Latest / The Kevin Stone Podcast / Episode #55 "Why These Mayoral Interviews Matter to Ozark"

Transcript

Episode #55 "Why These Mayoral Interviews Matter to Ozark" · The Kevin Stone Podcast

• 0:05
  Speaker 1: Some podcasts have experts. This is not one of those podcasts.
• 0:09
  Speaker 1: This is one guy, a microphone, a cup of coffee,
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  Speaker 1: and absolutely no guarantee where any of this is going.
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  Speaker 1: From small town Arkansas to Washington, D.C. From politics and
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  Speaker 1: current events to history, space, faith, and whatever else happens
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  Speaker 1: to get under his skin. He'll ask the questions. He'll
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  Speaker 1: give you his opinion. And every once in a while,
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  Speaker 1: he might even know what he's talking about. No fancy degree,
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  Speaker 1: no corporate talking points, just an ordinary guy trying to
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  Speaker 1: make sense of an increasingly strange world. Ladies and gentlemen,
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  Speaker 1: this is the Kevin Stone podcast.
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  Speaker 2: Good morning, everybody, and welcome to the Kevin Stone podcast.
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  Speaker 2: I'm Kevin Stone. Well, yesterday was a pretty big day
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  Speaker 2: for me personally, and I believe it was an important
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  Speaker 2: day for this podcast. Yesterday afternoon, I had the opportunity
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  Speaker 2: to sit down one-on-one with both candidates running for mayor
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  Speaker 2: of Ozark, Arkansas, Tyler Williams and our guest, Tyler. And
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  Speaker 2: before we go any further, I want to personally thank
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  Speaker 2: both of these gentlemen for taking time out of their
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  Speaker 2: schedules to sit down with me, answer some questions, and
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  Speaker 2: give the citizens of Ozark another opportunity to hear from
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  Speaker 2: them before the December 1st runoff election. Both interviews will
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  Speaker 2: be released this Friday on the Kevin Stone Podcast YouTube
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  Speaker 2: channel and Facebook page. But this morning I wanted to
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  Speaker 2: take a few minutes and talk about why I felt
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  Speaker 2: these interviews were so important, what went into making them happen,
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  Speaker 2: and what I hope comes out of them. Now I'm
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  Speaker 2: going to tell you something, and this is strictly my
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  Speaker 2: personal opinion. I believe this upcoming mayoral runoff election is
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  Speaker 2: one of the most important decisions the citizens of Ozark
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  Speaker 2: are going to make concerning the future of this city. Folks,
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  Speaker 2: let's face it. Ozark has some challenges. We've got infrastructure concerns.
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  Speaker 2: We've got financial decisions that have to be made. We've
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  Speaker 2: got questions about the future direction of this community. And
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  Speaker 2: these aren't little things that are just going to magically
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  Speaker 2: disappear after Election Day. The next mayor is going to
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  Speaker 2: inherit those challenges, along with the responsibilities of helping lead
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  Speaker 2: this city through them. And I believe the decisions made
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  Speaker 2: over the next several years could have a lasting impact
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  Speaker 2: on the people who live here, work here, own businesses here,
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  Speaker 2: and raise their families here. That's why I believe this
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  Speaker 2: election is so important. And that's why I felt these
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  Speaker 2: interviews were important enough to put everything I had into
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  Speaker 2: making them happen. Now, I'm not here to tell anybody
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  Speaker 2: who they should vote for. That's not my job. My job,
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  Speaker 2: or at least what I'm trying to accomplish with this podcast,
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  Speaker 2: is to help people get information so they can make
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  Speaker 2: those decisions for themselves. And let's be realistic about something else.
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  Speaker 2: Here in Ozark, we don't exactly have an abundance of
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  Speaker 2: local news organizations lining up to interview our candidates and
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  Speaker 2: explain what's happening in our city. The opportunities for citizens
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  Speaker 2: to sit down and hear directly from the people who
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  Speaker 2: want to lead their community are pretty limited, and I
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  Speaker 2: wanted to do something about that. My goal yesterday was
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  Speaker 2: very simple. Get both candidates in front of the public,
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  Speaker 2: ask them questions, and let them speak. That's it. I
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  Speaker 2: wasn't trying to make either candidate look bad, and I
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  Speaker 2: certainly wasn't trying to make either candidate look better than
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  Speaker 2: the other. Both gentlemen were given the same questions and
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  Speaker 2: the same opportunity to answer them. Neither candidate received those
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  Speaker 2: questions ahead of time. I wanted their answers to be
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  Speaker 2: their own answers, not something somebody had prepared for them
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  Speaker 2: days in advance. And I want to make something else clear.
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  Speaker 2: These interviews are not endorsements. I'm not asking you to
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  Speaker 2: vote for Tyler Williams, and I'm not asking you to
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  Speaker 2: vote for our guest Tyler. I'm asking you to listen
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  Speaker 2: to both of Listen to what they have to say.
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  Speaker 2: Listen to how they answer the questions. Think about their
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  Speaker 2: ideas and what they believe the future of Ozark should
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  Speaker 2: look like. And then make your own decision. Because at
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  Speaker 2: the end of the day, it's your city and it's
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  Speaker 2: your vote. Now, there's something else about yesterday that I
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  Speaker 2: want to share with everybody. I had a gentleman there
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  Speaker 2: with me by the name of Josiah Reeves, who's the
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  Speaker 2: lead pastor at Ozark First Assembly of God. And I
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  Speaker 2: want to personally thank him for taking time out of
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  Speaker 2: his day to be there. Now, anybody who's listened to
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  Speaker 2: this podcast for very long probably already knows that I'm
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  Speaker 2: a believer in God. And I'm not ashamed of that,
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  Speaker 2: and I'm not going to pretend otherwise. And because I
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  Speaker 2: felt this event was so important, not just to me personally,
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  Speaker 2: but to this community, I wanted to include God in
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  Speaker 2: what we're doing. Pastor Reeves was there to provide spiritual support,
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  Speaker 2: and he offered a prayer over the event. And I
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  Speaker 2: appreciated that more than I can probably put into words. Now,
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  Speaker 2: that wasn't asking God to favor one candidate over the other.
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  Speaker 2: It was about asking for guidance, wisdom, and for everything
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  Speaker 2: to go the way it needed to go. And having
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  Speaker 2: Pastor Reeves there meant a great deal to me. So
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  Speaker 2: Pastor Reeves, thank you, sir. I sincerely appreciate you. Now
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  Speaker 2: let me tell you something else about yesterday. This little
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  Speaker 2: operation called the Kevin Stone Podcast got pushed pretty close
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  Speaker 2: to the limits of what it's currently capable of doing.
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  Speaker 2: And I'm talking about equipment, experience, and quite possibly my
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  Speaker 2: blood pressure. Folks, I'm a one-man operation. I don't have
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  Speaker 2: a production crew. I don't have a professional camera operator,
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  Speaker 2: sound engineer, or somebody standing behind the scenes telling me
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  Speaker 2: what to do. Most of the time, it's just me
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  Speaker 2: trying to figure out which button to push without accidentally
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  Speaker 2: turning something off. And yesterday, I was taking this operation
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  Speaker 2: out of Studio A and into the real world. Now,
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  Speaker 2: I'm going to be upfront with you. I was a
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  Speaker 2: little nervous. And I don't mean just a little nervous.
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  Speaker 2: I mean, I was nervous because I understood how important
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  Speaker 2: this was. I wanted to do right by both candidates.
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  Speaker 2: And more importantly, I wanted to do right by the
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  Speaker 2: citizens of Ozark. I didn't want to mess this up.
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  Speaker 2: But you know what made me feel even better? I
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  Speaker 2: think the candidates were a little nervous themselves. And once
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  Speaker 2: I realized that, I thought... Well, at least I'm not
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  Speaker 2: the only nervous person in the room. And I can
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  Speaker 2: understand why they might have been a little nervous. I mean,
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  Speaker 2: think about it. Here comes this new podcaster. hauling in
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  Speaker 2: his equipment, setting up cameras and microphones, and getting ready
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  Speaker 2: to ask questions they haven't even seen yet. They probably
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  Speaker 2: wondered what in the world they got themselves into. And
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  Speaker 2: to be fair, there were moments when I was wondering
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  Speaker 2: the exact same thing. But we did it. We sat down,
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  Speaker 2: we had the conversations, and we got the interviews recorded.
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  Speaker 2: Now when you watch these interviews Friday, I hope nobody's
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  Speaker 2: expecting a Fox News or CNN production. Because I'm going
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  Speaker 2: to tell you right now, we ain't there yet. But
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  Speaker 2: what you will get is an opportunity to hear both
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  Speaker 2: candidates answer questions about the future of Ozark. And that's
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  Speaker 2: what mattered to me. Now, I absolutely cannot talk about
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  Speaker 2: yesterday without giving a special thank you to Simply Risen
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  Speaker 2: Coffeehouse here in Ozark. Folks, these people went above and beyond.
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  Speaker 2: They graciously allowed us to use their location and to
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  Speaker 2: conduct the interviews. They made the space available, helped get
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  Speaker 2: us situated, and even provided refreshments for me and both
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  Speaker 2: candidates at no charge. And they didn't have to do
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  Speaker 2: any of that. They were welcoming, helpful, and genuinely happy
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  Speaker 2: to be a part of something that was being done
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  Speaker 2: for the community. And I want them to know how
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  Speaker 2: much I appreciate that. For a small, independent podcast like
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  Speaker 2: this one, having a local business willing to open its
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  Speaker 2: doors and help make something like this possible means a
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  Speaker 2: whole lot. So to everybody at Simply Risen Coffeehouse, thank you.
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  Speaker 2: You helped make yesterday possible, and I won't forget it.
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  Speaker 2: And folks, if you haven't stopped by Simply Risen, you
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  Speaker 2: might want to give them a visit. They're good people,
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  Speaker 2: and I appreciate what they did for us. And they
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  Speaker 2: make some really good coffee. Now yesterday taught me something else.
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  Speaker 2: It taught me that this podcast is capable of doing
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  Speaker 2: more than I originally thought it could. Was everything perfect? No.
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  Speaker 2: Did I learn some things? Oh, absolutely. And I'm pretty
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  Speaker 2: sure I'll learn a few more things when I start
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  Speaker 2: putting these interviews together. But now that I've actually done this,
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  Speaker 2: I know it's something that we can do in the future.
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  Speaker 2: And I intend to. Not just with political candidates or
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  Speaker 2: elected officials either. I want to sit down with local
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  Speaker 2: business owners. I want to talk to people doing good
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  Speaker 2: things in our community. I want to introduce you to
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  Speaker 2: people you may have lived around for years but never
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  Speaker 2: really had an opportunity to get to know. Because I
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  Speaker 2: believe Ozark and Franklin County have stories worth telling. And
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  Speaker 2: I want the Kevin Stone Podcast to be a place
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  Speaker 2: where those stories can be heard. We're still learning. We're
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  Speaker 2: still growing. And believe me, we've still got a long
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  Speaker 2: way to go. But yesterday was a pretty big step
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  Speaker 2: in that direction. So here's what I want to leave
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  Speaker 2: everybody with this morning. This Friday, both interviews with our
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  Speaker 2: guests Tyler and Tyler Williams will be available on the
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  Speaker 2: Kevin Stone Podcast YouTube channel and Facebook page. I'm asking
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  Speaker 2: everybody who has an interest in the future of Ozark
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  Speaker 2: to take time to watch them. Watch both interviews. If
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  Speaker 2: you've already decided who you're going to vote for, listen
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  Speaker 2: to what both gentlemen have to say. You may learn
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  Speaker 2: something you didn't know. You may hear something that reinforces
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  Speaker 2: your decision you've already made. Or you may hear something
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  Speaker 2: that makes you think a little differently. And that's okay.
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  Speaker 2: That's exactly what these interviews were intended to accomplish. I
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  Speaker 2: hope that when you finish watching them, you'll have a
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  Speaker 2: little better understanding of the two men asking for your vote.
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  Speaker 2: And most importantly, I hope that you'll take the information
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  Speaker 2: with you to the polls on Tuesday, December 1st, and
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  Speaker 2: exercise your right to vote. Because the future direction of
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  Speaker 2: Ozark isn't something that should be decided by just a
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  Speaker 2: handful of people. It deserves the attention and participation of
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  Speaker 2: the citizens who call this community home. And regardless of
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  Speaker 2: which candidate wins, I sincerely hope that our next mayor succeeds.
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  Speaker 2: Because when our city succeeds, we all benefit. And that's
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  Speaker 2: what this is supposed to be about. Again, thank you
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  Speaker 2: to Tyler Williams and our guest Hyler for participating. Thank
• 9:08
  Speaker 2: you to Pastor Josiah Reeves for his support and prayers.
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  Speaker 2: And a very special thank you to Simply Risen Coffeehouse
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  Speaker 2: for helping making this possible. And to everybody listening, thank
• 9:17
  Speaker 2: you for supporting this little podcast and giving me the
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  Speaker 2: opportunity to do something that I believe matters to our community.
• 9:24
  Speaker 2: And before I go, if you're enjoying the Kevin Stone podcast,
• 9:27
  Speaker 2: I'd certainly appreciate your support. You can listen to the
• 9:30
  Speaker 2: podcast on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, iHeartRadio, and Spreaker.
• 9:35
  Speaker 2: And if you'd rather watch instead of listen, you can
• 9:38
  Speaker 2: find us on YouTube at Real Kevin Stone or right
• 9:41
  Speaker 2: here on the Facebook page at The Kevin Stone Podcast.
• 9:44
  Speaker 2: And while you're there, hit that follow or subscribe button.
• 9:47
  Speaker 2: It doesn't cost you a dime, and it helps this
• 9:49
  Speaker 2: little independent podcast continue to grow. And if you know
• 9:52
  Speaker 2: somebody who might be interested in what's happening around Ozark
• 9:55
  Speaker 2: and Franklin County, share the podcast with them. We're not
• 9:58
  Speaker 2: exactly a big-time news organization. around here, but we're working
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  Speaker 2: on it. I'm Kevin Stone, and this is the Kevin
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  Speaker 2: Stone Podcast. Thanks for listening, God bless, and remember, December 1st,
• 10:08
  Speaker 2: get out and vote.