Choir Practice Podcast

Send us Fan Mail Anissa was on the Tucson Police Department for 11 years. She decided to leave and now runs her own horse rescue while working with an organization who does Equine Therapy.  Her experiences on the department had me laughing and she brings a different perspective about her time on the agency that I think you are gonna want to hear. From dressing down to be a prostitute in "John...

Send us Fan Mail I am so excited for you all to meet Nancy. She is hopefully the first of many "civilian" interviews on this show... I knew who Nancy was on the police department, but what I did not know was that she started her career as Crime Scene Technician. I always just knew her as the Property/ Evidence Superintendent!  One day I saw her commenting on episodes on the Choir Practic...

Send us Fan Mail Marty started his career as a cop in housing projects in Boston, as he said...a million years ago. He moved to several agencies before finding his home here in the Old Pueblo. He served with distinction and a Boston attitude! It is my honor to have him share his legacy on the show, I'm so glad he accepted my invite and hung out for a few hours. Please, give him a warm Choir P...

Send us Fan Mail George is a great guy! He is one of those guys that everyone knows, everyone likes and always had a great attitude over the years. These are all reasons I knew I wanted him on the show. He also just happens to have some pretty good cop stories to share. One of which made him notorious on the Tucson Police Department, so tune in and don't miss this episode. Thanks again to all...

Send us Fan Mail Like Dan Lewis, Lew was always a wacky character, but a solid cops cop. We worked together a couple times over the years. He has some great stories to share and creates a legacy his family and friends can certainly be proud of...buckle up and hang on...Lew is a fun episode, welcome him in to the Squad and enjoy the show! Be safe out there! Come see me on Facebook at  https://www.f...

Send us Fan Mail Dan and I remain friends to this day, but never worked together! In his episode we discuss how he chose law enforcement and the situations that made him realize he needed to leave law enforcement behind. We also discuss BoulderCrest and how it has been instrumental in his healing process. His story is like so many others, he sheds some light on PTSD/ PTSI and how he still actively...

Send us Fan Mail Nancy and I worked together at the end of our careers. She was the Detective Sgt in Operations Division South. We handled some capers during this time, and I felt like we were pretty solid friends, but I actually learned a lot about Nancy during our interview. There was so much more to her career than I ever knew.     I've mentioned her in previous episodes, she was a Hostage...

Send us Fan Mail Hey everyone! This week I had Lt. Dominic Flores stop by. His story is awesome, how he decided to become a public servant and serve not only his community, but also our Country as an NCO in the United States Air Force.  He shared parts of his career but the true meaning behind his visit was to share more about the BoulderCrest StruggleWell program. The Tucson Police Department is...

Send us Fan Mail Mike served the City of Tucson for 29 years. We worked together I the office of Internal Affairs, but he was a Motor officer, A SWAT Operator, a Sergeant and a good cop. He's always been a pretty funny guy, but definitely a guy you would want to have standing next to you if a situation started to go sideways.  I'm very happy he decided to come and share. His wife was als...

Send us Fan Mail Welcome back to Choir Practice! There was no way we were going to be able to capture 30 years in law enforcement in just one episode! "The human rolodex" had to return to share more experiences, refute Charles Blue and Dan Lewis' claims and set the record straight! All kidding aside, I appreciate Mark for his willingness to be on the show, to share about his battle...

Send us Fan Mail When Ari first came on the show, he wrapped up the episode by talking about pulling a traffic stop on an airplane while working undercover, spending 18 years in the Hostage Negotiations Unit and a few other stories that didn't make it into his fist interview!!! There was NO way I wasn't having him come back to explain himself! Haha I loved the conversation, but MOST of a...

Send us Fan Mail Raul and I were connected by my former co-worker, Dan Spencer, owner of Filthy Pirate Coffee. As soon as I met Raul, I knew two things: 1) I definitely want him on the show, 2) I bring him my business and recommend him for anyone needing screen printing. He started Del Designs (Find him on Instagram) several years before retiring from US CBP and he does great work, but more import...

Send us Fan Mail Throughout our careers, Dan and I had the pleasure of working together. He's genuinely one of my favorite people on the department. He's always been a comedian, so the stories and experiences surrounding Dan, whether told by him or those who know and love him, always had a hilarious spin. He accomplished many great achievements throughout his career, but I'm  happie...

Send us Fan Mail Paul and I were introduced by Gary Youngling (Episode 2). He came over and we hit it off, much like all my guests. We never worked together, but share a kindred spirit by our similar work experiences. It turns out he was in the academy with Lillian George (Episode 10)! He served the county with distinction and, in his episode, reflects on some of the more extraordinary calls he ha...

Send us Fan Mail Chuck and I ran out of time in his debut episode, but he was able to come back a couple days later and we got this episode in the books. Listen in, we chat about his shooting but we also cover one of the most "Stand up" gestures I've ever witnessed in my career. Again, it's good to call him friend and I'm glad he's in the club. He's also a part o...

Send us Fan Mail Dave began his career working in Corrections, then Adult Probation before becoming a Tucson Police Officer. We worked together briefly in Operations Division South before he retired and went to work in his family's real estate business. We had a great conversation, you won't want to miss his experiences on this week's episode! Be safe out there! Come see me on Faceb...

Send us Fan Mail Meet Charles Blue, mover and shaker, who retired from the police department early after suffering a career ending injury. He works in real estate now and is always "working a deal" so I'm honored to have wrangled him long enough to capture his episode. Like several others, he had to come back to finish sharing his stories so DO NOT miss the second part of this inter...

Send us Fan Mail Ari is a retired Tucson Police Officer who moved on to bigger and better things. Once retired, he became the Head of Security for our local power company. But more interestingly, he's been almost a lifelong member of his band, Broken Romeo, and also moonlights as a DJ on his own radio show on mojo radio. I enjoyed getting to know him better, you will too. Like several of my p...

Send us Fan Mail Mark is a great guy! He's a retired Sergeant and human rolodex! He had the uncanny ability to remember small facts about people, places and things...sometimes more reliable than NCIC! He's battling some personal medical issues, so this interview was very special to me and you will not want to miss it. Because he "The Human Rolodex," he is coming back soon becau...

Send us Fan Mail Good morning Squad and welcome to another episode of Choir Practice! Today's guest, Jennifer Gastelum , is retired from Pima County Adult Probation and now started a life coaching business "Thin Blue Line Coaching" that helps first responders create healthy habits (mentally, physically, etc) and she works with "The Wounded Blue," a peer support training or...

Send us Fan Mail David and I never worked together but hooked up via social media and got this episode knocked out! It was nice to finally get to know him, hear his perspective on his career in both AZ Dept of Corrections and Tucson Police. He has some stories you won't wanna miss, but more importantly hear about his new venture, Brave Dog LLC, where he trains dogs to help people who suffer f...

Send us Fan Mail BART! We first met at the Pima County Corrections academy in 1996! Hard to believe we've known each other 26 years. Bart recounts his experiences from State Juvenile Corrections, County Corrections and then his career with the Tucson Police. We had a blast catching up, you won't wanna miss it! He's another good friend, down to earth and an all around "Cop'...

Send us Fan Mail Ben Frie is currently a Sgt with the Tucson Police Department. We met in 2004-2005 working in the Downtown Division. We chat about his career, how he fell into law enforcement and many of the harrowing experiences he's conquered during his tenure with the agency, both in patrol and as a SWAT team member. I consider him a friend, an excellent Sgt and a great cop. Tune in and t...

Send us Fan Mail Kurt and I had such a good conversation that it ran long and I decided to split it into two episodes. Last week we touched on how he chose law enforcement and the tales from his career, this week we continue to discuss his personal experience with PTSD and the organizations he is involved in who help first responders, and Veterans, cope with PTSD. If you've listened this far,...

Send us Fan Mail PART 1- Kurt and I had never met, but within minutes it's as if we had known each other our whole careers! We ended up chatting about his stint in the Army, how he selected Criminal Justice in college, and how he moved to AZ and eventually became a Pima County Sheriff Deputy. He has funny, scary and harrowing tales of being in two separate shootings...But more importantly he...