Building a Better Community: Insights from Mayor Ken Moore
Join us for today's episode of the Engage Church Network Podcast with host Mike Glenn and special guest, Mayor Ken Moore of Franklin, Tennessee. Mayor Moore shares his journey from orthopedic surgeon to a four-term mayor and discusses the importance of faith-driven leadership in the political process.
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Mike Glenn: [00:00:00] Hi, I'm Mike Glenn. I am the president of the Engage Church Network, and we're glad that you have joined us for today's podcast. Our guest today is Mayor Ken Moore, who has been the mayor of Franklin since 2011, when everybody else stepped back and left you standing forward there, huh? When, uh, when Mayor Schroeder at the time left to take a position with the state at TDOT, and you were vice mayor.
That was fall of 2011, and then you were elected...
Ken Moore: Then I was elected that fall- Yeah ... actually, and so I've had four elections since. So I'm now in the first year of my fourth term as mayor.
Mike Glenn: So now it is, uh, it's your fault. You know better, and- Um ... and you're still here, so nobody to blame but you.
Ken Moore: Well, my wife encouraged me.
Mike Glenn: Oh. Well, that's 'cause you're retired and you need to ha- ... you need to have somewhere to go. So, so we all know how [00:01:00] that goes when you get retired a- and then your wife says, "Don't you have somewhere to go?" kind of thing. Let's, let's talk first. Uh, we're, we're in an election season, and I don't wanna talk about that.
Here's what I do wanna ask. Um, all of us have friends who are concerned about the country, the city, the county They're good people, would do a good job, but for whatever reason do not think that their, uh, faith would be well-served or that Christians need to be involved in that. Uh, you have been involved obviously, well you were an alderman before you were mayor.
Ken Moore: Correct.
Mike Glenn: And, uh, and so you've been involved n- n- 13, 14 years now, leading Franklin, doing very well. What would you say to those brothers and sisters who are committed Christians about the need for good people in the political process at, at, at ev- at, at every level?
Ken Moore: Well, let me start [00:02:00] out by saying I am a Christian.
Mike Glenn: Yeah.
Ken Moore: And, uh, I would follow that by I never desired to be in politics. Mm-hmm. Uh, it's one of those things that, um, God put it in my way.
Mike Glenn: Mm.
Ken Moore: It started when I was president of the Tennessee Orthopedic Society, and I was asked by the lobbyist for the State Medical Society to come help on three bills that affected orthopedic surgeons.
And so I got my feet wet on that doing policy. And then a friend of our, of my wife's family, Lamar Alexander, decided he was gonna run for president, and he called me and he said, "Ken, help me raise some money from doctors." And your audience may not know, but most doctors are very tight with their wallet.
Mike Glenn: Right.
Ken Moore: Uh, but I was wildly successful raising a lot of money for a great candidate for president, and that kinda put me in the political sphere.
Mike Glenn: Mm-hmm.
Ken Moore: Uh, but again, that... I didn't [00:03:00] have the desire to run for office. Uh, it, it really just kind of was a fluke that I ran for office. Mm-hmm. I, uh, I had a friend that we'd worked on a lot of campaigns together and, uh, he said, "They're having an alderman race in Franklin."
And as brilliant as I was, I said, uh, "What's an alderman?" And pretty quickly he explained that, and then he looked at me in the eye and he says, "You oughta run." Well, it's one of those moments that, you know, you didn't think about it- Right, yeah ... you just said yes.
Mike Glenn: Yeah,
Ken Moore: yeah. And so I found myself in a race against 14, 13 other people for four positions, and the rest is history.
Mm-hmm. I won that one, and then of course I've been, I, you know, had the honor to be elected, uh, four more times since that time.
Mike Glenn: Mm-hmm.
Ken Moore: Mm. But I would encourage people-
Mike Glenn: Yeah ...
Ken Moore: to consider, uh, running for office. Uh, everybody has an opinion.
Mike Glenn: Right.
Ken Moore: Uh, [00:04:00] and hopefully, uh, people would look at it that they think that they can learn and inform and help other people, uh, work through the process of making our communities better if they're running for local office- Right
or state or even federal.
Mike Glenn: Yeah, one of my, uh, one of my passions is to get good people believers involved in the political process, in running for office and serving at, at, at every level. And I think we make a mistake when we with- we, we withdraw from the political conversations. Um-
Ken Moore: Well, I would totally agree with you on that.
Mike Glenn: Yeah.
Ken Moore: Uh, I think politics has a bad name, that it's a dirty business. Mm-hmm. And certainly, uh, we've had some bad actors. Uh, but it's a profession that, uh, requires you to have a lot of integrity, and also you bear a lot of trust from the people that you're- Mm-hmm ... serving. And what great an honor, greater an honor could you have, uh, but [00:05:00] to serve the people where you live-
Mike Glenn: Right.
Ken Moore: Mm-hmm ... and try to make a community better?
Mike Glenn: Yeah. The ser- quite, quite literally serve and help your neighbors in- Yes ... in very real ways.
Ken Moore: It's, it's, it's an extension of helping people.
Mike Glenn: Right.
Ken Moore: Uh, it's not done under the auspices of the church necessarily- Mm-hmm ... but, uh, the things that we're able to do, I mean, you think about picking up garbage and fi- fi- fixing potholes and, uh, collecting your utility bill and things like that.
Mm-hmm. All that's important, but there's a lot of other things as far as, uh, for example, our solid waste workers. They have a lot of homes that they serve that the f- people can't get out and pull their garbage cart- Right ... can to the street, so they're going in and getting the can and taking- Mm-hmm ... care of them.
Uh, there are instances where people need just a little help, and fortunately, we have a great team at the City of Franklin that's willing to go the extra mile- Mm-hmm ... to help people.
Mike Glenn: Now, you've been mayor [00:06:00] since 2011. Uh, Franklin, when I moved here in 2001, was a long way from Nashville. And, and you probably remember as I do that people would talk about having to drive all the way into Nashville for, for whatever, to shop or to eat or whatever.
That's not the way it is now. Uh, Franklin is now right up against Nashville in a lot of ways. So, so talk to me about some of the changes that you've seen.
Ken Moore: Well, first of all, uh, we have a great relationship with our large suburb- Mm-hmm ... to the north. There's a lot of great people up there. But you're exactly right.
Uh, tran- there's been a lot of change in Franklin. Right. And I, uh, hear a lot of contrast because my wife grew up in Franklin. Uh, but she says, "I wouldn't move back to Franklin if it was like it was when I grew up." Right.
Mike Glenn: Yeah.
Ken Moore: So we've been growing at a pace of about 2,000 people a year now for about 30 years, and so our challenge has been how do we manage that growth and continue [00:07:00] to have that special feel as a community- Mm-hmm
that Franklin has. Some of it is geography and the fact that our historic core is separated from the economic generator of, uh, Cool Springs Mall and all the- Right ... businesses we have. Uh, but it's, it's, it's also just got something special that people buy into. Being part of the city and continuing to, um, want it to continue to have that flavor.
Mike Glenn: Mm-hmm.
Ken Moore: People move from California. Right. They move from Chicago. Mm-hmm. They move from New York, and all of a sudden they're trying to act like they were from Franklin originally. And they're also quick to say after a year, says- Yeah ... "Oh, we don't want anybody else to move
Mike Glenn: here." That's, that's right, yeah.
They wanna be the last person to move in.
Ken Moore: Yeah.
Mike Glenn: And that kind of stuff. How has, um- How have... One, one of the things that, that, that we're dealing with in, in local churches is people are moving in from Chicago, uh, California, [00:08:00] and other places. Uh, and they are not, uh, they come from a different culture, different background, and therefore would have a different expectation and need of church.
Have you found dealing with, uh, folks who are coming from these other places to want or need different things from the city?
Ken Moore: Well, I find that people that are moving here are seeking something.
Mike Glenn: Right.
Ken Moore: And I think they see that, uh, Franklin and the entire Middle Tennessee a- area has- Mm-hmm ... what they're seeking.
And I think it, they're seeking a way of life. I think they're seeking certain, uh, values.
Mike Glenn: Mm-hmm.
Ken Moore: Uh, you know, we're a very, uh, Christian community. Mm-hmm. In fact, at one time, I think we had 250 churches we counted in Williamson County. Yeah. And so we are the buckle- Yeah ... of the Bible Belt- Mm-hmm ... for sure. Yeah.
Uh, they do bring different faith practices here, and some of them are, [00:09:00] uh, not Christian.
Mike Glenn: Mm-hmm.
Ken Moore: Some of them, uh, are, are faiths that we're not familiar with. Uh, but we try to embrace everyone. Mm-hmm. And one of the things that we've done as Unite Williamson in the past, where we encourage people to understand and know who these people are of other faiths-
Mike Glenn: Mm-hmm
Ken Moore: uh, who, to know their neighbor. That's right. Right. Yeah And I think that's part of the, the charge that we have- Mm-hmm ... is understanding who our neighbor is.
Mike Glenn: Mm-hmm. Now, let's talk about, uh, an issue I know is important to you. Um, several weeks ago, you and I had a conversation, or m- maybe longer than that, and, and the burden of your heart o- of that conversation was, uh, suicides in Williamson County.
So, uh, wa- wa- walk me through, one, how, how that came to your attention, and then, uh, how, how you have led the city and other entities to respond.
Ken Moore: Well, a number of years ago when Governor Haslam was, uh, governor, uh, he picked [00:10:00] nine cities in the state of Tennessee as pilot communities for healthier communities.
Mike Glenn: Mm-hmm.
Ken Moore: And we were successful in, uh, fulfilling all the criteria and were designated as a healthier community, and we focused on four different areas in that process: obesity, tobacco cessation, activity, and mental health. Everybody wanted to talk about all the things- Right ... except mental health. And so when we noticed that, uh, I said, "Well, let's get a group toge- of people together and talk about mental health and try to raise awareness."
Mike Glenn: Mm-hmm.
Ken Moore: I called it a Blue Ribbon Panel, and from that Blue Ribbon Panel, uh, came Find Hope Franklin.
Mike Glenn: Mm-hmm.
Ken Moore: And we focused on, uh, four d- uh, four different things. First, number one, it's okay to talk about mental health. You talk about being a diabetic or having- Right ... heart disease. Mental health is a, a health issue or a disease just like any other- Mm-hmm
disease that we talk about. Secondly, [00:11:00] uh, as you mentioned, we have a high suicide rate among, uh, 40, 50-year-old men.
Mike Glenn: Mm-hmm.
Ken Moore: Also, we have a high suicide attempt rate among our youth-
Mike Glenn: Mm ...
Ken Moore: which is just crushing. Uh, so we, we identified that issue and started working to train people on suicide prevention. Suicide prevention, there's a course called QPR, question, persuade, refer.
Mike Glenn: Mm-hmm.
Ken Moore: And so just like CPR, people knowing what to do in that case- Right ... they should be able to understand and hear some of those, uh, comments that make you think, "Hey, I need to ask a few questions here." Right, right. And then what do you do after you've asked the question and you're concerned really about a person?
How do you- Mm-hmm ... get them to somebody with help?
Mike Glenn: Mm-hmm.
Ken Moore: So we've trained probably 500 people up to this point in this, uh, particular technique, and it's like an hour-long course, and it's available to [00:12:00] church groups, Sunday school classes. Usually limited to about 25 people.
Mike Glenn: Mm-hmm.
Ken Moore: Uh, then we created a website on Find Hope Franklin that lists some of the best resources for people.
Mike Glenn: Available,
Ken Moore: mm-hmm. And one of the best resources that's happened since this started is 988. It, it is a crisis line.
Mike Glenn: Right.
Ken Moore: And they're able to help... Call that n- number. They're able to help you walk through maybe some things- Mm-hmm ... or get you to somewhere. Mm-hmm. And lastly, uh, people that are having a mental health crisis end up in two places.
They end up in jail, or they end up in the emergency room. If they've committed a crime, they're in jail. Right. If they haven't, they're taken to the emergency room, and this is a huge burden on an emergency room who's already tending to a lot of sick folks and- Right ... trauma and quite frankly, aren't really prepared to handle- Mm-hmm
some of the mental health crisis. So we've advocated for [00:13:00] establishment of a crisis stabilization unit in our community where people can immediately get into a continuum of care.
Mike Glenn: Right Now, this is obviously a place where, um, local churches can partner. Uh, so what, what... If, if I'm a pastor and I'm listening to you right now, what would be my next step?
Ken Moore: I, I think the next step is to understand where they would g- wanna be in the process.
Mike Glenn: Mm-hmm.
Ken Moore: If they want to be part of Find Hope Franklin, uh, I do have a couple of pastors on- Right ... Find Hope Franklin and would love to welcome them. Uh, if, if they have, uh, people that would like to be trained and question- Mm-hmm
persuade, refer, or even learn to become a trainer, uh, we can make that available, and they would just need to contact me at ken.moore@franklintn.gov.
Mike Glenn: And, and of course, this is on the website?
Ken Moore: Yes.
Mike Glenn: All on the website. Uh-
Ken Moore: Find Hope Franklin
Mike Glenn: website.
Ken Moore: Find Hope, yeah. Yes.
Mike Glenn: Be a good place to do it. [00:14:00] Um, on any given Sunday, I tell the pastors that I work with, on a given, given Sunday, you have a significant number of people who have thought like this during the past week, and are maybe even thinking about it now, sitting in your congregation.
Ken Moore: Yes.
Mike Glenn: And, uh, and, and we d- we need, we need to be a- aware of that
Ken Moore: It's, it's a problem that we need to elevate the discussion about- Mm-hmm ... uh, and awareness about, and also how to handle those situations, just as I was speaking.
Mike Glenn: Yeah. Now, most of the time when, uh, when you, you get on YouTube and you see pastors and city councils or pastors and mayors, they're arguing and yelling about books in a library or this or that or that kind of stuff.
Uh, my father was a politician in, in Huntsville, was on the city council and all that. I learned a lot [00:15:00] of leadership working with people, uh, from my dad. Uh, I've always encouraged pastors to know the mayor, to introduce themselves to the mayor, uh, because sooner or later you're gonna have to deal with the mayor, and you don't want your first conversation to be adversarial, whether it's the parking lot easement or, or, or something like that.
You wanna have some kind of, of relationship. Um, what would you want, uh, the, the, the churches, uh, in, um, in middle Tennessee, in Franklin to know, uh, uh, uh, about the needs of the city and how these churches can engage to make a difference?
Ken Moore: Well, there's ri- lots of reasons that churches may wanna engage in the city, and probably the most common is that they're expanding their, uh, uh, footprint on their- Mm-hmm
property, or they're [00:16:00] changing something about the property. And I'm always glad to meet with them. But I encourage them quickly to get involved with my staff.
Mike Glenn: Right.
Ken Moore: Because one of the worst mistakes I see is that people will start doing a lot of planning, and then all of a sudden they say, "Well, I think we'll go to the city and ask them."
When they've spent a lot of money, maybe had a lot of things that they've done, and staff would say, "No, that doesn't work here." Yeah. "The zoning isn't right."
Mike Glenn: The zoning, the sewer line's on the other side.
Ken Moore: Yeah. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Exactly, those type things. And other issues that churches may have, uh, I love to meet with pastors.
Mm-hmm. Uh, I've met with you a number of times- Yeah ... and it's always refreshing. And, uh, and I've also, uh, uh, embraced people that wanna come by or grab me on the street and tell me that they're praying for me, and I'm always glad- Yeah ... to accept prayers. Mm-hmm. And so I've had quite a few people, pastors, uh, individuals, uh, come to my office and- Mm-hmm
actually [00:17:00] pray for me. And it is a heavy job whenever you're responsible for 90,000 people and-
Mike Glenn: Right ...
Ken Moore: their welfare
Mike Glenn: And everybody's dreams and everybody's hopes and, uh, dreams for their children and the school systems and all that, and so-
Ken Moore: Every- there's a lot of pressure
Mike Glenn: out there ... yeah, lot, lot, lot, lot of that.
Well, I'm glad, I'm glad you are doing it. Now, I wanna stop, uh, uh, just a minute and say one more time, Find Hope Franklin-
Ken Moore: Yes ...
Mike Glenn: is the website, uh, about the suicide-
Ken Moore: FindHopeFranklin.com ... .
Mike Glenn: com. Uh, so if you're, if you are pastoring a local church, this is a serious issue in Middle Tennessee. Uh, and just by the numbers, just if you just do the, the, the research, somebody in your church is thinking along these lines.
So you need to educate yourself and prepare your church as best you can in how to respond in a life-affirming and hope-giving way, and I appreciate the mayor's, uh, leadership, uh, in, [00:18:00] in this area. This is Ken Moore. He has been our guest. He is the mayor of Franklin, and, uh, and, and an overall good dude, and I'm glad he's my friend.
So thanks for joining us, and we'll see you next time.
