Stories from the Center of the Universe

Episode 195: Tim Lilly

Tim Lilly is a veteran, has a strong faith, loves his family and is in the first phase of retirement.

Tim grew up in rural southern West Virginia and then moved to the Huntington area for junior high and high school. He had a great and adventurous time as a kid leaving the house in the morning and coming home when it got dark. Tim told Paul that he decided to walk into a recruiters office one day. That started a 20+ year military career with ten in the United States Navy (followed in his dad’s footsteps) and twelve in the Army National Guard where he and Paul met. They chatted about serving together and about their mutual respect for each other. Tim told Paul about a couple other jobs he had after retiring from the military and how he just retired in December of 2022. Tim finished by telling Paul about his wife Cindy, their two sons Craig and Scott, their great wives and he and Cindy’s grandkids.

Episode 194: Al Lester

This is Al Lester’s second time on the podcast. He was on Episode #32 with his friend and the Occasional Co-Host, Kevin Flippen. Al was born in Miami and grew up in a military household in Georgia. He had a unique experience through 8th grade while living on the base and then his family moved into town when his dad left the military. Al was a stand out athlete in all three sports, but football became his focus and colleges were recruiting him quickly after his junior season was complete. He decided to attend the Virginia Military Institute and he discussed his experiences at VMI. He told Paul and Kevin about his football career there as well as how he was treated as a “Rat” while being an athlete. The three went on to discuss his advice that he gives to his athletic daughters, the upcoming NFL playoffs and they finished by talking about his family. He’s been married to his wife Melanie for twenty years and they have two daughters, Ava and Maddie.

Episode 193: Robin Dreeke

U.S. Marine, Author, FBI Agent, Podcaster and Father … a few of the roles Robin Dreeke has had in his life.

Robin grew up as an only child in Carmel, NY. He told Paul that it was a home with low economic status and some addiction, but one that had a lot of love. Robin said he became self-reliant when he started working the summer before middle school. He had fun growing up and told Paul that he enjoyed the “adventure of it”. He discussed never thinking of himself as a victim and how he believes in the dichotomy of life. After high school, he attended a year of prep for the U.S. Naval Academy and then he went to the USNA. Robin then went in to the United States Marine Corps and he and Paul talked about how to become a better leader. After the USMC, Robin became an FBI Agent and was in NY when 9/11 occurred. They discussed podcasting as well as his three books, what he’s working on now and how being a father has been his biggest influence. Robin finished by talking about his wife of 30 years, his son who is a U.S. Marine and his daughter who is a nurse.

Episode 192: Matt Green

Matt Green has done a little bit of walking in his life …

Matt Green grew up just outside Ashland, VA and had fun growing up exploring, collecting baseball cards, putting lego sets together and playing wiffle ball. After graduating high school, Matt attended the University of Virginia and earned an engineering degree. Matt worked in northern Virginia and then moved to New York. Matt enjoyed walking and around 2008, he started thinking about walking a little further … across the United States! A couple of years later, Matt quit his job and did just that by starting in Rockaway Beach, NY and finishing in Rockaway Beach, Oregon. Matt has continued walking by covering approximately 98% of New York, New York and when he moved back to Virginia during the pandemic, he walked all of Ashland. Paul and Matt discussed some of the lessons he’s learned from walking, how he feels fortunate and lucky and that he has no regrets over the last thirteen years since he started this journey.

Episode 191: Erik Kleinsmith

Erik Kleinsmith is a former U.S. Army Intelligence Officer and private contractor who has testified in front of Congress.

Erik knows Pete A. Turner (Episode 185) and he and Paul started by talking about his career in the United States Army and serving overseas. Erik grew up in Plymouth, Michigan and said it was an idyllic setting for him and his two brothers to grow up in. He told Paul about his mom and dad and especially talked about how involved his Dad was and how they lost him way too early. Erik spoke about what his dad built in their backyard that attracted so many neighborhood kids for so long, his Mom would sometimes have to ask them to leave! Paul and Erik discussed his career in the private intelligence arena and how it led to him testifying in front of the U.S. Congress. They talked about 9/11 and how if certain intelligence hadn’t been quashed, it could have made a possible difference. Paul asked Erik about his involvement with Case Breakers and Erik told Paul how they work on and solve some of the most famous cold cases ever.

Episode 190: Guy Crittenden

Guy Crittenden is a nationally known artist and professional photographer who lives in Richmond, Virginia.

Guy grew up in Gloucester, VA on the Ware River. Growing up, the Ware River was the playground for Guy, his family and his friends. Guy said his grandfather was part of the folklore of Gloucester and taught him everything he ever learned about hunting and fishing. When Guy wasn’t in the outdoors, he was playing sports and he excelled at football. This led to Guy playing football at William & Mary for legendary coach Jimmy Laycock. Guy also knew at a young age that he had a passion for art and that he was good at it as well. After W&M, he attended the Art Institute of Atlanta and then worked in advertising until he opened his own business in 1994. Guy has since become a commissioned and award winning artist and relies a great deal on his life experiences for his artistic inspiration. Guy said he is a “Sportsman who chose to paint”. Guy finished by talking about his wife Melanie, their three daughters and being a grandfather.

Episode 189: Ken Harvey

Former NFL player and Washington Commanders Ring of Fame member, Ken Harvey, joins the podcast.

Ken Harvey comes to the podcast via a connection with Jock Jones (Episodes 148 & 175) because they played in the NFL together. Paul started off by talking to Ken about his book, Stepping Stones, and growing up in Texas. Ken talked candidly about dropping out of high school, going back and then moving on to college. He had a very successful senior year in college and was drafted 12th in the 1988 NFL Draft by the Arizona Cardinals. He discussed his football path and how faith, finding his focus and motivation and hard work all played a part in his journey. Ken also told Paul about teammates that helped him along the way and how one of them, Terry Crews, became a good friend and the illustrator for one of Ken’s children’s books. They finished by talking about his wife and their sons.

Episode 188: Rob Dull (aka Silent Rob)

Rob Dull, aka “Silent Rob” & “the Scribe” is on the other side of the microphone for an entire episode.

Rob usually helps Paul with the Stories podcast, but he is the one getting interviewed by Paul and Kevin this time. Rob talked about living where Henry Clay was born and then moving to and growing up in Ashland. Paul and Rob talked about the guys they grew up with, some of the games and sports they played and they told Kevin what midnight football was. Rob talked about going to Collegiate and working at Kings Dominion during high school and college. They discussed his various jobs including a couple of stories from his time with the U.S. Park Police. The three of them talked about playing basketball for the Rampage and Rob talked about his parents and his parents-in-law and how lucky he was to have them all in his life. They finished with Rob talking about his wife Chris and their three kids, Jack, Riley and Julia.

Episode 187: Greg Burton

Greg Burton comes to the podcast via a connection with Ross Luck (Episode #172). Greg grew up in Wilmington, Delaware and said his life was pretty much within eight blocks of his house. He walked to school & church, played little league, visited his grandparents and went to see his dad at work in those eight blocks. Greg played sports in high school, but knew he had a passion for and wanted to cover sports for a living. He chose to go to the University of Delaware and it was a great decision because he got immediate opportunities and exposure in his course of study. After graduating, the job hunt started and Greg first started working back home in Delaware. After about a year, he got hired by a television station in Idaho. He jumped at the opportunity and had an amazing time because of the job and the life experiences that Idaho gave him. In 1998, he decided to leave Idaho and took a job at CBS Channel 6 in Richmond. In Richmond, he worked for Channel 6, had his own sports talk radio show and in 2011, he started as an adjunct professor at Virginia Commonwealth University in the Center for Sport Leadership program. He is now a full-time graduate level professor at VCU at the Center for Sport Leadership, which is a top 10 program in the country. We finished the podcast with Greg talking about his son Trevor who is ten years old.

Episode 186: Sue Watson

Sue Watson, a Center of the Universe icon, joins the podcast to talk to Paul and Rob. Sue was born and grew up in Wilson, N.C and has great memories of her childhood and family, especially going on horse rides with her Dad. Sue started dancing when she was three years old and her love for dance and all things theatrical has continued through out her life. After high school, Sue attended Duke University and never missed a basketball game. After Duke, she moved away from NC for a year, but then went to rival University of North Carolina for her masters degree. This would turn out to be a life changing decision because while taking her last class for her degree, she met Ritchie Watson. Ritchie courted Sue (some of it long distance) and they were married on June 21, 1969. Ritchie got a job at Randolph-Macon College and they moved to Ashland in 1970. Sue talked about their first house and train experience as well as how they ended up in their current house where they’ve been since 1974. They also discussed the Ashland Variety Show, Ashland’s Untold Stories, her time on the Hanover School Board (first woman and longest serving member ever) and her family’s trips to Topsail Beach. They talked about her and Ritchie’s daughters, Susan and Jane Forbes, and their families, which includes five wonderful grandchildren.