 Hi, I am Jan Reardon. I am here representing the Jennifer Reardon Foundation. Jennifer is my sister-in-law, and we are here to honor her spirit and keeping her mantra of being kind, loving, caring, and sharing alive. And what better way than to mention the fact that we are just back from our first 2022 East Coast Kindness Tour. And I had the pleasure of a mini tour back during COVID from Albuquerque to Burlington with my son. And then this one was on the East Coast we traveled down through and will be able to recap that today with my special guest, Johnny Mendez, who is right here with me. Johnny is the owner of Henhouse Media, and he was the producer of the film that we have now from the East Coast Tour. And we'll be showing different pictures and different stops along the way as we chat about that. But it is so good to see you, Johnny. I was just mentioning to Johnny that just sitting here talking before the show, I have a new feeling of being refreshed and revived because we spent a week of pure goodness. Everything was so genuine and loving. It was like a, sadly, a step out of reality to just have everything go so well with so much love all around you instead of everything we hear about in the news in and out every single day. And so first of all, let me just say thank you so much for being here. I'll give you a chance to say a few words before we start talking a little bit about the tour. But again, thank you not only for what you did to capture Jen's spirit along the way. And boy, we did spend kindness and it will be within me and my heart forever. And for all the people along the way that we're still in contact with, it's just beautiful. So I know we did what we set out to do, but please go right ahead and say a few words about the tour, Johnny. Oh, absolutely. And I gotta thank you for making us a part of it. It wouldn't have been the same otherwise. In many ways, it's one of those life-changing trips. I think you're in Vermont where we tend to be blessed with many things. And when you really go out there and you see sort of what everyone is going through and what the folks who are kind of stepping up to make real, impactful change, significant changes in people's lives, what they're up against, but how they every day rise to meet that need and ex-sell. It's inspiring. I know. Like we'd get into the van at the end of the day and we're like, whoa, okay, better notch it up a little bit. Yeah, you know, the trip itself, there was a lot to do and at times it got kind of emotional. Exactly, it certainly did. I know I had a moment in Baltimore with it, but seeing all of these different organizations, and not just with people, but also with animals. Exactly. And that's community vitality at its finest. What, we'll talk a little bit more about Danny and Ron's dog rescue down in Camden, South Carolina, which was just, that's where, I became very emotional there. They made 141 dogs living in their house that they've provided life for that most people don't get to live. The lifestyle that these dogs, thankfully, have been able to come out of the worst of conditions that we heard and it was heart-wrenching. But to see what they've done and their commitment to sustain this since 2005, it all started Hurricane Katrina. They thought they were saving a few stranded abandoned dogs and now, what was it, 14,000 dogs later that they've rescued? Here they are with 141 in their home and it's just a beautiful story, what they do for the community. They've built a new shelter. They're taking care of spaying and neutering, so. But anyway, as you say, it was very emotional. I couldn't agree with you more. Exactly, and all of the work that they do, we don't realize necessarily the impact that it's gonna have beyond just their own borders. That's right. And we saw what Danny and Ron, they actually helped one veteran in Vermont who needed help with the surgery of the dog. We just called them out of the blue and they helped them out. So small connections even from state to state. Absolutely. Yeah, look forward to chatting about each of the locations. Oh, wonderful. Having gone on the tour, obviously, and being such a vital integral part of that tour, is there anything that you took away that you felt as though you were going to implement in your own world with your family at work as far as something, and you're a very kind person, we've talked about this before, but did anything sort of resonate with you to the point where it's like, I'm gonna do things a little differently in this way or that way. Was there a takeaway like that for you? I know we all kind of talked about it at one point. Perspective for me. That was the word of the trip for me. You know, I sort of define kindness as empathy, awareness, and understanding. And if you can sort of implement those three things in any situation that you're in, especially right at the beginning, as opposed to at the end, after things have gotten heated or what have you, but if you kind of walk into it with those three things in mind, it kind of changes the outcome in many ways. And many times you walk away with new friends that you didn't think you would have. And they all lead up to perspective. So every time we would go into one of these locations, you saw almost instantly what it was that they were facing. And it makes you understand that sometimes you're preconceived notions about what life should be or how someone should, you know, let's say just pick themselves up by the bootstraps as we were all fond of saying, how difficult that can actually be. And when you have that kind of perspective and then you see how they're rising to it with a smile on their face and kindness towards everyone that they engage with and meet, it has, there's no way that it can't change you. And so I came back with sort of a renewed perspective and a renewed energy to impact all of us. That's what we were feeling every single time we stopped and had a chance to meet with different people and find out a little bit more about what they have been able to accomplish in their community. And the fact that we all learned so much from it was really the bonus. I mean, I never expected that. But can you think of a situation, for instance, in your community where you would be able to implement something that tied into kindness for families, for community members, for employees of the community, how could you see a way of making Essex in this case more vibrant based on kindness? I think, yeah, and that was, that's a tough question. It's a big question. Right. And I think I can go back a little bit and say that everything kind of starts in your own home and then even further back, it kind of starts with yourself. You have to be kind to yourself. There you have it. Right. And then within your own, the walls of your home, make sure that you're all practicing kindness at every stage and understanding that we all have bad days, but we should all kind of be able to support each other and find ways to help each other within your home. And then beyond that, how can we help? The ripple effect. The ripple effect. Which we heard so much about. Exactly, every interaction that we have throughout the day. Everyone's having, you know, folks who are having a bad day and how can you make their day just a little bit better? Right. Just a little acts. And then you go into the bigger elements and whether it's, you know, in Essex, we had quite the political issue with, you know, the town splitting with the... I live in the city. And I live in the town. Exactly. And here we are. And here we are. And I think that in many ways, if there was just a little bit more understanding and the ability to really have conversations without allowing some that were coming in with just more animosity. Exactly. If there were more conversation, perhaps more would have understood the issue at hand. More would have even shown up to the polls to vote. Yes, less judgment. I think some maybe avoided it altogether. Exactly. So I think simple things like that. And then on the other hand, just really understanding that not all of us in the population have all of the blessings that, you know, we have each day. That some have real challenges that they have to face. And how can we as a community help to serve them better every single day? Yes. It's about giving that hand up to someone who is just having a much harder time than you are and being able to give of yourself to help them up and help them achieve something better. And we saw that every single stop that we were in. It's so true. How they were all giving of themselves. And it's all grassroots to start. It has to be. It has to start there and prove itself, get that momentum going and really have it become more of a movement. And that's how I felt with the tour itself. You can say, oh, you stop and you do these things. And it's obviously phenomenal. But it doesn't end there. You know, there is that ripple effect, the impact that, you know, we all had on each other in those communities will live on and will continue to let those grow. And now that we're more aware, as you say, you know, when you don't know what challenges somebody's facing, you don't even know what challenges certain nonprofits and businesses are facing. And so once you get a better understanding of that, you can play a better role, whether it's through volunteering, which we heard so much of. I mean, it's what a great way. And obviously science proves this, how good it feels when you can do something for somebody else. And on your worst days, if you can go do something for somebody else, you're not going to be, you know, flying high all of a sudden, but you're going to feel a lot better about what you accomplished that day, especially in light of the fact that you weren't really feeling up for it. Absolutely. So at work, for instance, and this could come back to, you know, how you had already described perseverance, but would you say that there's been a scenario that's work related that was handled one way that perhaps wasn't with kindness in mind and one, you know, that is and how the outcomes can vary so much from that different approach? Yeah, I think, you know, if you have, in our case, you know, with staff members or folks who are working with us and for us and, you know, really getting to know who they are and what their goals are and who they want to become. And when you get to know them, you really understand when there are moments when they're not at their best. Exactly. And usually there's a reason for it and just to just take a second to pull them aside, have a conversation about what is going on in their life because you recognize that this is not really their normal. Exactly. That can actually affect outcomes. Just to be intuitive that way, right? Yeah, it doesn't just affect the outcome at that moment. It's what happens after as well. Exactly. And I think we've always sort of done that with anyone who takes part in our projects and our productions and all of that. And then there have been some times where it didn't start off on the right foot and sometimes you will try to massage it to a different place and you have to realize that in those moments, perhaps there has to be a different time when, you know, you will come together to make something happen but this wasn't necessarily the right time. Right. Take it offline and have those conversations later and see what comes of it. But always starting with that moment of, you know, you have to know everyone and understand what they're going through and where they're coming from before you can try to really, I guess, fix anything and improve anything. Right. Because your perception could be completely different than what, and typically that's really what it's all about is just trying to get on the same page. And I think also being a voice for others. We've been even in client situations where we can recognize pretty quickly within a room the environment and what someone is facing in terms of maybe their political clout within a company. Yes. And if they've been your champion, you can become their champion. And, you know, if you are voicing things that they have had struggles voicing in the past, you can help cut through all of the noise that they're trying to, you know, trying to figure out and all that stuff. So you can be a champion for others, be a voice for others, and that's just, you know, it resonates and it ripples throughout. Right, and we heard that quite a few times on the tour as far as being, you know, Gary comes to mind. Gary was in Richmond, Virginia. Maybe you could just, yeah, tell us a little bit. Then we're going to go back to you. I just want to give you a little heads up. You mentioned Baltimore before, so we can't go through without going back to Baltimore and what you are referring to as far as, you know, what really did, you know, move you to that level where you felt, you know, so compelled to just let it go as far as what we were surrounded by. So we'll go back to that. I just want to give you a little preparation, but with Gary that was in Richmond, Virginia, and he owns Children's Light. It's more of an after-school program in junior high and up, which is awesome. But what was your feelings on that particular interview that you did in time that we spent with Gary? In each person we were able to spend four or five hours with. It was amazing. He didn't have that, they were so giving of their time. I think each of them had something in common and it came through very quickly with Reverend Gary is that, one, he's a force of nature. He is just a- Good way to put it. He is a positive force. And when he comes in the room- Talk about energy. You know that he's there. Yes. The one thing that he does not do is he does not allow the surroundings or what happened before the past, the environment to dictate what the outcome is going to be. Exactly. And he refuses to accept that. It's, let's embrace it. This is where we are, but where do we want to be? And how are we going to get there? And then he uses all of his might, all of his will to make that happen. Right. And there's a story that he told, which I don't know if it's too early in our conversation to talk about it, he mentioned that he was driving at a convenience store, it was almost like a 7-Eleven type store. It was 11 o'clock at night and there was a young man sitting on the dash of his car or on the hood of his car with his head in his hands. And he could tell the kid was very upset, almost at his wit's end. And in an area where there's high violence, kids will succumb to certain elements of the streets because it's in many ways, it's the only way out. And he saw this kid and recognized that he was in this place where something could easily happen and he spoke with a few people in the store. He goes, yeah, you don't want to go over there, you don't want to talk to him, he's in a bad place. While most of us would get in the car and drive away, he talked to the young man and got to understand what was happening in his life and how he had reached the point where he had nothing. And he was about to lose everything and he was thinking of doing something that would change his fortune for the short term and correct his problems for the short term. And he told him, you do not want to do that. And instantly had, because of how connected he's become in the community, he knew about a program that he can get him in that I think was even paid training. And when they left, they became certified solar panel technicians that would install solar panels. Fabulous, right. He got him into the program, he called his friend who owns that program, got him in, I might've been the same weekend or something like that, got him trained and got to videotape this kid on his graduation day. Holding up a certificate. Just gives me chills. And he was gonna be able to earn as a starting salary $50,000 to $60,000 as a solar panel installer. And a skill for life now. But you know, when you're in a place where it's cloudy, you can't quite see clearly, you need that person to step in. That's right. Frankly, he's saved not only his life, but he may have saved some others as well. Just with that one act of not driving away and confronting the issue right in front of him. So he was an amazing man to meet and get to know. He certainly was. I would love to have him visit us here in Vermont. He would love to come up this way. He said he's never been to New England. So I would just love to have him here and have him in our community for as long as we possibly could. Because as you say, his energy. And it's again, it's the difference of somebody who's willing to just do whatever it takes, connect all those dots. He has all the schools involved. I mean, all the pieces are covered so that the family's entire day and routine and schedule flows. Because otherwise there was all this disconnect in a neighborhood where you don't want kids just hanging out. And he's filled in all those gaps. So in meals, and again, going back to the family because again, you can't just change this part. It has to go right back to the start and make as much of an impact there as you can. And then anything positive that can come out of that is better than the way it had been. And his biggest impact, I mean, this is where I connected with him personally is he had the saying of, look in the mirror. Yes. I took when he was younger and his life before and that one day where he looked in the mirror and he asked himself, do I trust the person I'm seeing in the mirror and his answer was no. And that was his transformational moment. I personally had that moment where, again, asked a similar question and that puts you on a different trajectory. And it just changes everything for you. And he had that moment and now he's using that same question with everyone else to make them stand up and do what's right. So yeah, yeah, very impactful. Oh, look at this. Okay, let's go back to the start of the whole tour. We were fortunate enough to be over at Colchester High School where Jen had graduated, I think it was in 1992. And so for the last three years, my brother has given a scholarship to a graduating student from Colchester High School that has demonstrated being kind, loving, caring, sharing in a variety of different ways over their years at Colchester High School very similar to what Jen's spirit was. And so Colchester High School, I can't say enough about, they have been fabulous with a beautiful tree in the front. The art students made mosaic tiles for being kind, loving, caring, and sharing in honor of Jen to honor her spirit. So she's definitely living on over at Colchester, which was a big rivalry. She thought that was the best. My brother thought Essex was the best, so I'm not gonna say anything, but she might have won up to right here. But he got this going for her, which is awesome to have this scholarship in place. And Mauve is just the sweetest girl imaginable. She was so humbled by that. It was just so beautiful and to see the tiles that they made, but she just was wondering, who could this be? This is who I wanna be as they were announcing the kind of person and the type of person this is that would be receiving the scholarship. And when it was her, she said she almost passed out. It was just so beautiful. And so, again, my brother's love for Jen will never end, and this is another way that he can really keep things going. And her career, she's going in a nursing. Nursing. So it's gonna continue caring for other people. Exactly, exactly. And that is her at the core. And then we have Charmaine here. This is our first stop when we were in Baltimore. And this was the Light, Health, and Wellness Center. And Charmaine, I mean, was she the best? She started working there. Well, I think she was 15 years old. 15, she had been there for 12 years. She's 27 now. She was HIV positive when she came to the center the first time. And now she is not only managing her HIV, but she helps others manage their HIV and has been working at the center. Right, and Debbie Rock is the CEO who is really her mentor, has changed Charmaine's life completely. Well, their mission at this location is about really reversing generational poverty and how that starts. And it starts with, you know, as Charmaine would say, that one little act of kindness that she was shown, she now wants to give it to all of them. Exactly. And everyone who comes to the center and is in touch with her, she wants to do it. And so with Debbie, it's about finding those little tools that can, you know, just because this generation is where it is, the next generations can, can and should and will surpass that. Exactly, right. And that's all we can hope for is making those steps. She told a great story about one woman who did not want to necessarily go into rehab, had been an addict for many years. Her daughter was in the daycare. Right. And Debbie kept saying, at any moment in time, 7 a.m. you call me and I'll be there to pick you up and take you. And one morning the call came and took her to rehab. She's been clean for 25 years. And the woman's daughter just graduated with a master's degree. So those are the types of things. Making a difference. Right. Making a difference. One moment. Exactly. One touch point can change everything. So, yeah, she was incredible. And she loved the bear. She did love the bear. Sparky was with us. Aspen, of course, I'm missing so much. She's there with us too. She was over on the couch. And there's Debbie out front there of her center. And I think the next one was the whole group. Oh, good. We'll get all the kids out there. It was fabulous. It was just there. They were just so grateful for us being there and so proud of their space, too. The children as well as the staff, they just really, they showed so much pride. And then this was in Richmond. This was a- Oh, yes, we're approaching Gary's building. This is Reverend Gary's building. And you wouldn't be able to tell from the outside. I know. I was glad we all walked in together. But then on the inside, what he's done in there to transform it into a space for the teenagers to come and hang out in a very safe place. And also for community groups to come and rent the space and use it for their own needs at a very affordable rate. The kitchens all set as a nice setup for music and the arts. Exactly, yeah. It's very functional space. So it's open for everyone. Oh, here we are. This was in Richmond as well. This is the hitting below the belt. Yeah, Elwood-Thompson's Market. Yep, and Colorectal Cancer is their mission, is getting everyone tested and making sure that people understand the need for early testing. That's right. And Sarah Will was my guest last month who I just love and that's her sister, Kate, and then Billy, who we love. And then Mindy, she is the director of hitting cancer below the belt. And obviously myself, but Sarah's husband, Gabe, who passed away from colon cancer, Kate has been right there doing a lot of work with the association to keep, you know, obviously Gabe's spirit is huge and that's still going. So it was just an honor to meet with them and hear about what they're doing in that community. But I really liked, I mean, Richmond was a very, all our cities, yeah, that's Kate's husband, Travis. Richmond had an amazing vibe to it. Yeah, oh, there's Aspen and Kate. It was very welcoming and, yeah. And I think for me, the takeaway with them, and actually we'll talk about Billy in a second, the takeaway from that organization is this idea of when you experience such a loss of someone like a spouse or, you know, a child, that sort of thing, you know, there are a couple of ways you can go in your life and they've taken to making a difference and making sure that others don't have to go through what they went through. And I think that was one of the, I think Travis said it, he goes, you know, to be able to do this so that other people's kids don't have to experience what the kids of those who passed away. Yes, yes. Billy was not part of the organization. He was an employee at the cafe where we were doing the interviews and we got to interview him a little bit. He was excited to be on camera. Oh, very excited. And everybody was so happy for him. Yeah, and we learned a little bit about his life and he has quite a few struggles. And could you find somebody happier and more loving? You would have never known. No, exactly. But his life is life. Oh, yeah, I mean. Based on that. Exactly. He's very happy to be here. And then. So now we're at the rescuer in South Carolina. This is Danny and Ron's dog rescue. I don't know that any other dog embodies what the center does than this poodle. This guy right here. Yeah, so this poodle, this is what. Is this John John? This was John John. You can see what he looks like now. He was a little bit shy. Yes. He doesn't trust much other than those who work at the center. Right. So, you know, he was a little apprehensive. This is what John John looked like when they rescued him. He had been living in the back of a car where they had basically chained the dog and were just feeding it in the car. Broke in the window so it would at least have ventilation. And we remember how hot South Carolina was. Yes, oh my goodness. But they took the dog in and you know, the difference is stark. And now they're giving this dog this amazing life and the special thing about them is any dog, yeah. Any dog that. That doesn't even seem possible. It doesn't seem possible. On so many levels. And they've created a sanctuary. Any dog that doesn't get adopted will spend the rest of its life. And you saw the fields. Oh, right with the horses too. Across the street that are in a sanctuary. Exactly. The whole setting is so moving and compelling. It just feels so good to be there. Yeah, so from the kill shelters and from really bad environments to suddenly a place where they can spend the rest of their lives in. That's Danny, well my friend Deb, Danny myself and then that's Ron. That's Ron, yeah. This is right out on their property. Ron was seven feet tall. I think it was very tall. I know why I chose to stand next to Ron is beyond me. And then these are some shots of Savannah. Oh, very nice. Where we got to meet a few folks and. Yes, oh what a beautiful city. Ron, beautiful city. And yeah. There you have it. There, yeah, Savannah was a beautiful, beautiful city. Those trees that, yeah. Quintessential Savannah right there. And then our Uber driver, who we got to meet and we got to learn a little about him. Made friends with him. Hopefully got him on the right track and he's probably engaged by now. We gave him some good advice for that date. Exactly, exactly. He was a very nice guy. Oh, super nice guy. And again, you know, right, it was, it was. And that could have just been like, okay, you have a basic conversation and it's friendly and you're safe and that's all you want. But why not kind of lift somebody's spirits whenever you can because we all had fun. He really enjoyed it. We all laughed about it. And yeah, that was, again, just such a phenomenal trip and I'm so pleased with everything I'm seeing so far that we can, you know, get out and spread the word, you know, back to these organizations and beyond and look ahead as far as what impact we can have for the future because the van needs some more miles on it. We didn't want the trip to end. I know, I couldn't agree with you more. Yeah, but there'll be more stories to tell. But it came together, you know, sort of last minute in the sense of we knew we were going to do this at some point, but finally it was like, let's just pick this week and do it because with COVID it just derailed everything. My brother had such great plans for what would it have been 2020. And, you know, then there wasn't any minor league baseball going on and everything happened to be based at, you know, the ball parks. So a lot of other things have kind of filled that in. There's a great event coming up in Albuquerque, second annual, it's the kindness night at Isotopes Park. And all last year, obviously being the first annual, it was just, again, one of those very moving moments. It was just so beautiful with everybody holding up their pledges and singing, you know, to be, you know, humbling kind and everybody from both teams. Again, there was no divide. Everybody was all one. You just felt it. And even the energy at the Isotopes ball park, which is a beautiful place and it's a great place to be no matter what. But everybody just seemed to be a little kinder. It was like we were on camera because it was like, hi, you know, kind of just really going all out because you're thinking about it. And then it's sort of contagious. You know, once you do start smiling, especially when the masks can come off, it's like, hey, baby, I want to start smiling again, you know? So once, you know, everybody gets that vibe going, it really does help. And that's all we can do. I mean, it's again a little part, but we met individual people that have, you know, affected thousands and thousands of people. So that's it. And you never know who that one person is that you're touching and what they're going to go on to do. Right, because I believe there's a reason that those paths have crossed. Exactly. And we are fortunate to have our paths crossed, Johnny. I want to thank you for that and for the paths that we have started to cross on the wonderful world of touring. So I think, you know, the best is yet to come as far as a lot of things that we can do and hopefully continue to spread the word and make a difference and keep Jennifer reared in spirit of being kind, loving, caring and sharing as strong as could be. I know that she has to be feeling a lot of pride for everything that Mike has put in place for her, you know, mission to carry on. I think it's all we can hope for. I mean, you can't ask for a better legacy than that. And the fact that, you know, people can keep your spirit going is such a gift and you don't realize it. You don't want to lose anybody, but there's a lot of power in that because, you know, we'll all be together again someday. And yeah. I think it's the word is impact. And I think you're going to be multiplying that impact over the years in a way that it's just going to be. It's like an investment. It is. Hopefully, you know, we're not to get into the market right now, but you know, it just builds. You just need to be in for the long haul. It's not going to be, you know, overnight by any means. Exactly. Change your lives. Yeah, Johnny, thank you so very much. And I can't wait to get together again. We'll wrap things up and start planning our next steps. We can't wait. Thank you so much for making us a part of it. It's been life changing for us. Thank you. That makes, that's the bonus. Okay, thank you. Thank you.