Tell Us A Good Story EP197

In this special Father’s Day episode of “Tell Us a Good Story,” host interviews his dad and sister about their personalities and starting the podcast. A heartwarming and entertaining conversation about family. Tune in to hear their stories!

2023, Team Mason
Tell Us A Good Story

Produced by Clawson Solutions Group, LLC https://csolgroup.com

Transcript

Father’s Day edition with Steph’s dad and Kevin’s father-in-law

[0:00] Hello, friends. Welcome to another episode of Tell Us a Good Story.
Today is our Father’s Day edition, and we get the opportunity to talk to Steph’s dad and my father -in -law, Mr.
Steve Keller. It’s my dad.
It’s my dad. Kevin, I’ve been so excited to record this with my dad and also with my sister, Katie Keller -Schnetzer, and it only took us having to bribe dad with cookies and a beverage to make it happen.
We get his perspective of where did Steph and her sister get their personalities?
Have Have they always been this excitable? And we tell the story of what happened when we told him and the family that we were starting a podcast.
Also, Kevin honors my dad with his own list of fun facts, which leads to some hilarious stories.
You guys, we can’t wait for you to hear this fun conversation with my amazing, my wonderful, my incredible dad, Steve Keller.
Dad, happy Father’s Day. I love you so, so much.
I’m Kevin. And I’m Stephanie. And during our marriage, we have dealt with an electrocution, a brain tumor, brain surgery, then doctors telling us that children were not in our future, followed by miscarriage, and then Kevin’s cancer diagnosis.
However, today, we live a life completely healed and restored with three healthy children who doctors said were not possible.
And we’re here to tell stories that inspire, give hope, and brighten your day.
Welcome to Tell Us a Good Story.
[1:23] This episode is being presented to you by Luby Companies, a custom home builder here in central Ohio.
Let them be your builder for life. They’re freaking awesome.
[1:36] All right, so welcome to episode 175. The Father’s Day edition of Tell Us a Good Story.
And today, we have two special guests. They’re my favorites.
Your sister, Katie Keller Schnitzer. Yay! And your father, Mr. Steve Keller.
Yes, he’s here. At the table, right here at this table.
Yes. Hey, Dad, just when you move the mic, don’t touch the actual mic.
Don’t touch the actual mic.

Convincing Dad to Join the Podcast

[2:10] He is a natural. He’s very good. He’s very good. Yes. You were meant for radio, dad.
So thank you for doing this. I know we kind of had to talk you into this, mister.
By the way, yes, we go by mister. That’s your name. So folks, when you hear me say mister, that is we’re referring to Steve here.
That’s his nickname. But did it take a lot of convincing by to get you here today.
No, I’ve been so impressed with your podcast over these last three years.
And some of the people that have been on the program have been phenomenal.
And I was excited that you were even going to allow me to be a part of this project.
And having Katie here, and along with Steffi, just makes it even more special, Kevin.
Let’s be honest, Katie had to go pick him up. We had to bribe him with a beverage and cookies to get him at this table.
He’s like, you know, it’s just an honor. We bribed him to get him here.
All right. So let’s start off with Mr. I want to share a story about you.
So this story is from about 10 years ago when you were still, I believe, a superintendent at Celina and you had made the comment that when you retired, quote, I’m not moving to Columbus.

The Decision to Stay in Northwest Ohio

[3:30] So, not going, I put my foot down as the man of this family, you are very adamant.
When you retired, I’m staying here in Northwest Ohio.
Can you share with folks what changed your mind?
So once I was completing my work in education and the joy I had with that for those 40 years, I had everything I wanted right there.
You know, I loved our home. I love the fact that we had, it was large enough.
So when you kids, you didn’t have children yet, so when you came home for the holidays, everybody had, there was so much space, and we had so much yard, a couple acres to play in out in the yard for games of whatever nature they may be, and I just felt comfortable right there.
And that was the direction I was gonna go, Kevin, until Brenda said no.
[4:22] So no, we’re going. And I think the girls came home one weekend, And my God, before I knew it, there was a trash container out in the back by the garage.
And the girls were carrying stuff out of the house. And I thought, but I thought we were I was going to stay.
But no, and, and Kevin, it’s the best move I’ve ever made.
Moving here from Mercer County, and the home we had there for 19 years, our last home for 19 years, I couldn’t think of anything better than to what moving here with two little ones, a three year old and a baby baby to where we are now with the youngest one being five and the oldest one 11, it’s been the best part of my life.
And I wouldn’t trade the last nine years for the previous 68.
Because when you made that decision, you only had one grandchild at the time.
And I remember Steph and I meeting in Bell Fountain, like the midway point, and it was like two weekends within a five week period or a month, and you kept Emmy with you guys for two weekends.
And I remember the second weekend when we met you, you said, okay, kids, we’ve got some news. So you’re like, we’re moving to Columbus.
And I was like, what happened? And I remember you saying how much fun you’d had those two weekends with Emmy, with baking cookies and running around the house and putting her on the tricycle that that was how you wanted to spend retirement.
And then once you got here, another four grandkids came shortly thereafter.
[5:51] And yeah, so it’s been nine years. And I remember driving home, I was like, Steph, that makes me nervous.
That makes me so nervous. And you were like, why? I’m like, I love my in -laws, but they’re two hours away.
I was concerned, how would this be family -wise if you guys are two miles away?
Are we going to see each other every day, all day?
And like you said, Steve, it’s been the best move ever, because you guys moved literally two miles away from us.
And then you’re another two miles away from Katie as well.
And it’s, again, it’s been the best thing ever.
I talk to people at work, I still work part -time and I talk to people and they’re saying, oh, my daughter’s flying in from California my kids are coming home for Christmas and I said where they live well they live in they live in New York or they live in Pennsylvania they live wherever and and I said boy I’ll tell you it’s tough not seeing them and they say oh it is so tough it’s so difficult to miss them now and also the grandkids and we’ve been blessed in and I think that’s that’s been the neatest part is to be able to watch those kids grow from day one almost for except for Emmy up to where they are at this age now.
But to be honest, Kevin, my reaction to Brenda when she said, you know, when we’ve made these plans to make this move, I said, here’s the thing that we’ve gotta guard against.
We can’t become too much of their life. We can be there, but you, you, I’m putting it up, you.
[7:19] You can’t get involved too much in their life. We can’t do that.
It’s their life, they have to have their life. They have to have their privacy and so on. We want to be a part, and we’ll be a part, and we’ll help in any way we can, but we can’t be thinking we can control anything.
We can’t. We don’t need to do that.
Well, I knew you guys were nervous, because you had said to Mom, Brenda, you can’t be at their houses every day. You can’t. You need to give them space. And it’s been the polar opposite of asking. Absolutely.
It’s us asking. We are always at your guys’ house. We’re always like, what are you guys doing? Can we come over?
Do you guys want to do batting practice? Do you want to go to the park?
Do you want to go walk for ice cream? We are always wanting to be with you guys.
[8:04] Hello, friends. I’m Craig Clausen, and I help Kevin and Steph with all the tech stuff for the show. But, today, I have a request for you.
Kevin and Steph will soon be recording their 200th episode. In the podcast world, this is a big accomplishment.
According to Forbes, only 8 % of podcasts uploaded over the past week had created more than 10 episodes, let alone 200, and we want to celebrate with you.
We would love for as many listeners as possible to give us a call at 614 -699 -0604 and leave them a voicemail.
Let Kevin and Steph know what Tell Us A Good Story means to you, or tell them what’s been your favorite episode or story.
Or just call to congratulate them.
It’s easy to do. Just give them a call at 614 -699 -0604, listen to the cute voicemail recorded by the Mason Kids, and then leave them a message.
And even better, your message might appear on air for the 200th episode.
I will put the phone number in the show notes for you, and please call by November 30th, 2023.
And, as always, thank you for listening to Tell Us a Good Story.

Starting Tell Us A Good Story

[9:16] All right, so I want to talk about the time that we told the family that we were starting Tell Us A Good Story.
Okay, I want to share this story and then I’ll let you guys just take it away.
So three and a half years ago, Steph, we had a Sunday family meal at the Keller house, having pizza.
And I believe you just made a family announcement. We’ve got some news to share with everybody.
And your mom was like, Oh my gosh, please tell me you’re not pregnant, please, please.
[9:47] She literally almost passed out when we said, we got some news to share.
It’s like, I’ve seen this. I’ve seen this movie before. Mom was so vocal, dad just stood in the corner shaking his head, no, don’t know if I can do this.
Jesus, take the wheel.
So we then told the family at your house, we’re starting a podcast.
We felt like this is something we needed to do. And this was literally three and a half years ago.
And I remember your older brother was there, Steven, at the time.
And immediately he’s like, oh my gosh, you know who you need to interview?
Trump. That’s who you need to interview, Trump.
And we’re like, okay, we haven’t recorded episode one yet.
And he’s already top shelf with people.
Like, that would be awesome, guys, if you could make that happen.
We’re gonna put that down as an option. We’ll let you know.
So then, it was like two months later.
We had another family dinner on that Sunday. We’re like, Hey, we’ve got some news. We got our very first guest on. Tell us a good story.
And Stephen and me was like, Oh my gosh, are you interviewing Oprah? Did you get it?
[10:59] Stephen, dude, you’re like, you’re killing us here.
Lower your expectations. We got Melvin Adams, who is a hall of fame, Harlem Globetrotter.
And he’s like, Oh, okay. That’s cool. Still good.
[11:14] So, Mr. What did you think when we first said, hey, we feel like we need to start a podcast.
I thought the direction you were going to go was fantastic because when you think of people and how they converse with one another and how they can share and you’re right and everybody does have a story and we like to hear that.
We all like to be picked up and we all like to have those positive emotions come up within us and I thought your background and your ideas were phenomenal and it’s certainly panned out in that way. Oh, thank you.
So Katie and Mr. You both kind of get the inside scoop from Steph and I in regards to who We’re getting ready to talk to see we give you the inside scoop But Kevin tells you guys everything and I’m like Kevin stop talking.
Let them listen. Let them cuz he’ll be oh my gosh You guys you won’t believe it.
He’ll tell all the details my babe. Let them listen to the podcast and he’s like, okay No, no, we’ll listen. Just keep going.

Kevin’s excitement and sharing details of upcoming episodes

[12:12] I get so excited. I know And I really get super excited when people say yes to us.
Because again, we’re so honored, Steph, when people say yes to talking to us. No, I understand that.
I mean, I’m super excited when they say that. But it’s when we have the conversation, and then you just tell them all the details about the call. You tell us the entire episode.
You just preview it. I’m only gonna tell you two minutes.
[12:37] But we’ve gone through a pizza and a half. Let me wrap it up just with this right here. I’m not going to tell you anymore.
Here is my final fun fact to Erin.
[12:48] I actually did that to you guys tonight when you walked in. Yeah, you did. I was like, wait till you hear we talk to Leah.
Listen to these fun facts. That’s true. I did do that. You’re going to love her. But I just get so excited.
So when we have shared the news about this person just said yes or this person just said yes, what has surprised you?
Has anyone surprised you like, oh my gosh, I can’t believe you’re talking to Jim Trestle or whomever.
[13:13] Every single one surprises me the fact that you had to go through UNC’s Athletic department to get permission to speak to air that was crazy the fact that they gave you the time of day, right? Not saying you’re not important.
I’m just saying I can’t believe they talked to you agreed I think on top of that with what Katie said when I watched Jim Trussell’s program today while I was working out and, Just to think about the president of a university is going to take whether it’s a half an hour or whether it’s an hour out of his time or her time, whatever university it is, to speak with you, that shows their faith and respect for you.
Because they don’t do that for some of the local communicators, whether it’s radio or newspapers.
I can’t work you in. They worked you guys in. And they had a good time.
And I think that’s what the blessing is. People have a good time when they have a chance to tell their story. And we love their stories. Love them. And you know what?
Correct me if I’m wrong. Every single person that has told you, I have 20 minutes, I have 30 minutes, they always give you more. They do.
They always, and you hear their alarm going off in the background.
Yes, the dings. You hear the dings. Like they have to go, yeah, yeah. Yes. I think that was Rutgers football coach. Yes. That was one of them.
He had, I got so much time.
And my gosh, by the end of the conversation, Steph was talking about his wife, their move, and how she had to take care of the household while he was doing.
[14:43] And he just opened up. And time, that meant nothing.
It meant nothing. So that’s special.

The Lengthy Conversations and Genuine Interest of Interviewees

[14:51] Okay, I’m just gonna throw these out there and let you ladies take these along with Mr. Hare.
So Katie, who when she’s playing high school basketball, in her words, she turned into a one -man Detroit Pistons bad boys team where she is spelling anybody and everybody. Okay?
To the point where she apparently was fouling out every single basketball game.
So what was it like watching the girls here?
Being in the stands, you’re the superintendent or the principal and you’re seeing your daughter, and your daughter is just hacking everybody out in the court.
Yeah, she was payback queen.
You know, she would have been in hockey. She would have been the goon.
[15:30] There’s no doubt. If Steffi and she were on the same team at Parkway at that time of stuff, if someone would have hurt step, that girl was in trouble the next time down the floor.
Usually what Brennan I did was we’d get our popcorn and we’d try and situate ourselves as far away from the rest of the crowd as we could.
So we didn’t have to, we could watch the game and then, and Katie, Katie made it into the fourth quarter and she played hard.
She played hard, but defensively she hacked a lot.
Aggressive. Yeah. Yeah. And bodied up on them.
But anyway, she just, her aggressiveness carried over to every sport that she was in. Okay.
Whether it was in basketball, whether it was in softball. she was just so aggressive.
The big difference between these two was Steph loved our Sunday night practices.
Whatever school we were at, on Sunday nights we went to the gym and whatever the season was, we would have a practice for an hour, hour and a half or whatever.
[16:32] Katie would be pouting from the time we walked out the door to get in the car, and it carried over into the gym for that next hour and a half and Steffie would be, dad, what do you want me to do?
What do you want me to do? So we’d hit ground balls, or we’d have batting practice, or we’d shoot free throws, or we’d play horse, or whatever, while Katie’s at the other end, just throwing the ball up against the wall. Just throwing it up against the wall.
Not – Fouling imaginary people. I’m here, Dad, but I’m not gonna do anything.
I’m not – I’m just gonna go home and eat pizza with you and Mom and Steffi, but I’m not doing anything for this hour and a half. You got me here, but that’s it.
[17:09] While Steffi…
She was sweating if it was softball We were up in the batting cage and she’d be up there hitting the ball like crazy and Katie might do that for a while But basketball was the tough one and it carried over into the games when the the lack of practice time You know, she would just get a little frustrated. Okay, it would show up.
Yeah. Yeah. Yeah hundred percent Okay so mister you mentioned this briefly but talk about the girls personalities because Because one of the comments that we get here on tell us a good story is, is Steph’s personality real?
Because it’s, it’s very over the top, it’s joy, it’s excitable, and Katie is the same exact way.
And so I joke with other people when they ask, I say that no, it’s actually an even bigger personality in real life, because our producer is muting their microphones, right?
Or, or reducing the volume of their laugh or the comment or whatever.
So, the question is, have the ladies always been this excitable and these big personalities?
No doubt about it. And they had joy for life then, they have joy for life now, but now it truly is seen by all.
Yes. And heard by all. Yes. Because it’s so easy to see their joy for life come out of them.
But back when they were that little, it started and then up through their sports years and and other programs at the schools that they attended, it was pretty obvious.
[18:33] So I want to share an example of joy and how excitable you get.
So here is a video clip, and this has not been edited, of Katie’s son, Sam, hitting a home run the other night. Oh, shoot. In the baseball game.
[18:49] I lost my deck on mine. So this is unedited, mind you, all right? Hit and run, buddy.

The Joyful Energy of the Kellers

[19:19] So, as our friend, Mr.
Jeremy Hartman said, he feels like when he’s with you, ladies, That he’s on a reality show. He’s like you could just call it keeping up with the Kellers, Of you ladies always excited always a ray of sunshine, but you stand out You actually stand out in a good way because of how happy you are And so I was just curious if it’s always been that way because I know it hasn’t been with you Katie But I was curious about stuff if it’s always been that way or if I just brought that out of you Once we got married, so definitely not, So the difference between Steffi and I is that she was always the good kid, right?
She always did everything right. She tried hard, she worked hard, she did everything right.
After her injury and the struggles that you guys went through, your joy multiplied.
[20:19] So your heart was always so pure and you were such a beautiful person.
But once you realized what a gift life was, it’s like you couldn’t contain the joy in your spirit.
And I feel like after you were healed, That’s when it was just like game on the world is going to know how happy you are Well, and and there’s no doubt that both of you all three of you share that joy.
[20:50] Because you’ve been through so much the both of you’ve been through so much and the joy of life and the joy of hope And and they’re going to pass that along to their kids and their kids.
They’re going to hear hear us in the stands they’re going to know that we’re there to support them.

Passing on Love and Joy to Future Generations

[21:07] And it goes back to last year, Kevin, when the last two years when we all coached, whether it was T -ball or A minor in baseball, the other teams knew it was us, knew it was the White Sox or the Royals because they could hear us. And that’s okay.
That’s okay because our kids hear us.
And what’s neat now is we’re seeing on your daughter Elle’s team, and there’s a little girl that played for us a couple years ago, and her eyes, when she’s on bass and you girls and you guys are cheering for her, she knows, oh my gosh, I remember them, they were my coach, and they still know me and they still love me.
And I think there’s love and there’s joy that comes out of that noise.
And that’s okay, that’s the way it should be. Amen.
[21:54] All right, Steph, I’m gonna test you again here. What is your favorite book of all time? Obviously, it’s the Bible, Kevin.
Yes. Nailed it. Very good. This time you didn’t say the book we wrote called You Met Her Where. But it’s still a really good book. That is true.
And it would make a great gift for friends or relatives on their birthday or for Christmas.
Friends, you can order your copy of our book titled You Met Her Where at KevinandSteph .com and we will make sure to personally sign a copy for you or whoever you want.
And as always, thank you for listening to Tell Us a Good Story.
Well, mister, as you know, for all of our guests, I like to give a list of fun facts.
And these are fun facts about you that we’re going to honor you with a list of fun facts.
But Steph actually knows all these fun facts. At least I think she does.
I don’t have to act surprised. That’s true.
He was in education.

Steve Harris: The Educator with Fun Facts

[22:50] He was? How long? So, here’s my list of fun facts, all right?
Mister, fun fact number one, Steve Harris spent 40 years in education.
Five years as a teacher, 22 years as a principal, 13 as a superintendent.
As school principal, mister had an annual tradition of dressing up on Halloween.
So mister, can you share any stories of what were some of the things you dressed up as when you were high school principal?
The most difficult situation Brenda thought I should be a ballerina.
She was able to put together I dressed up every year every year and this is when we were at Convoy Crestview and I dressed up as a ballerina and I had a pink tutu on and tights and I had a wig on well I think it had ribbons and well anyway the day before I’d had a situation take place with a student that I had to discipline and I go to school that morning I’m driving my old red pickup truck and I’m thinking okay God please don’t let any adult see me today other than the teachers or the other kids, 715 I’m sitting in my office and here comes an irate parent.

An Unexpected Discipline Situation

[24:09] I want to talk to you. I said sir.
Come on in and And I’m sitting there with this tutu, Behind the desk and he goes on and on about me discipline his son and he didn’t think it was fair and I I listened And and we got it all squared away and the discipline that discipline situation stood but I think I took him off guard.
That was the most difficult outfit I’d ever worn, or not most difficult, well it was difficult because I couldn’t get on and off without help.
But I’d been a gorilla, I had been an earthworm with our head basketball coach.
I was a variety of things, but yeah, we did. Every year I was always dressed.
Now, did you allow the kids to dress up? Oh yeah. Okay, so the kids were dressed up as well. The kids were dressed too.
Teachers. Teachers as well, okay. Oh, if they wanted to, anybody could could dress up if they wanted to. Yeah.
So it wasn’t like you’re showing up to school and you’re the only person in the building dressed up.
[25:09] No, no. Sometimes it was leaner, but some of the, sometimes the kids didn’t gravitate toward it. Like I wish they would. They didn’t, they didn’t have enough.
They were maybe fearful of what people might say, but a lot of them didn’t.
And it was always so much fun. Okay. Great time.
You know, dad, it’s funny. They wouldn’t let you being a ballerina in a school right now. Fly. Oh, no way.
No way. No. Yeah. We’re kind of aging ourselves here with that.
Yeah, we are. How that was perfectly acceptable and not looked at weird at all.
A man dressing up as a female.
You dressed up as a cheerleader too. Yeah.
You did. When our girls team was going to state, three other male teachers and I dressed up as cheerleaders a couple of times for pep rallies.
We sure did. I forgot about that. Yeah.
Okay, next fun fact, Mr. has a reputation for things.

Steve’s Reputation for Timing Everything

[26:04] I’ve got three things he has a reputation for. First off, Steve, you have a reputation for timing everything.
[26:15] You time weddings. Let’s wrap this up. You timed our wedding.
You timed every church service. We’re like, hey, how was church today?
Oh, it was good, but pastor went over his hour and 14 minutes today.
You time every event, right? Whether it’s high school graduations, whether it’s whatever, you’re always telling me how long every event took.
My goal, and the teachers knew this, and they would take odds on me.
I’d say, okay, how long is it gonna take Keller to get through graduation this year?
And they’d say, it’s gonna take you 61 minutes. It’s gonna take 58, it’s gonna take 66, or whatever it may be. So there would be wagers going on from the staff about how long it was going to take for graduation that year.
The other thing was these big banquets that we would host where the scholarships were given out and previous before I got there, they said sometimes these banquets will last two hours.
No way, that’s not going to be the case. Not on my watch.
People, we’re busy, we’ve got to get home, people want to get home, kids have homework.
Here we expect our kids to get their homework done. This is the elite kids are here tonight and we’re going to keep them here till 9 or 9 30 and then they have to do their homework yet. So it was always under 60 and I’ve getting applause from the staff at the end.
[27:35] I would finish when I would thank everybody and and it was always from the heart and it’s not that we would rush through But we didn’t waste time.
Yes, you know, we had things let’s get through this So we want to award the kids with their scholarships and thank the people for donating the money, but let’s keep it moving So it was just yeah, I’m sorry and I saw and Brenda She’ll elbow me, you know, if I’m in church and I try to be so secretive.
I’ve gotten to the point where I try to yawn and hit my watch so that she thinks I’m yawning and I’m still looking, oh, it’s 1010, it should be.
It should be. You need to wrap it up. Wrap it up, Pastor. Where’s that last psalm?
[28:17] I need the benediction. We’re gonna come back next week, Pastor, so let’s just go.
Okay, so going along that lines you also have a reputation of passive -aggressively having a sign that you’re ready to leave, So one of Steve’s things is whether it’s a grandkids birthday party whether it’s Christmas get -together, whatever when Steve is ready to leave he will just get up and go stand at the front door, Folks he will stand there Until his wife Brenda sees him at the front door and gets the hand like.

Subtle Farewell: Time to Leave Kevin’s House

[29:00] Anything but it’s just a very quiet like I’m ready you put everything on and just gonna stand the front door You think it’s subtle but it’s not, I’ve had a great time, but it’s over, you know, Enjoyed being here Kevin, but it’s time to go We don’t want to wear out our invitation, Brennan, come on.
And then mom gets so mad, gotta go! Dad’s got the door! She’s so mad.
She gets real frustrated. She does get mad.
It’s a quiet ride home, but I’m on my way!

Steve’s Lack of Attention Leads to Code Words

[29:42] It’s a win -win for you, Steve! It’s a template! It’s quiet and you’re on your way home!
So, the other thing you have a reputation for is…
We can tell as a family when you are not paying attention to us.
Because if we’re telling you a story, mister, and you say, huh, how about that?
That is code word for, I could not care less about what you’re saying right now.
And you are not paying attention at all. And I’ve seen you, I’m not going to mention who I’ve seen you do this to other people.
And I die inside laughing because it is so funny because when, when we kind of figure out that trick, I’m like, Oh, he’s not, He’s not paying attention at all.
He has some code words. We’re not gonna give them away on air in case he uses them on people that are listening.
But there’s several phrases that he uses.
I’ll be darned. Oh my goodness. I won’t give them all away either.
But there’s words that I told a teacher that came in my office once.
I was at Coldwater and she was going on and on and on. I said, you know, Sophie, I promise you I’ve been listening but I turned you off five minutes ago.
[30:54] Think the world of ya. But, and I was saying, oh my.
And I gave this to one of our, we’re going to a family reunion in about five weeks out in Iowa.
And my nephew will be there, and he’s a good kid. And I said, you know, Eric, here’s some key words.
And I won’t give them all out. Because he’s a teacher. Because he’s a teacher.
And if you get involved with a parent that wants to go on and on and on, you can just look him in the eye and say, oh, oh my gosh, oh really?
And they’ll just keep going.
Are you kidding me? Are you, is that right? Is that right?
They’ll just keep going and they’ll feel like they’ve had it and then you can usher them out the door and they’ll think, my God, I’ve got my point across.
I’ve been heard. I’ve been, yeah.
And they’ve been. Bamboozled. 25 minutes ago. Nothing changes.
He walks them out the door, shuts it, and looks at his watch.
You’re kid, yeah. Nailed it. You’re kid’s still suspended and I can’t get those 40 minutes back in my life, but.
I’m glad you feel like you’ve been heard. Yep, open communication.
But nothing has changed. Nothing has changed, no.
They’re still suspended. I appreciate you coming in.

Family Traditions: Christmas Morning and Myrtle Beach Vacation

[32:09] Okay, next fun fact. Mr. loves family traditions.
Loves family traditions. This is something I learned immediately when I joined the family, whether it’s holidays, Christmas, Easter, or vacation.
Oh, so Mr. What is one of your favorite family traditions that you have as a family?
Well, I’ll think of two right off, right so quickly, Christmas morning, okay, it’s gonna be it’s gonna be breakfast at our house as soon as the kids can get there. And it’s and it’s Brenda’s breakfast is phenomenal.
And I just enjoy having everybody has to come in and come around the table and, and we share the meal.
And then of course, the presents are Secondary, it’s that family time together initially when everybody walks in and we’re having we can share The time and the joy and the spirit and the blessing of Christmas Day as far as Myrtle Beach Kevin, you know as well as I we know exactly what we’re doing every day. We’re down there.
[33:05] The first night we’re gonna have to Pino’s pizza And you know and we’re gonna go to a baseball game at the Pelicans Yes, you and I and Emmy and maybe L but you and I and Emmy are gonna go to that and we’re gonna share that We’re going to go to the beach in the morning because it gets too hot in the afternoon that we’re going to go back to the pool We’re going to go to Broadway at the beach and and we got a slew of places that we know we’re going to be We’re going to we’re going to be at the pool if I need to get down there at 8 o ‘clock and get us a spot I’ll be down there and now ball games are entering into it with with the little ones growing up and and that’s becoming a Tradition now of going to all the different games whether it’s wrestling matches last year all the basketball games that we went to There’s just joy in going to these athletic events and reliving the events that our kids were involved with and now our grandkids are involved in seeing that fun.

Sharing Joy in Athletic Events with Kids and Grandkids

[33:57] Well, can I share a story with you and listeners about how I learned about your family traditions? And it all started with Christmas.
So, you ladies chime in. Just to confirm, I’m not making any of this up, okay?
[34:09] First Christmas that I believe I went to, and we get there and you ladies just dive into this package just like it is a race how fast you can open up this present and so it’s Christmas Eve and come to find out it is new Christmas PJs all right so the one thing Steph had told me hey don’t worry about packing any any pajamas okay because, mom and dad is going to have some Christmas PJs as soon as we walk in the door.
I’m like, Oh, okay. All right.
But here’s the problem. When Stephanie got married, apparently Steph did not confirm the size of PJs that I wore.
[34:51] So I show up and I didn’t pack any PJs.
So you guys hand me this package and I, you know, I dig into it, I’m like, go in the bedroom, try them on.
I’m like, oh, dear Lord, this is not good. The pants are the wrong size.
By multiple sizes. Like two sizes too small. It was skid tight in all the wrong places.
The shirt, the sleeves are up to my shoulders here.
And then the pants. They look like a women’s shirt. Yes, and then the pants look like they’re painted on, Steve.
And so then I’m like. They’re the wrong size. Yeah, this is the first year we’ve been married, It’s like Steph.
Are you kidding me? I didn’t pack anything. This is all I got My sister wear this all weekend I’m not wearing this you have to wear It’s tradition. I like stuff.
These look like they’re painted on literally.

PJ Mishap and Frustration with Kevin’s Clothes

[35:52] They’re waiting for a fashion show out there right now, Steph, you gotta go find something else. So you go to mister’s closet and you pull out a pair of PJs that are the exact same size as the ones you got me.
And so apparently you thought I was the same, even though we’re not the same height, you thought we’re the same size. So you get the same exact size, bring those down. I put those on, same thing.
Okay, this isn’t even, this isn’t any better. This might be even worse.
Stop, what are we going to do? At this point I’m getting mad, I’m like, Kevin!
Like, this is embarrassing. You’re going to hurt mom and dad’s feelings.
I’m staying in this bedroom all weekend unless you go find something else.
So, you finally, you went upstairs.
Steven, who had been out of the house for years, I think he had one pair of sweatpants that would fit me.
So, thank God, he had left one pair of sweatpants in the house that I could wear that weekend.
Because the Christmas tradition is, you get a brand new Christmas PJs and then you wear it for the next two days, is what you do, right? And so I didn’t have anything else.
Did I have anything else? No, don’t you pack anything else. They’re gonna provide them.
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Fun Facts: Mr.’s Athletic Achievements and Kevin’s Basketball Scholarship

[37:44] All right, next fun fact. Mr. is an all -American dual athlete with USA Triathlon, having finished second in the nation the past three years in his age group. He’s a stud!
[37:58] Between 70 and 74, and then age 75 to 79.
Second in the nation, and the individuals who have beat him have actually been in warm weather, who are able to train year -round.
So, how many marathons have you in your life?
I ran 12 marathons, and I did those between 78 and I think around 90.
[38:19] And then half marathons, I can’t begin to remember how many, probably six to 10 half marathons.
And then in 2000, when Katie graduated, and I had retired initially from education, and I went back into it a few years later, one of my gifts was from the teachers to a workout center that had a pool.
So that’s when I started doing triathlons was back in 2000 and I did those for 10 years and then switched to do athlons in 2010 or 11 and I’ve been doing them ever since.
Steph and I were in, we were a team in do athlons initially back in 2001 or 2002 because she was still a college student at the time and we did a couple around the Columbus area and did well and did well and that got her kind of hooked on the triathlon binge for a while, but then life interjected in that and she hadn’t been able to compete since then, but I still enjoy the competition.
I think that’s the the part I crave the most is just the competition.
Next fun fact, you got a scholarship to play basketball at Arizona State back in the day.
You only played there one year, but you lived in the same dorm at Arizona State as Reggie Jackson.
[39:32] Reggie Jackson and Curly Culp was another one. And those listening might not be aware of Curly Culp, but he became a, I think of an all pro for the Kansas City Chiefs as a tackle.
We were all in the same dorm, same floor.
And Curly Culp was probably 6 ‘2″, 260, 250 as a freshman.
And he was a wrestler as well as a football player.
Well, I do want to just acknowledge you publicly and and share my appreciation for you and your wife, Brenda, because I’ve known you now for going on 20 years.
This summer will be 20 years.
And of course, when you get married, you’re not just marrying your spouse, you’re marrying the entire family.
And mister, I absolutely hit the jackpot when it came to the Kellers.
So I just wanna share publicly my appreciation for you, the person you became, the family that you’ve raised, and the closeness of the family here.
It is very rare what we are living.
So thank you for what you’ve done in this family and for treating me like your own son right 20 years ago and When you gave me your blessing to marry your daughter, I thought I told you I had to think it over, Let me let me think yeah, I might have been a doubt.
[40:51] No, not in any way I was I felt very blessed I’ve go on record felt very blessed with the two men that have joined our household, both you and Mike, and like I said, for Steve and Lois as well.
But no, you’ve been a godsend as well. He had to say that.

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