Shreveport-Bossier: My City, My Community, My Home

Episode 14 Logan Lewis - ”Shreveport-Bossier: My City, My Community, My Home”

Logan Lewis, Executive Director of Red River Revel, Inc, sits down with Jeffrey Goodman, Director of Marketing and Development with the YMCA of Northwest Louisiana, to answer the following questions:
 
0:30 1. Logan, on February 1 of this year you became the new Executive Director of Red River Revel, Inc. Red River Revel, Inc. is the 501c3 nonprofit organization that brings annual events to Northwest Louisiana, including Red River Revel Arts Festival, CORK: A Red River Revel Wine Event, the Shreveport Farmers’ Market, and Shreveport BREW.
 
Talk to me about the Revel. Why is this festival important for our community? What makes it great and how will it be even better in the years to come?
 
21:17 2. In your new role, as well as in your previous role working for six years as the Director of Marketing and Memberships for the Independence Bowl, you have been in the middle of some of the most important events this community has to offer.
 
Talk to me about your views of community. You obviously see the value in bringing people together. Who taught you this sense of community or how did you come to determine that building community is important?
 
36:04 3. You currently head up two musical acts in your “free time” – Logan and the Legendaries and Logan Lewis and the Tree Fiddy Trio. Talk to me about the local music scene. Is it healthy? Where is it thriving, how could it continue to evolve to become even more vital?
 
45:25 4. For a number of years now, you have been in a position of selling the Shreveport-Bossier area, whether it was marketing a football game in December and trying to entice people to travel into the area for the event or convincing musical acts or artists to come participate in the Revel or Farmers Market or one of the other numerous events you oversee. When you are selling our strengths, what do you emphasize? Or, in other words, how do you sell this area to someone who has never been here before?
 
51:08 5. What is holding us back from being one of the great, small cities in America?
 
59:52 6. What will propel us forward in the years to come?

Episode 13 Crystal Tate Barnes - ”Shreveport-Bossier: My City, My Community, My Home”

Crystal Tate Barnes, Principal of Booker T Washington High School, sits down with Jeffrey Goodman, Director of Marketing and Development with the YMCA of Northwest Louisiana, to answer the following questions:
 
0:44 1. Crystal, you recently completed your third year as the Principal of Booker T Washington High School. Talk to me if you could about the high school. How many students do you currently have? What neighborhoods do the students come from?
 
4:20 2. Talk to me about the demographics of the students the high school currently serves.
 
5:18 3. You have an interesting perspective in that you were once a student at Booker T Washington. In what areas is the school struggling or what challenges is the school facing compared to when you went there as a student?
 
17:12 4. On the flip side, talk about some of the areas where the school has progressed and is excelling compared to when you were a student there.
 
23:42 5. I’m ashamed to admit but I don’t believe I have ever set foot in Booker T Washington, even though I am 48 and have spent 35 of my 48 years in the Shreveport-Bossier area. I graduated from Captain Shreve. For those listening who like me have yet to visit your school, compare and contrast the school experience in 2022 at Booker T versus Captain Shreve.
 
27:08 6. As you look around your school and student body, what makes you hopeful about the future of Shreveport-Bossier?

Episode 12 Steve Walker - ”Shreveport-Bossier: My City, My Community, My Home”

Steve Walker, Former President and CEO of Commercial National Bank, sits down with Jeffrey Goodman, Director of Marketing and Development with the YMCA of Northwest Louisiana, to answer the following questions:
 
0:45 1. You retired from JPMorgan Chase (JPMC) in 2015 after a 39 year career in commercial banking. You were President and CEO of Commercial National Bank from 1989-1997 and assumed executive positions at the headquarters of each respective entity with whom you worked.
 
You have been honored, to cite but a couple, by being named to the Junior Achievement of North Louisiana Hall of Fame Laureates and LSU’s EJ Ourso College of Business Hall of Distinction.
 
All of this to say, you have had an unusually successful professional career and could live anywhere in the world you chose. We are so happy that you did but I have to ask - why have you chosen to continue to be involved in this community and why did you stay in the Shreveport-Bossier area?
 
15:08 2. You recently were part of a group that put together a plan to buy Southern Trace Country Club from its previous owners, ClubCorp. Talk to me about this process, how you and your group made it happen, what you are hoping to achieve by being membership-owned and some of the changes you have made to the club since the purchase occurred.
 
30:31 3. From your perspective, where is Shreveport-Bossier headed as a community?
 
41:37 4. What is holding us back?
 
48:45 5. What will propel us forward?
 
53:07 6. Lastly, what makes you prideful about being from Plain Dealing and about living in the Shreveport-Bossier area?

Episode 11 Carranza Pryor - ”Shreveport-Bossier: My City, My Community, My Home”

Carranza Pryor, Chief Counsel of LSU Health Shreveport, sits down with Jeffrey Goodman, Director of Marketing and Development with the YMCA of Northwest Louisiana, to answer the following questions:
 
0:50 1. Carranza, you graduated from Captain Shreve in 1987 and I graduated from Captain Shreve in 1992 and man did your legacy loom large. It was mind-boggling how many times one of my teachers bragged on the greatness that was Carranza Pryor.
 
I don’t want to embarrass you but just want to single out quickly a few of your accomplishments – Valedictorian of Captain Shreve, National Merit Scholar, Governor at Louisiana Boys State, Undergraduate Degree with Honors from Harvard, Law Degree from Yale and now Chief Counsel of LSU Health Shreveport.
 
You moved away for a long time, living in Cambridge, New Haven, Birmingham, Charlotte, Atlanta. What did you notice when you returned to live in Shreveport-Bossier? What felt the same? What felt different?
 
11:01 2. If Shreveport-Bossier had 5-10 Carranza Pryors every year who we exported for college but who then returned to live here, I can’t even imagine how much better this community would be for it. What’s the secret from your perspective? How do we get more of our exceptional kids, like you, to want to come back here to live?
 
20:21 3. I tend to like this next question. You have a friend from Harvard, who has never been to Shreveport-Bossier before, come to stay with you. He or she is only in town one full day. Where do you take him or her to give a sense of your Shreveport-Bossier?
 
31:26 4. This might be a slightly unfair question with no easy answers but how do we grow as a community into something that more closely resembles Birmingham, Charlotte or Atlanta?
 
46:04 5. What makes you prideful of Shreveport-Bossier?
 
48:29 6. What makes you hopeful about the future of Shreveport-Bossier?

Episode 10 Kasie Mainiero - ”Shreveport-Bossier: My City, My Community, My Home”

Kasie Mainiero, Principal of University Elementary School, sits down with Jeffrey Goodman, Director of Marketing and Development with the YMCA of Northwest Louisiana, to answer the following questions:
 
0:32 1. Kasie, if I’m not mistaken you have worked in Caddo Parish schools for 24 years. Talk to me about some of the positive changes you have seen take place in Caddo Parish schools during your career so far?
 
4:22 2. What are some of the biggest challenges you face as the principal at University?
 
6:12 3. You once said:
 
“I truly believe students cannot reach academic goals without having their basic needs like love and safety met first. We have to help them deal with the stress, pressures and trauma to build a positive relationship with them before we’re able to get them where they need to be. This is what elementary school should be about. Building trusting relationships with children, showing them that school can be a positive place where they can learn and grow.”
 
Talk to me if you could a little about the quote above.
 
20:58 4. University has formed a We Care partnership with Community Renewal. Can you speak a little about this program and what it is?
 
21:04 5. I assume that parents and schools form a crucial relationship, that parents play a major role in a child’s success at school. Can you speak a little about this? What are the key things a parent can do to supplement the work you and your staff do at University?
 
27:18 6. You are involved with the future kids of Shreveport-Bossier. As you look to the future of our community, what makes you optimistic?

Episode 9 Tom Harrison - ”Shreveport-Bossier: My City, My Community, My Home”

Tom Harrison, Executive Pastor of Broadmoor Baptist Church, sits down with Jeffrey Goodman, Director of Marketing and Development with the YMCA of Northwest Louisiana, to answer the following questions:
 
0:34 1. Dr. Harrison, correct me if I am wrong, you did not grow up in Shreveport-Bossier but moved here in 1981 and have been here ever since. What did Shreveport-Bossier look and feel like when you arrived?
 
2:44 2. Can you talk about some areas of the community in which you have seen positive growth in the 41 years since you have been here?
 
9:30 3. From your perspective, where do we still struggle the most as a community?
 
10:44 4. You are the Executive Pastor at Broadmoor Baptist Church. Talk to me if you would a little about the church - its values and focus.
 
15:35 5. You have led and continue to lead a tremendous life of service. I asked a similar question recently at a panel discussion we hosted. If someone came to you and wanted your opinion on whether or not he/she is giving back to the community enough, how would you determine that?
 
18:58 6. In your career, you have done a significant amount of mission work all around the world. When you meet people during your travels and they ask you what it’s like in Shreveport-Bossier, what do you tell them?

Episode 8 Verni Howard - ”Shreveport-Bossier: My City, My Community, My Home”

Verni Howard, Executive Director of Providence House, sits down with Jeffrey Goodman, Director of Marketing and Development with the YMCA of Northwest Louisiana, to answer the following questions:
 
0:36 1. You once said, “People have looked at community as just their neighborhood. Community is so much bigger than that. To be a part of a community means you don’t just live in a space. It means you take part in the political process. It means you take part in the service process. It means you take part in the engagement process to make your community better and stronger.”
 
Talk to me a little about this quote above. I find it so inspiring and aligned with what we are trying to help foster with the discussions like we are having today.
 
7:32 2. With this next question I’m going to cheat a little bit and steal something you told me when we last talked on the phone.
 
My question is…who is Shreveport-Bossier?
 
10:15 3. You have an interesting perspective, in that you are a graduate of Caddo Magnet High and now have a daughter who is currently a student at Caddo Magnet High. As you watch your daughter experience Caddo Magnet in 2022, what makes you concerned compared to the experience you had when you were in high school there during the eighties?
 
16:48 4. What makes you hopeful as you compare your high school experience to what you see your daughter experiencing now?
 
27:28 5. You do extraordinary work as the Executive Director at Providence House. Talk to me a little about the homeless in our community. Are most of the families who are homeless in our community struggling with issues around poverty, mental health, drugs? What are the main causses of creating homeless in our community?
 
44:39 6. What changes do you feel we need to make in order to make this community a place your two very bright kids want to return to, to live, after they complete their schooling?

Episode 7 Jamal Martin - ”Shreveport-Bossier: My City, My Community, My Home”

Jamal Martin, Documentary Photographer and Filmmaker, sits down with Jeffrey Goodman, Director of Marketing and Development with the YMCA of Northwest Louisiana, to answer the following questions:
 
0:39 1. I recently was reading an interview with the writer William S Burroughs and he made the statement, “…dreaming is a very necessary function, and I think that’s something that artists do. They dream for other people.”
 
How do you feel about that statement? How would you describe what you feel is your role as a photographer and as an artist?
 
2:02 2. I’ve read that your stepfather is the one that introduced you to photography. Talk to me about his influence and how he inspired you to take photographs yourself?
 
3:20 3. Most of the photos of yours I have seen seem captured rather than staged. Talk to me a little about your process. Do you just always have your camera on you? What happens to make you decide to pull your camera out and start photographing?
 
6:03 4. I asked another guest a similar question recently. You have a friend come into town that has never been to the Shreveport-Bossier area before. He or she is only in town for one full day. Where do you go or where do you take him or her to give them a feel for your community?
 
10:00 5. You are a young, black man, a photographer that focuses mainly on the black community locally. From your perspective, is the black community unified with the white community in the Shreveport-Bossier area? And, if not, as you look around, what are some of the steps you feel could be taken to help bring these two communities closer together?
 
14:57 6. This new initiative we started at the Y, “Shreveport-Bossier: My City, My Community, My Home” has two components, the podcast interview series like we’re doing today and then a periodic panel discussion series. We have announced that our next panel discussion will focus on the issue of juvenile crime in the Shreveport-Bossier area. How do see the juvenile crime problem in our community? And do you see any steps we can start taking to help address the problem?
 
17:22 7. I’ve read that having people see black joy is important to you. Can you talk a little about that?

Episode 6 Dr. Kenna Franklin - ”Shreveport-Bossier: My City, My Community, My Home”

Dr. Kenna Franklin, Assistant Provost of Diversity, Inclusion and Community Engagement, sits down with Jeffrey Goodman, Director of Marketing and Development with the YMCA of Northwest Louisiana, to answer the following questions:
 
0:58 1. I read that you have been on the faculty at LSUS since 1990 and it made me think of a comment I recently heard. We recently conducted a panel discussion at the Y and someone made the comment that she had moved away for 17 years and that when she moved back in 2008, she couldn’t believe how many great strides we had made in a number of different areas of our community.
 
Yet from her perspective, the one area we had made no progress at all was with regards to our unity. From your perspective, have we made progress here with race relations in the 32 years since you have been at LSUS?
 
9:08 2. As I was doing my research on you, I came across something called the “Bi-Racial Undergraduate Learning Experience” that took place in 1993. Can you explain a little about what this course was?
 
17:37 3. I heard you reference a digital library the university has begun to compile as part of its Diversity, Inclusion, and Community Engagement program. Can you talk a little about it? What is it and how can one access it?
 
30:14 4. Arthur Ashe, the great tennis player once was quoted as saying, “Start where you are. Use what you have. Do what you can.”
 
This quote seems to line up with much of what I have read about you and the way you think about and see the world. Can you talk a little about that?
 
32:54 5. I am embarrassed to admit that it was not until recently that I first heard the following to describe Shreveport, “when a majority becomes a minority.” Are there cities around the country where the white majority became a minority that Shreveport can use as examples of how to effectively navigate and manage this transition?

Episode 5 Graham Walker - ”Shreveport-Bossier: My City, My Community, My Home”

Graham Walker, President and CEO of Fibrebond Corporation, sits down with Jeffrey Goodman, Director of Marketing and Development with the YMCA of Northwest Louisiana, to answer the following questions: 0:42 1. Graham, in 2018 you wrote an op-ed piece for The Shreveport Times in response to WalletHub ranking Shreveport 182 out of 182 places to find a job. I consider the piece you wrote as strong a state of the union on our community as I have ever read.
 
Here are the final lines for those who may not have read it yet,
 
“As a community, we must find a vision for Shreveport. The talented people of this city and region deserve it, but they will not wait forever. If we don’t start demanding more of our leaders and of ourselves, we’ll deserve to stay at the bottom of the list.”
 
I asked if you would be willing to come today and verbally update the piece you wrote in 2018 to what you now see four years later and you generously agreed to do it. So Graham, if you were writing an op-ed on Shreveport-Bossier in 2022, what would you say?
 
2:51 2. With this next question I'm looking to you for some guidance. Every resident of this area has been in this situation at one time and will inevitably encounter it again. You are at a dinner party or around friends and someone starts putting down or bad mouthing Shreveport-Bossier. What's the right way to react if we hope to correct that type of behavior moving forward?
 
9:35 3. Now I’d lie you to comment on some other quotes I have read from you through the years:
 
“If your expectations are not high, you’ll become what that expectation is.”
 
11:00 4. “We don’t make a great impression.”
 
14:51 5. “What this area needs and what’s currently lacking is a sense of hope.”
 
19:40 6. “It feels like, in a lot of ways, a very authentic, real place.”
 
21:56 7. “How do we create what’s happening in other cities? How do we do that here?”
 
24:40 8. “If we’re all too busy to do it. If we don’t see it as important to give back into the community and to try to do something. If we’re not going to do it. Who is going to do it?”