Kevin Christopher moved his young family from California to Cookeville to be closer to family and to put down some roots. A patent attorney and principal of a growing law firm, Ridgeline Venture Law, Christopher works largely with businesses and intellectual property law - patents, trademarks, trade secret protection, biotech, digital tech, and socially aligned businesses. Besides being an incredibly intelligent guy, he also has a passion for poetry, rock climbing, entrepreneurship, the environment, and social empowerment. In this episode, he shares a different perspective of our community from a transplant viewpoint, highlighting some of the Upper Cumberland's greatest hits - the presence of the University, cultural exposure, community events, and the power of our ecotourism. Kevin also shares his personal story of transformation from troubled kid to successful attorney, husband, and father.
Michael Aikens moved to Cookeville to work at Tennessee Tech University where he now serves as the Director of Innovation and Entrepreneurship, the Director of the Center for Rural Innovation, and just recently named the head of Tech Tomorrow, TTU's strategic planning body. In this episode, Aikens shares the vision behind Tech's Innovation and Entrepreneurship department - promoting problem solving, creativity, and a hands-on approach to learning. Aikens also dives into the honest reality of working alongside millennials, the challenges that many of his students face, and the marriage that can exist between entrepreneurship and the higher education system. Fantastic listen for anyone looking to be challenged in their mindset and growth potential!
Laura Wolf moved to Cookeville when her late husband, Scott, was recruited by Averitt Express. She immediately fell in love with the community and put down deep roots. After volunteering with CityScape, Laura knew that she wanted to be there full time. CityScape’s mission is to establish a partnership between the public and private sectors that are dedicated to revitalizing Downtown Cookeville with an emphasis on community livability, economic restructuring and historic preservation. In this podcast, Laura shares the way that CityScape is impacting our area for the good, the way that individuals can get involved, and the various local activities that are on the horizon in Cookeville.
Hailing from neighboring Overton County, Marty Maynard, CEO of American Bank & Trust of the Cumberlands, got his start in the banking business in high school. A self proclaimed "bank nerd", Marty loves the numbers, deal structuring, and operations of the finance world. In this episode, you'll also hear from the man behind the old school hp calculator and quickly discover that his still waters run deep. Marty shares with us what he loves about his work, the value he places on having a strong team, the entrepreneurial spirit of a local bank, and the importance of being involved in the community. This was a fun one with cool insight into the banking space!