The Men Who Made Me

In the final episode of the season, Paige and Caleb recap lessons learned and answer listener questions. After starting the season with a conversation between hosts before having guests on, the team gets back together to wrap things up. Thank you to all of our listeners!

We near the end of the season with one final interview, Eric Jimenez, our behind-the-scenes galvanizer who helped make The Men Who Made Me turn from an idea into a reality. On this episode, Paige sits down with her coworker, mentor, and friend Eric to discuss how and why the podcast got started, why creativity matters, and how to find ourselves trying new things. With this being our final interview of season one, we hope it offers you wisdom, clarity, and a bit of behind the scenes magic. Enjoy!

This episode, we welcome Nick Huggard, longtime friend of Paige. Over the course of the discussion, we talk about the different dynamics between masculinity and femininity in friendships, how to navigate those differences, male body image, and the men who made him. We loved the passion and energy Nick brought to the conversation and look forward to sharing it with you.

In the second and final part of our conversation with Luke Bobo, we dive deeper into the intersection of race and masculinity, hear about the merits of humility, and find comfort in the wisdom of grandmas. He also shares his thoughts on the value of friendships across gender, race, and age. If you haven't listened to Part 1 of this series, make sure to give it a listen first. As always, thanks for tuning in to another episode!

Author, speaker, and teacher are among the many titles that can be attributed to Luke Bobo, our next guest. A passionate University of Kansas grad, Luke is a father of two and has been a husband to his wife, Rita, for nearly 40 years. In addition to speaking on his lessons from being a parent and a spouse, Luke shares his thoughts on critical moments in his personal development as a man, advice he would offer to young men, and the merits of leaning into a life of virtue.

Back for part 2, we continue our conversation with Gabe. This week, we talk about leadership, healing, and role models. Gabe also walks us through his role as a father and some of the stuff he's been learning from his kids. He's also learned quite a bit that we could all benefit hearing about from Allie, his wife. We hope you enjoy the latest episode of The Men Who Made Me.

An important role model to Paige and Caleb, Gabe has been a behind-the-scenes part of this podcast for a while. He was an instrumental part of some of the early conversations that took place around the topic of masculinity and offered us some thoughts that have guided and formed how we approach it to this day. He also serves as lead pastor at Christ Community Downtown Campus, where we attend weekly. To get started, Gabe offers his ideas on defining masculinity and shares how women have influenced his views, particularly growing up in a single-mother home.

Pitmaster extraordinaire, Thomas White, is our special guest this week. When he's not playing a key role in ensuring KC barbecue keeps its title as the best in the world, Mr. White can be found brightening the days of others, cracking jokes with the rest of the restaurant staff, or spending time with his wife. Join us as he unpacks the value of honesty, the role his parents had in shaping him into the man he is today, and personal accountability's role in leading a good life.

Paige sits down with one of her most influential mentors, David Irons. He is a father of two, alongside his wife Rachel, and currently works as the Director of Freshman with a campus ministry organization at Kansas State University. You'll notice the word 'intentionality' keeps coming up as a defining characteristic of the men we bring on the podcast, and it's true once again for David. Listen in this week to hear him thoughtfully share some of his ideas about being a man, how to foster deep relationships in a community of men, and the men who made him.

This week, we take The Men Who Made Me abroad. Joins us as we interview Caleb's former middle school teacher, who has since gone on to get his PhD is theological ethics and is a leading expert in French theologian/philosopher Jaques Ellul. Jake is a longtime friend of Caleb's family, and has proved himself to be thoughtful intellectually and intentional relationally, though we've also heard him describe himself as a "big goof." We can't wait to share some of his thoughts on defining masculinity, what it can look like across cultures, and a few of them men who made him.

Welcome to the show Sam Kinne, proud husband of Abi, loyal dog-dad of Killian and Sparrow, and good friend of ours. In many regards one of the catalysts and inspirations for the podcast, Sam sits down with Paige and Caleb to discuss intimacy, things young guys should know, creative outlets, hobbies, and, of course, the men who made him.

Meet Paige's supervisor from her time at the Kansas State University career center. Topics of conversation this week include emotional intelligence, the role of competition in growth, being a dad, and what we can learn about healthy masculinity from New Girl. Please bear with us as our audio quality was slightly hampered thanks to AC buzz. We're still figuring this out.

Today, Paige and Caleb sit down for a conversation with their first guest, Kevin Harlan. Join us as we hear about Kevin's journey and how his idea of what it means to be a man changed and evolved over the course of his experiences. You'll also hear about how he came to make sense of being a football guy who could also possessed the skill of showing sensitivity and empathy towards others. Finally, Kevin shares some of the lessons he learned from the men who made him - both those who have built into him from a young age and perhaps even a fictional soccer coach in England who uses a balance of tenderness and toughness to change the culture of an organization. Listen, absorb, and feel free to send us any feedback, questions, or comments at menwhomademe@gmail.com

Join Paige and Caleb for a discussion on what their hopes and dreams are for The Men Who Made Me. They will cover what inspired them to start this project, the impact they hope for it to have, and unpack the challenges of picking a good name for a podcast.

A brief overview of the exploration we are embarking on and a preview of what you can expect to hear more about on our upcoming podcast, The Men Who Made Me.