SPEAKER_03 0:00

Here comes the sun do. Here comes the sun da say. It's all right.

SPEAKER_05 0:19

Well, hello, fortitude audience. This is Heather Kittelson, your host, and I have Amos Kittleson, my amazing husband sitting next to me.

SPEAKER_03 0:29

Hello.

SPEAKER_05 0:31

And we also have Tim Scott in our room with us.

SPEAKER_02 0:35

Yes.

SPEAKER_05 0:35

Who I am so thrilled to have you because I know you pretty well from the community here in Sioux Falls. And I've had the opportunity to get to know you on a very deep level.

SPEAKER_03 0:48

Right.

SPEAKER_05 0:48

Through our lunches, through our interactions. And I I almost consider you a brother. You're like one of my brothers. And so it's been a blessing to get to know you. And through hearing you speak at a couple different things around Sioux Falls, I was just delighted that you were gonna come on the podcast to speak about what you have going on.

SPEAKER_04 1:11

Yeah.

SPEAKER_05 1:11

So thank you for being here.

SPEAKER_04 1:13

You're all welcome.

SPEAKER_05 1:15

Yes. So Tim was diagnosed with a neurological condition called primary progressive approxia of speech. Did I say that correctly? Yes. Yes. Okay. Um I had never heard of this, which I don't think a lot of our audience will have heard of it either.

SPEAKER_04 1:38

So no. It's very rare. Less than one in a million.

SPEAKER_05 1:43

Less than one in a million have been diagnosed with this. Well, Tim, I I want to go back to how all of this happened because I know you have a superpower, which is your speech. I um I love that you're a connector. You have been a connector in this community. And between your talking to people and your personality of just being so bright and so wonderful with connecting other people, like you have the same superpower that I have.

SPEAKER_03 2:14

Right.

SPEAKER_05 2:14

I love talking to people, I love connecting people. And if someone were to tell me that that's going to be taken from me, that is that's a really deep sorrow. That would be a deep sorrow for me. And so I'd like to go there with you in a little bit, but if you can just kind of explain to our audience what this is, how it happened, walk us through the details.

SPEAKER_04 2:39

In June of 2020, I noticed I was having trouble getting words out. I went to my dentist buddy, and I said, This is does this have anything to do with my tongue, my teeth, my mouth? Uh he said, no, you need to get that checked. So my primary care provider provider, um, and he prescribed speech therapy and a brain MRI. The brain MRI came clear. Uh six months later, he for me on neurology. Uh they tested me for everything on their song, Lyme bases, MS.

SPEAKER_05 3:29

Um ALS too, right?

SPEAKER_04 3:34

Yes. Yep. Um the brand MR is clear. Um I had sign surgery in 2018 and I saw my anti doc for Nick's for something he nicked and he didn't find any issues. Okay. Um and so then I was referred to mail for ALS testing. Um so my original appointments was scheduled for August and 17th. I called every day at a.m. for any cancellations. I got in June 21st, the longest day of the year, the longest day of the year for my wife and I. Um 7:30 that Monday morning, we met the ALS doc, and he didn't think I have I had ALS, but we're gonna continue to do the testing so I can check that off the list. Um he did say that he would like get me from wherever speech pathologist. Um she happened to have opening 9 30 that Monday morning, and she had me diagnosed in 40 minutes within 40 minutes, primary progressive apraxia of speech. Um where we are out of there by like 10:30. My wife and they did an early lunch, read up on it, and just went through a car and just cried.

unknown 5:29

Yeah.

SPEAKER_05 5:32

I've read about it. I've I dug deep into a lot of the stuff that comes with it. So you'll probably get into this a little bit, Tim, but can you explain some of the the the all the things that happen with this diagnosis?

SPEAKER_04 5:48

Right. Well, first I explain the disease. The primary means of affects the speech first. Progressive means it doesn't get any better or any worse. Apraxia is you know what to say. There's just a disconnect between your brain and your voice. Bruce Wills has aphasia. Um, he doesn't know what to say. Right. Uh I have tons of people reach out to me and say, Do you have a Bruce Willis has? And that answer is no.

SPEAKER_05 6:30

So the difference is your brain is processing everything, but your mouth is not. Right. Whereas Bruce Willis, his brain is not, but he still has his speech.

SPEAKER_00 6:40

Yeah.

SPEAKER_05 6:40

Okay. So he just doesn't even know what to say.

SPEAKER_00 6:44

So I I think a good example is if you knew sign language, would you be able to sign in normal rate?

SPEAKER_05 6:51

Um because your brain would be working, so your hands would be right. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 6:59

Makes sense, yeah.

SPEAKER_05 7:00

Okay.

SPEAKER_04 7:01

Physically and mentally, I'm spot on. It's just the speech.

SPEAKER_05 7:06

So explain once you got the diagnosis and you're with your beautiful bride, and you read that you only have a certain amount of time potentially to speak to speak, but then also to live.

SPEAKER_04 7:20

Right. So I did the voice banking, and that's where you upload your voice to the cloud, and then you download it to tablet, and so I can speak on my own voice. There's three dials rate, pronunciation, and volume. Um, I have no trouble with the volume part. Um rate, speed, and pronunciation. I have trouble with. Um, I've gotten that done. I haven't submitted it yet because once you submit it, there's no going back. Oh. 3,155 sentences, um, standard sentences, um, 300 custom. I I have 300 custom. Like I love you, Jen. I love you, Michaela, I love you, I love Caitlin, I love you, Lyssa. Um I always ask my girls what was your favorite part about today? And I have that recorded as well.

SPEAKER_05 8:40

Okay, because you on a daily basis ask your three beautiful daughters that question. So when the time comes, they're still able to hear you ask that. Because they can hit play. Yeah. Right? Okay, that is so beautiful. So for those of you that are listening, Michaela, Michaela, Caitlin, and Alyssa are your three daughters. What are their ages, Tim?

SPEAKER_04 9:01

Um 12, 14, and I almost take saying and almost 16.

SPEAKER_05 9:07

Okay. So you and Jen are up at Mayo, and not only are you having to swallow the news yourselves, right, but now you have to come home and you have to talk to your daughters. Can you walk me through what that was like?

SPEAKER_04 9:24

Um, I was very vague at first. We were very vague at first. We said, Dad, he has a brain disease. He's gonna be unable to talk. Um then we had them listen to John Myers' podcast, and that's where they heard the 10 to 15 years, and they cried the whole time um through that and entire podcast. Um because what I didn't want to have happen was some kid at school coming up to them and saying, your dad only has 10 to 15 years left to live. Uh I believe in transparency.

SPEAKER_05 10:19

Yes, you do. So this is 2018, and you said it was June, June 21st.

SPEAKER_04 10:26

Um June 21st of last year.

SPEAKER_05 10:30

Of last year.

SPEAKER_04 10:31

Yeah. It's come up on years since I've been diagnosed.

SPEAKER_05 10:36

So have you noticed in this last year, Tim, that there has been quite quite a bit of a progression of your speech already?

SPEAKER_04 10:45

Right.

SPEAKER_05 10:45

You have, okay.

SPEAKER_04 10:46

Yeah. If you go back and listen to that John Meyer podcast, it sounds totally different. And it progress progresses faster in younger people, which I would have thought the opposite.

SPEAKER_05 11:03

I I would have as well. So I'll put in the show notes and I'll also link it to the John Meyer podcast so people can can listen into that. Because not only is he is he's awesome, but it is a really good episode. So the the thing that also floored me was the age like you're that you were just speaking of. You're one of the youngest. Yeah. Can you go through a little bit of the statistics?

SPEAKER_04 11:29

Um, two-thirds of the people are diagnosed after age 65. Um, I'm the third youngest one in the study. There are 28 people in the study, and male wouldn't tell me the ages of the younger two for HIPAA. Yep. Um since 2010, they've discovered this congestion at in mail in 2010. So it's relatively new diagnosis. Um since two since 2010, they have only had a hundred people in this study. I'm in this study. Um, I just signed up form to donate my brain for research.

SPEAKER_05 12:24

Wow. So a hundred people, are we talking nation or are we talking global?

SPEAKER_04 12:32

A hundred people in the study.

SPEAKER_05 12:34

In the study? Yes. That have mayo at Mayo.

SPEAKER_04 12:38

For since 2010.

SPEAKER_05 12:41

2010.

SPEAKER_04 12:43

That's how rare it is.

SPEAKER_05 12:44

And they have no idea how it's how it's caused.

SPEAKER_04 12:47

No. No. They don't know causes. No treatment, no cure.

SPEAKER_05 12:55

No treatment, no cure, and they have no idea how it happens. So not even uh generational or because you They don't know if it's genetic or just luck of the draw. That would make me mad. I mean, in all honesty, it'd be like, there's got we gotta figure it out, which I mean, thank you for donating your brain. Right. Because for future people that go through this, you're just helping them one more step to help those who will have future diagnosis of this. You um you have a you still have a lot of goals. So this is the thing that blows my mind about you, Tim, is that you are so optimistic. You are such a joy, you are such a light to everybody around you. You have only been diagnosed for less than one year. Yes, coming up on your one year, and you have been doing some miraculous things. Things that most people, and and I don't ever want to generalize, but someone gets a diagnosis that they are going to die. And during this process, it is not gonna be a beautiful thing. It's going to be you losing your superpower, and there's, I mean, there's you're you're taking action, which is what I love. So for our audience, can you explain not only emotionally, spiritually, what you're doing to keep your, I mean, you're you're looking straight ahead and you are doing a lot of things to make this whole process a beautiful process.

SPEAKER_04 14:30

I think I want my daughters to learn how to handle adversity and I'm a role mono. Yeah. Um I'm just um a positive person by nature. Um this disease. I'm surprised how positive I've been through this diagnosis. Um I recorded recordable books for grandkids that are never meeting so you've read children's books and recorded that so that your daughters can play it back for your kids.

SPEAKER_05 15:17

They're kids, okay. Um that's be that's awesome. That's really neat. Um your daughters also I've heard you mention a couple different times that you really that your goal, your prayer, is that you want to be able to do what with your daughters?

SPEAKER_04 15:37

Walk them down the aisle.

SPEAKER_05 15:39

It's gonna happen. Yeah, it's gonna happen. You have been very positive, but you have gone through moments, I'm guaranteeing it, that you have been sitting with your wife or sitting with Tim and thinking through all of this and potentially had a few breakdowns. What's gotten you through those?

SPEAKER_04 16:04

Just so that I'm alive. Um heart attack because don't have that chance. Um I'm thankful for the lead time that God has given me. Um I'm just glad it was an ALS because that's a death sentence.

SPEAKER_05 16:31

Yeah. Yeah. So your daughters as young as they are, and they say that there's ten, ten, ten years was what they you in this process with your daughters, your wife, other people that currently have this disease, you've said there's really not a support system for for your family, but you as an individual. Um talk talk a little bit about the like your Facebook and your speechless like your website, what you're doing.

SPEAKER_04 17:05

The first thing we asked MAO was that was there a support group for this disease. Um they said no, there was not. Um so I set up a Facebook page, um, had to get approved by mail, and uh it did, and they're they sent it all to all their study participants, and there's currently nine in the group, the next youngest one is 61.

SPEAKER_05 17:41

Wow. Tim, how old are you?

SPEAKER_04 17:43

45. 45.

unknown 17:44

Okay.

SPEAKER_05 17:46

So you have nine people currently in there, and I remember you saying that one of your goals is to bring the people that have been diagnosed with this disease together to have a support system. And so a lot of the reasons that you're speaking out and you're speaking about this so boldly, right? And you're you're being so vulnerable and you're allowing people in, which is so important for anybody that knows my story, that knows any type of adversity that someone goes through, the more we speak about it, the more that we project that there is true healing and hope and love and support wrapped around all those adversities. The minute you start to speak about it, there is a healing process that you go through.

SPEAKER_02 18:34

Right.

SPEAKER_05 18:35

Um, and so for the fact that you're speaking out, you're you're doing it super boldly because you started a website.

SPEAKER_04 18:42

Right. Speechless live.

SPEAKER_05 18:44

Yeah, speechless.live, which we'll also put in the show notes. You are going out on podcasts. You were on Michelangelo Caruso, who um our audience may or may not know. So you can explain how that happened.

SPEAKER_04 18:57

Uh he was a mass SME speaker, which I escorted around town. Okay. Um and we just hit off.

SPEAKER_05 19:08

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 19:09

Um he's during COVID, and we uh bump him a year.

SPEAKER_05 19:23

Um to speak at one of our local organizations that we have here in Sioux Falls. He was a he was a speaker that we brought in.

SPEAKER_04 19:30

Yes.

SPEAKER_05 19:31

Which he's a great, he's a really good speaker. So that yeah, I'll tie that in.

SPEAKER_04 19:36

Um so I had his cell phone number, and I just texted him my disease. Um, and uh he's more than willing to do a podcast.

SPEAKER_05 19:52

Yeah, right. Which he had you on. Right. I watched the actual YouTube. Right. It was really neat to watch your guys' dynamic. So going back a little bit to your family, you guys have recently relocated to Chester. You're so tell me a little bit about your love story because I love that you and your bride are high school sweethearts. It's so beautiful.

SPEAKER_04 20:13

Yeah. We're at Mayo in June when we first received the diagnosis. Jen's like, I think you we should move home. And I said, I agree. Uh we had a house there the weekender. Um the girls love Chester, the Chester School District. Um we're adding on right now.

SPEAKER_05 20:44

Okay.

SPEAKER_04 20:45

Um, the process is going smoothly.

SPEAKER_05 20:50

Okay. So for those who are listening to this potentially nationally and globally, right? You Chester, South Dakota.

SPEAKER_04 20:59

Yes.

SPEAKER_05 20:59

What is the population?

SPEAKER_04 21:00

Uh 257.

SPEAKER_05 21:02

It's a very small town. Yeah. I mean, we live, we live in a very small town as well, of 700. Um, but that's quite the transition. Moving from Sioux Falls, South Dakota, which is the biggest city in South Dakota, which that's not saying much either.

SPEAKER_04 21:17

Right.

SPEAKER_05 21:17

But you guys picked up and relocated. How far is Chester from Sioux Falls?

SPEAKER_04 21:21

Uh 15 miles door to door.

SPEAKER_05 21:23

So you're driving into Sioux Falls every day.

SPEAKER_04 21:26

Right.

SPEAKER_05 21:26

But for the sake of your family and slowing down and embracing everything you have going on, you guys just picked up and you did what was best for your family.

SPEAKER_02 21:36

Right.

SPEAKER_05 21:37

To get back by your moms and your dads and all the relatives. So you're surrounded by those who love you the absolute most.

SPEAKER_04 21:45

The Chester community has been great.

SPEAKER_05 21:48

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 21:48

Yes. Cool.

SPEAKER_05 21:51

Thank you, Chester community. Yes.

SPEAKER_00 21:53

Thank you, Chester Community.

SPEAKER_05 21:55

Yes.

SPEAKER_00 21:56

All 270 of them.

SPEAKER_05 21:58

What which is does Chester Have a high school or do you are you can up combined?

SPEAKER_04 22:02

Yes, Chester has a high school.

SPEAKER_05 22:05

Okay.

SPEAKER_04 22:05

It's Franklin, Wentworth, and Chester combined.

SPEAKER_05 22:10

Okay. I grew up in a small town too where it was Slayton, Lake Wilson, like there's always combined schools to make sure the kids are all taken care of from all these little small communities. So you met your wife?

SPEAKER_04 22:23

Yeah. In keyboarding class.

SPEAKER_05 22:27

Keyboarding. Yeah. Oh man.

SPEAKER_04 22:29

I actually I actually gave her heck because she liked me first.

SPEAKER_05 22:35

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 22:37

Um October 2nd was a homecoming dance. And I asked her to the dance. And then October 23rd of 1992, we went steady. Steady. So it would be 30 years 30 years this year.

SPEAKER_05 23:04

30 years. Man, I I think about your best friend. Jen is your best friend. Yeah. So what are the kind of conversations that you two are having right now, Tim?

SPEAKER_04 23:24

Why we're going to the Florida NASCU next week. Um I got as make as many memories as I can right now. Because many would be made when I'm gone.

SPEAKER_05 23:42

Yeah. So there's a GoFundMe page on speechless.live, which I will also tie in. Um what I was looking on that last night, and your goal is 50,000, and you've currently raised a little over 14 on your GoFundMe page. And what I love about that is again, it's another selfless thing. Right. I mean, I I guarantee that was hard for you to put that out there. Corey Davis did. Corey Davis did, yes. Which Corey Davis is a local realtor here in Sioux Falls, who is a dear friend of mine as well. And he's just a good, he's a good guy. Isn't he from your hometown area?

SPEAKER_04 24:22

Uh we actually met uh Wallace Fargo. Um he's from Blunt.

SPEAKER_05 24:29

Okay. I knew he was from a small town. I couldn't remember if it was by you or not. But um so your GoFundMe page, a lot of that is so you can make memories. Right. This the the funds are so that you and your family can go on these vacations and you can spend some just really good quality time together to make these memories. Another memory that is happening that I'm really excited about is there's gonna be a documentary about you.

SPEAKER_04 24:54

Right.

SPEAKER_05 24:55

So, how did that all come about?

SPEAKER_04 24:58

Um South Dakota Public Broadcasting TV is gonna do a documentary on me and my disease. And I really owe it to Lonstru Schein. Um, he put it all together. Um it's 80% done. The last step is Mayo Clinic. Um, we're supposed to be there a couple weeks ago, but the doctor who diagnosed me had a family emergency um come up. Um, and it just was the same without the person who diagnosed me.

SPEAKER_05 25:49

Okay.

SPEAKER_04 25:49

All right. So we reschedule.

SPEAKER_05 25:52

Okay. So you have had a TV crew go into your hometown. Who were some of the people that they interviewed?

SPEAKER_04 26:01

Um, first of all, the first day was at North State University. Yeah, your college, okay.

SPEAKER_02 26:08

Right, yep.

SPEAKER_04 26:09

Which is my Almore Mariner. Um second day was my high school teachers, my English teacher, my egg teacher, my band direct director, um, and then it interviewed my dad at St. Jacob's Church, where I grew up grew up. Okay. It's a small country church on top of a hill. Um and then my childhood friend, Jeff Lambertie, aka Lambeau.

SPEAKER_05 26:51

Lambeau.

SPEAKER_01 26:53

Um so then um so the we filmed for four days.

SPEAKER_05 27:07

Was that pretty exhausting?

SPEAKER_04 27:09

Yes, emotionally and physically exhausting. And then um we had the stockyards interviews at the stockyards ag experience with eye server and board on right. Um I had just had buddies come um from the Sioux Falls area at the stockyards here.

SPEAKER_05 27:38

Right. Yes. You had for sure Corey Davis. Yes. Who else did you have?

SPEAKER_04 27:42

Donovan Boer. Okay, um, Paul Ems, Darren Leitberg, Jim Wooster, um, there probably like six, seven, seven different people.

SPEAKER_05 28:00

Right. You know, I that that's what's the people that love you. There are so many people. And once this diagnosis came out, Tim, it hit people hard, very hard in our community because you are so lovely in so many ways.

SPEAKER_03 28:18

Right.

SPEAKER_05 28:18

I mean, I was looking back at some of the stuff, and you've worked at Dakota Bank, you served at a as a financial advisor at Waddell and Reed, uh, you were at private doing private banking at First Premier Bank, and you were there right when this diagnosis happened. Yeah. And you realized that that job was a little bit too much for for what you were stepping into. You needed to take us a step out of the busy. Therefore, you are now a commercial broker, real estate broker, and that's a little less stressful and it's more independent. You get to kind of make your own schedule, which is a beautiful thing. Is that going well? Like, are you enjoying that?

SPEAKER_04 29:00

Yes, I'm enjoying it.

SPEAKER_05 29:02

Wonderful. Even with the real estate market?

SPEAKER_04 29:05

Yes.

SPEAKER_05 29:06

Good. Good. Um I totally jumped over uh with your with your careers and stuff, but I want to go back to Chester and your parents. Talk to me about your parents because if my child got diagnosed with a disease and I know that I that my child is gonna potentially go to heaven before I'm ready for that my child to go to heaven, that's really hard. So explain to me the conversations you've had with your mom and your dad.

SPEAKER_01 29:47

David is very supportive through this whole journey. Um loving my death. Yeah.

unknown 30:02

Yeah.

SPEAKER_05 30:03

I can only imagine how amazing your mom and dad are.

SPEAKER_04 30:07

Right.

SPEAKER_05 30:08

Because again, just who you are says a lot. So kudos to your mom and dad for raising one of the neatest people I've ever met.

SPEAKER_04 30:16

Thank you.

SPEAKER_05 30:17

Yeah, for real. Um, so you're going to Florida. Are you going just the two of you? Just you and your bride? Is this a family trip? It's a family one.

SPEAKER_04 30:27

Where in Florida? Uh Cape Coral. Nice. I lived I lived in Florida for about nine years. Yeah.

SPEAKER_05 30:34

All right.

SPEAKER_04 30:35

So we did Turks and Caicos in March.

SPEAKER_05 30:38

Yes, you did.

SPEAKER_04 30:39

As a family.

SPEAKER_05 30:40

Yes.

SPEAKER_00 30:41

Oh, that's wonderful.

SPEAKER_04 30:42

Right. That's wonderful.

SPEAKER_05 30:42

Well, I mean, if there's an extra plane ticket, you can just give me a call. Come with your next one.

SPEAKER_00 30:49

It actually brings up a question I had, Tim. When I lived in Florida, I bought it just before I met Heather. I bought a house, single family home. And it had a front and a backyard and a pool. And I spent my weekends mowing the lawn. And for some reason, I thought it had to be perfect. I had edged the edges, I trimmed the bug and villas. I made it was the nicest house in the block. And I look back, and for me, I have regret because while sometimes doing yard work is therapeutic and good. I look back and I feel like I wasted a lot of time. Right. I had my priorities wrong. What does the week for you look like?

SPEAKER_04 31:35

The week for me looks like I try to have everything something look forward to every day. Yeah. Um so that's how I manage um this disease. I try to have something that we would look forward to every day.

SPEAKER_05 31:58

Yeah. One of those things I know is lunch with the people you choose to have lunch with.

SPEAKER_02 32:04

Right.

SPEAKER_05 32:05

Same booth at the 2210. I've been there a couple times with you, so I know. And you take selfies with every person.

SPEAKER_04 32:14

Since November 10th, I've taken a selfie with one or other person.

SPEAKER_05 32:19

Yes. Almost every day, or almost every every day. Every day you take a selfie with someone. So again, making memories. Make memories with the people that you love. And you are not wasting the time that you have been given. You look at it as a gift.

SPEAKER_03 32:36

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 32:38

I do want to point out that I'm writing a family book. And it's 90% done. I just need this to make the pictures. Uh up next is a book called Speechless. Um that's how to obtain and maintain relationships.

SPEAKER_00 33:02

Ooh, that's that'd be good.

SPEAKER_05 33:04

So within a year, I just I keep going back to man, it's got you're coming up on a year, and you've started a website, you've started a Facebook site, you're writing a book, you're banking your voice, you're doing all you're prepping. You're a prepper.

SPEAKER_03 33:20

Yeah.

SPEAKER_05 33:21

Which some people would sit and be paralyzed by this. They truly would. And so the fact that you are getting up every day with something to look forward to, and you're taking steps to not only prepare you're preparing your own heart and your own soul and your mind, but you're also for your daughters and for your wife. You're showing them what it like what you said. I want to show them, I want to model what adversity, when you're going through adversity, what it can look like. And you're not only doing that for them, but you're doing that for the world. Right. So thank you for that.

SPEAKER_04 33:59

You're welcome.

SPEAKER_05 34:00

Yeah, it's it's um gosh, Tim. I just I have so much going on in my brain that I suppose I do too. Yeah. So talk to me about the whole superpower thing, because I like to go back to that.

SPEAKER_04 34:19

I've thought for years my superpower was my speech. And I, as I said in the TED talk, um, that superpower is gonna go away in the coming years. Um I've just been a great connector, and I'll never take my ability to speak for granted again. Most people speak with without any without any issues.

SPEAKER_05 35:00

Issues. Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_04 35:01

Yeah. No appreciation for the ability to speak. Um most people don't have any appreciation for the ability to speak.

SPEAKER_05 35:15

Yeah. I I love that you bring that up. We had Trenton Bass on a previous episode, and he was a young 18-year-old who was paralyzed and is now a quadriplegic at the age of 18. And we talked about that. We talked about how just the use of your fingers, how there's so many things that we wake up and we're in, we're in a weird place in our world right now with a lot of mental health issues, with a lot of stuff. Um, we're very much, Amos and I, uh, we we do not um excuses are uh no-go for us, like excuses of why things just are, or oh poor me, all those things, right? Like we're like we can take control and we can we can be extremely intentional in our lives and grateful.

SPEAKER_02 36:10

Right.

SPEAKER_05 36:10

Grateful is the one thing that I wished everybody would just grab a hold of is gratefulness of all the things they have from their speech to the use of their fingers to the loved one, the loved ones that surround them. And that is one thing that you also have is just pure, you're so grateful for all the things that you have in your life by not letting a day go by without soaking all that up. Yeah. So the the last 12 months, kind of explain to me just a little bit what you have learned about yourself. Not only Tim, the connector's power, superpower being your speech, but just internally, because you've had to process a lot. So explain to me who Tim. Tim, who are you? Like, what have you decided about yourself over the last 12 months?

SPEAKER_04 37:04

Right. I decided I don't want to feel sorry for myself. Um I just stay positive. Um I have one bad day to ninety-nine good days. Uh the doctors email said you're gonna have a good speech days and bad speech days. That couldn't be further from the truth. Um it's hit and miss. Um it's totally sporadic.

SPEAKER_05 37:56

You have a TED talk.

SPEAKER_02 37:59

Yeah.

SPEAKER_05 38:00

So within the 12 months and who Tim is and what Tim is doing, and I am looking forward to the next 12 months and the next 12 months because there is no stopping you. Like I can't wait to watch the things that you're gonna continue to do. I mean, you stood up on a stage. Well, how many people were at that stage? 700. 700 people at TEDx Talk here in Sioux Falls, and you got up on that stage and you told your story and you showed pictures of your family. Um, would you have ever imagined that you do a TED Talks in your life?

SPEAKER_03 38:35

No.

SPEAKER_05 38:35

Yeah. I mean, that I love that. So it's almost like God has taken you and like you guys have you and God have taken this and you're saying, Let's go. Let's go. I am going to do everything I can to flip this disease on upside down. And so what is what does the next 12 months look like? Like going forward, I know you said making memories and all the things, but from a standpoint of this disease and just tackling it head on, what are some things that you have coming up?

SPEAKER_04 39:09

I do speech therapy once every two weeks. Um I just change that from once a month. I read aloud as often as possible.

SPEAKER_05 39:26

Um Do you do that so that because you're you have to exercise your voice? They because if you just stop talking, it probably could go away quicker. Yes. So you are you have to be very intentional. Okay. So you're reading books aloud, right? Therapy.

SPEAKER_04 39:42

The doctor as I mean said they eat rights, exercise, stay social, and talk a lot.

SPEAKER_05 39:49

Oh. Well, you got that covered. Right. Yeah. The other thing about you that your giggle is it is contagious. That is, did you notice at TEDx when you giggled, the whole entire crowd just like went into an uproar? Right. Yeah, you have such a great giggle. So make sure you're getting that recorded.

SPEAKER_03 40:09

Yeah.

SPEAKER_05 40:09

Um when you're when you're recording with your with your girls. Um, thank you for being here. It is so it's so great to just know you, but to understand what you're going through. And for this community, if there's anything that we can do to support you and your family, can you give me like three bullet points of how we could help Tim Scott and his family through this process?

SPEAKER_04 40:38

Prayer, prayer and prayer.

SPEAKER_05 40:43

Got that covered. Yeah. Well, with that, your faith. Tell me, and then we'll wrap this up, but just tell me from a standpoint of your faith in Jesus Christ, how that is playing a part in place.

SPEAKER_04 40:58

Um I've gotten a lot stronger in my faith. Um, I've never said this on the podcast, but we used to live next to a church. Um, and I was seven years old, and our person, a voice said, You're gonna die early, Tim. Um, and I took that to heart.

SPEAKER_05 41:31

You heard you heard a voice say Tim. Wow.

SPEAKER_04 41:35

Right. Um I took that to heart. Um, and I lift every day to its fullest. Um I told my wife, and I told my mom. My wife said, Why did you tell me this year earlier? I said, 'Cause it was applicable.

SPEAKER_05 41:57

Yeah. Yeah, and now it's come to fruition.

SPEAKER_00 42:00

Right. Kim, what do you say to the person who would take this and turn against God? Who would would receive this a diagnosis of any kind. It's a death sentence. And they say and they would get bitter and say, God, why? And there are those who out who say like God gave this to me. And then there's those others who would say, Well, we just live in a fallen world. It's this is a sinful world, and it's not God giving. He allows things we don't understand why to happen. What do you say that person who was bitter or on the on the fence?

SPEAKER_04 42:42

Yeah, I would say God has given me any opportunity to have 10 to 15 years left to live. I consider it a blessing. Um I consider a blessing. Yeah.

SPEAKER_05 43:03

Um there is a lot of conversations around that. So thank you for asking that, Amos, because it is a lot of people would, they would turn away. And when I look at you, I am excited because I know regardless of the outcome, we're gonna be friends for an eternity. Right. And that's beautiful. That's a I mean, that is the reason to to keep the faith. That is a reason to to continue to dig into the word, to continue to pray, pray, pray. Like let's there is no there's no room for bitterness.

SPEAKER_03 43:43

Right.

SPEAKER_05 43:43

There's no room for regret. And you are such an example of this turning, turning this around and making it a blessing and living it out to the fullest. So, Tim, thank you.

SPEAKER_00 43:57

You're an inspiration, Tim. Thank you so much for you. Vulnerable and speaking out and talking to us today.

unknown 44:04

Right.

SPEAKER_05 44:05

I will connect all of this stuff that we've spoken about, other podcasts, your website, the GoFundMe page. And so for our audience out there, um looked him up. He's a great person to connect with. So thank you.

SPEAKER_04 44:19

Thank you.