The Big Deal With Glen Farris

Christopher Lee is the Director of Government Affairs at the Frisco Chamber of Commerce. Christopher and I go way way way back. He was but a student at UNT when we met while working on an ill-fated city council campaign. Excellent times. In this conversation, we talk about all things politics and government affairs. We talk a ton about redistricting, working in the Texas statehouse, we talk about working with a city's chamber of commerce, and all the challenges that come with that. If you enjoy politics at the local county and state level, you will love this episode. I'm really excited to share this one. https://www.linkedin.com/in/ctlee12/ https://www.friscochamber.com/

Gary Henderson is the CEO and President of United Way Denton County and began his term as the Denton Chamber of Commerce board chair on October 1, 2021. Erin Carter is the Denton Chamber of Commerce President. Both guests are repeat guests for this extraordinary 100th episode of The Big Deal with Glen Farris.

Jeff Reecer, FACHE, serves as president of Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital Denton, a position he assumed in January 2016 after leaving the facility in 2012 to become president of Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital Allen. Before that, he spent 11 years as vice president of operations at Texas Health Denton. While at Texas Health Allen, Reecer worked to strategically reposition the hospital, adding crucial physicians, expanding the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit, and creating a women's behavioral health unit. The result was growth for several key service lines and increased volumes. Among his most proud accomplishments, physician and employee engagement scores rose dramatically during his tenure, with both reaching the 99th percentile. A native of Lockney, Texas, Reecer holds a bachelor of science and a master of business administration from Texas Tech University. He lives in Denton with his wife, Dena, and enjoys spending time with his two adult children, Aaron and daughter Chloe. The Reecer family is actively involved in their church and community and enjoys traveling. An avid runner and cyclist, you can also find him leading Texas Health's Be Healthy exercise teams. https://www.texashealth.org/locations/texas-health-denton

Lillia Whittington is the creator of The D. Diaries, Denton's number one influencer space. Lillia has lived in Denton her whole life and has been creating content in and around Denton for 4 years. https://www.facebook.com/thed.diariesblog https://www.pinterest.com/theddiaries https://www.instagram.com/thed.diaries

The City of Denton's Comprehensive Plan is an official planning policy document designed to guide the city's future growth. Denton Plan 2040 is an update to Denton Plan 2030. Community input is critical to the decision making process for future development and growth of the City of Denton so make sure you show up to the open house Thursday, September 16th from 6 pm - 8 pm to the Development Services building at 401 N Elm St. Tina Firgens and Sean Jacobson chat with me about what the Denton Plan 2040 is and why it's important that the whole community gives input on it. http://www.cityofdenton.com/denton2040

Erin Carter is a chamber veteran who has served as the Metrocrest Chamber President since 2016. Prior to leading the Metrocrest Chamber, she served the Lewisville Chamber of Commerce as both its Events & Communications Director and its Vice President of Program Development. Carter currently serves as Chair of the Winter Institute Board of Regents for the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation, Trustee of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation, Board Member of the North Texas Commission, Secretary of the Carrollton-Farmers Branch Rotary Club, Board Member of the Carrollton-Farmers Branch ISD Educational Foundation and Board Member of the Lewisville ISD Education Foundation. https://denton-chamber.org/ https://www.facebook.com/DentonChamber/ https://www.instagram.com/dentonchamber/ https://www.linkedin.com/company/denton-chamber-of-commerce-tx-/

In 1968, having graduated from high school, Mr. Shoffit received his introduction into the martial arts. It was during this nostalgic period of the late 60s and early 70s that he developed his intense personal interest in the cultural, historical, and philosophical aspects of martial arts. Since receiving his black belt in 1972, Mr. Shoffit has gone on to expand his study in both eclectic and traditional martial arts. In 1974, Mr. Shoffit graduated from North Texas State University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Psychology which was offered through the Education Department. While attending graduate school in 1976, he decided to make a professional career in martial arts by opening a studio on a full-time basis. In 1986, Mr. Shoffit completed construction on his spacious, custom-built facility that is now the base of his operation. Over the years, Mr. Shoffit has had the opportunity to train extensively with numerous masters and grandmasters. Collectively, this wide range of study has helped him develop the philosophy that a balanced system should be complete but not finished. http://dentonmartialarts.com/ Tel: (940) 387-7442 Email: shintoshi2@charter.net Mon 4:00 - 7:00pm, Tues - Thurs 4:00 - 8:30pm https://twitter.com/sensei_shoffit https://www.facebook.com/dentonmartialarts https://www.instagram.com/dentonmartialarts/ https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCpCHKotz5b8eyNHpV5rlwMA

Jesse Davis was elected to District 3 in May 2019 and is serving his first term. Prior to his election, Davis served as the inaugural chair of the City's Board of Ethics and as an officer of the Denton County Historical Commission. Davis is a lifelong Denton resident and a proud alum of Denton High School. He earned a B.A. in History and Political Science from the University of North Texas, where he served as Student Body President. After graduating from UNT, Davis served under U.S. Senator Sen. Kay Bailey Hutchison in her Washington, D.C., office as a senior staff assistant and Assistant Press Secretary. Davis earned his J.D. from Baylor School of Law, and for the past eight years has been an Assistant District Attorney for Denton County. Davis, his wife Diana, and their three children are active volunteers in their church and engaged members of the Denton community. Davis is the outgoing President of the Denton Evening Rotary Club, chair of the North Texas Children's Choir board, and a Boy Scouts of America volunteer.

Brian Burrows is a sport shooter for Team USA and the owner of Ironwood Axe Throwing located in downtown Denton, Texas. https://ironwoodaxethrowing.com/ https://www.instagram.com/ironwoodaxethrowing/ https://www.facebook.com/ironwoodaxethrowing/ https://www.facebook.com/brian.burrows.9210 https://www.teamusa.org/usa-shooting/athletes/Brian-Burrows https://dentonrc.com/news/denton/ironwood-axe-throwing-owner-finally-going-for-tokyo-gold-with-usa-shooting-team/ https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brian_Burrows

Erik began his Employee Benefits career in 2008 at a leading insurance carrier as a Group Sales Representative. Working directly with underwriters and insurance product specialists allowed him unique insight into the group benefits industry. Shortly after the passage of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), going against the grain, Erik decided to enter the Broker role of the industry. He recognized that small to mid-size employers were going to need expert guidance navigating the new legislation surrounding the Affordable Care Act.

Kevin Hodge is a commercial loan officer at PlainsCapital Bank and fellow Rotarian at Denton Evening Rotary. https://www.linkedin.com/in/kevin-hodge-8258a36a/ https://www.plainscapital.com/ https://portal.clubrunner.ca/13785/

Felicia Smith is a registered nurse with 15-years of experience in Critical Care, Emergency Nursing, and Flight Nursing. Felicia is a graduate of Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center, where she earned her bachelor's degree in nursing. https://medicalcityhealthcare.com/locations/medical-city-denton/ https://stopthebleedtx.org/ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fl5zDVlPiTw

Gary Henderson is the CEO and President of United Way Denton of County. In this conversation, we talk about all the ways United Way of Denton County has stepped up and served the vital needs of the community during a challenging year.

Kristen Pulido and Rhonda Tovar are the venue directors for Sunago Bell, Denton's newest wedding and event space located on the beautiful top floor of the Wells Fargo Building downtown. They were set to complete construction and open during the shutdown, so we get into that; we talk about the concept for the design, what it was like to start booking events during a pandemic. https://www.sunagobell.com/ https://www.discoverdenton.com/listing/sunago-bell/647/ https://www.instagram.com/sunagobell/?hl=en https://www.facebook.com/SunagoBell/  

Tony Puente is the City of Denton Executive Manager of Utilities. In this episode, we cover how and why ERCOT works the way it does, how DME put together the plan to shed load, how the DEC's natural gas supply was lost, how the water supply lost pressure causing a boil notice. We also talk about leadership and some of the books that have inspired Tony along the way.

Returning guest and Shark Tank deal closer, Aaron Powell of Bunch Bikes is on the pod today. He is a life-long bike enthusiast and started his company after falling in love with Scandinavian bicycle culture on a family trip to Malmö, Sweden, in 2016. In this episode, Aaron chats about his experience getting into the tank and closing a deal with a Shark. Bunch Bikes Bunch Bikes Facebook Bunch Bikes Twitter Bunch Bikes Instagram

Daniel Markham is a Texas songwriter and musician with a new full-length solo album, Night Light, recorded in Turkey, Texas, with Charlie Stout over the two coldest days of the pandemic summer. In this episode, we discuss being an artist during the shutdown, Texas History, and Daniel sings a couple of tunes off the new record. Daniel Markham Music Daniel Markham Bandcamp Twitter Facebook Instagram

Randi Skinner is the owner of RS Consulting and the founder of the Denton Grassroots Water Crew. In this episode, we get caught up on parent life, the historic polar vortex, moderating the Downtowners during a disaster, putting together the volunteers and donations for the Denton Grassroots Water Crew, life during a pandemic, and much more.

Bill Patterson is the publisher of the Denton Record-Chronicle and owner and CEO of Denton Media Company. At the end of 2017, he repurchased the local newspaper from A.H Belo Corporation who had owned it since 1999. Before that, the Patterson family had owned the Denton Record-Chronicle since 1945, serving the Denton area since 1903. Dentonrc.com @dentonrc bpatterson@dentonrc.com 940-566-6808  

Dave Coorts is the Technical Director for BPS Agriculture, which is the holding company for operating entities Verano365®, Farm Shield™, and PureAcre™.  He has 35 years of experience in the agriculture industry. He resides in Argyle, Texas with his wife and has six children and five grandkids. You can reach him at david.coorts@bpsagriculture.com.    LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dave-coorts-87145397/ Articles from Dave: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dave-coorts-87145397/detail/recent-activity/posts/