Veteran's Affairs Plus W/ David L. Washington

Unknown Speaker 0:00
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Unknown Speaker 0:41
You can see what's going on? What's going on? What's going on? Good morning, Las Vegas. This is Veterans Affairs plus on 91.5 Jazz ammo. Can you believe it's October already. And I say that to us as the we make contact with our listening audience out here to have another show dealing with Veterans Affairs plus, I want to start out as usual with some announcements. One I want to express condolence to Jim Yeager, he's one of our fellow American Legion and he's a VFW soldier who lost his mom most recently, we just want to let you know we're thinking about your gym, care about you. And we're praying for the god ease you man as your mom has transition. Birthdays, man, I got a slew of birthdays to mention here for the month of October. A mere Armageddon, that's my little the youngest secondary youngest granddaughter Kasara armagard. Chris parks, Nathan Aragon of good works, we're going to have him and his CFO on the show in a couple of weeks and talk about what they're doing. And then we got Angel, Washington, the crime preventer. And then my sister Kathy Richardson, all of those folks are birthdays in fact, Angel, Chris Kasara, Nathan near on October 18. So it's early, but I want to say Happy Birthday upcoming for you individuals. With that, we're going to talk about a couple of things. And we have Tony Marshall, who should be calling in shortly because we want him to give us an update on where he is with some of the different things that he's doing to include working on his certification. And it's something house certifications have important place, of course, in our world. But Tony is very skilled. And he does a lot in terms of helping men and women who have been in the armed forces to get their benefits. So it's a good thing that he does. Also want to mention, as we wait on his call Laos 95 North with Sharon, and Rome, Harry, they have a new place up often 95 called 95 Now 95 North, it's a lounge that they've put together and of course, we know that they've been longtime owners of classic Jules downtown. So with that, we're going to come back on the other side with with Tony Marshall. And wishing everybody will against October is here we're in the fourth quarter of 2023. Already with that is something

Unknown Speaker 4:02
good morning. Once again, this is Veterans Affairs plus on 91.5, jazz and more. I'm Dave Washington, your host. And I'm excited to have one of the core members of this of this show. I call him because he does so much good for members of former members of the armed forces. Our military brothers and sisters, Tony helps them a lot. Tony Marshall, and I always mentioned Tony and I always give out his number. So Tony, tell us what's going on in your world, sir.

Tony 4:34
Well, I just want to let you guys know I just came back from Maryland week classes, getting my certification, just the beginning of the certification. Just got back Friday last Friday. Got a few more things to do before I am fully certified but I'll be able to help you guys from from my end rather than sending everything to Reno Hmm. So that's a good thing. That's a good thing. Absolutely. I'll be able to take care of myself. But I just want you to know that I'm still working still processing claims over at the Veteran Resource Center in North Las Vegas, and at the American Legion Post and on the west side. So you guys need help? No, no, don't hesitate to call because I'm still here to do what I can do to help you get the benefits that you need. And it's

Unknown Speaker 5:26
greatly appreciated Tony, you do as well. And, and I know you have two locations that you operate from. And you mentioned them. Do you know the addresses offhand? Because I always, always just get across to CES for as the the American Legion.

Tony 5:41
Okay, Veteran Resource Center is 3090 East Centennial Parkway. And that's right next to the YMCA on Centennial Parkway in North Las Vegas. And of course, American Legion Post in is 1905 H Street between Lake Mead. And Owens on the West side 1905 HP can't miss this beautiful building.

Unknown Speaker 6:06
Sure. So what are the hours that you run in both locations? Tony?

Tony 6:12
Well, there's no walk ins, you have to make an appointment. So you have to give me a call. My number is 301-537-9465. I'll set you up with an appointment. That way we can get you in, you're not sitting around waiting, wasting time. Let you know exactly what you need to bring with you so we can move smoothly. Again, breezy, roll one by 379465.

Unknown Speaker 6:40
Hey, that's great, Tony, once again, you all out there particularly you veterans who need some help. Tony has been doing this for quite some time now. He's going to become a certified service officer. And again, Tony, you have done a lot of work out here. Nothing but good about the work that you've done. Out of American Legion Post 10. But now you've expanded to another location as well. So you gotta make an appointment.

Tony 7:11
Okay, yeah, and one thing you definitely want to visit the Veteran Resource Center on East centennial, there's a lot of information there. They also have computers available. If you don't have one, come on in and check your emails or do whatever you need to do. You have a meeting room that's available. And like I said, there's just a whole source of information there. So just the Veteran Resource Center 3090, East Centennial Parkway, North Las Vegas.

Unknown Speaker 7:46
And Tony just as an as a refresher for me, what branch of service Did you serve in?

Tony 7:52
The United States Marine Corps versified.

Unknown Speaker 7:56
Who ROG guys? Well, alright, Tony, we appreciate you coming in and giving us just an update. And we certainly wish you will, and in your endeavor to become certified and, and once again, as I've said many times, with or without a certification, Tony has done great, great work to the members of our military community out there. So kudos to you.

Tony 8:21
I'm also an advocate of Department of Veteran Services. So you know, whatever kind of information you need, I'm pretty sure I can help you out.

Unknown Speaker 8:31
All right, Tony, as always, Tony Marshall I service officer, we appreciate the work that you continue to do for our community. So thank you. And God bless you. You're my brother. Once again, this is Veterans Affairs plus on 91.5 Jazz and more will be having two guests who were on a couple of weeks ago. And I knew that they had so much more to say that. I've invited them back in that's Richard, Jack, the third and antenas pullin, they, they run the program call Gentleman by choice so there'll be on after the break. This is Veterans Affairs plus on 91.5 Jazz.

Unknown Speaker 9:16
Good morning. Once again, this is Veterans Affairs plus on 91.5 Jazz and more. As I mentioned to you guys, as we were closing out the other segment that I invited two guests back that were on a couple of weeks ago and I just felt they had a lot more to say that's what you jack the third and Antinous pull them they are the main thrust behind Gentleman by choice so we're gonna get going with these guys. We got a number of things that I liked them to share with you guys because I think that the program that they run, and they made it known to myself and others that they also do young ladies now which is which is a godsend. I trust for those parents who have young ladies that they you'd like to get on track, if you will. So with that, brother Jack, why don't you give us a little background on yourself, please?

Unknown Speaker 10:09
Yes, sir. Retired Air Force 20 years, 21 years in the military, became a school counselor working together at Agassi. And we build German by choice from the ground up with love. With Anthony,

Unknown Speaker 10:29
how you doing? native North Las Vegas, in education space for over 25 plus years. And then my brother Jack at Agassi and like you say we built Gentleman by choice, you know, through sheer will and love.

Unknown Speaker 10:49
Excellent. Well, again, I just felt like I need to give you guys some more time to, to delve into some of the things you've done. And again, until I read your your book check, I didn't know you guys were operating in four different states simultaneously. Now, that is something that is usually unusual for such a program that was really more of a grassroots level type program, if you will, but the importance of, of trying to, and this is from my own personal experience getting young men, and now young ladies getting them on track and, and have them to know within their heart of hearts, that they are somebody they can achieve. It's just a matter of putting in the time and effort. Give me some thoughts

Unknown Speaker 11:36
that she saw. I mean, when at the start of the program, we debated as to whether or not we wanted to make this a local program, or national program, his passion for education, drove division, to make it a national program. And it says that we believe that what we're teaching is so fundamental, is so necessary today's society that we couldn't hold on to it from a local perspective. So when the opportunity came for us to push it out to such young men across the country, we decided to do that and experiment to see what would happen if it could take. And lo and behold, as we did it, we had more and more requests to grow the program, that Tacoma in California. And in Hawaii, the biggest challenge we faced is that we couldn't find men to continue the program at the level and with the level of professionalism and expectation that we had. And so when we built the program, we built it with a very high standard in mind. We didn't want to be like anybody else. But the intention was to be a national program.

Unknown Speaker 12:48
For the Atlas.

Unknown Speaker 12:51
Yeah. So how we expanded Jack moved to Hawaii to test the waters. And when I was here at Agassi still, we had two brothers that were from Tacoma, Tacoma. And they came in and saw, you know, what we were teaching. They like, man, we need this in Tacoma. So that's how that grew. And then we had a young lady who used to work at Agassi, she moved to LA and she's like, Hey, is so needed. So that's how we expand it to

Unknown Speaker 13:26
four states. And truth be told, if we had them, you know, 49 states. And as, as as being real, because it's so needed, in what we do.

Unknown Speaker 13:40
And people have a perception that the youth at a young age can't grasp the concept of leadership, you know, image financial, and etiquette training, you know, think about this overseas, and, you know, Asia they teach, the kindergarten is five, four to five different languages. So they can learn four to five different languages in kindergarten, why can't we pour a show, you know, what gentleman behaviors in lady like behaviors are at an early age. That's why I love education, I mean, elementary so much, is that you get to pour him at such a young age, and you get to see the growth, you get to grow with them. You know, like, like I said, last time, we have an original Jeff, who's a junior at St. John. And he he's doing phenomenal things like we have so many young men and young women now who are on the campuses, across the nation are doing such great things. And then their parents and themselves are paying homage to Jack and I like Hey, thank you for doing what you got. Did and continue to do? You know? So yeah, we just love what we do. And it's not about us. It's about and as a US it's not about Jack and myself. It's about them and their parents. and the community. And so that's why we're so passionate about it. And, and we struggle, I think I will downfall is that we don't promote ourselves enough like, on Facebook and, you know, the IG and all that stuff because we don't, we don't think about that we just get in and do the work, right. Right. Now we don't have we don't have tough, you know, selfies and we just didn't do the work,

Unknown Speaker 15:25
where the where the hard hat and get it done. And I think that's, that's that's commendable. Because I know, a lot of times people want to, you know, they want to get the personal accolades versus, you know, really getting down and dirty. And I think that, again, when I read that book, man, I was just so inspired about what you guys put together. And, and I know that when you're working with an organization, trying to get board members, officers, etc, to have that same passion, how that same drive, it's not an easy thing to do. So I will continue to commend you guys. And you will always have a space on this show, as long as I, I'm involved with it, because I think there's a number of veterans who have children and grandchildren out there who might hear this show and hear about your organization and me, reach out, in fact, please share the contact information. So one who may be trying to get a young man or young woman involved in something as strategic and as powerful as such an organization is gentleman in young ladies by choice can get involved with

Unknown Speaker 16:36
cheap. Can I add to that, please? Absolutely. Yeah, so when you think about Gentleman by choice, we actually put a lot of military protocols inside the program, meaning when we go to the schools, we stress discipline, and structure to our young men. And now young ladies, a lot of times, what we hear in the schools that we serve and see is that, you know, behaviors disrupt behaviors, that in a negative way. But when we come in as gentlemen, by choice, we set the expectation in the standard. And people applaud the fact that we're holding the young men and women accountable. So a lot of what we do was what I learned in the military, in terms of organization structure going going, we practice, drill, rehearse what we're teaching young men and women, we expect the expectation, or I'm sorry, we set the expectation high to encourage positive behavior. And then we hold them accountable on a consistent basis. It's not a rah, rah. But it is a straightforward approach to dealing with value at early age. And quite honestly, they respond very well, in addition to that many of the schools and classrooms we go to, are ran by females. So when we step on the campus as men, it changes the conversation and dynamics of the campus a little bit. And so because we're able to go in and make an impact, and we're able to bring some of that structure and discipline into that, it has a huge impact on our population, even our protocols, and some of the things that we do at our black and white tie Gala. It has it has some military kind of functions in there that we are very proud of. So when I pull him said that we married education in the military background together, that is a very true statement.

Unknown Speaker 18:29
Yeah, that sounds very powerful. And again, one thing that I've learned over time in my 72 years is that a lot of times people think that young folks won't respond, but they will. And I don't think you got to hit them over the head with a stick either to get them to respond. You got to and I know I read a lot in your, in your book, about the love that is shared with with these young folks. And near more response because a lot of times there's no love at home, you know, in single parent households in particular, mom or pop whomever the single parent is dealing with those children, you're trying to make a weight in terms of keeping food on the table. So you got time to be hugging and Reuben, I'm trying to get out of here where I can get to work and I don't have a lot of time to speak and that's unfortunate. But I think there's a there's a lot that you guys feel in terms of that particular gap. And and again, I just believe as Anthony says, you and I have talked about when we were coaching the football and Lanny Hogan told me, they will respond, just treat them like their little men. Don't treat them like they babies because if you do, that's how they're going to act. You got to make people stand up and be accountable to whatever it is that they've done, whether good bad or indifferent. And if you if you get them on track, most times people will stay there and and I'm proud of you guys in terms of what you said about several of your students are doing great things and and it makes you feel good. You know that your work was was done for Purpose, God put you here to do it and you making it happen. So kudos to you guys. Other states,

Unknown Speaker 20:05
I have a quick story. Quick story about that too. And we were in Hawaii, Hawaii had the the massive fires in Hawaii in line a shout out to line and, and a lot of the young men and young ladies I, I coach when I was over there, they hit us up on Facebook, and I said my prayers and love to them. And you just initially reached out with the appreciation. And I received some text message or email from a grandmother, who said that even during the tragic situation, they faced her grandson still behave like a gentleman based upon the teachings that we thought, wow. And so even during adversity, they're still carrying the torch, and maintaining their composure and stepping up rather than stepping away from the situation. And so Pullman, I'm very proud of those kinds of calls, because it really shows the impact we're having on a very quiet level.

Unknown Speaker 21:01
Excellent, excellent. And I think when it's all said and done, that's what it's all about making an impact one young person, male or female, at a time, you know, and you guys are doing a wonderful job. And I think that God will continue to bless you guys in many ways, because I know ultimately, and I know one of the things that you did, that you guys did, two weeks ago, I think it was that we were on air, a call for action. And I'm here to say we have got to, as a thing, pull him said, hey, if people will give us an hour, you know, and sometimes that it's not necessarily about money, go spend some time and let these young folks see people who've had us attain a certain level of success. And I'm not saying some high level position either, because I know some some guys that run rings around me and how they've handled their family life and done things in the community. And he got no big time job. Somewhere could stoled hers. And I'm not putting saying it. A custodial job is any anything less than an honorable job, you're doing what you need to do to take care of your family. So the work that you guys are doing, I believe it's going to continue to make impact. But by the same token, there'll be a level of burnout that we can't allow to happen.

Unknown Speaker 22:23
And it's about it's not about the present is about being present. And, you know, the, the young men and young women, everybody wants to be seen or heard, right. And so when we're seeing, if you don't see me, I might act out to get that attention. So just by being present in some, you know, when I have I have former students that I taught, we're in education now. And I share with them it's about building relationships, routines and procedures. And that's the core of Gentleman by choice and ladies by choice. You know, we build relationships. You know, we love hard, but we were fair, right? You know, we're doing the procedures, they know, they know the expectation, we have high expectations, we hold them accountable. And that's it. So for when Jack and I go into these classrooms, and people are in awe. And I'm thinking like, this is your job. Like, if you have relationships with these kids, they will run through a wall for you. I have students right now that I can call the poem posse, and some folks will be in trouble. This is about the relationships that are built with it. So we just we need to have young men, women and men just show up on these campuses. Because, again, what frustrates me the most cheap Washington is that we have some really bright young boys and girls really bright. But they're being pigeon holed because of the zip code they live in. A zip code doesn't determine how smart you are. It just sometimes determines the exposure that you get. So if they fall like oh, I can do such and such showed up cheap Washington game. Wow, I can't be achieved that he looks like me. He talks like me, then. So if that's the frustration just show up on his campuses, because we have some really, really bright young students. Some young Jensen young ladies, we really, really do.

Unknown Speaker 24:25
Well, I am going to be stepping up gentlemen. So I'll be in touch offline. So you can give me some directions of where you want me to go and spend an hour or two per week. I got that kind of time. You know, and I can't say that I don't you just no matter what you do at that time, and I think it was you Jack somebody said last time. We all get the same 24 hours, man, it's just a matter what are you going to do with? Are you going to help somebody? Or are you just going to be selfishly, you know, walking through life not willing to put any time into anyone else it makes no will sense. And I think that there's great value in what you talked about. Antinous relationships are so important to me. And I know that there's relationships that I've had over my past that that really helped me when you look back and you think about those who encourage you, they really, really stand out. And when you see people achieve, and you know, you've been a part of them, you stick your chest out, but not in a, in a way that's that's selfish, or, or that you just want to be all about, about you. And you know, you get this acknowledgement, no, it's not about that. It's just the pride that you have in seeing someone that you have touched. And they move forward. And they take the right place in society. Go ahead.

Unknown Speaker 25:47
So cheap, I guess I can say you can walk, you can walk around and stick good chest out, like I am. I'm a product of your teaching. And your belief in us as young men. You know, my mom was just talking about it earlier this morning, she was saying, when I was going to put my practice, you know, I had asthma. And she would tell him she was she would say, if you keep wheezing like that, you're not going to play anymore. And I would try to hide it in the car. Because I love I love being a part of that core group that we had, you know, and the great coaching that we had, you know, she's like, Okay, I see that you really want this badly. So I'm allow you to participate. But it was because I enjoyed coming to practice I enjoy, you know, the camaraderie we had amongst each other. And you know, so you definitely can walk, because I'm a product of you. So I just want to thank you for what you poured into my life, and also what you poured into GBC. And ladies by choice.

Unknown Speaker 26:43
I appreciate you, sir.

Unknown Speaker 26:44
Well, I appreciate that. And one thing I tell people each year, I try to send out an email to people who I know. And I said, Look, I know y'all got money, and I don't just put it in their face that way. But I say, look, here's several organizations that I make a contribution to. And we all should try to pick some organizations that we know, not just giving it to him to give it to him, but you guys are impactful. And see, I used to tell people, when I used to go speak as a fire service professional, that the door that's gonna get kicked in, and maybe yours because you didn't have time to spend with a child to get them on the right track. So so what do they do? They act out, and I'm gonna, I'm gonna get mad because we are so conditioned to having lots of stuff. I'm gonna get mad. I saw something on the news this morning, where were the thing now is the they've watched somebody who pull up to a store or gas station, and leave their car and lockni jumping and trying to grab the woman's purse, I'm like, Where was somebody to try to encourage those guys to do good in life, probably had no one. And that's not to say that all of the children or the young people that we we interact with are going to be perfect, straight lines. I'm not saying that. But I think that we all have an obligation to try and assist our fellow man and woman to be better citizens. So I commend you guys, and you have some contact information. And again, I'm calling out folks because I'm going to get myself busy, at least spending an hour or two per week at some school that may need me that I'm sure needs me because as you guys say the number of black males in these in schools and classrooms are so few.

Unknown Speaker 28:25
So with that being said, I like to get advice you to we're going to start hopefully start in the schools. sometime in October. We're working with an MOU memorandum of understanding with the Clark County School District to start work in the middle of October right now we're planning to hit three elementary schools and two middle schools.

Unknown Speaker 28:46
Very good. Well, as we wind down I want to thank you guys. Richard Jack, the third and Dennis pullin. You guys are doing outstanding work with gentlemen and young ladies by choice. So I'm going to help the push to get others involved. So thank you guys so very much. Once again, this is Veterans Affairs, plus on 91.5 chairs and more. Thanks, John.

Transcribed by https://otter.ai