From Heart of Texas to Heart of a Mission – Resilience, Family, and a Legacy of Giving Welcome to this week’s Team Never Quit episode! Today, we Marcus and Melanie have an incredibly inspiring guest, Kristi Schiller, joining them. Kristi is a Texas philanthropist, entrepreneur, animal lover, and stroke survivor with an unwavering dedication to making the world a safer, kinder, and more compassionate place. Kristi shares her story of resilience, community impact, and love. Kristi’s career started in broadcast journalism, with highlights that include being dubbed the “Queen of the Internet” by Forbes in 1997. But it’s her charitable work, particularly as the founder of K9s4COPs that has been a true calling. This nonprofit organization provides highly trained K9 officers to law enforcement agencies across the U.S., supporting public safety in a unique way. Kristi’s love for animals is evident in her life at Schiller Ranch, where her passion for horses also led her to create the Diamonds & Dirt Barrel Horse Classic, an event that celebrates barrel racing and benefits her nonprofit. In this episode, Kristi opens up about a life-altering experience in 2021. During a routine shopping trip, she suddenly became disoriented, forgetting her name and address—a frightening moment that eventually led to the diagnosis of multiple strokes. She discusses the unexpected struggles and humbling moments of recovery, from speech therapy to relearning simple phrases. Yet, through her journey, Kristi has remained resilient, now using her platform to advocate for stroke awareness, sharing critical insights on recognizing symptoms and prioritizing health. Kristi’s message is clear: stay vigilant, cherish your support system, and never underestimate the power of resilience. Don’t miss this moving, inspiring conversation with Kristi Schiller! In This Episode You Will Hear: • I saw all these people in front of the banks of TVs and they were crying. I asked “What’s going on?” They said a gunman came into a school in Connecticut and shot children, Kindergarteners. (13:12) • [In an airport] So how he approaches that person [who looks like a potential threat] – that sets off the tone for the rest of [the encounter]. (15:01) • [Marcus] The coolest line up would be when those guys [retiring military] are getting out and you have a school where every bus driver is SF (Special Forces). (17:16) • For the most part, they [retired military] want to keep serving. They want to do something. (17:48) • I was like “Even if we just satisfied [the needs] in our area.” Within 3 or 4 months we were in Iowa, and now we’re in 40 states, Europe and Africa. We have removed 8 Billion dollars in contraband, made over 200,000 felony arrests, and recovered 150,000 weapons. (26:28) • Everybody thinks that child abuse/molestation, they’re gonna grab your kid and take ‘em. That would be a worst case scenario. But a lot of times, you’re out and about, shopping, you’re maybe at a fair or event. It’s somebody just coming by touching, just to cop a feel. (42:38) • [The Amish] have no vaccines, they’re not even wearing shoes. They have no TV and no media, and they’re thriving. (48:13) • I was really sick during COVID. I didn’t realize I’d had 6 strokes. (53:53) • A dog, when it comes in - people will think twice about messing with our nurses, or even doctors. (58:57) • Our government didn’t get our hostages out of Iran. It was Oscar Wyatt and John Connally. How did we repay ‘em? We sent ‘em to prison. (63:28) • [Marcus] I tell you what, I wish I was half the man my dogs thought I was. (76:28) • [Marcus - My dog] taught me more about myself than I could’ve ever learned from a lot of grown men. (76:38) • Have you been to the capitol? They have a separate line. You have a gun on you? Oh, get to go to the front of the line. (83:50) • When you turn on the news and you see that your dog’s gone in.