Lyman White Why I Changed My Name

“Your living is determined not so much by what life brings to you as by the attitude you bring to life; not so much by what happens to you as by the way your mind looks at what happens.”          Khalil Gibran

Count Time Podcasts archives the stories of some of our greatest living legends. Podcasts on history, sports and life.

Selected quotes and notes from Count Time Podcast with LD Azobra on Why Lyman White changed his name.

Good evening. Good evening. Good evening it’s 4:00 PM. Stand up, It’s count time, time for every man and woman to stand up and be counted. Welcome to another edition of Count Time podcast. I am brother LD Azobra formerly named Lyman white. Thank you for joining us today.

Lyman White a high school recruit to LSU
Lyman White a high school recruit to LSU

I’m Brother LD Azobra, formerly Lyman Dan White Junior I want to start with my first Count Time podcast episode. LD Azobra because a lot of people want to know what brother, why did you change your name? What was the reason for changing from Lyman White? Why did you feel the need to change your name, I guess because I learned over the years. First off, there’s power in a name and we all know that particular Christian world or you give me a Buddhist, Muslim. We all know there’s power in a name and the name is that there’s a certain name that you hear he said name of Jesus that’s power in that name, that’s life, the peace, that’s joy. And we want to be able to bring the same thing this way.

Lyman White in LSU Tiger Stadium
Lyman White, Greg Lafleur and Hokie Gajan

When my name came about, LD Azobra. That was interesting for me too. And I’m gonna give you a little history of how this comes out. I want to be able to take you for the journey that I was on. That brought me to where I am. But I even know that those that have been knowing  me all of my life and I’m 60 something years old, now. And the one’s that truly know me,  probably say. But brother LD, I knew it was only a matter of time. knowing you knowing how you think I’ve been around you. I’ve been hearing you speak and share for many, many years and I know your heart.

Newspaper article about Lyman White
Article about Living Legend LD Azobra

I know what you’ve been dealing with and as anybody else ups and down on the light for the happiness to join us of light, the peace transport of life. You’re gonna get it all. Just continue living. But also you’re going to have the confusion down down days, the days that you just don’t want to get out of bed, figure out how you gonna make it, how you gonna survive all this is part of this thing we call life.

Lyman White with Atlanta Falcons 1981

So none of us are new to. None of us are able to get out of here alive. In fact, today. So we want to enjoy these days. In the early 90s, I started traveling and I started traveling to Africa. I guess it had to be right at 30 years or so ago and then the 19th. That was my first trip after I went to Egypt. What I have we can experience that works. I got more than what a bargain for enough to wear it, I could almost say changed my way of thinking changed the way. Assault at open, open up an expanded moment to see things in a different way. Then that’s what I realized also that everything that was taught to me, a lot of it was stone truths, but for a different perspective. And the truth is when the travel is there a lot of information that I was taught. There was a lot of truth, but the perspective where it came from or who was the original of that information to create that information was not the truth.

Lyman White Baton Rouge Business Report 1992
Baton Rouge Business Report 1992

 

Lyman White biography links

Lyman Dan White Jr. (born January 3, 1959) is a former American football linebacker. A Franklin High School Class of 1977 graduate White was drafted in the second round by the Atlanta Falcons out of Louisiana State University in the 1981 NFL Draft.[1]

Mr. White, after retirement from the NFL opened several restaurants in Baton Rouge, LA, and the surrounding area. One of the most acclaimed, Buffalo Wings Express restaurant, was a wonderful buffet of southern/soul food and hot wings nestled on Highland Road just outside the gates of LSU campus. Mr. White was frequently on site to banter with students and locals who enjoyed the food.

LD at PASS event

Since Lyman White was released from prison Oakdale Federal Correctional Complex in 2008 he has continued to dedicate himself to community service. LD Azobra formerly Lyman White Co-Founded Professional Athletes Supporting Students (PASS) following Hurricane Katrina. The organization provided food and services to evacuees of Katrina living in the Baton Rouge area. It also provided computers and school supplies to evacuee students. PASS continues to serve students through the PASS the Ball and Read to PASS programs serving students in Baton Rouge and soon nationwide.