Choir Practice Podcast

Send us Fan Mail As promised, in consecutive weeks, good ol Dave Thomas is back and we chat about his stint in Homicide, Arson, Internal Affairs, and finally the Metropolitan Area Narcotics Trafficking Interdiction Squad (MANTIS).  Dave's a very artistic dude, we discussed his fiction book "The Gordian Knot" published in 2009. Now, he has a Non Fiction book coming out this summer, &...

Send us Fan Mail Dave kindly reminded me he was not the same Dave Thomas of Wendy's Hamburger Fame. We met at the Pima County Sheriff's reunion and I convinced him to be on the show.  After high school he attended the University of Arizona where he attempted to study "Women and keg beer." This was a short-lived endeavor, so in order to avoid being drafted into the Vietnam War.....

Send us Fan Mail It was my pleasure to host Robbie, get to know him better and I was amazed at how many of the historic events around Tucson he had been a part of. I'd be lying if I denied that the little whisper in the back of my head didn't save me on a number of occasions. Robbie describes the same phenomenon and absolutely attributes this :Guardian Angel" to his faith. We only m...

Send us Fan Mail Kurt is back! The last time he was on the show was 2022! He said he wanted to come back and share with The Squad the different types of therapies he has used over the years to help him deal with the calls and situations he was dispatched to. I'm grateful for his honesty, vulnerability and authenticity! My hope is that there are a few nuggets in here that you might find helpfu...

Send us Fan Mail My good buddy, and multiple time guest, Bill Hanson arranged the meeting between Randy and I! We met, I gave him a hard time about being a second responder, but he was such the gracious guest. He chose the fire service after he had an interaction with Firefighter/ paramedics early in his life which sealed his destiny! Many years later, he rose to the ranks of The Chief and he cont...

Send us Fan Mail Rick and I worked together while in the Office of Internal Affairs. He was our Captain, and the Chief's Executive Officer. Later, we met back up at the academy. I had escaped from IA and he was given the plush assignment right before he retired as a reward for a job well done under more stressful assignments. I enjoy his company, so much so, that we had to meet on two separat...

Send us Fan Mail Well, the last time Ron popped in we only made it through his career with the Pima County Sheriff's department. He's back, we clear up a few more notable PCSO moments and dive full into his career as a Spook. All kidding aside, he worked for another 16-17 years as an FBI Analyst. I'm honored host him and I'm so glad to present him to you, the coolest folks on t...

Send us Fan Mail To say I enjoyed meeting up with Raul again would be an understatement. He was episode 28 three years ago. I didn't think he could top the story of his partner slapping someone across the face with a rattle snake, but here we are.  He makes the podcast t-shirts (a gift for every guest, super exclusive gifts!) so I cornered him and forced him back on the show for another episo...

Send us Fan Mail Jenn and I crossed paths over the years. We were new Sergeants on the Eastside and went on to join each other on a study group to promote to Lieutenant.  She's newly retired after just over 24 years and I'm proud to know her. Really looking forward to what she does next, and I'm happy to share her career with you all. Give her the warmest welcome and enjoy!!! Come s...

Send us Fan Mail Occasionally, I like to take a look back at where we've been so we can fully appreciate where the show is today. I do this by sharing some of the most popular episodes over the years.  Based on the numbers...Nancy is right up there with Ed Boyen, Jen Brotherton, and Mike Thrall! For all you new listeners, take a look at their interviews as well and you'll see why I love...

Send us Fan Mail That's right, you've seen his name before...As a cop/ first responder, If you listen to the show, you can't help but recall memories as you listen to your buddies tell their stories. That's exactly what happened! After Steve Gardner and Dr. Carmona were on the show, Bobby said he needed to come back. He said he'd come tell more stories if I served up more...

Send us Fan Mail Mike's story is similar to mine. Palo Verde HS grads (barely), then Pima County Deputy and finally City of Tucson Police Officers. The profession is a good for people who found themselves being the protector of their friends, kept themselves out of trouble and want to spend their time, energy and efforts helping. Mike continues to help, creating his non-profit "No Belt R...

Send us Fan Mail Terry has been on the show before, but I asked him to come back and speak about the fallen officers 501C3 he created, while sharing the stories of some of our fallen heroes. The Arizona Fallen Heroes Memorial Riders raise money to help first responders seriously injured in the line of duty, or to provide financial assistance to the families of fallen officers. Terry brought over t...

Send us Fan Mail Like many of my guests, Andy is one of those guys where my urgency to get him on the show is heightened because, as you will hear, he developed Parkinson's late into his career and it ultimately forced him to quit before he was ready...even though he spent 30 years serving the City of Tucson. He worked his way into many of the "Desired" assignments through out his c...

Send us Fan Mail Over my career, US Marines have been some of the best folks I've ever worked with. The sense of duty, the "Can do" attitude and the refusal to quit when times get hard are all qualities that make them some of the best partners on the force. With that being said, Mike exemplified all these qualities throughout his career! Even though he can't drive, haha, the re...

Send us Fan Mail I enjoyed chatting with Ron, the last time I'd seen him was when he taught Constitutional Law to my academy class in 1998! His arrival to AZ, the jobs he held prior to entering la enforcement and a storied career...I think you're going to enjoy this one. You can see in the title of this episode he also worked at the FBI, but we didn't make it that far, so he plans t...

Send us Fan Mail Have I ever told you how awesome you are? It's "Carmona Part two"-eve and the show currently sits at 60,343 downloads!!!! The number seems unreal, but it makes sense when you consider the line up of phenomenal guests...Speaking of phenomenal guests... Richard Carmona is back! If you tuned in last week, we barely scratched the surface of a truly extraordinary career!...

Send us Fan Mail The title for this episode could go on forever! Dr. Richard Camona was certainly a jack of all trades, but at the highest levels. It was my honor to be able to sit down with him and not only chat about his career but how ours intersected in a very small way.  I am in awe of his path to special forces, medicine and law enforcement. his life definitely needs to be preserved for gene...

Send us Fan Mail Matt was referred to me by a friend, but I'm also acquaintances with him on social media! So when I saw that he retired, I had to reach out to see if he'd be willing to join one of the coolest squads of people I know. He agreed, we hung out for a substantial amount of time and what you are about to hear is the result! Enjoy, turn it up and please give Matt the warmest we...

Send us Fan Mail I couldn't believe that when I looked back, Terry had been on the show in July 2024!!! Time flies! But he promised he would come back with more stories, he returned with more whiskey, and we had a good time just hanging out and slanging out new stories!  I'm excited for the new year, new guests and new episodes. I'm grateful you all are along for the ride. Buckle up...

Send us Fan Mail As the holidays get closer, I'm able to look back over the last three years and just appreciate all the great people I know. Jen is one of them! Her episode has 668 downloads to date. That makes me so happy for her and happy for the show. That means you all get to meet them and hear about their careers! Buckle up, show her some love and listen in to why she is THE third most...

Send us Fan Mail Don't sleep on this one! As promised, the much acclaimed Jon Woglemuth is back! There is whiskey, cop tales and shenanigans all in this episode! I'm so grateful he was able to come back so quickly so we could put a nice little bow on his career! Follow me on FB, instagram or leave comments here on Buzzsprout! Let me know what you thought, show Jon some love and enjoy the...

Send us Fan Mail Just shy of 21 years of honorable service to the "Old Pueblo." A University of Arizona grad and O/Malley's bartender- turned police officer apparently isn't as random as I suspected. Jon rattled off about 6 names of other folks who took a similar path! His degree in chemistry, and TA'ing at the university  threw me for a loop, but that's how these int...

Send us Fan Mail Joe reached out through LinkedIn, we met at the door when he arrived, and then proceeded to put down 3 hours of war stories!!! That is THE beauty of Choir Practice, but also the beauty of this profession! Similar shared experiences create an atmosphere where stories and memories flow. I hope you enjoy this episode, Joe had a brief career, but jam packed with experiences and I enjo...

Send us Fan Mail Darren is another guest recommended to me by Bill Hanson, thanks Bill!  Almost 30 years with Phoenix PD, 4 years in the United States Army prior to that! A life of service, a unique story on how he realized he wanted to spend his life helping people, and a smattering of police shootings to boot! You won't regret tuning in, you'll be sorry if you sleep on this one! We had...