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We're chatting about the people, places, events, and flavors that make Johnson City, Tennessee a lovely place to live. An interview show hosted by Colin Johnson.
Proud member of the Maypop Media family of podcasts.
0:00:00 - (Colin Johnson): It is a beautiful August day here in Johnson City. There's tears streaming through the streets as school has started back. All the kids are just crying their eyes out, wondering why the summer over. And I'm starting to wonder the same thing. But I am super excited that they get to go to school in our area because we got a lot of great teachers, a lot of great people around. We got a lot of great after school programs around.
0:00:24 - (Colin Johnson): Which brings us to an awesome dude, a friend of mine that I've known for a long time, Mister Damon Johnson. Welcome to the podcast.
0:00:32 - (Damon Johnson): Thank you for having me, man.
0:00:33 - (Colin Johnson): It's a pleasure. I was excited to see your name on the list that we get to interview, and here it is. Today is the day, and so why don't you tell the audience a little bit about you and, yeah, just give us a little bit intro on Daymond Johnson.
0:00:49 - (Damon Johnson): Daymond Johnson grew up here in Johnson City, over in carver projects, part of the basketball team at Chinese Hill, part of the run that was made in silence. Hill went on and played at junior college and played at UT. Day after graduating UT, I went and had a 15 year professional career overseas. Iceland, Spain, Indonesia, Chile. Just was able to travel a little bit, see the world, came back home. I'm here, back home in John City, running LXI, helping the community as much as I can.
0:01:24 - (Colin Johnson): I love it. I love it. Traveled all over the world, came back home because it's just awesome.
0:01:29 - (Damon Johnson): It's just awesome. Johnson.
0:01:31 - (Colin Johnson): Johnson City living. Johnson City. What is your favorite thing about Johnson City?
0:01:37 - (Damon Johnson): It's close to a lot of different places you can get to.
0:01:39 - (Colin Johnson): Yeah, centrally located.
0:01:41 - (Damon Johnson): Centrally located. I love the fact that we have lakes. You can go to the lake, you can go. You can do almost anything.
0:01:49 - (Colin Johnson): Yeah.
0:01:50 - (Damon Johnson): So I just love that about it. When I was younger, I stayed in my community. I didn't really go outside my community a lot. Didn't understand how valuable this was with land and just the opportunity that you have. But going to the lake, going hiking, there's some beautiful things up there. You see God, for sure.
0:02:08 - (Colin Johnson): Yeah. So you lived all over the world. What was one of the favorite places you lived?
0:02:14 - (Damon Johnson): Love Iceland. Love playing basketball, love Iceland. Iceland, yeah. Unique place. Just natural. Nothing man made, really. Just naturally made. But my favorite place to live was probably Spain. Spain, yeah.
0:02:28 - (Colin Johnson): That's cool. Where were you in Spain?
0:02:29 - (Damon Johnson): All over.
0:02:30 - (Colin Johnson): All over.
0:02:30 - (Damon Johnson): Yeah. I probably played eight years and I lived in eight different cities.
0:02:33 - (Colin Johnson): Oh, wow.
0:02:34 - (Damon Johnson): Yeah.
0:02:34 - (Colin Johnson): That's fun.
0:02:35 - (Damon Johnson): Loved it.
0:02:36 - (Colin Johnson): How big? Like, I'm just curious. Cause I don't know, the international professional basketball realm. Like, how does that. How big is it? How does it compared to, like, our professional league? And then is it like a filter system if you get really good over there? Kind of like minor leagues?
0:02:54 - (Damon Johnson): Yeah. First they allow about two Americans, one to two Americans per team. They don't want us to dominate. It was all about helping them develop. So, like, when I first went over, the Olympic team was tearing everybody up. Cause it was so far. But now you see, watching the Olympics, that gap has closed tremendously. Also the skill level of their national players or their local players.
0:03:19 - (Colin Johnson): Yeah.
0:03:19 - (Damon Johnson): So what they do, they don't have. A lot of them don't have a college system that when they get good, they could be good at 1011 years old. And if they have their potential, a major team, assign them, like, say, a Real Madrid or Barcelona, they assign them and then they will play on one of their junior teams until they develop to the point where they can pull them and they get. And at that point, they're professional players.
0:03:41 - (Colin Johnson): That's cool.
0:03:42 - (Damon Johnson): Cause they sign a contract and some of them get paid and some of them, they have to go through the process before that happens. But they get to that point and it's very close to the NBA. I don't think the dollar amount equals out. Cause it's not such a business over there.
0:03:55 - (Colin Johnson): Right.
0:03:56 - (Damon Johnson): So the dollar amount don't equal out, but it's the same. You play games, it's a crowd, you get treated very well, and you got the best of the trainers, you got best everything. So it's very similar. That's cool. When I played, I didn't. I kind of regret not trying to NBA, but at the time I didn't. I didn't miss it.
0:04:17 - (Colin Johnson): Yeah.
0:04:18 - (Damon Johnson): So I had a great time.
0:04:19 - (Colin Johnson): Yeah. And you played here at science Hill when you guys won the state, right?
0:04:24 - (Damon Johnson): I was on the team.
0:04:25 - (Colin Johnson): You were on the team?
0:04:25 - (Damon Johnson): I was on the team.
0:04:26 - (Colin Johnson): Oh, here we go.
0:04:27 - (Damon Johnson): Play a lot. When I was on the team that year.
0:04:29 - (Colin Johnson): Hey, somebody's got a, you know, somebody's.
0:04:31 - (Damon Johnson): Got a lot of character badge for him, baby. Yeah. Somebody got a cheer, right?
0:04:35 - (Colin Johnson): I just got a t. But then you went to ut and played, right?
0:04:39 - (Damon Johnson): Yeah, yeah, yeah. From sine seal. I went to junior college at Hawassi. Played two years, and that's where I really made a difference and changed into a point guard. But then when I went to Tennessee, I switched positions again. But I played two years of Tennessee. I started for two years.
0:04:56 - (Colin Johnson): How fun was that?
0:04:57 - (Damon Johnson): It was fun. It wasn't fun losing games. Cause that was the first time in my life that we lost a lot. That wasn't fun. But being there on campus and being on UT would pay. Manning and Leonard, little Al Wilson, we all knew each other and hung out a lot, so that was like. It was unbelievable. Going to football games and knowing guys.
0:05:17 - (Colin Johnson): Yeah.
0:05:18 - (Damon Johnson): And then watching him go have pro careers was pretty cool.
0:05:21 - (Colin Johnson): That is cool. That's super cool. Yeah, I got one down there right now. He's a senior this year, so. Yep.
0:05:28 - (Damon Johnson): That's like Johnson City always. We have a crew that goes down there.
0:05:31 - (Colin Johnson): Yeah, we do. Like, there's an army of people that go down to Knoxville every. Every game. And then we're getting ready to put Christian in AtsU here next week, so. That's exciting. That's exciting.
0:05:41 - (Damon Johnson): I can't believe they in college already.
0:05:43 - (Colin Johnson): What's your. What's your day job now?
0:05:45 - (Damon Johnson): My day job? Alexi, still?
0:05:49 - (Colin Johnson): Yeah, you're running. Alexi, tell our listeners about LXI.
0:05:53 - (Damon Johnson): LXI is an after school program. We focus on kids twelve to 18. A lot of our kids are fatherless or in non biological homes, having, you know, just a rough time, like a lot of people. And what we try to do is deal with that trauma. A lot of kids. A lot of people, period. Deal with trauma. And in the community I grew up. You don't talk about that. It's a cliche, right? You weed. You need to pray more. Right?
0:06:19 - (Damon Johnson): You need to go to God.
0:06:20 - (Colin Johnson): You suck it up.
0:06:21 - (Damon Johnson): Yeah, suck it up and be a man. But what I figured out in my life is trauma's real, and you gotta deal with it. And the sooner you deal with it, the sooner you can really be who God called you to be. So we really focus on mental health and trauma more than most after school programs, or probably. I don't think a lot of afterschool programs deal with that at all. I think we was the first one to come out and say, hey, we are focused on this more than curriculum based stuff. Right? So we have our curriculums, but a lot of it is trauma based. It's mental health based.
0:06:53 - (Damon Johnson): We have a counselor that comes in and assists with the kids once a week. And us. I even get time with her. I'm 50 now, and I started therapy. So I really, really pushed this in the community, amongst the people that I'm around, because I think it's really big. I think it hurts our community in a tremendous way.
0:07:15 - (Colin Johnson): Yeah, that's cool.
0:07:18 - (Damon Johnson): So LXI, that's what we do. So we deal with a lot of.
0:07:21 - (Colin Johnson): Talk about the original story of LXI.
0:07:24 - (Damon Johnson): Alexis roman numerals was 61, and it's based out of Isaiah, 61. And it's just what God came beyond. He'd be with the broken, the hearted, the poor, and you know the story.
0:07:37 - (Colin Johnson): Just come in love on him.
0:07:38 - (Damon Johnson): Just come in love on what a lot of people wouldn't love on, in a sense, and be there with them and not judge them and not force anything on them, but just show them the love and let that love create the change. Yeah.
0:07:52 - (Colin Johnson): So what's the program look like on a day to day basis? You got how many kids?
0:07:57 - (Damon Johnson): We run? Twelve to 25. It depends on the day and the season. Basketball season. We kind of drop down to the twelve mark. Gotcha. So what we do is pick them up from school, bring them back to our place at 1006 at Broadway street, and then they eat snacks. And then we sit down and just have conversation with them or whatever the curriculum is that day. We'll go through that with them. A lot of times we're just sitting down having conversations of what they dealing with at the time.
0:08:23 - (Damon Johnson): And then we talk a lot about God and the Bible. And again, we don't force any of it on them. A lot of our kids don't believe in God, or they have a hard time believing in God, and they have doubts, and we allow that space for that doubt. And then we try to show them biblically what that looks like right on our end. So that's what kind of LXI. And then we do a lot of fun stuff with them. A lot of them don't get to be kids. They have to be a little more than kids. A lot of them babysitters or they have to grow up a little faster than provides.
0:08:58 - (Damon Johnson): So we just kind of allow space for them to be kids at the time. And it gets wild. It gets out of control a little bit, in a sense, that they play, they just enjoy themselves. They burn a lot of energy.
0:09:10 - (Colin Johnson): Yeah.
0:09:10 - (Damon Johnson): So we just put a nice basketball court in the back. We trying to build a nice little park back there. Not just for our kids, but for that community. Cause it's not a lot of resources to go down there.
0:09:20 - (Colin Johnson): That's in Keystone, right?
0:09:20 - (Damon Johnson): Yes, sir.
0:09:24 - (Colin Johnson): Where did you or when did you start going? Hey, I think the Lord made me to mentor and love on, you know, take care of kids.
0:09:32 - (Damon Johnson): Honestly, when I retired from basketball, well, I didn't retire when 2009, the recession hit. It hit overseas really bad.
0:09:40 - (Colin Johnson): I.
0:09:41 - (Damon Johnson): So when I came home, we just never went back. The money wasn't the same. So I was kind of forced into retirement at the time, and truth be told, just went downhill, right? I was an athlete my whole life, and then all of a sudden, I wasn't. So I was in a dark place. Try to maintain that image. Lost a lot, and it really humbled me. So, at that point in my life, I just prayed and ask God, what's next?
0:10:07 - (Damon Johnson): And I didn't want to chase money. I didn't want to chase fame. I didn't want to chase none of that. So kids in basketball just kept swirling in my mind. So I started TCF, which was a nonprofit basketball program. And then one thing led to another, got into coach, and I thought it was basketball and coaching. And then coach Marion from rise up, he came and saw me, and we had to sit down. He was like, let me mentor you. I think you could be a leader.
0:10:31 - (Damon Johnson): I think, you know, you are the leader that people need in this community. And I kind of laughed at him. Cause I was like, who is this tall, lanky guy? I like him, but he had a vision. So I ended up going to work at rise up for about four or five years and was mentored through him. And then God presented an opportunity to go to LXi and start running LXI. And then the whole time, I just had an idea about trauma and how it was dealing with me, and I saw it in. A lot of kids in the community knew that if I could figure this out, it can be a real help.
0:11:08 - (Damon Johnson): And I haven't figured it out yet, but I'm getting closer and closer to trying to get this thing figured out of how we can package this together and pass it out to really help people. So, yeah. Be in prayer for me for that. Cause, yeah, man, really need to try to figure that out. So that's how we got to where we are now.
0:11:28 - (Colin Johnson): That's cool. That's cool. You take in some trauma counseling classes and that kind of training. Are you going through that yourself to learn how to take care of these kids?
0:11:36 - (Damon Johnson): Yes, sir. That's the first thing we did. Is Becky Haas around here? She's kind of well known at that. One of the first people I heard talking about it. So she came in, we talked multiple times about it. She came and trained me and the staff a couple of times, and it'll be a continuous day because it's always a vibe, and you learn more and more.
0:11:56 - (Colin Johnson): Right.
0:11:56 - (Damon Johnson): So, yeah, we stay in training. We about to finish Urban's Youth workers Institute of how to work with urban youth.
0:12:05 - (Colin Johnson): Okay.
0:12:05 - (Damon Johnson): Right. It's a special certification that you get from California.
0:12:08 - (Colin Johnson): Oh, that's cool.
0:12:09 - (Damon Johnson): Yeah, we're about to finish that next month.
0:12:11 - (Colin Johnson): That's cool. What does the future of rise up look like? Or not rise up? Sorry. LXi.
0:12:16 - (Damon Johnson): LXi is in a unique place right now. We are actually under construction in a sense, and I don't even know how much I can say about it, but we're about to get taken over by another organization to make sure we are here for the long haul. Being a grassroots organization, you can see girls in. It's a lot of nonprofits in trouble right now, so. And I think it's just a word. We have grown in nonprofits. It's just not enough money to go around.
0:12:39 - (Colin Johnson): Well, yeah, I think rise up is feeling it a little bit, too.
0:12:44 - (Damon Johnson): A lot of nonprofits are, because a.
0:12:46 - (Colin Johnson): Lot of the grant funding that was given to nonprofits has now moved back over to the schools, and they're trying to do it in house with the school.
0:12:53 - (Damon Johnson): So it's just hard. It's a hard. It is a hard. So my thought process was find another organization that's doing it really well and kind of partner with them so we don't have to fight that. And I think, and luckily, that they saw the same thing in us, that we was a great asset and being in the community that we in. I think now that we made this partnership with eastern eight community development, I think that we really can bring some resources to that community that can really make real changes.
0:13:23 - (Damon Johnson): Getting people from the projects to a home, bringing resources in that community where if you can't get there, you can walk here, and having those resources ready, available inside that community is going to be a huge difference. So I'm super excited about the part. I can't wait till we can really, really announce what we.
0:13:41 - (Colin Johnson): What's going on. That'll be exciting to hear. I'm excited for you.
0:13:44 - (Damon Johnson): So I think it's going to be big. I know it's going to be big. It's one of those things that I call a God thing, because it wouldn't have happened without his intervention.
0:13:51 - (Colin Johnson): Yeah.
0:13:52 - (Damon Johnson): So I'm super excited about what we can do and the potential there. So the future, Alexi, is super exciting.
0:13:59 - (Colin Johnson): How many kids do you hope you can help?
0:14:01 - (Damon Johnson): 100,000, if we could.
0:14:03 - (Colin Johnson): 100,000.
0:14:04 - (Damon Johnson): I really want to make the projects work because the projects is needed. I'm not saying projects is a bad place. I grew up in the projects, and it made me who I am, but the resources was removed. So what happens is it just leaves people in a generational cycle.
0:14:17 - (Colin Johnson): Oh, yeah. I mean, I. I'm on the board of the housing authority, and that's something we talk about. I'm passionate about. Let's change these people's lives to where this isn't their only hope and only future, is just living here forever. You know, we. And we've got a program now that's helping them after, if they go through a certain number of steps and do a certain number of things, we pay a down payment on a house for.
0:14:39 - (Colin Johnson): So I'm excited about that.
0:14:40 - (Damon Johnson): See, it's more and more things like.
0:14:41 - (Colin Johnson): This happens, and so I'm looking for. We need a partner together.
0:14:43 - (Damon Johnson): Yeah, let's talk.
0:14:45 - (Colin Johnson): Yeah, let's get it going. Because I want to help all the kids there, too. That's really my heart, too. I love, I love.
0:14:50 - (Damon Johnson): But I know eastern aid and the house of Dory, they work very closely with it, so they might already be in it.
0:14:55 - (Colin Johnson): Yeah, yeah, we can. Yeah, we just need to probably get together and have a little chat.
0:14:58 - (Damon Johnson): See, that's what I mean. So it's like that type of stuff, that collaboration happened. Yeah. So we really can really help folks now. Yeah, sure.
0:15:05 - (Colin Johnson): Yeah. And I know Randy co listens doing.
0:15:08 - (Damon Johnson): A lot, too, so he does real good with the.
0:15:10 - (Colin Johnson): It's a. Yeah, it's cool that we've got a lot of organizations that are wanting to pursue our kids locally and help them. You know, I think that's where you. You start looking back, you know, in 20 years, where these programs have started, 2030 years ago, and what. What does that look like? We're starting to see rise up kids, you know, having kids that are coming back to rise up and watching their lives being changed. And it's really cool, you know, so it'll be cool to watch Alexi, kids coming through and seeing how, you know, your mentoring, an impact on them changed their life, and then it changed their kids lives, and then those kids went and changed people's lives. And it's just, you know, discipleship. It's the model, right?
0:15:50 - (Damon Johnson): It's the model.
0:15:51 - (Colin Johnson): Jesus knew what he was doing, right.
0:15:53 - (Damon Johnson): He knows what he's doing.
0:15:54 - (Colin Johnson): He knew what he was doing then. He knows what he's doing today. So it's really good. It's really good. What do you like to do for fun when you're in Johnson City? For sure.
0:16:04 - (Damon Johnson): Play golf.
0:16:05 - (Colin Johnson): You play golf?
0:16:05 - (Damon Johnson): I love golf. Really?
0:16:07 - (Colin Johnson): What's your handicap?
0:16:08 - (Damon Johnson): Seven. Ooh.
0:16:10 - (Colin Johnson): Let's go.
0:16:10 - (Damon Johnson): I like it.
0:16:12 - (Colin Johnson): Where do you like to play?
0:16:13 - (Damon Johnson): Wherever I can wherever you can. Yeah, wherever they let me.
0:16:15 - (Colin Johnson): All right. I like this. I didn't know you were a golfer.
0:16:18 - (Damon Johnson): I'm an avid golfer.
0:16:19 - (Colin Johnson): I have a golfer. Yeah, I like it. I just see you rolling around town with your dog a lot.
0:16:24 - (Damon Johnson): I'm a segue. People look at me like I'm an alien, too.
0:16:29 - (Colin Johnson): I tell you what, Swartz. Like, who's that high roller on a segway with, like.
0:16:32 - (Damon Johnson): Yeah, the cool dog riding around New York City or something. I don't know. Like, I'm just an alien. But it's. What's funny is my dog is more popular around here than I am.
0:16:41 - (Colin Johnson): Well, I mean, I get it.
0:16:42 - (Damon Johnson): I get it. Right? Way prettier, for sure. Yeah.
0:16:47 - (Colin Johnson): Easier to get along with.
0:16:48 - (Damon Johnson): Yeah.
0:16:50 - (Colin Johnson): So tell me some, like, you know, everybody's got a story, right? And how did you. How did you want to get started in basketball? Like, what was. What led you towards, like, just cause you're super tall and.
0:17:03 - (Damon Johnson): No, no.
0:17:05 - (Colin Johnson): How did you get going in there?
0:17:08 - (Damon Johnson): It was what we was doing in the community. So you didn't play basketball?
0:17:12 - (Colin Johnson): You just sat at home in this way.
0:17:14 - (Damon Johnson): It was the oddball, right? So it was no choice. And all of my friends play, and we started on the monkey bars. Before we could play on the rims, we was playing on the monkey bars.
0:17:23 - (Colin Johnson): See, the whole.
0:17:24 - (Damon Johnson): Yeah, yeah. Just one thing led to the other, and then Jordan came around and just went nuts. We all wanted to be like Jordan or somebody in the NBA. So we all working. We all played, and it was just a thing to do, and you just did it. And the thing about me was, I was really just a below average player until, like, 10th grade. Between my 10th grade, the summer of my 10th grade year, and my junior year, I grew from, like, 510 to six three.
0:17:51 - (Colin Johnson): Isn't that crazy?
0:17:52 - (Damon Johnson): Yeah. All I did was eat and sleep. My mama probably took me to the doctor. She was like, something wrong with him. All I do is sleep. Because you were a girlfriend? I had a real growth spurt.
0:18:01 - (Colin Johnson): Yeah.
0:18:02 - (Damon Johnson): I went back to school, and even the coaches, like, who are you? Where you come from?
0:18:06 - (Colin Johnson): It's me and color. Just Damon.
0:18:07 - (Damon Johnson): Yeah.
0:18:08 - (Colin Johnson): I don't know you. I don't know what you're talking about.
0:18:09 - (Damon Johnson): They were like, damon, so. Yeah, so. And then I had to catch my coordination. Cause I was.
0:18:15 - (Colin Johnson): Oh, I remember those days my dad got. We. I would be at dinner and knock over glass every night because I think it would be here. My arms. Twice as long as it was basketball.
0:18:25 - (Damon Johnson): Yeah, it was.
0:18:27 - (Colin Johnson): And your knees? Oh, man, my knees used to hurt. Growing.
0:18:30 - (Damon Johnson): I averaged, like, five turnovers, ten turnovers.
0:18:33 - (Colin Johnson): He can't dribble. Cause my arm, I don't.
0:18:35 - (Damon Johnson): Yeah, I couldn't catch it, couldn't pass, but, yeah. And so from there, it just came. I became really competitive. And then the odd thing was, around 88, Uncle Melvin. I don't know if y'all know, but Uncle Melvin was very, very impactful in our community. And after my dad died, I was around 1011 when my dad passed. So after he passed, Uncle Melvin took me under his wing, and I really spent a lot of time in basketball. I remember him teaching me how to shoot, just spending hours in the gym shooting, and just him spending time with me. And that's kind of where I get the idea of what I'm doing now, just being present with people. Right.
0:19:16 - (Damon Johnson): So he did that with me, and then two or three years after my dad died, he passed away.
0:19:20 - (Colin Johnson): Oh, no.
0:19:20 - (Damon Johnson): On the court that we play on in carver. So it was super hard. So basketball was a yemenite almost a painful point at some point, right? But it was almost painful and peaceful at the same time. It was a super weird feeling for a while, but I dove into it, because. I don't know why, but I really dove into it. Then I grew, and then things came together. When I was in Juco, they really, really came together. They just started to come together when I was a senior, and then going to Juco, they really came together. Then they just started flourishing after that.
0:19:54 - (Colin Johnson): Well, and it probably didn't come by accident. You got a lot. You got a lot of work hard, right? You got to practice a lot. Where did that work ethic come from?
0:20:02 - (Damon Johnson): From the community. Everybody worked, and I wasn't going to be the one that didn't work. And if you wasn't good again, that was the status quo. So that's how you made your status. You had street credit, so we all needed it, so we all wanted it. You just tried to climb the ladder to get to that point. So once I. Once I grew, I knew, all right, it was just a matter of time, because I could do what everybody else did, but I was just a little bigger, a little stronger.
0:20:30 - (Damon Johnson): So it was just. And then I learned how to shoot, and it was confidence nuts after that.
0:20:37 - (Colin Johnson): That's fun.
0:20:38 - (Damon Johnson): It is.
0:20:39 - (Colin Johnson): Yeah.
0:20:40 - (Damon Johnson): It's almost like golf when you know how to hit the ball.
0:20:42 - (Colin Johnson): Oh, man. When you hit a ball, when you pure it, you didn't even feel like you're hitting it. You know, you're just like.
0:20:48 - (Damon Johnson): It's gone.
0:20:49 - (Colin Johnson): Same with the sheet shot. You just let it go. And you know, as soon as you let it go, you're, like, walking. That's why they turn around, walk. Because they know it's in. Yeah. And you're like, why don't you follow your shot? And they're like, no, let's do it. I don't need to. But then there's a lot of times I'm like, watch all are falling your shot because you're missing everything. So when you're not playing golf, you probably have to eat somewhere. Where do you love eating around Johnson city. Tell our listeners some of your highlights that you.
0:21:16 - (Damon Johnson): Oh, I like the german restaurant down here.
0:21:18 - (Colin Johnson): Oh, yeah. Freibergs.
0:21:19 - (Damon Johnson): Freibergs love freibergs. Love project barbecue.
0:21:22 - (Colin Johnson): Mm hmm.
0:21:23 - (Damon Johnson): Uh huh.
0:21:23 - (Colin Johnson): Those guys, they've been on the podcast, like, last year. I need to get them back on here. Project barbecue is so good.
0:21:29 - (Damon Johnson): Yeah, they had something yesterday. French toast, something. Oh, my gosh.
0:21:34 - (Colin Johnson): Delicious.
0:21:35 - (Damon Johnson): Yes.
0:21:36 - (Colin Johnson): It's not real healthy over there.
0:21:37 - (Damon Johnson): No, but it's good. I like downtown. Downtown?
0:21:41 - (Colin Johnson): Yeah. You live downtown, right?
0:21:42 - (Damon Johnson): Yeah.
0:21:43 - (Colin Johnson): You're downtown, dad.
0:21:44 - (Damon Johnson): A lot of eating places down here. You can name it. Bunch of them. I like all of them. I travel the world, so I like. I just like the food.
0:21:52 - (Colin Johnson): Yeah, yeah. Tell, um. Yeah. Describe downtown for our audience just so they can kind of get a feel for it if they haven't been here before.
0:22:01 - (Damon Johnson): Downtown is vibrant, is growing totally different in five. Sit. Five years ago, actually. And with the connection they make in the ETSU with the football going on, this is going to be a real live place. You better get down now because if you don't, it'll be too late or too expensive. Way more expensive later because it'd just be the place to be. I'm down here just in a little loft, and I kind of like it, but I don't because I'm PhD now. Right.
0:22:29 - (Damon Johnson): But it's super cool. A lot of places you can just go hang out. It reminds me of being overseas, and I think that's why I enjoy it.
0:22:36 - (Colin Johnson): Yeah, China feels like a big city, even though it's really not entitled, but.
0:22:40 - (Damon Johnson): You can go hang out. You can sit outside, watch people. I love people watching. So you can watch people. You can just. You can see beautiful views, ton of breweries. Right? So you can go hang out and chill out and play games with the fans. A lot of family oriented places. And that's what I like seeing again. It reminds me of being in Spain. Very family oriented. So you got a couple parks now with founders park and the park.
0:23:02 - (Colin Johnson): King Commons.
0:23:03 - (Damon Johnson): King Commons. So a lot of places to hang out and be with family. You see a lot of kids. A lot of, you know, just.
0:23:08 - (Colin Johnson): There's always something going on. You got the farmers market right here, too, and. Yeah, like the breweries. You said. What's one of your favorite brewers in downtown?
0:23:16 - (Damon Johnson): Not really. None of them. None of them my favorite. I don't drink a ton.
0:23:19 - (Colin Johnson): Yeah. But overall, there are a lot of. I mean, they.
0:23:22 - (Damon Johnson): Super cool places. I like burger and some good stuff. Burger and barrel over here. Cool spot to hang out.
0:23:26 - (Colin Johnson): Yeah. I haven't been to their little beer garden outside.
0:23:29 - (Damon Johnson): White tiger, white tuck, white duck. White duck.
0:23:31 - (Colin Johnson): So good.
0:23:33 - (Damon Johnson): I mean, all of them got their own little unique things. That's what I like about it.
0:23:37 - (Colin Johnson): Yeah.
0:23:37 - (Damon Johnson): So you can go to white duck and get there, and you can go to Burger brown. Get there, and you go around the corner. Tennessee whiskey and get something. That's true. So I like it.
0:23:46 - (Colin Johnson): Yeah.
0:23:46 - (Damon Johnson): Then the rooftop is nice.
0:23:48 - (Colin Johnson): Oh, yeah. Watauga, they just reopened that, I think. And I think there are new restaurants called courses, maybe.
0:23:54 - (Damon Johnson): I think something like that.
0:23:56 - (Colin Johnson): Yeah. One of my neighbors who was on the podcast last week, she did. She said it was fantastic.
0:24:02 - (Damon Johnson): Yeah. Super cool. Yeah.
0:24:05 - (Colin Johnson): What would be some advice, maybe that you could give to somebody who's maybe listening, who's starting a nonprofit or wants to mentor kids? What would be some advice you may pass on to those guys?
0:24:15 - (Damon Johnson): I would say, look in your community for somebody who's doing the same thing. I would not try to start something that's already there. That's one of the issues that we are having, people just starting something that's already there instead of helping that person build what's there. So I would say look for that first. Look for somebody in the community that's doing what you're doing or that you can add to them and make them better. Yeah.
0:24:36 - (Damon Johnson): And then eventually, if it needed to, create your own nonprofit. But I would say look for that first, and then if you can't find that, just go through the proper steps and make it official, and then just go to work and be prepared to fail, because you will fail, and that's how you learn. Don't beat yourself up for failure. Failure is just a way of learning. Right. So take that and grow. Right.
0:25:01 - (Colin Johnson): You don't make all the shots you shoot, right?
0:25:03 - (Damon Johnson): No, you better not.
0:25:05 - (Colin Johnson): But I think I forget which one the hell Michael was saying. He was like, I've missed umpteen million shots. You know, and. But because I missed those, I made some really important ones, you know, because you also have to take a shot.
0:25:16 - (Damon Johnson): I missed 10,000 shots in practice just to make those ten game winners.
0:25:21 - (Colin Johnson): Yeah. And so, yeah, you gotta. Don't be afraid to take the shot, you know? Like, if you're feeling called to do this, right, that's the Lord prompting you and pricking your heart to do it. You should follow through with that.
0:25:33 - (Damon Johnson): And I tell you, you don't have control anyway. If you're a Christian and you believe in God, you really ain't in control anyway. He's already planned that out for you, so he's just pushing you and nudging you to go ahead. And a lot of times when something comes up, it's gonna be fearful, you're gonna have a lot of doubt, and that's the enemy talking to you. It's what he's trying to stop. So if you could fight through that, which is hard as humans. Right?
0:25:54 - (Damon Johnson): Like, I'm sitting here talking, like, that's easy with LXI. That was super difficult. Right? I didn't. I had no idea how to run a nonprofit. None. I'm an athlete, right. Things have been done for me my whole life. He watched it a little while, but I didn't know. Like, no, I did not know. It's different when you sit.
0:26:09 - (Colin Johnson): It's different when you're the man.
0:26:11 - (Damon Johnson): That's right. But he has prepared me or he has made a way for me. So I think he'll do it for anybody that loves him or, you know, follow his ways. Right. So I think, just like you said, just go after it and be prepared to fail. And don't be scared. Cause it's a fun ride, right? You have a lot of God stories. I tell you that, right? You have a lot of God stories because you'll see him go to work when you take yourself out of the driver's seat.
0:26:41 - (Colin Johnson): What's one of those stories you could share with our listeners?
0:26:43 - (Damon Johnson): Where were LXI? I mean, we was days away from closing, honestly. Like days. Like, literally days away from closing. Weeks away from closing. And then a partnership happening. You know, this being in business, you don't make partnership happen in weeks. Like, don't happen like that. But it did. Right? On paper, it's not possible. Right? But it is. It's happening. This is a real thing, and it's going down right now.
0:27:10 - (Damon Johnson): So that's a story. We have several stories of kids. We have one kid who had two deaths in her family, an aunt and a sister, very, very close family. And she was going down a bad path, right? I mean, just like most teenagers. But us pouring into her, us sharing with her the value that God sees in her and other things of that nature and just how important she can be and how much a leader she is. She has now turned her life around, and she's doing incredible things, just absolutely things I didn't even see her doing.
0:27:47 - (Damon Johnson): And it's just amazing to watch. And it's not me, it's not LXI. It's just us doing what we are called to do or what I know that we were supposed to be doing for him. And then that's the effects of it, and it's just story after story after story after story of those things happening and God showing up. But this is the biggest one so far, is that when everything looked dark, he showed up and turned it all around.
0:28:19 - (Damon Johnson): Because we was out of answers, right.
0:28:22 - (Colin Johnson): And we were just like, okay, I guess I was just start practicing. Go back and play pro ball.
0:28:28 - (Damon Johnson): Yeah. Now I'm gonna see if I can get on that senior tour and go, that'd be good.
0:28:32 - (Colin Johnson): That looks like so much fun.
0:28:34 - (Damon Johnson): It does. About five years now.
0:28:36 - (Colin Johnson): You got all these other guys that, you know, coming off the pro tour. It's just like. Yeah, it's like, that's gonna be hard to compete against the Phil Mickelsons and Davis loves and those guys that are dogging and just dominating. Who are some of the people? I mean, I know you mentioned a couple guys like Mike Marin and then one of the guys locally. Who else has been a good influence on you in your life?
0:29:04 - (Damon Johnson): My mother, for sure. My uncle Melvin. There's a lot of people in the community. I hate to start naming names because if I miss somebody, right, it's just like there's so many that just. It's hard to name because it wasn't just one. Right. Every chapter of my life, somebody stepped in. I remember I was going through a rough time with my daughter. Not my daughter, but the whole. Anyway, when I was younger and a gentleman, I just ran into his house and started crying.
0:29:38 - (Damon Johnson): But he sit there and he listened and he helped me, right? And he walked me through it. And that changed my life, right. Because I could have hurt somebody that night if I didn't have that moment with him, and he didn't give me that space. So it's just so much of that. Herb Greenlee is another one. Right, Herb?
0:29:53 - (Colin Johnson): That guy has not aged. He was the same age when I was playing basketball at the boys club 40 years ago.
0:30:00 - (Damon Johnson): I think it's that mountain Dewey joint.
0:30:01 - (Colin Johnson): Is that what it is? He's just preserved.
0:30:03 - (Damon Johnson): Let him sugar it up.
0:30:06 - (Colin Johnson): He's pickled. I mean, like, literally, I looked at him the other day, I was like, yeah, you haven't aged.
0:30:11 - (Damon Johnson): It looks insane.
0:30:13 - (Colin Johnson): Identical. He'd probably say he looks a little.
0:30:16 - (Damon Johnson): Older, but he was an influence, too, because without Carver and without, you know, him bringing some tough direction down there, it would have went sideways. So he gave us that space. He was doing amazing things down there for not just Carver, but the whole Johnson city.
0:30:32 - (Colin Johnson): Yeah.
0:30:34 - (Damon Johnson): So, you know, again, I can keep naming names for a long time, but there's so many in this community and beyond. Like, it's people overseas that took me in.
0:30:43 - (Colin Johnson): Well, and I think, I mean, a big part about our area, I feel like, is everybody does have that helping spirit. Right? I mean, we just love people, and we want to help them no matter who it is or what they need. And that's just kind of what, you know, is what makes Johnson City one of those special places in the world.
0:30:59 - (Damon Johnson): Yeah.
0:30:59 - (Colin Johnson): And I'm glad you're hearing it in other places. Where were some other places across the world where you were? Like, I felt loved and, you know, all over. All over.
0:31:06 - (Damon Johnson): Yeah. And it was totally different. Like, it was almost like we. I was a. I hate to say, like a zoo animal or something like that. But that's the kind of sense of, like, we walked in a place. It was like everybody, like, that guy's a little different. He's super tall and he's black. Like, they don't see black Americans, but, like, who are there, right?
0:31:30 - (Colin Johnson): Tall black guy.
0:31:31 - (Damon Johnson): Yeah. So it's so weird. Like, I got a funny story about Iceland. I tell people, and this is God's honest truth. One of my first years over there, my first year, we went to, like, a remote place where they had an athletic. Where they had taught people how to be PE teachers. So it was in a remote place, like, kind of going to mountain city in a sense. Right? So we up there training for a week or two, and then we snuck out to go to this. It was only 1 bar. I don't know what we were doing. Like, nobody, like, everybody knew who we were. So we snuck out to go to this bar. And in this bar, it wasn't too much bigger than where we in, but it was some old ladies sitting in the corner. And the moment I walked in, these ladies, this eye locked on me, right? And so it was funny at first, right? So hour went by. 2 hours went by, and they still, like, they have not stopped looking at me. Now I'm uncomfortable, right? So the icelandic guys, they laughing, you know, they cracking. They making jokes. Like, you know, they didn't want to do the making jokes. So it got so uncomfortable that I went over and tried to talk to them, but they don't speak English, right?
0:32:30 - (Damon Johnson): A lot of people are nice and do, but in this remote area, they didn't. So a couple of my basketball friends came over, or teammates came over, and they started translating right? And they cracking up. And I'm like, right, bro, this is not funny. I'm about to get mad. You gotta. Cause I don't even know what's going on. I don't understand y'all again. This is my first time out of the country. So they end up saying, all right, man, listen, I gotta tell you this, but you're not gonna believe it.
0:32:55 - (Damon Johnson): She's like, she wants to touch you. I'm like, for what? Why? She like, they don't believe she, like, I think they don't believe that you black. And so they were like, her hand was like this the whole time, and she's looking at me like, this guy. Oh, well, I got her hand, like, the whole time. She's like this, like, you're like. And I'm like, what's wrong? So I put my hand down, she rubbed me, and she looked at her hands. She rubbed me under the hand, like, what it for?
0:33:22 - (Colin Johnson): The cub off?
0:33:23 - (Damon Johnson): Yeah, she looked at me, and she just started talking to the ice landing, and they cracking up. And I'm like, this cannot be real right now.
0:33:31 - (Colin Johnson): Like, never seen black people.
0:33:33 - (Damon Johnson): She never saw a black person. I was the first black person she saw, and she was in total amazement.
0:33:38 - (Colin Johnson): That's hilarious.
0:33:39 - (Damon Johnson): She was just like. She was just amazed.
0:33:43 - (Colin Johnson): That's hilarious.
0:33:44 - (Damon Johnson): Yeah, it was unbelievable. Oh, my gosh.
0:33:47 - (Colin Johnson): Yeah, you probably got in some interesting situations all over the place. Yeah, that's funny. That's why I was, um. What's something? I should have asked you that. I didn't or something. I mean, we can keep talking. What do you want to talk about?
0:34:02 - (Damon Johnson): I don't know. Tell me something.
0:34:05 - (Colin Johnson): Um, I'm thinking, what do you. So let's talk about the kids in Johnson City. Like, I know you said you hope to help a lot of the ones with trauma. What would you like if you were like, okay, I'm gonna make after school programs the best they can be? What does that look like in your mind? Cause I feel like there are a lot of kids who are out there going to regular school and probably would love to have some mentoring in after school programs, but it's just not, you know, they're just.
0:34:32 - (Colin Johnson): They check out of school and they go home and they do their homework and go home.
0:34:35 - (Damon Johnson): You know, I say, for me, tackling the trauma piece.
0:34:38 - (Colin Johnson): Yeah.
0:34:38 - (Damon Johnson): And that goes across the board. It ain't just black.
0:34:41 - (Colin Johnson): That's not personal.
0:34:43 - (Damon Johnson): It's just across the board. The nation deals with that. We all, especially after Covid, a lot of us, been traumatized. Right. And you think about a kid who's living at home with a parent that's an addict. Right. What kind of trauma they deal with or. We don't know what people deal with, honestly. Like, it can go a million different ways. So I think if we could deal, or if I can deal with the trauma, it will start the process of healing.
0:35:12 - (Damon Johnson): I don't think we can heal people at LXI. I'm not the healer, but we can't start the process of where you can get that. And I seen that happen in Alexi already in my short tenure there. In three or three years, three or four years, we seen kids go from one spectrum to a totally different spectrum of not believing in God to talking about God.
0:35:32 - (Colin Johnson): Well, I was going to say, what part of the healing process do you feel like the Lord is involved in? I mean, like, how much percentage. Right. You know? Well, and so I'm wondering, you know, for people who aren't believers, you know, who've dealt with trauma, how do they. How do they get through that, you know, without the Lord?
0:35:52 - (Damon Johnson): I don't know. You gotta find somebody trusted that you could talk to. Yeah, obviously a therapist. Somebody paid to do that, that knows what they doing. It's almost like getting a coach when I wasn't good at basketball. I can't go myself and teach myself. I teach myself bad habits. Why do that when I can go to somebody who's already experienced and know what they can look at me and I two minutes and say, all right, here's what you need to do.
0:36:14 - (Damon Johnson): Here's how you navigate this. And I think that's what needs to be done in that sense, because. Find somebody because you don't know. Being a new executive director, I had to find ways to understand how to do that. I didn't know I could have figured it out and failed, and I did a lot of times, but at the same time, I learned a lot, too, of how to be an Ed. So now I'm a lot more equipped because I reached out to people, I think I reached out to you one time about organization. Cause I was struggling with organization, so a lot of people would be embarrassed with that.
0:36:49 - (Damon Johnson): But that's how you learn. That's how you do it. We all got shortcomings, and we all got faults, and we all think we gotta get better at no.
0:36:56 - (Colin Johnson): And it's like. I mean, I think I always, like, get excited when people are asking me stuff. You know, I'm like, oh, how can I help you? I mean, like, I love to help people. That's just, like, it brings me so much joy and brings, I think, anybody joy. You know, that's. We're created to give and love and take care of and just promote, you know, the kingdom and the Lord.
0:37:16 - (Damon Johnson): Right.
0:37:16 - (Colin Johnson): And so if somebody's asking for help, you gotta, you know, it's a blessing to be able to pass it on for sure.
0:37:22 - (Damon Johnson): And so I just think that's the first thing. Find somebody to talk to if you can't go through a therapist, find you a support system that not gonna back you for everything you say, but sometimes challenge you on what you say and.
0:37:32 - (Colin Johnson): Don'T be afraid to go and ask for help.
0:37:34 - (Damon Johnson): No.
0:37:35 - (Colin Johnson): Yeah. No, I think that's part of it. We like to hide. We feel like it's our fault sometimes or whatever. Yeah. Luckily, I had a great childhood, but, yeah, I can see people saying, oh, I need to, you know, this is. I need to suck it up. I need to just bury it, push it down. It'll go away.
0:37:51 - (Damon Johnson): I dealt with that coming out of basketball. I lost a lot of money coming out, especially in the recession. I just did. And I wish I can go back now to that point and start asking for help. When I saw the downslide coming, right. I could have got help and got out of that, but I was stuck in. I can't tell. I gotta fix this. I got my pride and. And I watched it all go downhill, right. So, yeah, I totally get that. And being fearful. And that's what I mean by trauma, though. Like, that's. That's part of being traumatized.
0:38:19 - (Colin Johnson): Yeah.
0:38:19 - (Damon Johnson): Right. So if you could fix that, right, then what block? Because I started asking myself, what blocked me from asking for help, right. Then you start digging into some stuff. Why?
0:38:28 - (Colin Johnson): What am I afraid of?
0:38:29 - (Damon Johnson): What am I really?
0:38:30 - (Colin Johnson): Right.
0:38:31 - (Damon Johnson): So it was pride and. Well, okay, why you got so much.
0:38:34 - (Colin Johnson): I need to be the Mandev. Why do I need to be the mate, you know? Right. And you just start digging and keep.
0:38:39 - (Damon Johnson): Digging and till you get to that.
0:38:40 - (Colin Johnson): Till you get to that answer, and then you're like, oh, okay.
0:38:43 - (Damon Johnson): And then you gotta go get help of getting that out.
0:38:46 - (Colin Johnson): Yeah. Let's say some people listening want to connect with you, maybe learn more about rise up, maybe support rise up. What are some good ways for people?
0:38:54 - (Damon Johnson): Lxi? Or they can support rise up.
0:38:56 - (Colin Johnson): I'm saying rise up. Sorry, I've got it in my brain.
0:38:59 - (Damon Johnson): Yeah.
0:38:59 - (Colin Johnson): So, Alexi, we need support at rise up, too. But how can our listeners connect with you?
0:39:05 - (Damon Johnson): Social media. We movelxi.com. our website is movelxi.com dot. My email is dash m dash n dash oovelxi.com. so you can reach out and in any of those capacities. And we'll get back with you.
0:39:21 - (Colin Johnson): There you go. We'll send them your email.
0:39:23 - (Damon Johnson): Or just come by. 1006 South Broadway. Come by. We play basketball almost every night. I don't play every night, but it's kids back there.
0:39:30 - (Colin Johnson): You look like you still can play.
0:39:31 - (Damon Johnson): I play a little bit of. I play a little bit sometimes.
0:39:35 - (Colin Johnson): Are you playing? Are you teaching kids still how to play basketball?
0:39:39 - (Damon Johnson): A little bit, yeah, I train. Actually. We got to try out this coming Saturday, August 17, and what I'm doing is putting. Me and a couple friends are putting the thing together called unique game. And what that is, we want to be unique in the sense that we want to push kids to college if that's what they want. Right.
0:39:56 - (Colin Johnson): Cool.
0:39:56 - (Damon Johnson): So a lot of kids around here, they want to go to college. They put a lot of time, a lot of effort, a lot of energy. Parents put a lot of resources, a lot of money into it. And it's just a lot of mom and pop shops around. No disrespect to nobody, but a lot of them ain't shooting for that aspect. Right. So we want to get the kids that's on the same team, in the same organization that's shooting for that, and we want to try to help them get there.
0:40:21 - (Damon Johnson): Cause I traveled that route and I know it well.
0:40:24 - (Colin Johnson): Know a bunch of people you can connect them with.
0:40:26 - (Damon Johnson): And I've been on the travel circuits in a high level circuit for the last three, four, five years, so I know how to navigate it now. And I connected to some people. So hopefully we'll be a circuit organization in the next couple months and moving forward, we can move kids right into that and have a better chance of scholarships.
0:40:48 - (Colin Johnson): And that's called elite game.
0:40:49 - (Damon Johnson): Unique, unique game.
0:40:51 - (Colin Johnson): And how do people find you for that?
0:40:52 - (Damon Johnson): This gotta come out. It's really brand new. We really don't have a lot of information now, and we ain't got a website or nothing out yet, but we will have a tryout August 17 at Memorial Park Community center from twelve to three.
0:41:05 - (Colin Johnson): Okay, cool.
0:41:06 - (Damon Johnson): So, yeah, that'd be fun.
0:41:09 - (Colin Johnson): Well, I wish you the best on that. For sure. Last question, what gets you fired up?
0:41:15 - (Damon Johnson): What gets me fired up?
0:41:17 - (Colin Johnson): Yeah, baby.
0:41:17 - (Damon Johnson): A birdie or eagle?
0:41:19 - (Colin Johnson): A birdie or an eagle. It is about the golf.
0:41:21 - (Damon Johnson): I love it, baby. I love it.
0:41:23 - (Colin Johnson): It's so much fun.
0:41:24 - (Damon Johnson): It is, it is. It's life changing.
0:41:26 - (Colin Johnson): It is life changing. It is. I think it's really fun. That's great. I'm excited you're a golfer. That makes me really happy. Well, thank you for coming on the podcast. Thanks for sharing your heart, sharing what you're doing, sharing your love for kids. Thanks for all you do at lXI and for Johnson City. And I'm praying for you and your organization just to thrive and do well. And I think it's cool that you are really just surrendering to the Lord and allowing him to work through you to help kids. It's just. It's a special, it's a mission. And so you're building disciples, man. So I'm excited for you.
0:42:00 - (Damon Johnson): Yeah, you keep praying for me, though.
0:42:01 - (Colin Johnson): Yes, sir, I will. And I'm sure our listeners will be praying for you and lift you up.
0:42:07 - (Damon Johnson): Come by and help, too. Don't be shy.
0:42:09 - (Colin Johnson): You need volunteers, probably.
0:42:10 - (Damon Johnson): Yeah, for sure. And there's no career. I mean. I mean, just come by and help us out. There's no. You don't have no contracts. You don't have to sign no contracts or anything. Just come by. You want to come by one day, five days, whatever that is, just come by. And what we call it is doing life with kids. So just come by. You can play games, you can hang.
0:42:24 - (Colin Johnson): Out, make peanut butter and jelly sandwiches.
0:42:26 - (Damon Johnson): Or something, fried hamburger or whatever that is. You know what I mean? Just come out and hang out with us. We'll be back in business around, hopefully by October 1. So once all of this takes place, hopefully by October 1, that'll be good.
0:42:39 - (Colin Johnson): Well, I'm excited for you. Well, until next time, I'm Colin Johnson with the Colin and Carter group and Keller Williams realty. If you want to move to Johnson City and be Damon's neighbor and my neighbor, we would love to have you join. And if your name's Johnson, you're even better off because you're one of our brothers.
0:42:53 - (Damon Johnson): So come on by. Another one.
0:42:55 - (Colin Johnson): Yeah. And if you want to build wealth and real estate, love helping people do that with managing property, helping them find rentals, and doing all that fun stuff, too. So, till next time. Talk to you soon.