we got on today?
Speaker 2:So I will let them introduce themselves. But they are the founders of the National Law Enforcement Hall of Fame, Megan and Adam, and I will let you guys intro yourselves to our crew.
Speaker 1:Well, thank you guys for having us on.
Speaker 1:We're very excited to talk about the Hall of Fame and kind of spread the word. I think that's the biggest thing is people don't know that we exist, and something like us should exist for law enforcement officers. It does for sports players, musicians. So why don't we have something for the men and women that risk their life every day for us? So we're just out here trying to support law enforcement and we've gone from a you know we'll get into it but a lunch to now. We're down from Ohio here in Texas and we are so grateful and welcomed with open arms from our Texas family.
Speaker 2:Awesome. Tell the listeners your names, if you don't mind full names. And both from Ohio, is that correct?
Speaker 4:Megan Stocker and Adam Davenport. We actually went to high school together. I was one year above her at our small little Catholic school in Oregon, ohio, and who would have ever thought that we'd be doing this together?
Speaker 1:25. Yeah 24 years ago's been. It's been a whirlwind starting out small at a? Um. So adam and I I was an event planner by trade um, I wanted to be able to stay home with my kids and raise them, but I also wanted to work.
Speaker 4:So I started my own event planning business and this one is like perfect, so I started off running the Entrepreneurial and Business Excellence Hall of Fame, which is a regional program honoring entrepreneurs and small business owners around Northwest Ohio and Southeast Michigan, and I took that over in 2010. And when I took it over, I could do the fundraising and things like that, but I had no idea how to actually run an event and Megan had just started it. Probably a couple months beforehand I called her up and said you've got to come help me. I had no idea what I'm doing, so we've been running that together since 20, so this will be our 18th or 19th year doing that Wow, and then 2016.
Speaker 1:In 2016,. My dad is a retired law enforcement officer from Toledo, ohio, where we're from, and he attended the event and he said to me why aren't you doing this for law enforcement? And kind of put us on the spot. And I'm like, I don't know, dad. I mean, we can do it, someone's got to be doing it right. Just started looking into it and realized that no one was doing anything like that. And so we're like, okay, let's try it out.
Speaker 1:Well, it was just a luncheon, just Ohio officers, and first year was maybe 60 people, but it really gained traction. And then we had some people attend that year that were like, wait a minute, this should be bigger than it is. And so we decided to go national. And then, if you want to get into the nitty gritty of it, covid hit, but then also law enforcement wasn't exactly appreciated like in that time. So we couldn't hold it for a few years. We were getting threat threats because we supported law enforcement, and that was just in ohio. That was starting at small and local at that time. But then we decided, hey, we're not, we don't care, we're not standing down like we're going to support and we want to support and deal with the backlash. And so then we realized that to better serve the law enforcement community we needed to go, better serve the law enforcement community. We needed to go to a nonprofit status and we needed to move out of Ohio locally, where you know we've had other events and we're out of our comfort zone down here. But it honestly was a fantastic move because of the support and the welcoming and the pro-law enforcement vibe that you get down here. It's not found everywhere and making us feel like we're welcome helps us serve the law enforcement vibe that you get down here it's not found everywhere and making us feel like we're welcome it helps us serve the law enforcement community. So it's gone from the phase of luncheon in Ohio to national, to nonprofit, to after we grow.
Speaker 1:The next phase will be our mental health phase and what we want to do with that is just say, an officer struggles, you know, with his wife, with something, because as a daughter of a law enforcement officer, I talked to Adam about this all the time. My dad and I went to therapy. We struggled. He treated me like I was like a bad kid on the street, because it's hard to separate that right.
Speaker 1:So that's where my passion lies and where we want to help is someone calls us and says we're struggling on our marriage right now, we can't afford to go to a retreat. You don't want to go to your department therapy we all know how that goes and the stigma associated. And then you know certain people get reputations and that's want to take that out of it. So they'll be able to call us, say I need this and we're building our network right now for when we're able to do this. Say you need to go here for a retreat and we'll pay for it. So it's not only honoring the law enforcement officers that we want to do, but we want to help them and know that they're supported, because that's the whole point of the whole thing.
Speaker 3:So your father was an law enforcement officer. Megan, who else was in your family? That kind of sparked the interest of creating this.
Speaker 1:Well, I mean, I do have a law enforcement, I have a couple of law enforcement employees, but honestly I want to and now Adam just had a baby four months ago. I have four kids, right I want to leave a legacy for them that they can build and know that it's OK to go against the norm If that makes sense, because, unfortunately, supporting law enforcement is going against the norm. I see it shifting. We talk about this almost daily, but it starts at the top Right, and you have to have leadership that has your back, and then you need to feel supported by your community. So the whole thing is just knowing that, even though it's hard to do what we're doing, you can do it anyways, and if I'm setting that goal for my kids, I'm setting it for everyone.
Speaker 4:Well, the crazy thing for me is I have no law enforcement in my family at all, but I brought the business background and how to run an event and we modeled our National Law En long course office, our hall of fame after our business event.
Speaker 1:We've just scaled up since then and then it's a learning curve oh like it's different when you're honoring entrepreneurs so long, of course, then you know. So we're adjusting every time. We go like you don't care about this, for business owners want this. You know what I mean. But it's fun to have the different events and learn from every year.
Speaker 4:We just keep learning and growing and we learn every year, but at the same time, it's like many law enforcement officers they're not doing it for the record. You guys are very, very, very humble. Stories still have to be told. Stumble, but stories still have to be told. You need to know that the everyday things that you guys deal with is something that a civilian like me I look like what the why did you go into something that causes that much stress and anxiety and problems in your work life? You know, but that's a call to do it and it's just every time we hear our stories and get to read those stories that are now. Just look at each other like all winners, well, yeah that's the problem, too.
Speaker 1:You're like, oh, luckily we are the judges. Yes, Asked winners that are law enforcement, we have nothing to do with it. But it's like when you read them, how do you say, oh no, that one's not good enough. You know what I mean. They all deserve it.
Speaker 2:And so you started out with about 60 attendees. How many years ago was that?
Speaker 4:2017 was our first year, so we did 17, 18, national in 19. Off 2020 and 2021 because they were like you know, know, you should do it via zoom and stuff like that. We're like no, we do, we would rather take a couple years off.
Speaker 1:And the point is to have an honor and experience, not as a reward ceremony like I mean I could hand anybody an award, but you want that camaraderie and that you. You know networking and you know this year we added a training. So there'll be a training through 4Science from 8 to noon for officers. That's very low price for them and it's department credited, but it's also more of you know something out of the event. So that's why we never wanted to do it virtually and this year, year virtual, is bringing a simulator to the training as well for officers, so we'll be able to go and it's kind of like a oculus type of situation. But you can. You know what I mean. That's the goal is to make this, you know, more family oriented, get more you know things that bring all of us together. But every year we just keep adding a little more and seeing what we're doing. So this year is the training.
Speaker 4:We just found out last week that actually the college that both of us went to, they're bringing 16 of their CJ students and two professors flying them down from Ohio come to our event. We didn't think of that. We're like we would have never thought to bring college students to come, but they're like. When we met with them they said we want to bring them and have them have experiences not in the classroom. Well, of course, this is the way to do it. I mean, with cops from all over the country and people that have had significant impact for the entire industry, they would never get a chance to meet other than for us.
Speaker 3:Well, but even on top of that I mean me and Clint both have experienced situations where you go through a critical incident and then you share those type of impactful stories, and I think it's so crucial that the younger generation of law enforcement, the new generation, the generation that we don't even know about, the young you know five-year-old, six-year-old, seven-year-old kid, that needs to understand the importance of really what these law enforcement officers go through day in, day out and you would be shocked I myself was even probably guilty of this is that understanding the real dangers behind what law enforcement's facing and that every single day is unknown and so to bring in those new cj students and to get a full understanding of really what these officers do day in, day out.
Speaker 1:Man, that's, that's remarkable, that's awesome now we are like what we're going to find us across the country to university, bring these students together with some of our alum, you know, and our Hall of Fame members in the future. But it's really a great moment for us. And you know they want to partner and they say like we want to. You know, come and be ambassadors and work your registration table Like that's how interested. So this it just keeps getting better, the connections that you make. You know we have one winner, tom smith, who does gold show podcast. He was our lifetime achievement winner. He's completely blown up since being inducted, which is fantastic. He's retired but now he's helping a different um. You know cold, he was just on the empty graves. You know he didn't have a clue a year ago about us or what he was going to do in retirement and now he's living his best life. You know that's what this is about.
Speaker 2:Well, I think y'all sharing stories is important. That's part of why we started this podcast. And, to your point about the threats against you guys and the downturn and the lack of respect for law enforcement, law enforcement lost the messaging war. We never even got into the war to begin with, so we lost it without participating in our podcast and the events that you guys do in our podcast and the events that you guys do. I think that puts us back in the messaging game, because people need to hear these important stories. They need to hear y'all's story, they need to hear the people that you honor and recognize. I think that's a huge part of it. So 60, 60 attendees. Just a few years ago this last year, I was at the event and it was. It was quite large about how many attendees there.
Speaker 4:There was about 200 last year. We're already surpassed that number. If all of our sponsors bring their tickets and we didn't get that number until a week before last year we're already surpassed that. Our goal would be 500 at this point in time.
Speaker 1:Our goal is to have the construction center across the street and then we can stay here. That's the goal, but we're getting there. I never thought we could say that seven weeks before we're at the number we were last year, that's a big deal we were last year you know what I mean.
Speaker 3:That's a big deal. Can y'all give a breakdown of kind of how, the how, the um, what the awards are? As far as you know, the average patrol officer is not really going to understand until you guys kind of break it down of what awards are actually given.
Speaker 1:Yes, so I mean we can talk about some of the different awards, but I mean there's courage and service. Um, that's usually, you know, an act of bravery, for example, came out of nowhere, and that's her coming in.
Speaker 1:Last year I don't know if you remember Clint she was terrified to come up and speak, but she said I need to do this so that you can come back from things. And she went and told her story and told where she's going, and now we still keep in touch with her. Like we checked this summer, we went and visited with her and she's like you know, which made me sick to my stomach, but I'm like this is why we're doing it. This is why we have to keep doing this, because it means a lot to the people we're doing it for, and so that's an example of courage and service. Like I mentioned, tom Smith Lifetime Achievement Award. Now he won that because Hall of Fame to me should be people that do things on and off the job.
Speaker 1:You know, I know this is a story that I tell often. People do things on and off the job. You know, I know this is a story that I tell often, but it's the best way to explain what these awards mean to me. And that's, for example, my dad. When I was younger, he would go Toledo wasn't the greatest, it wasn't very safe, it wasn't very safe but he would take us to homes where he had stopped for a domestic or something like that, where the kids are not living the way they should, they don't have food or anything, and he would bring my sister and I give them food for Christmas or holidays and we'd wrap presents and he'd take us and it was a lesson for us, a lesson for them.
Speaker 1:But no one ever knew that my dad was doing that on the department. It's not like he made a ton of money either, he just did that. So those are the stories that we want to encompass. It's not just the courage and service where, after shot on the job, if everything you know it's hey, I want to be out in my community. I'm not afraid to be vocal if I don't agree with something. Those are the type of awards that it's just well-rounded. Actually, you could put any category on a lot of them, because they all mean the same to us.
Speaker 4:We have a life-saving award this year out of Springboro Ohio. Last year was our first canine award. This year is another canine award, canine iris out of FBI Newark Division, which I just had to pull it up. Iris out of FBI, Newark division, which I just had to pull it up. She's like one of 10 Iris, the FBI's electronic detection canine Ten of them, we believe in the nation right now I think she's like a black lab and she's actually coming. That's cool. There's that. I never forgot the word is someone who's asked and not necessarily it doesn't need to be.
Speaker 1:They were injured on the job and passed that way, like we had last year. He um started an apartment in utah, not last year but two years ago. Ribbit shang utah was sort of starting an apartment there and he passed away from cancer. He was our Never Forgotten Award. That's the other thing. You do this job I mean that can go for any job. You do this job and then you retire or get close to it and then something happens health-wise. So it was important still to recognize people that just it doesn't need to be the dramatic story that you want to hear on the news. If that makes sense, I'm not saying that's any less important. But we encourage those nominations to come in with the people that don't don't fit.
Speaker 4:Their stories hurt as much and we've actually evolved as well as like, because we we originally started with strictly law enforcement officers but, like last year with kyle reyes from Blue Lives Matter and Silent Partner Marketing and Law Enforcement, today he was our Civilian Impact Award and Clint had a hand in this year's Civilian Impact Award. Rick Smith from is it Axon or Axon?
Speaker 2:Founder of Axon.
Speaker 4:Axon. I mean we talked to him and he founded the Taser I. I mean people don't understand how much this guy is well, we have that quote.
Speaker 1:But the thing is, the reason you not made a limit I'll say this and you can back me up is because of his down to earth and his willingness to help law enforcement. That's what's it like. I still think we need to honor these civilians too, because the contributions and if you have a voice on your side, use it. Yeah.
Speaker 2:Well, he is the Elon Musk of police technology. He has his hand in every piece of technology in law enforcement and if technology is going to save our lives and save the people's lives that we have to interact with and he's so, as you guys saw, he's passionate about it. Oh yeah, um, and really no law enforcement background at all, but he is. He's now pretty much considered like the elon musk of police technology and, uh, if, if, if, the guy can invent something to protect those that I work with, then there's a lot to be said for that.
Speaker 4:Yeah, yeah, it's just so fun to honor people like him and everyone else. Like this year we have 10 honorees, I think, from eight states, including this year. We will have inducted 44 honorees, I believe, from 17 states. We will have inducted 44 honorees, I believe, from 17 states we already have. I mean, I think this year we had 73 nominees from 39 states. Wow, and so it's hard to like. We said we're glad we're not the judges Because we fall in love with every single nominee, but we can't make that distinction. Our judges panel is panel don't announce who they are. They're officers, so they know what to look for. I don't know what to look for.
Speaker 1:We talk about our board. Sometimes we have our dad on the board, for example. That's just because one's an accountant, one's a retired law enforcement officer. So my dad, we made him. He's the investigative arm for when we get our nominees and he goes and makes sure it vets them for us. And then Larry, his dad is an accountant, we're just family and the whole law enforcement is family. But then Tony Garland that one I'm Delvin, I'm Delvin, sorry, I is family. But then Tony Garland, that one from Melbourne, sorry, oh, garland, he you know, he's on our board now and it's like Scott Hughes from Cincinnati, um Hampton Police Department. He's the chief there. He's been so instrumental with our growth as well and he handles like the training portion because he goes around the country doing them. We don't pretend to know, yeah, what you guys do or go through. I can speak as a daughter and what I saw, what I went through, what my dad shared. But that's why we surround ourselves with the people that do know and just let us facilitate it.
Speaker 2:But we take our lead from you guys we've got a great one with tony godwin, um, and and for all of our watchers and listeners. So you have a board of directors, but then for selecting the awards it's a separate panel composed of law enforcement. That is not necessarily the board.
Speaker 1:They're past winners. We can show that they're past winners. All law enforcement we can share that they're past winners. All law enforcement that it's changed kind of like different people can do it from past winning, but we think having the past winners as officers. We don't have civilians do it, it's the officers. But we know what the award means to them. They know how they want to keep who they want to be associated with in those categories, because you don't want to and that's our reputation, that's their reputation. So we feel that that keeps us solid with our inductees, because it's officers that have already won and are already part of it and live with that every day and we do first one judge.
Speaker 4:that's been since the year they won, year after.
Speaker 1:So no.
Speaker 4:Then the other ones. We switch every year Because some people, some officers, are going to look for different things. Yep, you know.
Speaker 1:And we have a healthier independent research as well.
Speaker 4:And then we met them, yep.
Speaker 3:For those watching? How can people get involved? How can people nominate? How can people find out more information to donate and help the cause?
Speaker 4:Well, the nominations are up right now. Just go to our website. There's a nominate button. It says like 250 words, but you can type it. Drew asked that people, if they have CVs and things like that, send those.
Speaker 1:We have additional things we can do directly so that we we're fine with padding the file however much they want to. We'll send all the info and the more we have the better. And the judges, yeah. So that's the first part, but it's national leo all famecom. You can get tickets and tables there, nominations, sponsorships, donate. We have a three rifle raffle going on.
Speaker 4:it'll be here have you seen the leo henry repeating arms? It's beautiful. Go to the website or look it up. It's's a Henry repeating arms 22 LR rifle that's dedicated to law enforcement.
Speaker 2:Oh, wow.
Speaker 4:Oh, it's, it's beautiful, and we've done it a couple of times and we're going to dip one down. Um, I haven't had the event where we do $25 ticket. We talked to somebody the other day. But what are tickets? A hundred and 150 hours, I know 25. Of the day, like what are our tickets? $100, $150? No, $25. They're like what? Like well, you can buy multiple entries if you'd like. Give yourself a chance. That sounds silly.
Speaker 1:Coming from Ohio, texas, there is a difference. We're used to like $25 back home and people are like, okay, down here, full difference.
Speaker 4:Yeah, so you asked about the donations, that's donations and the tickets and nominations. I'll be honest, coming down from Toledo to here over doubled our budget just to break even. We know 100% this is the right. I mean the way we've been welcomed. I mean Stephen to the omni of everything, is just amazing.
Speaker 1:And eventually, yeah, we'd love to have a physical building, but for now, we just want more to spread that we exist. We're trying to do what our goal is to do, because every time that I feel like you could probably both could answer this question for us, do you feel more strongly about our organization after hearing the story and where it started? Yeah, because if you don't know that, you're like what is this, whatever? But the point is we don't make money. We're doing this because this is my passion. This is something we both believe in very strongly and want to help, but also we love doing it because we get to talk to people like you and we get to hear all those stories and, well you know, we make our parents proud.
Speaker 1:It's both their legacy as well. His dad was a hall of famer, mine was being law enforcement.
Speaker 4:Like we said, it's a Leo family, that's one thing we've learned a lot over the years is how close the Leo industry is. I personally never knew. It's just like, oh my God. It's so fun to be able to honor the people that are being honored but at the same time, just seeing everyone in the room together, Because you were both there last year and that's why we're doing an after party this year, because people are like well it's over.
Speaker 4:It's only 8.30 or 9pm. We're like you just held the cap there for three and a half four hours and people are like, oh, that's, it's early now. Okay, we'll do some more, that's what it's about.
Speaker 1:You know the connections that are made from across the country through this hall of fame. That's my favorite part. My husband always pleases me because he's like I'll get off the phone. I'm like I just introduced to someone, though he was like you get so excited about that. I'm like I just introduced to someone and it was like you get so excited about that. I'm like because that's what it means. If someone can help an officer over here with this, let us be the facilitators. But I just feel like having us on and telling our story to you guys is what people get. We wouldn't be sitting here doing this if we didn't care. Oh no, I understand the skepticism. I really do.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and so nominations that you mentioned, that is for the 2026 ceremony. Tell our viewers and listeners about this year's quickly arriving ceremony and the details on it arriving ceremony and the details on it.
Speaker 1:Okay, so, like I said, I'm not sure if I mentioned this already, but the training will be held from eight to noon on friday, april 11th, here at the omni, and it's just a training held by four science with um virtual. I was bringing a simulator, so that's an addition to um last year we didn't do anything like that and then the event starts at 5.30, which registration? We'll have some tables. We're really excited because we're going to have rings with Hall of Fame members this year. I hope you're over as well, I am, but you know super pumped about that. It's another offering for, you know, anyone associated with the Hall of Fame that they can get that. It's going to be a cocktail hour for anyone associated with the Hall of Fame that they can get that. We'll be at Cocktail Hour for an hour and then we'll move inside and have our presentations. We have Chris Darlington is our music entertainment this year. He is a law enforcement officer and has been performing a lot at.
Speaker 4:Mar-a-Lago and things like that.
Speaker 1:But I connected through him with LinkedIn and I love the fact that he is an officer, so that means a lot to me. And then we have Tony Godwin's daughter, Jordan will be singing the national anthem, and that's even more exciting for us because it's the family of the Hall of Fame that we get to showcase at the event. But you'll have dinner, which we just did the tasting, and it's going to be great At the event. But you'll have dinner, which we just did the tasting, and it's going to be great. And then you'll leave the ceremony and walk right out to a dance floor some music, a bar and a special treat. That is a cheers event.
Speaker 2:And if you haven't heard Jordan Godwin sing, she will blow your socks off.
Speaker 1:Oh yeah, tears in my eyes, all of it. And you know the anthem's already everything. But when someone can sing it where you feel it, then she can. So I'm very excited that she's willing to do it for us. And again it's, you know, inductee's daughter.
Speaker 2:Yeah, she sang it at the opening ceremony, the crimes against Conference, which is usually a quite tame, somber event when you're dealing with crimes against children, and I don't know how many thousands of people were in there, but when she finished the final note, it sounded like the starting of a NASCAR event the people cheering and yelling and I thought I thought, yep, that's what, that's what that performance deserved, yep that's what he sent us, and I'm like yeah, he was like she, she's pretty good and I'm like, no, you're trying to be you played it out, she's
Speaker 2:not just pretty good nothing like her dad, but she's okay.
Speaker 1:Yeah, she's okay but I was like Tony and he goes okay, yeah, I know. So, yeah, that's what it's all about.
Speaker 4:It's so fun to be down here, especially because it's nicer weather than 10 straight days and below freezing and snow since the summer. I come down here in a t-shirt and I'm like, oh, this is amazing.
Speaker 1:But we just. It's 60 degrees. I'm like I could be in shorts down here, but then you don't realize, you know yep, well, clint, did you have anything else you wanted to cover?
Speaker 2:no, I appreciate that y'all's end goal, too, is to add a component to mental health. Um, mental health's really become a focus, and in the last 20, 30 years, I never dreamed that mental health would be a part or a focus of law enforcement. So it is. I'm thankful to see, um where y'all are headed with that as well, because it's much needed.
Speaker 1:So what I had started to do with that is back in 2020, when we took our break, I met with some Congress people in Ohio to see if we could. You know, at that point it was just officer suicide prevention that we wanted to help with because it's, you know, the leading cause after alcoholism and it leads into that and so on and so forth, and I was basically greeted with here's the suicide hotline you can share with them, basically, and I'm like no, no, no, like we need to do something else. So that's when we talked and it went into. Okay, so we started building this network from behind the scenes for when we can't afford to pay for these things. But the reasoning behind it was I will never forget that my dad was on a call for 12 hours with a guy that would only speak to him and he ended up killing himself on the phone with my dad and that's where my dad went that day, had the three days that they make you take after incident, and then he'd go right back on the street and it took a toll on him and then, if that's what led into him and I having to go to therapy and things like that and marriage problems Like, thank goodness my mom's strong, she stopped by him.
Speaker 1:But that's just one story Out of one city. Yeah, that's what I mean, and you know he has a ton. But when you sit down and think about that, what that could do to someone, we got to help. We got to help. That's it Somehow. I don't know what, how, but that's the goal.
Speaker 4:Well, we never understood, and one of our past winners told us as well. He was like the. When we never understood. One of our past winners told us as well he was like the difference between law enforcement officers and not to vote firefighters under the bus or anything. But he said the firefighter witnesses of suicide. They get a week off. Law enforcement officer. They sit there and say, hey, go in your car, take a few minutes and get back on the street. It's like what it feels, like you don't get any time to process what you just saw or witnessed or anything.
Speaker 1:And then you got to go home and be a dad, a husband, a brother, son, whatever. You know what I mean and expect to be happy, you know. But as a child I didn't understand that, that I didn't understand my dad's anger and frustration. So that's where the like and adam's sat on a board for mental health for years, and so that is our driving force behind the hall of fame is to help officers.
Speaker 2:Well then, the firemen just put their footie pajamas back on and go back to bed.
Speaker 1:That's what I mean. You know, it's like once you miss your spaghetti night, we're not going to mess with him.
Speaker 4:I don't know what it is this year. Thanks Swaby. I mean he has the Duns and Hoses Foundation. We're not going to mess with Swaby here. I know you guys know him well.
Speaker 2:Yeah, well, good, anything we missed or anything y'all would like to share.
Speaker 4:I would just thank you. If you come to the event, there's a discounted Leo ticket and you can sign up for the 4Science training as well as on our website. Commissions are huge. I mean, you guys know enough about nonprofits and things like that, that, like we said, we've never taken a dime and we it takes so much time and effort and money to put in a bet like this on because you guys, in last year we're not serving cheeseburgers at the. You know we're. We went all out and I remember when we came down here we did I think it was three site visits. We walk into the Omni. I look over at Megan. She's smiling and I'm like I know we're coming here, but it's going to be the most expensive one. It's what we want to do.
Speaker 1:I think boxers do not get just fun trips, and that you know what I mean. We want it to be exciting and fun.
Speaker 4:You can go to the exciting and fun, you can go to the stockyards, you can go to the rooftop pool and enjoy a trip out of you know, not just the ceremony, because that's what it's all about we've actually had numerous people sit there and say like, hey, I'm going to take my kids out of school for a few days and turn it into a mini vacation because and I'll admit when we first came down to Fort Worth we didn't realize how big it was. We had no idea. I think at one point it was like top 10 in the nation or something like that. We're like really everything is bigger in Texas spread the word.
Speaker 1:A lot of people know we exist and that's what we're trying to do. It's important, like I said, you got the Hall of. A lot of people know we exist and that's what we're trying to do. It's important, like I said, you've got the National Football Hall of Fame, all of those. Why don't we have fun? So that's it what you guys have done. Having us on and doing this via Zoom and your support and attending their event means a lot.
Speaker 2:So thank you.
Speaker 3:Tio, what you got. Man, I'm just excited for you guys and honored that we were able to do this today and you know we're going to be here to support you guys and help whatever, however, we can.
Speaker 4:Thank you. Thank you so much.
Speaker 2:We really appreciate that. That about wraps up the episode, guys. April the 11th Friday, april the 11th Omni-Fort Worth National Law Enforcement Officers Hall of Fame ceremony that morning is for science training, I believe by Vaughn Clem, isn't it, mm-hmm? Yep, vaughn is an amazing guy, amazing instructor, super good guy. April 11th all of our listeners, viewers, would love to see you guys support or reach out um be a part of that. Tio, you want to close this out?
Speaker 3:Yeah, man, again our hearts and prayers, our thoughts and prayers with the injured guard officer. Uh, as of last night, uh hope for a speedy recovery to him. You guys take care, stay safe. God bless you and, as always, may God bless Texas. We're out, thank you, thank you you.
