Mr. Webb: 0:00

Imagine a coach kneeling to pray at the 50 yard line after a high school football game. Is that a personal commitment or a constitutional controversy? Or both? Where do you stand when private faith meets public duty? What would you do if your simple personal tradition sparked a legal battle that ended at the Supreme Court? How far would you go to stand up for your constitutional freedoms?

Mr. Webb: 0:31

Welcome to the Conservative Classroom, where we're teaching the truth and preserving our values. I'm your host, Mr. Webb, and I'm glad you're here. This podcast is a haven for conservative educators, parents and patriots like you, who believe in the importance of free speech, traditional values and education without indoctrination. Each week, we dive into issues that are plaguing our education system and keeping you up at night. In each episode, we offer common sense ideas to improve education in our classrooms and communities. You may feel like you're the last conservative educator or parent, but I want you to know that you are not alone. By the way, if you like what you hear today, please share this podcast with a like-minded educator, parent or patriot. Together, we can teach the truth and preserve our values.

Mr. Webb: 1:30

In today's episode, we delve into the story of Coach Joe Kennedy, a man who stood at the crossroads of faith and football, sparking a national conversation about religious freedom and personal conviction. Join us as we explore his journey to the Supreme Court and back to the sidelines. Now let's get started. Today I'm excited to welcome a special guest to the conservative classroom, coach Joe Kennedy. Coach Kennedy is here to discuss his story and his book. Average Joe the Coach Joe Kennedy story the inspirational true story of Coach Joe Kennedy one man's faith in the fight to change a nation. Coach, thank you for joining us.

Coach Joe Kennedy: 2:16

Oh, it's great to be here. Thanks for having me, buddy.

Mr. Webb: 2:19

No problem, I'm looking forward to it. This has been several months in the making. You probably didn't know, because I was talking to your folks behind the scenes there and they told me about your book coming out and I think we all decided about the time the book comes out. That'd be a great time to have you on the podcast. So for folks that might not know your story, can you start by telling us a little about yourself, your background and the events that led up to the Supreme Court case and, finally, you writing your book?

Mr. Webb: 2:54

Well, you're not asking for much there, huh yeah.

Coach Joe Kennedy: 2:59

So I'm a wanted kid. I was put up for adoption at birth, adopted into a family that didn't really need me, and I became an angry kid and I struggled and fought and then needed to put that anger somewhere and I put it into the Marine Corps, which was a good fit because we liked to fight, and I served for 20 years. After that I started coaching high school football after I married my childhood sweetheart and then I just had this covenant with God that they came after every game win or lose, they're on the field and that's all I did. And I did that for eight years until the school district said I needed to stop and it turned into a ugly, ugly battle.

Mr. Webb: 3:49

So what inspired you to make the commitment to? I believe you were giving thanks at the end of each game, and how did that become part of your coaching routine?

Coach Joe Kennedy: 4:00

Right, yeah, so I was. I got offered the job on a Friday and I said give me the weekend to think about it. And I went home and talked to my family about it and in the middle of the night I was up watching, surfing through the channels, watching TV, and this football movie comes on Facing the Giants, and there's something about the Kendrick brothers. I don't know what it is, but God really talked to them through that and it was an answered call. And that was the first time in my life I've ever heard my what my purpose was and what actual calling is. And so, right there on my living room floor, I made a covenant with God that I would serve to the best of my ability and I'd give them thanks after every game win or lose, right there on the field. And it was something simple. It was just thanking God for for letting me be part of their lives and for what the young men did out there on the field.

Mr. Webb: 4:57

And could you share with us the moment you realized that your post game tradition was going to be an issue?

Coach Joe Kennedy: 5:06

Yeah. So after one of the football games I wanted an administrator at another school district, saw what we were doing out there after the game and called, felt compelled to call the principal of our high school and he said I just wanted to tell you I went to my first football game and in this in our league and I was really impressed and I just wanted to tell you that what I saw was awesome. Your football program is doing some awesome things. Well, of course, that led to a inquiry and an investigation and the school district lawyers got involved with it and they're not, I would say, the smartest when it comes to the constitution, because their specialty is education and they thought it would just be easier if they removed the problem instead of dealing with the problem.

Mr. Webb: 6:03

And what kind of timeframe are we talking about? From when you were I guess the first approach by I don't know if it was someone at the district level, if it was an attorney or if maybe it was your principal from that to going to court, to you getting representation, what's that whole timeframe there?

Coach Joe Kennedy: 6:28

Yeah. So to back it up just a little bit was so. I coached for eight years and we were in our eighth season and I think it took what was it? Three or four weeks of negotiations between myself and the school district, because these guys are my friends.

Coach Joe Kennedy: 6:47

The superintendent and myself were trying to figure out how do we navigate through this and avoid any kind of long lasting repercussions of this, but their lawyers stood fast and they gave me a letter of direction three letters actually, and it was right before a game each time.

Coach Joe Kennedy: 7:08

And the first one they said this is what you could do, this is what you can't do, which I abided by. It was you cannot encourage nor discourage kids in prayer, and as long as it didn't affect my coaching duties, which that wasn't a problem. Then the second letter they gave me a week later said we just want you to stop praying with the kids. And I said, okay, you know, you're school, you're rules, and I abided by that. And then they gave me a third letter and said yeah, you're gonna have to stop doing that. So I needed to choose between my job and my faith and I was gonna be put on administrative leave until I complied with school districts directions, and that was a bridge too far. So that took about a month almost the rest of our football season just trying to navigate that system. Before they put me on administrative leave.

Mr. Webb: 8:06

So you were coaching there for eight years before this became an issue, right, and it sounded. It sounds like they just kept backing you further into the corner until you had a decision to make. So that's a pretty gutsy decision. As a conservative teacher who frequently has conversations with other conservative teachers, I can tell you there are a lot of folks who are scared to be put in that position because they know I'll give you an example certain students want to go by a different name and if they're a girl, biological female, they want to be called a boy and want to use those pronouns. And I know a lot of teachers that say I don't, that goes against my beliefs and I don't know what I'll do if that happens, because they know if they stand against it they're afraid of losing their job. So that took a lot of guts and, on behalf of teachers everywhere, thank you so much for taking a stand.

Coach Joe Kennedy: 9:22

Oh, absolutely. Well, you can imagine it wasn't easy for me either, but it was the right thing to do. I might not be the guy with the best morals and standards, but the principle of it I was gonna stand firm and thinking that, you know, this is my calling, this is my passion, this is my love of life is to coach these guys, and if I can't be setting an example for them, then what the heck am I doing here? So there is no way I could turn my back on this, even though it was gonna become, you know, really lengthy and painful. I had no idea it was gonna take this long, but it was the absolute right thing to do. And to this day, my guys could look at me and I could look and score in the eyes and say, hey, this was the right thing and what I did was right. And it did cost me everything, but I got 10 fold back in return, because God's always faithful.

Mr. Webb: 10:22

Right, and the students, and the students that you coach, your players, you know they, I'm sure, look up to you and, whether they agreed with it or not, just seeing that you stood up for what you believed in, that speaks volumes.

Coach Joe Kennedy: 10:41

Yeah, one of the things that I always taught them is to do what's right, even if it's not popular and it's gonna be tough. So this was a key example to show leadership actually in action. It wasn't do as I say, not as I do. I wanted them to be able to see that that applies everywhere in life, not just on a football field. And I had kids that you know, you're right, that didn't wanna come out for the fair, which is absolutely fine, Matter of fact, two of the guys who didn't wanna come out and pray, I made them our team captains because they showed so much leadership, so that was never an issue as far as football and the prayer intertwining with each other.

Mr. Webb: 11:25

Did you have any idea and I'm sure the answer to this is no, but I've gotta ask did you have any idea that this would go all the way to the Supreme Court and it would rule in your favor? I mean, that's gotta be surreal.

Coach Joe Kennedy: 11:42

Oh, it seems so ridiculous and I wish it was better words to describe it. But surreal is absolutely true. I mean, I can't think of anything more boring than seeing somebody kick in the knee. You know thanking God after a football game. That's not newsworthy, that's not something that should be a fire.

Coach Joe Kennedy: 12:02

You know where you fire somebody? Or go into the Supreme Court over a prayer, and the thing that only things that I asked for was to be a coach again and to be able to pray after a football game. It was two simple things and I thought they perfectly aligned with the Constitution and the First Amendment. And I was gonna die on that hill fighting for it because, like I said, it is the right thing to do. And who knew where it was gonna go? I had no idea God was gonna take it this far and but I feel so blessed that somebody actually looked at the facts of the case for the very first time. They looked at the facts of the case and they ruled against or with the Constitution, instead of what was the trendy thing to do or the political climate of things.

Mr. Webb: 12:54

And the Supreme Court ruled in your favor on June 27th 2022. That was just a little over a year ago. How did you feel when you received that decision?

Coach Joe Kennedy: 13:07

Well, you know, to be honest, it was kind of anti-climatic because we've been working so hard. It's like never ending race. You just wanna get to the finish line and this was one heck of a marathon. I never thought it would end and I never. You know, I can't even wrap your brain around that of how long that is waiting for somebody to ruling your favor. After hearing, I think I've lost seven times prior to this at the lower courts. So when it came, it was just you have that satisfaction of knowing that somebody, finally the court system, worked in the right way. But also what it did, is it freed up Americans to be who they are? They don't have to worry about their religious beliefs in the public square intertwining or clashing with the secular side. That you know. God and the public guess what they kind of go together.

Mr. Webb: 14:05

What were some of the challenges you faced, personally and professionally, not just during the court battle, but that kind of made you famous in a way, didn't it? So how has that affected you during and then even after the decision?

Coach Joe Kennedy: 14:23

Yeah, well, I, just like I said, I just wanted to coach football. I didn't want any anybody paying attention to me. It was so simple of a thing. I had no concept of why this was a thing of popularity. It just really showed to me that the Americans are so tired of being bullied into doing things that they don't agree with. And somebody finally stood up to them and, even though it passed me everything, I was the one willing to do it, because most people shouldn't be faced with this and they should never have to be faced with something like this. So I was very proud of having so much support of the United States. There were so many people that were on my side and praying and finally got to stand up for the little guy, even though they were the majority.

Coach Joe Kennedy: 15:18

So it was tough, especially with my family. I had two kids in the high school. We had one in the middle school, my wife were for the school district and I ended up losing my football team, and it wasn't just for a year. I lost it for eight years. So all the kids that were incoming freshmen. I didn't even get to see them play throughout the year. So I lost everything on this. It cost dearly and was tough. It hurt my family, but some things in life are absolutely worth fighting for.

Mr. Webb: 15:55

I agree, and you were officially reinstated. Is that right as a coach? Or assistant coach yeah.

Coach Joe Kennedy: 16:03

So I was the assistant coach for the varsity and head coach for the junior varsity, and that was one of the things that we were litigating back and forth. So the school district always stood by. They did not fire me. Well, at the end of the every school year or the football season, we have our review and they take a look at it. They grade you on everything and the evaluation is based on not just football but everything else. Well, they just put me from where. Nothing changed. I did the exact same thing I've been doing prior to the past eight years. I had all my marks were low, completely at the bottom, and they stamped on their really big letters do not rehire. Now you can sit in court all day and say that's not technically firing somebody, but who is going to hire you if they say do not rehire? It's just common sense. So they were trying to split hairs over this, but they ended my football career over this.

Mr. Webb: 17:08

Wow, that's since, that's what you wanted to do. That's kind of devastating, I would imagine. So what? What have you been doing since then?

Coach Joe Kennedy: 17:21

Well, the first thing I did was try to figure out what do I do with this huge void, and just attending football games on Friday night watching my team wasn't cutting it. I needed something more in my life, because coaching can completely consumed all of my time year round. Our season starts in March and ends in November, so it's a really long season and you're just constantly in contact with these young men, mentoring them and helping them become better young men. I needed to fill it with something, so I went back to school. I thought I might as well set a good example for my team and I went back to school. I finished my masters and I just so I had a full time job. I was working at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard, so I had a government job during this time. So I was trying to balance school and work and a family all in all within that time, as well as going around the country and talking to people and explaining their rights as an American and what religious liberty truly means.

Mr. Webb: 18:28

So what does religious liberty means? How would you define that?

Coach Joe Kennedy: 18:35

Wow, I mean, that's probably the best question I have ever received. That I mean just flatline me. Well, I totally put it into. I have no real words, like lawyers do, where they have all the fancy talk. But it's having the freedom to exercise your faith without having to worry about anybody ridiculing you or holding it against you. And I think that's where we are as a society right now that people are afraid to say who they are because it might clash with somebody or offend somebody.

Coach Joe Kennedy: 19:13

That's not the way that America was built upon or designed. We all have the exact same rights. We say these fancy words of diversity, equity and inclusion. Well, that means everyone. The diversity of all religions, all backgrounds, all faiths. The equity of all men, because we're all given the same rights by God, not by the government. And then the inclusion that means everyone. So you are free to do as you feel that it's necessary in your faith. As an American, that is your right. So what this does is frees up everybody to actually exercise their rights without having to worry, like you said earlier, about their job or clashing with somebody because they disagree with you.

Mr. Webb: 20:02

Well, I may have caught you off guard with that question, but I feel like you did a fantastic job of answering that, yeah.

Coach Joe Kennedy: 20:08

I'm thinking about that all night now.

Mr. Webb: 20:13

As you were answering that and as you were talking, it made me think back to one of my first episodes on the podcast and I think this was before I had the opportunity to interview great folks like you where I talked about how we change from freedom of religion to freedom from religion and I feel like first amendment case Like yours, you know, one case at a time or we're getting back to freedom of religion.

Coach Joe Kennedy: 20:45

Oh, absolutely, and I didn't know where we were as a country. It seems very simple freedom of speech and the freedom of religion seems very simple to me and it's it's pretty clear. It says Congress shouldn't you know, can't infringe upon that. Well, that's what they're. They were doing. They were infringing and telling me what I couldn't do, not what I could do, but what I couldn't do. And that's not the way things are designed and it is the freedom of religion that's he.

Coach Joe Kennedy: 21:14

Look in our history books. I don't know why people don't understand this, but our country is built on religious faith and that's where all the ground rules, a moral compass of America, started from and slowly, as time went on, it's been chipped away, chipped away Until there was nothing left. What this did was just reset the clock back 50 years To the way it originally was that people do have this freedom. We're. We have more religious freedom today than anybody's had in the past 50 years. All because of this case, and that had nothing to do with me. That had to do with God and and what he was doing in our society and the Supreme Court ruling in favor of the Constitution.

Mr. Webb: 21:59

He used you and your, your story, to help a lot of folks, that's for sure.

Coach Joe Kennedy: 22:04

Yeah, just shows he's got a very weird sense of humor to use somebody like me.

Mr. Webb: 22:12

One of my friends one time. You know, they said it, they meant it, but they said it. They tried to word it where it would be funny and it was kind of funny and talk about an understatement. They said you know what? God is pretty smart.

Coach Joe Kennedy: 22:26

Yep, that's an understatement, yeah, I question that all the time, man, I was like what are you doing? You have more qualified people out there, why are you using me for this?

Mr. Webb: 22:37

Well, you know, all throughout the Bible, that's, that's what he did, isn't it? It's speaking of books. I didn't mean for that to be a segue, but but I couldn't pass up a good segue. Tell us a little about your book, average Joe, and why folks should go out and get a copy of it.

Coach Joe Kennedy: 22:59

Well, it really tells the full story of my life, that the court case was just a very small part of it, and it really Explains how an average guy can change your nation and what the steps were in my case to do that. It goes back all the way from when I was conceived, so when I was stolen the womb until today, and Really it should be inspiring and motivating people to be able to stand up and look at it, that it is the average person in America that is the catalyst for change. And instead of just reading the the headlines of news, you actually get to go back and see all the details that has been left out over the years, and Everyone I've talked to so far were just amazed of Of this story. They were like how are you still alive today? So it's, it's packed full of just about everything you can imagine. It's gonna make you Happy, sad, it's gonna make you cry, make you angry and really just make you feel like, hey, I can make a difference and I do make a difference in society. I.

Mr. Webb: 24:08

Can't wait to to get my copy and read all about it, and, if I understand this correctly, did I read that there is an upcoming film inspired by your life?

Coach Joe Kennedy: 24:22

Yeah, that's kind of got out. Yeah, so they started filming that. That's what the original thing was. Is somebody saw what, what was happening, and heard the whole story. The people that did that's not dead and they said we need some kind of inspirational movie. And if you take a look over the past, you know a few years, I totally imagine, and you know all these other faith movies that are out there the the sound of freedom just came out and All in the blind, all of these have been coming out and they've been just smashing the the Box office because people, I think, are very hungry to to get back to where we were and and to Bring God back into our society. So they started filming about three weeks ago. We've been working on the project in the screenplay for eight years now and it finally came to fruition. And actually today, speaking of sideways, today is actually the last day of filming, and so they're gonna wrap it up and start editing everything as of today.

Mr. Webb: 25:31

Wow, that's, that's amazing. So keep, keep us updated, let us know when that movie comes out. And I have to ask what advice do you have for educators, coaches, teachers, maybe even parents, that find themselves in a situation Similar to what you found yourself in?

Coach Joe Kennedy: 25:53

That's One of the great questions, because people are gonna be faced with this, but standing up for what is right is what we ultimately need to do. I Just just ask people. You know, hey, if you want to be an American and you want to be a Christian or a person of faith today, then it's not a spectator sport. You need to be involved. You need to get your butts off the couch and start getting involved. Start on your knees and start praying and then take it into your family, get, get your family involved and Involve with life. We need to understand where our kids are and building up on the family. Then take it to your church, take it to your community, take it to the school and, ultimately, be involved with politics. We always say that it's such a bad thing, we're not supposed to mix those. We absolutely do. We need to stop sitting behind the TV screen complaining about things and get active. So we need to get off our butts.

Mr. Webb: 26:56

That's great advice and you're kind of proof that one person Standing up for what they believe in can make a huge difference.

Coach Joe Kennedy: 27:04

Imagine when, if there was, you know, hundreds of thousands or millions of us Taking a stand and there there is, there, absolutely is, and I that's where I was just down founded that you know, the popularity of this was just because of one guy. So imagine really what we could do all together, because, good, that's where our strength is. His strength in numbers, and there's millions of Americans that feel the same way, that they've been marginalized and by all these weird agendas. But we're all equal in the eyes of God. So we really need to be able to just stand up all together and just say enough is enough, because there's going to be a tipping point and have we rather do it civilly than where things come to blows.

Mr. Webb: 27:55

I didn't thought of it in those terms that there's going to be a tipping point, and the way you worded that is great. Wouldn't it be better if we did something now instead of waiting until things come to blows, absolutely. So what's the one thing you want the listener to remember about this episode, if they don't remember anything else?

Coach Joe Kennedy: 28:19

Yeah, that it is the average person that is going to make the difference. You, as an individual, will make a difference. Even if it's just in your family or in your community, it doesn't matter. You are standing up and you are doing the right thing. So I want them to walk away feeling empowered to be able to make a difference, because every single American does.

Mr. Webb: 28:47

Thank you so much for coming on the podcast. I could talk to you for an hour hour and a half two hours and I've got so many questions. I want to hear about your full story, but folks need to pick up your book to get the full story and, speaking of which, I will make sure and put a link in the podcast notes for your book, your website, and can you share with our listeners where they can find more information about your project, anything else you have coming up, how they can connect with you on social media and just what's next for Coach Joe Kennedy?

Coach Joe Kennedy: 29:25

Yeah, I'm not a very creative guy. My website is super simple it's coachjoachenedycom, and there's links to everything. It'll tell you where to go if you need help, like ADF and First Liberty Institute the ones that will help defend your constitutional rights and all the facts of the case. You can read up on all of those and really just find out exactly who this guy is that they've been talking about and what the book's about. You can order the book there. You could get anything you need all at once, spot. So, yeah, it's pretty simple and hopefully people will be inspired to do that and pick up a copy and share it with their friends and maybe we'll make a movement all together.

Mr. Webb: 30:13

Well, we'll try to make it as easy as possible for them to get a copy of the book. I'm an Amazon affiliate. So, I know there's links on your website for them to get a copy and I'll definitely include links to your website and I'll include a link for them to get a copy through Amazon. There's so many folks shop on Amazon. We'll make it super easy for you.

Coach Joe Kennedy: 30:34

Yeah, I'll admit, I went into Barnes Noble and picked up a couple of copies, and also my first copies were absolutely through Amazon, so I do most of my shopping on Amazon. It's a great place to go and it comes in Kindle, audio and in hard copy, so I wanted it to reach everybody. If you're not a reader, I'm not a reader, so I like to listen to things, but everybody can hear this story.

Mr. Webb: 31:02

So it will be audio book also.

Coach Joe Kennedy: 31:05

Yes, sir, it's out right now on Amazon for them.

Mr. Webb: 31:07

That's awesome. That's a great idea. I do like to read, but in addition to physical books I listen to a lot. I listen to a lot of podcasts, but I also listen to books. If I have a summer project going on or if I'm a pressure washing the house or doing some chore I know will take a few hours, I'll often put on a book and start listening to it. So that's great. I hope folks check it out in one form or another, and thank you so much for joining us today, coach. It's been a pleasure having you on the conservative classroom and I know our listeners appreciate you coming on the podcast and then being able to hear firsthand about your first amendment fight and what that means to you All of us. Thank you so much.

Coach Joe Kennedy: 31:57

Thank you and I want you to keep fighting the good fight. We need guys like you in the end.

Mr. Webb: 32:02

I appreciate that. I need all the encouragement I can get. That's it for today's episode of the conservative classroom. Thank you for tuning in and I hope you enjoyed it and learned something. If you liked what you heard, please don't forget to subscribe and leave us a review on your favorite podcast platform. That would really help the podcast out. Most importantly, share this podcast with a like minded educator, parent or patriot. You can also connect with us on social media and share your thoughts on today's topic by sending me an email at TheConservativeClassroom@gmail. com. We'd love to hear from you. If you feel that education without indoctrination and teaching the truth is important to preserve traditional values and support my efforts to keep the conservative classroom running.

Mr. Webb: 32:58

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