From NFL Running Back to YMCA Executive: Greg Lewis's Shocking Career Pivot

[0:17]  Welcome back to another episode here on the Heart and Huzzle Podcast. Our next guest, a 24 had a football career that ended no job, no plan, but realized life is still life in and he wasn't done yet. Greg Lewis, former NFL running back turned YMCA executive, talks about how he just comes back after this dream, man. And and talk to us, man. What was the dream that you were living? Life happened because that's what life be doing and then you pivoted. But let's start back at the NFL. What happened,

[0:45]  right? Let me start off by saying, you know, I talk to kids a lot and I talk to them and one of the first things I tell them is don't have a dream, have a goal. And the reason I say that is is you know have you ever f had a dream at night you wake up in the morning you don't remember exactly what all the details of what happened in the dream you just know you had a dream it could have been scary could have been good or whatever but I say have a goal which means you got to write it down you got to look at it every day you got to do something that's going to get you closer to it every day. So when I was eight years old, anybody who knew me would tell you Greg always said he was going to be a NFL football player. And I meant that. And I at an early age realized that if I was going to do it, you know, I couldn't do it alone. I couldn't do it by myself. So I tried to figure out how do I get to the NFL. So I had conversations with the one person that I knew who actually had an NFL career, and that was a good friend of mine's dad. There's a guy named Eric Metaf who also played in the NFL, but his dad, Terry Metaf, was an NFL player and we were classmates and and played little league football together. And so I asked his dad, I was like, "I want to go to NFL. How do I get there?" And he told me, "Greg, there's only one place to get NFL players from." I was like, "Where?" He said, "College. So you got to go to college." So my goal then became, "How do I get to college?" And so that was related to school. So I asked my teachers. I had uh in the fourth grade I had a teacher named Mr. Anderson. And I was like, "Mr. Anderson, I want to go to college. How do I get there?" He said, "Well, in order to go to college, Greg, you got to get all A's for your whole high school career. That's the only way or or school career. That's the only way you get to college." Now, he knew that he was manipulating me to get good grades, but I believed him. And so from that point on, I became a just a a a nightmare in school from a good standpoint. studying all the time, learning, trying to make sure that I got good grades all the time. And so I guess the story is is that as a little kid, I knew what I wanted to do. I, you know, talked to some people who could help me. And then along the way, I always enlisted other folks. So, you know, playing little league football, my coaches became role models. You know, I was one of those kids who, you know, I don't like to, you know, perpetrate the stereotypes, but my dad wasn't involved when I was growing up. It was primarily my mom and my sisters. And so I had to enlist other people as role models, you know. So I had coaches that uh you know, Emanuel Washington was my first ever little league football coach, Joe Small, uh Craig Freeberg, uh people like that who were in our community, you know, businessmen, police officers, firefighters, that became my role model. And as a kid, whatever they told me that I needed to do that was going to help me get to the NFL, that's what I did. And so it's not lost upon me that I really got to my goal because of other people and because of other opportunities. You know, Rainer Junior Football is where I played.

[3:52]  And when I I was just having a conversation with someone the other day. Um there were six guys on my little league football team that all made it to the NFL, believe it or not. And there's that's the reason why we went 60 and0. Never lost a game growing up. Uh because we had Eric Metaf, James Hasty, Demetrius Dubose, um Richard Kerry, myself, and I'm forgetting somebody so I hope they forgive me, but we were all on one little league football team. And that program made it possible for there to be a Greg Lewis as well. So again, not lost on me that if you're going to

[4:28]  stop real quick right there, Greg, because you talk about leaders, right? Leaders at a at a young age. people. I'm a big believer that I'm where I'm at today because of people that poured into me. Whether it was friends, whether, as you mentioned, I didn't have mom and dad, but I found people that believed in me that it wasn't mom and dad, right? So, understanding that we're in situations because of our past. And then you go into the NFL, right? You're in the space that you're in today, but almost realizing like, wait a minute, my life kind of led me here.

[4:58]  You know what I'm saying? Like I can imagine that time that you had to leave off the football field, it was the why, the what am I going to do? But when you really sit here and think about it, like man, God would do things in mysterious ways. And he'll put you through all these different things and then bring you back to where it all started, which is really in the community being pouring back into young men, which is what you're doing with the YMCA, young men and women. You're pouring back into our youth. Um, did you ever think about that? Like does it ever cross your mind like man maybe I was being prepared for these moments at the YMCA? I think when it was all done, yes, you look back on it, reflect, um because as a kid, I didn't realize that, you know, this is what is going to create the path for me. But as you get at the end of it, you know, I I achieved my goal. I went to college. I became a college all-American. I was voted the best running back in the country and I went to the NFL and bam, I hurt my knee, you know, three years in and ultimately I knew that I was going to have to retire. And then you start thinking about what's next. But for me, it was more of a okay, how did I get to this point and what do I need to do to get to that next thing? And it went back, you know, fullfold. I had a goal and I had people who helped me, people who poured into me, people who helped guide me along the way. And, you know, got to make some sacrifices and, you know, all of those kinds of things. But really, that was my blueprint. And so I embraced it at that point and figured out that this is what it's going to take for me to get to the next step. So let me find those role models. Let me find those opportunities. Let me find those blueprints. And then I think what you alluding to is how that how impactful that became to me. So now I realize that I could be part of someone's blueprint. I can be part of someone's success. And that definitely drives me today and the work that I do not just for the YMCA, but um interestingly enough, I coached girls basketball for 25 years. And I can probably if I go down a list come up with at least a hundred kids, uh young ladies that actually went on to play some level of college basketball and maybe one in the WNBA briefly. Um and that was part of me giving back and becoming a part of their journey. So I think you have to give back. When people pour into you, it gives you enough to pour into somebody else.

[7:20]  Yeah. You know, in life, we have to break the cycles, but then there are cycles that we keep. And the cycle is continuing to pour back into our youth because someone poured back into us. Opportunities that, you know, have we been presented with is uh is definitely not just our work, is the work of others that believed in us before we could even see it. is God's work and what he's been able to kind of, you know, in in in places he has placed us in, right, to learn certain things and to grow from it. And I ask you, man, because leaving football was probably hard. How did that football is what I did, not who I was mindset change everything?

[7:52]  Yeah. I think along the way, um, I had encounters with God. I had encounters with people. I had opportunities to um give back and to share who I was, my journey, my faith with individuals and that became more important than just the goal itself. You know, when I was 8 years old, getting to the NFL was the most important thing. But I think on my journey, what I realized is the journey was far more important and discovering who I was uh was always more important than becoming just an NFL player. And I think um when that was kind of over, I had learned so many things along the way. I had become, you know, a well-rounded, you know, individual that was concerned with more than just my ability to be famous or my ability to be rich, but how could I enrich others that when football was taken away from me, I was like, you know what, that was just one platform. And I learned so much along the way on how to achieve a goal. Now, what can I do to give that back to someone else? And so I've seen guys the transition away from football was hard because all their friends was because of football. All of their relationships um their successes, but I had many successes along the way. I became an academic all-American. Um I had, you know, I I married my uh high school sweetheart. All of those things kind of along the way let me know that the sum total of of that journey was more important than becoming an NFL player. So it was time to walk away. It was time to walk away. I already had a blueprint for success. So, I knew how to do that again. And I was already fulfilled, you know, just because of my relationship with God, my relationships with people. And I knew that I had a purpose now that was more important than just becoming an NFL player.

[9:40]  I love that, man. And and then you you left higher ed

[9:43]  to start working for youth, right? So, you've taken a couple different transitions after playing football and and you're at the Y now, man. Really doing a lot of youth work. H how did you go from scaling? I think last time you said you went from 4 million, 4.5 million to 8 million in funding. Um what made you want to make that transition to say, you know what, I see a bigger picture. I I want to help the Y. How do I bring in all my skills, leaderships, all these different things to really make a difference? And probably an organization's been around, not probably has been around for a very long time. I don't know if you had any runins with the YMCA, but can imagine that this was really like I love this. I I I like the space that we're in and I want to make sure that I can continue to pour into the community and the youth.

[10:26]  My past wound a little bit before I got here after the NFL, I actually got into the, you know, the the the rat race as they call it, and I was in finance and just didn't find any fulfillment in that. Um, and then the University of Washington, greatest university in the world, uh, where I graduated from, uh, was actually looking for a former player to come back and work in the athletic department to serve our alumni, to get them reconnected, but also to help connect our current student athletes to our alumni so that they could have opportunities after their life in sports because most college players aren't going to go to the NFL, NBA, or what have you. So, that was cool. I found some fulfillment in that. Uh but we had a leadership change at the in the athletic department and I just really didn't feel like the direction they were going was where I wanted to go. So I actually started working in the uh president's office overseeing a department that specifically raised money for under reppresented minority first generation um and underserved schools students. Students that look like me that came from where I came from. And we were the first unit in the country to just raise money for that that only. There are other places where that might have been part of someone's job, but this was just our job only. And we started raising millions of dollars there. And ultimately we raised more money than there were students at the University of Washington that fit the criteria, the profile. And so I had a friend who was with the Boys and Girls Club and him and I were having this conversation about that and he said, "You know what, Greg? Part of the issue is is there aren't enough pipeline programs on the front end to get kids to a place like the University of Washington so that their grades and all their um experiences and their profile is, you know, one where they can get accepted. He said, "Now I work at an organization, the Boys and Girls Club where we do that and we just so happen to need someone to come raise money for us so we can create more programs, get more kids engaged and involved." So I went and did that and it was fantastic. We were only raising about $4 million a year at the Boys and Girls Club. So, you can only do $4 million worth of work. So, what I did is I got a team together and we amped that up to about 8 million. So, we're doubling the impact that we could have in community and serve more kids to help more kids get to a place like the UDub. And then ultimately that leader left the Boys and Girls Club. Someone else came in. Um, we were kind of on different, you know, wavelengths. And so I ended up metriculating to the YMCA of greater Seattle where not only have I gotten an opportunity to do work that impacts kids and their academic journey. Uh but you know the why is more of the holistic what we call whole person health mind spirit and body. And so you know the programming that we do might be life-saving swim lessons for someone. It might be a place where a kid can belong and have friends and then also get involved in sports and activities. It could be a place where an older adult who doesn't have a lot of family left can find a place of belonging and find their community. Um, and then we also dabble in, you know, uh, foster care services, mental health, all of those things. So, the Y is a place where I was like, wow, I can have an impact on so many people by the work that I do. um that it just is fulfilling. Like I said, I can go to bed every night, lay my head on that pillow, and feel like, you know, job well done. So, it it's been an interesting journey, but I love it.

[14:00]  Hey, real quick. Have you enjoying the podcast? We first want to say thank you. And we also just want to give you a little insight of what we're up to at Francis. Some don't even realize that we're working with organizations to help them use AI to create that real human communication experiences where that's actually supporting your your families, those patients or the entire community. We're actually creating tech that connects. Check it out. Francis.ai. And you guys are very different. Why? I remember first time we spoke, I told you I went to the uh your website of this particular why because they're all different depending on the communities that they're in. And I'm like, wait a minute, you you guys got a little bit of everything that is very just not seen on most of them. So, can you kind of talk about some of the programs that are in place on how you are really helping the community that people don't normally see at the YMCA?

[14:49]  Yeah. Um, I'll I'll I'll talk about two in particular that are close to my heart. You know, when I first came to the Y, I was a branch executive director, which means I ran one facility in a community. And the Y is really into getting grounded in that community and figuring out what does that community need and how can we serve that. Well, in the zip codes that my Y serve, you had some of the highest incidents of diabetes, of uh hypertension, of childhood uh uh uh obesity uh in those zip codes and area codes. And the Y runs programs uh that what we call combat chronic disease, which all those things are, but we ran them just like any other Y would run them. And what we were realizing is is that in our zip codes where a lot of people of color and underrepresented minorities or bipac and we didn't offer the programs in a culturally sensitive way, a way that adapted to maybe the types of foods that people from different cultures might eat. um transit trans you know translating all our information into different languages having instructors that speak different languages that know and can respect the culture. So we started what was called a health equity uh program out of our why and that health equity work grew not only from our why in our community but to all the wise in our association. why Greater Seattle has 13 locations. And so now we have a health equity department where we're trying to figure out how can we make sure that people who don't necessarily farewell in our health care system because, you know, they may need a uh different type of doctor, you know, and what I mean by that, there are cultures where a female patient can't be alone in a room with a male doctor. So we make sure that folks can get the type of doctor that they need. Uh we have individuals who can't make it to doctor's appointments. So we have a relationship with Uber where we get them Uber car so they can get to their doctor appointment. Virtual visits have become you know something that has kind of helped transform health care. We make sure that people can get a computer, they can get internet and then that they can have virtual doctor's visits. So our health equity team is creating relationships and creating a pathway for everybody to have success in our health care system because there's so many barriers there. So that's one that I really love. I think the other is our safety around water program where uh we have a goal that every kid in our community by the age of 10 knows how to swim because drowning is the number one cause of death for kids under five and it's number two for kids up to 10 years old and black and black and brown kids are eight times more likely to drown than their white peers. And so we said that's a problem and there's a lot of historical issues why you know swimming pools and swimming you know impacted the black community in a negative way. So we're kind of re-educating people about pools and swimming but we're also making it available and affordable through free grants on swim lessons. And we start out with just the basics, how to be safe. And then we bring the parents into it on how to be at the beach with your kids, how to watch, how to put someone in charge, you know, just keeping an eye on things. And then we start teaching the swim lessons all the way through advance where some of our kids end up being on swim teams. So, so those are two programs. And that safety around water really kicked off at the branch I was at. And now it's associationwide and it's become a state initiative now or city so far, but we're getting to the state. It's called Swim Seattle where the mayor's office has partnered with community centers, the YMCA, and other local pools to make sure any kid that needs a free swim lesson can get it.

[18:37]  I love it, man. You're doing so much amazing thing amazing things. And it's not only at the level of youth, you're also doing it when it comes to execs.

[18:45]  You started, there wasn't many that look like you. Now there's six leaders of color um throughout the different YMCA's kind of in the community close to you. It talk about that man. You know, believe it or not, I was actually um I won't mention the leader, but I was told that I couldn't use the word diversity or color in her conversation, you know, or in the description because of the organization. I'm thinking to myself, like we truly still have organizations that would not speak that language, right, but want to be included. Um but to you it wasn't something that that there was a push back. It was something that you knew had to happen right and and you fought for that. What does it look like for you Greg when it comes about representation in these spaces of of sea suite?

[19:32]  Yeah I can I can tell you that um when I first came to the Y our branch executive director is the folks who lead the facilities and and that's really the life of the Y. you know, we obviously have a seuite executive team. You know, we have a AVP level that I met. Um, but the branch executives are the ones who really lead and make the impact in community. And when I started at the Y, there were two uh branch executives that I can think of of color, one myself and then the person who recruited me, another African-American uh named uh JD. But anyway, um coming in that was the lay of the land. now um through and I have to give a lot of the credit to Lauria Gayen who's our um CEO, first African-American female to be a the leader of the YMCA of Greater Seattle and elevated me to the ABV position. Um she was clear that I would have the opportunity to make sure that our leaders reflected the communities that we serve. And that's the the the really the heart of it. you know, when folks walk into a Y or come into a place where they feel like they belong and they see people that look like them and people who know their background and their culture and history, then they can start to thrive. So, what I did was make sure that every time a branch executive role came open that we filled the uh talent pool with diverse candidates as well. And really, I'm always about hiring the right person because I know that it's a hard job. Being a branch executive is a really hard job and it takes the right person. But by making sure that we, you know, opened up to the folks in that community, did some intentional recruiting, going out to places, you know, meeting with folks and having them identify leaders in their community, reaching out to them, and, you know, giving them my best wise sales pitch to apply for the position. Now, we went from having two to where there's six African-Americans, but then there are other uh representatives uh in our um 13 branches as well, where I believe that eight out of our 13 are led by people of color, which is exciting. And and then not just for that sake, but because it does represent and reflect the communities that those branches serve. And the folks that come in there every day understand that they have a place in space and that there's someone there uh that can identify with their trials and needs and things that they're doing. And that's what we're really all about to why how do we co-create with our communities to bring them the stuff that they need.

[22:06]  I tell you that's so huge. I remember being in school and you know I wasn't the best kid when it came to just my actions, right? But there were some teachers that understood how to deal with me and there were some teachers that just felt that I was a problem, right? And and that's really where you kind of distinguish what you're saying is some people really understand, wait, there's more to why this person may be acting this way. And I really want to help them and and her or her and get to the bottom of it. So I love that your mind thinks that way is it's not just about putting someone of color, but someone that could really understand the need in that community. Uh, I tell you what, man. I took over a store in Pine Hills. And for us here in Orlando, it is a very uh very urban community, probably just more black and Hispanic, right? Kind of grew up in it. So, I understood it. That was my that was my my neighborhood. So, you couldn't just put anybody in that store. So, I succeeded in that store because I understood the community, because I spoke their language, right? And I'm not saying that we didn't speak English, but there was a certain slang on the way that we carry each other, you know, talk to each other. And not everybody could do that because I'm seeing managers, I'm just an employee and I'm seeing managers being turned over. They couldn't handle the heat. Somebody like me, man, at 19 years old that store went from something that's going to close to something that was successful and to this day still stays at that location because I understood what the need was in the community. Right. So, I love that you say that. But I do ask you, it ain't hard. What's your strategy when you think about hiring with excellence, but also that equity?

[23:34]  Yeah. one, it's about getting good candidates into the uh you know, the application pool. And for me, I'm always in community. Like today, later today, I'm playing in this uh softball game uh to honor the young ladies that are playing from the Northwest and to trying to get to the softball World Series. So, I'm always in community. So, I'm always meeting people and I'm intentional about building relationships. To me, that's the most important thing that you can do on a daily basis is continue to build relationships. So when our opportunities come open, I reach out to all of those folks that I've been meeting in community. I've been connecting with um I sit on different boards and comm community uh committees and things like that. And I reach out to my network and said, "Hey, I this is what I'm looking for. This is what we need. Can you guys go into your networks and find people and send them our way?" So I think one, anybody who just sits back and waits for people to apply for a position, you know, or waits for HR to do it, you're going to get what you get, right? And most of those folks don't look like us and have community where we are connected in community. And so I take that opportunity every day to do something to grow my network and to grow my community and to help hopefully expand, you know, my connections. And so when these opportunities come up, I can get folks into that pool. And then the other thing strategically you have to do is you have to make sure that the hiring committees and the the panels that people that are interviewing people are themselves diverse. People have a tendency to relate to people who look and think and act like them. So if the hiring committee all looks the same, they're going to continue to hire the people that look like them. So we have a sort of a a a a rubric that we create that when you have a hiring panel, you should have a diversity of age, have a diversity of gender, have a diversity of color, have a diversity of thought so that and diversity of departments so that when we're sitting down there's an ability for someone to be able to connect to understand and then when that interview is gone when we're having that conversation I if I can relate to where that person comes from I can speak the language that the rest need to hear on what that individual is saying. And then once we kind of go through our panel interviews, then we have a skip level where either my boss or the CEO has a chance to kind of meet with the people that we move forward and we always try to send two people, you know, and we try to make sure there's some diversity in those two. So I think through that process of being intentional about how you network and create community so that you can get a diverse pool and then making sure your hiring panel is extremely diverse and come from different backgrounds and cultures and all that then you'll have a better opportunity to f fill those positions with folks. And then the the last part I think is is um making sure that the folks who sit on our uh advisory boards in the community for that why get an opportunity to meet with the top couple of candidates as well because they're people who live in that community and kind of have an understanding of if this person can kind of fit. So you know we we I'm very intentional about that and that's c you know given us some really good results.

[26:56]  I like that man. I like that you guys are ahead of the game. You guys are innovating, you guys are with the times. And another thing that I I would love to ask you is where are you guys when it comes to AI? A lot of organizations um especially in the nonprofit space fall behind. The YMCA being around for a very long time obviously had to innovate and do different things to be around as long as they have. Are you guys implementing AI in a way to to continue the engagement of your communities? Is this something that you guys are looking maybe dipping your toes in? Where do you guys fall in line on that spectrum?

[27:25]  We're dipping our toes in it. And you know, I I can't speak as intelligently as maybe someone from, you know, our uh tech side. Uh but our branch executives are using it for communication. Uh they're also using it for data. Um you know, how to analyze data, how to use some, you know, data analytics to make sure that we're staffing correctly, you know, making sure that we're looking at all of the trends on how people are joining our organization, what they're looking for. you know, what are the things that are causing people to, you know, go out the back door where we're not serving them well. So, we're certainly using um AI and I think that's going to continue to grow. Um I can't speak specifically to all the programs. You know, I'll leave that to, you know, someone on our on our IT side, but we're definitely using it in the branches more so for data and communications reasons. So when I think about AI, I think about it as a resource tool to really be able to help somebody do less of what they don't like or maybe they didn't go to school for, right? And do more of the things that they love. Um, which is usually interacting with people. Um, so all the admin, all the repetitive task is usually where I see AI playing a part. If you could think of something

[28:38]  in the YMCA where you guys feel, hey, if we could actually change the game here, this works. Do you have something in mind that you can feel that could be automated or or uh you know given to an AI?

[28:51]  Yeah, we're definitely you know trying to figure out how we can automate more things so that our branch executives can spend more time and our you know staff with people. Um I don't know what that big move is though at this point but I can tell you like I and I'll try to be a little more in depth. The one area where um we're trying to make sure we understand is at each branch how many uh what what are the trends that we're seeing with um our joins with our um folks who you know leave us um or you know people signing up for programming and all of those kinds of things. just the data analytics part. Instead of go calling our department downtown and asking them to go do some research and data for us and digging that up, we're using AI in the branches to give us real time numbers, real time data, so our branch executives can make decisions on like what time of day is most used in our kids zone. So, when should we staff up or staff down in our kids zone? uh we want to make sure that we have enough space for the the the customers when they're coming in and things are available when they want them and not just when we think we should assign it. So, you know, when are people coming in the door the most? Um what are our busiest times of the day so that we can make sure we're staffed up. So, we're using it more for that kind of data at this point. Uh but what that big move is, I don't know. Uh I have to think about that.

[30:22]  Yeah. Know there's so many options out there, man. You got to find the right one. the right one that is gonna be a long-term partner for sure. So, uh it's cool. It's cool to know that you guys are in it. I actually was talking to I think someone from the YMC a couple of months back and he was mentioned about some of the equipment that they're actually putting in some of these YMCA's um and how high-tech that is going to be and I was helping with health and and you know all these different resources. So, it's cool. It's cool that YMCA is figuring out in different locations what it actually looks like as we mentioned for their community. Every community is different. Some may be a little behind on others, but it's how do we continue to move the needle forward as you mentioned. So, I appreciate that, man. But when we as we start to wrap up, I would love to know how does purpose over paycheck leadership look like in real life? Because to me, at one point, there was a paycheck, but you realize it's really about purpose, right? It's not all about the paycheck. It's it's about the the legacy that you leave. Right now, Greg, you're really working on this legacy, man. But what does it look like in real life when we talk about that kind of leadership?

[31:21]  Yeah. People I I remember when I first got out of the NFL, people asked me, "Don't you miss it?" And I was like, "Yeah, I miss Mondays." They was like, "What? Monday Night Football?" I said, "No, that was the day we got paid on Mondays." So, I missed that. But outside of that, you know, football, like we said, was what I did for me. Um, along my journey, again, I after football, I got into finance and I was, you know, a financial advisor. I was helping people invest and I was making I think for a little while more money than I was making in the NFL, but it was just a churn and it just wasn't, you know, fulfilling and it gave me no purpose. And I remember I was at a banquet one time and I think it was Lou Hoes, the old football coach from Notre Dame and he told that story or that poem about the dash and the dash, you know, when you look at people's grave, there's a born and for me that's 1969, right? and my day will end, let's way down the line. Let's say 2099, right? But there'll be a dash in the middle. And the dash is the important part. What did you do with the time that you were here? What difference did you make? That's what you're going to be remembered for. That's what people are going to think about when they think about you. No one's going to think about, you know, I was the leading rusher at the University of Washington 99 years ago. You know, I do the radio broadcast there and there's still people who remember me and hey, Greg and all that, but there's anybody probably under the age of 25 has never heard of Greg Lewis. So, you know, that stuff goes away. People forget about that. That fades. You know, Emtt Smith's still the leading rusher of all time, but you know, people don't think about him today. They think about, you know, the guys that are playing right now. And so it's those things that you're going to do along the way, the lives that you're going to impact, the folks that you're going to help along their way that will carry on because hopefully they'll pass it to the next generation and the next person and so on and so forth. And you get to be a part of that. So for me, it was, man, if I'm not making a difference, it doesn't really matter. I've made money. You know, I'm not rich by any stretch of the imagination, but my family's comfortable. I put all my kids through college and now they're on that same path for their kids and you know data tells you if you go to college your kids will go and if they go their kids will go. So it's those things that are important know that that legacy and that footprints that you're putting down for folks to follow. And so I'm you know 100% I don't care about you know money. I'm never going to get rich working at the YMCA but I get to be rich in so many other ways. And when we get I'm having a get together this weekend with my immediate team and they're all bringing their families and we're going to have a great time and at the end of the day we all know that the work we do you know from Monday to Friday and then you know kids sports and activities on the weekend is really really impacting our community where we all choose to stay and live and that's the other part too. I I live in the community that I grew up in and I want to make sure that it's the best community and kids have the same opportunity I did to be successful in life. So that's really what I'm all about.

[34:35]  I love that, man. I love that the whole dash. That's a really good thing that I got to pick up. But also, as you mentioned, is being the role model um and showing people cuz you can tell someone something, but it's better to show them, right? So you talked about going to college, now your kids going to college. I literally told myself I've been an entrepreneur since a very, you know, young age and I I felt to myself, I was already running a store at 19 years old as a general manager making 40 $50,000 a year. So that put me in in a space of like I didn't need to go to school and look what I'm making more than teachers crazy enough to actually say, right? Especially back in 2009. And um I only went to school cuz I wanted my daughter cuz then I end up and open up a cafe at the age of 22 and you know that was kind of entrepreneur. I realized I was an entrepreneur, but I realized that I had to go to school not because I wanted to, not because of the degree and I think that was going to help me in corporate world. I never even wanted to be in corporate, you know, I I I did it because I want my daughter to realize or my son to realize that you have options. Dad did both. So don't tell me that you can't do neither of them when your dad did both of them, right? We've literally got to set that standard, man. So I love Greg that you set the standard and you still setting the standard on what it looks like to pour back into the the youth cuz let's be honest, Greg, it's not about us, right? You know, we got kids now. You got Are you a granddad yet or or or still too young?

[35:50]  Still about you. It's not about me anymore. You're still young enough. I have a I have a I have a 15year-old granddaughter and an 11-year-old grandy granddaughter. So, I'm three generations, you know, I mean, a whole another generation deep.

[36:05]  So, yeah. But I think uh you're right. it's about them and you know we are just sort of the elders kind of helping you know keep them on the right path or thinking about the right things but the one thing about choices this is what I always say um and I used to always say to my kids when you get older like you got choices right now whether you're going to study or you're going to goof off or you're going to work hard cuz all my daughters play basketball too you're either going to train or you're going to go hang out with your friends and talk on the phone you got choices now but I rather have choices with later on in life.

[36:38]  I love it, man. As time starts to wrap up, man, we're going to put you in the in the the hot seat for the blind question. So, the blind question, Greg, if you could talk to this 24 year old version of you right after that injury, what would you actually say to yourself right now?

[36:53]  I would tell myself that, you know, life is just now beginning. You're 24 years old and, you know, you're going to be on this planet for a long, long time. You got people who depend on you. You got people who are going to always have to, you know, count on you. So, you got to pick yourself up and keep going and make sure that whatever, you know, is next. You know, you're on top of it right now because you're still a young man. And that was what, 31 years ago. I've lived longer since then than I did up until that point. So, life was just beginning. And that's what I would remind that or let that person know. Life is just beginning. You're just getting started.

[37:31]  I love it, brother. So, we got your blind question. We got your uh you asked your blind question, we asked you the blind question. Now it's time for you to kind of share those socials. Where can people find you? Are you on LinkedIn so people can connect with you? If you can give us the the YMCA website as well, cuz I I really loved it. I went to the website and I felt like it was completely different than others. So, we can also get that information in there.

[37:50]  Yeah. It's just ys at seattle ymca.com. I met G Lewis on uh Twitter, I believe. I don't do social media a lot. Uh, but I'm at G. Lewis, uh, Twitter. I'm on Facebook and I'm also on Instagram, I think, under Big G.

[38:11]  Are you on LinkedIn as well? Professional account.

[38:13]  Yes, I am on LinkedIn. I do have a personal account on LinkedIn under Greg Lewis.

[38:17]  Under Greg Lewis.

[38:18]  Yes,

[38:18]  Greg Lewis. Okay, cool, cool, cool. Yeah, people might want to connect with you, man. You never know. Speaking gigs out here, hell of a story to really think about it, man. I And just the positive spirit that you have here today. As you mentioned, athletes sometimes don't know what to do. when we've seen some athletes, you know, that have made it really big time and where they're at today and some of them not in the most successful places, right? So, you can see how life changes. But, Greg, you realize that that football wasn't everything about, you know, your life. There was so much more and here you are still making sure you're pouring into our youth. So, we appreciate you guys. If you guys haven't already, make sure you guys do like, subscribe, and comment. This has been Greg Lewis. My name is Ephrain. We'll catch you guys on the next one. latest.