Here ole Mike ‘da career killa’ Donila has a story about Richard Bean. Bean is the Superintendent of the Richard L. Bean Juvenile Service Center, located at 3321 Division St. in Knoxville. This facility is also known as the juvenile detention facility. Bean is giving back 500 days of the more than 900 he hasn’t used in vacation / sick time to Knox County. His actions of giving back and going above and beyond is nothing new for Bean.

In 2011 Bean began “pennies for undies” collecting and counting pennies to buy underwear for the young men and women that pass through the facility that bears his name. Here is a June 9 2011 WVLT Local8Now story on the cause. By July 2, 2011 Bean had exceeded his goal and here is a Knox News Sentinel story on his success.

For the 30 plus years that I have been politically active in Knox County Republican politics, Bean has been a fixture. When people call me and say that they are considering running for office. I say “as Richard Bean has said to me before, if it helps you for me to be for you, I will. If it helps you for me to be against you, I will”

In regards to Richard, I always say, Richard I want you to be for me. Bean is one of a kind.

This is Richard Bean and I back in Fall or Winter of 2003.