Today on this special Father’s Day, as we celebrate and honor all fathers all over the world, I introduce to you a great friend and someone who is no stranger to our show, Mr. Desmond Welsh. Now here is a gentleman in my opinion who has done it right. He has been successful in raising a great son and daughter and I call him my brother. We’ve walked this spiritual journey for a long time together. In 1990, we co-founded a very unique spiritual group called Disciples of Prosperity (DOP) and that particular group was a strong and powerful catalyst for change for all of the men who joined over the next ten years. We all grew and prospered from the experience and the journey. We are truly brothers and spiritual partners in this game called life.

To tell you more about Desmond, he is a native of Jamaica W.I. previously lived in Southern California for 37 years and relocated to Austin, Texas in 2006. Desmond has fathered and parented a wonderful son who is a young adult now. His son works full time at a bank, and is entertaining a career in banking. Also, Desmond is parenting a young daughter, who is now in her 3rd year of college at an HBCU. She continues to successfully climb the educational ladder and deal with the rigors of college life.

And in honor of fathers everywhere – NEW SCHOOL and OLD SCHOOL…One Spirit – we celebrate and congratulate you Desmond on your newest and latest addition to your family…your beautiful little baby girl, known as Chinara. Chinara is now 18 months old and is simply a bundle of pure love, joy and happiness. According to Desmond he says…”Chinara is forcing me to tap into my emotional side in ways that I’ve never imagined were possible. She is truly God’s beautiful miracle and gift. Priscilla and I are so fortunate and blessed to have her in our lives.”

Desmond has worked in the mortgage industry 24 years.  He was a Real Estate broker in the State of California for 20 years and now he is also a licensed Mortgage Broker in the State of Texas.  He presently does contract work for a bank in their loss mitigation department. Desmond says, “I consider myself a spiritual person, who seeks continuous spiritual growth. I believe in a God – a non physical entity greater than myself – and I seek to develop a greater relationship and understanding with that entity/God.” 

Listen and Enjoy!

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Today’s special occasion is about honoring our children. This is a story about a beautiful little girl and a father who didn’t know she existed. Deborah was sixteen when they first met and already feeling the peer pressure and challenges of being a teenager. Listen in and hear their story and how their lives were changed in an instant from their very first meeting. That was the beginning of their inseparable journey and for Deborah, it was an awakening that has inspired her to live life to the fullest, become a writer and publish her first novel titled, “Divine Order”. As Deborah would say, “Having her father in her life means everything to her.” It has assisted her each step alone her journey to have faith in God and believe in the power of love. We salute this Dad and Daughter duo and their fantastic journey. Listen and Enjoy!

Deborah L. Harris resides in Chicago, IL where she currently resides with her husband and son. She is currently employed with the United States Postal Service. Deborah has enjoyed the craft of writing for many years. She feels that writing has allowed her the opportunity to communicate ideas beyond her wildest imagination.

Deborah enrolled in a six week writing course titled, “The Writer’s Loft” in which Jerry Cleaver was the instructor, where she was taught that a good story can never be denied. She also took a few writing courses on line in which the fundamentals of writing were refreshed, and instrumental in providing her with the proper writing technique. Deborah applied the tools given to her, along with her creative mind, and decided that ideas without execution are dead and committed to writing her first novel titled “Divine Order.”

Since the release of her self published novel in July of 2008, she has been on several radio stations interviewing about her new novel throughout the country. Divine Order was featured in Denver’s “Body Of Christ News” for Black History Month. She recently took second place in a competition on the “Out The Box” Blog Talk Radio, which is connected with the “Go On Girl Book Club” the largest African American Book Club. Deborah will also launch off her first major book signing in Chicago in June at E.T.A, one of the most well known and oldest establishments for entertainment. Deborah also will visit several other cities promoting her book in the upcoming months.

Emerson Featherstone, President of Featherstone Production Records and Promotions, originally from Chicago, IL but has lived in Los Angles for almost 40 years. His love and passion for music and representing talented singers and musical groups are endless. Some of the many talented artists that he’s represented and been associated with are the following:

DUICE – “Girls in the Daisy Dukes” (250,000 copies sold) * The DRAMATICS
* TAG TEAM – “Whoop-There It Is” * Johnny Guitar Watson * The CHI-LITES * Jody Watley – “Affection” * Tyrone Davis -“For The Good Times” * The MANHATTAN “Turn Out the Stars” * Theodis Ealy- “Stand Up In It” * BAR-KAYS – “The Real Thing” * Johnnie Taylor – “Soul Heaven” (This was Johnnie Taylor’s very last album) * Barry White – “The Right Night” and “Sho You Right” * Jean Shy and he is currently working on a new album release with L.J. Reynolds of The DRAMATICS.

As much as he is proud of his body of work for 30 plus years and his many accomplishments in the music industry, he is most proud of his family and the unconditional love that he shares with his daughter and other children and grandchildren.

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My fellow citizens, I stand here today humbled by the task before us, grateful for the trust you have bestowed, mindful of the sacrifices borne by our ancestors. I thank President Bush for his service to our nation, as well as the generosity and cooperation he has shown throughout this transition.

Forty-four Americans have now taken the presidential oath. The words have been spoken during rising tides of prosperity and the still waters of peace. Yet, every so often the oath is taken amidst gathering clouds and raging storms. At these moments, America has carried on not simply because of the skill or vision of those in high office, but because We the People have remained faithful to the ideals of our forbearers, and true to our founding documents.

So it has been. So it must be with this generation of Americans.

That we are in the midst of crisis is now well understood. Our nation is at war, against a far-reaching network of violence and hatred. Our economy is badly weakened, a consequence of greed and irresponsibility on the part of some, but also our collective failure to make hard choices and prepare the nation for a new age. Homes have been lost; jobs shed; businesses shuttered. Our health care is too costly; our schools fail too many; and each day brings further evidence that the ways we use energy strengthen our adversaries and threaten our planet.

These are the indicators of crisis, subject to data and statistics. Less measurable but no less profound is a sapping of confidence across our land – a nagging fear that America’s decline is inevitable, and that the next generation must lower its sights.

Today I say to you that the challenges we face are real. They are serious and they are many. They will not be met easily or in a short span of time. But know this, America – they will be met.

On this day, we gather because we have chosen hope over fear, unity of purpose over conflict and discord.

On this day, we come to proclaim an end to the petty grievances and false promises, the recriminations and worn out dogmas, that for far too long have strangled our politics.

We remain a young nation, but in the words of Scripture, the time has come to set aside childish things. The time has come to reaffirm our enduring spirit; to choose our better history; to carry forward that precious gift, that noble idea, passed on from generation to generation: the God-given promise that all are equal, all are free, and all deserve a chance to pursue their full measure of happiness.

In reaffirming the greatness of our nation, we understand that greatness is never a given. It must be earned. Our journey has never been one of short-cuts or settling for less. It has not been the path for the faint-hearted – for those who prefer leisure over work, or seek only the pleasures of riches and fame. Rather, it has been the risk-takers, the doers, the makers of things – some celebrated but more often men and women obscure in their labor, who have carried us up the long, rugged path towards prosperity and freedom.

For us, they packed up their few worldly possessions and traveled across oceans in search of a new life.

For us, they toiled in sweatshops and settled the West; endured the lash of the whip and plowed the hard earth.

For us, they fought and died, in places like Concord and Gettysburg; Normandy and Khe Sahn.

Time and again these men and women struggled and sacrificed and worked till their hands were raw so that we might live a better life. They saw America as bigger than the sum of our individual ambitions; greater than all the differences of birth or wealth or faction.

This is the journey we continue today. We remain the most prosperous, powerful nation on Earth. Our workers are no less productive than when this crisis began. Our minds are no less inventive, our goods and services no less needed than they were last week or last month or last year. Our capacity remains undiminished. But our time of standing pat, of protecting narrow interests and putting off unpleasant decisions – that time has surely passed. Starting today, we must pick ourselves up, dust ourselves off, and begin again the work of remaking America.

For everywhere we look, there is work to be done. The state of the economy calls for action, bold and swift, and we will act – not only to create new jobs, but to lay a new foundation for growth. We will build the roads and bridges, the electric grids and digital lines that feed our commerce and bind us together. We will restore science to its rightfu l place, and wield technology’s wonders to raise health care’s quality and lower its cost. We will harness the sun and the winds and the soil to fuel our cars and run our factories. And we will transform our schools and colleges and universities to meet the demands of a new age. All this we can do. All this we will do.

Now, there are some who question the scale of our ambitions – who suggest that our system cannot tolerate too many big plans. Their memories are short. For they have forgotten what this country has already done; what free men and women can achieve when imagination is joined to common purpose, and necessity to courage.

What the cynics fail to understand is that the ground has shifted beneath them- that the stale political arguments that have consumed us for so long no longer apply. The question we ask today is not whether our government is too big or too small, but whether it works – whether it helps families find jobs at a decent wage, care they can afford, a retirement that is dignified. Where the answer is yes, we intend to move forward. Where the answer is no, programs will end. And those of us who manage the public’s dollars will be held to account – to spend wisely, reform bad habits, and do our business in the light of day – because only then can we restore the vital trust between a people and their government.

Nor is the question before us whether the market is a force for good or ill. Its power to generate wealth and expand freedom is unmatched, but this crisis has reminded us that without a watchful eye, the market can spin out of control – and that a nation cannot prosper long when it favors only the prosperous. The success of our economy has always depended not just on the size of our Gross Domestic Product, but on the reach of our prosperity; on the ability to extend opportunity to every willing heart – not out of charity, but because it is the surest route to our common good.

As for our common defense, we reject as false the choice between our safety and our ideals. Our Founding Fathers, faced with perils we can scarcely imagine, drafted a charter to assure the rule of law and the rights of man, a charter expanded by the blood of generations. Those ideals still light the world, and we will not give them up for expedience’s sake. And so to all other peoples and governments who are watching today, from the grandest capitals to the small village where my father was born: know that America is a friend of each nation and every man, woman, and child who seeks a future of peace and dignity, and we are ready to lead once more.

Recall that earlier generations faced down fascism and communism not just with missiles and tanks, but with sturdy alliances and enduring convictions. They understood that our power alone cannot protect us, nor does it entitle us to do as we please. Instead, they knew that our power grows through its prudent use; our security emanates from the justness of our cause, the force of our example, the tempering qualities of humility and restraint.

We are the keepers of this legacy. Guided by these principles once more, we can meet those new threats that demand even greater effort – even greater cooperation and understanding between nations. We will begin to responsibly leave Iraq to its people, and forge a hard-earned peace in Afghanistan. With old friends and former foes, we will work tirelessly to lessen the nuclear threat, and roll back the specter of a warming planet. We will not apologize for our way of life, nor will we waver in its defense, and for those who seek to advance their aims by inducing terror and slaughtering innocents, we say to you now that our spirit is stronger and cannot be broken; you cannot outlast us, and we will defeat you.

For we know that our patchwork heritage is a strength, not a weakness. We are a nation of Christians and Muslims, Jews and Hindus – and non-believers. We are shaped by every language and culture, drawn from every end of this Earth; and because we have tasted the bitter swill of civil war and segregation, and emerged from that dark chapter stronger and more united, we cannot help but believe that the old hatreds shall someday pass; that the lines of tribe shall soon dissolve; that as the world grows smaller, our common humanity shall reveal itself; and that America must play its role in ushering in a new era of peace.

To the Muslim world, we seek a new way forward, based on mutual20interest and mutual respect. To those leaders around the globe who seek to sow conflict, or blame their society’s ills on the West – know that your people will judge you on what you can build, not what you destroy. To those who cling to power through corruption and deceit and the silencing of dissent, know that you are on the wrong side of history; but that we will extend a hand if you are willing to unclench your fist.

To the people of poor nations, we pledge to work alongside you to make your farms flourish and let clean waters flow; to nourish starved bodies and feed hungry minds. And to those nations like ours that enjoy relative plenty, we say we can no longer afford indifference to suffering outside our borders; nor can we consume the world’s resources without regard to effect. For the world has changed, and we must change with it.

As we consider the road that unfolds before us, we remember with humble gratitude those brave Americans who, at this very hour, patrol far-off deserts and distant mountains. They have something to tell us, just as the fallen heroes who lie in Arlington whisper through the ages. We honor them not only because they are guardians of our liberty, but because they embody the spirit of service; a willingness to find meaning in something greater than themselves. And yet, at this moment – a moment that will define a generation – it is precisely this spirit that must inhabit us all.

For as much as government can do and must do, it is ultimately the faith and determination of the American people upon which this nation relies. It is the kindness to take in a stranger when the levees break, the selflessness of workers who would rather cut their hours than see a friend lose their job which sees us through our darkest hours. It is the firefighter’s courage to storm a stairway filled with smoke, but also a parent’s willingness to nurture a child, that finally decides our fate.

Our challenges may be new. The instruments with which we meet them may be new. But those values upon which our success depends – honesty and hard work, courage and fair play, tolerance and curiosity, loyalty and patriotism – these things are old. These things are true. They have been the quiet force of progress throughout our history. What is demanded then is a return to these truths. What is required of us now is a new era of responsibility – a recognition, on the part of every American, that we have duties to ourselves, our nation, and the world, duties that we do not grudgingly accept but rather seize gladly, firm in the knowledge that there is nothing so satisfying to the spirit, so defining of our character, than giving our all to a difficult task.

This is the price and the promise of citizenship.

This is the source of our confidence- the knowledge that God calls on us to shape an uncertain destiny.

This is the meaning of our liberty and our creed – why men and women and children of every race and every faith can join in celebration across this magnificent mall, and why a man whose father less than sixty years ago might not have been served at a local restaurant can now stand before you to take a most sacred oath.

So let us mark this day with remembrance, of who we are and how far we have traveled. In the year of America’s birth, in the coldest of months, a small band of patriots huddled by dying campfires on the shores of an icy river. The capital was abandoned. The enemy was advancing. The snow was stained with blood. At a moment when the outcome of our revolution was most in doubt, the father of our nation ordered these words be read to the people:

“Let it be told to the future world…that in the depth of winter, when nothing but hope and virtue could survive … that the city and the country, alarmed at one common danger, came forth to meet [it].”

America. In the face of our common dangers, in this winter of our hardship, let us remember these timeless words. With hope and virtue, let us brave once more the icy currents, and endure what storms may come. Let it be said by our children’s children that when we were tested we refused to let this journey end, that we did not turn back nor did we falter; and with eyes fixed on the horizon and God’s grace upon us, we carried forth that great gift of freedom and delivered it safely to future generations.

Thank you. God bless you. And God bless the United States of America.

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Coach Cleamons played nine year in the NBA on four different teams (the LA Lakers, Cleveland Cavaliers, the New York Knicks, and The Washington Bullets).

In 1976, Cleamons was selected to the NBA ALL-DEFENSE 2ND TEAM.
In addition to his playing career, Cleamons was the head coach of the Dallas Mavericks for slightly over one year, from 1996 to 1997. Cleamons was also an assistant coach for the New Orleans/Oklahoma City Hornets. Since July 19, 2006, Coach Cleamons has rejoined the Lakers coaching staff to assist in the continuation of the Lakers winning tradition.

In his career, Coach Cleamons has won a total of 8 NBA championships first as an athlete and then as a coach. His successful basketball career now extends well over 40 years and he has no plans of slowing down. He has won championships at every level of his career from childhood until now…As an Athlete and As a Coach. We are honored to have him with us today as we approach and ponder the Real Measure and Soul of a Man.

If there’s one statement that defines the heart and soul of Jim Cleamons it would be this…
”There Goes A Man That Did The Best That He Could Each and Every Day That He Could”

Thank you Coach Cleamons for Sharing Your Story and for Helping to Make A Difference.
It Is Truly An Honor!

Listen and Enjoy!

The Real Measure and Soul of a Man

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After completing his four year term on the football team, he received an offer from the Detroit Lions to try out for the team as a free-agent draft. However, Brown chose to focus his efforts on graduating from college; he received his B.S. Degree in Science and Health & Physical Education in 1962. Immediately he began his coaching career and gained experience coaching basketball, football and track. Ultimately, Brown’s love of basketball overshadowed his football and track interests, and he pursued only basketball coaching positions which enabled him to build impressive basketball records. He has experiences on the Middle, High School, and University levels.

Brown was selected to coach Division One Basketball at McNeese State University in Lake Charles, Louisiana where he later obtained a Master’s Degree in School Administration and Supervision. Years later, Brown took a break from coaching to operate a successful insurance office, but soon accepted an Assistant Basketball coaching position at Georgia Southwestern State University where he served as coach for four years.

Next, he became an Assistant High School Principal, and in 1999 he acceptance a Head Principal position at Dougherty County Middle school in Albany, Georgia. In 2000, Brown was ordained as a minister and became the spiritual leader of Weldon Springs Baptist Church in Albany.

Currently, he is retired and resides in Newnan, Georgia with his wife Mary and their fourteen year old son Billy Ray Brown, II. Billy Ray Brown, Sr. enjoys reading the Bible, teaching bible study as the minister of the Bridge Builder’s Ministry at St. Smyrna Baptist Church, and managing his home-based business. Brown is the author of a defensive basketball book titled SAMM (Systematic Approach to Manipulative Movements).

Now that Coach Brown has officially retired, he and his wife Mary are the proud authors of a new and exciting series of motivational books for kids entitled “SAMM I Am” and “Grandpa’s Regret.” Brown is also the author of his newly revised basketball manual entitled “SAMM. A Systematic Approach to Manipulative Movement.” Brown says, “This is the book of all books for basketball coaches and players who know that defense is the key to winning games.”

It is with great honor that I present to you Coach Billy R. Brown, Sr.

Memoirs of an Old School Dad

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While raising his children, Bill earned a B.A. degree from the Univ. of CA, Irvine, and on many occasions, his children experienced university lectures, concerts, and campus activities. He feels he was blessed to be in the right place at the right time.

The children attended the campus preschool and Montessori schools. Bill believes the early exposure to college life contributed to all four of his children being university graduates. The oldest has a Masters from Harvard, the next has a M.D. from the University of Michigan, the 3rd a B.A. from Loyola Marymount University, and the youngest a B.S. from UCLA. Again, Bill believes the results came from seeds of academia planted early in their formative years.

Bill has an extensive sales career. He began selling magazines door-to-door at age 10. From there, helping sell food from his grandmother’s catering wagon, corner newspapers, and Junior Achievers products in High school. Later, he was licensed in CA to sell life, property and casualty insurance, annuities, commodities, foreign currencies, stocks and bonds. Bill believes that finance impacts all of our lives, and knowledge of the principles helps all to succeed,

He believes his early exposure to handling money helped him to excel at learning mathematics and the sciences. Bill retired from sales, and during his 16 years with LAUSD, the Los Angeles Unified School District, he headed an Alternative Education and Work Center for at-risk high school students. His greatest joy was working the learning centers for the homeless population on Skid Row in Los Angeles.

Bill is retired from LAUSD, and works part-time in the learning center at the Union Rescue Mission in downtown LA.

He believes the Universal Spirit Energy, known to many as God, is always available to all who seek Its guidance. Our biggest challenge is to listen and to respond with faith to receive our blessings, our GOOD.

Bill feels he has an extremely blessed life, and resides with Tina, his wife, in Rancho Palos Verdes, CA where they own and operate a Home-Staging and redesign business.

This is the Bill Parish story.

Listen. Learn. Enjoy!
Tony L. Harris

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Dr. Burns, throughout his career has implemented and outlined strategies for personal success and described techniques that a University can use to encourage minority students early in life to get involved in natural resources and agriculture.

He received a B.S. in Agronomy from the Fort Valley State University in Fort Valley, Georgia, an M.S. in Agronomy from the University of Wisconsin, and a Ph.D. in Plant Breeding with a minor in Plant Pathology from the University of Arizona.

In 1988, Dr. Burns was a Visiting Professor at the University of Delaware and in 1989 he was a Visiting Scientist in the Discovery Group at American Cyanamid in Princeton, NJ. During both of these Visiting Professor positions, Dr. Burns learned valuable biotechnology skills and techniques that he later used to establish the first biotechnology laboratory at Tuskegee University and the first biotechnology laboratory in Zaire.

In 1991, Dr. Burns embarked upon a long and illustrious international career when he became the Plant Breeder/Pathologist with the RAV II Extension and Research Project in Zaire (now Congo) for two years. He then moved to Cameroon where he served as the Plant Breeder/Pathologist with the Root and Fiber Crop research program for two years. Dr. Burns has also had short-term assignments in several countries such as Guyana, El Salvador, Burkina Faso, Chad, Zaire, South Africa, Nigeria, Liberia and Rwanda. In 1995 Dr. Burns left Tuskegee University to become the Associate Administrator of Extension at Langston University.

In 1997, he was named the acting Dean for Research and Extension and in 1998 was named the Dean of the newly formed school of Agriculture and Applied Sciences. He has been living in the great state of Oklahoma for 9 years and we celebrate with him on recently becoming a grandfather. His granddaughter is Ashima Burns, born on Christmas day 2007. Congratulations, Dr. Burns on becoming a grandfather and we welcome you to the show.

Listen. Learn. Enjoy.
Tony L Harris

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Today, we have on the show our youngest guest ever. He is a young man, 14 years of age, from Oklahoma, and already has the foresight and the awareness to recognize the importance of stepping up and speaking out with his story…his truth.

Here is a young man who is exercising his freedom of speech and has chosen to let his voice be heard. And even though he is only 14 years old, he has the wisdom and courage of men three times his age.

He is Mr. Tyler Harris. And although we share the same surname, in a very strange way, it saddens me to have to clarify by saying, “No, he is not my son.” In fact, we are of no relationship, but I can honestly say he is the type of young man that I would be proud to call my son.

For the last several weeks Tyler and I have been working successfully together in a mentoring program that we’re calling “OLD SCHOOL DAD^® Mentors 4 Young Men”. Tyler is the first of many young men who are signing up to be a part of this new program. I can say without hesitation that I look forward to talking to him each week, and I have learned as much from talking to him as I hope he is learning from me.

Tyler is a People to People Student Ambassador, the starting center for his football team, a good student and a really mature young man. This is a story that may change everything…and it is my hope…my desire that his story reaches you in your very heart and soul.

This is the Tyler Harris story. Listen. Learn. Enjoy.

Enjoy!
Tony L. Harris

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Enjoy!
Tony L. Harris

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Desmond is a native of Jamaica W.I., previously lived in southern California for 37 years, and recently relocated to Austin, Texas, with his family. Desmond has fathered and parented a son who is a young adult now, attending a major university out west. His son will soon be graduating and his future looks bright. Also, Desmond is parenting a young daughter, who is in her final year of high school and upon graduating has aspirations and goals of also attending a major university to pursue her dreams in life.

Desmond has been a mortgage broker for the past 20 years. He holds a Real Estate license in the State of California and a Mortgage Broker’s license in the State of Texas.

Desmond says, “I consider myself a spiritual person who seeks continuous spiritual growth. I believe in a God – a non-physical entity greater than myself – and I seek to develop a greater relationship and understanding with that entity / God.”

This is Part One of the Desmond Welsh story.

Enjoy!
Tony L. Harris

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