June 8, 2023

The Blind Athlete who Never Took No for an Answer

The Blind Athlete who Never Took No for an Answer

Ashton Smith is a person with a disability who is a previous athlete in the special Olympics

About the Guest:

Ashton Smith is an athlete who has attempted to compete in the special Olympics, but always got rejected because of her disability.; despite this, nothing never stopped her after competing in swim competitions and traveling to compete in Dubai. Her future goals include podcasting, running a radio station and public speaking. Below is a story a DFW news channel featured her on:

https://livingbluetx.com/2021/04/special-olympics-financially-exploitation/?amp=1

I have a book called swimming of strain to realize the dream.


Website: https://golden-ashton.us/Cashapp page: https://cash.app/$Goldenashton

About the Host:

Introducing Saylor Cooper, an accomplished author and a true inspiration. Despite facing the challenges of living with a disability, Saylor has fearlessly pursued his dreams and emerged as a beacon of motivation for others. His journey in entrepreneurship, alongside his trusted ally Tyler, has propelled him to extraordinary heights.

 At the core of Saylor's mission lies an unwavering belief in the power of hard work and determination. As the creator and host of Real Variety Radio, Saylor has established a remarkable internet radio station that offers a diverse range of programming spanning every genre of music and shows. 

 Additionally, he has taken the helm of the Hope Without Sight Podcast, where he engages in thought-provoking interviews with individuals who have triumphed over adversity, becoming a source of inspiration to people around the globe.

 Saylor's ambitions extend far beyond his current accomplishments. He actively seeks opportunities to connect with fellow entrepreneurs and share their remarkable journeys at renowned networking events like Podapolooza and Speakers Playhouse. Through collaboration with speaking coaches, he is honing his skills to grace different stages and deliver his empowering message to diverse audiences.

 

But that is just the beginning of Saylor's extraordinary aspirations. With plans to monetize his internet radio station and organize life coaching events, he aims to empower others in their pursuit of dreams. Furthermore, Saylor envisions a future filled with numerous literary works, including a captivating autobiography chronicling his own life and a collaborative masterpiece featuring the remarkable stories of his podcast guests.

Above all, Saylor's ultimate goal is simple yet profound: he strives to demonstrate to individuals facing challenges that anything is possible when dreams are fueled by unwavering dedication and hard work. With Saylor blazing a trail of possibility, the potential for each and every one of us is boundless.

 Join Saylor Cooper on this remarkable journey of empowerment and achievement, and discover that the power to transform lives resides within us all.

To connect with Saylor and learn more about his inspiring work, please visit his E-business card here: https://ovou.me/livefasetiyacehe


About the Co-host:

Tyler Evans is an integral part of the entrepreneurial journey of his best friend and business partner, Saylor Cooper. Despite facing his own unique challenges, Tyler is determined to make a difference in the world through his hard work and unwavering dedication.


As an active participant in the day-to-day operations of Real Variety Radio, Tyler plays a crucial role in the success of the internet radio station that offers diverse programming from all genres of music and shows. He's also a key contributor to the Hope Without Sight Podcast, where he helps to bring inspiring guests who have overcome adversity to the forefront.

Tyler's passion for entrepreneurship is matched only by his love of networking. He enjoys attending events like Podapolooza and Speakers Playhouse, where he can connect with fellow entrepreneurs and learn from their experiences. While Tyler may not have founded or created anything on his own just yet, he's an important member of the team and his contributions to the venture are invaluable.


Looking to the future, Tyler shares Saylor's vision of making a difference in people's lives and inspiring others to pursue their dreams despite any challenges they may face. He's excited about the possibility of monetizing the internet radio station and hosting life coaching events alongside Saylor to help others reach their full potential.

Tyler's ultimate goal is to collaborate with Saylor on writing books that share their individual and joint experiences, including an autobiography about his own life. Together, they hope to demonstrate to the world that anything is possible if one has the courage to chase their dreams and put in the hard work necessary to achieve them. With Tyler's unwavering determination and entrepreneurial spirit, there's no doubt he'll continue to make a positive impact on the world around him.


Thanks for listening!

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Happiness is just a text away! Opt-in to our Hope Without Sight To Blissful Life mini course by texting "Bliss" to 8324816806 and start your journey to a more fulfilling life.

Finally, Please come join us at a couple of events that may help you in your life as they relate to the topic of this podcast.

Lift Your Spirit Party, free and open to everyone:

https://saylor.systeme.io/lift-your-spirit-party

Blissful Life Mastermind: A more in depth event to help you live a blissful life, even

during difficult times, open to all who register and pay. Special Launch offer

for a limited time!

https://saylor.systeme.io/blissful-life-mastermind-launching

Transcript
Saylor Cooper:

Hello, everybody. Welcome to another episode of

Saylor Cooper:

Hope Without Sight with your host Saylor Cooper and

Saylor Cooper:

yes this is episode 4o, we made the big 40.

Saylor Cooper:

Hope without sight. where we talk to poeple that have faced

Saylor Cooper:

challenges in life, now we have an amazing talented athlete.

Tyler Evans:

this is Tyler Evans.

Tyler Evans:

Bless her heart. She's been through a whole lot. She has

Ashton Smith:

You know what I'm doing good. I feel good and glad

Ashton Smith:

worked very hard, but she can prove to you that nothing will

Ashton Smith:

ever stop her get in her way. She is a blind athlete who has

Ashton Smith:

competed in the Special Olympics. Please welcome Ashton

Ashton Smith:

Smith. Ashton, how're you doing today?

Ashton Smith:

to be here. Despite the temperatures in Texas I do ask

Ashton Smith:

out to keep folks in your prayers. We had some people kind

Ashton Smith:

of pass out Monday at the March here in Fort Worth. Oh, police

Ashton Smith:

March but she made sure everybody was okay. They had

Ashton Smith:

ambulance and everything on site. Y'all be careful in

Ashton Smith:

histhis heat seriously drink water all that good stuff,

Ashton Smith:

because you're going to need it.

Tyler Evans:

Oh, yeah,

Saylor Cooper:

we do need VTi because it's hot. You're using

Saylor Cooper:

index two is Tanger intended really? So yeah, everybody.

Saylor Cooper:

Please be careful. It's summertime. So yeah, that's

Saylor Cooper:

good. So tell us about yourself. Tell me your story. So you're

Saylor Cooper:

blind like us, right?

Ashton Smith:

Yeah, I'm visually impaired. I'm blind in one eye.

Ashton Smith:

Absolutely. It's uh, you know, it's different when people do

Ashton Smith:

not understand what it's like, like what you guys go through.

Ashton Smith:

Like with what I go through I have a condition called

Ashton Smith:

astigmatism astropia. It just means that astigmatism means my

Ashton Smith:

eyes shake and astropia your means that you don't have

Ashton Smith:

control of certain muscles that sit in the eye. That's important

Ashton Smith:

to explain. Those conditions unfortunately, cannot be fixed

Ashton Smith:

by laser surgery or etc. That's why wore glasses shout out to

Ashton Smith:

Oakley they made a good pair of glasses for me they cost $700

Ashton Smith:

It's worth it because I told Oakley I need to see right. And

Ashton Smith:

clarity is everything. And we're prescriptions. You can't you

Ashton Smith:

cannot mess up because you can really hurt somebody by driving

Ashton Smith:

a vehicle. I got a driver's licence. So absolutely want to

Ashton Smith:

make sure that im in my lane? Absolutely.

Saylor Cooper:

You got your driver's licence?

Ashton Smith:

I do I have a driver's licence?

Saylor Cooper:

Yeah. Oh, I see. So you could see a lot better

Saylor Cooper:

than I can because that were legally blind to I could see a

Saylor Cooper:

little bit my guy, my left eye. It's just the light. And you see

Saylor Cooper:

Tyler. We have a very similar story, right? Yes, we do. Yeah,

Saylor Cooper:

go ahead. Tyler childhood.

Tyler Evans:

I have a twin brother whose eyes reversed. We

Tyler Evans:

had retinopathy of prematurity. So we're born three months

Tyler Evans:

premature. And he has a twin sister whose eyes reverse and

Tyler Evans:

she was born three months premature, just like he was.

Ashton Smith:

And there is no cure or condition for this. Just

Ashton Smith:

like there is no cure or condition for prevent. Okay,

Ashton Smith:

yeah. Yeah.

Tyler Evans:

But there might be

Saylor Cooper:

I know we do. Well, and Ashton. Yeah. God

Saylor Cooper:

bless your heart. I mean, first blind people. It's so difficult

Saylor Cooper:

out there. I mean, people just don't want understand, which is

Saylor Cooper:

why we're pursuing entrepreneurship. Well, yeah, we

Saylor Cooper:

can be successful. So tell us your struggles. So you've,

Saylor Cooper:

you've competed in a Special Olympics. Tell us about that.

Ashton Smith:

I competed in I started competing in the Special

Ashton Smith:

Olympics in you know, in the 90s. And today, so over 30

Ashton Smith:

years. I've competed in this programme. You know, in 2004, I

Ashton Smith:

also graduated high school, I ended up moving on to the adult

Ashton Smith:

version of Special Olympics, which was here in Dallas, Fort

Ashton Smith:

Worth. But before all of that my grandmother gave me a yes

Ashton Smith:

meaning that I can do these things that I can do anything

Ashton Smith:

that I put my mind so I was raised by my grandmother, you

Ashton Smith:

know, I was raised by, you know, and help out. Gene seeds. Some

Ashton Smith:

people that know me, they helped me as well in my life. Honestly,

Ashton Smith:

a lot more than a lot of my family as you know, as an adult,

Ashton Smith:

they've helped me as an adult with a lot of things that uh, my

Ashton Smith:

family cannot help me with because my own family's taking

Ashton Smith:

care of children. You know, I have to be honest about that. My

Ashton Smith:

family's taken care of children, my sister, she died you know,

Ashton Smith:

during the two years of the pandemic, and so did my mom that

Ashton Smith:

didn't die from COVID. But for other complications and reasons,

Ashton Smith:

I miss my sister and mother every day. I miss my grandmother

Ashton Smith:

every single day. They are no longer with me. But they've

Ashton Smith:

always encouraged me and told me that you can do anything you put

Ashton Smith:

your mind to winning medals, doing these things absolutely

Ashton Smith:

important.

Saylor Cooper:

Yes, indeed. You can do anything you put your

Saylor Cooper:

mind to. That is definitely an understatement. Right there. In

Saylor Cooper:

because that's what my my mom, my whole family instilled. in

Saylor Cooper:

me. I can navigate hold me back. And Tyler, you had a very

Saylor Cooper:

similar. You have a very similar story there too. Right. Wow. Now

Saylor Cooper:

Tyler, you tell Ashton about your story.

Tyler Evans:

Yeah. Just you know, overcoming college and

Tyler Evans:

things like that. You know, moving, moving out of my dad's,

Tyler Evans:

you know, because I wanted to say, you know, my dad's very

Tyler Evans:

protective. That goes, yeah. But yeah, but you want it your own

Tyler Evans:

place.

Ashton Smith:

And there's nothing wrong with that. That's

Ashton Smith:

the same thing. You know? Well,

Tyler Evans:

I live with my brother and his wife. But yeah,

Tyler Evans:

I mean, it's, I guess, technically my place, but it's

Tyler Evans:

there. It's all of our place.

Ashton Smith:

But y'all y'all live together. But y'all have

Ashton Smith:

you have a little bit more freedom or what have you.

Ashton Smith:

Living?

Tyler Evans:

Yeah,

Ashton Smith:

same thing with me. I wanted my own place. I

Ashton Smith:

actually live with somebody, you know, I'm a female. I live with

Ashton Smith:

a man obviously. I told my family No, no girls are allowed

Ashton Smith:

to leave with me. Only only males because I'm a girl. And in

Ashton Smith:

the south, I told my family when it comes to stuff like that. I

Ashton Smith:

don't, you know, people can deny you places to live all kinds of

Ashton Smith:

stuff if they think you know, no. So I know I've been denied

Ashton Smith:

even opportunities in the Special Olympics, because there

Ashton Smith:

were athletes who thought that I was a boy or thought I was gay

Ashton Smith:

or trans.

Saylor Cooper:

Disgusting.

Ashton Smith:

And I got kicked out the programme for a woman

Ashton Smith:

saying that I was these things. And it's not true. She went to

Ashton Smith:

their staff and told their staff stuff about me, that was not

Ashton Smith:

true. She slandered me, told the staff that I took stuff from her

Ashton Smith:

like money. I didn't, I didn't, I was nowhere even near her like

Ashton Smith:

that. I'm a grown adult. I don't, I don't need to take

Ashton Smith:

money from you. I just know in my life, that I'm never ever

Ashton Smith:

going to be exploited by the Special Olympics ever again, as

Ashton Smith:

far as my image being used to make money. I was featured on

Ashton Smith:

ESPN games. I mean, ESPN, I made nationally World Games I

Ashton Smith:

competed in Dubai. And that's, you know, the highest level you

Ashton Smith:

can go is to world and national games.

Saylor Cooper:

So you went to Dubai? Wow,

Tyler Evans:

whoa, that's Africa.

Ashton Smith:

Mm went to Dubai. And these kids had to raise

Ashton Smith:

their own money through fundraising kids. Parents are

Ashton Smith:

forced to pay money for these kids to pay for registration

Ashton Smith:

fees, uniforms, swimsuits. The Special Olympics is it has grown

Ashton Smith:

way too big for its own good, it does not help the athletes. It's

Ashton Smith:

never helped me in the 30 years that I've been a part of it. Um,

Ashton Smith:

you know, and that's why I'm doing everything that I can to

Ashton Smith:

get my story out there. Because either the programme will be

Ashton Smith:

sued or they'll settle one of the two. Yeah, and go ahead.

Saylor Cooper:

So you were denied. But how were you able to

Saylor Cooper:

go to Dubai and all that.

Ashton Smith:

You know, I was able to raise money or get money

Ashton Smith:

from friends and family and other people. I'm grateful for

Ashton Smith:

that. The lady knows who she is that helped me grateful for her

Ashton Smith:

husband. You know, things are looking up for me. I'm, I'm

Ashton Smith:

grateful for that. And I know that I know that I gave a

Ashton Smith:

valiant effort while being an athlete and you you are metals

Ashton Smith:

that are worth nothing. A lot of my metals I sold you know you

Ashton Smith:

have to you have to survive. My parents aren't here to take care

Ashton Smith:

of me. I lost my mother and father. So it's called Reality

Ashton Smith:

and Special Olympics does not believe in reality. They believe

Ashton Smith:

in this magical fiction of a world that because you're

Ashton Smith:

disabled, that the world is going to take care of you. This

Ashton Smith:

is not true. I was living homeless, sleeping on the

Ashton Smith:

bridges sleeping outside in some cases, sleeping from place to

Ashton Smith:

place the place that I'm a female sleeping in different

Ashton Smith:

places sleeping in on the north side of Fort Worth. In a house

Ashton Smith:

with a bunch of dudes. Thank you, Jesus that God had a hit a

Ashton Smith:

protection over me. Most of the dudes thought I was a man

Ashton Smith:

anyway. So they just left me alone. They went. So I was

Ashton Smith:

thinking this was a blessing that the dudes in that house

Ashton Smith:

thought I was a man. They didn't say that.

Saylor Cooper:

Yeah. You enjoy it a lot. I mean, after your,

Saylor Cooper:

your parents and grandparents passing a couple years ago, Wow,

Saylor Cooper:

you got to take the reins and live on your own. And there's a

Saylor Cooper:

lot of people who will help like we would not be where we are

Saylor Cooper:

without some amazing supporters, generous donors, Kevin Cook and

Saylor Cooper:

Scott Irwin. Thank y'all donated to help us provide venture with

Saylor Cooper:

this podcast. We're trying to grow it. We're trying to host

Saylor Cooper:

blissful life mastermind, which aims people to live life in

Saylor Cooper:

bliss. And now we're trying to do what we can. One day it's

Saylor Cooper:

gonna happen, I know it's gonna happen. You're you want to be

Saylor Cooper:

free, you want to, you know, be able to make it happen for your

Saylor Cooper:

lives.

Ashton Smith:

Nobody wants to, to be used for somebody else's

Ashton Smith:

game. You know, nobody does. And I sent y'all Those links also

Ashton Smith:

sent y'all my website and stuff. So that can be shared, as well.

Ashton Smith:

What I do know is that my life has a lot to give, and a lot to

Ashton Smith:

offer. And knowing that and what I have done for the Special

Ashton Smith:

Olympics, I'm clear and concise and what I'm saying Special

Ashton Smith:

Olympics messed up, because they kept calling me retarded and

Ashton Smith:

dumb and

Saylor Cooper:

No, no, yeah.

Ashton Smith:

Yeah, their staff did. And that's why I'm no

Ashton Smith:

longer in the programme because I told them I'm not these things

Ashton Smith:

that y'all call me. I'm not the N word. I'm not. Oh,

Ashton Smith:

I was called you can google Special Olympics Texas

Ashton Smith:

confederate flag, there was a dude.

Tyler Evans:

Whoa.

Ashton Smith:

You can Google it Special Olympics, Texas

Ashton Smith:

confederate flag, it comes up in your face like I'm not making

Ashton Smith:

this up. Wow.

Ashton Smith:

Google. That's

Tyler Evans:

right. And

Saylor Cooper:

wow. And so you said since you're not

Saylor Cooper:

understanding Special Olympics, what are you doing now?

Ashton Smith:

What am I doing now in my life, man, since I'm

Ashton Smith:

out of debt, and moving on and forgetting all of that, the

Ashton Smith:

pressing thing now is I'm trying to get this radio station back

Ashton Smith:

up and running. Or get a radio station running a man. A man in

Ashton Smith:

my book gets more gets to more people work on collaborations

Ashton Smith:

with more people get on more podcasts and things like this

Ashton Smith:

meeting with people in person such as the black black chambers

Ashton Smith:

of commerce, Trinity Metro, right bus services, all those

Ashton Smith:

people that have a made happen for me.

Saylor Cooper:

Wow.

Ashton Smith:

You know, it is it has been an arduous task. To to

Ashton Smith:

separate myself, I got an LLC as well on. Yeah, so legally

Ashton Smith:

separate myself from the Special Olympics, I legally have nothing

Ashton Smith:

to do with them.

Saylor Cooper:

Now, if they if they treat you like crap, don't

Saylor Cooper:

know, don't don't don't mess with them. Do your own thing.

Saylor Cooper:

And that's what we ever do. We have a radio station called real

Saylor Cooper:

variety radio.

Ashton Smith:

Wow. Okay, I might want to come on there as a

Ashton Smith:

guest. If you have a radio station, I'll do that as well.

Ashton Smith:

What I do know is I'm very articulate, and I stay really

Ashton Smith:

calm when talking about this stuff. It is important that no

Ashton Smith:

public speaking is something that I want to do. And I'm going

Ashton Smith:

to I'm in a meeting. Oh, hi. Hello. Okay, sorry. But the

Ashton Smith:

biggest thing is, what I can say is, life makes it work out

Ashton Smith:

pretty good. Because public speaking is going to pay my

Ashton Smith:

bills as being a brand ambassador that's going to pay

Ashton Smith:

my bills. I just got off the phone with a management company

Ashton Smith:

to do said, Hey, follow up with me Friday. Okay, sure. We'll,

Ashton Smith:

you know, these are all things to start plugging into

Ashton Smith:

opportunities and saying, This is what I can do.

Saylor Cooper:

Yes.

Ashton Smith:

Right. Those amounts. And those are things

Ashton Smith:

that I can do right now today and say what am I going to do to

Ashton Smith:

better my life? I'm going to take the times that people have

Ashton Smith:

given me a Kevin, Daryl, all these other people that have

Ashton Smith:

been a part of my life to help me be who I am today, ma'am,

Ashton Smith:

guys. I'm thankful for them. Folks can you know follow me

Ashton Smith:

also on social media on the go? Hold in Astron, you'll be able

Ashton Smith:

to find a lot of it or just Google Ashton Smith Special

Ashton Smith:

Olympics. You see my website in the chat, or you can see that

Ashton Smith:

there come up. The name of this website is WWW dot golden

Ashton Smith:

Ashton. But you can put that in there somehow in the comments

Ashton Smith:

later on after this show so that people know that that exists

Ashton Smith:

that those websites exist. And of course, folks can also get

Ashton Smith:

cash out gold and Ashton, you'll see my cash app put the money

Ashton Smith:

sign golden Ashton, you'll see that a lot of bed helps me

Ashton Smith:

because any money that I get, I'll pay for transportation to

Ashton Smith:

move across Texas. You're not walking in Texas, you're not

Ashton Smith:

walking in 100 new yet the destination. That doesn't work

Ashton Smith:

when it's hot.

Saylor Cooper:

No, I got no it doesn't because you're doing the

Saylor Cooper:

same thing where I'm doing because I'm getting into public

Saylor Cooper:

speaking and saying like, we have to be done by 420 Because

Saylor Cooper:

at 430 I meet with my speaking coach Frank King, we're working

Saylor Cooper:

on my keynote. We're working. We're working until we get my

Saylor Cooper:

speaking career the way it needs to be last until we die trying.

Ashton Smith:

Yeah, you're gonna get it man. The last thing I got

Ashton Smith:

to do was get to Dallas, get some recordings done and then

Ashton Smith:

I'll be good to go. Knowing that my situation is going to get

Ashton Smith:

better knowing that so your audience realises that, you know

Ashton Smith:

if it wasn't for my family, my grandparents mother and those

Ashton Smith:

who gave me opportunities, mentors like Jean and Steve, my

Ashton Smith:

grandmother, Mary Francis. It's important you know, you you you

Ashton Smith:

don't you don't give up on that. And I think for me, I just feel

Ashton Smith:

so happy so blessed. And knowing that yes, this is I you know, I

Ashton Smith:

did this stuff I want to nettles. We're gonna have a

Ashton Smith:

blast too. And you know what action we will invite you to

Ashton Smith:

ever events such as speakers Playhouse and paga palooza. We

Ashton Smith:

can sing because Playhouse I don't even know what that is.

Ashton Smith:

What is speaker's Playhouse? That sounds cool. What's that?

Saylor Cooper:

It's a weekly event on Zoom. It's held from

Saylor Cooper:

1230 to two central, where 60 people get on Zoom. We go to the

Saylor Cooper:

mic we talk you share your talk title, your target audience and

Saylor Cooper:

the type of stages you're looking for. It is so much fun.

Saylor Cooper:

And also you didn't miss it. You did miss a good event in Dallas

Saylor Cooper:

Tyler tell her about speakers Playhouse live in Dallas. We

Tyler Evans:

yeah, basically. Normally it's on Zoom. But in

Tyler Evans:

went

Tyler Evans:

February we went to one live and we just had a lot of fun and

Tyler Evans:

people spoke and we did meditations and all sorts of

Tyler Evans:

stuff like that. And we did it at a hotel to go

Ashton Smith:

I didn't know I mean, I don't know over here in

Ashton Smith:

Fort Worth. They don't give out notices I never know what's

Ashton Smith:

going on with stuff like that. I've never get any notices about

Ashton Smith:

it. I got an email about speakers Playhouse but that was

Ashton Smith:

not in Dallas that was in some other state.

Saylor Cooper:

Yeah, yeah in June because they're gonna I'm

Saylor Cooper:

sure we're gonna do it in Dallas next February. Now in October

Saylor Cooper:

they're also going to do it in Jamaica. I'm going to try and go

Saylor Cooper:

to Jamaica in October and it's going to be fun but I know you

Saylor Cooper:

should join speakers Playhouse it's so much fun andnow No it's

Saylor Cooper:

great.

Ashton Smith:

Let me know when you have the next lead and like

Ashton Smith:

I said I want to go

Saylor Cooper:

yeah awesome and that before we continue you sent

Saylor Cooper:

me a video yes hang on and then share screen

Ashton Smith:

Yeah, absolutely like I said if this is important

Ashton Smith:

and being able to connect with speakers and opportunities I you

Ashton Smith:

know I have what it takes I have 20 years of public speaking

Ashton Smith:

experience and radio work I've been on radio since I was a

Ashton Smith:

child well I've done

Saylor Cooper:

wow

Saylor Cooper:

here so guys I want to share this video with

Saylor Cooper:

you check this out real quick place yeah, play that here is

Ashton Smith:

I described my life is blissful.

Saylor Cooper:

Excellent.

speaker 4 00:19:59

Ashton Smith is doing great now. But a year ago, she

speaker 4 00:20:03

found herself visiting the homeless shelters on Lancaster

speaker 4 00:20:06

Avenue. The food was awesome. Without a home of her own. She

speaker 4 00:20:09

depended on friends for help bouncing from couch to couch.

Ashton Smith:

Um, very hard, very difficult and very tough.

Ashton Smith:

Because you didn't know where your next meal would come from

Ashton Smith:

certain things you wouldn't know

speaker 4 00:20:26

when her grandmother died, Smith lost her only form

speaker 4 00:20:29

of financial support but was left with something just as

speaker 4 00:20:32

important.

Ashton Smith:

She just told me to keep at it and to keep

Ashton Smith:

striving and doing what I can to never give up on what I want to

Ashton Smith:

do and that was swimming, swimming, growing up in

Ashton Smith:

Waxahachie, Smith swim her whole life now with help from Fort

Ashton Smith:

Worth housing solutions. She's getting government money to pay

Ashton Smith:

for her own apartment. And you'll often find her here at

Ashton Smith:

the downtown YMCA, pushing yourself. I'll think about

Ashton Smith:

technique. I think about my strokes. I think about every

Ashton Smith:

time I jump in the water, how can I be the best at this? What

Ashton Smith:

can I do to improve my times each day? Last year, the 32 year

Ashton Smith:

old went to Seattle to participate in the Special

Ashton Smith:

Olympics for people with intellectual disabilities does

Ashton Smith:

special the level Yeah, you want to win a medal but you

speaker 4 00:21:22

World guest who Dhabi in March. I'm very excited to

speaker 4 00:21:26

represent my country charity got her first passport. I'm very

speaker 4 00:21:30

excited about going. I've never been to that part of the world,

speaker 4 00:21:33

a new experience for her. And for everyone else, a lesson

speaker 4 00:21:36

about hard work, persistence and positive thinking people can

speaker 4 00:21:40

learn from my experiences is to never give up on your dreams,

speaker 4 00:21:45

whatever that is. Your dreams and your hopes and always have a

speaker 4 00:21:49

fighting attitude, no matter what comes your way in Fort

speaker 4 00:21:53

Worth, Scott Gordon.

Saylor Cooper:

Wow,

Ashton Smith:

space. I think that Z you can't make that stuff

Ashton Smith:

up. That's why that is important. You cannot make that

Ashton Smith:

up the stuff that I built with the homelessness. It's important

Ashton Smith:

that you played that video. I also will share a three minute

Ashton Smith:

recording with you guys later on down the line. You know, I was

Ashton Smith:

trying to find you guys on Facebook so I can send it to

Ashton Smith:

you. So you can play it. If you have a Facebook, I can send that

Ashton Smith:

to you. And you absolutely can can play that. But it's it's

Ashton Smith:

about an eight minute recording and it has them talking about

Ashton Smith:

how they kicked me out the programme.

Saylor Cooper:

Wow. Right? Yeah, yeah. Find me on Facebook,

Saylor Cooper:

Saylor Cooper and type Matthew Tyler Evans. He'll, you'll find

Saylor Cooper:

us

Ashton Smith:

if you want to go on Facebook or shoot me a

Ashton Smith:

message on Messenger. I don't know how you guys do that. But

Ashton Smith:

I'll send me a link to your Facebook and I'll accept your

Ashton Smith:

request. If you can go to Share, share your Facebook and I'll

Ashton Smith:

apply and I'll send it to you.

Saylor Cooper:

Oh sure. Yeah, I'll send you a request but

Saylor Cooper:

Ashton in that great Yeah, cuz I want to be honest with you. Were

Saylor Cooper:

critical point now. We try all different kinds of stuff from

Saylor Cooper:

our business.

Ashton Smith:

And yeah,

Saylor Cooper:

the main problem is getting a good following.

Saylor Cooper:

We've tried to host blissful life events, we haven't been

Saylor Cooper:

successful, but it's gonna happen. It's just only a matter

Saylor Cooper:

of time and we're never gonna give up.

Ashton Smith:

You shouldn't the pandemics over so I think you'll

Ashton Smith:

be able to start those in person events back a lot of people are

Ashton Smith:

still doing stuff from home. So absolutely. I feel like if you

Ashton Smith:

can get that done from home, it's a win win situation and get

Ashton Smith:

all that together and go live.

Saylor Cooper:

Yeah, you got it. You got it now. So what you want

Saylor Cooper:

to do so how many radio stations have you been on? Give them on

Saylor Cooper:

country stations or which ones

Ashton Smith:

Oh, mainly, you know, mainly, you know, the rap

Ashton Smith:

I was on 97 on the beat. I've been on a lot of podcasts, kind

Ashton Smith:

of YouTube type stuff but I'm open to work with this person to

Ashton Smith:

get me out there to syndicated radio and that kind of thing.

Ashton Smith:

And by having by having my own radio station, it'll allow me to

Ashton Smith:

talk about whatever I want to talk about an All I need is a

Ashton Smith:

table a laptop and a microphone and I got a table right here.

Ashton Smith:

All I need is a laptop and a microphone knocking the door

Ashton Smith:

making money.

Saylor Cooper:

You got it. Yeah, and that's why I'm trying to

Saylor Cooper:

make money with my own at radio station too, which is so in our

Saylor Cooper:

way your station is 24/7 It's called real variety radio plays

Saylor Cooper:

those genres of music.

Ashton Smith:

Um, you might be able to partner with my friend

Ashton Smith:

and get a get a station where where you guys can make money

Ashton Smith:

for the commercials that are ran? Yeah, yeah.

Saylor Cooper:

Oh, yeah, we're getting that TV.

Tyler Evans:

Oh can get that out? You can get sponsors.

Ashton Smith:

Who can?

Tyler Evans:

We could?

Ashton Smith:

You could Yeah, if you got to up and running radio

Ashton Smith:

station, why not play different genres of music?

Saylor Cooper:

We do. We were just trying to get sponsors and

Saylor Cooper:

youngest, we haven't been doing shows consistently like we

Saylor Cooper:

should because I've been focusing on putting our heads

Saylor Cooper:

together to really gain this venture going so, but it's gonna

Saylor Cooper:

happen. But know what Ashton went Win win here. I know,

Saylor Cooper:

you're trying, we're trying, we all need as many hands on deck

Saylor Cooper:

as possible. If we can help each other. That's a win win right

Saylor Cooper:

there.

Ashton Smith:

Yeah, absolutely. And we're gonna make it happen.

Ashton Smith:

I feel good today, guys. And I know being on these podcasts,

Ashton Smith:

these shows, I'll get this out today, getting shared up there,

Ashton Smith:

share the link with me, and I'll get it on Facebook and all that.

Ashton Smith:

It's just more and more and more exposure, and telling the truth.

Ashton Smith:

So the audience can see what my book looks like. This is what

Ashton Smith:

the book looks like. So those folks, the name of that book is

Ashton Smith:

called swimming upstream to realise the dream. That's the

Ashton Smith:

name of the book. They can purchase that book at Walmart,

Ashton Smith:

and Amazon that is online. So I'm absolutely grateful to your

Ashton Smith:

audience and people.

Saylor Cooper:

Is there going to audio just Kindle or paperback?

Saylor Cooper:

What?

Ashton Smith:

I think it's we have Kindle. I'm hoping to do

Ashton Smith:

audio. And other things.

Saylor Cooper:

Yeah, I have a book too. I just wrote thanks to

Saylor Cooper:

chat. GPT. It's called navigating life's challenges,

Saylor Cooper:

understanding personality, stress and family dynamics. And

Saylor Cooper:

I'm gonna get all your to great book, you should read it. But

Saylor Cooper:

I'm trying to get it on Kindle. And Amazon has given me tech

Saylor Cooper:

issues for fall, but we're going to get better at figuring it

Saylor Cooper:

out.

Ashton Smith:

No, you will be able to get that worked out. And

Ashton Smith:

like I said, I'm proud of you. And it'll just, it'll just be

Ashton Smith:

really, really great.

Saylor Cooper:

Yeah, and so awesome. So Ashton, do you have

Saylor Cooper:

anything else to share? Because if not, we'll we'll move on my

Saylor Cooper:

web takeaways.

Ashton Smith:

Can you let people know I had put that website in

Ashton Smith:

the chat or in this

Saylor Cooper:

yeah, save the chat.

Ashton Smith:

Yeah, and I put that cash up in there as well.

Ashton Smith:

And there's somehow you can put that in the comments or

Ashton Smith:

something for people. Your people can go to HTTPS, forward

Ashton Smith:

slash to those slashes, that's gonna be cash app, or if they

Ashton Smith:

want to do golden ash. And that's for the Cash App. Because

Ashton Smith:

that's how it comes up. But just put golden Ashton for Cash App.

Ashton Smith:

And then for the website, you want to put HTTP/ golden Ashton

Ashton Smith:

dash Ashton?

Saylor Cooper:

Right.

Ashton Smith:

So there you go. I love it. Guys.

Saylor Cooper:

Before we go, Tyler, do you want to close out

Saylor Cooper:

with our golden burning question? Yes.

Tyler Evans:

Awesome. How do you write advice which you give to

Tyler Evans:

people who feel like they don't know where to go and struggling

Tyler Evans:

in life and don't know where to turn?

Ashton Smith:

Well, if people if people are faith based, you

Ashton Smith:

know, for me, my faith was a solid direction for me. There

Ashton Smith:

are people out there, obviously, who don't believe in faith,

Ashton Smith:

that's fine. For those who don't find something positive in your

Ashton Smith:

life, find something or somebody that will uplift you and

Ashton Smith:

encourage you every day. Get around people that have like

Ashton Smith:

minded things in mind, meaning, they want you to pursue public

Ashton Smith:

speaking, you don't want to hang around people that, that dole

Ashton Smith:

your dreams, or those things are not possible. You want to hang

Ashton Smith:

around people that say, I believe in you, I encourage you,

Ashton Smith:

those are all things that I see. And I'm doing right now, as we

Ashton Smith:

speak. It is important, though, for me that my life begins to

Ashton Smith:

grow in ways by telling people this Jesus ledger for a reason,

Ashton Smith:

the good Lord put you for a reason. And God put me here for

Ashton Smith:

a reason. And whether you believe in God or not setting

Ashton Smith:

that aside, you're here for a reason.

Saylor Cooper:

We're all here for a reason, because we were

Saylor Cooper:

born three months premature. I was born in Conroe, Texas four

Saylor Cooper:

years ago and was not expected to survive and I've overcome so

Saylor Cooper:

many challenges, and I'm here today and time to go ahead. So

Saylor Cooper:

say that

Tyler Evans:

I was born three months premature as well in

Tyler Evans:

Shreveport, Louisiana, which is about you know, 60 miles east of

Tyler Evans:

here yeah, I'm

Saylor Cooper:

here for a reason. Amen. Oh, yeah.

Ashton Smith:

Yes to know Yes. Just to know this, that you're

Ashton Smith:

here and God wants you for whatever talents he puts you

Ashton Smith:

here, maybe it stopped public speaking for some people, maybe

Ashton Smith:

it's being in a kitchen or whatever, whatever your talents

Ashton Smith:

are, whether someone gives you exposure, I just got off the

Ashton Smith:

phone with gentleman who said, We want to give you exposure.

Ashton Smith:

Okay? Right, everything doesn't have to lead to necessarily

Ashton Smith:

money. If these people can get you on ESPN, or that die, then

Ashton Smith:

my now my mind is open. And I'm willing to be coached. That is

Ashton Smith:

what it is. You I am willing to do everything that I need to

Ashton Smith:

like I told him, I'm working 18 hour days. And I did that during

Ashton Smith:

the pandemic scaled way back this year. But then I worked a

Ashton Smith:

long, long day, even some this year I did but not as much as I

Ashton Smith:

did last year. I did that every single day, last year, for six

Ashton Smith:

to seven days a week, I scaled back. Now I'm only doing that

Ashton Smith:

probably four to five days a week because nobody can work 18

Ashton Smith:

hour days, seven days a week. That's just not feasible. God

Ashton Smith:

has good people in my life. God has said to me, this is what I

Ashton Smith:

want you to do. And that's why I'm I'm doing public speaking

Ashton Smith:

because this is something that I've been told by people, all

Ashton Smith:

kinds of folks, you need to do this for a living. And I know I

Ashton Smith:

come to God and knowing that God is great for me, Heavenly Father

Ashton Smith:

at this time, thank you for the people on this programme. Thank

Ashton Smith:

you for the dissemination across the world and what they do.

Ashton Smith:

Thank you, Heavenly Father for the Internet, television and

Ashton Smith:

other programmes. Thank you, Heavenly Father, for those who

Ashton Smith:

continue to upright my life, keep me healthy and keep me

Ashton Smith:

strong without you Heavenly Father, I know that I am not. I

Ashton Smith:

come to you Heavenly Father with all brace because without you, I

Ashton Smith:

can't come to you because your powers are great and omnipotent.

Ashton Smith:

I know that you are the one in my life. And without you, I

Ashton Smith:

can't succeed. As a father, I know I can't succeed. If I know

Ashton Smith:

I dig deep. And I count on your name. And I count on your

Ashton Smith:

blessings every day. Because you are the arbiter of my life. And

Ashton Smith:

you are the one that makes my path. And you are the one that

Ashton Smith:

doesn't right. All things made by me shall fail. But things

Ashton Smith:

made by God and His mind shall not ask you Heavenly Father to

Ashton Smith:

keep my foundation strong. And deliver me and know that because

Ashton Smith:

of these things, that you provide grace that you provide

Ashton Smith:

grace and hope for those who are homeless stones who are

Ashton Smith:

downtrodden, and those who feel like they're lost. May you be a

Ashton Smith:

beacon of hope in people's lives. Heavenly Father, for

Ashton Smith:

those who come to you and those who may be weary, come to you,

Ashton Smith:

oh Heavenly Father, because this is what is here. I am thankful

Ashton Smith:

for the creation and what you have the I am thankful for the

Ashton Smith:

people here today. And without them, the messages cannot be

Ashton Smith:

disseminated. I am grateful. Heavenly Father, you are here.

Ashton Smith:

You are with us. And in these three accords and the Father,

Ashton Smith:

Son and Holy Ghost, I'll say amen. Amen. Amen.

Tyler Evans:

Amen. I

Ashton Smith:

really enjoy the temperatures Today's

Ashton Smith:

temperatures right now. 95 degrees Dallas Fort Worth

Ashton Smith:

humidity right now at 60% Dallas Fort Worth clouds and possible

Ashton Smith:

storms in the area right now. So for those who choose to get out

Ashton Smith:

today, please be aware of lightning. Please get off the

Ashton Smith:

legs if you hear thunder roars go indoors. So these are all of

Ashton Smith:

the special tips that I think people can realise and put a

Ashton Smith:

smile on your face and know that God is here for you. And God is

Ashton Smith:

with you. And say amen and amen.

Saylor Cooper:

Great job on episode 4-0.

Ashton Smith:

Oh no, bro, like this is awesome. God is good

Ashton Smith:

every day. See you guys Thursday. If you guys choose to

Ashton Smith:

stop by 305 West Broadway, we'll get you set up. Get your food,

Ashton Smith:

get your help sleeping bags and electricity for those who do

Ashton Smith:

need help if you need your lights paid and you're in Texas,

Ashton Smith:

called Texas utility help community action partners and

Ashton Smith:

health and human services on campus drop in Fort Worth if you

Ashton Smith:

need help or if you know somebody who is struggling to

Ashton Smith:

pay their bills because of the heat. Call to one one Texas

Ashton Smith:

today and they'll get you straightened out. God bless

Ashton Smith:

y'all man and

Saylor Cooper:

be blessed today.

Ashton Smith:

This is absolutely awesome All right. Thank you, man.