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Ran Carthon was recently appointed as the Tennessee Titans General Manager, and his wife, Heaven Carthon, was beaming with pride as he took the post. During the press conference, he recounted a two-decade-old story about his wife, who was his girlfriend in 2003, nearly walking out on him when he dreamed about becoming an NFL General Manager after hanging up his boots.
He said Heaven did not want to live with someone out of touch with reality. It is understandable, given how tough it is to rise to such a high position in the league, but she remained steadfast by Ran's side as he persevered. The dream came true as he took his latest post.
Ran Carthon said:
“She told me she almost stopped dating me because she didn’t want someone who lives in La La Land... Honey, today that dream comes true."
Heaven Carthon: The woman behind Ran Carthon's success
Ran Carthon is notoriously private about his family life. However, his wife has always been there when needed. Despite her tongue-in-cheek comments about leaving her husband when he was aiming to become an NFL GM, she credits her children as one of the reasons she never thought of moving on.
She recounted a story about when someone said they had lived in Green Bay for some time, and she responded that she might divorce her husband if she moved there. Writing for "Black and Married with Kids," she said:
"One of ladies mentioned that at one time they were in Green Bay for several years. I told the ladies that Green Bay was the one place I would struggle with having to move to and if the man accepted a job there, it might be grounds for divorce. I was kidding. We laughed it off."
Her kids overheard her talking about it and were mortified about the possibility of their father and mother divorcing. While she emphasized to them that it was only a joke, it gave her a new understanding of how much family is meant as a unit. She quotes her eldest daughter saying to her:
"Well next time, you just don’t need to say daddy and divorce in the same sentence and then we won’t have a problem."
Perhaps because of this, she says she is a full-time wife and mother first before acknowledging her work as a blogger.
Her husband has also emphasized that despite his job, he takes his family very seriously. In addition to his career as an NFL player and an executive, he was also part of the "Fatherhood Ticket Program." The program took place when Barack Obama was president. It is something that he has also emphasized during his NFL career.
All this was on full show at his unveiling as the Tennessee Titans GM. Not only was Heaven Carthon by her husband's side, but their children were also there. To support their father, they all wore coordinated sneakers that were in the colors of the Tennessee Titans football team.
The Titans will be happy to know that Ran Carthon is not only buying into their project but also has his entire family's support as they move forward.
As one of the few African-Americans and visible minority GMs in the league, the pressure will be huge on Ran Carthon. He will be under the microscope from the very start.
With Tennessee missing the playoffs this year, he will begin from a position of relative weakness. He will need all the support he can muster, and it looks like Heaven Carthon and their kids will be the support he leans on when the time gets tough.
