Empowering First Responders to Share Their Story

Empowering First Responders to Share Their Story

 

Early in his career Brian Parker realized the importance of documenting the many extraordinary stories he experienced as police officer.

One day while on a ten hour long surveillance mission, Brian grabbed a notepad and started writing.

Motivated by wanting to share his story with his two kids, Brian kept chronicling his stories and eventually published his journal as a book titled "My Rookie Memoir, Father's Legacy."

After publishing his book and realizing the power of his story, Brian decided he wanted to empower his first responder friends to share their own stories.

"My friends are not going sit down and write a book like I did. But they will come over and tell their stories in their own words."
The Choir Practice Podcast was born.
"'Choir Practice' is police talk for getting together after work to maybe make a bonfire, have some drinks and tell war stories."

The idea behind the podcast was to create a way for Brien's friends to share their stories in their own words so that their friends and families would be able to better understand their role as first responders.

"Most guests are friends I've worked with and some are recommended to me or suggested to me, and I don't meet them until they walk through the front door of my house, which is my studio. But after about five minutes of chatting with them, it's almost like we worked our entire careers together because of our similar shared experience."

Brian has over 60 episodes on "The Choir Practice" podcast.

"I would say that every single one of the men and women who I have on my show absolutely lived a great story. So when I saw LIVE A GREAT STORY on social media, I thought 'That's exactly what I'm talking about with these folks who lived a great story and did some extraordinary things. And so I hang the flag there so they can see it. And then I have a notepad and it's got the sticker on there."

For every guest who comes over for an episode, Brian sets out a notepad with a LIVE A GREAT STORY sticker on it for them to use as scratch paper. 

After the interview he asks them to write a note.

"When I'm done with the podcast, I'll probably cherish the notepad more than the fact that I did a podcast, because I'll have all these personal messages from all of my friends."