Podcasts about colorado springs

Today, the story of one woman in recovery from an eating disorder that started when she was very young. The Eating Recovery Center in Denver has seen an uptick in younger kids needing treatment. Then, how the San Luis Valley overcame a justice system in crisis. Plus, we "Raise the Curtain" on a theater company in Colorado Springs with half a century under its belt. And we hike up Colorado's only active volcano! 

1. HEART OF THE MATTER 1A. Record-Breaking Missionary Numbers — Pres. Oaks at New Mission Leader Seminar At the 2026 Seminar for New Mission Leaders (June 18–21, Provo MTC), President Dallin H. Oaks announced that the Church will soon have the largest number of full-time missionaries in its history, surpassing the current 87,000+ serving worldwide. The surge is driven by the first wave of 18-year-old sister missionaries (following the November policy change lowering the minimum age from 19) and the addition of 55 new missions in July, bringing the global total to 506. President Oaks outlined three characteristics defining the restored Church: (1) the fulness of doctrine (including eternal marriage between a man and a woman); (2) priesthood authority and keys; and (3) a unique testimony of Christ grounded in modern revelation and the First Vision. Sister Kristin Oaks also spoke, sharing six core truths missionaries teach. Source: Church Newsroom, June 20, 2026 Note: Strong potential for discussion on what ‘only true and living church’ means in a pluralistic world — Richie angle? 1B. New Hymn ‘Welcome Home’ — The Story Behind It Composer Andrea Brett explains how a 2017 encounter with Demetrius O’Neal — a recent convert serving as a greeter at a Spokane ward on a snowy Sunday morning — inspired her hymn ‘Welcome Home,’ now published in the new Hymns for Home and Church. Brett submitted 10 pieces when the global hymnbook was announced in 2018; this was the only one she’d written before the call. She received confirmation of its selection in February 2025, then had a full-circle moment when she and O’Neal sat near each other at the April 2025 General Conference as the Tabernacle Choir performed it. O’Neal’s name appears in the hymn’s tune name as a tribute. The hymn is now translated and sung globally. Source: Church Newsroom / Richie’s document 1C. Family History Records Are a ‘Sacred Thread’ — Elder Bragg at International Archivists Congress Elder Mark A. Bragg, General Authority Seventy and executive director of the Church’s Family History Department and FamilySearch International, was a keynote speaker at the III Congress of Archivists: Digital Archive Expo (DA-EXPO), held June 8–12 in Astana, Kazakhstan. He called family history records ‘the thin but sacred thread’ tying people together across generations, and argued that records are ‘in a very real sense, witnesses.’ Elder Bragg framed the digital revolution in genealogy in moral terms: for most of history, access to records was shaped by ‘proximity, resources and specialized knowledge,’ but today a record created in one place can be preserved in another, indexed in a third, and discovered by someone on the other side of the world. ‘The reach is astonishing. The speed is breathtaking. The possibilities are almost beyond measure.’ He also said that ‘access is an act of kindness’ — records only fulfill their divine purpose when they are found, understood, and used. His core message: preserving memory is an act of hope. ‘It says that the past is not dead to us and that the future deserves more than fragments.’ Source: Church News, June 17, 2026 Angle: Great ‘quiet but meaningful’ story — LDS family history going global and leveling the playing field for genealogy worldwide. 1D. America Gives — All 50 States Receive Food Donations The Church completed a milestone in its ‘America Gives’ initiative by delivering a shipping container of food to Hilo, Hawaii — marking all 50 states reached. The initiative aims to deliver 250 truckloads of food nationwide in 2026 to celebrate the U.S. 250th anniversary. In Hawaii, the food went to The Food Basket, distributed to 10 local nonprofits. Notably, 42% of residents on the island of Hawaii face food insecurity — the state’s highest rate. Rosie Rios, chair of America 250 and former U.S. Treasurer, praised the milestone. Local Methodist pastor Ted Lesnett said recipients will know ‘when they were hungry, someone cared.’ Source: Church Newsroom / Richie’s document 1E. Church Donates $250,000 NZD to Christchurch Anglican Cathedral Rebuild The Church announced a NZ$250,000 donation (June 19, 2026) toward the restoration of Christchurch’s iconic Anglican Cathedral — damaged in the February 2011 earthquake. Elder Peter F. Meurs (Pacific Area President) and Anglican Bishop Peter Carrell presided at the announcement. The donation comes as the project faces a $45M funding shortfall and an overall $219M budget. The Christchurch City Council has offered $15M contingent on government and Anglican Church matches. Notably, a New Zealand Buddhist community made a similar gift in 2023 — the LDS donation continues a cross-faith pattern of support for the heritage project. Source: Richie’s document Angle: Rare and heartwarming — LDS funds an Anglican cathedral. Good interfaith story. 1F. Central America Humanitarian Blitz — 5 Projects, 500,000+ People In late May and early June 2026, the Church announced five humanitarian projects across Central America (with Sister J. Anette Dennis, First Counselor in the Relief Society General Presidency, representing the Church). Projects include: the ‘Windows of Light’ eyecare program in El Salvador (350,000+ screenings to date); safe water access for 250,000+ in Belize, Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua (with UNICEF); nearly 750 computers/tablets donated to 66 educational institutions in Guatemala; and medical equipment for the ‘La Mascota’ children’s hospital in Nicaragua. Source: Church Newsroom, June 2026 2. FAITH & DOCTRINE 2A. President Christofferson in Philadelphia & Toronto A busy week of ministry for President D. Todd Christofferson: He offered the invocation at Becket’s Canterbury Medal Gala in Philadelphia (multifaith event celebrating religious liberty), alongside Elder Gary E. Stevenson and others. The group also visited the Liberty Bell and Independence Hall — fitting, ahead of America’s 250th. Christofferson reflected on D&C 101 and the Constitution’s purpose to protect ‘all flesh.’ From Philadelphia, he and Sister Christofferson traveled to Toronto, meeting 250+ missionaries in the Canada Toronto Mission weeks before it divides into three missions (Toronto West, Toronto East, and Montreal). He also spoke to hundreds of LDS youth, with one — Amelia Fischer — saying ‘no amount of words can describe how I felt tonight.’ Source: Richie’s document / Church Newsroom 2B. BYU Scholar Study: Religion Adds 7.6 Years to Life The BYU Wheatley Institute is releasing three reports analyzing 3,000 of the most scientifically rigorous studies (culled from 60,000+ papers by Duke University) on religion and health. Key findings: 33/34 studies show improved social health; 10/11 show improved mental health; 7/8 show improved physical health. Regular worshippers live an average of 7.6 years longer (up to 13.7 years longer for African Americans). A ‘landmark finding’: 256 studies show religion prevents/aids recovery from substance abuse (vs. 6 showing negative impact). Author Loren Marks recommends public health frameworks treat religious involvement like exercise recommendations. Source: Richie’s document 2C. Elder Soares Testifies in the Philippines Elder Ulisses Soares completed a two-week ministry in the Philippines (mid-May 2026), meeting with 600+ young single adults in Cebu, 450+ in Quezon City, and 340+ missionaries at the Philippines MTC. His recurring message: ‘His arms are extended to all of us.’ The Philippines has more than 905,000 Latter-day Saints — the Church’s fourth-largest national membership. Two new temples were also dedicated in the Philippines this month: the Davao Philippines Temple (Elder Renlund, May 3) and the Bacolod Philippines Temple (Elder Andersen, May 31). Source: Church Newsroom, June 17, 2026 3. CULTURE & CURIOSITIES 3A. LDS Author in Everyman’s Library — A First BYU biology and bioethics professor Steven L. Peck has reportedly become the first Latter-day Saint author included in the prestigious Everyman’s Library series (publishing canonical English fiction since 1906). His 2012 novella A Short Stay in Hell — a philosophical horror story about a Mormon man condemned to an afterlife library containing every possible book — went viral on BookTok and found a new audience. A literature historian noted: ‘No Mormon or Mormon-adjacent writer that I know of has ever been featured in this prestigious series.’ The Salt Lake Tribune covered the story, noting the irony that a theological horror story marks one of the most significant moments in LDS literary history. Source: Salt Lake Tribune / Richie’s document 3B. The Sasine Family — 40 Countries Before Age 1 Keith and Chelsea Sasine, an LDS couple stationed in Germany (Keith is an Army oral surgeon), made history in November 2025 by taking their youngest daughter Mia to 40 countries before her first birthday (March–November 2025), using a Honda Odyssey for European road trips. The family of six (including Izzy, 10; Abby, 9; and John, 4) attends local wards wherever they travel — a faith anchor the couple says strengthened their testimony and taught their kids the importance of the Sabbath globally. They’re planning a move to Colorado Springs in 2026. Source: Richie’s document 3C. Jen Affleck (Secret Lives of Mormon Wives) Expecting Baby #4 Jen Affleck, 27-year-old star of The Secret Lives of Mormon Wives and Dancing with the Stars alum, announced June 18 that she and husband Zac Affleck are expecting their fourth child. She shared the news on Instagram captioned ‘Chapter Four.

What builds trust when you don't have a title or position of authority? SUMMARY According to Lt. Col. Joe Bledsoe '11, it's honesty, integrity, humility presence and action. Tune in as he shares practical leadership lessons learned from the Academy, combat aviation and years of mentoring others.   SHARE THIS EPISODE FACEBOOK  |  LINKEDIN   COL. BLEDSOE'S TOP 10 LEADERSHIP TAKEAWAYS 1. Leadership starts before the title. People follow your example, ideas, and presence long before you get formal authority. 2. Informal leadership is as real as formal leadership. Class president, wingman, or peer—your influence, credibility, and support role matter even without rank. 3. Be “clay to be molded.” Show eagerness, humility, and effort; people notice fresh attitude and willingness to embrace hard things. 4. You can't lead alone—build a trusted team. Time management and heavy responsibility force you to delegate to people you trust and empower them. 5. Trust has two layers: inherent and earned. Start with inherent trust (shared values, shared background) and deliberately grow earned trust through behavior. 6. Five traits that build credibility fast: Honesty, integrity, humility, presence (actually being there, engaged), and decisive action. 7. Debrief like a fighter pilot: brutally honest, never personal. Separate the person from the performance, do root‑cause analysis, fix errors, and then move on—no re‑litigating. 8. Own your mistakes out loud. Saying “I'm sorry,” “I was wrong,” or “I don't know, but I'll find out” accelerates trust and models humility. 9. Mentors and mentees are non‑negotiable. Continuously seek guidance from those ahead of you and invest in those behind you to sharpen your own thinking. 10. Prioritize relationships and pride in the mission. Treat family and friends well, cultivate the Long Blue Line, and remember you're on the A‑team—act like it.   CHAPTERS 00:00:00 — Opening & Guest Intro Show open, Naviere introduces Lt Col Joe “Paveway” Bledsoe and his career highlights. 00:01:13 — Voluntold to Lead: Becoming Class President Basic cadet training, being “voluntold,” interview gauntlet, and getting elected class president. 00:04:09 — What a Class President Actually Does Informal vs formal leadership, picking the class exemplar (Robin Olds), dining‑ins, spirit missions, and accountability. 00:08:38 — From Future Doctor to Fighter Pilot Arriving at USAFA wanting to be a physician, loving biology and medicine, and the first seeds of doubt. 00:10:03 — Ops Air Force, Powered Flight, and the Pivot Deployed Ops Air Force in CENTCOM, exposure to flying in theater, powered flight, and choosing pilot training over med school. 00:12:22 — Mentors, Family, and Making a Hard Call Mentorship from family, upperclassmen, and permanent party; emotional weight of changing paths and family's reaction. 00:14:08 — Leading Without Rank: Credibility and Trust Informal leadership as a young wingman, lessons from time management and delegation as class president, inherent vs earned trust, and key traits (honesty, integrity, humility, presence, action). 00:22:06 — Fighter Pilot Debriefs & Radical Feedback Culture Brutally honest debriefs, owning mistakes, root‑cause analysis, safety and mission focus, and how that mindset translates beyond the cockpit. 00:27:48 — Leadership at Home: Marriage, Parenting, and ‘Knock It Off' High‑school‑sweetheart marriage, parenting, using accountability and humility with kids, and balancing “fighter pilot” mode with being a husband and dad. 00:30:30 — Future Conflict, Growth, and Pride in the Long Blue Line Risk and future fight, Institute for Future Conflict, exposure to other AFSCs and logistics, daily growth habits (mentors, mentees, reading, writing, running), advice to younger self, and closing message on being proud of USAFA and the A‑team.   ABOUT COL. BLEDSOE BIO Lt. Col. Joseph “Paveway” Bledsoe '11 is a U.S. Air Force Academy graduate and recognized leader whose career has spanned combat operations, advanced airpower development and service to the Long Blue Line. A native of rural Pennsylvania, Bledsoe graduated from the Academy in 2011 with a degree in biology before earning a Master of Public Policy from the University of Maryland.  He is Currently assigned to the Institute for Future Conflict at the U.S. Air Force Academy where he studies the future of airpower, emerging technologies and the challenges of great-power competition. Prior to joining the Institute, he helped lead training and operational planning efforts at the 366th Fighter Wing, contributing to major exercises and the wing's first deployment to the Indo-Pacific region. His work bridges the gap between today's operational realities and tomorrow's strategic challenges. A recipient of the Association & Foundation's Young Alumni Excellence Award, Bledsoe is widely respected for his emphasis on faith, family and service. Throughout his career, he has remained deeply connected to the Academy community through mentorship, alumni leadership and a commitment to developing the next generation of leaders. On this episode of Long Blue Leadership, he shares lessons learned from leading peers, building influence before authority and navigating high-stakes decisions in both the cockpit and the profession of arms.   CONNECT WITH JOE LINKEDIN   CONNECT WITH THE LONG BLUE LINE PODCAST NETWORK TEAM Ted Robertson | Producer and Editor:  Ted.Robertson@USAFA.org Send your feedback or nominate a guest: socialmedia@usafa.org Please note: we are only considering USAFA graduates as guests at this time. Ryan Hall | Director:  Ryan.Hall@USAFA.org  Bryan Grossman | Copy Editor:  Bryan.Grossman@USAFA.org Wyatt Hornsby | Executive Producer:  Wyatt.Hornsby@USAFA.org     ALL PAST LBL EPISODES  |  ALL LBLPN PRODUCTIONS AVAILABLE AT USAFA.ORG/LONGBLUELEADERSHIP AND ON ALL MAJOR PODCAST PLATFORMS     FULL TRANSCRIPT Guest, Lt. Col. (Ret.) Joe "Paveway" Bledsoe" '11  |  Host, Lt. Col. (Ret.) Naviere Walkewicz '99    Lt. Col. (Ret.) Naviere Walkewicz 0:01 Sometimes leadership begins long before you've ever been put in charge. It starts when people trust you enough to follow your example, your ideas or your vision. I'm Naviere Walkewicz, Class of '99; Long Blue Leadership starts now. Well, Lt. Col. Joe “Paveway” Bledsoe the Third. Welcome to Long Blue Leadership. Lt. Col. Joe Bledsoe 0:20 Naviere, it's great to see you. Thank you for having me here today. I'm looking forward to the conversation. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 0:24 So, Joe, your career has been exciting so far, and you're still in it. You know, you have been operational leader, obviously an F-15E Strike Eagle pilot. You've been deployed, you have been a researcher, you're a Young Alumni Excellence Award winner for our Association & Foundation, you've been an AOG board director and a fellow for the Institute for Future Conflict. And that, that's just, you know, a short little list, because you're a student heading back into, over to, is it North Carolina, right? Seymour Johnson.   Col. Joe Bledsoe 0:53 That's correct. Seymour Johnson, yep.   Col. Naviere Walkewicz 0:54 In the cockpit, yeah. Col. Joe Bledsoe 0:56 Yeah, we're super excited. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 0:59 Yes. Well, we're going to touch on probably many of those places, but I want to dial it back to something that only one graduate in every class experiences, and for you it happened shortly after Basic Cadet Training. Your class selected you as your class president. How did that come about? Col. Joe Bledsoe 1:14 How did that all go down? That's a great question. So there we were, right after basic training. I was in Cadet Squadron 19 for my freshman year, and I got the opportunity — this is one of those voluntold moments, right — where the upperclassmen and BCT cadre said, “Joe,” or “Cadet Bledsoe, report to H-1 during transition week.” That's when everybody's coming back, and you're like, “Sure, yep, yes, sir, yes, ma'am. Here we go.” So I show up with 40, 50 other fourth-class cadets, and we come to find out it was for us, and we were going to go through who was going to be the class officers. So first off, as I look back on that experience, a lot of respect and no humility being asked to go like represent Squadron 19, right? Like, I didn't volunteer, they just kind of pointed me in that direction, so we show up and got to interview with the upperclassmen, class officers, and there's funny interview questions, real serious interview questions. You know, I was just honest, right? Like, I'm here. This is what I think about what being a leader looks like, and how I could help serve the class, not thinking I would ever be selected, right? And as the night is going on, and ACQ is right around the corner, they kind of whittle it down to four or five of us, and we get up in front of the rest of the cadets and classmates that were there, and it was an open forum, like you know, back in Rome times, like you're standing in the gauntlet, Yeah, like it was like Roman voting, right? And asked a bunch of questions, and I remember standing up there with, you know, preppies, prior enlisted, and then me, just like straight off the street, and there's a couple other of us up there, and just answer the questions honestly, and at the end of that, there was a vote, and you know, they read the results, and I was like, "Holy smokes, I'm class president. How did this, how did this happen,” right? And I think there's a lot that — it was daunting at first, right? And then also, like, “This is awesome, I don't know what I'm getting into,” right? I just found out about it. I remember walking back on the Tizo. This was the first time I can say this now, because you know, grad, and I didn't run the strips because the upperclassmen and class officers walked me back, and I distinctly remember to — back to my squadron to — Jordan Kraft and Forrest Underwood walked back and were given some mentorship to me, like here's how to succeed, here's things we would recommend, and it was just an awesome opportunity to like kind of learn what pure leadership looks like, what it means to be in this not org chart that is unique to the Academy, and that's where the, that's where the adventure started for class president. I'm still, I haven't been fired yet, and I still proudly serve the Class of 2011 — Robin Olds' class — as their class president, and it's one of the best jobs that I have the privilege of doing. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 4:10 My goodness. I mean, just to unpack that a little bit, obviously, in basic cadet training, you did enough to impress your cadre, I'm sure that there was probably some sort of cadre selection to bring however many of them forth first. Would you say that you would you agree with that, or is that — am I way off? Col. Joe Bledsoe 4:28 Yeah, I would say —I think when I look back my time at basic training, like I wanted to come to the Academy since I was in your school, right? So, like, I thrived — I'm not saying it was easy by any means, right? We all know that, but I thrived in like this new adventure, right? And I took everything, I embraced everything. I think that may have been something they saw, right? Like I was clay to be molded, right? And I had some prior opportunities in basic to show that to my BCT cadre, and they picked up on it. It wasn't that I was trying, but I think looking back on that experience, there was moments of like my freshness, my eagerness, my like pride in that I made it to basic training, that I wanted to just try as hard as I could, and I think some of that probably shown through, and ultimately may have been why I was selected to go try that interview process, right? Col. Naviere Walkewicz 5:20 So that interview process, at the end of the day, you were elected by your peers, and you know it — to your point — you said in that unusual, the not normal org chart, right, the one that doesn't exist, but yet you have leadership of your class. What did that look like? How did that translate? Because not many of us are class president, I'm certainly not my class president, and so I'm not sure what that leadership role looks like. Can you share a little bit more about some examples? Col. Joe Bledsoe 5:46 Yeah, I think that that leadership role was very different each year, right? As a freshman and a sophomore, as a four-degree and a three-degree, before any official academy leadership position starts to present themselves, that they do for two-degrees and firsties, it was a lot of helping the class stay as a collective whole, right? So one of the first big things as freshmen was selecting our class exemplar, right? And running like — how do, who do we select? How do we come together and figure that process out? How do we then, once we have a name, once we selected Robin Olds, how do we have a formal dining in? Things that I had never even heard of, right? As well as on the other side, the shenanigans, right? So, the spirit missions, right? There was many times I've had to go to the commandant's office and say, I don't know where the class crest is, like, out of pure honesty, right? But, like, that is, that was like a way, as an underclassman, that we kind of got that informal leadership, but also you're the leader by default here, so we're gonna, we're gonna make you accountable for your class. So I got to see both sides, that transitioning a little bit more to two-degree and first a year was now taking a little bit step back in writing in the informal leadership position, so I looked as myself as like a supporting agent, supporting member to our cadet leadership, and I always presented that like, “Hey, if you need our class to do something, I will do that, but if militarily you own that, like, I'm not ever going to step on your toes or push back,” right? The other thing we got, I was able to do is also help provide, like, morale inputs, right? Like you kind of had the pulse of morale, I think, more as the class president sometimes than in the official leadership, so could help provide some inputs along those ways, and there are some, say more shenanigans or morale events that we get to help put forth and present those to the cadet leadership for official approval later on as we firsties. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 8:04 Gosh, well, that was, I mean, it's really insightful for us to understand some of the roles that a class president and class cabinet plays, and so understanding that it's — I like how you put it as a supporting agent to the formal leadership. And we're gonna touch on this a lot more, because I think there's going to be times when you'll share how you build that trust and credibility throughout, both when you're a cadet and as an officer. But before we jump there, I happen to find out, Joe, that you weren't coming to the Air Force Academy to become a fighter pilot, but to become a physician. Can we talk about that for a moment? Col. Joe Bledsoe 8:37 Absolutely, that's absolutely a — I came to the Air Force Academy, wanted to be a doctor. I knew I wanted to be a biology major. I declared, I think, the first day I could declare and went through the gauntlet of getting ready for med school applications, and I loved every second of it. It was awesome. Even my fellow classmates would say he was a huge nerd and studying all the time, because that was my goal, right? I came into the Academy, and I wanted to be a doctor, and I knew the gauntlet that is, that that is required to do such a thing. And I still love medicine, right? I still love — I think medicine is fascinating. Every time my probably get there someday, or in the conversation, but anytime my kids have to go to the ER, like I'm like, “Can I scrub in,” right? All that kind of stuff. Yeah, put me in. I love medicine, and it wasn't till the summer between my two-degree and firstie year did I have that midlife crisis at the age of 21 and then firstie year is when that crisis kind of came to a head, and new doors opened, and here we are today, right? So that, yes, you're absolutely right. Always wanted to be a doctor. I was still fascinated by medicine, but now I'm just a pilot. So, there we go. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 9:57 So, can we, can you expand a bit more on it? So, was it a decision you wanted to make or a decision you had to make? Col. Joe Bledsoe 10:03 Yeah, yeah, that's great. It was a decision I had to make, ultimately, myself. Right? No one, no one said, “Joe, you can't be a doctor.” So, the summer — there's two key things that really happened that helped influence that decision. The first one was the summer between two-degree in firstie year, I had the opportunity to deploy to the Middle East, and we've heard of Ops Air Force. You know Ops Air Force. Well, at that time we had a deployed Ops Air Force, so they sent cadets overseas to deployed locations to see what was, you know, to get the full experience in a deployed location. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 10:40 Wow. Col. Joe Bledsoe 10:40 So I had the opportunity to do that. Spent the summer in CENTCOM and kind of opened my eyes to… Col. Naviere Walkewicz 10:47 Oh, Central Command. Col. Joe Bledsoe 10:47 Yeah, sorry, Central Command, and got to experience — I got attached to a C-130 unit, right, and I got to see what flying looked like in a deployed environment, and I kind of opened my eyes, where I've been hyper focused on medicine, right? Like, you know, so focused on this is what it takes to be a doctor. I kind of like put my blinders on to what the rest of the Air Force did, right? So I was like, “This is pretty, this is, these guys and gals are doing awesome stuff, like this is this is the pointy end of what was going on.” And that planted a seed, that planted a seed. So it came back, firstie year was doing the med school applications, going through, I had some free time in my academic calendar, and I got to go down to the airfield and do the powered flight program. So, I got to see flying over the summer, and then I was blessed enough to have the opportunity to go fly an airplane, and I was like, “OK, the seed was planted, let's see if I get air sick, like, let's see if there's anything else here that might make me not want to do this.” And I loved it. Right, I fell in love with flying down at the airfield. I came back, and I was like, I'm gonna pause the med school applications and put my name in the hat for pilot training, and the rest was history, right? So, doors open, doors close, right? But that was my story, and I loved getting to talk to cadets about that, because so many can be — so many times we see some that are hyper focused, and like there's always other options out there, and it's OK to have a crisis we can talk you through. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 12:23 I think that's a fantastic lesson that you actually learned early, because you know it's interesting — had you not been sent to Ops Air Force at a deployed location, you might not have taken Alex flight, and so you know when you think about leadership opportunities and lessons, this is one of those moments where it actually steered you in a new direction. So, as we think about that, I'm curious, how your family responded to that, because, you know, you had come to the Air Force Academy to be a doctor. Were they happy for you? Were they surprised, a little nervous? Col. Joe Bledsoe 12:57 Yeah, there was a ton of mentorship there, right? Not just from my family, but from upperclassmen peers, permanent party, like, “What are you doing? Like, you came here telling us this was your goal. Where did this new goal come from?” So, there was a lot of time talking that through, and I needed that myself. It wasn't, as you know, in any decision, like, it wasn't a snap decision. So, a lot of time walking through that decision process and leaning on mentors and kind of asking the questions, like I knew what four years of med school, and then residency, but I knew what that like, what does pilot training look like? How long does that take, right? So, a lot of questions to help answer, or to find answers through, and ultimately, my family was super supportive, super supportive, and they still joke, like, “Hey, how come you're not doctor.” Well, because I fly F-15s now, right? But all supportive all throughout the process, right? And that's where you lean on others, right? Lean on others, because it very much felt like a crisis, like I still have scar tissue over it. But looking back on it, it wasn't just me making — I ultimately made the decision, but they helped me through it. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 14:08 That's fantastic. You know, I think about you as an officer, as a fighter pilot, and obviously there's a lot of steps you took to get there on the road was certainly not easy. Often, though, I think that there can be some misconceptions, or maybe this is accurate, that earlier in your pilot life or your aviator life, there's probably not a lot of leadership lessons where you're leading others. Maybe, maybe that's a misperception, and we'd love to talk about that. You know, how do you find the leadership opportunities then when you are, you know, you're party of one, right? You don't necessarily have any direct reports. What does leadership look like there? Col. Joe Bledsoe 14:43 Yeah, can we take that back to like some lessons I learned at the Academy?   Col. Naviere Walkewicz 14:46 Oh, absolutely.   Col. Joe Bledsoe 14:47 Right, I think, I think that's where I've leaned most heavily in, like, not in there's this difference between formal leadership and informal, positional versus informal, and I was blessed enough at a pretty young age to learn the plus — the how to succeed and how to fail in informal leadership. I've tried to carry that throughout my career. So when you say like the younger days of being a wingman in the F-15 community, it's a lot about credibility. It's a lot about that peer leadership. How do you build the credibility? How do you build the trust to be someone that others look up to in that informal system, right, in that informal system. When they look down their phone, like, “Who do I call? Who do I have to call? Who do I want to call?” Right? and I think that's where you have to balance some of that stuff, and I spent time thinking about that, and trying to lean on lessons that I learned from the Academy, and while formal leadership positions were never handed to me, that doesn't mean you're not a leader, right? Like, you can't beat it, doesn't mean you don't just get to sit back and not lead. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 16:02 Can you share an example of a time when you learned that about yourself, or what that looked like?   Col. Joe Bledsoe 16:09 In the flying world? Col. Naviere Walkewicz 16:11 Or as a cadet?   Col. Joe Bledsoe 16:12 Yeah, as a cadet, I think the biggest one was — I'll take it back to, like, freshman, sophomore year, where I learned one of the key pillars that I'm convinced the Air Force Academy teaches all us grads about is time management, right? And I thought I was pretty good at time management, and then when you're now the president of 1,000 other cadets, your inbox fills up very quickly, right? Or you're like, “I thought I was good at time management.” And I learned very quickly that you can't do it alone, right? You can't do it alone, and I had to learn to surround myself with people that I trusted and that I could delegate or hand tasks off to, and just say, “I need this accomplished,” and I did that to my friends that I knew would get the mission done, right? And I had to have that level of trust, and I think that is translated throughout my career, where I inherently trust people with a project, right? I think there's two versions of trust, inherent trust and earned trust. When I look at the graduate network, whether that's the Air Force Academy, Navy, West Point, and I see a class ring, I'm like, “I inherently trust you,” and I can, I believe, or I see some other veterans have on — like, “I inherently trust you,” and then in other cases where I've had to learn and work with people, it's now, “I'm earning your trust, and I hope you're earning mine as well,” and that is this unique balance of I inherently trust you, I learned that at the Academy. Now let's build on that as a foundation and get this earned trust to as high as we can. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 17:54 What does some of that earned trust or becoming more credible look like when young leaders don't have the benefit of time? Right, so I, the more time I work with you, the more I learn about you. You build that credibility, etc. How does one accomplish that, maybe either shorten the gap or do that a little quicker or impactfully earlier? Col. Joe Bledsoe 18:18 Yeah, time is always — like we always need more time, right? How often do you say, like, “I only have 24 hours, but I need more time,” right? So, if we're always fighting time, like, and everybody's fighting time, then, like, that's a constant. So, let's not worry about time. So, I look at it as, like, what traits do people bring to the table, or what traits can we can we sharpen? Honesty, right? Honesty is huge. You have to be honest, and that's a pillar of trust. Integrity, right? Integrity first and showing people that you display integrity is really important. Humility, I think, is also really important. Humility is really important. I was listening to a podcast the other day, and it really struck home to me, a sense of humility is — if a leader is able to say three things, they're gonna — I know I could, I can build that trust, no matter what that time gap is. “I'm sorry,” “I was wrong,” or one of the seven basic responses: “I don't know, but I'll find out,” right? I think that's really important with humility. The other one is presence, not with a T, like we're not giving presents, but presence. Being present is really important character trait in my mind, and the fifth one that I try to reflect on a lot is action. Right? I think defaulting to not doing something is not what we want. That doesn't help build trust. Taking action with what knowledge you have and making a decision is really important, and I think those are the traits that help build that credibility, help build that trust in that time gap, whatever that looks like. If you can hit those, the five that I try to hit home. If you can do that, hopefully you're building that relationship that is going to foster — have great fruition out of it. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 20:06 That's outstanding, and that's really helpful, I think. I love how you took out the constant of time being an excuse, right? Like, we don't always have the benefit of time, whether it's time and getting more experience or just time in general, I think those are outstanding examples of how you can build credibility. So, thank you for sharing that. You know, one of the things that I also would love to kind of dig into a little bit of your experiences, Joe — because they've been really vast, right? So, I don't believe that everyone has the same kind of path. How have you grown as a leader in these different experiences that really, again, aren't positional leadership roles? I'm just curious, how your growth has been in that space. Col. Joe Bledsoe 20:47 Think a lot of it's been through failure. I think a lot of it's been through failure. These might not be huge, like we lost a million dollars, or like, not through those kind of failures, but relationship failures, or conversation failure at the micro level, and how I've tried to handle that is surround myself with people that will tell me that the emperor — I'm gonna go back to the, I'm gonna go back to the old fairy tale, or fable, right? If you surround yourself with people that are able to come up to you, and you trust them, and you trust their feedback, that is something I've tried, that was Cadet Bledsoe, advice given to me is Cadet Bledsoe. Surround yourself with people that you will listen to and take their feedback honestly. And sometimes that means if I don't have that person in the room and I know I fumbled a conversation or I made a poor decision, it's going to that individual and saying, “I messed up, I'm sorry, I was wrong,” or “I don't know,” right. And that's how I try to use that to present humility, I think, and that's important, because we're all fallible, we all make mistakes, and if I can't admit that, then, like, we're off to the wrong foot right away. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 22:06 Do you think some of that that skill that you've developed over time has been something that you've learned in, and forgive me, I don't know if it's a fighter pilot community, specifically, or you know, I think about when you do your sorties and you have some sort of debrief, right? I feel what I've heard, I've not actually sat in one, but they're very real. Like, there's no, it's not about making you feel good about it, like it's about the safety and the mission, and so I'm curious, if that skill of humility, and you know, calling a spade a spade, and calling it I'm wrong and I'm wrong, did that come from some of that experience, and maybe you can talk through what that's like, because not everyone, I think, practices at that level of transparency. Col. Joe Bledsoe 22:46 Yeah, the fighter pilot debrief. I learned some of the importance of that through mentorship as a cadet, and then that was sharpened as a fighter pilot. And I learned the importance of that through the form, my formal job, right, the mission, the lives at stake, aircraft, that kind of stuff. And I think I've tried, I've only honed that skill through Air Force training, right? The Air Force has trained me to think like that, and I've tried to translate that into my personal life and leadership positions, because I think there's tons of value to that. There is tons of value in being willing to find a mistake, own up to that mistake with the knowledge and hope that it doesn't happen again, right? And if that is like, if you, if that's your north star, we don't do this again, like, why wouldn't you want to be on that team? Why wouldn't, why don't you want to be? That's how we get better, right? And I think that seed again was planted as a cadet. Like, let's, I tell cadets all the time, like, you're joining the A-team, so put in A effort, right? Like, if you're going to join the A-team, I don't want B-players, and this is what we got to get, like, let's go, right? It's a motivating factor in my mind. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 24:08 What are some of the ways to approach that in a leadership conversation for someone who would be interested in taking on some of those, those learned lessons? Col. Joe Bledsoe 24:18 Yeah, I think the first thing is transparency and honesty right up front. Like this, Naviere, if we were flying together, right and you were my instructor, your job is not to degrade me as a human, but to prove to me that I made a mistake with the ultimate goal of making me better, right? Your job is to always, like — and the relationship you and I have as an instructor and a student is my — I'm gonna sit here in the debrief and go, and Naviere is here to make me better, right? Like, that's your, that's your job, right? Right. So, once you start that as the foundation, like, it can only get better if I know your job is to make me better, and your job is I'm supposed to make this guy better, right. And often we can, when feedback is provided, you're like, this could be a personal attack, or, like, that's all left out, that's all left outside the debrief room, right? Like, we're here to make everybody better, and I think that's where it starts: with that transparency and honesty up front of the expectation. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 25:15 So you'll actually say that. You would actually… Col. Joe Bledsoe 25:17 No, I think that's just a common, that's a common theme, right? That's the expectation in the community. And not just in the fighter community. I think it's throughout the Air Force, right? I think that's what makes us really, really unique. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 25:32 Because feedback is something that we, we do — although maybe some can do it better than others — I think that's a really fantastic way — before you're giving someone feedback, you're really clear on this is what we're hoping to accomplish by having this time together. And so, I think what you just said can make feedback so much more impactful, because it's not about the person, it's about what are we trying to accomplish and helping you, I guess. It is about you, but ultimately helping you. Col. Joe Bledsoe 25:59 Absolutely, right? Like the where every debrief starts is we had a mission objective and we had tactical objectives. Did we do them? If we didn't, let's figure out why, right? So translating to the business world or private sector, it's a root cause analysis, right? It's a root cause analysis, and we will get down to the nitty gritty of like, what type of error — did you make a decision error? Did you perceive the environment wrong? Did your actions cause the error, right? And we get down to that level, so that when the student, student Paveway walks away, Naviere, knows, Naviere, you gave me the exact, like, you decided wrong, because X, Y and Z; don't do that again. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 26:43 Right. Col. Joe Bledsoe 26:44 Here's your fix. You know, that debrief can take hours, and that's the beauty of it, right? “We're gonna sit there, and we're not gonna let anything not be uncovered, because we're gonna go do this again tomorrow, and we can't make the same mistake tomorrow,” right? “We can't make the same mistake.” Col. Naviere Walkewicz 27:01 No, that's, that's fantastic. I mean, to have it that clear, and to know it, like, OK, we're not gonna, we don't stay in that space. We've addressed it, we know we've identified a fix, and we move forward. Is that what you said? Col. Joe Bledsoe 27:12 Absolutely. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 27:13 There's no like, continue to revisit, like… Col. Joe Bledsoe 27:15 Yep, that's the point, right? Like, “I've learned something, I know, I've acknowledged my mistake. Let's move on. This wasn't personal, this was you making me better.” Iron sharpens iron, right? So, here we go, and then move on. And now that translates, as you asked kind of a couple minutes ago, right, that can translate to so many things in your life, right? And I try to do that sometimes, like my wife will tell me, I go too fighter pilot, but there's versions of that that translate as we are not in a fight or pilot debrief. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 27:50 You literally got in my head because I was gonna say, now I want to put you on the spot, because Joe, you are married to your high school sweetheart, you make a 2% club, right? Like, you actually started the Academy with a sweetheart and ended with the same sweetheart. And now you have three amazing, beautiful children. How do you translate that to, you know, feedback to your family or your personal life? And I love how your wife said too fighter pilot, but how about to your kids? Col. Joe Bledsoe 28:15 Yeah, married my high school sweetheart, Alicia. We started dating our sophomore year, and we've been together ever since. So she is not a grad, but she has a lot of Air Force in her blood, so that's great, and the kids, I would say there's a couple things when it comes to taking some things I've learned or been trained in the Air Force, translating on the home front. The first one goes to accountability, right? I think accountability is really important because in an aircraft, you have to be accountable for your actions, and I think that translates to being a parent, as well as trying to teach the kids some humility. Right, where to be humble, when to own up to your mistakes, and sometimes that works in the fighter pilot way, sometimes it doesn't, and I think that's leadership, right? You can have leadership skills and be consistent in some, in some ways, but other times adaptability is really important, especially with the kids, and each one of my kids is very unique, and we have to cater to each one of them and their unique skills. I will say about my wife, I love her with all my heart, but she knows the words “knock it off” as well, right, because that's a sacred word, not just in the military, but on our, in our homefront, and that usually means stop being a full fighter pilot, like go back to being Dad, right? So she knows, she knows the words and how to make that all go down. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 29:47 I love that it's another language, right? You have your, your fighter pilot language, and you have a home front language. I love that. Thank you for sharing that. You know, I'd like to switch gears a little bit to your time operationally, and maybe this translates into now your work at the Institute, or your most recent work at the Institute for Future Conflict and preparing cadets for the future fight. I'm curious, how all of these skills that you've learned, and these leadership traits that you've continued to develop in yourself, have translated in moments of, you know, like, real conflict, real distress, like when the stakes are high, and how you prepare cadets to think that way, even though maybe they've not experienced that. I'm just curious, what that looks like. Col. Joe Bledsoe 30:31 Yeah, it is hard to translate — like cadets love war stories, right? Like, “So there I was…” but it's hard to translate some of, like, the putting, having the cadets put themselves in the shoes of someone that has 15 years of flying under their belt, right? Like, that's hard for them to grasp, and I understand that, and that's not what I'm asking of them to do, but there are certain skills that I think are really important, and that I've got to experience and talk to cadets and research and spend time thinking about at the Institute for Future Conflict at the IFC. One is risk, right? How do we, how do we think about risk, right? Are we risk prone? We risk adverse? How do we think about risk, not just in this moment, but how does our decision today affect five days from now, a month, right? And, as you remember, because I know it happened to you as a cadet, like you're just in the, like, “What's my next problem,” right? What's my next — OK, how does, like, fixing this problem affect next week? Right. And I think that's what I've got had the opportunity to think a lot about the IFC, as well as try one thing I've learned being back here at the Academy was my experience as a cadet is not the same experience as the cadets now. And what do I mean by that is when I graduated, GWOT, Global War on Terror was the thing we knew what we were getting into. I very much knew flying, going to the Middle East. Now the cadets looked to me and other permanent party, and like, what's our fight going to look like? And right, the question mark is, I don't know, but let me tell you, think about this, and I could be wrong, and I think that is where I've had a lot of time to think about future conflict and what's problems, maybe not nations or adversaries, but like big meta level things they'll have to think about, information access, information sharing, trust, right? How do you, how do you help develop some of these skills in the cadets? And that's where I've spent a lot of time the last two years trying to think and spend, spend some brain bytes, like what does air power look like in this unknown environment? Col. Naviere Walkewicz 32:52 And as you're about to step back into it, I'm thoughtful of that, and so now you're taking what you've helped cadets start to hone in and think about. How are you different now as a leader going back into the cockpit than you were when you came to the Academy? Col. Joe Bledsoe 33:09 Yeah, let me get back to the cockpit, and everyone can tell me what, how I'm different. We'll use that as the test. But here's one thing I think — I've reflected on this recently, going back to the Strike Eagle community. One has been my exposure here in Colorado Springs and at the Air Force Academy, meaning I've learned a lot about what others do that I wasn't — I knew other jobs existed, I knew other AFSCs did things, but not being in a flying day-to-day ops tempo, I've had the opportunity to sit down and, like, “What do you say you do?” “Oh, that has some effects here, here, and here,” and I use a specific vignette would be, I've got to spend a lot of time in the management department and helped teach in the global logistics minor, and like, I knew there was logisticians in the Air Force, and like, that's yeah, right? That's how stuff got here, but like, understanding the importance of, like, that's how my bombs got here, this is how the b…, right, like, truly understanding their frustrations, I think will make me get less frustrated in my day to day, right, and I think that has been one thing that the Academy has given back to me the second time I've been here, is a little bit more exposure to the Air Force, as well as the Space Force, being here in Colorado Springs, like seeing what each team member, like each cog in the machine brings to the fight, right? And I think that's been a blessing here. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 34:42 So those that you will begin to get back working with — your men and women in your community — they won't have had that exposure, and so I'm now going back to our where we started with the sense of informal leadership. How do you help others gain that experience and thought, and maybe thought process informally, since they haven't really been exposed to that? How would you help them navigate it? Col. Joe Bledsoe 35:09 Naviere, I think the best way to do stuff like that is, like, you raised your hand when you said logistics officers, like Naviere, we're doing a podcast with my next squadron, you're coming to talk, right? Col. Naviere Walkewicz 35:19 Right, it's like that was like a long time ago, we need someone more recent. Col. Joe Bledsoe 35:24 But, OK, Naviere, it's not you, but you know people, that's how stuff gets done, right, that's how stuff gets done. And while I by no means want to stand up in front of everybody and say I'm the expert on logistics, but I, I'm not that person, but I trust Naviere, Naviere's contact here, and that's how, like, you create this network of knowledge and this network of trust and credibility. And to my, to the fighter pilots that I'll be flying with, it's somewhat like throwing mud at the wall sometimes, like we're gonna keep throwing mud and see what sticks, but at least they know it's there, right? Like, we're gonna, your job is still to go kill things and blow things up, but at the same time, you know there's this other network out there that you can lean into. But let me be a conduit to make that happen. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 36:15 That is awesome. That's fantastic. So I want to go into this period now, where we talk about you and your continued growth as a leader. What is something, Joe, that you're doing every day to be a better leader? Col. Joe Bledsoe 36:30 I have mentors, and I've tried to find mentees. I think that is where growth can happen, leaning on others for mentorship and mentees to try to talk through some things you've thought through and give experience and exposure to others, right? And that's that network we were just talking about, right? Other things I think are really important is reading and writing. Read a lot, write a lot, nobody writes good anymore, right? Thanks, ChatGPT. But being able to communicate in the written form is really important. So, writing and reading. And the other thing, too, is as a leader, just find an outlet, find something, find a hobby, find something that's fun to do, right. So, I got into running here at the Academy, because we're at high elevation, and I'm, why not, right? But find something that, like, rounds you out, right? It's fine, find an outlet that helps give you some relief from all the stresses that can happen in leadership. That's where I would say I spend a lot of time, or what I think about trying to sharpen my skills. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 37:34 Daily. So, what are you reading right now? Col. Joe Bledsoe 37:37 Oh, that's a great question. I have a couple books that are on the table. Mask of Command is one that I'm reading as I get ready to go back and potentially be in a leadership role. There's a couple other books that come to mind. I'm reading a baseball coaching book, because I coach my baseball, it's a basketball book by Coach K from Duke, as I go back to North Carolina, but it's a book, how to coach kids, right, Leadership on the Court, and it's fun to just think about training and coaching kids and how to keep them inspired. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 38:18 Oh, that's awesome. So, speaking of kids, if you were to go back in time, and talk to younger Joe Bledsoe, the third, what advice would you give him? Col. Joe Bledsoe 38:30 Yeah, if I had to go back, I would say it's worth it. Every second, work hard at the Academy, right? The doors that it opens, that's where my mind went when you asked the question, like, younger me at the Academy. Be good to Alicia, my wife, right? Be good, because she's going to be with you for a long time. So be good to her, as well as foster your, foster your friendships. They're going to mean a lot to you in the future, right? The relationships you build on that hill are going to come back in ways you have no idea years to come. So take time and prioritize the people that you meet. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 39:10 Those are really great reflections. Joe, is there anything that we haven't covered in our conversation that you would love to share with our Long Blue Leadership listeners and viewers? Col. Joe Bledsoe 39:24 Absolutely, be proud of this institution. I'm proud of it. I know you are too, Naviere. Proud of this Academy. Be proud of the cadets, be proud of the permanent party that work here. There's an A-team out there, and this is this is where it starts, right? And it's not just if you're serving in blue or in the Space Force, right? If you're out there doing awesome things for our country on the private, in the private sector, thank you. Keep doing what you're doing. There's no shade of blue in the Long Blue Line, that's my, my phrase for that one. There's no shade of blue. Serve your country, be proud. And that's — just be proud to be an Academy grad. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 40:07 That's fantastic. So, you know, in our time together, I have loved this, this, this leadership conversation, because we really span an area that I don't think a lot of people talk about, and it's, how do you demonstrate leadership in an informal way, you know, without titles and without necessarily key positions or in the hierarchical structure, and so some of the things that really stood with me, Joe, that you've covered, have been being credible, being present, and humble. I really like that, and you didn't say this in these words, but what I took from that was, you know, being honest and truthful is almost one of the most kind ways you can be right, because you're actually helping someone be better, and that really stuck with me, you know. I don't, we have an A-team, we don't need B-players, that I think you exactly said that, so definitely stuck with me. But watching the way that you have led, not with your class, not just the cadets, and, you know, certainly not the squadron that you will have here shortly as a director of operations, but I think you've continued to just be who you've always been, which is someone who leads with integrity through those pillars and certainly by example. So this has been an incredible conversation, and for anyone that is watching us and listening to this, for others that are in their leadership journeys, this is another one you're going to want to share, because it's not just about, you know, Lt. Col. Bledsoe's journey right now, it's been all of these moments and experiences and memories and they really do connect with anyone on a leadership journey. So, be sure to join in on longblueleadership.org or wherever you get your podcasts, not just to see this one, but all of our other conversations. So, Joe, thank you so much for joining us today. Col. Joe Bledsoe 41:46 Thank you Naviere. Go Air Force! Col. Naviere Walkewicz 41:48 Go Air Force!   Col. Joe Bledsoe 41:49 There we go. Col. Naviere Walkewicz 41:50 Absolutely, until next time, we'll see you on Long Blue Leadership. KEYWORDS informal leadership, peer leadership, Air Force Academy leadership, USAFA class president, fighter pilot debrief culture, building trust and credibility, leadership humility, future conflict and airpower, Long Blue Leadership podcast, military leadership lessons.     The Long Blue Line Podcast Network is presented by the U.S. Air Force Academy Association & Foundation          

Southgate Campus 

Our City just welcomed a new director of Parks, Recreation and Cultural Services. He's getting started at the perfect time because July is National Parks and Recreation Month. Hear about his vision along with the great events happening in Colorado Springs this summer!

Welcome to Sunday Service  Wish you were here!  Newsong, Colorado Springs (starts at 10:00am)  Subscribe to text updates. Text the words text alert to 94000  Subscribe to emails (bottom of page on newsongcs.com)  Listen to podcasts. Keywords newsong foursquare  Watch services on Youtube. Keyword newsongcs  Follow us on Facebook, Instagram & TikTok keyword newsongcs  3 ways to give to Missions, Disaster Relief, Tithes, or Offerings  1.. newsongcs/com/give  2. Text Giving - text the word EASY to 94000 3. Mail - P.O. Box 75818 • C.S., CO 80970

The United States Space Force (USSF) and PBR (Professional Bull Riders) are uniting this weekend in a first-of-its-kind event designed to connect the American public directly with the Space Force Guardians and their mission. The landmark America 250 celebration is this Saturday June 20th. PBR Space Cowboys Presented by the U.S. Space Force will bring elite team bull riding and a live concert by Grammy Award-winning superstar Tim McGraw and multi-platinum country star Chris Janson to Falcon Stadium at the United States Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs. FOX's Tonya J. Powers speaks with Chris Janson, Grammy Award-winning singer-song writer, who shares his excitement of the event, and he tells us why writing his own songs, and basic authenticity are so important to him. Click Here⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ To Follow 'The FOX News Rundown: Evening Edition' Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The debate over data centers has prompted thousands of questions about the approval process and the impact in Colorado Springs. Then, what if the United States treated child care in the same way it treats schools, parks and libraries? Denver author Elliot Haspel explores that idea in his book, "Raising a Nation." And we catch up with 14-year-old Jeremiah Daniels and his parents, Joy and Terrance, as his debut movie, "The Color Book," about a father raising a son with Down Syndrome, premieres on Netflix June 19. 

Justin Critchfield shares his journey into real estate, focusing on working with investors, locating distressed properties, and bridging the gap between sellers and investors. Discover practical strategies for success in niche markets and how transparency and integrity drive his business.   Professional Real Estate Investors - How we can help you: Investor Fuel Mastermind:  Learn more about the Investor Fuel Mastermind, including 100% deal financing, massive discounts from vendors and sponsors you're already using, our world class community of over 150 members, and SO much more here: http://www.investorfuel.com/apply   Investor Machine Marketing Partnership:  Are you looking for consistent, high quality lead generation? Investor Machine is America's #1 lead generation service professional investors. Investor Machine provides true 'white glove' support to help you build the perfect marketing plan, then we'll execute it for you…talking and working together on an ongoing basis to help you hit YOUR goals! Learn more here: http://www.investormachine.com   Coaching with Mike Hambright:  Interested in 1 on 1 coaching with Mike Hambright? Mike coaches entrepreneurs looking to level up, build coaching or service based businesses (Mike runs multiple 7 and 8 figure a year businesses), building a coaching program and more. Learn more here: https://investorfuel.com/coachingwithmike   Attend a Vacation/Mastermind Retreat with Mike Hambright: Interested in joining a "mini-mastermind" with Mike and his private clients on an upcoming "Retreat", either at locations like Cabo San Lucas, Napa, Park City ski trip, Yellowstone, or even at Mike's East Texas "Big H Ranch"? Learn more here: http://www.investorfuel.com/retreat   Property Insurance: Join the largest and most investor friendly property insurance provider in 2 minutes. Free to join, and insure all your flips and rentals within minutes! There is NO easier insurance provider on the planet (turn insurance on or off in 1 minute without talking to anyone!), and there's no 15-30% agent mark up through this platform!  Register here: https://myinvestorinsurance.com/   New Real Estate Investors - How we can work together: Investor Fuel Club (Coaching and Deal Partner Community): Looking to kickstart your real estate investing career? Join our one of a kind Coaching Community, Investor Fuel Club, where you'll get trained by some of the best real estate investors in America, and partner with them on deals! You don't need $ for deals…we'll partner with you and hold your hand along the way! Learn More here: http://www.investorfuel.com/club   —--------------------

In this episode of UFO Warning, we examine one of the most intriguing cases from the recently released government UAP files: FBI File FD-1057, documenting an unresolved UFO sighting near Cheyenne Mountain, Colorado Springs, in 2022.According to the report, five U.S. Army intelligence personnel observed a strange, stationary object hovering near the mountains under clear daylight conditions. Witnesses described a white, translucent, potato-shaped craft covered with unusual geometric panels that appeared to shimmer and move across its surface. The object reportedly remained motionless for several minutes before suddenly disappearing without any visible means of propulsion or departure.We break down the witness testimony, the FBI forensic artist reconstruction, the connection to Pentagon UAP investigations, and the significance of a sighting involving multiple military intelligence observers near some of America's most sensitive defense installations.Was this an atmospheric phenomenon, a classified technology, or a genuine unidentified aerial phenomenon? Join us as we analyze the evidence and explore why this case remains officially unresolved.

The United States Space Force (USSF) and PBR (Professional Bull Riders) are uniting this weekend in a first-of-its-kind event designed to connect the American public directly with the Space Force Guardians and their mission. The landmark America 250 celebration is this Saturday June 20th. PBR Space Cowboys Presented by the U.S. Space Force will bring elite team bull riding and a live concert by Grammy Award-winning superstar Tim McGraw and multi-platinum country star Chris Janson to Falcon Stadium at the United States Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs. FOX's Tonya J. Powers speaks with Chris Janson, Grammy Award-winning singer-song writer, who shares his excitement of the event, and he tells us why writing his own songs, and basic authenticity are so important to him. Click Here⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ To Follow 'The FOX News Rundown: Evening Edition' Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

What does it really take to build a local business in downtown Colorado Springs right now?In this roundtable episode of the Colorado Business Podcast, Clay Ross of Yobel and The Look Up Gallery joins David “Nova” Nowakowski of The Brit Pub and NovaMeets for a real conversation about resilience, risk, community, and the changing landscape of downtown business.Clay shares the story of rebuilding after the fire, searching through 23 possible spaces, and creating a home for artists, ethical fashion, drinks, galleries, and First Friday community.Nova opens up about leaving morning television, stepping into hospitality, helping build The Brit Pub, bringing football culture to downtown Colorado Springs, and learning just how hard the restaurant and pub business really is.This episode goes deeper than business updates. It is a conversation about what downtown needs, why local businesses need support, how community spaces are built, and why the future of Colorado Springs depends on people actually showing up.If you care about Colorado Springs, downtown business, local art, hospitality, entrepreneurship, or the future of the city, this episode is worth watching.Chapters:00:00 Welcome to the Roundtable02:00 Clay Ross on Rebuilding Yobel and The Look Up Gallery06:22 Resilience After the Fire09:56 Working with Your Spouse in Business11:07 First Fridays and Building an Art Community13:07 David “Nova” Nowakowski and The Brit Pub Story21:26 The Reality of the Hospitality Industry27:45 What a Weekend at The Brit Pub Looks Like30:33 Football, Regulars, and Building Community38:05 First Friday at The Look Up Gallery47:37 What Downtown Colorado Springs Needs Next58:52 Why People Need to Show Up Locally01:11:25 Supporting Independent Businesses Downtown01:19:11 Nova's New TV Show Inside The PubFeatured Guests:Clay RossYobelThe Look Up GalleryDavid “Nova” NowakowskiThe Brit PubNovaMeets

The United States Space Force (USSF) and PBR (Professional Bull Riders) are uniting this weekend in a first-of-its-kind event designed to connect the American public directly with the Space Force Guardians and their mission. The landmark America 250 celebration is this Saturday June 20th. PBR Space Cowboys Presented by the U.S. Space Force will bring elite team bull riding and a live concert by Grammy Award-winning superstar Tim McGraw and multi-platinum country star Chris Janson to Falcon Stadium at the United States Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs. FOX's Tonya J. Powers speaks with Chris Janson, Grammy Award-winning singer-song writer, who shares his excitement of the event, and he tells us why writing his own songs, and basic authenticity are so important to him. Click Here⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ To Follow 'The FOX News Rundown: Evening Edition' Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

In this episode of Defence Deconstructed, David Perry sits down with Scott Clancy to discuss his recent visit to Greenland as a guest of the Kingdom of Denmark. // Guest bios: - Scott Clancy is a retired Major General and former Director of Operations for all NORAD in Colorado Springs. // Host bio: David Perry, President & CEO, Canadian Global Affairs Institute // Recommended readings: "Difficult Conversations", by Harvard Business Review: www.amazon.ca/Difficult-Conversations-HBR-20-Minute-Manager/dp/1633690784 // Defence Deconstructed was brought to you by Irving Shipbuilding, Invest Nova Scotia and Ombudsman. // Music Credit: Drew Phillips | Producer: Judy Alomari Release date: 19 June 2026

 Fertility Docs Uncensored Today's episode of Fertility Docs Uncensored is hosted by Dr. Carrie Bedient from the Fertility Center of Las Vegas, Dr. Susan Hudson from Texas Fertility Center, and Dr. Abby Eblen from Nashville Fertility Center. In this episode, we are joined by Dr. Amy Harris, reproductive endocrinologist at Shady Grove Fertility in Colorado Springs, for a listener-question episode focused on the uterus and endometrium. In this episode, we tackle some of the most common and challenging questions surrounding the uterine lining and embryo transfer. Dr. Amy Harris joins us to discuss what she would do for a patient with fluid in the endometrial cavity, including possible causes, recommended evaluation, and treatment options. We review why fluid often resolves after progesterone exposure, when aspiration before embryo transfer may be considered, and how different stimulation protocols can impact outcomes. We discuss recurrent implantation failure after the transfer of multiple euploid embryos in the setting of a thin endometrium. We discuss potential causes of a thinning uterine lining, including hormonal abnormalities, hypothalamic amenorrhea, and Asherman syndrome. Strategies such as changing endometrial preparation protocols, reassessing thyroid and prolactin levels, and allowing the uterus time to recover without medication exposure. We review treatment options for uterine scar tissue and discuss whether programmed or modified natural frozen embryo transfer cycles may offer advantages in specific situations. Finally, we address the question of transferring two embryos at once after a prior cesarean delivery. We discuss the risks of twins and higher-order multiple pregnancies, including prematurity, neonatal intensive care admissions, pregnancy complications, and the emotional and financial impact on families. We also explore whether vaginal birth after cesarean (VBAC) may be an option for some patients planning future pregnancies. Can fluid in the uterus prevent embryo implantation? What causes a thin endometrial lining? How is Asherman syndrome treated? Should patients choose a programmed or modified natural transfer cycle? Is transferring two embryos ever worth the risk? Join us as we answer these important listener questions. This podcast was sponsored by US Fertility. 

We were on vacation in Colorado busy exploring Denver, Colorado Springs, and Manitou Springs and didn't have time for an interview. Instead, Mike and Katelyn do a post race and pre race discussion for New York Hyrox and World's Toughest Mudder respectively! Mike wasn't content with last week's episode in that he didn't get to talk much about his first Hyrox experience after the event and didn't want it tied to premium Patreon content as was teased in the post credit audio of that episode. We also thought that it would be interesting to revisit the same pre-World's Toughest Mudder questions that were asked before Katelyn's first WTM last year! Start – 3:42 – Intro 3:42 – 7:12 – Quick News 7:12 – 7:35 – Content Preface 7:35 – 33:02 - Mike's Post New York Hyrox Experience 33:02 – 50:25 - Katelyn's Pre-World's Toughest Mudder Thoughts 50:25 – End – Outro Next weekend we hope to do another pre-WTM interview! ____ Badass of the Week News Stories: Mark Macy Death Kris Rugloski Earns Degree Lauren Weeks Sponsored by Nike Calypso Sheridan Sponsored by Nike LSKD Not Allowed to Share Hyrox Photos Bass Fishing Secret Link Blind Chess Secret Link Pop Dart Secret Link Word Meanings Secret Link Dark Move Secret Link ____ Related Episodes: 222. Matt Kempson on Tactical Games, Hyrox, Power Belly, and More! 266. Cole Schwartz on Hyrox, Hawaii, and More! 280. Kris Rugloski on Hyrox World Championships and Spartan Big Bear! 379. Deka Mile Live Coverage at Underdog Fitness! 425. The First DEKA ATLAS with Underdog Fitness! 435. Joe Rucco on Hybrid Racing, Winning Toughest Mudder Atlanta, and More! 442. Katelyn's Pre-World's Toughest Mudder Thoughts! 452. World's Toughest Mudder, Rally in the Valley, and Underdog Fitness with AJ Golik! 477. Becoming a ParaAthlete, Setting Guinness World Records, Hyrox, and More with Anthony Bryan! 488. DEKA STRONG and MILE at Underdog Fitness 2026! ____ The OCR Report Patreon Supporters: Jason Dupree, Kim DeVoss, Samantha Thompson, Matt Puntin, Brad Kiehl, Charlotte Engelman, Erin Grindstaff, Hank Stefano, Arlene Stefano, Laura Ritter, Steven Ritter, Sofia Harnedy, Kenny West, Cheryl Miller, Jessica Johnson, Scott "The Fayne" Knowles, Nick Ryker, Christopher Hoover, Kevin Gregory Jr., Evan Eirich, Ashley Reis, Brent George, Justin Manning, Wendell Lagosh, Logan Nagle, Angela Bowers, Asa Coddington, Thomas Petersen, Seth Rinderknecht, Bonnie Wilson, Steve Bacon from The New England OCR Expo, Robert Landman, Shell Luccketta Jules Estes, and Alan "Muddy Duck" Moore. Sponsored Athletes: Javier Escobar, Kelly Sullivan, Ryan Brizzolara, Joshua Reid, and Kevin Gregory! Support us on Patreon for exclusive content and access to our Facebook group Check out our Threadless Shop Use coupon code "adventure" for 15% off MudGear products Use coupon code "ocrreport20" for 20% off Caterpy products Like us on Facebook: Obstacle Running Adventures Follow our podcast on Instagram: @ObstacleRunningAdventures Write us an email: obstaclerunningadventures@gmail.com Subscribe on Youtube: Obstacle Running Adventures Intro music - "Streaker" by: Straight Up Outro music - "Iron Paw" by: Dubbest

Colorado Springs is on the rise, and Congressman Jeff Crank is here to share the exciting news. This episode, we're talking about the recent announcements that will bring thousands of new jobs to the area, and how they'll impact the community. But it's not just about the numbers – we're also diving into the politics behind the decision and what it means for the future of Colorado Springs.As the representative for the fifth congressional district, Congressman Crank has been working tirelessly to bring these new opportunities to the area. We're talking about a Space Operations Center that will bring in over 2,700 jobs, a new entity called PAE that will create 500 jobs, and the second lieutenants who will be stationed in Colorado Springs. But what does this mean for the community, and how will it affect the local economy?Congressman Crank shares his insights on the politics behind the decision, including the role of President Trump and the state's Attorney General in the process. He also talks about the challenges of balancing the needs of the community with the demands of being a congressman, including the time-consuming task of fundraising.In this episode, Congressman Crank opens up about what it's like to be a congressman, from the long hours and constant travel to the pressure of fundraising and representing the people of the fifth congressional district. If you're interested in hearing more about the future of Colorado Springs and the challenges of being a congressman, tune in to this episode to hear Congressman Crank's honest and insightful conversation.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

**Today on the show, we've got a doozy!** This episode is packed with some serious news and some not-so-serious fun. We're talking about a potential plot to attack the White House, a rockstar's vocal troubles, and a fascinating look at the future of higher education in Colorado. But don't worry, we're not all doom and gloom - we're also talking about some exciting new job opportunities in Colorado Springs and a fascinating conversation about the politics of voting in Colorado. Ross shares a shocking story about a potential plot to attack the White House using explosive drones, and we dive into the details of this alleged threat. We also talk about the latest news on Rod Stewart's vocal troubles and how he's been advised to take a break from singing. But that's not all - we're also exploring the future of higher education in Colorado, where experts predict a significant decline in the number of high school graduates. We're also joined by Congressman Jeff Crank, who shares some exciting news about new job opportunities in Colorado Springs, including a Space Operations Center and a Program Account Executive. And in a fascinating conversation, we talk about the politics of voting in Colorado and why one unaffiliated voter is choosing to vote in the Democratic primary. If you're curious about these topics and more, tune in to this episode to hear the full conversation.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Southgate Campus 

We continue checking in to haunted hotels in Colorado. Just a stones throw away from the Black Monarch (featured in last weeks episode) is the Victor Hotel, then in Colorado Springs we visit the Broadmoor. Both are beautiful lodging locations and home to resident spirits, intense paranormal activity and so much more.CREDITS & LINKS MUSIC COURTESY OF:Bobby Mackey “Johanna”CITY SHOUT OUTS:

Administrative approval is the final step in development review, according to the city, though they can be appealed.

Join us as we continue in our series "Camp Paul"Join us every Sunday online or in-person at 9:00am & 11:00am. 4005 Lee Vance Vw, Colorado Springs, CO 80918 Website: rockfamilychurch.com Connect Card: https://rfc.churchcenter.com/people/forms/528074 Prayer Requests: https://www.rockfamilychurch.com/prayer-request Start Serving: https://rfc.churchcenter.com/registrations/events/category/92573 Join a Small Group: https://rfc.churchcenter.com/registrations/events/3287086 Facebook: facebook.com/rockfamilychurch Instagram: instagram.com/rockfamilychurch Tik Tok: tiktok.com/@rockfamilychurch Youtube: youtube.com/@RockFamilyOnline#ColoradoSpringsChurch #Faith #Jesus #Worship #ChurchOnline #SundayMessage

“I'm so passionate about creating a world where fraud is rare and trust between a member and their credit union is a given.” - Shanthi ShanmugamThank you for tuning in to The CUInsight Network, with your host, Robbie Young, Vice President of Strategic Growth at CUInsight. In The CUInsight Network, we take a deeper dive with the thought leaders who support the credit union community. We discuss issues and challenges facing credit unions and identify best practices to learn and grow together.My guest on today's show is Shanthi Shanmugam, CEO of Casap. She joins me for this episode to discuss the winding path that took her from studying computer science at UC Berkeley to helping credit unions rethink one of the most stressful moments in the member experience: disputes.Throughout our conversation, Shanthi makes it evident that she is passionate about building technology that feels human. She shares stories from her time at Facebook and Robinhood, including the moment when she realized that she wanted to spend her career solving problems that genuinely matter to people. Hear how that mindset eventually led to the formation of Casap, an AI-powered platform helping credit unions reduce fraud losses, improve dispute resolution, and strengthen member trust without losing the human judgment these situations often require. We also dig into why disputes are far more than just operational headaches, with Shanthi explaining why they're “trust moments” that can determine whether a member stays loyal to their financial institution or walks away entirely.As we wrap up the episode, Shanthi talks about her love for custom suits, Bollywood dancing, Colorado Springs, and why Stephen Covey's The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People still resonates with her years after first reading it. Enjoy my conversation with Shanthi Shanmugam!Find the full show notes on cuinsight.com.Connect with Shanthi:Shanthi Shanmugam, CEO of Casapshanthi@casaphq.com casaphq.com Shanthi: LinkedIn Casap: LinkedInShow notes from this episode:Film mentioned: RatatouilleCharacter mentioned: RemyBook mentioned: The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen CoveyIn this episode:[1:00] - When she was young, Shanthi dreamed of traveling worldwide through dance and teaching others to love it.[2:27] - After Berkeley and Facebook, Shanthi pursued product work that was focused on meaningful human impact.[5:01] - Learn how ChatGPT inspired Shanthi to launch Casap and reimagine trust-centered fraud prevention.[8:16] - Hear how Casap helps credit unions improve member experiences and reduce fraud via AI-powered dispute management.[11:13] - Shanthi identifies three major gaps in the dispute process - starting with credit unions needing more transparent support.[12:36] - The second gap is fragmented systems which weaken fraud decision-making.[13:57] - Thirdly, better dispute insights are needed to differentiate between legitimate cases and attempted fraud.[15:09] - Shanthi points out that disputes become defining moments that shape long-term member loyalty and retention.[17:49] - Shanthi illustrates the difference between agentic AI and other AI tools.[20:28] - I praise Casap for balancing fast automation with compassionate human support.[21:08] - Casap aims to become credit unions' broader AI operating system beyond just dispute management.[23:24] - Hear why Shanthi credits her mother with being a good leader.[25:36] - Shanthi reflects on a trip to Colorado Springs which offered her a refreshing conference experience outside the usual Vegas routine.[26:39] - Shanthi empathically believes that everyone should read The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen Covey.[27:14] - Shanthi reveals that monthly check-ins help her balance rapid company growth with family and personal priorities.[29:49] - Shanthi expresses gratitude for credit unions.

Christina Hello, everyone, I'm Christina Darnell, the managing editor of MinistryWatch. Welcome to the MinistryWatch podcast. In today's extra episode, I talk with Warren Smith about some news items that are slightly (even significantly) outside of our normal charity and philanthropy “beat.” So, Warren, what's up first? Warren Last Friday, just days before the Southern Baptist Convention gathered for its annual meeting in Orlando, Florida, SBC megachurch Pastor Jack Graham said in a social media post that the SBC has never had a “systematic sexual abuse crisis” and described what prompted a 2021 independent investigation by Guidepost Solutions as a “reckless hoax.” Christina Speaking of reckless, given all the evidence for serious issues in the SBC, that seems a pretty reckless thing to say. Warren Agreed. I have met Jack Graham a few times, and he seemed like a normal guy. I clearly missed the signs. This statement is so dislocated from reality as to make my head swim. Christina The Houston Chronicle documented nearly 400 cases of sexual abuse in Texas alone. The Guidepost Report on the SBC found hundreds more. Warren Graham's view seems to be that the problem was not systematic and was instead a function of how large the SBC is (“a few bad apples”). Even if that was true (and I do not think it was), the failure to respond quickly and adequately to survivors was surely systematic, a product of the culture of the SBC. That said, the SBC has, in recent years, taken solid steps toward reform. I applaud the denomination for that. But Graham's comments are not helping. Christina While we're on the subject of the Southern Baptist Convention, the SBC has released new demographic information, and Ryan Burge has analyzed it. Warren Here's a passage from one of his recent weekly newsletters: “I've said this on many occasions, but the rise of the SBC from 1945 through 1990 will never ever be replicated again in the history of American religion.” The SBC peaked at $16.2 million in 2006. Today it has about 12.3 million. This 25 percent decline in a generation is due to a lot of factors, including a general secularization of culture. But to claim that the sex abuse scandals played no role strains credulity. Christina The Southern Baptist Convention is meeting this week, but the SBC is not the only thing in the news. Warren That's right. A new study is out from Communio and the Institute for Family Studies. Among the findings: “Children raised in homes where faith is discussed regularly are more than twice as likely to attend church and say religion is very important to them when they become adults.” The study is called Passing the Torch: How Faith Moves Across Generations, and it claims to be the “most comprehensive examination to date of how parents successfully pass on faith to the next generation.” The report also found that when both parents attend church weekly, 41 percent of children do the same in adulthood, compared to 29 percent when only one parent attends. Children who report a strong relationship with both parents are 97 percent more likely of believing in God as adults than those with weaker parental relationships. Christina We do not often cover the Catholic Church, but a story from our hometown of Charlotte caught your attention this week. Warren Prosecutors say a Catholic Charities employee in Charlotte embezzled and laundered money by using a business credit card. The damage was more than $13,000. Leah Stewart, age 46, was arrested in late April. She faces felony charges over the unauthorized credit card charges. We do not cover Catholic charities much, but this one was in my hometown, so I could not help but notice. Also, it gives me another opportunity to note that we can learn from this situation. To find out how your organization can put safeguards in place to avoid financial fraud, click here. Christina And our last story is a bit of good news. Warren That's right. There's so much news about people doing bad things, it's nice sometimes to catch people doing good things, especially when they happen to be friends. Christina And one of them is right here in Charlotte. Warren That would be Rod Culbertson. He has “graduated” to emeritus status at Reformed Theological Seminary here in Charlotte after a long and distinguished career as a pastor, campus minister with Reformed University Fellowship, and a longtime professor at RTS. “Emeritus” is what you call someone who has retired but who does not believe in retirement as a biblical category! Christina And who's the other one. Maria Montserrat Alvarado, the current president and COO of U.S.-based Catholic media giant EWTN News, will lead the Vatican's communication office, the Vatican announced Tuesday (June 2). Montse, as I know her, is not yet 40 years of age, and she will be the youngest person to lead a Vatican dicastery in recent memory and the first woman who is not a religious sister to be a Vatican prefect, a task historically reserved for cardinals. When I first met Montse, nearly 20 years ago, she was barely in her 20s and working for The Becket Fund, the religious liberty legal organization. We have reported on their work often here at MinistryWatch. It was clear even then she was a rising star. Indeed, in 2017 she became the Executive Director there. So, Montse and Rod, I will be praying for you both as you enter news seasons of life and ministry. Christina Warren, we need to wrap things up here. Any final thoughts before we go? Warren I'm in Colorado Springs and Denver this week. I'll be doing a reader lunch in the Springs on Thursday and in Denver on Friday. Let me know if you would like to join us. My email is wsmith@ministrywatch.com. I also want to mention that June is the end of our fiscal year. We've had a good year, so far, but we still have about $45,000 that we need to raise between now and June 30. If that number sounds huge, I'd like to remind you that the average gift to MinistryWatch is less than $100. But they add up. If you have been listening to us here on the podcast for a while, but have never given, I'd like to ask you to consider a gift so MinistryWatch can continue our work. Just go to www.MinistryWatch.com/donate Christina That brings to a close this EXTRA episode of the podcast. The producer for today's program is Jeff McIntosh. I hope you'll join Warren and me again on Friday. We'll be bringing you the news of the week, from a MinistryWatch perspective. Until next time, may God bless you.

In this special internal episode of the Colorado Business Podcast, Andrew Hazzlee of Vehement Visuals, Marcus Alvarado of Red Mojo Marketing, and Chris Seegers of Exceptional Business Advisors sit down for a rare host roundtable.Instead of interviewing a guest, the team turns the microphones inward to talk about what they are building, what they are learning, and where business is headed in Colorado.Chris breaks down the idea behind his life, wealth, and business operating systems, why business owners need a real plan for more than just revenue, and why building a company should not come at the expense of your family, health, faith, or future.Marcus shares updates on Red Mojo, the growth of his digital marketing agency, SEO, paid ads, web design, strategic partnerships, and how the podcast continues to fuel deeper relationships with entrepreneurs across Colorado.Andrew opens up about the evolution from the Colorado Springs Business Podcast to the Colorado Business Podcast, the future vision for building a larger media company, and why the best marketing still comes down to telling real human stories.The conversation also dives into AI in business, customer service, sales, community building, Colorado Springs, long-term thinking, and why human connection may become even more valuable as technology moves faster.If you are a business owner, entrepreneur, marketer, creator, or someone who cares about the future of Colorado business, this episode is for you.Chapters:00:00 Welcome to a rare internal episode02:40 Why this episode matters03:11 Chris shares updates from Exceptional Business Advisors04:35 Life, wealth, and business operating systems07:00 The book trilogy behind the operating system08:02 Building a business without losing your life08:55 Acquisitions, security, and business growth11:35 Why cities need better operating systems15:00 Managing multiple businesses at once22:15 The growth of the Colorado Business Podcast25:42 From Colorado Springs Business Podcast to Colorado Business Podcast26:19 Why story is still the best marketing29:41 Building a better future for Colorado30:49 Why Colorado Springs still matters38:08 Marcus shares updates from Red Mojo41:37 What Red Mojo does43:14 The bigger media company vision45:22 AI, sales, and human connection01:02:39 Alignment, faith, and congruence01:13:30 Dream guests and the future of the show01:28:39 Final thoughtsSubscribe for more conversations with Colorado entrepreneurs, founders, business owners, and leaders building what comes next.

Support us on Patreon to get access to video episodesCome see us LIVE on July 10th + August 14thWe've got a situation... Things get real in this special live episode, as we leap into the world of MTV for the first time evah!Audra and Julia were joined on the panel by Molly Bushey and Tevin Tollermack (Kristen Pichette)Support our PlayersCome see Pride Improvaganza on June 12th!Visit peakimprov.com to check out Julia's shows and classesFollow The Flock on InstaFollow Love at First Laugh on InstaFollow Friends of the Pilot on InstaWe are an ad and listener supported podcast, but mainly listener supported. Consider supporting our production over at patreon.com/gateleapers. All supporters get ad-free audio episodes. Premium supporters get video recordings + our bonus monthly live comedy gameshow Slidesplitters!Music: BoucheDag by Alexander Nakarada (serpentsoundstudios.com)Licensed under Creative Commons BY Attribution 4.0 Licensehttps://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/fandomonium-a-fandom-comedy-game-show--5150861/support.

What's up, fraud fighters, and welcome to Fraud Forward.I recorded this live from Safeguard's AI Deep Dive Retreat at The Broadmoor in Colorado Springs, and y'all, let me tell you something: this was not just another room full of AI buzzwords. This was fraud leaders, payment experts, financial institution professionals, fintech voices, marketplace operators, and risk leaders all sitting in the same place asking one very real question.What happens to fraud prevention when artificial intelligence changes everything?The future of AI fraud is not some far-off thing we are all fixin' to deal with later. It is already here. We are seeing AI change the speed, scale, and complexity of fraud operations right now. We are seeing it show up in synthetic identity fraud, AI scams, AI identity verification, agentic AI fraud, fraud detection automation, governance conversations, and the pressure fraud teams are already carrying every single day.But this episode is not about panic.It is about realism.It is about what fraud fighters are seeing, what institutions are building, where the gaps still are, and how we keep humans at the center while fraud keeps accelerating around us.What you'll hear in this episode:A practical conversation about the future of AI fraud and what it means for fraud operationsHow AI fraud prevention is changing across banking, credit unions, fintech, payments, marketplaces, and risk teamsWhy synthetic identity fraud, AI scams, and identity fraud prevention are becoming major areas of concernHow AI in fraud prevention can help investigators analyze data, identify patterns, and reduce noiseWhy AI governance in fraud prevention cannot be treated as something we clean up laterHow agentic AI fraud, know your agent, and KYA fraud prevention are becoming part of the next conversationWhy human-in-the-loop fraud detection still matters, even when fraud analyst AI tools are getting betterHow fraud fighters and AI can work together without replacing the people who know this work bestA reminder that responsible AI risk management has to include governance, empathy, collaboration, and practical controlsWho should listen:Financial institution leaders and fraud professionalsRisk, compliance, and cybersecurity teamsFraud operations teams and investigatorsCredit union and community bank leadersBanking fraud prevention teamsCredit union fraud prevention teamsFintech, payments, and marketplace risk teamsBSA, AML, KYC, and identity teamsRegulators and policy advisorsIndustry advocates and victim support professionalsMedia professionals covering scams, fraud, AI, and financial crimeAnyone trying to understand how AI-driven fraud affects real people, real institutions, and real fraud teamsThis conversation is for the fraud fighters who are not just trying to check a compliance box. It is for the teams trying to protect members, customers, and communities while also figuring out how to use AI-powered fraud prevention without creating new risk.

What does it take to become a Paralympic gold medalist? For Team USA Paralympic hand cyclist Kate Brim, the answer goes far beyond training and racing.Host: Torie Giffin, Owner Buffalo Lodge Bicycle ResortGuest: Kate Brim, Paralympic hand cyclist for team USAIn this inspiring episode of Pedal The Springs, Kate shares her remarkable journey from a spinal cord injury at age 19 to standing atop the podium at the Paris Paralympics, where she earned gold in the time trial and bronze in the mixed team relay.Kate opens up about the difficult road she faced after Paris, including a kidney infection, ICU hospitalization, months without riding, and the daily realities of living with Type 1 diabetes while relying on TPN nutrition. After more than a year away from international competition, she returned to racing at the Para-cycling World Cup in Chiang Mai, Thailand—the first Para-cycling World Cup ever held in Asia—where she captured victories in all three events she entered.We discuss the physical and mental demands of elite para-sport, traveling internationally with 95 pounds of life-sustaining medical equipment, and the incredible “team behind the team” of coaches, trainers, nutritionists, family, and supporters who make success possible.Kate also shares her favorite rides around Colorado Springs, including Gold Camp Road, Cheyenne Canyon, Fountain, and Garden of the Gods, and discusses road safety for hand cyclists, the high cost of adaptive sports equipment, and the growing visibility of para-cycling in the United States.Before her injury in 2017, Kate was a competitive rower and outdoor enthusiast. Today, she trains full-time as a Paralympic athlete while living and training in Colorado Springs at the U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Training Center. Through every challenge, she continues to embody the grit, determination, and resilience that have defined her journey.Whether you're a cyclist, athlete, caregiver, or simply someone facing challenges of your own, Kate's story is a powerful reminder that setbacks do not define us—how we respond to them does.Follow Kate:Instagram: @QuadKateFacebook: Kate BrimStrava: Kate BrimLearn More:U.S. Olympic & Paralympic Training Center: https://www.usopc.org/training-centers/colorado-springsUSA Cycling Para-cycling: https://usacycling.orgFollow Pedal The Springs for more stories from the people, places, and events that make Colorado Springs one of America's great cycling communities. Post-Episode Update: When this interview was recorded in April, Kate was just days away from receiving her diabetic alert service dog, Sobako. Since then, Sobako has already proven to be an invaluable companion, alerting Kate to low glucose levels during training and helping her safely manage her Type 1 diabetes while pursuing her athletic goals.Kate has also continued her remarkable comeback, winning gold medals in both the road race and time trial at the Para-cycling World Cup in Italy as she prepares for the World Championships in Huntsville, Alabama this September—the first Para-cycling Road World Championships ever held in the United States.Pedal the Springs is produced and presented by the Buffalo Lodge Bicycle Resort, the only bicycle-themed lodging and must-stay for cyclists coming to Colorado. Check us out at https://www.bicycleresort.com for more information.Episodes are recorded in the Studio 809 Podcasts community podcast studio at The Next Us. https://thenextus.spaces.nexudus.com/?public&Find other great podcasts produced in and for the Pikes Peak Region - at https://studio809podcasts.comDon't miss an episode of Pedal the Springs. Follow on your favorite podcast app.

Episode 138 When One Plus One Equals Three: A Conversation with National Aphasia Synergy               In this episode you will discover: 1.  People with aphasia hold the map. At NAS, people with aphasia don't just have a seat at the table — they built the table. Real peer leadership changes everything about how an organization thinks and acts. 2.  Recovery is about more than speech. The isolation and psychological distress that follow aphasia are just as real as the communication challenges — and just as deserving of attention and support. 3.  Peer-befriending is life participation in action. When people with aphasia support one another through shared experience, that's not a supplement to good care — it is good care. 4.  Sinergia: one plus one equals three. When survivors and professionals work as true equals, something greater emerges than either could create alone. June is National Aphasia Awareness Month, and around here, that means it's time for one of my favorite podcast traditions. For the past few years running, we've spent this month in conversation with people who know aphasia from the inside — those living it every day. Today is no exception, and this one is a conversation I've genuinely been looking forward to.   Welcome to the Aphasia Access Conversations Podcast. I'm Katie Strong from Central Michigan University, where I lead the Strong Story Lab, and I'm a member of the Aphasia Access Podcast Working Group. Aphasia Access is dedicated to transforming services and environments so people with aphasia can participate more fully in life — and today's guests are living proof of exactly what that looks like.         Today I'm speaking with two leaders from National Aphasia Synergy — known as NAS — a peer-led nonprofit founded in 2021 by people with aphasia, for people with aphasia. NAS was built on the belief that those living with aphasia are best positioned to support others on the same journey. Through peer-befriending, technology empowerment, and community building, NAS works to end the isolation that so often follows a stroke — connecting people across the country through a shared sense of what they call Sinergia: the idea that when survivors and professionals work as true equals, one plus one equals three.   Today's conversation feels especially meaningful to me. I've had the privilege of seeing Trish and Amy in action at conferences like Aphasia Access and ASHA — learning from their presentations and watching their advocacy make ripples far beyond those conference walls. As someone who researches friendship and aphasia, I've followed the peer befriending movement closely — it began in the UK, and when I heard that NAS was bringing it to the United States, led by a peer organization, I thought: this is what life participation actually looks like.   Before we get into the conversation, let me tell you a bit more about our guests.   Trish Hambridge is the President and Founder of National Aphasia Synergy. Trish has lived with aphasia since her stroke in 2008, and that experience is the foundation of everything she has built. A former project manager for AppleCare, Trish has become not only a powerful advocate but a published researcher — partnering with research teams to influence the questions being asked and the evidence being built in our field. Her co-authored work spans game-based rehabilitation design, posttraumatic growth in aphasia, and the measurement of motivation and psychological needs in aphasia rehabilitation — all published in leading journals including the American Journal of Speech-Language Pathology. She has spoken at conferences including the Aphasia Access Leadership Summit, Aphasia Access Chautauqua and ASHA, serves on the Disability Advisory Committee in Dunedin, Florida, and is a member of Voices of Hope for Aphasia. Her vision brought NAS to life, and her leadership — in the clinic, in the research literature, and in the community — continues to shape it.   Amy Walters is the Vice President of National Aphasia Synergy. Amy has lived with aphasia since her stroke in 2018 — a stroke that, in a striking twist of fate, occurred while she was attending a neurosurgical conference. A Harvard graduate with a Master of Public Health from Johns Hopkins, Amy spent 30 years as a senior leader in the medical device industry before her stroke, and she has channeled that same expertise and drive into aphasia advocacy. She has presented at neurosurgical conferences to raise awareness, participates in aphasia groups across the country, and brings a remarkable combination of professional knowledge and lived experience to everything NAS does.   So — let's get into the conversation.   Katie Strong: Trish and Amy, welcome. I'm so excited to have you both here today and learn about what's going on in National Aphasia Synergy.   Trish Hambridge: Thank you for the chance to meet.   Amy Walters: We are so pleased to be here with the Aphasia Access Community. Katie Strong: Well, we're delighted that you are sharing your time and expertise with us. I wanted to get started by asking about National Aphasia Synergy. How was it created? Just wondering if you could share the origin story of the organization and how that concept of synergy or working together defines your mission. Trish Hambridge: Long time ago, I had a stroke, major stroke. But I was the same person then as I am now. I remember sitting on the hospital patio in San Jose and Karen, my good friend from college and speech therapist was there, and she was teaching everyone about aphasia. My friends and family were so patient. I remember my Dad talking to me and say, "You are stubborn." and I said, "Thank you!" Because that choice – being subborn - changed everything and gave me the chance to get my identity back. Katie Strong: So, Trish, just to verify, you're saying your stubbornness got you where you are right now. Trish Hambridge: Yes, but yes! Katie Strong: Love it. Trish Hambridge: Sorry to say, I have issues! But going back to the beginning, I had only had five words. Even my 'yes' and 'no' were flipped. Traditional homework is not my cup of tea. Shhh! Quiet, I'm lazy! I needed a better strategy, and I found it with P2Go. It's so much more than an app. It is the tool that gave me my voice back. Katie Strong: I love that, so if I'm understanding correctly, traditional homework is not for you, and that you really needed something that was technology based, which goes back to your expertise in your life, career to be able to really help you communicate, and it was the P2Go. Trish Hambridge: Yeah, yeah, is small, is so, is easy, my opinion. Katie Strong: Well, that's what we're here for today, is your opinion. Trish Hambridge: In 2016, a move to Dunedin, Florida changed everything. I joined Voices of Hope and finally found my community. Then the pandemic hit. But it couldn't stop our connection. We moved to Zoom. I want to be honest, though: some of my friends didn't make it through that storm. Their pain is part of this journey. We build this community in their honor. Katie Strong: Oh, that's really touching, you know. It is. It's hard, so many friends don't stay in our lives for many reasons, but aphasia can really be a challenge for friends sticking around. Trish Hambridge: Yeah, and the technology is not my cup of tea. Katie Strong: Wonderful, wonderful. Thank you for sharing that. Trish Hambridge: In 2021, I stepped up. I moved from a 'Lead Pathfinder' to the Founder of National Aphasia Synergy. I reached out to Debbie Yones, the big cheese of Voices of Hope. She and the Board Director gave me wise advice to help me grow. I didn't do it alone. My sister and my sister-in-law helped me think through the logistics. They helped me build the support for the nonprofit. Because of them, my vision became a reality. Katie Strong: So, your consultation with those important people to your life really helped National Aphasia Synergy become a reality. Trish Hambridge: Yeah. Finally, I asked Amy to join the mission. She became part of the organization. Now, we are moving forward together. Katie Strong: Thanks, Trish. I love that. Amy Walters: Thanks, Trish. Nine years ago, I had my stroke at the neurosurgical conference. Ironic, right? Yeah, the conference was in Colorado Springs. I was in a medically induced coma for 10 days and diagnosed with Global Aphasia. Then I was airlifted to the Shepherd Center in Atlanta, Georgia, where I had a craniotomy and cranioplasty. On the flight I remembered thinking, "Am I in a simulator? What's happening to me?"   Katie Strong: Wow! That sounds surreal! Amy Walters: My career was in clinical affairs for a medical neurosurgical device company, so I am professionally and personally familiar with neuroplasticity. I know how crucial neuroplasticity is to our physical, mental, and emotional recovery. National Aphasia Synergy was born from a deep need for collaborative survivor-led company. Katie Strong: The advocacy you're doing is really amazing, and I'm so excited for our listeners to be able to hear more about it. Amy Walters: Thank you. When we look at the aphasia community today, we see massive gaps. Most organizations are built for us, but they aren't led by us. The 'medical way' focuses only on the speech deficit, but it leaves a gaping hole in mental health, identity, and social connection. The research is heartbreaking: 40% to 60% of stroke survivors with aphasia experience chronic depression, and in early recovery, a staggering 93% experience high levels of psychological distress. This isn't just about the survivor—46% of our family members also face depression. Our mission is to bridge those gaps. We aren't just here to 'fix' speech; we are here to empower the whole person. We call it Sinergia—the Greek word for Synergy. It means we don't work in silos. We don't have 'experts' on one side and 'patients' on the other. We have a partnership where 1 plus 1 equals 3.   Katie Strong: I love it!   Amy Walters: We are moving away from the isolated patient model and toward a Sinergia where survivors and professionals work as equals to reclaim our lives. We are here to educate and empower our peers to use technology to reclaim their voices. But more importantly, we are here to promote peer-befriending. We reach out to those who are new to this path or struggling to find their way, because no one should walk this road alone. Katie Strong: I know, Amy, I just am so excited. I've been watching this peer befriending happen over in the UK, or reading about it, and hearing about it, and I was just so delighted when I heard that National Aphasia Synergy was taking this up and helping us to, to have a really solid connection. I think one of the things that breaks my heart the most is when I meet someone who has aphasia, who's been living with aphasia for a really long time, and they've never met anyone else who had aphasia. Amy Walters: Heartbreaking. Katie Strong: It really is. It really is. Amy Walters: Our goal is to develop a national community that encourages optimism. We believe a positive outlook isn't just a 'nice feeling'—it is a strategy for recovery. Katie Strong: Heck, yes! Amy Walters: At NAS, we don't just look for what's lost; we build on the strengths that remain. There were gaps in the Aphasia Community. Trish Hambridge: Speech Therapists and care partners are vital to recovery. They have good intentions, but the 'medical way' is often the wrong way. Katie Strong: Yeah, yeah, it's not quite the right way. Trish Hambridge: Many researchers only survey the Speech Therapists and the partners. But what about me? What about us? What am I, chopped liver? Think about the last time someone completely iced us out. It hurts, right? It honestly chips away at our sense of self, leaving us clueless as to where we actually fit in. Katie Strong: Yeah, so Trish, just to recap this for the listeners, you're saying when somebody ices you out, you're asking the listeners to reflect on how that really feels, Trish Hambridge: Yeah, I email [a researcher], and have offered [to be a part of their team] but they are like "Oh no, but sorry." Katie Strong: I hear, I hear you. Yeah and I think what you're bringing up - and you and Amy are bringing up such a great point that as the aphasia research community has not always included people with aphasia. Or they're only including people with mild aphasia versus more severe types of aphasia, so I love that you're calling this out and shining light on it. It's, it's time. Trish Hambridge Here's what the research tells us. Therapists and partners see the journey from the outside. But those of us living it? We know the honest truth. Katie Strong: Yeah, yeah, so as the clinicians, the therapists, and the care partners see that journey from the outside, and you all are living it for sure. Trish Hambridge: It is the 'Chicken and the Egg' problem: Does the partner change first? Or does the people with aphasia change? The answer is: The Environment. We must change the environment to find true recovery. We need to move from being 'patients' to being Lead Pathfinders. Katie Strong: Yes, so I love it. You're, you're flipping the script there and reclaiming your identity, or renegotiating it from that patient role to being a lead pathfinder. I love that terminology. Thank you. Thank you. One of you said this earlier that organizations are for people with aphasia, but National Aphasia Synergy is led by people with aphasia. Why is this distinction critical for the community to understand, and how does it change the way an organization is run? Amy Walters: Right, Katie. In the past, organizations were built for us, like a charity. But National Aphasia Synergy is different. We are led by people with aphasia. We are moving from 'being helped' to leading. This is more than an organization. It is a revolution of identity. At National Aphasia Synergy, we are flipping the script on leadership. Our Board makes decisions with one clear priority: putting voices with aphasia at the forefront. That means leaders like Trish, Bruce, and me are the ones making the big calls. We collaborate with wonderful professionals, like Kait, our SLP, Helen, our Financial and Secretarial support and Will Evans, our Volunteer Consultant. They are essential to our success. They ensure our communication is accessible and our business stays strong. I always think of our board meetings being like a United Nations meeting with "international representatives" (i.e., China, France, Japan, etc.) each of us is coming to the table with a different lived experience, different aphasia types, etc. We work together to "translate" and work through our differing communication styles. But make no mistake: The people with aphasia are the primary drivers of the vision. The professionals provide the tools, but we hold the maps.   Katie Strong: Such a great analogy. I love it and it also sounds like your work is fun too.   Amy Walters: Driving you crazy, but you mean you mean you mean, yeah. Hold the phone!   Katie Strong: Oh, that's great. I love it. Well, what does National Aphasia Synergy offer that others should know about? Trish Hambridge: Look at what we have built together: First, our Peer Befriending Program. A team of four SLPs and four people with aphasia worked as equals to create our training. Today, we have 15 volunteer Allies trained and ready to support the community. Katie Strong: I love it. So, 15 people with aphasia, volunteer Allies, have been trained as peer befrienders to go out and connect with other people who newly have aphasia. Trish Hambridge: Right, but anything like… Katie Strong: Or rather, anybody who has aphasia that they're wanting to connect with. Trish Hambridge: Come! Come! But we meet on Zoom.    Katie Strong: On Zoom, right? Yeah, absolutely. This is all virtual, which is amazing, you know, because you get a good reach, a really, a really great reach. What else is going on? Amy Walters: Second, our Aphasia & Mental Health Video. We have four excellent SLPs sharing the research, stats, resources and the power of neuroplasticity. And we also surveyed 10 people with aphasia to capture the honest truth of our emotional journeys and provide 10 essential tips for recovery. Trish Hambridge: I always start with a roadmap. But originally, we were filming something completely different. But three weeks before the shoot, I went to Debbie and asked: 'What do you think?' She said, 'There are enough basic videos out there... why doesn't NAS focus on Mental Health?' Katie Strong: Yeah, okay. So, you were doing all this planning, and then three weeks before the shoot, you went and talked to Debbie and said, "What do you think?" And she said, "There's already enough videos out there on basic aphasia, but not on mental health. I love it! Trish Hambridge: Yeah and so I agree!!! We agreed right away. We made a right turn...  And changed the plan on the fly! I ran a preview for my friends at Voices of Hope. They loved it, but they asked the killer question: 'Where is the actual resource? Where do we go for help?' Katie Strong: Trish, you are speaking to my heart here, and I know I'm one of those "outsider perspectives" as a clinician. But we just don't have great resources for mental health. It's really challenging. So, I love that your friends at Voices of Hope called you out on that. What happened after that? Amy Walters: That was the lightbulb moment, right? Trish Hambridge: Yeah, a video wasn't enough—we needed a map. So, we built the Aphasia and Mental Health Resources paper. The researchers and I had some serious back-and-forth debate, but that's how you get a solid plan. We ended up with something really cool: real tools for real people. Katie Strong: Love, love it! Trish Hambridge: Third, our Adaptive Growth Culture paper. This provides a brand-new map for recovery that the whole world can use to look past the 'broken parts.' Katie Strong: Yeah, Trish, I've heard you speak on this. That talk you gave it, ASHA. I'm going to say listeners, particularly clinicians, you should check this out, because we need to get our clients with aphasia, our lead pathfinders with aphasia to be able to  think in this sort of way, so yeah, Trish Hambridge: But like I have like the speech therapist and the caregiver, and people with aphasia -  it like, look right -- is the good plan. Katie Strong: Love it, fantastic, Amy Walters: Kait and I shared five powerful aphasia stories on video to show our diversity, our strength, our inhumanity, frankly. All of this lives on our National Synergy website. These aren't just projects, they are the proof that when people with aphasia lead, we create world that actually works for us. Katie Strong: Oh, this is fantastic. And we'll have links to your website in the show notes, but you can certainly Google National Aphasia Synergy, and the website pops right up. I've been exploring it for a little bit, but I was looking at it again this morning, and there's just such great, great stuff on there. So please go and check it out. Well, I'm curious, Amy and Trish, what's on the horizon for National Aphasia Synergy, and how can our listeners, whether they're Aphasia Access members or people living with aphasia get involved or support your work. Amy Walters: We are so proud of what we have built, but we are just getting started. This is our Call to Action. Trish Hambridge: We want the world to get excited about Mental Health!  Katie Strong: And I think get excited about your Adaptive Growth Culture too. Trish Hambridge: Yeah! We recently presented a poster at the Chautauqua virtual conference, and the feedback from Aphasia Access members was powerful. The keynote speaker, Dr. Nina Simmons-Mackie, spoke about moving from 'managing a condition' to 'owning a life.' That is exactly what we do! We focus on the strengths, the emotions, and the identity that the old medical model ignores. Katie Strong: Yeah, so okay. So, Trish, you, you were, I think you presented you National Aphasia Synergy presented a poster at the Chautauqua, the Aphasia Access Chautauqua recently. Trish Hambridge: First time presenting a poster! Katie Strong: I love it, I love it. Yep, and the feedback that you got from the Chautauqua attendees was spectacular, right? And that's when, and, and, and Dr. Simmons-Mackie or Nina Simmons Mackey took that idea and we wove it into her keynote at the end, right, and talked about how it's important for us to support people and people with aphasia and care partners move from managing a condition to owning a life. I mean, that that's powerful stuff. I love it! Trish Hambridge: I'm so honored. Katie Strong: Well, you are out there making an impact. Amy Walters: Thank you. We are building something historic, and we want you to be part of it. Here is how you can join the revolution: Trish Hambridge: To the speech therapists and researchers, Help us build our evidence base. We want the test that adapted growth culture map to prove how it improves mental health and builds confidence. Don't just watch from the sidelines—come test this with us! Soon, I'm taking the Adaptive Growth Culture to the global stage. I'll be at the International Aphasia  Rehabilitation Conference in Athens. Katie Strong: You'll be at the International Aphasia Rehabilitation Conference, or IARC, in… Trish Hambridge: Athens!! I am presenting our Adaptive Growth Culture Poster to the top minds in the field. Katie Strong: Fantastic. Trish Hambridge: We have built the roadmap. Now, the researchers will provide the data-driven proof. It is time to see the Adaptive Growth Culture in action. We are moving from lived experience to clinical evidence. Katie Strong: I love it, moving from lived experience to clinical evidence. Amy Walters: That's right, that's right, Trish. If you run a community group, a local program, or a support network, we want to connect with you. Help us build this referral network so that no one is left behind in isolation. We aren't just looking for 'places to go' to pass the time. We are looking for places where we can belong and grow. We are looking for communities that see our potential, not just our deficits. To my peers with Aphasia: Your voice is our power. Share your story or send us a shout-out with your favorite tips and tricks. We also need Buddies for our Peer Befriending program. Help us show the world that we are truly 'owning our lives.' To the Volunteers: We are looking for passionate people to join our Board of Directors. We specifically need one more person with aphasia, as well as SLPs, care partners, and friends. The only requirement? You must believe in the Adaptive Growth Culture. Whether you have the tools or you hold the map, there is a seat at the table for you. Visit us and let's grow together! Katie Strong: Amazing. I hope that our listeners will take you up on the offers that you just laid out there, and that they'll also go out there and share with others that they need to hook everybody up with National Aphasia Synergy. It's a great organization. I enjoyed learning about it more today. And Amy and Trish, I so appreciate you both being here with us and sharing your stories and the amazing work that's going on in National Aphasia Synergy. Trish Hambridge: Thank you. Aphasia Access is fantastic! Katie Strong: I'm glad that you're enjoying Aphasia Access, too. It's a great network, and it's great that we're having lots of communities continue to grow and blossom to support people living successfully with aphasia.   Amy Walters: Hear, Hear! Katie Strong: Thanks. You too. Amy Walters: Thank you. Katie Strong: Have fun in Greece. Trish Hambridge: Yay! Amy Walters: Jealous! Katie Strong: Me too, me too. Amy Walters: Bye, bye. Trish Hambridge: See you. Bye.   On behalf of Aphasia Access, thank you for listening. For references and resources mentioned in today's show, please see our show notes, available on our website at www.aphasiaaccess.org. There you can also become a member of our organization, browse our growing library of materials, and find out about the Aphasia Access Academy. If you have an idea for a future podcast episode, email us at info@aphasiaaccess.org. For Aphasia Access Conversations, here at Central Michigan University in the Strong Story Lab, I'm Katie Strong.     Resources   Below is a list of links to the National Aphasia Synergy (NAS) resources and other organizations as discussed:  NAS Website:  https://nationalaphasiasynergy.org NAS email:  info@nationalaphasiasynergy.org   NAS Facebook page:  https://www.facebook.com/WeRSynergy (to keep up with what's going on at NAS and for inspirational, adaptive growth mindset content) NAS YouTube Channel: https://www.youtube.com/@nationalaphasiasynergy1410 (to watch our Aphasia Stories series, learn about resources, and tune into our quarterly video newsletter, "The Synergy Turf" to hear real people with aphasia) NAS Adaptive Growth Culture paper: https://drive.google.com/file/d/1VIq0juI4FTPKqF0Cev8qZAI5I5po5ouO/view?usp=share_link NAS "You Have Options!" Paper:  https://drive.google.com/file/d/1PBgvb1mDrjnFASaK_dpGL2gnZND_CjaU/view?usp=share_link NAS Aphasia & Mental Health video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GThkxrKbQTI NAS Aphasia & Mental Health Resource paper:  https://drive.google.com/file/d/1pXbFLtZJ8KZ9Pxpg3HVZHBEd_D7BnsED/view?usp=share_link NAS Aphasia Stories video series: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLk1GJP6QGrPDOapMhQlmAUBHfVb5-Mnfi&si=BIuoNmeu-TM-ab65NAS  Peer Befriending: To get involved with NAS Peer Befriending, contact  info@nationalaphasiasynergy.org o Flyer:  https://drive.google.com/file/d/1dCETc1pZck59mw6OgaEjZGnXWOcdSlCh/view?usp=sharing o Video:  https://youtu.be/0RNvCeh0BKM   Referenced resources and organizations: Proloquo2Go AAC App mentioned (what Trish uses):  https://www.assistiveware.com/products/proloquo2go Voices of Hope for Aphasia: https://www.vohaphasia.org/    

What does it take for a nation to treat space not as a scientific hobby, but as a strategic necessity? Live from the 41st Space Symposium in Colorado Springs, Torsten Kriening sits down with Major General Michael Traut, Commander of the German Space Command, for a candid conversation about turning vision into execution.This episode moves from strategy to hard numbers: Germany's historic €35 billion (rising to roughly €45 billion) space investment, the new Space Safety and Security Strategy with its 65 named missions, and SATCOM Stage 4 - the largest space programme the Bundeswehr has ever attempted, a multi-orbit constellation of several hundred satellites modelled on the U.S. SDA's "rolling fleets" approach.Traut speaks frankly about the tensions shaping Europe's space moment: speed versus competition, the SPOCK reconnaissance awards and the risk of new monopolies, SIGINT from space, inspector satellites and counter-space capabilities, and how national capability (SATCOM Stage 4) and European cooperation (IRIS²) can reinforce rather than rival each other. With the clock ticking toward 2029, it's a clear-eyed look at how Germany intends to become a partner others can lean on - and why time, not money, is now the scarcest resource.Essential listening for anyone tracking the future of European security in orbit.To read: German Space Safety and Security StrategySpace Café Radio brings you talks, interviews, and reports from the team of SpaceWatchers while out on the road. Each episode has a specific topic, unique content, and a personal touch. Enjoy the show, and let us know your thoughts at radio@spacewatch.globalWe love to hear from you. Send us your thought, comments, suggestions, love lettersSupport the showYou can find us on: Spotify and Apple Podcast!Please visit us at SpaceWatch.Global, subscribe to our newsletters. Follow us on LinkedIn and X!

What happens when you stop doing things virtually and actually show up for each other?Jon, Will, and returning MTM guest David Valadez reflect on a weekend in Colorado Springs that started with an excruciating Spartan 10K — 7 miles of mud, hills, barbed wire, and shared struggle — and ended with something harder to measure. Every wall and climb was a reminder that we are stronger together than we will ever be alone. Outside the race, the moments kept coming: Jon's Family embracing the gang for dinner, and a visit to Dan Carcillo's plant medicine retreat center in Golden.This is a short episode about the one thing that accelerates everything else — real, in-person community between men. It's one of the core tenets of Men Talking Mindfulness: we are stronger together, and this weekend proved it.MORE ABOUT DAVID VALADEZ:Business advisor to the show, investor, partner, and advisor across multiple business ventures and startups. In 2018 he walked away from a corporate operations career — including senior roles at Convergint, a global systems integrator in security and building automation — to focus on investing in and advising growth-stage companies. He also brings a background in youth sports performance leadership as former VP of Operations at Dedicated Athletes and Legerity Sports Performance. David is a Partner at Kitsap Olhava Management and one of the men behind the scenes at MTM.Check out his past ep:Men's Journey Through and Healing After DivorceIN THIS EPISODE:-Why shared struggle creates a depth of connection no Zoom call can replicate-How co-regulation works — and what Jon's wife saw in him after just one weekend-The visit to Dan Carcillo and Experience Onward — what happened in that room-Why doing something hard together is different from just hanging out-The first step if you've been isolating — and how to take it -A direct invitation to join MTM community and future in-person eventsTired of just listening and want to become more mindful?Take our Awareness to Action COURSE (A2A)12 modules structured curriculum on attention, presence, practices & performance — plus an inspiring community built in for connection.https://focusnowtraining.com/a2a-course→ This episode is a living example of what A2A is building — community as the foundation of growthGET MORE FROM MTM:Join our free weekly Substack newsletter → Click HERECheck out our MTM Website to see what else we are up too!mentalkingmindfulness.comGET FOCUSED!! (Corporate Trainings)Does your company need help, or would you like to reduce safety incidents?? Head over to focusnowtraining.com - we have you covered!Produced by Robert Lopez cratesaudio.comHosted on Ausha. See ausha.co/privacy-policy for more information.

In a candid conversation, Representative Jeff Crank shares his insights on the recent loss of US Space Command in Colorado Springs and the efforts he made to secure new investments for the area. He also discusses his thoughts on the war in Iran and the importance of supporting Israel. Representative Crank talks about the challenges his district faced when US Space Command was relocated, but instead of fighting the decision, he chose to work with the administration to secure new investments for the area. He shares the exciting news of a new Space Operations Center being built in El Paso County, which will bring in over 5700 jobs. He also discusses the importance of working with other levels of government to achieve positive outcomes for his community.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

In this episode of The Mandy Connell Show, Mandy Connell dives into a thought-provoking conversation with a self-proclaimed democratic socialist, Deep Singh Badhesha. As a first-generation American, Deep shares his fascinating story of growing up in a conservative Colorado Springs community and how his experiences shaped his views on politics and social issues. From his early days as a libertarian to becoming a passionate advocate for democratic socialism, Deep's journey is a compelling exploration of the complexities of the American left. The conversation touches on a range of topics, including healthcare, government accountability, and the challenges of implementing a universal healthcare system. Mandy and Deep engage in a respectful and insightful discussion, challenging each other's perspectives and ideas. The episode also delves into the complexities of socialism and capitalism, with Deep arguing that socialism has failed in the past due to human nature, but also highlighting the successes of collectivist societies like China. Meanwhile, Representative Jeff Crank joins the show to discuss the war in Iran and the potential implications for the midterms. He shares his thoughts on the current situation and the need for a more nuanced approach to dealing with Iran. The conversation also touches on the importance of regular order in the legislative process and the need to address the country's growing deficit. Plus FOX31 Chief Meteorologist Dave Fraser stops by for a quick update on today's crazy weather!See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Southgate Campus 

Join us as we continue in our series "Camp Paul"Join us every Sunday online or in-person at 9:00am & 11:00am. 4005 Lee Vance Vw, Colorado Springs, CO 80918 Website: rockfamilychurch.com Connect Card: https://rfc.churchcenter.com/people/forms/528074 Prayer Requests: https://www.rockfamilychurch.com/prayer-request Start Serving: https://rfc.churchcenter.com/registrations/events/category/92573 Join a Small Group: https://rfc.churchcenter.com/registrations/events/3287086 Facebook: facebook.com/rockfamilychurch Instagram: instagram.com/rockfamilychurch Tik Tok: tiktok.com/@rockfamilychurch Youtube: youtube.com/@RockFamilyOnline#ColoradoSpringsChurch #Faith #Jesus #Worship #ChurchOnline #SundayMessage

What does it really mean to be a good neighbor?In this message from our series Tell Me More About…, Pastor Rick Rusaw unpacks one of Jesus' most well-known teachings, the Parable of the Good Samaritan found in Luke 10:25-37. As Jesus answers the question, “Who is my neighbor?”, we're challenged to move beyond comfortable faith and embrace a life marked by compassion, action, generosity, and genuine love for others.Through powerful stories and practical application, Pastor Rick reminds us that following Jesus means more than believing the right things. It means seeing people the way God sees them, stepping into messy situations, being willing to be inconvenienced, and loving our neighbors as ourselves.Jesus said that all of Scripture hangs on two commands: love God and love your neighbor (Matthew 22:37-40). This message challenges us to evaluate what we truly love, how we treat the people around us, and whether we're living out the mission God has placed before us.Scripture References:• Luke 10:25-37• Matthew 22:37-40• Deuteronomy 6:5• Leviticus 19:18At Trace Church in Colorado Springs, we believe every number has a name, every name has a story, and every story matters to God.Sunday Service Times8:15A | 10:00A | 11:45ALivestream 10:00A MST

Car culture is in dire straights, with racetracks closing and communities cracking down on modified cars, it's never been harder to be a car enthusiast. I talk with Tayven from Primul Garage about his car show event which seeks to bring the community back into cars right here in Colorado Springs. Whether you enjoy wrenching on cars, optimizing performance, or just want to understand what's going under the hood, this is the car show that talks about everything with four wheels and then some! Wash Your Car with The BEST from Chemical Guys while Supporting The Show On The Radio in Colorado: AM1460 & FM101.1 The Answer — LIVE Sat 2pm, Sun 9am & 6pm • 100.7 The Word — Sat 7pm • 91.7 KLZR — Sat 10:30am Stream live On The Radio! Join the community on Facebook! ️ Support SEMA's Work #automotive #carpodcast #coloradosprings #carshows #showcars #carenthusiast #carculture Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

With a passion for historic artifacts and collections, Sarah Woods' path led her from the Midwest to the heart of Colorado Springs – the El Pomar Foundation. Established by philanthropists Julie and Spencer Penrose back in 1937, El Pomar continues to make an enormous impact on the community. Learn about the legacy of the Penroses, including the beloved attractions they're responsible for creating, and the rich history you can explore through El Pomar.

Christina Hello, everyone, I'm Christina Darnell, the managing editor of MinistryWatch. Welcome to the MinistryWatch podcast. In today's extra episode, I talk with Warren Smith about some news items that are slightly (even significantly) outside of our normal charity and philanthropy “beat.” So, Warren, what's up first? Warren Ministry Brands, the leading provider of church management software and online giving solutions, has opened a new corporate headquarters in a suburb of Atlanta. Christina Warren, it's not like you to be taken in by a corporate press release. What caught your attention about this move? Warren A statement announcing the opening said the company has “upwards of 700 employees across the United States and Ireland, including 54 in the Atlanta area.” Ministry Brands says it has more than 90,000 churches and non-profit organization customers and facilitates more than $6.45 billion in charitable giving annually. That's a huge business, focused just on churches and ministries. I've asked the president for an interview, and – to their credit – they're going to give me one. So stay tuned for more information about this organization. Christina If you cover religion, like we do here at MinistryWatch, one of the big events of the year is coming up, and that's the Southern Baptist Convention's annual meeting in Orlando. Warren Stay tuned to MinistryWatch for our coverage of the event. The annual meeting is often an opportunity for other meetings to happen, and one that caught my attention was one hosted by the Evangelical Council for Abuse Prevention (ECAP). Stand Up: Standing for Vulnerable Adults Against Abuse and Exploitation” is a ticketed luncheon on Tuesday, June 9, during the annual meeting. The event is sponsored by the SBC Executive Committee's Abuse Prevention & Response Department, led by Jeff Dalrymple. Christina The luncheon will convene ministry leaders, disability advocates, and abuse-prevention experts to address a crisis the Church can no longer afford to overlook. Warren To learn more about this important topic, check out this article by Dalrymple, whose daughter has autism. It highlights important issues all churches – not just those in the SBC – need to face. Christina We normally don't report about ourselves, but our MinistryWatch database has hit a milestone. Warren We'll soon be looking for another name for the MinistryWatch 1000 database, because just passed the 1500 mark, representing $55 billion in annual revenue. We hope to have 2000 ministries in the database by the end of the year. If you don't use “The Database,” as we call it, check it out here. Christina We have a story that is adjacent to our database. Warren MinistryWatch rates a ministry's efficiency and transparency, but rating a ministry's effectiveness has been an elusive measure for us and for others. We can measure how much a ministry spends on fundraising, but how can you really measure whether a discipleship ministry causes people to grow spiritually? Or whether an evangelism ministry who claims people made “decisions” for Christ are following up, and that those people are still following Christ a year or a decade later? Coming up with ways to measure ministry effectiveness is sort of the “Holy Grail” for people in my business. Christina I'm guessing that's why you were fascinated by news from World Vision that they were making the attempt to create such a measurement. Warren They are calling it the “Hope and Love Measure,” and they claim it is the first “validated tool to quantify how children experience God's love.” I must confess that I remain apprehensive, but fascinated. You can read more about that new tool here. And stay tuned: I'm interviewing World Vision President Edgar Sandoval later this week, and we'll take a deeper dive into this tool in a future episode of the MinistryWatch podcast. Christina Among the bigger news stories of the week was Pope Leo's new encyclical, Magnifica Humanitas last week. Warren He made the announcement surrounded by AI experts, including Anthropic co-founder Chris Olah. My friends at AXIS, who I often turn to for succinct translations of cultural events through a biblical lens, said, “The pope spoke of the need to ‘disarm' artificial intelligence so it might become a tool to promote the common good. He insisted that, although the Church won't always have ‘technical answers,' it does bring the wisdom that ‘every person is unique and irreplaceable, a free and intelligent subject with a conscience, capable of seeking God, serving one another, caring for our common home.' His call was for AI to be developed in such a way that these human realities are served, instead of being displaced. And yes, at one point, he did quote Gandalf.” For the full (42,000-word) text, click here. Christina Warren, we need to wrap things up here. Any final thoughts before we go? Warren I was in Knoxville last week attending an event hosted by my former colleagues and good friends at The Colson Center for Christian Worldview. I was able to connect with MinistryWatch readers and listeners. I'll be in Denver and Colorado Springs in next week. Let me know if you would like to join me for lunch. My email is wsmith@ministrywatch.com. Christina That brings to a close this EXTRA episode of the podcast. The producer for today's program is Jeff McIntosh. Until next time, may God bless you.

Scott Caulfield is one of the most respected voices in collegiate strength and conditioning, currently serving as Director of Strength & Conditioning at Norwich University. In 2025, he was named the National Strength and Conditioning Association College Strength & Conditioning Coach of the Year, recognizing decades of impact as a coach, educator, and leader in the profession.Before returning to Norwich in 2021 as the school's first-ever Director of Strength & Conditioning, Caulfield spent more than a decade with the NSCA in Colorado Springs, where he served as Head Strength Coach, Coaching Education Manager, and Performance Center Manager. In that role, he helped shape coach education nationwide while collaborating with organizations across the NCAA, MLB, NBA, NFL, and Olympic sport systems.His coaching journey also includes stops at Dartmouth College and Colorado College, along with experience in private sector performance and military fitness. A U.S. Navy veteran and Vermont native, Caulfield is known for blending high standards, real-world leadership, and relationship-driven coaching.$1 Trial Membership to SCN

Opinions on how many conclusions to draw from Roots’ 0-1 loss to Colorado Springs range from “none” to “some, who knows how many”. The conversation quickly turns to more entertaining forms of media, and plumbing.

Dr. Eligar Sadeh, Tuesday, May 5, 2026, #4535Quick summaryThe Space Show featured a discussion with Eligar Sadeh, editor of the Journal of Astropolitics, about the recent Space Symposium in Colorado Springs and cislunar space governance. Sadeh explained how the symposium focused heavily on establishing U.S. dominance in cislunar space, particularly through the Artemis program, with emphasis on being the first mover in establishing governance structures and rules of engagement. The discussion covered concerns about NASA science budget cuts, the sustainability of the Space Launch System, and the role of public-private partnerships in lunar development. Sadeh noted that while the U.S. space community emphasized military and strategic priorities, international scholars, particularly from developing space nations, were increasingly contributing to astropolitical research through his journal. The conversation also touched on challenges with Starlink satellite congestion and the potential for space asset disruption, though Sadeh emphasized the importance of establishing international governance frameworks to prevent harmful interference in space.Detailed SummaryEligar discussed his recent activities, including his work as an adjunct professor at the University of Colorado, his involvement with the journal Astropolitics, and his focus on lunar governance and astropolitics. He highlighted the growing interest in cislunar space and lunar governance, noting a significant increase in paper submissions to the journal and plans for a special issue and international conference on the topic. Eligar also mentioned the prominent role of defense and military interests in the current space industry, particularly with the Space Force's increasing budget and focus on space superiority. The conversation touched on personal updates, including Eligar's children's current activities and his relationship status.Eligar discussed the emerging focus on cislunar space at a recent space symposium, highlighting the strategic importance of establishing governance structures and securing gravitational high ground in the Earth-Moon system. He noted that while the Artemis program aims for aggressive lunar exploration and potential human habitation by 2032, there are significant challenges with the Space Launch System's sustainability and the reliance on new commercial capabilities like SpaceX's Starship. Eligar emphasized that the civil program appears to be a cover for establishing U.S. superiority in the cislunar domain, particularly in response to geopolitical competition with China and Russia.The discussion focused on concerns about proposed NASA science cuts and their impact on the space community. Eligar noted that while there was awareness of these cuts during networking discussions at the Space Symposium, there was limited pushback, with many participants appearing to align with the Trump administration's direction. The conversation then shifted to broader governance challenges in the cislunar domain, with Eligar emphasizing the need for maintaining space as a commons and establishing rules for interoperability among the 62 states participating in the Artemis program. The discussion concluded with a reference to a 20-year-old paper co-authored by Eligar and David on public-private partnerships in lunar development, which remains relevant to current space governance challenges.Eligar discussed the challenges of establishing a permanent lunar presence, highlighting issues such as freedom of movement, resource utilization, and the harsh lunar environment, including metallic and adhesive dust. He emphasized the need for reusable and sustainable lunar transportation systems, suggesting that achieving a cost of $100 per kilogram with Starship could be crucial. Eligar also explained the concept of cislunar space as the gravitational high ground incorporating Lagrange points between Earth and the Moon, which provides access to various orbital domains and the lunar surface. Joe noted the disconnect between desired goals and current capabilities, advocating for increased repetition in accessing lunar space to support a permanent presence.The discussion focused on NASA's lunar mission plans and budget constraints. Joe expressed concerns that the Moon Enterprise would likely crowd out other NASA programs due to limited congressional funding, similar to previous large initiatives like the Space Shuttle and International Space Station. Eligar agreed that SLS is not sustainable, noting it's only planned for up to Artemis 5 with a cadence of one launch per year, and emphasized the geopolitical aspects driving the lunar race, including the need for reusable transportation systems and establishing a presence in the Aitken Basin for potential mining opportunities.The discussion focused on the Space Symposium's emphasis on getting to the lunar surface first rather than focusing on sustainability or cost efficiency. Eligar noted that while there was general support for the Artemis program and Accords, there was limited discussion about alternative lunar surface models or modifications to the current Artemis plan. The conversation highlighted a potential disconnect between the symposium's rhetoric about achieving rapid progress and budgetary realities, including concerns about over-reliance on Starship variants and cuts to science programs. John suggested that the science program cuts might be a strategic budget maneuver similar to defense programs, with the expectation that Congress would eventually restore funding.Eligar discussed NASA's proposed permanent lunar presence around 2030 and debated various technical choices in rocket design and propulsion. The conversation then shifted to concerns about space congestion, particularly with multiple satellite constellations being planned by different countries, though Eligar noted that cislunar space remains decades away from similar congestion issues. David raised questions about the global scope of the astropolitics journal, with contributions coming from scholars in developing space states who are focused on using space for socio-economic development rather than military dominance.The group discussed perceptions of Jared Isaacman and NASA's leadership in space governance, particularly regarding the Artemis program. Eligar explained that while there are good ideas in the current approach, there are concerns about U.S. dominance in space policy, noting a European concept of “equivalence” where different countries could develop governance approaches independently while maintaining interoperability standards. The discussion highlighted the tension between U.S. efforts to establish space superiority and the need for international cooperation, with Joe emphasizing that China and the U.S. are the dominant powers in space, making other countries effectively choose between aligning with one of these powers.We also discussed the growing importance of satellite communication systems for military purposes, with Joe noting that multiple countries are developing Starlink-like systems following the Ukraine war. They explored the challenges of denying access to these systems and the potential for kinetic attacks on satellites, with Eligar emphasizing the importance of establishing governance structures and rules of the road in space. The discussion concluded with Eligar providing an update on the journal Astropolitics, which is growing in influence among emerging space powers and has expanded its editorial board with new members including someone from the Romanian Space Agency.Eligar then mentioned plans for a special issue of Astropolitics journal focused on lunar astropolitics, governance strategy, and policy dynamics in cislunar space, with a global conference planned for early next year and publication expected in a year to year and a half. He agreed to provide David with contact information for potential guests for the Space Show and discussed the possibility of updating a previous article with Haym and himself in the fall. Regarding the timeline for returning humans to the Moon, Eligar expressed doubt about the 2028 target, suggesting 2030 would be more realistic due to ongoing challenges with the lunar landing vehicle.The group discussed public-private partnerships in space, with Eligar noting that realistic timelines for landing vehicles are now around 2030 rather than 2028 due to delays on both Blue Origin and SpaceX sides. Joe raised questions about international public-private partnerships, particularly in countries like India, while Eligar shared insights about emerging space capabilities in countries like Brazil, Cambodia, Thailand, and Indonesia. The discussion concluded with plans to follow up on these topics in a future issue of Astropolitics journal, with Eligar offering to rewrite and get the paper peer-reviewed.Special thanks to our sponsors:American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics, Helix Space in Luxembourg, Celestis Memorial Spaceflights, Astrox Corporation, Dr. Haym Benaroya of Rutgers University, The Space Settlement Progress Blog by John Jossy, The Atlantis Project, and Artless EntertainmentWe use Zoom phone numbers for program participation.For real time program participation, email Dr. Space at: drspace@thespaceshow.com for instructions and access.The Space Show is a non-profit 501C3 through its parent, One Giant Leap Foundation, Inc. To donate via Pay Pal, use:To donate with Zelle, use the email address: david@onegiantleapfoundation.org.If you prefer donating with a check, please make the check payable to One Giant Leap Foundation and mail to:One Giant Leap Foundation, 11035 Lavender Hill Drive Ste. 160-306 Las Vegas, NV 89135Upcoming Programs:Please note that due to out of town guests for a family party, our next live Space Show program will be June 9, Tuesday, 7 PM PDT. Please check the Upcoming Show Menu on our home page for updates as they appear. Thank you. Get full access to The Space Show-One Giant Leap Foundation at doctorspace.substack.com/subscribe

Former Mesa County Clerk Tina Peters was released from prison today after Governor Jared Polis commuted her sentence. We ask Matt Crane, executive director of the Colorado County Clerks Association, about the release and the Trump administration's pushback against voting by mail. Then, Purplish breaks down the candidates for governor: today, the two Democrats; tomorrow, the three Republicans. And we share another commencement speech during graduation season; this time, Vice President JD Vance who spoke at the US Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs.

Southgate Campus

Live from Fort Worth, Texas! The Bardtenders head to Fort Worth for the third annual Heard House to bring you live episodes with some amazing hospitality professionals. The Bardtenders had the chance to stay at the Heard House sponsored by Heard Card Game where bartenders from around the country came together to share their stories, gain access to education opportunities, and create some amazing memories along the way. Join us over the next several weeks as these bartenders share their experiences in the hospitality industry!In this episode of "The Mixing Glass", Tobias Steeves discusses his journey in the world of hospitality, building a customer base in a small community in South Dakota, and The Flying Spaghetti Monster. ------------Tobias Steeves grew up as a Military Brat across the country with his 8 siblings, but started his hospitality and bartending journey in downtown Colorado Springs, CO, at The Archives (an underground cocktail bar) where he cut his teeth as a barback/bartender and was there for several years.Tobias has worked at several other bars over the years and is a member of the US Bartenders' Guild.  He has competed in numerous cocktail competitions and won the 2021 Fernet Branca Barback Games. He was also the runner up in 2022's Patron Perfectionist, 2021's Hampton Water Rocking Rose by Bon Jovi, and has had multiple World Class by Diageo top 10 /and top 30 placements. In 2021 Tobias moved to Spearfish, South Dakota, and after 6 months of living there he took ownership of a small local Italian restaurant where he began building up the local cocktail and beverage scene through the restaurant. In July of 2025 he built and opened his first cocktail lounge in the basement of the building where my restaurant is located. Tobis is also a self-proclaimed massive nerd and loves Fernet!----------Don't miss out on any of the action!  Head to www.bardtender.com to stay up to date with all of the Bardtender content, find resources for mental and physical well-being, get access to education materials, and check out what all of our bards are up to!Support the show

FEATURED Join DADAWESOME DAY - Monday June 1st, 2026 - text "book" to (651) 370-8618 to learn more and receive updates on Monday, June 1st. Join the next DADAWESOME ACCELERATOR coaching group - APPLY HERE SUMMARY Most men are getting lived by their lives instead of actually living them. In this conversation, Alan Briggs unpacks how a life of constant escape leaves us empty at the end of the day, and what it looks like to design something we can actually engage with instead. From Yes Days with your kids to preparing for the car ride home the way you'd prepare for a business meeting, Alan brings practical insight that will reshape how you show up as a dad this week. TAKEAWAYS ---The best dads aren't the ones with the most time. They're the ones who prepare for the small moments with the same intentionality they bring to work. ---A coming of age year for your son doesn't require waking up at 4 a.m. It just requires showing up consistently and inviting other trusted men to speak life into him. ---Celebrate who your kids actually are instead of trying to make them love what you love. Curiosity is the doorway to connection. ---We were built for both meaningful work and real rest. Without a healthy theology of both, we swing between burnout and apathy. ---The question that changes everything: What is the good life for you and your family three years from now? GUEST Alan Briggs is a coach, author, and adventurer based in Colorado Springs. He runs two and a half companies, including a coworking space, and spends his days helping leaders find a lighter, more sustainable way to live and work. He's the author of multiple books, including his latest resource on anti-burnout, and the host of his own podcast for leaders. Alan and his wife are raising four kids ranging from 12 to 23, including two adopted children. He loves the mountains, disc golf with his son, and learning to cheer for his kids in the worlds they love most. QUOTES "Most men are getting lived by their lives. They are not living their lives. They are letting choices make them. They are not making intentional choices." "I prepare for business meetings. Do I prepare that well for a date with my wife, a date with my daughter, a car ride? Almost always, no." "You don't have to be up at 4 a.m. with your kid. You don't have to do it every day. But do something that affirms you've got what it takes." "Celebrate exactly who they are and exactly what they love doing, instead of trying to make them love the things that you love doing." "We are not the sum of what we carry. Our identity and who we are loved by is so much more important than what we are as dads." LINKS Join the DadAwesome Prayer Team: Text "pray" to (651) 370-8618 Send a Voice Message to DadAwesome Apply to join the next DadAwesome Accelerator Cohort Subscribe to DadAwesome Messages: Text the word "Dad" to (651) 370-8618 Send a Voice Message to DadAwesome 7-Day Video Series: dadawesome.org/book DadAwesome Podcast: dadawesome.org/podcast Free Chapter + Intro Video Series: dadawesome.org/book Apply to join the next DadAwesome Accelerator Cohort: Email awesome@dadawesome.org Subscribe to DadAwesome Messages: Text "Dad" to (651) 370-8618 Dad Awesome book: dadawesome.org/book Alan Briggs - H2LEADERSHIP Alan's BOOKS

June can feel especially heavy for Christian parents navigating the complexities of loving a child who identifies as LGBTQ while also holding to biblical convictions. In this episode, Melinda Patrick offers compassionate encouragement for parents who feel caught between truth and relationship, conviction and compassion, grief and hope. This conversation is not about fear, outrage, or culture wars. It is about staying anchored in Jesus — emotionally, spiritually, and relationally — while walking a difficult parenting journey with humility, wisdom, and faithfulness. Melinda reminds parents that culture should never disciple our emotions more than Christ disciples our hearts. You will learn 7 ways to stay anchored:  Don't panic. Stay in prayer instead of control. Keep relationship where possible. Stay rooted in Scripture. Watch your tone. Allow yourself to grieve honestly. Remember God loves your child more than you can imagine. Mentioned in This Episode Piercing the Night by Lindsey Kiser Charles Spurgeon Dutch Sheets Still Faithful mini-series Episode 117 of The Bridge Between Us Encouragement for Parents As Pride Month unfolds: stay close to Jesus stay rooted in Scripture stay humble stay faithful The Gospel is still powerful. The Holy Spirit still moves. And Jesus is still drawing people to Himself. You are not alone in this journey. Keep abiding. Keep trusting. Keep re-presenting Jesus. Resources & Next Steps Listen to previous testimonies on The Bridge Between Us Begin the Still Faithful mini-series starting with Episode 117 Subscribe to Melinda's newsletter for ongoing encouragement and equipping Stay tuned for the upcoming mini-series: Walking Wisely, beginning July 1 Restored Hope Network annual HOPE conference - June 12-13 - Colorado Springs, CO

Christina  Hello, everyone, I'm Christina Darnell, the managing editor of MinistryWatch. Welcome to the MinistryWatch podcast. In today's extra episode, I talk with Warren Smith about some news items that are slightly (even significantly) outside of our normal charity and philanthropy “beat.” So, Warren, what's up first? Warren I subscribe to Kate Bowler's Substack and read this week that she had spoken at Church of the Resurrection in Kansas City. When she wrote that this United Methodist congregation had 25,000 members, I was a bit incredulous. Christina United Methodist churches do not usually grow that large, especially these days. Warren So, I did some fact-checking, and she is right, though most online sources also say that weekly attendance at the church is closer to 6,000. Still, that is big. The church is centrist in theology and has so far managed to stay in the United Methodist Church without suffering a meltdown in attendance, though its growth has flattened in recent years. I am going to keep my eye on the church. It will be an interesting bellwether for the future of the UMC. Christina Moving on, there's a leadership transition coming up at a significant Christian organization. Warren After nearly six years of service, Kevin Van Horne has stepped down as Executive Director of International Fellowship of Evangelical Students/ USA. His last day was Friday, May 15, 2026. According to a statement from the organization, “Kevin led IFES/USA through a season of significant change, helping to serve our global fellowship and partners well. We are deeply grateful for his leadership and for the ways God has worked through him.” Dave Shepherd (Director of Finance) has been appointed to serve as Interim Executive Director. IFES was a MinistryWatch Shining Light Award winner in 2023 and has maintained excellent ratings from us since then. Christina Warren, I know you are always interested in demographics and statistics. But something special caught your attention this week. Warren That's right, and before I say what that was, let me as some rhetorical questions. What is the most significant problem facing America and the world? Nuclear winter? Global warming? Artificial intelligence? I would submit for your consideration the coming depopulation of the earth. For at least 30 years, most reputable demographers have been saying that the world population growth is slowing and will likely top out soon. By the year 2100 the world will be in the midst of a significant population decline. Christina And one thing that caught your attention is just how much this population decline will impact all areas of life on earth. Warren That's right. This decline will have enormous implications for every aspect of life. Cities built for millions of people will disappear, leaving a rotting infrastructure. Economic growth will be impossible. We are already seeing towns in the Midwest and West disappear. That trend will accelerate. Christina I've got to admit, Warren, that that sounds a bit melodramatic. Warren I think it's fair to be skeptical, but population demographics is one area of social science that has pretty sound prediction models. Birth rates have fallen to record lows, and they don't change that much from year to year. So it's actually pretty easy to predict what the population will be in the future. And the numbers don't look good. But if these predictions seem a bit melodramatic to you, I suggest reading a new article from The Atlantic, The Great Depopulation. A world with a shrinking and aging population will offer great opportunities for ministry, but for almost every country on the planet, it will be a culturally wrenching reality. Christina On May 17, an event called ReDedicate 250 brought speakers to the National Mall in Washington. The speakers included Eric Metaxas, Mark Driscoll, Sean Feucht, and Greg Locke – all men we've written about here at MinistsryWatch. Warren That's right. They are a part of what some are now calling the Dissident Christian Right. Christina What does that mean? Warren They are not quite Christian Nationalist, but not mainstream evangelical, either. Most assessments have judged the event as kind of a bust. A few thousand people attended, but DCR pundits had predicted many more. For example, The Christian Post reported that Robert Jeffress predicted the gathering “could be the nation's largest religious gathering in more than 50 years.” It is not clear what the attendance figures for this event forbode for the DCR movement, but the weak attendance was a surprise to me and to many who have been following the movement. Christina And there was a notable passing last week. Warren My friend Bob Woodson died last week at the age of 89. If you do not know about Bob's life and the legacy he leaves behind, I recommend reading John Stonestreet's excellent tribute. It was an honor for me to be a part of the Colson Center team that presented Bob with a Wilberforce Award in 2018. He was sui generis. One of one. I will miss him personally, and our country will miss his leadership. I helped arrange a trip for him to The King's College in 2010 to do a live interview with Marvin Olasky. That interview is worth a listen, and you can find it here. Christina Warren, you've mentioned before, that you are a fan of Carey Nieuwhof's leadership podcast. This week he dropped one of his most personal episodes ever. Warren He recounts how, about 20 years ago, he experienced a period of profound burnout. It is part of a two-part series on how to avoid burning out. I strongly recommend it. You can find the first episode here. Christina Warren, we need to wrap things up here. Any final thoughts before we go? Warren I'll be in Knoxville this week attending an event hosted by my former colleagues and good friends at The Colson Center for Christian Worldview. If you'd like to have lunch with me on Friday, let me hear from you. I'll be doing similar lunches in Denver and Colorado Springs in June. Let me know if you would like to join us. My email is wsmith@ministrywatch.com. Christina That brings to a close this EXTRA episode of the podcast. The producer for today's program is Jeff McIntosh. I'm Christina Darnell, along with Warren Smith. Until next time, may God bless you.

In this heartfelt episode, Amy sits down with Danielle, a Finding Hope leader in Colorado Springs, to talk about the devastating impact addiction has had on her life and family. Danielle vulnerably shares how she lost her dad to the disease of addiction, watched other family members struggle, and later faced the heartbreak of her own son battling addiction. Through the pain, Danielle also shares how Finding Hope became a turning point in her healing journey—helping her break free from shame and guilt and giving her the courage to share her story openly. Her honesty, faith, and hope are a powerful reminder that no one has to walk this road alone. This episode is for anyone who has loved someone struggling with addiction and needs the reminder that healing, community, and hope are possible. FindingHope.Today HopeAfterLoss.Today FHRetreat.comHALRetreat.com runforhoperace.com

Hi, friends, and welcome back to our series, "On Becoming: The Art and Craft of Personal Storytelling." where we take a close look at personal essays written by real students, talking about why we love them, what makes them work, and how they came to be.  In this episode, I'm joined by Hillary Dickman, Senior Assistant Director of Admission at Colorado College. In past episodes, we've really broken down these essays and gotten into the nooks and crannies of what makes them work. But in this episode, I really wanted to get a sense of how Hillary sees essays from an admission reader's perspective. We get into:  What Hillary hopes to learn about a student when she sits down to read their essay What a great essay can do that the rest of the application can't How much essays matter and whether or not that's changed over the last few years. Why Colorado College does not have any AI reading essays or applications and doesn't have plans to. She gives us an inside look at what it's like having your essay read in committee by as many as 13 people, and There's a moment in the episode where she imagines that I'm the co-reader reading the application with her and gives me the notes that she would give on the student if I was in the admission office with her. I loved our conversation. I hope you enjoy it too. Hillary Dickman is originally from the San Francisco Bay Area and holds a Bachelor's and a Master's degree in Speech Communication from Miami University in Oxford, Ohio. She began her career in higher education teaching at the University of Cincinnati and the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs. Since 2021, she's been part of the admission team at Colorado College, and has also navigated the college admission process as a parent — her older daughter is a recent graduate of Wellesley College, and her younger one is a student at Colorado College.   Play-by-Play: 2:12 – What is often happening in admission offices during April and May? 3:14 – When Hillary reads a college essay, what is she hoping to learn about a student? 4:55 – What can a great essay do that the other parts of the application cannot? 6:05 – Hillary sets context for the essay and the student who wrote it. 7:35 – Hillary reads the essay, which we're calling, "Where I Grew Up." 11:59 – How does the author explore community building through this essay?  15:09 – What is the benefit to orienting the reader towards the topic early in the essay?  17:43 – Hillary describes the process of reading applications in teams and presenting files to a partner. 20:35 – Hillary breaks down how an admissions committee works. 24:15 – Hillary shares what makes it easy to advocate for a student and why real self-reflection stands out. 26:23 – Ethan and Hillary break down why a recurring theme and unique details  can make your essay stand out when admissions officers are reading quickly. 31:12 – Why does Colorado College choose not to use AI systems to read student applications? 35:23 – How do small, specific memories keep an admissions officer engaged in your story? 40:06 – Does Hillary see the importance or role of the college essay changing in the future? 46:43 – What does Hillary love about her job? 49:12 – Closing thoughts Resources: "Where I Grew Up" Essay State of College Admission - National Association for College Admission Counseling (NACAC) What do colleges look for in students?   College Essay Guy's Personal Statement Resources College Essay Guy's College Application Hub