The Grind-Cast “Special Guest Deryck Toles”

Count money man money that gritches I'm trying told trying told him I'm a beast

What's up gang welcome back to another episode of the grindcast and I got my man

D toes mr. Derek toes here with me today. Thanks for joining us, oh, baby

So, um, you know, let me start off with um how

Derek and I met a little bit of background on on Derek. So

You know, we met but didn't really meet first on the football field

You were a senior at Warren Harding. I was a sophomore at Ursula and so Derek

You know played football Warren Harding in outside of Youngstown, Ohio

Ended up ended up doing extremely well in that sport went on to play at Penn State where he was a

Captain on the defense at Lyme backer. We'll talk a little bit about that and then played a few years in the in the NFL

So as I start to have a little bit of

business success, you know, I'm pulled to do something from my hometown

So I'm looking and saying who's doing what in Youngstown that area and your name keeps popping up Derek name

You know keeps popping up and saw you know one day I invited you know Derek to come and and you know

I think we had an hour, you know set for a meeting and we ended up

Vibe and so well, you know for we knew it

I think it was you know five hours four five six hours later and

You know, so I would start to financially contribute to inspire minds Warren. I go visit the program and fell in love with it

So I asked Derek, you know, how can we don't have something like this in Youngstown?

Mm-hmm

And I remember see me I don't have somebody that want to do the work and

Champion this thing and get it started in in Youngstown and so we started from the ground up. That's right eating at the

Talking all the people for six months and in the area or so and going to the Polin Rotary Club and all of the

Pound in the pavement, you know together putting in putting in that work and so since then

We opened up inspiring my youngstown

I think we're going on year five

coming up

Also, you've opened up in Philadelphia. Yes area and anywhere else yet. I knew York City New York City up in Brooklyn

I'm right behind you. I'm coming in a couple months

Come on. So we got another let's go another reason to hit the road together. Yeah, so

So that's kind of our background

How we got connected and and united and so what I'd like to do is just let's start off with a little bit about you

You know, Derek tell them a little little bit about your background, you know where you're from how that all came about

You know your story absolutely

So, you know, I started out like a lot of my kids, you know, I'm unfortunately both my parents were in drugs

My father wasn't around

I had a younger brother and sister and um, you know, we had a crazy situation. I was actually in Columbus, Ohio

Being young probably by the time I was in the fourth grade

I felt like the sense of responsibility, you know to take care of them

But at the same time and doing that I really neglected myself

I grew up super angry

low self-esteem

Wasn't really sure, you know, what my future was go whole

I was just really more worried about the day

and worried about my siblings

gotten some crazy situations and just running around the streets

with no guidance

and

By the time I got to the eighth grade, I was in eligible to play sports

I remember having all F-Sandies on my report card and I think at that moment

Really realized how my lifestyle and the things I was dealing with really was affecting me

um

Crazy situation happened at home and that's how I ended up in Warner, Ohio back with my grandmother

My family is actually from war and nice to always be in re-holiday every every summer

um, so I ended up going there

um, you know

And a lot of people think that's when all the positive things happen but at the same time I was I was rejected by a lot of people

people in my family and

They didn't want me around the kids they want me in the household, you know

Um, and that weighed on me had to chip on my shoulder and um the reality was I was just a little 12 13 year old kid

Who just needed help just needed somebody to say what's going on um

And this angle last forever

End up falling on level football

Um, had a coach that kicked me into tell told me I was worth something

um, and then all the opportunities opened up and I

I end up the same kid that was in eligible

End up having a 39 agp.8

You know in high school

End up getting college scholarships from every college in the country and and that's where my life kind of took off from there

So yeah, I was blessed to get all the football accolades and all that stuff, but for me

It was making it through you know those trials and tribulations

What do you think you know moving from the transition from childhood into you know going from a one city

Columbus to another city warned

Yeah, uh different environment different people you didn't know starting at a new school

Yeah

Tell me about what you what you learned in that process, you know that made you who you are today

What did you pull good from it?

Yeah, what were some of the obstacles? How did you overcome that?

So I think I think our lives and you know my life your life our kids lives

To me it's almost like a supply chain

So if you think of how a car is built

um, it starts out as the frame right and we grew up in still valley so you think about general motors

It started out as a frame and then as it's moving down us down the line

People add on the doors and then next thing you know

They paint the next group might paint the car the next group puts the windshield wipers on it

And then it gets to a point where you start putting the finish and touches in the details

And I think my whole life has been like that

Um, throughout my life there's been people

Who have invested in me at different parts of time it could have been a ride

It could have been me on a mission to go do some stupid and the right person got in the way and stop me

Um, it could have been me being

Uh being about to react a certain way and seeing my younger brothers and sister who impacted me

All the way to a coach, you know who impacted me and again told me I was worth something which helped catapult me

You know into that next level so my whole life has been like that

So you mentioned the anger, you know that you had this internal anger from some of this stuff

You know, I know

You know, I had the same similar

Similar

Feeling situations and you know, I would take it out on the football field

You know, you you played aggressive on the football field right what what um, you know

How how did you deal with that internally without getting you know with that anger and ending up with almost a 4.0 and

never really major

Issues, yeah, especially the latter half of high school, you know, what did you do

To

You know internalize that or handle that anger

So

I think when I think about that anger um, I think it came from a

From being a survival mode

And I think when you're in survival mode as a person like

You can't even think about anything that's positive like you can't see past tomorrow

And the reality is that anything that's around you that you don't feel um can benefit you

You know, most people is like f'dat and like I don't want nothing to do with it

So I think that when I

It came it came to point where I learned that my life was of value

When I began to have the person who came and told me I was worth something

When I opened that box of letters for the first time and I saw like I had an opportunity to go to college and be something

Which is when I felt my first sense of uh

Of worth and I realized I was actually worth something

And that's when I was like okay my behavior and my mindset has to change because I do finally can see a future

So then you transition out of high school and you go to college. Yep

Talk to us about that transition. I think transitional periods are are huge

For people you know in sports transition and that's where people get lost and life trend

You know transitional periods people get lost

Uh, tell me about the transition from you know high school to college

Both as a student and as a student athlete and in a different environment, you know going from the city right to the city to

State college, Pennsylvania. Yeah, it was different. It was so different. And I think

transition is can be tough

um

You know state college, Pennsylvania was my world upside down and inside out

um

The demographics were different, you know the the people were different um

So it was it was it was tough. I think there was some good things to it like I didn't have to worry about my safety

I didn't have to worry about where my next meal was coming from you know, so that was the great thing

But some of the tough things were

I now was unsure who I could relate to outside of people in the football program, you know

And so I was growing up and trying to mature and learn things, but I was like, you know, this is a totally different environment

You know um but I but but but as I grew older and I was there

long enough um

I learned to embrace change and I learned to embrace things that are different

Because I had to learn that it had to add to me and I think so often um

When we get in the different environment, we think we have to change and you'll hear people say all he changed or he's different

I don't think we need to change. I think we just need to continue to add to who we are so

I could still wear my hat cop to the side whatever but at the same time

I learned how to put a suit on you know because Joe paternal was like you got to do this way and we travel this way

I learned how to talk to my boys and my homies at home on the block

But at the same time I also learned to talk to sponsors and other parents and other people who were there

So Penn State just added to my life, you know

And I and I think just made me a bigger a bigger person, you know emotionally and internally

Sounds like an impact to do a lot. Yeah, just based on those things

um

What what things how did it go the first few years of of playing ball there, you know where you where you redshirted

You know where you plan the same position. Yeah, how did all of that work?

So I got switched the very first day I showed up they told me I was playing running back

The very first day I got there I was playing corner and I had never played a day of corner in my life

Um in high school, I played running back in linebacker my senior year. I played running back in safety um

So corner was totally new

And uh, so again, it was another lesson in how to embrace change, you know

Where was the opportunity at I'm in trying new things so I ended up playing

Corner I ended up playing safety all to end up in linebacker, right?

And through all those transition and tough times and not understanding why they were doing that to me

And I felt all you lied to me and you ain't tell me the truth

Once I landed at linebacker, I knew the entire defense because I had played it all

So I understood and covered two

I understood why I didn't have to get to the flat

Because I knew the corner was coming down, you know

I knew why I'd cover three

I had to get to a certain part of the field because there was a safety in the middle

So I you know, so there was I knew all of those things and where everybody was supposed to be

So I think in change and transition if we can learn to embrace that

What an example of life come on just benefit you. Thank you. Yeah, you will understand where everybody is at

Yeah, yeah exactly great great example

So so you was at your freshman year all of that happened to freshman. Yeah, that was really freshman in sophomore year

You know, I did so my true freshman year I did a red shirt. Okay. I did a red shirt

um

And they kept me at they put me at scout team running backs

I didn't play running back all year and then they put me and running back

To get beat up on you know about a number one defense in the country

So I took my leaks and

And then spring ball came I ended up playing I did play linebacker

Um then the following season came and they put me back at safety

Um going into my red shirt freshman year

Um probably about week six or seven

I remember we were playing Ohio State and that's how I ended back up at linebacker

As a red shirt freshman as a red shirt freshman. Yeah, so then you you stayed at linebacker. Yes from there

I did graduated you know all four years. Yeah, at what point were you a captain?

Um my senior year. Okay. Yeah, I'm going into my senior year. Um my god voting captain

Why do you think what do you think your teammates would say as to why you had a see on your chest? Yeah, um

I think that uh

You know in leadership

It's really uh being an example of of of the culture and what you want to see your team at

so

I had medical issues. I have been injured. There's a lot of things that had happened to me

Um, but I always kept grinding, you know

There was never a moment where I wasn't always giving my all

Um, they knew I was fearless um

And again, I don't think that when they even when we say that word just to be clear

I don't believe it like being fearless means that you don't get scared

It just means you ain't scared to be scared

You know when you work through those things

So they knew that about me and they knew I was willing to do anything and everything for the team

Um

So I did I took care of a lot of people. I was tried I tried to be there through four people when they was going through things

Um, and I think my teammates respected that

Love it. So work ethic. Yeah, by example. Absolutely. John care for for your teammates

And uh serving others absolutely and holding them accountable

That's a big thing, you know man because a lot of people do things and they at and when you don't check them

They lose respect for you, you know

Holding people accountable and disciplining them is actually truly love. Yeah, no that shows you care

Because you want them to go in the right direction. So it's a part of it as well. Truth truth

Living it every day. Yeah

So then we transitioned out of college

And how did that happen? You ended up, you know, playing a couple years in the NFL

How did that happen? How did that call happen? What happened? So here's a reality

I thought my college career was over. I actually got diagnosed with a medical illness

Called rippling muscle disease. I had this enzyme deficiency

So I thought by college I was done

I actually they actually told me my freshman year that I couldn't play football no more

That was a huge hit for me

But I ended up met you know getting with some medical staff and specialists who helped me work through that process

So even by my senior year

I still was only playing a quarter of the game

You know, I think I was only playing 20 20 to 25 plays a game

So when I got in I just tried to make an impact with the opportunities that I had

So when I got the call that I was able to play an all-star game

And I ended up playing another all-star game because I did well in that one

And then I went to the NFL combine, you know

And I had agents calling I was shocked because I was always connected to this medical issue

I thought I was more of a liability

so I ended up

choosing an agent one through that process and

And then I ended up signing a free agent deal. I wasn't a you know big-time guy because of my let my

limited in my liabilities. They told me you'll be a late

rounder to a priority free agent. And that's where I felt

to a priority free agent. I probably had about eight teams

that were interested in me just because they played my style

of ball. I was a small linebacker. I was fast. I would hit

people. I'm sorry about eight teams that were interested. And

luckily, I got a chance to go interview with a couple. And I

chose what at the time I felt was the best for me. And I

ended up signing with the Atlanta focus. So I went from there,

after preseason was over, I never getting cut as they were

getting practice, got rock practice squad rosters together. They

had asked me to play fullback. And I was like, I ain't know

about that because I had just went through this in college. So I

came from running back, got moved. And I was like, you know

what? I'm a standup for myself this time. So I was like,

nah, I'm cool. So I left, I ended up in Cleveland with the

Browns. And so I was there to rest of the season. The coaching

staff got fired. I was when Butch Davis, the guy from Miami

was there. They fired the whole staff. Robisky took over

and then at the end of the round. You remember that? I was

fine. I was going through something, right? So all that

happened. They left at the end of the season, everybody

left. And then the coach had called my agent and said, Hey,

what's going on with Tolls? We want to bring him on in the

playoffs and signing. So I went to my to the coach at the

Browns, told him, you know, what should I do? He was like, look,

he said, look, Derek, he said, you're a young player, you got a

bright future. We don't even know. We go to be here next

week. He said, if you got an opportunity, take it. So I left

and I was there. And I'll tell you what, man, I don't know if

you ever play Mattin. But, of course, you play Mattin,

got to play man. So do you remember how many more but I used

right back in the day, right? You remember when you used to be

able to like set the weather patterns and all that stuff. So I'll

just give you a quick glimpse. So my first week in Indianapolis.

It's probably about eight o'clock at night. We're in Gillette

stadium. And the snow is coming down. It's loud, you can't hear

the lights is on. And I look out on the field. And I see Tom

Brady. And I look to the right of me. And I see Peyton Manning

warming up. And it was at that moment, I began to think about

everything I had been through, you know, as a young kid, everything

I had went through in high school in college, you know, and I

think that was the moment where I was like, wow, like I really

made it out of my situation. You know, me. So again, it meant the

world to me, just to know where I had come from. And just to see

my name even mentioned with some NFL, who would have ever

thought? What the health issues with everything. Everything

that's a stuff a lot that people just yeah, a lot that people

don't know, you know, I'm almost died plenty of times, man, you

know, and this stuff, I still deal with it to this day. But just

to know, you know, I made it, I made it through all of that, you

know, was a blessing. So out of that, you know, forges the

character 100% and so now you start to at that point, you end up

transitioning after a while into working with kids, yeah, which

at you know, I wasn't inspired minds at the time it was you

helping people at McDonald's or something. Absolutely. Yes, I

got started. Yeah, so I got hurt my second year. So going to

the following year, I'm getting injured and boom, tore my hips

up surgery messed up my first surgery, I had to come back and get

another one after my second one, I asked if I can come home and

get therapy because I know I had some group there that would tell

me the truth and be honest with me. So while I was there, a lot of

the kids would always come up to me and they knew me from the

block like, yo, they knew my background, my life, they watched me

grow up and they would always ask me what it was like planning

and the fail plan next to Michael Vick or Peyton Manning and I

remember going man, like, it's so much bigger than what you see

on TV. But I know if I can make it out of this mess, I know you

can too. So a few parents came up and say, hey, well, you

talked to my kids, you know, so yeah, I started out meat whenever I

was in town, I would meet with them once a month in McDonald's.

And it was about four kids and we would just talk about life for

hour. And then went to two hours and I started telling them

bring their homework with them for the first hour. And then we

just talk about life for the second hour. Next thing you know,

they start bringing their siblings and cousins and friends. And

one day one of the kids said, yo, D, I want to go to college. Can

you help me? And that's when I knew we had something. Love it.

I said him from there, you, how did you come up with the name?

Yeah. Where did you go from there?

So when I was when I was on the therapy table, I did go to

therapy eight hours a day. And at the end of every session,

they would do ultrasound on my hips where I had my scars. And

I remember thinking about all the things in my life, you know,

that's saying I wish I knew back then what I know now. So I thought

about all the negative things that happened in my life and all

the positive things that happened in my life. And then I began to

think about things that if I had at that time, maybe there was

some different decisions I would have made, which could have made

my life a lot easier. So everything from trying to do my

homework when I finally was trying to get my grades back

together. And nobody there to help me. I was like, man, what if

there was a place that would help kids with their homework? I

remember still in food from a local store, not to be tough, not

to be cool. I was just trying to take food to the crib. And I

thought, man, what if there was a place that would serve kids

food so that they wouldn't get in those stupid situations, you

know? And then lastly, I remember when I was in high school,

it was probably third or fourth period, all the college coaches

to come through from recruiting. And a lot of the kids in my

class envy me. They didn't realize I was scared of death. I

was 16 years old. Like, and I had all these big time coaches

telling me I should come to their school, whatever. Reality was

I had nobody around me who had been through that experience. So I

didn't know what direction to go. So I said, man, what if there

was a program that would put young kids feet on college campuses

and in different companies? So they can, so by the time they

graduate, they know exactly where they want to go and what they

want to be. And as I look back down through my notes, I was like,

man, what are you doing? I was like, you know what, you're

aspiring, they're mine. And that's how the name carry. So that

was how long has it been now 12 years? 13 years? 12 13

13 years? Yeah. And what were some of the obstacles building,

you know, I think, you know, I was, you know, I tell people all

the time, you know, when I first got involved, if I would have

known what it was going to take, I might have scared myself. I

know what it, I know what it takes. I know what it's taking on

my end. I can only imagine, you know, what it would it took on

your end. So what, what, what obstacles or, you know, what

things do you think people can grab from? Because I think there's

a lot of people out there that, whether it's a business or a

nonprofit, sounds good, helping kids, you know, those programs

come and they go, absolutely. Because it's a good idea. Yeah.

And then reality happens. So, so talk to me about that. I'm

gonna give you the number one thing that you got to deal with,

no matter who you are, no matter what business you get into. We

got to realize that people invest in people. So even when you

hire someone, you're believing in that person more than you are

their resume and their skill, right? So the first thing you have to

do is to get people to truly believe you and like you. So one of

the hardest parts for me personally was to get people to

understand that I was serious. Like I wasn't just a football

player that doing this and doing it wasn't that I was more than

that. So I had to get people to understand at the time I still

had a couple muscles. I had my locks, you know, and all that. I

had to get people to understand that I'm more than just a

football player. Like I'm actually smart, you know, and I actually

do care about my community. And I had to get them to truly believe

that I was trying to do what I was trying to do. The second thing

was I think was emotionally, I had to figure out how to deal

with things emotionally. I thought that just because you was

doing something good, everybody was going to be down, right? And

you had to learn that right? You thought, Hey, I'm doing some

positive. Everybody go be on board. It's going to be easy to get

donation. Like I felt the same way. All my homies, all the

people that was close to me, who wouldn't even purchase a

ticket or wouldn't even show up to an event or wouldn't buy a

ad or wouldn't donate anything, you know? So that took a lot

as well. And also understanding the battles that I still had

to fight. And then the third thing was just professionally, I

had to develop. I didn't know what I was doing. It's not like I

had a mentor or someone who was doing it, I was walking me

through. There's no book on this thing, you know? So I learned

a lot, how to deal with people, how to handle a budget and build

a budget, how to write grants, marketing, PR, all the same

thing that's in any for profit business, I had to learn through

trial and error and bump on my head. Can you can you think of any

breaking points, you know, any points where 100% you have a

crossroads and you make it through, you know, or mentally, I don't

know how I was going to get out of that one and I made it made it

through. Can you grab one or two of those and talk about how we

got through that was my goodness, man, I mean, reality is this

like I can't sit here in front and act like I ain't been ready to

quit before. It's a fact. And I think that I think some some

many people feel like just because you see somebody that's

successful, like they ride with smooth, the reality is the most

successful people that you have ever met have failed the most. It's

just they kept getting back up. Truth. And that's the only

thing that folks that who are successful, that's the trait that

they possess, it's just they didn't give up. You know, so so

again, I there were times where I was like, I don't know if I can

keep doing this financially. I don't know if I can keep doing

this with my heart and my emotion. I don't know if I can keep

doing, you know, because it was tough. So yeah, I can think of

I could think of being being with partnering with people and

then getting backstabbed, you know, I could think of people who

was close to me, who stole from me, you know, was still

tricks me out to this day, you know, I could think of, you

know, folks who said they was going to support us in certain

ways and who didn't, you know, and then I could think of now

professionally, you know, now you got to deal with the lawsuits

and the this like all the stuff that just comes with that, that

you would think that your mission and what you're trying to

accomplish is so much bigger than that. It was real. So yeah,

you've lost, lost some friendships, lost some relationships,

like loss, all of that, that was, that was tough. That's part of

the game. It's part of I think, you know, success leaves

clues. Yeah, no matter what the game is, you know, like you're

mentioning, whatever the game is, a lot of those same rules

are going to apply, you know, whether it's losing friends,

being backstabbed at a point of I'm going to I can quit break,

I don't know how much longer I can handle this, whether it's

mentally, financially, being let down from people that don't

have your back, you know, probably been through situations

where you got people driving for five, six hours to be there

to support you and somebody that won't come for five minutes to

support you that was supposed to be your dog, you know, type

deal. And so why do you think people, you know, break and others

break through, you know, what do you think that I think it all

comes, I think it comes with your ex your level of expectations. I

think we all got to check ourselves when it comes to our

expectations. And I think that when the expectation is, it's

go be easy. When the expectation is, because I'm doing

something good or I'm fine, check this out, you could be someone

who used to be involved in some of the wrong things. And now

you're doing something right finally, and you think that just

because now I'm doing something right, it's all supposed to

work out. That mentality, yeah, it's gonna cost you to break. We

gotta get back to reality and realize that no matter what it

is you're doing, you go go through trials and tribulations and we

got to learn to embrace that. So I think the people who've been

able to break through have learned to embrace it and actually

look forward to it. So whether you in the gym and you go in

through a time where you can't get that bench up or that squat, you

know, or you just run 10 miles and you sore, like, if you think

that, if you think you're going to stop just because your sword is

time and not run through that sword, it's like you ain't going to

never get better. You never go reach that end goal, which might be

to get the 15 miles. It's the same thing in business. Amen.

Anything stand out for give us some of the successes, you know,

of the program, the kids, some things that stand out, you know,

that have been accomplished through, inspire minds. You know, and as

we transition to that, maybe there's things that people can

pull, you know, from from some of those examples. Yeah. Number

one is so far 100% of our high school kids that's come through our

program has graduated from high school. I think that's huge. And

80% are going to college, about 12% are going into the military,

about 8% are going right into the workforce. So we're super proud

of that. I remember young people who couldn't read when they came

into our program. And then they end up going and getting working

on their masters and studying molecular neuroscience. I remember a

young girl who was in our program came in super shy, wasn't sure

what she was going to do. Comes in our program, graduates, goes

off to college, comes back, work for us in the summer, and now

runs our high school program, you know, so her perspective, you

know, she gets on a whole different level. And as far as the way

she can impact our kids, like she better than me, because she

actually came from the program, you know. And most recently, us

being able to start chapters, you know, as a as a business and as

a model, it's hard to duplicate. You know that, you know,

trying to find people that have pieces of you and understand

where you're coming from and have your heart and your drive

and our mission driven, that's tough. So the fact that we've

been able to run into some good people, man, who really love our

kids the way we are and be able to provide something for them.

Like we were able to save a lot of people, a lot of headache and

heartache. Just you know how it is just to try and design a logo

in the color and a mission, right? That's tough. And so many

people waste a lot of time doing those things and we've been able

to save, you know, 13 years, you know, for a lot of for a lot of

people. So we're really proud of that.

What would anything stick out about the kids that, you know,

maybe that you've seen that have come through the program and and

done better or people that maybe didn't come to the program. Any

things that stick out in the kids that are in the same environment,

same situation. One goes left, one goes right.

You do have that.