Stories from the Center of the Universe

Jack Luck is an Ashland icon and he joins Paul along with his oldest son, Ross. Jack talked about growing up on a farm in Ashland which is now part of the I-95 interchange. Jack told Paul about how he and his brother went to Randolph-Macon Academy and how he got a nickname that even Ross had never heard before. They discussed his time at Randolph-Macon College where he played football, was inducte...

Paul and Rob have known Donnie Morris since the early 1980’s. Donnie is a former Virginia State Football Player of the Year and he tells Paul and Kevin about his football journey with some great stories along the way. Paul told a story about an encounter he had with Donnie on the middle school football field and will be the first to admit that Donnie won the day. The three of them talked about Don...

Louise Keeton joined us to talk about her non-profit, The Whistle Stop Theatre Company. Along with their educational goals, they also produce family entertainment by local artists of all genres. Check them out at https://whistlestoptheatre.weebly.com  to learn more.

Marcus Williams joins the podcast mainly via Kevin, but Marcus, Paul and Kevin have all worked at the same RVA based company. Marcus’ parents were both born in Indiana, but he grew up in Glasgow, KY.  His dad wanted a better place to raise his family and his dad was a benefactor of affirmative action and got a job in Glasgow. Marcus talked about his big brother being his best friend and their adve...

Liz Phillips is a former colleague of Paul’s. Liz and Paul talked about her early years in South Bend, Indiana and Liz gave some insight into what South Bend is famous for besides Notre Dame. She talked about her big family, a move to Florida in the middle of high school and how she had to become an adult when she was a teenager due to her Mom getting sick. Liz and Paul had a great chat about her...

Duke, Rob and Paul have known each other almost 50 years. On this unique episode, we discussed growing up in Ashland in the 1970s and 80s. We had fun reminiscing and recording stories from our childhood. We hope you will enjoy it as well.

Nick Shedd is the head of Strength and Conditioning for the Houston Astros and comes to the podcast via a connection through Kevin Flippen. Paul, Kevin and Nick discussed him growing up in Northern Virginia, playing football in college and his education including currently pursuing his PhD. Nick’s career has taken him many different places and has allowed him to work with military personnel and at...

Ali Gustavson and Sidney Campbell join the podcast via Paul knowing Ali’s dad, Gary. Ali and Sidney both work for the American Bald Eagle Foundation in Haines, Alaska. They discussed each of their backgrounds and how they found their way to the ABEF. Paul talked to Sidney and Ali about their roles at the ABEF and what a normal work day looks like for the two of them. They talked about the mission...

Amber Klingman joins the podcast because she and Paul have a mutual acquaintance, Jennifer Stevens (Episode #101). Amber grew up just outside of New Orleans and in a small town in Georgia. Amber had a pretty normal childhood until her sophomore year in high school when she got pregnant. She talks to Paul about her story and the incredible support she received from her child’s two grandmothers. She...

Tim Sutton is a thirty plus year law enforcement professional who was born and raised in Hanover County, Virginia. Paul and Tim discussed his childhood, his first jobs and what led him to enter the law enforcement profession. At one point during his career with the Hanover Sheriff’s Office, Tim was put in charge of a program called Project Life Saver.  This has led Tim to become a subject matter e...

Ahmad Hawkins is from the Newport News/Hampton area of Virginia and was a football teammate with Dwight Vick (Episode 122) for a year at Hampton HS. Ahmad was highly recruited at three different positions (WR, CB and RB) depending on the locality of the school. Ahmad stayed in state and played football at UVA. The picture above is Ahmad making the game winning catch versus VT the last time that UV...

Austin Wilson is childhood friends with Nick Clark (Episode 120) and Alec Eberle (Episode 107). Like Nick and Alec, Austin played football, but a medical issue in his junior year of high school stopped him from playing anymore. With a push from his dad and after watching Jerry Maguire, Austin decided to become a sports agent when he was only sixteen years old. He has continued down that path and r...

Coach Dick Kemper joins the podcast and this episode is a trip down memory lane for Paul. Coach Kemper coached Paul in football and basketball in high School at St. Christopher’s in Richmond. Coach Kemper grew up in Alexandria, but came to St. Christopher’s soon after starting his career.  He spent 40+ years as a coach, athletic director and an educator at St. Christopher’s. Paul and Coach Kemper...

In Part 5 of our Honoring the Military Series, Rich Brown (USMC) joins us. Rich was born in Knoxville, TN, but moved around a bit due to his Dad’s job. Growing up, Rich did martial arts and spent a lot of time with the best grandparents a guy could have! Paul and Rich talked about Rich’s family lineage and then why he chose to join the United States Marine Corps. They discussed his 23 year USMC ca...

Stuart Wiley is a Staff Sergeant in the United States Air Force and continues our series honoring members of our U.S.Military. Stuart grew up in Fluvanna County, Va. and when Paul asked him about growing up, he said it was all about baseball from tee ball through playing travel and for high school. They talked about what he did after high school and why he decided to join the USAF.  Stuart did adm...

Dr. Richard Sander joins the podcast today via a connection with former VCU Basketball player Rodney Ashby (Episode #115). Dr. Sander is from Cincinnati and Paul, Kevin and Richard talked about his childhood and then playing sports in high school. This led to playing football and basketball in college where he also participated in ROTC. Richard discussed his time in the U.S. Army and his career pa...

Jeff Davila come to the podcast via a connection with Jeff Burke (Episode #7). Jeff grew up in Richmond, Va. He played a lot of sports growing up and he was a three sport athlete in high school.  After graduating from high school, Jeff attended the United States Naval Academy where he majored in Math. Jeff went to fight training school, learned how to fly jets and became a Naval Aviator. Paul and...

Dwight Vick was born in North Carolina, but grew up in the Newport News/Hampton area of Virginia. Dwight, Paul and Kevin talked about his great “old school” childhood and how it became clear that football would be an important part of his life. Dwight was always a big guy and played at Hampton HS for a legendary coach. He was heavily recruited by colleges and ended up playing at Virginia Tech.  Th...

Paul and retired Brigadier General James Zollar know each other from serving together in the Virginia Army National Guard. James was born and raised in Chicago, Illinois and lived on both sides of the Windy City. He was in ROTC in high school which he originally thought would lead him to the Marine Corps. Instead, James enlisted in the U.S. Army and served in various capacities during an almost th...

Nick Clarke comes to the podcast via two paths.  Paul’s son Zach and Nick’s brother Colby are good friends and Nick is business partners with Alec Eberle (Episode #107). Nick was born in Fairfax, Va., but came to Hanover County at a young age. He played all kinds of sports growing up, but football became his passion.  Paul and Nick talked about his football journey from recreation to playing at Ol...

Chuck Hawkins and Paul have known each other since they were kids and Chuck was even taught by Paul’s mom Brenda (Episode 46) in kindergarten. Chuck grew up in eastern Hanover, but went to Patrick Henry because his parents taught there. Chuck spoke of his admiration for his parents and also about his dad’s sports accomplishments. Paul and Chuck talked about his time in college and how after school...

Ken Oxendine is a former Va Tech and NFL player who grew up in Chester, Virginia. Ken and Paul talked about his youth and growing up in the “big house” with lots of family. They discussed his recruiting process, how he decided on VT and how recruiting is different for today’s athletes. They talked about his non-profit and some of the charity work he is involved with through the non-profit. They fi...

Laura Collombell Marshall knows Paul from being in school together at UVA. She talked to Paul about growing up in different places because of her dad’s job and she landed in Northern VA for high school.  Laura attended UVA where she ran track and then went to the University of Richmond for law school.  Paul and Laura discussed her professional career including one of her more memorable cases and i...

Part 7 of a 7 part series on small businesses in Ashland, VA (each business is part of the Downtown Ashland Association).  Jamie Grant is bringing a unique business to Ashland. Jamie described it as a non-traditional farmer’s market while also offering food education and food preparation tips. Jamie has a background in the food industry from helping her dad at his business in Tappahannock to being...

Rodney Ashby is the sixth VCU basketball player to be on the podcast! Rodney talks with Paul and Kevin about his unlikely basketball journey and how he ended up being a part of the VCU family. He referred to this as the “Ramily” and he discussed the culture and the special life long connections of the program and the school itself. He talked about his business and how he also does broadcasting as...