09. The Story of Jimbo Laboon :A Legacy Built on Service & Connection
Classic City Rewind with Lesley Platek
Release Date: 01/27/2026
28. From San Juan to National Championships: Coach Manny Diaz's UGA Tennis Journey
Classic City Rewind with Lesley Platek
If you've ever wondered what it takes to build a legendary sports program this episode of Classic City Rewind will feel like sitting down with an old friend who has quite a story to tell. Host Lesley Platek welcomes Manny Diaz, the former longtime head Mens tennis coach at the University of Georgia, whose journey from a tennis-obsessed teenager in San Juan, Puerto Rico to the winningest coach in SEC history is full of warmth, humor, and hard-earned wisdom. The conversation is especially timely: Diaz was just inducted into the ITA Collegiate Tennis Hall of Fame alongside an all-star class...
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27. Bertis Downs on R.E.M., Athens, and a Life Built Around Music
Classic City Rewind with Lesley Platek
Bertis Downs' life reads like a map of the last sixty years of American music culture — and if you've ever wondered how a law student ends up managing and giving legal advise to R.E.M. this episode is for you. Downs traces an extraordinary arc: a childhood shaped by his missionary family's years in Taiwan and the sudden loss of his father in a plane crash, followed by his mother raising three young boys alone. He landed in Clarkston, Georgia for his teenage years, then Davidson College, where a college radio show devoted almost entirely to the Allman Brothers Band planted the seed of...
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26. "The Art of Looking: Rebecca Wood (R. Wood Studio) on Color, Clay, and Nature”
Classic City Rewind with Lesley Platek
"The Art of Looking: Rebecca Wood on Color, Clay, and Nature” There's something deeply comforting about sitting down with someone who has spent their entire life following what genuinely brings them joy, and this conversation with Rebecca Wood is exactly that kind of gift. Host Lesley Platek welcomes listeners into a conversation about creativity, patience, and the slow, unglamorous work of building something meaningful from scratch — a reminder that the most beautiful things in life rarely happen on a fast timeline. Rebecca Wood came to Athens in 1975 during the city's legendary...
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25. Terri Moody Hancock, From the Fairway to the Pickleball Court: A Conversation with Athens, Georgia Golf Legend.
Classic City Rewind with Lesley Platek
This episode offers a warm and inspiring window into one of Athens' most celebrated athletes. Host Lesley Platek sits down with Terri Moody Hancock for a wide-ranging conversation that moves from golf fairways to pickleball courts — and reveals the quiet, quilting heart behind one of Georgia's greatest champions. Terri Moody Hancock is a true Athens original — a two-time All-American at UGA, the 1981 Broderick Award winner and National Golfer of the Year, the first woman in Georgia history to earn a full athletic scholarship and the first women at UGA to win a National...
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24. The 90 year History of Dick Ferguson's Clothing Store
Classic City Rewind with Lesley Platek
Dick Ferguson III shares the remarkable story of a family business that has weathered nearly a century of change, beginning with his grandfather Richard John Ferguson, who opened the store on Clayton Street in 1934. When his grandfather passed away unexpectedly, Dick's grandmother Mary Cloud stepped in to run the store — an extraordinary feat for a woman in that era — earning deep respect from the Athens community while raising her family and keeping the business alive. Episode Highlights: Dick's grandmother Mary Cloud ran the store as a widowed woman in the 1940s and '50s, a trailblazing...
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23. Karen Morgan from a Trial Attorney to Nationally Touring Stand Up Comedian
Classic City Rewind with Lesley Platek
This episode is going to feel like sitting down with an old friend. Host Lesley Platek welcomes Karen Morgan, a born-and-raised Athens, Georgia native who has built a remarkable life straddling courtrooms, comedy stages, and now, Hollywood screenwriting. Karen Morgan is a former trial attorney turned nationally touring stand-up comedian, known for her two Dry Bar Comedy specials and her comedy album Shiny Happy People Laughing — recorded in her hometown and aired on four SiriusXM channels — with the title recorded with special permission from R.E.M. Karen and Lesley take a winding and...
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22. Legendary UGA Women's Tennis Coach Jeff Wallace
Classic City Rewind with Lesley Platek
What better way to close out Season One of Classic City Rewind than with this conversation — especially with the NCAA Tennis Tournament coming to Athens May 14th–17th. Classic City Rewind returns with Season Two in July. If you've ever wondered what it looks like when passion, purpose, and place all come together, this conversation is for you. Host Lesley Platek sits down with legendary UGA women's tennis Coach Jeff Wallace — a Portland, Oregon native who arrived in Athens as a transfer student, fell in love with the Classic City, and never left. Jeff's journey from junior tennis player...
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21. Will Glenn – Trees, Tennis, and the Heart of Athens
Classic City Rewind with Lesley Platek
If you've ever wondered what it looks like when a life is built on gratitude, grit, and genuine community, this episode is for you. Host Lesley Platek sits down with Will Glenn, partner and owner of Select Trees Enterprises, a Athens-area business that has grown over four decades into one of the larger tree nurseries in the country — with roots (literally and figuratively) that run deep in the Classic City. Will Glenn grew up in Athens, Georgia, shaped by family, faith, and a love of competition. After being cut from his YMCA soccer team , he found his path on the tennis court — eventually...
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20. Kelly Ward , PA Orthopedic Surgery and Finish Performance Health
Classic City Rewind with Lesley Platek
If you've ever wondered whether it's too late to take control of your health, this episode is a warm reminder that it's never too late — and that the right guide can make all the difference. Host Lesley Platek welcomes Kelly Ward, a longtime Athens fixture with over 30 years of expertise in orthopedic sports medicine, who is now channeling that experience into something deeply personal and forward-thinking: a wellness and longevity practice called Finished Performance Health. Kelly shares the unexpected moment — pushing through a rim-to-rim Grand Canyon hike — that crystallized his...
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19. Alex Sams Tells The History Of His Family's Coca-Cola Bottling Company In Athens, Ga
Classic City Rewind with Lesley Platek
Coca-Cola Has Proud Athens History This episode features Athens native Alex Sams, a real estate agent with 5Market Realty and recently moved to Berkshire Hathaway and who served as chair and a member of the Athens-Clarke County Historic Preservation Commission. He shares his family’s deep roots in Athens, dating back to 1922 when his great-grandfather, Walter Sams, became involved in the local Coca-Cola bottling company. Under his leadership, the business expanded across the Southeast and played a key role in supporting the University of Georgia, including helping underwrite the...
info_outlineJImbo Laboon : Growing up on King Avenue in the 1950s meant freedom to explore forests where Athens Regional Medical Center now stands, spending countless hours at the YMCA on Broad and Lumpkin, and learning life lessons from community leaders like the legendary Cobern Kelley. For Jimbo Laboon, those formative years in Athens shaped not only his character but also his remarkable journey from a textile mill financial officer to bank president and one of Georgia's most respected community leaders.
From watching his father and grandfather run their welding and blacksmithing business downtown to building lifelong friendships with future mayors and community pillars, Jimbo's story weaves together personal memories of a simpler Athens with insights into the businessdecisions and community commitments that helped shape our city's growth.
What You Can Expect from This Episode
This conversation reveals how deep Athens roots and strong mentorship created a leader who would serve on boards ranging from Blue Cross Blue Shield of Georgia to the University of Georgia Foundation, while maintaining the values learned in childhood.
Here are 5 key insights you'll gain from this episode:
• Experience what Athens was like when forests surrounded the city and children roamed freely through neighborhoods.
• Learn how Cobern Kelley's YMCA leadership shaped generations of Athens' future community leaders.
• Discover the transition from textile manufacturing to banking that defined much of Athens' economic evolution.
• Understand how one person's commitment to community service can impact dozens of local organizations.
• Hear touching stories about family legacy, including a farm that's been in the Laboon family since the 1830s.
A Legacy Built on Service and Connection
Jimbo's career trajectory from Johnson & Johnson to Wilkins Industries to Athens First Bank and Trust illustrates not just personal success, but the interconnected nature of Athens businesscommunity. His relationships with figures like Julius Bishop and John Wilkins demonstrate how mentorship and trust created opportunities that benefited our entire city.
Whether you're curious about Athens' transition from textile manufacturing hub to the diverse economy we know today, or you want to understand what drove previous generations to give so generously of their time and talents, Jimbo's memories offer a window into an era whencommunity leadership was both an honor and a responsibility.
His stories about international travel to 44 countries with his beloved wife Glenda, combined with his deep commitment to local institutions like the YMCA and Athens Academy, show how global perspective and hometown values can coexist beautifully.