Study and Be Somebody with Marc Burnett

Show Notes

Join Kosta and his guest: Marc Burnett, Director of Development at Mustard Seed Ranch and Former Vice President of Student Affairs at Tennessee Technological University.

Find out more about Mustard Seed Ranch:
https://www.mustardseedranchtn.org/

Better Together with Kosta Yepifantsev is a product of Morgan Franklin Media and recorded in Cookeville, TN.

Find out more about Kosta Yepifantsev:
https://kostayepifantsev.com/

What is Better Together with Kosta Yepifantsev?

Better Together with Kosta Yepifantsev is a podcast about business, parenting and living life intentionally. We're here every week to bring you intentional conversations on making your own path to success, challenging the status quo, and finding all the ways we're better. Recorded in Cookeville, TN, Kosta joins guests from all walks of life to bring fresh perspective and start your week with purpose. We're better together.

Marc Burnett: I'm not just
helping you because it's my job.

I'm helping you because you are
the future. You are what's next?

You're gonna have hard decisions
just like we have and I'm gonna

try to help you make those in
the best light that you can in

the best way that you can.

Morgan Franklin: Welcome to
Better Together with Kosta

Yepifantsev, a podcast on
parenting business and living

life intentionally. We're here
every week to bring you

thoughtful conversation, making
your own path to success,

challenging the status quo, and
finding all the ways we're

better together. Here's your
host, Kosta Yepifantsev.

Kosta Yepifantsev: Hey, y'all,
it's Kosta. Today I'm here with

my guest, Marc Burnett, Director
of Development at Mustard Seed

Ranch and Former Vice President
of Student Affairs at Tennessee

Tech University. Mark, my first
question is, how many hours into

retirement? Did you make it
before you decided it was time

to get back to work?

Marc Burnett: Actually, I made
it almost three years. Oh, wow.

Before I decided to work again,
but it's kind of a long a long

story short, during the time
that I retired, which was

December of 2019. Right before
COVID Oh, my gosh, it's my wife

is already good timing. But we
couldn't go anywhere. We

couldn't do anything that you
talking about going crazy in the

house. Yeah, just kind of
walking around. And so we bought

bikes. And we did all kinds of
things. So we could be outside.

But we really couldn't take a
vacation. And then

unfortunately, her mother got
sick. And they're in East

Tennessee. And so we would
literally I would be here during

the ministry on the weekends,
okay. And then I would go home

all during the week and take
care of her mom. And so we did

that until she passed on August
the 19th. It'll be two years.

And then her sister passed six
months after her mom. So we just

had to do some things. And the
timing was great, though, and

fortunate for us to be able to
do some things with the family.

And so we just did that. And
then after that cloud kind of

lifted, then I really got antsy
and said, I gotta get out,

Kosta Yepifantsev: you know, you
had like this high paced job,

right? You're working all the
time. And you're and you're

meeting so many different
personalities. Obviously, you

met Morgan, and you forgave all
of our parking tickets, I

realize I don't know if I'm
allowed to say that on air. But

hopefully I made

Marc Burnett: her pay up, okay.

Kosta Yepifantsev: She pay a
couple of like, you're working

this fast paced environment,
you're going 100 miles an hour,

every single day, yes. And then
you just stop. So the first day

of retirement, you know, take
the pandemic out of just the

fact that you're no longer
working, and you open your eyes

and you think I can do whatever
I want.

Marc Burnett: You know, my
thought was, there was a relief

to not go on 100 miles an hour
again. But there was a missing

it at the same time. And that's
what I think happens to a lot of

people that retire mentally, it
was the middle part of missing

the action, and all of the
things that go on, especially in

the day in student affairs, and
a typical day, so and then I was

missing the people that I worked
with and missing the students

most of all, because he
literally that literally really

just cut off, you know, just
that time to spend with students

walking up down the hall, and
speaking to people and all of

that. So it became an isolation
very quickly. But I had my

church where I was pastoring and
colonial view Baptist church, I

was there at the time. And so I
had that, and then I had my

artwork, okay, I'm also an
artist. And so I had those two

things. So I kept fairly busy.

And I tried not to think about
it, I still have not unpacked my

boxes from the office, as if
they're gonna call me back.

Kosta Yepifantsev: But who
knows, right? I mean, it's only

been four years. I love that.

Wow. As the first chief
diversity officer and former

Vice President of Student
Affairs at Tennessee Tech, you

played a crucial role in
promoting inclusivity equity and

fellowship at both the
University and throughout the

upper Cumberland. When you look
back at your career in

academics, what do you see as
your greatest achievement,

Marc Burnett: you know, is
relatively simple for me. And

that was getting up every day
and helping the next student

move forward. For me, that's
what it was always about. It's a

hard thing. I just had a heart
for students and for young

people. Someone always helped me
as I was growing along and

coming along, and sometimes not
having a clue as to what I was

going to do next. But there
always seemed to be someone

right that was standing there
waiting on my next move and to

help me out and so you know, I
so love that university and the

students I remember giving a
short speech when they dedicate

that building the Fit Center and
I said, you know, the best thing

about the title is that it says
student exactly that that it's

my name on it, but that it says
student recreation and fitness

center.

Kosta Yepifantsev: You know,
when you were growing up, did

you always want to be in higher
education. Did you always want

to work with kids?

Marc Burnett: You know, there
were times that I thought I

wanted to be an artist. Most
people don't wanted to be an

artist and I I've kind of
pursued that and what type of

art by the way, mostly visual
painting. Okay, a lot of

paintings a lot of sunrises and
sunsets. I have a thing about

that you're every day, you get
to see something different. God

gives us something different
every day that we really don't

pay attention to sure we take it
for granted. You never know when

it's the last one. Absolutely.

So I'll do a lot of those. But
you know, just being with

students helping the university,
however, you know, for me,

everything is about serving. So
however, I can help the

university, I was always willing
to do it relative to diversity

and inclusion and the upper
Cumberland, I'll tell people,

I've always loved Putnam County,
and the upper Cumberland and

being in the minority here,
there's a lot for us still to

learn about each other. Now,
there's people that I still have

conversations with, and they
don't understand things I get, I

get a million questions,
sometimes just just about things

that are cultural. Yeah, still
today.

Kosta Yepifantsev: Does it
bother you?

Marc Burnett: You know, it only
bothers me if they really don't

want to know the answer. Okay.

If people want to develop an
opinion, that bothers me,

Kosta Yepifantsev: the only
reason that I ask is I was

talking to a friend of mine over
the weekend, she works in

Louisville, okay. And she works
for Bellarmine University. And

we were talking about I have a
friend, his name's Shamar. And

he's black. He's from Memphis,
and we hang out often, and a lot

of times I catch myself and I am
like constantly asking him like,

Hey, dude, I said, this, is that
cool? Hey, I did this is that

cool? And we're close, like, we
hang out. And I shouldn't be

having these types of weird
conversations with him. And it

doesn't bother him. But he, he's
played football at Arkansas. And

he went to IMG prior to that. He
lived in Sarasota. So he kind of

had a lot of friends that
weren't just he didn't just grow

up in Memphis. And so I asked
her about it, because she's, you

know, from higher education,
they typically have the answers.

And she said, you know, be just,
it'd be nice if you just

educated yourself in. So I said,
but I did. I mean, I took an

African American Studies class
at Tennessee Tech. And so what

else is there though? What else
can you do? So that you don't

have these awkward, weird, you
know, like, Hey, man, right? You

know, did I say this? Right? Am
I doing this wrong? What can I

do better stuff

Marc Burnett: like that, you
know, I'll say this. And one of

the things that I used to do,
and I'll still do occasionally

is if I'm in a group of people,
and I know they're

uncomfortable, I'm gonna give
away one of my trade secrets

here. But they're uncomfortable,
I'll do something that's sort of

self take a shot at myself in a
way. Or I'll say something that

I know, you wouldn't dare say.

They won't be explicit, but just
something that you wouldn't say.

And then I'd say it. And I also
look at them. And I say, Well, I

can say that. And it just breaks
the ice is like, but you know,

you get questions today, the
things today that I think are

important. I got a question the
other day about Black Lives

Matter. And somebody I know very
well. And they asked me, What

was that all about? You get
questions about rioting. And you

know, with all the election
things going on, there's a lot

going on right now. And a lot of
people are uncomfortable in this

country, I think right now
relative to race and cultural

issues. And I think the biggest
the most important thing is to

address them head on, you know,
you just ask them, Are you

comfortable? You know, I'm
trying to be comfortable. If I

realize if I see that you're
trying to be comfortable. Yeah,

but you're uncomfortable,
because you're not sure how to

do it, then I do everything in
my power to say, hey, you know,

it's cool, we're good. You know,
it's alright, if you've got a

question, just ask it. And
that's what I did with someone

the other day, I said, ask your
question, because you're saying,

I know, you know, when you're
telling me out, well, I know you

personally. And I'm blood. And I
just really want to ask you

something. Ask it. Yeah. Because
that's the problem we're having

today. The conversations are
tough, but we need to have them.

Kosta Yepifantsev: And this
isn't going to be an episode

completely on diversity and
inclusion. But I and we're going

to talk about mustardseed Ranch,
we're going to talk about

Tennessee Tech. Well, you know,
I'm still hoping to learn a

little bit more about kind of
your upbringing, your childhood

and stuff like that. But I do
want to ask one more question

before we move on. Is this a new
phenomenon of white and black

people talking? Like, did we not
have we not cohabitated? The

same country for 400 years?

Like, why are we now just
starting to talk about how

comfortable it is to talk about
diversity and inclusion?

Marc Burnett: I think a part of
it was our cultures have felt

things were forced before. Okay,
I was telling someone about

integration I grew up in, you
know, in a time of integration,

which is great idea, but the
implementation plan was probably

not so good. And so things were
forced, you know, it was a lot

of forced action. And it was
necessary for it to be that way.

But there really was not a lot
of conversation. There's

dialogue. There was really not a
lot of dialogue. It was just,

you know, this is the way it
ought to be. We need to find a

way to do it. People started
pressing to do things to make

things work. And they worked.

But we didn't talk a lot. You
know, there's my generation who

has gone through a lot of this
60s 70s, early 70s. But you have

another generation of young
people, black, white, what have

you who'd never seen it before
until their reaction and is

different. And they're asking
questions my own kids, you know,

asked me questions. I took my
son to the Civil Rights Museum

about a year and a half ago. And
we walked through, and my son

was stone quiet. And I said,
Son, are you okay? And he said,

Dad, I didn't know it. Yeah, cuz
we don't talk. We then talk

about it. If I'm not talking
about it directly with my kids,

because I'm thinking they're
getting in school. Right, then

who's talking about it? Yeah,
we've got to talk. I mean, we

got a few problems. And we just
have to talk.

Kosta Yepifantsev: Yeah,
absolutely. I think maybe social

media talks about it. But I
don't know if that's always the

healthiest

Marc Burnett: option. And that
even as a kind of a one sided

conversation true. Mostly, we do
all the listening. So that's how

most people get it, the masses
get it by listening. They don't

get it by talking.

Kosta Yepifantsev: I think maybe
just the size of Cookeville. And

the fact that we have such a
small minority population,

whether it's African American or
Hispanic, when I moved from

Russia to Atlanta, Georgia, and
I went to school in Dunwoody and

I was a minority because I was
white, and the majority of my

classmates were black. Yes, I
had no problem with, you know,

with assimilating, essentially.

And so I find it fascinating.

When I learned of the history,
you know, I read the history of

Cookeville. And Tennessee as a
whole. And I read, obviously,

African American city was my
favorite class, because I

there's so many things that I
wasn't taught in high school,

right, that Dr. Academy really
helped me understand. And so

when you learn the history of
the United States, I think

you're able to make sense of it
all. And it gives you peace and

that anxiety that you feel
because you don't know, you're

able to then you know, use the
discourse to answer some

questions. Exactly.

Marc Burnett: You know, I tell
people, we should have the

conversation, because on a work
day, you're not going to have

this conversation in general. I
don't care what crowd you're in.

But you have to be at the dinner
table. Yeah. Do not tell people

sometimes we're talking about
say, you're ever invited me to

your house for dinner? And
they'll say, Well, no. And I'll

say, and I haven't invited you
either. That's what we need to

change. Exactly. And so it has
to be a dialogue of both ways.

Yes, there are inequities.

There's social and moral
inequities, and all all kinds of

stuff. But we're at a place I
believe, and it's just me

talking, where the truth has
become negotiable.

Kosta Yepifantsev: Now, that's
powerful man, you make an impact

on people everywhere you go.

During your nearly 40 year
career at TTU, you made such a

huge impact on students and
faculty, when you retired, they

named the student recreation and
fitness center after you. In

your opinion, what does making a
meaningful impact on people

mean?

Marc Burnett: It means making
people feel like they can

achieve whatever it is they're
trying to achieve. It means

lending a hand. You know, it's
not about giving a handout, it's

about giving a hand up. One of
my favorite pastors always said

never looked down on a man
unless you're helping him up.

It's pretty basic. And again,
today, we got a lot of people

trying to look down at people to
hold them down. And that's

wrong, of course, but just
helping young people to get to

where they they're trying to go
and do it in a meaningful way to

where they understand. Now, I'm
not just helping you, because

it's my job. I'm helping you
because you are the future. You

are what's next, you're going to
have hard decisions just like we

have. And I'm going to try to
help you make those in the best

light that you can and the best
way that you can.

Kosta Yepifantsev: Did you work
with freshmen all the way up to

seniors? Yes. Okay. And in
postgrads?

Marc Burnett: Yeah. Graduate
doctoral students. Wow, one of

my students stories that I had a
young man who was an engineering

and works for a large
corporation up in Illinois, and

he would come to my office
routinely. And he'd say, I want

to be you. When I grow up. I
say, well go around and sit in

my chair. Take the chair. Yeah,
and see what happens. And he

would literally go and he'd come
in, and I'd get up and move and

let him sit in my chair.

Kosta Yepifantsev: What was it?

Like? Was it harder talking to
freshmen during their first year

of college? Or was it harder?

And I'm sure, and if there's
something that I didn't mention,

that was the hardest of all,
please interject? Or was it

harder talking to seniors who
had that anxiety about leaving

school and entering the
workforce with maybe some

unknowns?

Marc Burnett: You know, it was
probably a little tougher

talking to freshmen, okay?

Because they really don't know
what to expect. And I would

always laugh when people would
arrive who thought they had it

all together, and they wouldn't
know you got to experience it.

So but when you're talking to a
senior, and I was always

gratified if I saw someone
completely from their freshman

year through their senior year,
that was always gratifying, and

to just be able to glean what
they learned, you know, because

I'd always ask, Well, what did
you get out of this? You know,

did you just come here and just
go through it? didn't pick up

anything but academics? What did
you learn what changed your life

And those would be the things
I'd want to hear. Do they change

a lot? Some of them quite a lot.

Yeah. And it probably a lot has
to do with the demographic in

which they come from. A lot of
the students and we have great

students at Tennessee Tech, I
believe that with everything in

me, and some of the, you know,
they would admit seven, you

know, I came from this little
town and not a lot of people. I

remember some students from Red
Boiling Springs when I was a

student and playing ball at
Tech, and we became good enough

friends that we live together in
graduate school, and a house.

But they told me they said we
we'd never been around black guy

before. And I said, Well, you
learn you're probably pretty

bored. Dark. Yeah. I'm not very
exciting.

Kosta Yepifantsev: Yeah.

Exactly. When you were when you
were growing up, you grew up in

East Tennessee. Yes. And Alcoa,
Tennessee. Okay, what did your

parents do for them? Well,

Marc Burnett: I've never met my
dad, quite honestly, they had

divorced my dad had left and I
was I don't remember I was

young, two, four or five years
old. My mom worked as a part

time kindergarten teacher at New
Providence across America High

School, actually. And she also
worked at Levi's and several

places. My grandfather was kind
of the head of the family. He

was the patriarch, and he worked
at Alcoa, aluminum, in what they

call the pot room. And it's
where they pour the aluminum,

which was a he said, it was
always like, 110. That's a job

right there. And so I pretty
much idolized my grandfather.

Yeah. And he made sure you know,
whatever we needed. I said, my

family, we live for time in
public housing. And that was

interesting, because one of the
things I learned during those

years was that, you know,
economics, only colors green.

And that's really the only color
that matters, or can come in all

colors and try it exactly what
it does. So, you know, I learned

then that, you know, a lot of
people can be in bad shape. We

had welfare, we were on food
stamps. And my mom was working.

You know, it was not a handout.

It was a hand up.

Kosta Yepifantsev: Yeah. I mean,
it was a bridge between that and

being homeless. And I

Marc Burnett: have mixed
feelings about some of the way

those things occurred today.

There are people who need it.

And then there are people who
don't, yeah, I think rip off the

system. And I don't, I don't
care for that.

Kosta Yepifantsev: It is
astounding to me. So I've been

doing this for about 11 years.

And when I have employees that
don't make enough working full

time. And they still have to,
they still have to access some

form of government benefit,
whether it's healthcare or work,

or it's, you know, food
assistance programs. And here's

the crazy for the state of
Tennessee has a right

methodology that it uses to
determine what we should pay our

caregivers versus what they pay
us, right. And they're the ones

that set the pay rates. And
they're like, Well, I guess

they'll just live in poverty, or
they'll have to get a second job

or even I've heard somebody will
get a third job. And I'm like,

come on. Yeah, I

Marc Burnett: definitely think
there should be a program of

some sort for seniors, because
they spent their whole life

working, worked. They spend all
their time working. I think that

should be a program of some
kind. And I firmly believe if

you're able bodied, I think you
ought to work, even work. Yeah,

watch my grandfather work out
where I come from working

people. And I think if you're
able, you should work. You know,

the system is not quite that
way.

Kosta Yepifantsev: It isn't
Russia, though. My dad said it's

real simple. You have three
choices. You either work with

your brain, you work with your
hands, or you work in jail.

Yeah. But either way you work

Marc Burnett: either you're
working, I believe, I believe in

a working system. You people
should work if you're able

bodied. I believe you should
work. Yep.

Kosta Yepifantsev: As we
mentioned at the top of the

episode, you're transitioning
into your next chapter as

Director of Development at
mustardseed. Ranch. How did you

find out about this position?

And what inspired you to join
the ranch?

Marc Burnett: Tammy Hogan, that
executive director, she called

me no one to take me to lunch,
to talk about my lunch always.

So we went to lunch. And she
actually talked to me about

being on the board first. And I
said, yeah, the only caveat

being if I can't work with the
kids, if I can't be around them

sometimes and talk with them and
interact with them, then I don't

want to be on it. I said, I
don't need another meeting. I've

had lots of meetings in my
career. I don't need another

meeting somewhere to just sit
and listen to people talk. I

don't need that. I said I would
like to be interactive with the

young people. And she said,
yeah, if you can do that, so I

went to have that, Carly, I got
the one board meeting. And then

after that, she approached me
about working. And I said, I

didn't even hesitate. Really, I
didn't say you know, let me go

take time to pray. Let me do
this. Let me do that. I just

said Yeah, because again, it's
taking me full circle to where I

was young and people helped at
certain times in my life. And

again, just that opportunity to
pour into somebody who's at that

starting point where I was at
one point

Kosta Yepifantsev: What's it
like seeing some of these kids

because I mean, they all come
from from a variety of

backgrounds. And I was telling a
little bit about the lady that I

used to work with who now works
as a house mother and Teen

Challenge. And the things that
she describes that these kids go

through prior to coming to Teen
Challenge are coming, I'm sure

to mustardseed ranch. For me
personally, I don't work with

kids. And I couldn't. So I work
with the elderly, and I work

with the intellectually
disabled. Okay, I can't work

with kids. Because my standard,
I couldn't handle the emotion of

it. I couldn't sleep. So I mean,
how do you regulate?

Marc Burnett: You know, when you
look at these young people,

again, I look at them and think
everybody's got a chance. If

somebody intervenes at the right
time. Everybody's got a chance.

Yeah. So I take them at face
value. Like right now, there are

several other kids, I don't
really know their background, I

know they come from a difficult
background. I know things that

have happened. But I just look
at them and love them and just

say, look, I care about you. And
so I'm going to do all I can to

make sure that you move in a
positive way in your life. And

whatever's behind you is behind
you. It's not about where you

come from. It's about where
you're trying to go. And if you

don't know where you're trying
to go, let me do some things to

try to put it in your head. You
know, some things you want to

do, but you can have a positive
life. And you can have a

positive impact on others lives.

I know I came from it was not
that it was abusive or anything

like that. But coming from a
background where, you know,

people look at you and say, you
know, you're probably not going

to mount that much. You need to
do this and you need to do that.

And I was always wanting to go
against the odds. I just, if you

tell me I can't. Then you just
messed up.

Kosta Yepifantsev: Yeah. You so
you go to high school at Alcoa.

And you said you played
basketball? Yes. And so did you

come to tak to play basketball?

Or did you just walk on the
team? Or how did you how did you

go from Alcoa to Tennessee to
full scholarship? Okay, nice.

Had a

Marc Burnett: full scholarship.

It's really interesting. Ironic
in a way, because when they

first offered it to me, I've
turned it down. My mom, I'm not

going there. I was looking at
some other students. When you

finish Tennessee State and
gravlin and Okay, University of

Louisville, okay. I didn't have
a scholarship offer from

Louisville. I could walk on they
talked to me about walking on

because Wade Houston, he's from
Alcoa, he's I knew him and he

was assistant at Louisville. So
they talked to me about walking

out. And I said, No. And then my
mother and all her wisdom, and

knowledge. She sat me down and
she said, You know, I think

we're going into Tennessee Tech.

I said, tell me why we're, we're
in Tennessee Tech mom. And she

said, You will study and you'll
be somebody. Those were her

words on that my mom has no
college education. She's not the

one she'll be 92 next month,
when she's sharp as a tack.

She's She's very smart. And
everything she said, came

through. Yeah.

Kosta Yepifantsev: So did she
end up moving? Or did she live

here? Now she lives

Marc Burnett: it. No, she didn't
live here. She still lives in

the same house. She lives in my
grandfather's house where I

lived for a number of years. I
was with her all last weekend.

And, you know, she still talks
about just meeting the right

people doing the right things
being who you're supposed to be.

My grandfather would always say,
you know, treat everybody the

way you want to be treated. And
he said, if they don't treat you

in kind, if they don't return
that respect, whatever it is,

it's not your problem. So

Kosta Yepifantsev: right. Now,
when you graduate, Tennessee,

tack to you stay in Cookeville
and immediately start working

for the university.

Marc Burnett: So I went home for
six months, okay. The irony was

I had I have an undergraduate
degree in English journalism. So

I went home. I had applied for a
job as a like a copy editor or

something for this little
company. It was not a big

company. But the year before I
tried to work there, and they

said, Well, you get your degree
and come back, and we probably

pick you right up. Well, they
didn't. Man, I don't think they

thought I was gonna come back
with a degree one. But anyway,

they didn't. And so Tom Deaton,
who was the basketball coach at

the time, he called me one day
out of the blue. And I don't

think anything's out of the blue
really, but he called and said,

come back and be a graduate
assistant and work the camps and

all this stuff. And and I turned
around and came back six months

later.

Kosta Yepifantsev: Wow. And that
was 40 years ago. Yeah, gosh,

it's 2022. That would have been
1982. It was 1982. What was

cooking like in 1982?

Marc Burnett: Some days I think
not much different. Is now it

has grown commercially.

Cookeville has grown
tremendously and also

residentially, but, you know,
I've never thought of it. When I

was a student, undergraduate
student and out in the

community, some, there were one
or two racial incidents that

occurred, okay. But I've learned
that, you know, again, the

majority of the people I've come
in contact with here, I didn't

have those issues. And if I did,
I didn't see it. I didn't wreck

it. lies that I'm sure there's
still things today, you know,

certain people still feel
certain ways. Yeah. That's why

we have to talk right.

Kosta Yepifantsev: Let's talk
more about Mustard Seed ranch.

This is a community supported
interdenominational Christian

ministry designed to take
children out of unsafe

environments and into loving,
nurturing homes. As a pastor and

Community Development liaison Do
you feel like this position was

made for you?

Marc Burnett: There are a lot of
days now that I think it's

perfect for me at this point in
my life, again, a pastor, two

churches, one in Gainsborough
and one here, I've been involved

in ministry a long time I did
youth ministry first. Most

people don't know, when I
started in ministry, I started

with youth. And it was because I
was in a Sunday school class

with some seniors here in town
at a church. We were talking

about some things and I had a
lot of kids, I noticed that they

had a lot of kids. And so I say
to the deacon deacon at the

church, I said, you know,
somebody really needs to have a

youth program in the church. And
he looked at me and said, Why

don't you start one? That's how
I started literally, yeah, with

youth and just having a learning
moment during regular services.

At this particular church, and I
enjoyed again, kids seemed like

I always come back around to
young people think that's what

God wants me to do.

Kosta Yepifantsev: You've helped
raise a lot of kids 1000s Over

the years, as a mentor, a father
and advisor to so many What do

you think kids young and old
really need to succeed?

Marc Burnett: I'm always pushing
education. And it's even funny

today, a lot of people are
pushing it less for whatever

reason, but always push
education and determination, you

know, to not be stopped. I think
that's really important to not

be strong grip, and I would tell
people, that's it from an

athlete standpoint, the same
thing it takes to play ball, I

have to practice every day.

There's wins and losses, you got
to get up when you get knocked

down. You got to keep striving
forward no matter what. If it's

important to you, and I would
correlate that to after court

and being in the classroom. You
got to keep trying, you got to

keep striving. It's got to be
important to you. If it's not

important to you, then you won't
do it anyway.

Kosta Yepifantsev: Did you learn
Grint playing sports? Yes. Do

you have kids? I do. Okay, did
your kids play sport? I did.

Okay. So I'm going to ask you
this. Because, you know, we

obviously a component of the
show's parenting, and I need all

the parenting advice I can get.

So I have been trying to, I hate
to say push and force my kids

into team sports. But I grew up
playing hockey, okay. And it was

a huge part of my life. Yes, I
have been trying for my son

Louis to play golf. He didn't
like it. I went through the

junior PGA. He does dance. But
that's it. Pretty much. Yeah.

But he does a lot of stuff like
Math Academy and things like

that. He doesn't in genetics to
That's it. But I'm trying to get

him to like a conventional team
sport where you have the crazy

parents around and you have you
know, like, all this energy and

pressure and attention and all
the things that you need to

like, kind of put your young,
malleable child into a pressure

cooker so that they pop out as a
well formed machine to ready to

take on the world?

Marc Burnett: Well, again, as a
parent to another parent, yes.

Only have them do what they want
to, okay. Don't force them in

anything. You know, we'd have
parents who would want to force

their kids to play and would do
things and I'm like, you know,

they really don't want to play.

So why are you forcing them?

What is it because you didn't
play or you didn't reach your

goal. If you're trying to live
through them and have them you

can't do that they have to take
to it and if they take to it

fine. My daughter played
volleyball in high school and

basketball, played volleyball at
Milligan College, up in Johnson

City, and four years there. My
son played a little basketball

in college could have played
football. But he every time he'd

say, Daddy, I don't want to play
that. I'd say that's fine. Don't

play it soon. Don't waste my
time. And don't waste your time

if you're not in it. 100 I'm
110% guy, right? I'm one of

those. So when I'm playing, if
I'm out there, you know, I'm out

there, no matter what's going
on, you know that when I come

off the consensus. And when I
come off the floor, you know,

I'm the I'm normal guy. Nothing
mean spirited about it. But I'm

110 I'm going at you when I'm
out there. Listen, I'm the same

way and I didn't coach for
living because I thought not

everybody's that way. So I
couldn't coach. I coach the AAU

coach men's and women's coach
young people coach au for years

and, and you know, and I never
yelled, I wouldn't yell at them

or anything. I just tell them,
you know, I wanted them to

learn, right? It's a learning
thing. So if they want to do it,

then I know I can teach them if
they don't if they're lying, and

my parents made me play. I
couldn't deal with that. So it's

like if you want to learn, I'll
teach you and that's what I

think every parent should do.

Kosta Yepifantsev: So if you
Kids didn't play team sports,

how would you have taught them
grit,

Marc Burnett: you know, they
experience some issues here

growing up here, and they would
come in and talk about it

occasionally. And I would just
tell them, I said, Look, son or

daughter, this, you know, this
is what the world is, you know,

the world, I can't Candy Coat
the world for you, you know, you

can't grow up in a vacuum. This
is what the world is, there's

racism, and there's and there's
hatred, and there's things out

there that you're going to
encounter, that you've got to

not let it change you. And
that's where your grit comes in,

I'll say because there gonna be
days, you're just going to slam

up on the ground, you're
shouldn't be really angry things

are going to occur. And you're
not even going to think about

why it's happening until later,
you were doing everything you

could to be who I want you to,
you know, we want you to be just

good young people. And this and
then this thing occurs and

you're, you know, your kid comes
into you almost in tears and

said, you know, daddy, why'd
they do that? That's hard,

right? And I would just sit them
down and say, Hey, these things

are going to occur, you have to
work to overcome it. That's what

the grit part is.

Kosta Yepifantsev: Yeah, for
sure. I'm so focused on what

you're saying? Because I'm like
trying to retain it that I'm

practically not even paying
attention to the questions. As

we've discussed, this is the
dawn of a new era for Mustard

Seed ranch. What are you most
looking forward to as the range

continues to expand? And what
can we do to get involved?

Marc Burnett: Oh, of course, I'm
the development director. And,

you know, for nonprofit, that
means going out raising funds to

do the things that need to be
done next, again, Tammy Huggins

dream, her vision, which has now
become our vision is to take it

to the next step. And that is
not just bringing in young

people who are having problems
at home, taking them out of

their home, bringing them to the
residences, but it's also about

the whole family. We're taking
the position where, you know, if

you bring the child out of an
environment, and you get them to

a point where they're doing
well, if you send them back into

that same environment, right,
you take that giant leap

backwards. Yeah. And it doesn't
help the child at all. So what

we're trying to do is connect
the dots and say, Okay, let's

work with the parents or
guardians, whatever they may be.

Let's work with them. Also,
again, it's about the whole

family now. And that's where
we're going with it is working

with the whole family by having
staff psychologists and more

caseworkers, and all these
things. It's about creating that

nuclear family again, and making
sure you can't fix one wheel and

leave the others flat and
exactly. So you got to have the

whole thing work. And that's
where we're going. That's where

it's going.

Kosta Yepifantsev: I mean, I'll
tell you talking to Tammy and

listening to you talk about the
mustard seed Ranch, man, it's a

huge lift. I mean, it's so much
work. It's so much time. It's so

much money. And it's so
important, because there's

really not another I mean,
there's very few Christian

environments that don't take
government money, right? You

have to fund this completely
through donations and grants and

various other things. And you're
not just like saying, Okay,

here's the house. Here's a
person, Y'all take care of these

kids. You know, once they age
out, funding stops, and we'll

move on, you know,

Marc Burnett: it's a major
event, Thomas. Yeah,

psychologist, staff psychologist
and the whole nine. So we're,

we're doing all of those things
on the forefront of all those

things. And then you think about
the costs. No, per kid, it could

be anywhere from 150 to five
$600 a day. Yeah. And there is

no cost with us. Zero. That's
wild. So that's kind of where my

job comes, is to try to help
Dino help alleviate those costs.

And starting in the fall, which
is fast coming upon us. I'm

going to be out and about and
meeting with people and

hopefully getting on shows and
talking about these things. You

know, there's so many young
people out there, you know, DCFS

you know, doing all that they
can right now Governor leaves

coming up with new programs and
new fundings for things but it's

still even Putnam County,
Cumberland County, these places

are overrun with cases.

Kosta Yepifantsev: I mean, just
you know, like an astonishing

Marc Burnett: seven 800 Kids,
just between the two counties,

probably about 200 here, and
numbers has seven 801 around the

Crossfield area. So you know,
they're out there. Now, what are

we going to do? That's my whole
thing is now what do we do?

Kosta Yepifantsev: Can I ask
though, what you think is

causing these kids to be in just
terrible environments? Like Can

people really be that bad
sometimes or what's what's going

on? Because that just doesn't
make any sense to me.

Marc Burnett: Well, one of the
things that's happening now is

adoptive grandparents,
grandparents are taking a lot of

their grandchildren in and their
grandparents, right. They'll do

the best they can. My
grandfather did. They did the

best thing. Good with me. But
there are limitations on their

time. And, you know, they've
spent their time they've spent

their lives. And, you know, I
tell people, I don't hesitate to

tell people, you know, we have a
lot of young people who are

having children. And they don't
have the thought the family

thought, somewhere, we've lost
some of that we've lost that

thought. You're having kids as
part of a family thing. So we've

got some issues, because young
people having kids today,

sometimes they're not quite sure
what they're in for.

Kosta Yepifantsev: Right. And
some I mean, are just deciding

not to have kids altogether.

Yeah, I think that there is a
lot of opportunity. And there's

a lot of work that needs to be
done to support young people

that want to start a family.

Yes, I think as a society, if
we're going to invest money,

obviously, there are people who
have paid in with blood, sweat,

and tears that need a stable
retirement, right, you know,

that are over the age of 65. But
we are never going to find

stability. If we don't stabilize
people at the beginning. I was

running this morning, and I was
listening to a podcast and they

were saying that Gen Z is the
fastest growing population for

credit card debt. Like they not
only are looking for credit

cards, they embraced it. They're
like, given me all you got. And

they've been around that that
culture of credit for so long

that they don't shy away from
it. So they know. Exactly. And

it starts in college, and it
never stops. And it's a recipe

for disaster. But more
importantly, they're doing it

because they it's hard for them
to make ends meet. That's right.

It's right. It's

Marc Burnett: really
interesting, because it's almost

a contradiction. But you look at
the economy, anything, you know,

there are more jobs. And there's
more this in the stock market is

not bad, and all this. And yet
people are not working. I mean,

you go to a restaurant, it takes
you 30 more minutes to, for

somebody to come talk to you. So
something's going on. I'm not an

economist, but there are things
going on that are out of the

ordinary. Yeah, 30 years ago, I
would work myself to death.

Yeah. And I went from one job,
tell somebody jokingly, I said,

I'd have been standing in
McDonald's with a Burger King

shirt on, because I just left
from over there. So I think

we've lost some of our work
ethic that my grandparents, or

your grandparents or great
grandparents had we've, we've

lost that, that zeal to work and
pull ourselves up by our

bootstraps. Now we're kind of
looking around for somebody else

to pull us up. Yeah, we got to
get back to pulling ourselves

up. Because we have
opportunities, we have chances.

We have people that are
interested, we got to get to our

young people and instill that
grit in all, but also tell them

out of love and concern. In my
ministry aside, you know,

there's a God who loves you, you
can accomplish a lot through

him, you can do a lot of great
things. And so don't get

sidetracked by what other people
are doing and what people want

you to do. Try to do the next
right thing, just try to do the

next right thing. And realize,
you know, having children, all

of that is a blessing. Just to
be able to have a child is a

blessing, but do those things in
the right way? You know, I've

heard too many times I'm talking
to somebody and I love them to

death. Some of my family
members, even though I'm talking

to him, and I said, Well, you
know, I couldn't do that.

Because I had this, you know,
and I had this child and all

that. And I said, That's right,
you did that. So how about not

doing that? Think about what do
you want? And if you don't want

a child and don't have one, and
think about what you can provide

for if you can provide for you?

How are you got to provide for
somebody else? For me, some of

it is that kind of thinking. And
you've got to instill that

early. Like you said, You got to
get to young people while

they're young. And show them the
way don't just talk about it.

Kosta Yepifantsev: Show.

Alright, important question.

Okay. Do you and your wife want
to come over for dinner? Well,

yeah, all right. Good. And

Marc Burnett: you can come over
to me. Yes. Very simple. We make

life so difficult sometimes.

I've never been to your house.

Why, right? No, I just don't
think about it. Well, how are we

going to talk? How are we going
to learn about each other? If we

don't,

Kosta Yepifantsev: it is the
strangest thing, because I

invite people for dinner all the
time. If somebody is like, you

know, support me for this. I'm
like, let's talk about y'all

come over for dinner, we'll get
to know you better than we'll

make a decision or you know, you
know, I meet somebody

interesting out in the
community. I go to do business

with somebody, like for example,
I'll just use an example Matt

swallows and his wife went back
in 2015. When we were looking

for shopping our work comp and
liability insurance around okay,

like they came over for dinner.

We met their family. Maybe this
is just like a Russian thing. I

don't know. But I mean, usually
you break bread, you get to know

somebody and you become friends
forever. All right. When you

said it, I thought, Man, he's
got it. Okay, and maybe if Mark

Burnett says then the rest of
the rest of the community will

get behind.

Marc Burnett: You have to spend
time with each other, you know,

we, even Sunday, you know, this
is a little bit of an aside, but

you know, pastoring churches,
one of the things you learn in

Sunday may be the most
segregated day of the week. How

come? Because in a community,
typical community, you have

black churches, you have white
churches, and there's not a lot

of intermingling. You know, I've
always thought it'd be cool if,

like a white church invited a
black church over for an

afternoon service, and mix that
culture and do some things

together, or the black church
had the white church over? I've

been in conversations with
people a lot about that. And it

has not taken place.

Kosta Yepifantsev: I mean, is
there a reluctance to even

listen to it? Or do you think
that

Marc Burnett: dropped? It's
like, well, yeah, that's a good

idea. But But now we've got a
lot of those in our lives. Yeah,

it's a good, that would probably
be cool. But

Kosta Yepifantsev: the dynamics
of church are for another

podcast. Because there's a lot
to unpack.

Marc Burnett: You can always
make me irregular.

Kosta Yepifantsev: There you go.

There you go. Well, we've got a
special surprise for October. So

who knows? All right, we always
like to end the show on a high

note, who is someone that makes
you better when you're together?

Marc Burnett: My wife, she makes
me better. She's a lot of the

backbone of the family. Of
course, when I'm working at

Tech, you know, she never gets a
lot of credit for anything at

all. But she's the one I mean,
she's just, you know, with the

kids. You know, to give you the
best example of kids, I call

now, I've got a son Mario and a
daughter, Bianca. They're 38 and

34. And Bianca is getting
married in December. But when

they call, if there's anything
going on all they call her, now

get in on the conversation. And
of course, they know I'm very

straightforward, too. So I may,
you know, sympathies can

sometimes not be my thing. So
very straightforward. You need

to do this, you need to do that,
you know, didn't call me back,

but they'll call her because she
has answers. She's a godly

woman. You know, she's been
everything that I've needed her

to be. And I'm sure I haven't
been everything she needed me to

be. So she's the backbone and
she never gets enough credit.

Morgan Franklin: Thank you for
joining us on this episode of

Better Together with Kosta
Yepifantsev. If you've enjoyed

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friend. Today's episode was
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Franklin post production mixing
and editing by Mike Franklin.

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visit us at

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