06/16/2026
OUT NOW - Rising From the Ashes: A Firefighter’s Phoenix Story. My guest this week is Mr. Alan Presson, Memphis Fire Lieutenant/Paramedic and Endurance Athlete.
“Press forward. Do not stop, do not linger in your journey, but strive for the mark set before you.” ~ G. Whitefield
This week’s guest is retired fire lieutenant from the City of Memphis fire department Mr. Alan Presson. Alan joined the Memphis fire department in 2002 and happened to be in my recruit class. Alan and I became good friends during that time and stayed in touch after graduating from the academy.
However, it was 2004 when we really grew in our relationship after learning that he and I both were running in the St. Jude half-marathon. In our discussion we share how running became a huge part of our life and in a few years we would hold the incredible honor of being the first and second person to ever complete an Ironman as active employees of the Memphis Fire Department.
As some may know that follow the show, I had to retire in 2016 due to shoulder injuries sustained while firefighting. It is no secret that firefighting is a dangerous and labor intensive job, especially in a large city where it is not uncommon to fight 5 or more fires in a given month. In addition to the physical injuries that happen every year to firefighters, there is always the threat of dying in a fire.
This horrible reality had happened more than once during our career with one loss being my Lieutenant was killed in a fire and another loss being my one of our classmates. Alan shares how he faced this real possibility when he was upstairs in a house fire looking for the seed of the fire when the room he was in suddenly flashed over and left him falling back on his training and fortunately finding the nozzle just in time to hold off the flames until he could be rescued. Although he sustained several deep burns on his arms and abdomen Alan admits that he was fortunate that a few things went his way or things could have been much worse.
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This episode was recorded at SRP Studios and Produced by Shelby Row Productions LLC
SRPStudiosLLC.com
06/09/2026
OUT NOW - Revitalizing the Bluff City: The Power of Urban Collaboration. My guest this week is Mr. Rory Thomas, President and CEO of the Memphis Medical District Collaborative.
“True power isn’t held, it’s shared.” ~ Unknown
Many times it can be easy to recognize a need for a community, but it is not so easy to know how to address that need or even where to start. However, there is a well-known quote that reads, “the journey of a thousands miles begins with the first step”. My guest this week shares how he saw a need for the city of Memphis and decided to take action.
The medical district of Memphis had several areas that needed improvement such as, safety, grooming and opportunity for growth. When a city has something to offer its citizens then that city will become more desirable to recruit talent and maybe even more importantly, keep talent.
Mr. Thomas describes how networking and sharing his vision with others has lead him to some incredible people and accomplished some incredible things over the last 10 years. We discuss what it means to have an anchor strategy, how collaborating with other organizations can become a super power and how he has found the inspiration and motivation to continue for now over a decade.
If you are an entrepreneur or simply you have a heart to serve, then this episode will give you some fire to maybe be the next person to step up and pursue your passion and change a community. Life happens fast so I encourage you to take action today!
Please continue to listen and support this podcast and be sure to check out my social media content on my website MotivateWithCoachCamp.com Also, if you are interested in becoming an official sponsor of this podcast please click the link below to learn more. This episode was recorded at SRP Studios and Produced by Shelby Row Productions LLC ShelbyRowProductions.com
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This episode was recorded at SRP Studios and Produced by Shelby Row Productions LLC
SRPStudiosLLC.com
06/09/2026