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What does it take to keep your voice—and your purpose—strong through every season of life? In this episode of Unstoppable Mindset, I sit down with my friend Bill Ratner, one of Hollywood's most recognized voice actors, best known as Flint from GI Joe. Bill's voice has carried him through radio, animation, and narration, but what stands out most is how he's used that same voice to serve others through storytelling, teaching, and grief counseling. Together, we explore the heart behind his work—from bringing animated heroes to life to standing on The Moth stage and helping people find healing through poetry. Bill shares lessons from his own journey, including losing both parents early, finding family in unexpected places, and discovering how creative expression can rebuild what life breaks down. We also reflect on 9/11, preparedness, and the quiet confidence that comes from trusting your training—whether you're a first responder, a performer, or just navigating the unknown. This conversation isn't just about performance; it's about presence. It's about using your story, your craft, and your compassion to keep moving forward—unstoppable, one voice at a time. Highlights: 00:31 – Hear the Flint voice and what it takes to bring animated characters to life. 06:57 – Learn why an uneven college path still led to a lifelong acting career. 11:50 – Understand how GI Joe became a team and a toy phenomenon that shaped culture. 15:58 – See how comics and cartoons boosted classroom literacy when used well. 17:06 – Pick up simple ways parents can spark reading through shared stories. 19:29 – Discover how early, honest conversations about death can model resilience. 24:09 – Learn to critique ads and media like a pro to sharpen your own performance. 36:19 – Follow the pivot from radio to voiceover and why specialization pays. 47:48 – Hear practical editing approaches and accessible tools that keep shows tight. 49:38 – Learn how The Moth builds storytelling chops through timed, judged practice. 55:21 – See how poetry—and poetry therapy—support grief work with students. 59:39 – Take notes on memoir writing, emotional management, and one-person shows. About the Guest: Bill Ratner is one of America's best known voice actors and author of poetry collections Lamenting While Doing Laps in the Lake (Slow Lightning Lit 2024,) Fear of Fish (Alien Buddha Press 2021,) To Decorate a Casket (Finishing Line Press 2021,) and the non-fiction book Parenting For The Digital Age: The Truth Behind Media's Effect On Children and What To Do About It (Familius Books 2014.) He is a 9-time winner of the Moth StorySLAM, 2-time winner of Best of The Hollywood Fringe Extension Award for Solo Performance, Best of the Net Poetry Nominee 2023 (Lascaux Review,) and New Millennium "America One Year From Now" Writing Award Finalist. His writing appears in Best Small Fictions 2021 (Sonder Press,) Missouri Review (audio,) Baltimore Review, Chiron Review, Feminine Collective, and other journals. He is the voice of "Flint" in the TV cartoon G.I. Joe, "Donnell Udina" in the computer game Mass Effect, the voice of Air Disasters on Smithsonian Channel, NewsNation, and network TV affiliates across the country. He is a committee chair for his union, SAG-AFTRA, teaches Voiceovers for SAG-AFTRA Foundation, Media Awareness for Los Angeles Unified School District, and is a trained grief counsellor. Member: Actors Equity Association, Screen Actors Guild-AFTRA, National Storytelling Network • https://billratner.com • @billratner Ways to connect with Bill: https://soundcloud.com/bill-ratner https://www.instagram.com/billratner/ https://twitter.com/billratner https://www.threads.net/@billratner https://billratner.tumblr.com https://www.youtube.com/@billratner/videos https://www.facebook.com/billratner.voiceover.author https://bsky.app/profile/bilorat.bsky.social About the Host: Michael Hingson is a New York Times best-selling author, international lecturer, and Chief Vision Officer for accessiBe. Michael, blind since birth, survived the 9/11 attacks with the help of his guide dog Roselle. This story is the subject of his best-selling book, Thunder Dog. Michael gives over 100 presentations around the world each year speaking to influential groups such as Exxon Mobile, AT&T, Federal Express, Scripps College, Rutgers University, Children's Hospital, and the American Red Cross just to name a few. He is Ambassador for the National Braille Literacy Campaign for the National Federation of the Blind and also serves as Ambassador for the American Humane Association's 2012 Hero Dog Awards. https://michaelhingson.com https://www.facebook.com/michael.hingson.author.speaker/ https://twitter.com/mhingson https://www.youtube.com/user/mhingson https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelhingson/ accessiBe Links https://accessibe.com/ https://www.youtube.com/c/accessiBe https://www.linkedin.com/company/accessibe/mycompany/ https://www.facebook.com/accessibe/ Thanks for listening! Thanks so much for listening to our podcast! If you enjoyed this episode and think that others could benefit from listening, please share it using the social media buttons on this page. Do you have some feedback or questions about this episode? Leave a comment in the section below! Subscribe to the podcast If you would like to get automatic updates of new podcast episodes, you can subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts or Stitcher. You can subscribe in your favorite podcast app. You can also support our podcast through our tip jar https://tips.pinecast.com/jar/unstoppable-mindset . Leave us an Apple Podcasts review Ratings and reviews from our listeners are extremely valuable to us and greatly appreciated. They help our podcast rank higher on Apple Podcasts, which exposes our show to more awesome listeners like you. If you have a minute, please leave an honest review on Apple Podcasts. Transcription Notes: Michael Hingson ** 00:00 Access Cast and accessiBe Initiative presents Unstoppable Mindset. The podcast where inclusion, diversity and the unexpected meet. Hi, I'm Michael Hingson, Chief Vision Officer for accessiBe and the author of the number one New York Times bestselling book, Thunder dog, the story of a blind man, his guide dog and the triumph of trust. Thanks for joining me on my podcast as we explore our own blinding fears of inclusion unacceptance and our resistance to change. We will discover the idea that no matter the situation, or the people we encounter, our own fears, and prejudices often are our strongest barriers to moving forward. The unstoppable mindset podcast is sponsored by accessiBe, that's a c c e s s i capital B e. Visit www.accessibe.com to learn how you can make your website accessible for persons with disabilities. And to help make the internet fully inclusive by the year 2025. Glad you dropped by we're happy to meet you and to have you here with us.   Michael Hingson ** 01:21 Well on a gracious hello to you, wherever you may be, I am your host. Mike hingson, and you are listening to unstoppable mindset. Today, we get to have a voice actor, person, Bill Ratner, who you want to know who Bill Radnor is, go back and watch the old GI Joe cartoons and listen to the voice of Flint.   Bill Ratner ** 01:42 All right. Lady Jay, you better get your battle gear on, because Cobra is on their way. And I can't bring up the Lacher threat weapon system. We got to get out of here. Yo, Joe,   Michael Hingson ** 01:52 there you go. I rest my case Well, Bill, welcome to unstoppable mindset.   Bill Ratner ** 02:00 We can't rest now. Michael, we've just begun. No, we've just begun.   Michael Hingson ** 02:04 We got to keep going here. Well, I'm really glad that you're here. Bill is another person who we inveigled to get on unstoppable mindset with the help of Walden Hughes. And so that means we can talk about Walden all we want today. Bill just saying, oh goodness. And I got a lot to say. Let me tell you perfect, perfect. Bring it on. So we are really grateful to Walden, although I hope he's not listening. We don't want to give him a big head. But no, seriously, we're really grateful. Ah, good point.   Bill Ratner ** 02:38 But his posture, oddly enough, is perfect.   Michael Hingson ** 02:40 Well, there you go. What do you do? He practiced. Well, anyway, we're glad you're here. Tell us about the early bill, growing up and all that stuff. It's always fun to start a good beginning.   Bill Ratner ** 02:54 Well, I was a very lucky little boy. I was born in Des Moines, Iowa in 1947 to two lovely people, professionals, both with master's degree out at University of Chicago. My mother was a social worker. My father had an MBA in business. He was managing editor of Better Homes and Gardens magazine. So I had the joy of living in a better home and living in a garden.   Michael Hingson ** 03:21 My mother. How long were you in Des Moines?   Bill Ratner ** 03:24 Five and a half years left before my sixth birthday. My dad got a fancy job at an ad agency in Minneapolis, and had a big brother named Pete and big handsome, curly haired boy with green eyes. And moved to Minneapolis, Minnesota, and was was brought up there.   Michael Hingson ** 03:45 Wow. So you went to school there and and chased the girls and all that stuff.   Bill Ratner ** 03:54 I went to school there at Blake School for Boys in Hopkins, Minnesota. Couldn't chase the girls day school, but the girls we are allowed to dance with certainly not chase. Michael was at woodhue dancing school, the Northrop girls from Northrop girls school and the Blake boys were put together in eighth grade and taught the Cha Cha Cha, the waltz, the Charleston, and we danced together, and the girls wore white gloves, and we sniffed their perfume, and we all learned how to be lovers when we were 45   Michael Hingson ** 04:37 There you are. Well, as long as you learned at some point, that's a good start.   Bill Ratner ** 04:44 It's a weird generation. Michael,   Michael Hingson ** 04:46 I've been to Des Moines before. I was born in Chicago, but moved out to California when I was five, but I did some work with the National Federation of the Blind in the mid 19. 1970s 1976 into 1978 so spent time at the Iowa Commission for the Blind in Des Moines, which became a top agency for the Blind in well, the late 50s into the to the 60s and so on. So   Bill Ratner ** 05:15 both my parents are from Chicago. My father from the south side of Chicago, 44th and Kenzie, which was a Irish, Polish, Italian, Jewish, Ukrainian neighborhood. And my mother from Glencoe, which was a middle class suburb above Northwestern University in Evanston.   Michael Hingson ** 05:34 I Where were you born? 57th and union, north, south side, no, South   Bill Ratner ** 05:42 57th union is that? Is that west of Kenzie?   Michael Hingson ** 05:46 You know, I don't remember the geography well enough to know, but I know that it was, I think, Mount Sinai Hospital where I was born. But it was, it's, it's, it's a pretty tough neighborhood today. So I understand,   Bill Ratner ** 06:00 yeah, yeah, my it was tough, then it's tough now,   Michael Hingson ** 06:03 yeah, I think it's tougher, supposedly, than it was. But we lived there for five years, and then we we moved to California, and I remember some things about Chicago. I remember walking down to the local candy store most days, and had no problem doing that. My parents were told they should shut me away at a home somewhere, because no blind child could ever grow up to amount to anything. And my parents said, You guys are you're totally wrong. And they brought me up with that attitude. So, you   Bill Ratner ** 06:32 know who said that the school says school so that   Michael Hingson ** 06:35 doctors doctors when they discovered I was blind with the   Bill Ratner ** 06:38 kid, goodness gracious, horrified.   Michael Hingson ** 06:44 Well, my parents said absolutely not, and they brought me up, and they actually worked with other parents of premature kids who became blind, and when kindergarten started in for us in in the age of four, they actually had a special kindergarten class for blind kids at the Perry School, which is where I went. And so I did that for a year, learn braille and some other things. Then we moved to California, but yeah, and I go back to Chicago every so often. And when I do nowadays, they I one of my favorite places to migrate in Chicago is Garrett Popcorn.   Bill Ratner ** 07:21 Ah, yes, with caramel corn, regular corn, the   Michael Hingson ** 07:25 Chicago blend, which is a mixture, yeah, the Chicago blend is cheese corn, well, as it is with caramel corn, and they put much other mozzarella on it as well. It's really good.   Bill Ratner ** 07:39 Yeah, so we're on the air. Michael, what do you call your what do you call your program? Here I am your new friend, and I can't even announce your program because I don't know   Michael Hingson ** 07:48 the name, unstoppable mindset. This   Bill Ratner ** 07:51 is unstoppable mindset.   Michael Hingson ** 07:56 We're back. Well, we're back already. We're fast. So you, you, you moved off elsewhere, out of Des Moines and all that. And where did you go to college?   Bill Ratner ** 08:09 Well, this is like, why did you this is, this is a bit like talking about the Vietnam War. Looking back on my college career is like looking back on the Vietnam War series, a series of delusions and defeats. By the time I the time i for college, by the time I was applying for college, I was an orphan, orphan, having been born to fabulous parents who died too young of natural causes. So my grades in high school were my mediocre. I couldn't get into the Ivy Leagues. I got into the big 10 schools. My stepmother said, you're going to Michigan State in East Lansing because your cousin Eddie became a successful realtor. And Michigan State was known as mu u it was the most successful, largest agriculture college and university in the country. Kids from South Asia, China, Northern Europe, Southern Europe, South America all over the world came to Michigan State to study agricultural sciences, children of rich farmers all over the world and middle class farmers all over the world, and a huge police science department. Part of the campus was fenced off, and the young cadets, 1819, 20 years old, would practice on the rest of the student body, uniformed with hats and all right, excuse me, young man, we're just going to get some pizza at eight o'clock on Friday night. Stand against your car. Hands in your car. I said, Are you guys practicing again? Shut up and spread your legs. So that was that was Michigan State, and even though both my parents had master's degrees, I just found all the diversions available in the 1960s to be too interesting, and was not invited. Return after my sophomore year, and in order to flunk out of a big 10 University, and they're fine universities, all of them, you have to be either really determined or not so smart, not really capable of doing that level of study in undergraduate school. And I'd like to think that I was determined. I used to show up for my exams with a little blue book, and the only thing I would write is due to lack of knowledge, I am unable to complete this exam, sign Bill ranter and get up early and hand it in and go off. And so what was, what was left for a young man like that was the theater I'd seen the great Zero Mostel when I was 14 years old and on stage live, he looked just like my father, and he was funny, and if I Were a rich man, and that's the grade zero must tell. Yeah, and it took about five, no, it took about six, seven years to percolate inside my bread and my brain. In high school, I didn't want to do theater. The cheerleaders and guys who I had didn't happen to be friends with or doing theater. I took my girlfriends to see plays, but when I was 21 I started acting, and I've been an actor ever since. I'm a committee chair on the screen actors guild in Hollywood and Screen Actors Guild AFTRA, and work as a voice actor and collect my pensions and God bless the union.   Michael Hingson ** 11:44 Well, hey, as long as it works and you're making progress, you know you're still with it, right?   Bill Ratner ** 11:53 That's the that's the point. There's no accounting for taste in my business. Michael, you work for a few different broadcast entities at my age. And it's, you know, it's younger people. It's 18 to 3418 years to 34 years old is the ideal demographic for advertisers, Ford, Motor Company, Dove soap, Betty, Crocker, cake mixes and cereals, every conceivable product that sold online or sold on television and radio. This is my this is my meat, and I don't work for religion. However, if a religious organization calls, I call and say, I I'm not, not qualified or not have my divinity degree in order to sell your church to the public?   Michael Hingson ** 12:46 Yeah, yeah. Well, I, I can understand that. But you, you obviously do a lot, and as we talked about, you were Flint and GI Joe, which is kind of cool.   Bill Ratner ** 13:01 Flynn GI Joe was very cool. Hasbro Corporation, which was based in Providence, Rhode Island, had a huge success with GI Joe, the figure. The figure was about 11 and a half inches tall, like a Barbie, and was at first, was introduced to the public after the Korean War. There is a comic book that was that was also published about GI Joe. He was an individual figure. He was a figure, a sort of mythic cartoon figure during World War Two, GI Joe, generic American soldier, fighting man and but the Vietnam war dragged on for a long time, and the American buying public or buying kids toys got tired of GI Joe, got tired of a military figure in their household and stopped buying. And when Nixon ended the Vietnam War, or allotted to finish in 1974 Hasbro was in the tank. It's got its stock was cheap, and executives are getting nervous. And then came the Great George Lucas in Star Wars, who shrank all these action figures down from 11 and a half inches to three and a half inches, and went to China and had Chinese game and toy makers make Star Wars toys, and began to earn billions and billions dollars. And so Hasbro said, let's turn GI Joe into into a team. And the team began with flint and Lady J and Scarlett and Duke and Destro and cover commander, and grew to 85 different characters, because Hasbro and the toy maker partners could create 85 different sets of toys and action figures. So I was actor in this show and had a good time, and also a purveyor of a billion dollar industry of American toys. And the good news about these toys is I was at a conference where we signed autographs the voice actors, and we have supper with fans and so on. And I was sitting next to a 30 year old kid and his parents. And this kid was so knowledgeable about pop culture and every conceivable children's show and animated show that had ever been on the screen or on television. I turned to his mother and sort of being a wise acre, said, So ma'am, how do you feel about your 30 year old still playing with GI Joe action figures? And she said, Well, he and I both teach English in the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania school system, and last year, the literacy level of my ninth graders was 50% 50% of those kids could not read in ninth grade. So I asked the principal if I could borrow my son's GI Joe, action figures, comic books and VHS tapes, recordings of the shows from TV. And he said, Sure, whatever you want to try. And so she did, and she played the video tapes, and these kids were thrilled. They'd never seen a GI Joe cartoon in class before. Passed out the comic books, let him read comics. And then she said, Okay, you guys. And passed out notebooks and pens and pencils, and said, I want you guys to make up some some shows, some GI Joe shows. And so they said, Yeah, we're ready. All right, Cobra, you better get into the barber shop, because the barber bill is no longer there and the fire engines are in the way. And wait a minute, there's a dog in the street. And so they're making this up, using their imagination, doing their schoolwork, by coming up with scenarios, imaginary fam fan fiction for GI Joe and she raised the literacy level in her classroom by 50% that year, by the end of that year, so, so that was the only story that I've ever heard about the sort of the efficacy of GI Joe, other than, you know, kids play with them. Do they? Are they shooting each other all the time? I certainly hope not. I hope not. Are they using the action figures? Do they strip their guns off and put them in a little, you know, stub over by the side and and have them do physical battle with each other, or have them hump the woods, or have them climb the stairs, or have them search the trees. Who knows what kids do? Same with same with girls and and Barbies. Barbie has been a source of fun and creativity for lots of girls, and the source of of worry and bother to a lot of parents as   Michael Hingson ** 17:54 well. Well, at the same time, though, when kids start to react and relate to some of these things. It's, it's pretty cool. I mean, look what's happened with the whole Harry Potter movement and craze. Harry Potter has probably done more in the last 20 or 25 years to promote reading for kids than most anything else, and   Bill Ratner ** 18:17 that's because it's such a good series of books. I read them to my daughters, yeah. And the quality of writing. She was a brilliant writer, not only just the stories and the storytelling, which is fun to watch in the movies, and you know, it's great for a parent to read. If there are any parents listening, I don't care how old your kids are. I don't care if they're 15. Offer to read to them. The 15 year old might, of course, say mom, but anybody younger than that might say either, all right, fine, which is, which means you better do it or read, read a book. To me, sure, it's fun for the parent, fun for the kid, and it makes the child a completely different kind of thinker and worker and earner.   Michael Hingson ** 19:05 Well, also the people who they got to read the books for the recordings Stephen Fry and in the US here, Jim Dale did such an incredible job as well. I've, I've read the whole Harry Potter series more than once, because I just enjoy them, and I enjoy listening to the the voices. They do such a good job. Yeah. And of course, for me, one of the interesting stories that I know about Jim Dale reading Harry Potter was since it was published by Scholastic he was actually scheduled to do a reading from one of the Harry from the new Harry Potter book that was coming out in 2001 on September 11, he was going to be at Scholastic reading. And of course, that didn't happen because of of everything that did occur. So I don't know whether I'm. I'm assuming at some point a little bit later, he did, but still he was scheduled to be there and read. But it they are there. They've done so much to help promote reading, and a lot of those kinds of cartoons and so on. Have done some of that, which is, which is pretty good. So it's good to, you know, to see that continue to happen. Well, so you've written several books on poetry and so on, and I know that you you've mentioned more than once grief and loss. How come those words keep coming up?   Bill Ratner ** 20:40 Well, I had an unusual childhood. Again. I mentioned earlier how, what a lucky kid I was. My parents were happy, educated, good people, not abusers. You know, I don't have a I don't have horror stories to tell about my mother or my father, until my mother grew sick with breast cancer and and it took about a year and a half or two years to die when I was seven years old. The good news is, because she was a sensitive, educated social worker, as she was actually dying, she arranged a death counseling session with me and my older brother and the Unitarian minister who was also a death counselor, and whom she was seeing to talk about, you know, what it was like to be dying of breast cancer with two young kids. And at this session, which was sort of surprised me, I was second grade, came home from school. In the living room was my mother and my brother looking a little nervous, and Dr Carl storm from the Unitarian Church, and she said, you know, Dr storm from church, but he's also my therapist. And we talk about my illness and how I feel, and we talk about how much I love you boys, and talk about how I worry about Daddy. And this is what one does when one is in crisis. That was a moment that was not traumatic for me. It's a moment I recalled hundreds of times, and one that has been a guiding light through my life. My mother's death was very difficult for my older brother, who was 13 who grew up in World War Two without without my father, it was just him and my mother when he was off in the Pacific fighting in World War Two. And then I was born after the war. And the loss of a mother in a family is like the bottom dropping out of a family. But luckily, my dad met a woman he worked with a highly placed advertising executive, which was unusual for a female in the 1950s and she became our stepmother a year later, and we had some very lovely, warm family years with her extended family and our extended family and all of us together until my brother got sick, came down with kidney disease a couple of years before kidney dialysis was invented, and a couple of years before kidney transplants were done, died at 19. Had been the captain of the swimming team at our high school, but did a year in college out in California and died on Halloween of 1960 my father was 51 years old. His eldest son had died. He had lost his wife six years earlier. He was working too hard in the advertising industry, successful man and dropped out of a heart attack 14th birthday. Gosh, I found him unconscious on the floor of our master bathroom in our house. So my life changed. I My life has taught me many, many things. It's taught me how the defense system works in trauma. It's taught me the resilience of a child. It's taught me the kindness of strangers. It's taught me the sadness of loss.   Michael Hingson ** 24:09 Well, you, you seem to come through all of it pretty well. Well, thank you. A question behind that, just an observation, but, but you do seem to, you know, obviously, cope with all of it and do pretty well. So you, you've always liked to be involved in acting and so on. How did you actually end up deciding to be a voice actor?   Bill Ratner ** 24:39 Well, my dad, after he was managing editor of Better Homes and Gardens magazine in Des Moines for Meredith publishing, got offered a fancy job as executive vice president of the flower and mix division for Campbell within advertising and later at General Mills Corporation. From Betty Crocker brand, and would bring me to work all the time, and would sit with me, and we'd watch the wonderful old westerns that were on prime time television, rawhide and Gunsmoke and the Virginian and sure   Michael Hingson ** 25:15 and all those. Yeah, during   Bill Ratner ** 25:17 the commercials, my father would make fun of the commercials. Oh, look at that guy. And number one, son, that's lousy acting. Number two, listen to that copy. It's the dumbest ad copy I've ever seen. The jingles and and then he would say, No, that's a good commercial, right there. And he wasn't always negative. He would he was just a good critic of advertising. So at a very young age, starting, you know, when we watch television, I think the first television ever, he bought us when I was five years old, I was around one of the most educated, active, funny, animated television critics I could hope to have in my life as a 56789, 1011, 12 year old. And so when I was 12, I became one of the founding members of the Brotherhood of radio stations with my friends John Waterhouse and John Barstow and Steve gray and Bill Connors in South Minneapolis. I named my five watt night kit am transmitter after my sixth grade teacher, Bob close this is wclo stereo radio. And when I was in sixth grade, I built myself a switch box, and I had a turntable and I had an intercom, and I wired my house for sound, as did all the other boys in the in the B, O, R, S, and that's brotherhood of radio stations. And we were guests on each other's shows, and we were obsessed, and we would go to the shopping malls whenever a local DJ was making an appearance and torture him and ask him dumb questions and listen obsessively to American am radio. And at the time for am radio, not FM like today, or internet on your little radio tuner, all the big old grandma and grandpa radios, the wooden ones, were AM, for amplitude modulated. You could get stations at night, once the sun went down and the later it got, the ionosphere would lift and the am radio signals would bounce higher and farther. And in Minneapolis, at age six and seven, I was able to to listen to stations out of Mexico and Texas and Chicago, and was absolutely fascinated with with what was being put out. And I would, I would switch my brother when I was about eight years old, gave me a transistor radio, which I hid under my bed covers. And at night, would turn on and listen for, who knows, hours at a time, and just tuning the dial and tuning the dial from country to rock and roll to hit parade to news to commercials to to agric agriculture reports to cow crossings in Kansas and grain harvesting and cheese making in Wisconsin, and on and on and on that made up the great medium of radio that was handing its power and its business over to television, just as I was growing As a child. Fast, fascinating transition   Michael Hingson ** 28:18 and well, but as it was transitioning, how did that affect you?   Bill Ratner ** 28:26 It made television the romantic, exciting, dynamic medium. It made radio seem a little limited and antiquated, and although I listened for environment and wasn't able to drag a television set under my covers. Yeah, and television became memorable with with everything from actual world war two battle footage being shown because there wasn't enough programming to 1930s Warner Brothers gangster movies with James Cagney, Edward G   Michael Hingson ** 29:01 Robinson and yeah   Bill Ratner ** 29:02 to all the sitcoms, Leave It to Beaver and television cartoons and on and on and on. And the most memorable elements to me were the personalities, and some of whom were invisible. Five years old, I was watching a Kids program after school, after kindergarten. We'll be back with more funny puppets, marionettes after this message and the first words that came on from an invisible voice of this D baritone voice, this commercial message will be 60 seconds long, Chrysler Dodge for 1954 blah, blah, blah, blah, blah. And I watched hypnotized, hypnotized as a 1953 dodge drove across the screen with a happy family of four waving out the window. And at the end of the commercial, I ran into the kitchen said, Mom, mom, I know what a minute. Is, and it was said, it had suddenly come into my brain in one of those very rare and memorable moments in a person's life where your brain actually speaks to you in its own private language and says, Here is something very new and very true, that 60 seconds is in fact a minute. When someone says, See you in five minutes, they mean five times that, five times as long as that. Chrysler commercial, five times 60. That's 300 seconds. And she said, Did you learn it that that on T in kindergarten? And I said, No, I learned it from kangaroo Bob on TV, his announcer, oh, kangaroo Bob, no, but this guy was invisible. And so at five years of age, I was aware of the existence of the practice of the sound, of the magic of the seemingly unlimited access to facts, figures, products, brand names that these voices had and would say on the air in This sort of majestic, patriarchal way,   Michael Hingson ** 31:21 and just think 20 years later, then you had James Earl Jones,   Bill Ratner ** 31:26 the great dame. James Earl Jones, father was a star on stage at that time the 1950s James Earl Jones came of age in the 60s and became Broadway and off Broadway star.   Michael Hingson ** 31:38 I got to see him in Othello. He was playing Othello. What a powerful performance. It was   Bill Ratner ** 31:43 wonderful performer. Yeah, yeah. I got to see him as Big Daddy in Canada, Hot Tin Roof, ah, live and in person, he got front row seats for me and my family.   Michael Hingson ** 31:53 Yeah, we weren't in the front row, but we saw it. We saw it on on Broadway,   Bill Ratner ** 31:58 the closest I ever got to James Earl Jones. He and I had the same voice over agent, woman named Rita vinari of southern Barth and benare company. And I came into the agency to audition for Doritos, and I hear this magnificent voice coming from behind a closed voiceover booth, saying, with a with a Spanish accent, Doritos. I thought that's James Earl Jones. Why is he saying burritos? And he came out, and he bowed to me, nodded and smiled, and I said, hello and and the agent probably in the booth and shut the door. And she said, I said, that was James Earl Jones. What a voice. What she said, Oh, he's such a nice man. And she said, but I couldn't. I was too embarrassed. I was too afraid to stop him from saying, Doritos. And it turns out he didn't get the gig. So it is some other voice actor got it because he didn't say, had he said Doritos with the agent froze it froze up. That was as close as I ever got to did you get the gig? Oh goodness no,   Michael Hingson ** 33:01 no, you didn't, huh? Oh, well, well, yeah. I mean, it was a very, it was, it was wonderful. It was James Earl Jones and Christopher Plummer played Iago. Oh, goodness, oh, I know. What a what a combination. Well, so you, you did a lot of voiceover stuff. What did you do regarding radio moving forward? Or did you just go completely out of that and you were in TV? Or did you have any opportunity   Bill Ratner ** 33:33 for me to go back at age 15, my brother and father, who were big supporters of my radio. My dad would read my W, C, l, o, newsletter and need an initial, an excellent journalism son and my brother would bring his teenage friends up. He'd play the elderly brothers, man, you got an Elvis record, and I did. And you know, they were, they were big supporters for me as a 13 year old, but when I turned 14, and had lost my brother and my father, I lost my enthusiasm and put all of my radio equipment in a box intended to play with it later. Never, ever, ever did again. And when I was about 30 years old and I'd done years of acting in the theater, having a great time doing fun plays and small theaters in Minneapolis and South Dakota and and Oakland, California and San Francisco. I needed money, so I looked in the want ads and saw a job for telephone sales, and I thought, Well, I used to love the telephone. I used to make phony phone calls to people all the time. Used to call funeral homes. Hi Carson, funeral I help you. Yes, I'm calling to tell you that you have a you have a dark green slate tile. Roof, isn't that correct? Yes. Well, there's, there's a corpse on your roof. Lady for goodness sake, bring it down and we laugh and we record it and and so I thought, Well, gee, I used to have a lot of fun with the phone. And so I called the number of telephone sales and got hired to sell magazine subscriptions and dinner tickets to Union dinners and all kinds of things. And then I saw a new job at a radio station, suburban radio station out in Walnut Creek, California, a lovely Metro BART train ride. And so I got on the BART train, rode out there and walked in for the interview, and was told I was going to be selling small advertising packages on radio for the station on the phone. And so I called barber shops and beauty shops and gas stations in the area, and one guy picked up the phone and said, Wait a minute, wait a minute. Wait a minute. Are you on the radio right now? And I said, No, I'm just I'm in the sales room. Well, maybe you should be. And he slams the phone on me. He didn't want to talk to me anymore. It wasn't interested in buying advertising. I thought, gee. And I told somebody at the station, and they said, Well, you want to be in the radio? And he went, Yeah, I was on the radio when I was 13. And it just so happened that an older fellow was retiring from the 10am to 2pm slot. K I S King, kiss 99 and KD FM, Pittsburgh, California. And it was a beautiful music station. It was a music station. Remember, old enough will remember music that used to play in elevators that was like violin music, the Percy faith orchestra playing a Rolling Stone song here in the elevator. Yes, well, that's exactly what we played. And it would have been harder to get a job at the local rock stations because, you know, they were popular places. And so I applied for the job, and   Michael Hingson ** 37:06 could have lost your voice a lot sooner, and it would have been a lot harder if you had had to do Wolfman Jack. But that's another story.   Bill Ratner ** 37:13 Yeah, I used to listen to Wolf Man Jack. I worked in a studio in Hollywood. He became a studio. Yeah, big time.   Michael Hingson ** 37:22 Anyway, so you you got to work at the muzack station, got   Bill Ratner ** 37:27 to work at the muzack station, and I was moving to Los Angeles to go to a bigger market, to attempt to penetrate a bigger broadcast market. And one of the sales guys, a very nice guy named Ralph pizzella said, Well, when you get to La you should study with a friend of mine down to pie Troy, he teaches voiceovers. I said, What are voice overs? He said, You know that CVS Pharmacy commercial just carted up and did 75 tags, available in San Fernando, available in San Clemente, available in Los Angeles, available in Pasadena. And I said, Yeah. He said, Well, you didn't get paid any extra. You got paid your $165 a week. The guy who did that commercial for the ad agency got paid probably 300 bucks, plus extra for the tags, that's voiceovers. And I thought, why? There's an idea, what a concept. So he gave me the name and number of old friend acquaintance of his who he'd known in radio, named Don DiPietro, alias Johnny rabbit, who worked for the Dick Clark organization, had a big rock and roll station there. He'd come to LA was doing voiceovers and teaching voiceover classes in a little second story storefront out of the San Fernando Valley in Los Angeles. So I signed up for his class, and he was an experienced guy, and he liked me, and we all had fun, and I realized I was beginning to study like an actor at 1818, who goes to New York or goes to Los Angeles or Chicago or Atlanta or St Louis to act in the big theaters, and starts acting classes and realizes, oh my goodness, these people are truly professionals. I don't know how to do what they do. And so for six years, I took voice over classes, probably 4050, nights a year, and from disc jockeys, from ex show hosts, from actors, from animated cartoon voices, and put enough time in to get a degree in neurology in medical school. And worked my way up in radio in Los Angeles and had a morning show, a lovely show with a wonderful news man named Phil Reed, and we talked about things and reviewed movies and and played a lot of music. And then I realized, wait a minute, I'm earning three times the money in voiceovers as I am on the radio, and I have to get up at 430 in the morning to be on the radio. Uh, and a wonderful guy who was Johnny Carson's staff announcer named Jack angel said, You're not still on radio, are you? And I said, Well, yeah, I'm working in the morning. And Ka big, get out of there. Man, quit. Quit. And I thought, well, how can I quit? I've always wanted to be a radio announcer. And then there was another wonderful guy on the old am station, kmpc, sweet Dick Whittington. Whittington, right? And he said at a seminar that I went to at a union voice over training class, when you wake up at four in the morning and you swing your legs over the bed and your shoes hit the floor, and you put your head in your hands, and you say to yourself, I don't want to do this anymore. That's when you quit radio. Well, that hadn't happened to me. I was just getting up early to write some comedy segments and on and on and on, and then I was driving around town all day doing auditions and rented an ex girlfriend's second bedroom so that I could nap by myself during the day, when I had an hour in and I would as I would fall asleep, I'd picture myself every single day I'm in a dark voiceover studio, a microphone Is before me, a music stand is before the microphone, and on it is a piece of paper with advertising copy on it. On the other side of the large piece of glass of the recording booth are three individuals, my employers, I begin to read, and somehow the text leaps off the page, streams into my eyes, letter for letter, word for word, into a part of my back brain that I don't understand and can't describe. It is processed in my semi conscious mind with the help of voice over training and hope and faith, and comes out my mouth, goes into the microphone, is recorded in the digital recorder, and those three men, like little monkeys, lean forward and say, Wow, how do you do that? That was my daily creative visualization. Michael, that was my daily fantasy. And I had learned that from from Dale Carnegie, and I had learned that from Olympic athletes on NBC TV in the 60s and 70s, when the announcer would say, this young man you're seeing practicing his high jump is actually standing there. He's standing stationary, and the bouncing of the head is he's actually rehearsing in his mind running and running and leaping over the seven feet two inch bar and falling into the sawdust. And now he's doing it again, and you could just barely see the man nodding his head on camera at the exact rhythm that he would be running the 25 yards toward the high bar and leaping, and he raised his head up during the imaginary lead that he was visualizing, and then he actually jumped the seven foot two inches. That's how I learned about creative visualization from NBC sports on TV.   Michael Hingson ** 43:23 Channel Four in Los Angeles. There you go. Well, so you you broke into voice over, and that's what you did.   Bill Ratner ** 43:38 That's what I did, darn it, I ain't stopping now, there's a wonderful old actor named Bill Irwin. There two Bill Irwin's one is a younger actor in his 50s or 60s, a brilliant actor from Broadway to film and TV. There's an older William Irwin. They also named Bill Irwin, who's probably in his 90s now. And I went to a premiere of a film, and he was always showing up in these films as The senile stock broker who answers the phone upside down, or the senile board member who always asks inappropriate questions. And I went up to him and I said, you know, I see you in everything, man. I'm 85 years old. Some friends and associates of mine tell me I should slow down. I only got cast in movies and TV when I was 65 I ain't slowing down. If I tried to slow down at 85 I'd have to stop That's my philosophy. My hero is the great Don Pardo, the late great   Michael Hingson ** 44:42 for Saturday Night Live and Jeopardy   Bill Ratner ** 44:45 lives starring Bill Murray, Gilder Radner, and   Michael Hingson ** 44:49 he died for Jeopardy before that,   Bill Ratner ** 44:52 yeah, died at 92 with I picture him, whether it probably not, with a microphone and. His hand in his in his soundproof booth, in his in his garage, and I believe he lived in Arizona, although the show was aired and taped in New York, New York, right where he worked for for decades as a successful announcer. So that's the story.   Michael Hingson ** 45:16 Michael. Well, you know, I miss, very frankly, some of the the the days of radio back in the 60s and 70s and so on. We had, in LA what you mentioned, Dick Whittington, Dick whittinghill on kmpc, Gary Owens, you know, so many people who were such wonderful announcers and doing some wonderful things, and radio just isn't the same anymore. It's gone. It's   Bill Ratner ** 45:47 gone to Tiktok and YouTube. And the truth is, I'm not gonna whine about Tiktok or YouTube, because some of the most creative moments on camera are being done on Tiktok and YouTube by young quote influencers who hire themselves out to advertisers, everything from lipstick. You know,   Speaker 1 ** 46:09 when I went to a party last night was just wild and but this makeup look, watch me apply this lip remover and blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, no, I have no lip.   Bill Ratner ** 46:20 You know, these are the people with the voices. These are the new voices. And then, of course, the faces. And so I would really advise before, before people who, in fact, use the internet. If you use the internet, you can't complain if you use the internet, if you go to Facebook or Instagram, or you get collect your email or Google, this or that, which most of us do, it's handy. You can't complain about tick tock, tick tock, tick tock. You can't complain about tick tock or YouTube, because it's what the younger generation is using, and it's what the younger generation advertisers and advertising executives and creators and musicians and actors are using to parade before us, as Gary Owens did, as Marlon Brando did, as Sarah Bernhardt did in the 19 so as all as you do, Michael, you're a parader. You're the head of the parade. You've been in on your own float for years. I read your your bio. I don't even know why you want to waste a minute talking to me for goodness sakes.   Michael Hingson ** 47:26 You know, the one thing about podcasts that I like over radio, and I did radio at kuci for seven years when I was in school, what I really like about podcasts is they're not and this is also would be true for Tiktok and YouTube. Primarily Tiktok, I would would say it isn't as structured. So if we don't finish in 60 minutes, and we finish in 61 minutes, no one's gonna shoot us.   Bill Ratner ** 47:53 Well, I beg to differ with you. Now. I'm gonna start a fight with you. Michael, yeah, we need conflict in this script. Is that it The Tick Tock is very structured. Six. No,   Michael Hingson ** 48:03 no, I understand that. I'm talking about podcasts,   Bill Ratner ** 48:07 though, but there's a problem. We gotta Tone It Up. We gotta pick it up. We gotta there's a lot of and I listen to what are otherwise really bright, wonderful personalities on screen, celebrities who have podcasts and the car sucks, and then I had meatballs for dinner, haha. And you know what my wife said? Why? You know? And there's just too much of that. And,   Michael Hingson ** 48:32 oh, I understand, yeah. I mean, it's like, like anything, but I'm just saying that's one of the reasons I love podcasting. So it's my way of continuing what I used to do in radio and having a lot of fun doing it   Bill Ratner ** 48:43 all right, let me ask you. Let me ask you a technical and editorial question. Let me ask you an artistic question. An artist, can you edit this podcast? Yeah. Are you? Do you plan to Nope.   Michael Hingson ** 48:56 I think conversations are conversations, but there is a but, I mean,   Bill Ratner ** 49:01 there have been starts and stops and I answer a question, and there's a long pause, and then, yeah, we can do you edit that stuff   Michael Hingson ** 49:08 out. We do, we do, edit some of that out. And I have somebody that that that does a lot of it, because I'm doing more podcasts, and also I travel and speak, but I can edit. There's a program called Reaper, which is really a very sophisticated   Bill Ratner ** 49:26 close up spaces. You   Michael Hingson ** 49:28 can close up spaces with it, yes, but the neat thing about Reaper is that somebody has written scripts to make it incredibly accessible for blind people using screen readers.   Bill Ratner ** 49:40 What does it do? What does it do? Give me the elevator pitch.   Michael Hingson ** 49:46 You've seen some of the the programs that people use, like computer vision and other things to do editing of videos and so on. Yeah.   Bill Ratner ** 49:55 Yeah. Even Apple. Apple edit. What is it called? Apple? Garage Band. No, that's audio. What's that   Michael Hingson ** 50:03 audio? Oh,   Bill Ratner ** 50:06 quick time is quick   Michael Hingson ** 50:07 time. But whether it's video or audio, the point is that Reaper allows me to do all of that. I can edit audio. I can insert, I can remove pauses. I can do anything with Reaper that anyone else can do editing audio, because it's been made completely accessible.   Bill Ratner ** 50:27 That's great. That's good. That's nice. Oh, it is. It's cool.   Michael Hingson ** 50:31 So so if I want, I can edit this and just have my questions and then silence when you're talking.   Bill Ratner ** 50:38 That might be best. Ladies and gentlemen, here's Bill Ratner,   Michael Hingson ** 50:46 yep, exactly, exactly. Now you have won the moth stories. Slam, what? Tell me about my story. Slam, you've won it nine times.   Bill Ratner ** 51:00 The Moth was started by a writer, a novelist who had lived in the South and moved to New York City, successful novelist named George Dawes green. And the inception of the moth, which many people listening are familiar with from the Moth Radio Hour. It was, I believe, either late 90s or early 2000s when he'd been in New York for a while and was was publishing as a fiction writer, and threw a party, and decided, instead of going to one of these dumb, boring parties or the same drinks being served and same cigarettes being smoked out in the veranda and the same orders. I'm going to ask people to bring a five minute story, a personal story, nature, a true story. You don't have to have one to get into the party, but I encourage you to. And so you know, the 3040, 50 people showed up, many of whom had stories, and they had a few drinks, and they had hors d'oeuvres. And then he said, Okay, ladies and gentlemen, take your seats. It's time for and then I picked names out of a hat, and person after person after person stood up in a very unusual setting, which was almost never done at parties. You How often do you see that happen? Suddenly, the room falls silent, and someone with permission being having been asked by the host to tell a personal story, some funny, some tragic, some complex, some embarrassing, some racy, some wild, some action filled. And afterward, the feedback he got from his friends was, this is the most amazing experience I've ever had in my life. And someone said, you need to do this. And he said, Well, you people left a lot of cigarette butts and beer cans around my apartment. And they said, well, let's do it at a coffee shop. Let's do it at a church basement. So slowly but surely, the moth storytelling, story slams, which were designed after the old poetry slams in the 50s and 60s, where they were judged contests like, like a dance contest. Everybody's familiar with dance contests? Well, there were, then came poetry contests with people singing and, you know, and singing and really energetically, really reading. There then came storytelling contests with people standing on a stage before a silent audience, telling a hopefully interesting, riveting story, beginning middle, end in five minutes. And so a coffee house was found. A monthly calendar was set up. Then came the internet. Then it was so popular standing room only that they had to open yet another and another, and today, some 20 years later, 20 some years later, from Austin, Texas to San Francisco, California to Minneapolis, Minnesota to New York City to Los Angeles. There are moth story slams available on online for you to schedule yourself to go live and in person at the moth.org as in the moth with wings. Friend of mine, I was in New York. He said, You can't believe it. This writer guy, a writer friend of mine who I had read, kind of an avant garde, strange, funny writer was was hosting something called the moth in New York, and we were texting each other. He said, Well, I want to go. The theme was show business. I was going to talk to my Uncle Bobby, who was the bell boy. And I Love Lucy. I'll tell a story. And I texted him that day. He said, Oh man, I'm so sorry. I had the day wrong. It's next week. Next week, I'm going to be back home. And so he said, Well, I think there's a moth in Los Angeles. So about 15 years ago, I searched it down and what? Went to a small Korean barbecue that had a tiny little stage that originally was for Korean musicians, and it was now being used for everything from stand up comedy to evenings of rock and roll to now moth storytelling once a month. And I think the theme was first time. And so I got up and told a silly story and didn't win first prize. They have judges that volunteer judges a table of three judges scoring, you like, at a swim meet or a track beat or, you know, and our gymnastics meet. So this is all sort of familiar territory for everybody, except it's storytelling and not high jumping or pull ups. And I kept going back. I was addicted to it. I would write a story and I'd memorize it, and I'd show up and try to make it four minutes and 50 seconds and try to make it sound like I was really telling a story and not reading from a script. And wish I wasn't, because I would throw the script away, and I knew the stories well enough. And then they created a radio show. And then I began to win slams and compete in the grand slams. And then I started submitting these 750 word, you know, two and a half page stories. Literary magazines got a few published and found a whole new way to spend my time and not make much   Michael Hingson ** 56:25 money. Then you went into poetry.   Bill Ratner ** 56:29 Then I got so bored with my prose writing that I took a poetry course from a wonderful guy in LA called Jack grapes, who had been an actor and a football player and come to Hollywood and did some TV, episodics and and some some episodic TV, and taught poetry. It was a poet in the schools, and I took his class of adults and got a poem published. And thought, wait a minute, these aren't even 750 words. They're like 75 words. I mean, you could write a 10,000 word poem if you want, but some people have, yeah, and it was complex, and there was so much to read and so much to learn and so much that was interesting and odd. And a daughter of a friend of mine is a poet, said, Mommy, are you going to read me one of those little word movies before I go to sleep?   Michael Hingson ** 57:23 A little word movie, word movie out of the   Bill Ratner ** 57:27 mouths of babes. Yeah, and so, so and I perform. You know, last night, I was in Orange County at a organization called ugly mug Cafe, and a bunch of us poets read from an anthology that was published, and we sold our books, and heard other young poets who were absolutely marvelous and and it's, you know, it's not for everybody, but it's one of the things I do.   Michael Hingson ** 57:54 Well, you sent me pictures of book covers, so they're going to be in the show notes. And I hope people will will go out and get them   Bill Ratner ** 58:01 cool. One of the one of the things that I did with poetry, in addition to wanting to get published and wanting to read before people, is wanting to see if there is a way. Because poetry was, was very satisfying, emotionally to me, intellectually very challenging and satisfying at times. And emotionally challenging and very satisfying at times, writing about things personal, writing about nature, writing about friends, writing about stories that I received some training from the National Association for poetry therapy. Poetry therapy is being used like art therapy, right? And have conducted some sessions and and participated in many and ended up working with eighth graders of kids who had lost someone to death in the past year of their lives. This is before covid in the public schools in Los Angeles. And so there's a lot of that kind of work that is being done by constable people, by writers, by poets, by playwrights,   Michael Hingson ** 59:09 and you became a grief counselor,   Bill Ratner ** 59:13 yes, and don't do that full time, because I do voiceovers full time, right? Write poetry and a grand. Am an active grandparent, but I do the occasional poetry session around around grief poetry.   Michael Hingson ** 59:31 So you're a grandparent, so you've had kids and all that. Yes, sir, well, that's is your wife still with us? Yes?   Bill Ratner ** 59:40 Oh, great, yeah, she's an artist and an art educator. Well, that   Michael Hingson ** 59:46 so the two of you can criticize each other's works, then, just   Bill Ratner ** 59:52 saying, we're actually pretty kind to each other. I Yeah, we have a lot of we have a lot of outside criticism. Them. So, yeah, you don't need to do it internally. We don't rely on it. What do you think of this although, although, more than occasionally, each of us will say, What do you think of this poem, honey? Or what do you think of this painting, honey? And my the favorite, favorite thing that my wife says that always thrills me and makes me very happy to be with her is, I'll come down and she's beginning a new work of a new piece of art for an exhibition somewhere. I'll say, what? Tell me about what's, what's going on with that, and she'll go, you know, I have no idea, but it'll tell me what to do.   Michael Hingson ** 1:00:33 Yeah, it's, it's like a lot of authors talk about the fact that their characters write the stories right, which, which makes a lot of sense. So with all that you've done, are you writing a memoir? By any chance, I   Bill Ratner ** 1:00:46 am writing a memoir, and writing has been interesting. I've been doing it for many years. I got it was my graduate thesis from University of California Riverside Palm Desert.   Michael Hingson ** 1:00:57 My wife was a UC Riverside graduate. Oh, hi. Well, they   Bill Ratner ** 1:01:01 have a low residency program where you go for 10 days in January, 10 days in June. The rest of it's online, which a lot of universities are doing, low residency programs for people who work and I got an MFA in creative writing nonfiction, had a book called parenting for the digital age, the truth about media's effect on children. And was halfway through it, the publisher liked it, but they said you got to double the length. So I went back to school to try to figure out how to double the length. And was was able to do it, and decided to move on to personal memoir and personal storytelling, such as goes on at the moth but a little more personal than that. Some of the material that I was reading in the memoir section of a bookstore was very, very personal and was very helpful to read about people who've gone through particular issues in their childhood. Mine not being physical abuse or sexual abuse, mine being death and loss, which is different. And so that became a focus of my graduate thesis, and many people were urging me to write a memoir. Someone said, you need to do a one man show. So I entered the Hollywood fringe and did a one man show and got good reviews and had a good time and did another one man show the next year and and so on. So But writing memoir as anybody knows, and they're probably listeners who are either taking memoir courses online or who may be actively writing memoirs or short memoir pieces, as everybody knows it, can put you through moods from absolutely ecstatic, oh my gosh, I got this done. I got this story told, and someone liked it, to oh my gosh, I'm so depressed I don't understand why. Oh, wait a minute, I was writing about such and such today. Yeah. So that's the challenge for the memoir is for the personal storyteller, it's also, you know, and it's more of a challenge than it is for the reader, unless it's bad writing and the reader can't stand that. For me as a reader, I'm fascinated by people's difficult stories, if they're well   Michael Hingson ** 1:03:24 told well, I know that when in 2002 I was advised to write a book about the World Trade Center experiences and all, and it took eight years to kind of pull it all together. And then I met a woman who actually I collaborated with, Susie Florey, and we wrote thunder dog. And her agent became my agent, who loved the proposal that we sent and actually got a contract within a week. So thunder dog came out in 2011 was a New York Times bestseller, and very blessed by that, and we're working toward the day that it will become a movie still, but it'll happen. And then I wrote a children's version of it, well, not a children's version of the book, but a children's book about me growing up in Roselle, growing up the guide dog who was with me in the World Trade Center, and that's been on Amazon. We self published it. Then last year, we published a new book called Live like a guide dog, which is all about controlling fear and teaching people lessons that I learned prior to September 11. That helped me focus and remain calm.   Bill Ratner ** 1:04:23 What happened to you on September 11,   Michael Hingson ** 1:04:27 I was in the World Trade Center. I worked on the 78th floor of Tower One.   Bill Ratner ** 1:04:32 And what happened? I mean, what happened to you?   Michael Hingson ** 1:04:36 Um, nothing that day. I mean, well, I got out. How did you get out? Down the stairs? That was the only way to go. So, so the real story is not doing it, but why it worked. And the real issue is that I spent a lot of time when I first went into the World Trade Center, learning all I could about what to do in an emergency, talking to police, port authorities. Security people, emergency preparedness people, and also just walking around the world trade center and learning the whole place, because I ran an office for a company, and I wasn't going to rely on someone else to, like, lead me around if we're going to go to lunch somewhere and take people out before we negotiated contracts. So I needed to know all of that, and I learned all I could, also realizing that if there ever was an emergency, I might be the only one in the office, or we might be in an area where people couldn't read the signs to know what to do anyway. And so I had to take the responsibility of learning all that, which I did. And then when the planes hit 18 floors above us on the other side of the building, we get we had some guests in the office. Got them out, and then another colleague, who was in from our corporate office, and I and my guide dog, Roselle, went to the stairs, and we started down. And   Bill Ratner ** 1:05:54 so, so what floor did the plane strike?   Michael Hingson ** 1:05:58 It struck and the NOR and the North Tower, between floors 93 and 99 so I just say 96 okay, and you were 20 floors down, 78 floors 78 so we were 18 floors below, and   Bill Ratner ** 1:06:09 at the moment of impact, what did you think?   Michael Hingson ** 1:06:13 Had no idea we heard a muffled kind of explosion, because the plane hit on the other side of the building, 18 floors above us. There was no way to know what was going on. Did you feel? Did you feel? Oh, the building literally tipped, probably about 20 feet. It kept tipping. And then we actually said goodbye to each other, and then the building came back upright. And then we went,   Bill Ratner ** 1:06:34 really you so you thought you were going to die?   Michael Hingson ** 1:06:38 David, my colleague who was with me, as I said, he was from our California office, and he was there to help with some seminars we were going to be doing. We actually were saying goodbye to each other because we thought we were about to take a 78 floor plunge to the street, when the building stopped tipping and it came back. Designed to do that by the architect. It was designed to do that, which is the point, the point.   Bill Ratner ** 1:07:02 Goodness, gracious. And then did you know how to get to the stairway?   Michael Hingson ** 1:07:04 Oh, absolutely. And did you do it with your friend? Yeah, the first thing we did, the first thing we did is I got him to get we had some guests, and I said, get him to the stairs. Don't let him take the elevators, because I knew he had seen fire above us, but that's all we knew. And but I said, don't take the elevators. Don't let them take elevators. Get them to the stairs and then come back and we'll leave. So he did all that, and then he came back, and we went to the stairs and started down.   Bill Ratner ** 1:07:33 Wow. Could you smell anything?   Michael Hingson ** 1:07:36 We smelled burning jet fuel fumes on the way down. And that's how we figured out an airplane must have hit the building, but we had no idea what happened. We didn't know what happened until the until both towers had collapsed, and I actually talked to my wife, and she's the one who told us how to aircraft have been crashed into the towers, one into the Pentagon, and a fourth, at that time, was still missing over Pennsylvania. Wow. So you'll have to go pick up a copy of thunder dog. Goodness. Good. Thunder dog. The name of the book is Thunder dog, and the book I wrote last year is called Live like a guide dog. It's le

With flu cases topping 80 million in the U.S. last year, what simple steps can families take right now to protect their loved ones this season? Tune in for Dr. Victoria Hickman Eperjesi, as we dive into practical steps you can take to stay healthy this flu season.Moments with Marianne Radio Show airs in the Southern California area on KMET1490AM & 98.1 FM, an ABC Talk News Radio Affiliate!  https://www.kmet1490am.comDr. Victoria Nickman Eperjesi, PharmD, is a Pharmacy District Leader for CVS Pharmacy in the DC Metro area. Victoria graduated with her doctorate in pharmacy from Duquesne University in Pittsburgh, PA.  She joined CVS Pharmacy upon graduation in 2015 in the Chicago market and has held various roles of increased responsibility throughout her tenure with the company.  Victoria is the Vice President of the Elias Nickman, Jr. Foundation, which was founded in her dad's honor. It's a non-profit that provides scholarships to HS Graduates that give back to their communities. https://www.cvs.com For more show information visit: https://www.mariannepestana.com/

The CPG Guys are joined in this episode by Zach Dennett, VP Merchandising for Consumer Health and Wellness, and Supplemental Benefits at CVS Pharmacy, the Front-Of-Store Retail Business Unit of CVS Health. Follow Zach on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/zacharydennett/ Follow CVS Health online at: http://cvshealth.comFollow CVS Health on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/company/cvshealth/Zach answers these questions:Since stepping into your current role in March 2024, what has been your primary focus within Consumer Health & Wellness front of store merchandising at CVS Health?CVS emphasizes seamless omnichannel experiences. What are key milestones in merging in-store and digital merchandising? With around 60 million digitally engaged customers, what are the biggest learnings about how digital influences in-store purchases in your category?What qualities do you look for in emerging brands seeking merchandising partnerships with CVS Health?CVS stores have shoppers coming for Rx, for OTC and even primary healthcare needs. How do you work with the other business owners within CVS Health to ensure your shoppers get the care that they need and how do brands play a role in this process?Could you share how your merchandisers interact with CVS Media Exchange to ensure that brands connect with your consumers in the path to purchase?What role does behavioral insights via loyalty data (e.g., ExtraCare insights) play in determining your merchandising strategies? In other statements, you've noted younger generations trust influencers over experts. How does this affect product merchandising strategy? How do you see CVS's merchandising role evolving over the next 3–5 years amid innovations like “instant commerce”?CPG Guys Website: http://CPGguys.comFMCG Guys Website: http://FMCGguys.comRhea Raj's Website: http://rhearaj.comLara Raj in Katseye: https://www.katseye.world/DISCLAIMER: The content in this podcast episode is provided for general informational purposes only. By listening to our episode, you understand that no information contained in this episode should be construed as advice from CPGGUYS, LLC or the individual author, hosts, or guests, nor is it intended to be a substitute for research on any subject matter. Reference to any specific product or entity does not constitute an endorsement or recommendation by CPGGUYS, LLC. The views expressed by guests are their own and their appearance on the program does not imply an endorsement of them or any entity they represent. CPGGUYS LLC expressly disclaims any and all liability or responsibility for any direct, indirect, incidental, special, consequential or other damages arising out of any individual's use of, reference to, or inability to use this podcast or the information we presented in this podcast.

Bruce Bunting v. District of Columbia CVS Pharmacy, LLC

On episode 521 of The Nurse Keith Show nursing and healthcare career podcast, Keith interviews Angela Patterson, DNP, FNP-BC, NEA-BC, FAANP, the Chief Nursing Officer at CVS Health. In the course of their conversation, Keith and Angela discuss the new paradigms of care opening up for nurse practitioners here in the United States, including value-based care, retail-based clinics, leadership, and other emerging opportunities. Angela Patterson, DNP, FNP-BC, NEA-BC, FAANP, serves as Chief Nursing Officer at CVS Health®, where she leads the strategic plan to advance the recruitment, retention, resilience, and recognition of the more than 18,000 nurses at CVS Health. Additionally, Angela serves as the Chief Nurse Practitioner Officer of Retail Health, which includes MinuteClinic®, the medical clinic inside select CVS Pharmacy® locations. In this role Angela provides clinical and professional practice governance for MinuteClinic nurse practitioners, physician associates, and nurses who provide care across MinuteClinic's U.S. locations and through MinuteClinic's national virtual care practice. She also leads a variety of programs focused on clinical quality, patient experience, clinical training and education, and care delivery workforce engagement. A board-certified family nurse practitioner with a Doctor of Nursing Practice designation and over a decade of executive leadership experience, Angela has been instrumental in scaling nurse-led care models across a variety of settings. She is a nationally recognized leader in nursing, committed to innovation, workforce development, and the continued evolution of care delivery. Connect with Angela Patterson and CVS Health: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠CVS Health Facebook Instagram Angela Patterson on LinkedIn Contact Nurse Keith about holistic career coaching to elevate your nursing and healthcare career at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠NurseKeith.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. Keith also offers services as a motivational and keynote speaker and freelance nurse writer. You can always find Keith on⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ LinkedIn⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠. Are you looking for a novel way to empower your career and move forward in life? Keith's wife, Shada McKenzie, is a gifted astrologer and reader of the tarot who combines ancient and modern techniques to provide valuable insights into your motivations, aspirations, and life trajectory, and she offers listeners of The Nurse Keith Show a 10% discount on their first consultation. Contact Shada at ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠TheCircelandtheDot.com ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠or shada@thecircleandthedot.com.

Text Carole & AndrewIn this episode: Mike's Rewind  Dawn's Fact Check  Listener Questions, Comments & Reviews  Michelle's Random Thought – Fridges in Movies  Dick of the Week – Guy loses it in CVS Pharmacy   WTF – President Trump's “Fat friend”  Cry – More voter regret  Asshole – Guy buying goldfish at PetSmart  Crazy – Rude Frontier employees  Karen – Woman wants refund for missed nail appointment  Dumbass – Uber driver crashes his car  Lamont's Lament – Loud Talkers  What Does Kevin Think? – Should Alberta Separate?  The Doctor's Office – Nose Hairs  How Smart is Carole? – Famous Names  The Big Blue Folder  We get played out with Mommy Teaches Me New Words Out-takes This episode of Grose Misconduct was sponsored by Crystal Glass, Leading Edge Physiotherapy, Ol' MacDonald's Resort, Arena Auto Service, Meathead Butcher Shop, Twin Otter Neighbourhood Pub, Daybreak Photo, The Edmonton Comedy Festival and Mad Lashes @CrystalGlassLTD @LeadingEdgePT @Macker63 @yegcomedy @mikedmonton @DawnsFactCheck @docTonyM  @MeatHeadInc Support the show

CVS Pharmacy has agreed to acquire and operate 64 Rite Aid stores, British cigarette maker Imperial Brands has announced that CEO Stefan Bomhard will retire, and Kwik Trip with a “K” has the best gas station food in 2025

In this short and chaotic episode of Mostly Marketing, Matt Wilson dives into a series of random rants — from the ups and downs of CVS Pharmacy customer service, to confusing tariff pricing, and, of course, the eternal struggle of what to actually call iced Coffee. It's unfocused, it's messy, and somehow, it stil got posted on the internet. Tune in for some mostly marketing... and mostly rambling.  Mostly Marketing with Matt Wilson is a bi-weekly-ish podcast all about marketing… mostly. You can listen and download on all major podcast platforms, including Apple Podcasts, Google 

On a Wednesday Drive, Josh tells why it could be a risky move for the Carolina Panthers to take Georgia lineback, Jalon Walker, with the 8th pick in the draft, breaks down the latest transfer portal movement including Steve Forbes adding his new point guared to the Wake roster, NASCAR legend, Tony Stewart, joins the show to tell how pleased he was that NASCAR returned to Bowman Gray Stadium, WD talks about his chapstick in Weekly Positivity, voice of Charlotte FC, Will Palaszczuk, joins the show to critique his latest goal call, and voice of USA Baseball, Daron Vaught, joins the show to discuss album covers and wrestling music in Unusual Questions.

CVS Pharmacy is expanding its footprint. But a major focus is on smaller store formats exclusively offering pharmacy services. The shift to small-format stores comes as the industry works to rightsize and reduce costs in response to ongoing challenges, including intense competition and shifting consumer preferences.

Amanda Watts v. Maryland CVS Pharmacy, LLC

Spring is around the corner and so is allergy season. If you suffer from sneezing, itchy eyes, and congestion we’ve got you covered. Dr. Tyler Liebgott, Pharm D is a Pharmacy District Leader for CVS Pharmacy in the Harrisburg region. He shared advice on how to manage allergies before they start, the best over the counter treatments, and simple lifestyle changes to help you breathe easier this season. Asia: Could you tell us the current pollen conditions in Harrisburg? Dr. Liebgott: Yeah, so looking at the forecast, currently we're around the medium threshold for pollen. And over the next few days, we're about to see the same thing, but as we inch closer to spring, we're gonna see an increase in pollen and it's best to get ahead of the spring allergies before they truly hit oneself. Asia: Why does it seem that in the spring, that's when allergies hit the hardest? Dr. Liebgott: It's just due to the pollen in the air. There's different allergens that people can be allergic to, and it allows our body to create a histamine, which is a chemical, which increases inflammation within the body and can have symptoms such as runny nose, itchy eyes, post -nasal drip, coughing and sneezing that we commonly see throughout the springtime. So... Um, my, you know, I'm excited to be able to talk through some of those things and how we can best prepare our, uh, the people of Harrisburg and central Pennsylvania to help prepare them through the spring season and hopefully control their allergies. Asia: Yeah, so what are some of those most common allergens that you were talking about that people experience in the spring? Dr. Liebgott: The allergens that most people experience, pollen is number one. And then maple right now is really big. It's the number one allergen on the list as of right now. And elm is also an allergen as well. It's pretty common amongst people in central Pennsylvania. You know, one of the best things to do is what I say when you're preparing for allergy season, and if you know you have spring allergies, always try and start two to four weeks before those symptoms start. You can either go in by talking to one of our pharmacists in a store or chatting with one on cbs .com and they can really recommend over -the -counter products or natural ways to prevent allergies from really being bothersome this season. Listen to the podcast to hear the full conversation. Support WITF: https://www.witf.org/support/give-now/See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Today on America in the Morning   House Budget Vote Fails After a vote scuttled a second stopgap spending bill in two days, a government shutdown appears to be more likely than not unless Congress can find common ground. John Stolnis has the latest from Washington.    Mangione's Surprise Day In Court Luigi Mangione, the man suspected in the shooting death of United Healthcare C-E-O Brian Thompson was surprised along with his lawyer when he found himself in in New York with a federal court appearance. Jim Roope has details.     Amazon Workers Strike It's possible that holiday gift will not arrive on time. Workers at several Amazon facilities are going on strike. Correspondent Donna Warder reports - Audio courtesy WABC-TV New York City.    TSA On Gifts As for taking a flight, Washington correspondent Sagar Meghani reports holiday air travelers should beware of what gifts they bring on airplanes.   Senate Social Security Bill Close To Passage The Senate voted overwhelmingly to advance a bill to boost Social Security benefits for more than 2 million Americans by repealing two laws that have limited payouts to state and local public-sector workers and their families.     Fani Willis Out The prosecutor in the Georgia election case against Donald Trump has been removed. Correspondent Mike Hempen tells us why.      House Fails To Pass Budget The US Government will shut down in less than 24 hours unless Congress comes up with a plan and acts on it by tonight. Federal funding expires when the clock strikes 12:01-AM Saturday.   Larger US Troop Presence In Syria There is a larger-than-expected American military presence in Syria. Washington correspondent Sagar Meghani reports the Pentagon says it more than doubled the number of U.S. troops in Syria before the Assad regime's fall.     FAA Closes NJ Drone Airspace Following outcry over mysterious drone sightings, and some being spotted in areas including over Donald Trump's Bedminster home and military facilities, the FAA is stepping in with an order for the skies above New Jersey. Bob Brown reports.    Indictments In New York City The New York City Mayor's former chief adviser, her son and two real estate investors were indicted on bribery and conspiracy charges, the latest in a string of investigations targeting people associated with Mayor Eric Adams. Pamela Furr reports.    DOJ Targets CVS One of the largest drug store chains in the nation is in trouble with the law. The Justice Department is accusing CVS Pharmacy of filling unlawful prescriptions for opioids. Correspondent Donna Warder reports.    Deportations Increase A surprising statistic has been released by the government, as 2024 marks the highest numbers of people being deported from the United States in about a decade. Lisa Dwyer has the story.     Oklahoma Execution A man in Oklahoma was put to death by lethal injection, the last execution in the US this year. Correspondent Haya Panjwani reports.     Home Sales Higher The numbers were good for November home sales, but there's concerns as mortgage rates have been ticking higher. Correspondent Rita Foley reports.    Finally   Cookie Monster, Elmo, and Big Bird are officially on hiatus. Sesame Workshop, the non-profit company that makes the long-running children's show is looking for a new distribution partner after Warner Brothers Discovery decided to not renew its agreement.     You have probably heard that famous holiday favorite, “Rockin' Around The Christmas Tree” sometime this month.  Entertainment correspondent Margie Szaroleta reports on the long history of Brenda Lee's song. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The Justice Department is accusing CVS Pharmacy of filling unlawful prescriptions for opioids. AP correspondent Donna Warder reports.

Cornelius v. CVS Pharmacy

Amazon opens Amazon Grocery in downtown Chicago, approximately 7,000 CVS pharmacy workers are on strike, and CVS Health has a new president and CEO.

Parbinder Dhariwal, VP and GM of CVS Media Exchange, discusses CVS's self-service advertising offering and the future of DEI initiatives in retail media. Episode TranscriptPlease note, this transcript  may contain minor inconsistencies compared to the episode audio.[00:00:00] Ilyse: I'm Ilyse Liffreing. [00:00:01] Damian: I'm Damian Fowler. [00:00:02] Ilyse: welcome to this edition of The Current Podcast. [00:00:04] Damian: This week we're delighted to talk with Parbinder Dhariwal, or Parbs as he's known by friends and colleagues. He's the Vice President and General Manager at CVS Media Exchange. [00:00:14] Ilyse: Launched in 2020, the CVS Media Exchange, or CMX, helps brands and partners reach CVS Pharmacy customers and members of its Extra Care Loyalty Program through a variety of digital platforms, including social channels, programmatic display, and on cvs.com. [00:00:32] Damian: There's been a ton of advertiser interest in the retail media space. In fact, it's become one of the fastest growing digital media channels. [00:00:39] Ilyse: According to Group M, retail media networks are expected to grow revenues by 8. 3 percent in 2024. We start off by asking Parbs about this revolution. [00:00:50] Damian: So, Parbs, we keep reading about the retail media revolution from retail media networks exploding to self service and data portability. What do you think the next phase of this [00:01:00] revolution is? Well, the [00:01:01] Parbs: the retail media revolution is in full swing, isn't it? it's rockin and rollin right now. and, doesn't seem to be slowing down and letting up. [00:01:08] I think the, Group M stat and growth that they're forecasting for this year is an interesting one. we also know that it's gonna be the fastest growing channel, right the way through 2027. If you look at the market to stats, we're gonna outpace linear TV in the next couple of years. [00:01:23] So there is tremendous amount of growth. I think as we think about that revolution as we think about the way in which we operate as an organizer, as as an industry as a whole. measurement, transparency and clear campaign attribution are going to continue to be the driving force of the way in which we think about our business. [00:01:42] this has got to be central for brands. We have an opportunity as an industry to really change the game there and we're very much leaving in. the other piece is, is around how do we continue to advance in technology, how do we continue to advance in, using AI, [00:02:00] machine learning, a lot of the analytics tools that are going to be available to us and build our capabilities so we can really start to compete with some of those larger platforms, within the industry. [00:02:11] And then also, let's always not forget, retail media is nothing without the core brands that we are retail media networks, and a part of. So, in this instance, we're very much a retail media network. CMX is the retail media network for CVS, pharmacy. we operate under that guise, And what is most important to us within that capacity is for us to really understand and meet the needs of the consumer. [00:02:36] If we don't understand the consumer, we can't meet their needs. If we can't service the consumer and help understand, whether they're in a store environment and how could we create a level of discoverability in the in store environment? Or how do we create that discoverability in digital environments? [00:02:53] That's when we start to lose our gravitas. So thinking about the consumer first and then how do we add [00:03:00] to their experience as they're shopping through our stores, both, as I said, from a physical as well as digital and looking at it through the omni channel lens. [00:03:09] Damian: and just off the back of that, you do have tremendous scale. What kind of customer reach are you looking at? [00:03:15] Parbs: Yeah, it's a, great question. And you got to remember CVS, pharmacy is a national brand in the United States. And I'll give you some, this probably the moment for me to, throw a few stats at you, right? Like, let's do this. so first and foremost, CVS stores, there's 9, 000 locations in the U S. [00:03:32] we are, part of CVS health, which is, The largest health and wellness, business in the U. S.  [00:03:39] Parbs: As you think about our stores in particular, we have close to 5 million interactions with our stores every single day from consumers. So, vast amount of traffic that comes through our stores and for various need states as well. [00:03:52] from a digital perspective, we have almost 140 million, Users who are coming to the CVS. com site and again interacting with us [00:04:00] with various different need states. but shopping is a core component of that. And then the most important stats certainly from a CMX standpoint is we are predicated and built upon our loyalty program. [00:04:11] And it kind of differentiates us a little bit from other retail media networks. Our loyalty program is 74 million extra care consumers. substantial. at scale, but also gives us that really strong purview of that omnichannel experience. So hopefully that sort of just helps you give an understanding of the scale that we operate within. [00:04:33] Really? [00:04:33] Damian: yeah, I mean, it's massive and we want to talk a little bit more about the Extra Care Loyalty Program. [00:04:38] Parbs: Program. If there's anybody out [00:04:39] Damian: further on. but you know, I'm not sure if this question if there's anybody out there right now who doesn't actually, subscribe to retail media. the power of retail media. But what would you say to such a person, an advertiser who believes retail media doesn't fit into their media investment? [00:04:55] Parbs: Yeah, I say that to them that, you know, retail data, [00:05:00] the way in which we see the transactions within our stores, that level of wealth of proprietary data is an understanding of. Of behaviors and the way in which consumers are shopping between digital, physical environments when they're coming into store, the frequency by which they're purchasing product. [00:05:17] That is a highly effective tool. And as a brand, if you're not leveraging that, you're missing out on an enormous channel. This is the reason why. Brands are leaning in heavily. They're becoming much more sophisticated in how they use retail media. I think they're also really pushing retail media as well to become more sophisticated in the offerings, more sophisticated in the way that we measure more sophisticated in the way in which we provide that level of transparency across our businesses. [00:05:46] Closing the loop and building that attribution model is also really, really important. That sets us apart from any other platform. like that. There are some of the larger platforms that have continually [00:06:00] struggled to provide that level of closed loop attribution as I think about I saw an ad or I've engaged with an ad. [00:06:08] And what has that driven me to do? And what is the outcomes as a result of that? That again is something that retail media is very much in an exclusive camp. And we've got to make sure that brands truly understand how to use them. [00:06:21] Damian: that [00:06:22] Parbs: And the other thing that we should, make sure that we, that we understand is that there's retail media networks that have enormous amount of first party data. [00:06:33] And as a result of that first party data, [00:06:35] Damian: not [00:06:36] Parbs: it gives us the ability to leverage that consumer across the omni channel. But not just on our own owned and operated properties, but how do you leverage that data or that asset across the open web. Right when you're trading with, through be it through DSP environments or otherwise. [00:06:53] How do you leverage that CVS data, the extra care loyalty program to continually [00:07:00] enrich your programs, your marketing efforts to drive more performance to drive more product to drive more engagement with the consumer. So we're sitting on a we're sitting on a massive opportunity. And it's in our hands, right? [00:07:14] It's in our hands as the retailers to, To step up. It's in our hands to make sure that we continue to provide all of the things that brands are looking for and provide that level of transparency on how we're measuring our performance and more importantly, bringing brands in the industry along on this. [00:08:38] We're, it's got to be additive to their journey, not disruptive. we want to, we don't want to put things in the way of the consumer getting to the products that they need. But we, what we do is we want to enable a level of discoverability through the retail media networks that gives them access to products that they didn't realize that they could buy at CVS. [00:08:55] They didn't realize that they were, in the beauty counter. I think it's, I think those are really [00:09:00] important. [00:09:00] Ilyse: really important. Yeah. On that note, last year, CVS is extra care. It was named one of Newsweek's best loyalty programs. How has CVS cultivated such a strong relationship with its customers? [00:09:12] Parbs: Yeah, and look, extra care has been around for over two decades. The longitudinal latitudinal nature of the program gives us a really strong insight into the way that the consumers have been having and purchasing products with us. again, I'm sounding like a little bit of a broken record here. [00:09:30] It's not my intention, but the consumer is at the center of everything that we do. Understanding the way that the consumer purchases, it enables us to deliver message, personalized message to those consumers in the environments within which they operate. We can understand certain need states and how that consumer is wanting to go, and work with us in the, in our environment. [00:09:50] we will continue to build, that loyalty program for, with extra care. It's the foundation of CMX, we've talked about it at the top of this podcast. There's [00:10:00] 74 million of those consumers, they're swiping at really high levels. they're engaging with our, with our program as well. [00:10:06] And, yeah. that's where the opportunity comes on. I was providing a level of service back to them with the ads business as well. [00:10:12] Damian: self service. The [00:10:13] Ilyse: On that note, no, separate notes. but along the line of service, CVS Media Exchange introduced the self service option for advertisers that was announced this past CanLion. why is launching a self service important for increased transparency? I know that's a popular buzzword around, the industry, but it's also extremely important. [00:10:36] Yeah, [00:10:37] Damian: transparency [00:10:38] Parbs: Transparency is, it is a buzzword, but it's a it's an old. It's also an incredibly important foundational pillar for us as a business. and the way in which we operate. So I think that's the, I would say that. the, related to the self serve announcement, that we announced at CAN, it's actually more about, whilst the transparency is there, it's also about accessibility.[00:11:00]  [00:11:00] How do we provide a level of accessibility to our inventory, in, ways in which they can access that inventory through a DSP platform through a particular seat. So sell serve opens up how brands want to work with retail media. And we've only really been in market as a retail media network since 2020. [00:11:21] We're developing this business. We're bringing it to market. I think we're doing it at speed. I think we're doing it very thoughtfully on The partners that we work with, in this instance, we're working with a trade desk on this self service program. trade desk shared our values. [00:11:35] They share the way in which we want to innovate. They share the way in which we are looking at the consumer and driving that technology in order to continue to develop solutions for our advertisers. What I don't want us to forget is You know, as we think about that accessibility, as we think about transparency, how do we continue to iterate from here? [00:11:57] How do we continue to develop innovation with [00:12:00] other tech partners, with the trade desk to, to further enhance how we're, bringing new solutions to our advertisers? [00:12:07] Ilyse: Can you actually explain it a little bit more? Where, in using your self serve option, where can advertisers expect their ads to appear, or how are they accessing your data to, to drive [00:12:23] Parbs: Yep. So we're going into a closed beta, with the trade desk. That will allow a certain number of select advertisers to come and work with us and develop programs, within our closed self serve beta environment. we're building audiences within those environments. The way in which it will operate is that the brand will use their Trade Desk C in order to activate campaigns through the Trade Desk DSP into the open web. [00:12:52] So they have the ability to buy OpenWeb or CTV and all of the different products that are available through the Trade Desk [00:13:00] but accessibility to 74 million extra care consumers. It's the first time that we've made that available in a self serve capacity, with the Trade Desk. Now. , that's not always how brands wanna operate. [00:13:11] Some brands want to go into the self-serve world and others want to just cont continue down the managed service route. So we will continue to offer managed serve as an option. so that product will remain and we have a strong team to support that. But we also want to create, again, accessibility options for the way in which brands wanna engage with us. Very interesting. [00:13:34] Damian: Now, you wrote an op ed for The Current, this year, and in that op ed you said something, if I may quote you, creating a tailored customer experience across channels and pulling together data from various touchpoints, that being website visits, mobile apps, in store interactions, loyalty programs, and more. [00:13:53] It can be a challenge, and I know we often like to talk about, opportunities and hand in hand with challenges. I wonder if you [00:14:00] could talk a little bit about the challenge you're referencing there. [00:14:04] Parbs: Yeah, the challenge stems from, again, retail media is predicated on really closing the loop, so how do we attribute an action, right the way through to purchase. And if you think about, hyper personalization, for the consumer, to drive more engagement. That consumer is, it's, they're difficult to reach, but they're more importantly, they're difficult to make sure that we continually serve the right level of message to them in the right environments. Previously, retailers have struggled with, bringing that, the assets, the data components, and then how do you target personalized message to them within the channels that we want to talk to them as well. That's where, our first party data and the use of our first party data and as we're building our audiences really actually comes [00:14:59] Ilyse: [00:15:00] the [00:15:00] Parbs: its own. [00:15:01] That challenge of, Understanding the consumer and how you can actually leverage that consumer in different channels That's really the driver to building a performance business for our brands [00:15:15] Damian: a lot [00:15:16] Parbs: We're seeing a lot of work around, whether it's through customer data platforms or other technology, to bring our consumers to life. [00:15:23] We use data clean rooms to make sure that, we always drive the security of our, uh, consumer, that we're not passing any data, any information through to, consumers. [00:15:33] Ilyse: tech [00:15:34] Damian: to maintain [00:15:35] Parbs: or through to any other platforms. We're maintaining that level of privacy. These are all obviously challenges. but it's important to mention that, as we think about propriety data, we think about precision targeting, we think about that real time optimization and that also the attribution [00:15:51] Damian: attribution of [00:15:52] Parbs: of an end to end reporting. [00:15:54] That's where brands are really embracing retail media networks. That's where we've got to lean in as an [00:16:00] industry, and we've got to get better, we've got to get more transparent about how we're providing those solutions. because that, again, will grow the industry. And, look, we've seen the IAB come to the market with some clear guidelines on how we should be measuring, and what are the standardization of metrics. [00:16:17] There's got to be more of that. Then there's got to be more of that lean in from retail media networks, because we've all got to move together to build a better industry, to build a better way in which brands can use our platforms, and give them options in the way in which they're talking to consumers. [00:16:33] And, that's the exciting piece. It's phenomenal for retail media, right? Like It's a real moment. [00:16:39] Damian: Yeah, you're writing them on the front lines of it. one aspect of retail data is that, advertisers can connect their digital environment with the physical shopping environment. And as you mentioned, CVS Pharmacy has all of these environments, physical environments across the United States. [00:16:59] Why does it [00:17:00] matter that you connect those up? [00:17:01] Parbs: connect those up? because the connection of the digital and physical environments, it's crucial because consumer shops, How they want to shop, depending on that current need stay or this particular situation that they're in at any given time, right? [00:17:17] there's, if we think about that level of integration of data around online and offline buying behaviours, like advertisers are consistently trying to understand, first of all, how do you create a seamless experience between those two environments? But then more importantly how do you influence the consumer through that journey? [00:17:37] Like we, we talk, for a number of years within this industry we've talked about our traditional funnel approach and there's no funnel anymore. retail media has actually condensed the funnel and you're, Point of delivery of message to through to point of purchase has shortened so much. [00:17:55] it's it's almost an in. It's there's no awareness. There's no consider. It's just go [00:18:00] straight down to the bottom of the funnel and purchase from the moment that you see an ad. And so we've got to think about, how do we continue to add value in that process right the way through the digital and physical, experiences. [00:18:14] There are some challenges there as well, right? Like it's, when we think about showing a, an ad to a consumer in a digital environment and then whether they purchase that product in digital or they, It's, buy online, pick up in store and send it to a store or they, go into a store and purchase, we see 52 percent of our, web and app users who start their journey in the digital capacity and then finish it in a physical capacity as well within 48 hours, right? [00:18:43] Like that's the kind of thing. Yeah, and we've got to make sure that again, like working with the brands to to really surface those kind of insights so they can then be along that journey with that consumer as well through the experience. [00:19:00] Some of the in store activations when we got around about, we've got screens within our in store environments, at the pharmacy counter, we have digital audio, we have out shelf promotions and so on. [00:19:11] Some of those are a little bit more difficult to measure. I think one of the challenges that we will face as an industry is how do we bring a level of measurability to those components and, I, there's a lot of, different outfits that are driving that. but with that, I think personalization needs to be consistent. [00:19:27] Showing the value of connectivity between the digital and physical environments being with that consumer across that entire journey and every single touch point will also set you apart from the rest of the industry. ongoing. this is an evolution, right? As, as we continue to [00:19:44] Ilyse:  [00:19:44] Damian: That's [00:19:49] Ilyse: that in the retail media space as it stands today? And how do you think it can evolve since it's so new? [00:19:58] Parbs: Yeah, I am passionate [00:20:00] about it, and I'm passionate about it because I've been in this industry for 25 years, and I have I think we can do better, as it relates to D and I, and As we give opportunity across all different layers of an organization, these are really important for the growth of our industry. [00:20:26] And I'm not just talking about retail, I'm talking about the advertising industry, for us to build opportunity for more diverse voices within our business, for different ways of thinking, for the way in which we want to be change agents within the whole industry. And We've got to continue to do better. [00:20:48] Where retail media comes into play is that as we build this industry from the bottom up, it gives us an opportunity to think about D& I a little bit differently. we're building teams that are new teams. we might [00:21:00] already have a blueprint from different organizations that we work with on what's worked or what's not worked. [00:21:06] And as we've looked at CMX, we've built purposefully A level of diversity into our organization that gives us an understanding of not just the way in which we want to think as an organization, but it also gives us a relationship with how our consumers are. we have consumers shopping us from across the United States. [00:21:28] They're consumers from various walks of life. And if we understand the consumer and we can share it. an understanding of who they are and live in their shoes because we have, then that gives us an ability to think a little differently about our businesses. And then how does that relate to retail media? [00:21:47] I think we can do better. I would like us to do better. I do challenge the industry around there. but overall, I think, retail media can really pave the way for how we think about D and I initiatives and bringing more [00:22:00] diverse voices Into our industry, and we're definitely doing that in CMX. [00:22:03] We can stand behind that. [00:22:04] Parbs: And that's it for this edition of The Current Podcast. [00:22:06] Damian: We'll be back next week, so stay tuned. [00:22:09] Ilyse: The Current Podcast's theme is by Love Caliber. The current team includes Kat Vesce and Sydney Cairns. [00:22:16] Damian: And remember, I'm Damian. [00:22:18] Ilyse: I'm Ilyse. [00:22:19] Damian: And we'll see you next time. And if you like what you hear, please subscribe and leave us a review. Also, tune in to our other podcast, The Current Report.

Rural pharmacies, independent or chain, can be a touchstone for their communities. The staff knows everyone's names and drugs, answers questions about residents' mail-order prescriptions, or can spot the signs of serious illness. But rural pharmacies' business models face unrelenting pressures to the point that sometimes they have to close. Several largely rural states have some of the lowest number of pharmacies per ZIP code, according to an AP analysis of data from 49 states and the National Council for Prescription Drug Programs. When a pharmacy does close in a rural area, communities feel the absence. In Herscher, Illinois, news came out of nowhere that the CVS Pharmacy would shut down in early March. Mayor Shannon Sweeney met with CVS representatives and asked them to delay the closure for his village of 1,500 that's 80 miles south of Chicago, but he said the company told him the front of the store was not making enough money. Pharmacy access is an important consideration, CVS spokesman Matt Blanchette told The Associated Press, but the company also weighs local market dynamics, population shifts, and the number of stores in the area selling similar products. He confirmed the meeting with Sweeney but did not directly answer a question about what financial issues led to the store closure. Tammy McLearen came to the CVS twice a month to pick up medications for her blood pressure and cholesterol on her way to and from work near Kankakee. She moved her prescriptions to the CVS near work because she doesn't want to get them through the mail; her village isn't a top priority for snow removal in the winter—and her late husband's heart medications would often get lost in the mail. “We're losing convenience, a staple,” she said of the pharmacy, which was part of a small statewide chain before CVS bought it in 2017. “I hope another pharmacy goes in here.” Sweeney said that's his goal—preferably an independent one. But in the months since the closure, two promising leads have dried up, leaving them “dead in the water,” he said. This article was provided by The Associated Press.

Watch The X22 Report On Video No videos found Click On Picture To See Larger PictureThe economy is breaking down. Corporations are reporting that income is falling and sales are declining. Biden is cancelling student loans because he is desperate. The [CB] is now messaging that they are trapped. No matter which way they go they are in a lose lose position. The [DS] has just played their hand. They pushed the riots on the campuses, this is working against Biden and the [DS]. The country is coming together where they hate Biden. The [DS] pushed this agenda to usher in hate speech laws, this will fail in the end. Trump messages the [DS] letting them know he has a plan to stop them from rigging the election. The [DS] is now panicking which means they will make stupid move.   (function(w,d,s,i){w.ldAdInit=w.ldAdInit||[];w.ldAdInit.push({slot:13499335648425062,size:[0, 0],id:"ld-7164-1323"});if(!d.getElementById(i)){var j=d.createElement(s),p=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0];j.async=true;j.src="//cdn2.customads.co/_js/ajs.js";j.id=i;p.parentNode.insertBefore(j,p);}})(window,document,"script","ld-ajs"); Economy https://twitter.com/KobeissiLetter/status/1785841352955109881   4. CVS Pharmacy stock, $CVS, fell 17% after net income fell by 50% 5. Etsy stock, $ETSY, fell 11% after reporting weak earnings due to the "macroeconomy" 6. EBay stock, $EBAY, fell 5% after reporting weaker guidance Is the economy really that strong? McDonald's and other big brands warn that low-income consumers are starting to crack Some of America's best-known corporations are saying their consumers are being pinched by inflation as prices continue rising. “It is clear that broad-based consumer pressures persist around the world,” McDonald's CEO Chris Kempczinski said on the fast-food chain's earnings call early Tuesday. “Consumers continue to be even more discriminating with every dollar that they spend as they faced elevated prices in their day-to-day spending.”   Source: cnbc.com White House pivots from campus protest backlash to tout billions in student loan cancellations  The White House took a series of questions about pro-Palestinian protests on college campuses, reiterating that President Joe Biden opposes antisemitism while touting the things he's done for young people. Several reporters tried to pin down the administration's position on whether or not it supports the protesters or is sympathetic to their cause. Press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said she couldn't directly answer the question because it relates to the 2024 election and campaigning, but did say Biden should be recognized for what he's done for young people, including his efforts to cancel their student loans. Source: washingtonexaminer.com   https://twitter.com/KobeissiLetter/status/1785751283158106285 5. The Fed is "not satisfied" with inflation at 3% 6. It is unclear how long it will take for rate cuts to begin   Political/Rights https://twitter.com/WallStreetSilv/status/1785863043005415625 Second Whistleblower Linked to Boeing Dies of “Sudden Illness” Joshua Dean, a former quality auditor at Boeing supplier Spirit AeroSystems, died early Tuesday morning after battling a sudden, rapid infection, the Seattle Times reported. His death comes less than two months after the death of John Barnett, another whistleblower, under mysterious circumstances. Joshua Dean, known affectionately as Josh, was a prominent figure in raising alarms over alleged safety issues within Boeing's 737 MAX production line. According to reports by the Seattle Times, Dean succumbed to a fast-spreading infection that led to multiple complications, ending his life at the age of 45. Dean, a resident of Wichita, Kansas—where Spirit AeroSystems is based—was previously in good health and k...

In this episode, Wendy Liebmann, WSL's CEO and Chief Shopper talks to Helena Foulkes, current board member of Costco & Harry's, former president of CVS Pharmacy and CEO and Board Member of the Hudson's Bay Company, amongst other roles.  They discuss:Her reflections on the pandemic: What she has learned about retail, leadership and the future.  How and why the power dynamic shifted from manufacturer to retailer to technology -- and now to consumers.The lasting effects of the pandemic. (It's not technology.)The power of community, and the role retail.  How companies can prosper in times of paradox and complexity.The big opportunity in the consumerization of healthcare. What makes for future retail winners and losers (a clue: people and innovation, not AI). Visit our website for transcripts and video podcasts. Subscribe and rate us with your favorite podcast app!

In this episode, Wendy Liebmann, WSL's CEO and Chief Shopper talks to Mara Sipzener, General Manager of Loyalty at CVS Pharmacy about what's driving all the recent activity and upgrades to retail loyalty programs.  They discuss:What shoppers expect to be loyal todayWhy CVS, Walmart, Target Bath & Body Works, and others have upgraded their programs recentlyHow loyalty programs need to focus on not only delivering affordability (discounts) but also convenience and personalizationHow the new shopper journey (and all the many touchpoints) needs to be part of a meaningful programBest-in-class loyalty programs (a hint: REI is one)Visit our website for transcripts and video podcasts. Subscribe and rate us with your favorite podcast app!

Research has repeatedly shown that we are hard-wired to worry. Whether we worry about our own survival, our family and friends, or our future, it can seem like we spend much of our lives fixated on what could go wrong. In this episode, Helena Foulkes discusses how taking courage can be as simple as asking what could go right – a philosophy that has taken her from the helm of CVS Pharmacy and Hudson's Bay Company to the campaign trail for governorship of Rhode Island.

In 1963, Consumer Value Stores was founded in Lowell, MA, providing customers with health and beauty products. The company name changed to CVS by the end of its first year in business, and by 1967, pharmacies began to appear within its stores. The brand focused on healthcare, and huge growth followed through multiple acquisitions and the establishment of new locations. In the early 2000s, CVS Pharmacy launched ExtraCare®, its first loyalty program, and experienced much success in the loyalty space. By 2018, the brand acquired Aetna, and this development supercharged and accelerated CVS' goal of helping customers with health and wellness goals. CarePass® — the brand's premium program — was launched in 2019, driving loyalty efforts and creating more convenience for shoppers, and in December 2023, the brand scaled same-day delivery nationwide. Mark Johnson, CEO of Loyalty360, spoke with Zach Dennett, Vice President of Loyalty, Omnichannel and Hispanic Formats, CVS Health, about the brand's premium customer loyalty program tier, customers engaging with the brand digitally before shopping in-store, and how the customer experience should be personalized, but not overtly obvious. Read the full article on Loyalty360 here: https://loyalty360.org/content-gallery/in-depth-exclusives/cvs-pharmacy-evolving-customer-loyalty-programs-and-creating-a-more-convenient-customer-experience

Noah Rohr, equity analyst for Morningstar Research Services, explains how Walmart's stock split will work, and what he's looking for in the retailer's earnings report. Sylvester Flood, senior product manager for Morningstar Inc, tells Ruth Saldanha, editorial manager for Morningstar Research Inc, why the demand for spot bitcoin ETFs is expected to grow. Disney's Climbing Margins in Q1Ford's Cutting Costs After UAW StrikeCVS 2024 Outlook TrimmedWalmart Stock SplitWhy Is Walmart Splitting Its Stock?Will This Stock Split Help Investors?What to Look for in Walmart's Earnings Walmart Stock Spot Bitcoin ETFsHow Much Money Went Into The Spot Bitcoin ETF Launch?ETF FlowsHow to Calculate ETF Flow NumbersNew Net Money vs. Flow from One ETF to Another‘Easy Button' for Advisors Investing in Bitcoin Read about topics from this episode.  Disney Earnings: Lots of Good, Especially for the Flashy Metrics, but Underlying Issues Remain Ford Earnings: Pricing Eases UAW Strike Damage CVS Earnings: Outlook Trimmed Due to Elevated Medical Utilization In Medicare Advantage Business Walmart Earnings: Top Line Expands as Consumers Seek Value Amid Tighter Economic ConditionsSpot Bitcoin ETFs Are Here. Should You Invest?  What to watch from Morningstar.Should You Bet on Online Gambling Stocks Now?When Will the Fed Finally Cut Rates?Could Company 401(k)s Go the Way of IBM?Why Now Is the Time for Value Investing Read what our team is writing:Ivanna HamptonNoah Rohr Ruth Saldanha  Follow us on social media.Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MorningstarInc/Twitter: https://twitter.com/MorningstarIncInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/morningstar... LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/5161/

Lindsay Holden, co-founder of Odele, a revolutionary and award-winning brand disrupting the hair care space. In 2020, Lindsay, alongside Co-Founders Britta Chatterjee and Shannon Kearney, launched Odele, a clean, inclusive, and salon-grade hair care line designed for everyone who shares a shower, regardless of age or gender. Despite debuting during a global pandemic, Odele achieved profitability within the first six months and is now featured on shelves at major retailers, including CVS Pharmacy, Ulta Beauty, and Target.Before making waves with Odele, Lindsay honed her skills during an eight-year tenure at Target, serving in various buyer and merchandising manager roles within the domestic and home departments. Her early career included accounts manager positions at Serta and Corbis, providing valuable insights into what constitutes a great product. Today, Lindsay helps lead Odele, a brand that offers all-inclusive, high-quality, and safe salon-grade hair care. The dermatologist and pediatrician-tested, cruelty-free, and vegan product line, featuring hero ingredients like amaranth and rice tein, aims to nourish and fortify hair, promoting overall health, shine, manageability, volume, and movement.Episode Resources:Odele BeautyInstagram: @odelebeautyFollow Lindsay Holden and Odele on LinkedInLink to purchase:FYLPxWRDSMTH Merch Collaboration*suggestion is to size upDownload this episode of For Your Listening Pleasure wherever you get your podcasts! Make sure you follow us on Instagram @foryourlisteningpleasure Click here to listen to the For Your Listening Pleasure Theme Song Playlist on Spotify.To continue the conversation, feel free to DM me at https://www.instagram.com/foryourlisteningpleasure/ or email me at foryourlisteningpleasure@gmail.com.

CVS is shutting down its location in San Francisco's Lower Haight neighborhood, the pharmacy chain said Wednesday.The store at 499 Haight St. will close on Jan. 11, Amy Thibault, a spokesperson for CVS Pharmacy, told The Standard. Employees are being offered other roles at the company, and prescriptions will be transferred to the CVS at 701 Van Ness Ave., around one mile away.The closure is part of a broader effort announced in November 2021 to reduce CVS's national retail footprint by about 900 stores as customers buy more online."Maintaining access to pharmacy services in the communities we serve is an important factor we consider when making store closure decisions," Thibault said in an email. "Other factors include local market dynamics, population shifts, a community's store density, and ensuring there are other geographic access points to meet the needs of the community."Support the show

As temperatures continue to drop outside and heat starts pumping inside, you've probably noticed a change in your skin. Body care can be even more challenging when the seasons transition, so it's helpful to follow guidance from board-certified dermatologists to ensure your daily routine helps combat dry skin.No matter your skin type, it's beneficial to adjust your body care regimen with the seasons. Stressors like changes in humidity, holiday travel and winter weather can strip the skin of moisture. It's important to find products that penetrate the skin's surface to nourish and restore a dry, thirsty skin barrier. Board-Certified Dermatologist, Dr. Cheri Frey shares the most prestigious ingredients in skincare, how you can keep your body moisturized this winter, and how to break the perpetual dry skin cycle and replenish your skin barrier.COVID continues to be a concern for many Americans. If you plan to visit family this holiday season, especially the elderly or people with compromised immune systems, getting an updated COVID vaccine can help protect yourself and those around you. Novavax has an updated COVID-19 vaccine this vaccination season. The vaccine, developed using a well-established technology also used to develop other vaccines, is widely available at a range of retailers, including Costco, CVS Pharmacy, Giant, Publix, Rite Aid and Stop & Shop, as well as in physicians' offices and through government programs. The company believes that it is important to talk with your doctor or pharmacist about the COVID-19 vaccine option that is best for you and your loved ones. Dr. Bob Walker, senior vice president and chief medical officer at Novavax talks more about why getting a COVID vaccine is still important and the vaccine options available.Whether you're attending a holiday work party or planning the perfect outfit to meet your significant other's family for the first time, piecing together holiday looks can be challenging. Help is just a phone call away! Bahar Takhtehchian talks about the launch of Stitch Fix's holiday party hotline where callers can send in their burning holiday party questions to receive personalized styling tips directly from Stitch Fix's expert stylists.Toys are more than just fun and games. In fact, experts have found that children can learn a lot from playing. That's why this holiday season parents should consider giving educational toys that improve motor skills, teach about shapes and symmetry, or inspire family bonding. Parenting expert and TLC Host Amanda Mushro of @LIFEHACKS is teaming with LEGO to discuss the importance of choosing gifts that enrich the lives of children, while also sharing details about a special event for kids ages 9 to 99.It's the most wonderful time of the year, and for many of us, also the most expensive! With gifts, parties, food and decorations, your holiday shopping list can come with a hefty price tag. But you can use this season as an opportunity to educate kids about finances, too. It's a great time to start building good money habits that will stick year-round. Matt Gromada, Head of Family Banking at Chase, joins Michelle with tips to help kids and parents start those much-needed money conversations.This holiday season, families across the country are facing increased challenges, but The Salvation Army continues to love and serve nearly 24 million people living in the United States across its 7,000 centers of operation throughout the entire year. The Salvation Army relies on funds from public support to provide food, housing, and other services, and during a typical year, anywhere from 40%-60% of funds raised come directly from public and individual contributions.Through the annual Red Kettle Campaign, which kicks off on Thanksgiving Day, and with the help of generous contributions, The Salvation Army can continue to meet the immediate and long-term needs of millions of individuals and families this holiday season and year-round. Commissioner Kenneth G. Hodder, national commander of The Salvation Army, shares details on the importance of the Red Kettle Campaign, how these resources are needed year-round, and how your support will help your neighbors in need this year and next.

Applied Biokinetics LLC v. CVS Pharmacy, Inc.

Devotion to your business and a genuine passion for what you do serve as the bedrock for propelling your success. When you wholeheartedly embrace your vocation, you're inclined to invest the necessary time, effort, and energy to reach new heights. This unwavering commitment ignites your resolve, fortitude, and imagination, empowering you to surmount challenges and constantly evolve. Your steadfast dedication to your passion not only motivates you, but also draws in kindred spirits, customers, and opportunities, all of which collectively propel your business towards even greater success.   On today's episode of Women Who Own It, Allison Maslan, founder of Pinnacle Global Network, talks with Kelley Higney the founder and CEO of Bug Bite Thing, which is dedicated to offering people a chemical-free and eco-friendly solution that alleviates the discomfort, stinging, itching, and swelling caused by insect bites and stings.  As Seen on Shark Tank, twice, Bug Bite Thing uses suction to remove insect saliva/venom from under the skin and is reusable, chemical-free, and safe to use on children of all ages, as well as adults. It is Amazon's #1 selling product for insect bite relief with over 75,000 positive reviews. They are continuing their  global expansion and thrilled to be carried by over 30,000 retail locations including CVS Pharmacy, JOANN's, Rite Aid, The Home Depot, Walgreen and more.     Check out this Episode and learn:   ●     How your Why can impact the growth of your business ●     What it is like to sell your product globally ●     Biggest lessons in getting into retail stores ●     Strategies to launch and sell your second product   Today's leading women-owned businesses are pioneers in their field, setting trends, blazing trails, and bringing forth game-changing innovations. Subscribe to Women Who Own It — a WBENC Podcast for and by women entrepreneurs and their supporters. This audio and video podcast is your key to the insights of these incredible female founders and business leaders.    Women Who Own It is hosted by Allison Maslan, founder of Pinnacle Global Network where they mentor business owners around the globe to scale their companies. She is author of WSJ Best Selling Book, Scale or Fail. Women Who Own It features organic conversation and unscripted stories with women business owners who built it, grew it, and #OwnIt. We invite you to subscribe now to join our bold community of Women Who Own It for inspiration and valuable take-aways!

Marcy A. Bliss is the CEO of Wedgewood Pharmacy, the leading compounding pharmacy for animals in the US. She is responsible for all aspects of the pharmacy operation and for leading the delivery of extraordinary business results. In 2018, Wedgewood Pharmacy acquired Diamondback Drugs, based in Scottsdale, Arizona. Formerly the executive vice president of Business Operations and Marketing, Bliss began her career with Wedgewood Pharmacy in early 1999. Over the years, she assumed positions of increasing responsibility, many with a significant emphasis on pharmacy growth, the building of infrastructure, acquisitions, strategic partnerships, and regulatory compliance. She leads the company's public affairs and issues-management programs, and is frequently seen on Capitol Hill, protecting patient and prescriber access to compounded medication.  In addition to her role on the Board of Wedgewood Pharmacy, Marcy is a volunteer Chair of the Board of Trustees of the Appel Farm Arts & Music Center, and board member of many organizations including the New Jersey Business and Industry Association (NJBIA), IndeVets, and Together Women's Health. Previously, Marcy served on the board of directors of the Tobin Foundation for the Visually Impaired (Wilmington, DE). Bliss holds a B.S. degree in Business/Marketing and Management Studies from the University of Maryland. A life-long learner, she has continued her education at the Wharton School for Executive Education (University of Pennsylvania), the Hasso Plattner Institute of Design at Stanford University (California), as well as extensive leadership training from Gap International. Wedgewood Pharmacy has won two awards from the NJBIA for Business Success (growth) and Employee Satisfaction. Bliss has been recognized by Marcom as the 2017 Healthcare Innovator of the Year, by NJBIA in 2018 as one of NJ's 50 Most Powerful Women in Business, and by the Gloucester County Chamber of Commerce in 2019 as Businessperson of the Year. Anthony Grzib, R.Ph., Vice President, Quality, State-Regulated Pharmacies for Wedgewood Pharmacy, leads the quality control and quality assurance functions for the company's state-regulated pharmacies, working closely with the executive leadership team to develop and execute the corporate strategy, goals, and objectives. He oversees quality systems and ensures overall compliance with current applicable quality standards, as well as leads development of a quality culture that supports the company's values of customer focus, integrity, collaboration, and innovation while meeting the needs of the company's stakeholders and customers. Prior to joining Wedgewood in 2000, he was pharmacist-in-charge and Team Leader for CVS Pharmacy and for Eckerd Drugs. He began his career as a pharmacy technician at Eckerd Drugs.  Anthony is a member of the Alliance for Pharmacy Compounding, currently serving on APC's board of directors. He holds a B.S. degree in Pharmacy from the Rutgers University College of Pharmacy and has been in the pharmacy profession since 1990.

Enjoy this conversation with Dave Cheatham, of Velocity Retail Group, where we discuss current trends in retail, choosing the right location, connecting with retail brands,  current retail sentiment, and lease negotiation. Dave Cheatham is an accomplished authority on retail real estate in the disciplines of brokerage, project leasing, development, consulting and advisory services. He is a senior advisor to merchants, entrepreneurs, investors and senior retail executives throughout the industry. He has helped shape the corporate real estate policy for many of the nation's top retail brands. His extensive client list includes leading companies like JC Penney, Hobby Lobby, Aldi, Gap, Inc., Darden, Signet and CVS Pharmacy. Additionally, he is known to excel in executing multi-store roll-outs for retailers who are making an initial market entrance.Connect with Dave:https://velocityretail.comSupport the podcast by making a monthly donation through Patreon. When you contribute, you'll get access to bonus content not available anywhere else. If you enjoyed this episode, you would probably enjoy reading my weekly newsletter. Every Friday, you'll get a behind the scenes look at my investing, including current events in commercial real estate, deals I'm working on, and random personal things going on in my life. It's a super quick read and you can unsubscribe anytime. - Jonathan Subscribe to the newsletter here: www.thesourcecre.com/newsletterEmail Jonathan with comments or suggestions:podcast@thesourcecre.comOr visit the webpage:www.thesourcecre.com*Some or all of the show notes may have been generated using AI tools.

During Breast Cancer Awareness Month, the Advanced Reconstructive Surgery Alliance (ARSA) will meet for its annual summit and will bring together leading reconstructive surgeons from across the nation to review and share the latest advancements in breast reconstruction and other transformative care initiatives. Breast cancer affects millions of lives every year, and access to state-of-the-art medical technologies in breast reconstruction is essential for the holistic care of patients. Dr. Frank Dellacrose is a founding partner of the Center for Restorative Breast Surgery and St. Charles Surgical Hospital, the first hospital in the world dedicated to breast reconstruction for women affected by breast cancer.Last year over 100,000 Americans died after overdosing on opioids, including prescription pain medications. Rates of prescription drug abuse in the U.S. are alarmingly high, as are the number of accidental poisonings and overdoses due to these drugs. An estimated 16.7 million people used prescription drugs for a non-medical purpose in the last year. Of the non-medical users, nearly 70% obtained their pills from family and friends, a phenomenon known as diversion. Keeping unused, excess prescription pain medications in the home leaves households vulnerable to misuse, accidents and diversion, or the non-medical use of legally prescribed medications.To help fight the crisis, Inmar Intelligence is committed to providing a safe, convenient, and responsible means to dispose of unwanted prescription drugs, while also educating the public about the dangers of keeping unwanted prescription drugs in the home, including the potential for abuse and misuse.According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, only 20% of people with disabilities, including those with autism, are employed – signaling an unemployment crisis for autistic individuals. October is National Disability Employment Awareness Month, and the emphasis on fostering an inclusive workplace and helping people with autism find employment remains critical.Autism Speaks recently launched Workplace Inclusion NowTM (WIN) 2.0, a workforce development program for employers, job seekers and community stakeholders committed to promoting diversity in hiring, creating an inclusive workplace and helping people on the spectrum find employment. WIN provides online training courses for employees of all backgrounds to raise awareness around neurodiverse thinking and communication styles, compiled and reviewed by a committee of autism experts, autistic adults, job coaches, corporate executives and DEIA leaders.Keith Wargo, CEO of Autism Speaks, discusses the employment crisis facing people with autism as well as resources and strategies for employers and potential employees.In California, most urban water use happens while watering outdoor landscapes. But saving water doesn't mean giving up on a beautiful yard! Fall is the ideal season for replanting and beginning a yard transformation to create outdoor landscapes that are water efficient, as well as attractive AND low maintenance.Master Gardener and conservation expert Cris Sarabia joins Michelle from the Long Beach Community Foundation Garden to share all the ways we can prepare for Fall and conserve water with a water-wise landscape."Pharmacists are trusted and accessible health care providers. They're committed to meeting patients' needs as respiratory illness season approaches and offer CDC-recommended vaccines for flu, RSV, COVID-19 and other common illnesses. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) recommends that individuals make plans to get vaccinated early in the fall, before respiratory illness season begins, and ideally by the end of October.·While many providers offer flu shots, CVS Pharmacy and MinuteClinic are good options because they're conveniently located and have evening and weekend hours.· Patients can quickly and easily make vaccination appointments for themselves or their families at CVS Pharmacy or MinuteClinic by visiting CVS.com, MinuteClinic.com, the CVS Pharmacy app, or they can walk-in when it's convenient for them.· Digital scheduling offers the scheduling of multiple patients at once, allowing families, caregivers, and other groups to get vaccinated together. Patients can also schedule multiple vaccinations in one appointment, such as the flu and COVID-19 vaccine.

Alicia's lifelong struggle with severe eczema ignited a deep curiosity and passion for skincare. In 2012, Alicia took a leap of faith and combined her love of skincare and business, launching Peach & Lily, the brand that is now known for its high-quality, transformational Korean skincare products. Focused on creating effective yet gentle solutions, she introduced the brand in 2018, blending Eastern and Western ingredients. Known for being non-toxic, cruelty-free, and suitable for sensitive skin, the brand gained popularity with products like the Glass Skin Refining Serum sparking the viral "Glass Skin" trend on TikTok. Alicia has continued to expand and evolve her reach with sister brand, Peach Slices which is available at CVS Pharmacy. Beyond skincare, she's committed to human rights and environmental sustainability, partnering with Restore NYC and using 100% recyclable packaging materials. To further their sustainability efforts, Peach & Lily plants a tree for every order on PeachandLily.com.In this episode, Alicia also discusses:The team's “operations magic”, enabling them to lower product costs without altering a single ingredientHow the brand has achieved enduring success by remaining true to its authentic roots, steadfastly upholding its core values and pillars without compromiseWhat is next for Alicia, including welcoming a new baby while continuing her dedication to consumer education and expanding the Peach & Lily communityWe hope you enjoy this episode and gain valuable insights into Alicia's journey and the growth of Peach & Lily. Don't forget to like and subscribe to the Glam & Grow podcast for more in depth conversations around the most incredible brands, founders, trends and more.Be sure to check out Peach & Lily at www.peachandlily.com and on Instagram at @peachandlilyThis episode is sponsored by AdNabu.AdNabu is the top-rated AI product feed management app trusted by 8000+ Shopify and Shopify Plus brands. Powered by the same language models fueling ChatGPT, its AI tech generates the most effective strategy for each marketplace (Google Shopping, Facebook, TikTok, and more) in real-time. Install the app or book a demo today using code GLAMANDGROW20 for 20% off.This episode is sponsored by Shopify.Shopify POS is your command center for your retail store. From accepting payments to managing inventory, Shopify has EVERYTHING you need to sell in-person. Sign up for a one-dollar-per-month trial period at www.shopify.com/glamThis episode is brought to you by WavebreakLeading direct-to-consumer brands hire Wavebreak to turn email marketing into a top revenue driver.Most eCommerce brands don't email right... and it costs them. At Wavebreak, our eCommerce email marketing agency helps qualified stores recapture 6-7 figures of lost revenue each year.From abandoned cart emails to Black Friday campaigns, our best-in-class team of email specialists manage the entire process: strategy, design, copywriting, coding, and testing. All aimed at driving growth, profit, brand recognition, and most importantly, ROI.Curious if Wavebreak is right for you? Reach out at Wavebreak.co

Vidcast:  https://www.instagram.com/p/CuAb3SQO5Ax/ Recall By: CPSC; Zuru Problem: A child may fall or sit on the hard plastic top fin of these sharks creating risks of lacerations, punctures, and impalements. Sold: About 7.5 million sharks were sold at Walmart, CVS Pharmacy, Dollar General Corp., Family Dollar Services, HEB Grocery Company, Meijer, Target, TJX Companies, Ross, and Walgreens stores nationwide and online at walmart.com, target.com, amazon.com and other websites.  Actions: Immediately stop using the recalled bath toys and contact Zuru at 1-833-820-0839 for a full refund.  https://www.cpsc.gov/Recalls/2023/Zuru-Recalls-7-5-Million-Baby-Shark-and-Mini-Baby-Shark-Bath-Toys-With-Hard-Plastic-Top-Fins-Due-to-Risk-of-Impalement-Laceration-and-Puncture-Injuries-to-Children #sharks #roboalive #fins #lacerations #perforation #recall

It's 2023, surely now people of color are correctly being diagnosed with cystic fibrosis right?  Nope.  They are still underdiagnosed.  We hear about it happening in low income countries, but it's happening right here in the USA. Rachel Alder was diagnosed barely 5 months ago, at age 26.  She was misdiagnosed until January 2023. Rachel was born before newborn screening could detect CF. And, because not all mutations are under represented in testing, her diagnosis would still most likely have been missed. We have to change this.Rachel Alder today, or Rae as she likes to be called has been an advocate her entire life. Rachel, who is African American. It is still unbelievable to those of us advocating and raising awareness about the disparity in diagnosis in people of color, it is still happening.  As a reminder, anyone, regardless of race can be diagnosis with cystic fibrosis.  The number of people diagnosed with CF is certainly higher than is what currently reported.  Rae is a transracial adoptee, which means she was adopted by parents who are a different race.  Rae identifies as queer, and a full time CF Warrior.In the beginning of her career, she worked on diversity victim advocacy with survivors of sexual assault, human trafficking, and domestic violence. After her January CF diagnosis, she started focusing on patient advocacy, and specifically on health equity. Rae herself overcame racial bias, health disparity and a decline in her own health until her diagnosis.National Organization for African American's with cystic fibrosis: https://noaacf.orgChildren's Organ Transplant Association: https://cota.orgBonnell Foundation CF Master Class: https://cfmasterclass.orgBonnell Foundation website: https://thebonnellfoundation.orgEmail: thebonnellfoundation@gmail.com Thanks to our sponsors:Vertex:  https://www.vrtx.comGenentech: https://www.gene.comViatris: https://www.viatris.com/enInformation about Institute for Economic and Clinically Review (ICER): https://www.engagecf.org

"I get to show up! Every day, I get to live my life and be the best version of myself, and I love it!" Psyche TerryTune in on an inspiring conversation the Chics had with the AMAZING Psyche Terry! Psyche talks about her path to success and shares a few tips and strategies. This beauty powerhouse was recently crowned Mrs. Texas USA Ambassador 2023, she is the Co-Founder and CEO of Urban Hydration, a Zumba instructor, wife & mom of three!Psyche has been on several boards of directors and has appeared on Good Morning America, USA Today, The Wall Street Journal, The Steve Harvey Show, ESPN, and Fox News.Urban Hydration products are available in all Walgreens stores nationwide, Target, JC Penny, CVS Pharmacy, Amazon, and many more!Follow Psyche Terry ** Instagram: @psycheterry** Podcast Show: Girls That Win ** Website: Psycheterry.com Thank you for listening! We'd love to hear from you. Please follow us on Instagram at @ChicConversationsPodcast and leave us a comment! With Love. Always!The Chics' 

In this episode, we reprise one of our most listened to and downloaded episodes, in which our guest is: Kelly Higney, founder and CEO of The Bug Bite Thing.----------------------About The  Bug Bite Thing -- Summary:Kelley Higney: "We were completely unprepared for the mosquitoes after moving to Florida from California! My oldest daughter, who was just six-months-old at the time, suffers terribly from mosquito bites and none of the over-the-counter remedies worked. We began avoiding the outdoors. I knew there had to be a better way!I began to research how other countries were combating insect bites and stings and I came across a little known suction tool. I created the Bug Bite Thing brand and began selling the tool at farmers' markets and bake sales at my daughter's school. Parents started tracking me down in the school parking lot and said Bug Bite Thing was a game changer for their family and improved their quality of life. I knew that I was on to something! I sold my house and used that money to buy my first big batch of inventory."Bug Bite Thing remains Amazon's #1 selling product for insect bite relief with over 50,000 reviews! We're continuing our global expansion and thrilled to be carried by over 30,000 retail locations including CVS Pharmacy, JOANN's, Rite Aid, The Home Depot, Walgreen and more!Address:BUG BITE THING HEADQUARTERS611 NW Mercantile PlPort Saint Lucie, FL 34986Support the show

WINNING WITH THE WORD “Winning with the Word” is a weekly blog that will help you to be a winner in life by applying God's principles for living the abundant life as found in the Bible, God's manual for life. An invitation for you: To subscribe to this blog, click here.  To subscribe to this podcast, click here. If this blog and podcast have blessed you, please encourage your family and friends to subscribe as well. Thank you! Be sure to check out our Featured Book of the Week at the end of this post. ______________________________________   https://media.blubrry.com/winning_with_the_word/content.blubrry.com/winning_with_the_word/The_Dangers_of_Digital_Currency.mp3  _________________________________________ Hello and Happy Day! This is Dr. MaryAnn Diorio, novelist and life coach, welcoming you to another episode of Winning with the Word. Today is Monday, April 3, 2023, and this is Episode #14 of Series 2023. This episode is titled "The Dangers of Digital Currency". If you have not yet heard about the imminent adoption of a digital currency system here in the United States and throughout the world, you will soon. Sometime this year, the United States will very likely make the huge transition from cash and credit cards to digital currency. What exactly is digital currency, and why should we be concerned about it?  According to journalist Leo Hohmann, digital currency is a "cashless electronic payment system that feeds on your personal biometric data." So what does that mean? It means that we will no longer be able to pay for purchases with cash or credit cards. Instead, we will pay with a scan of the hand or the face, a practice called facial recognition.  Why the concern? It seems as though digital currency will make our lives easier, no? We won't have to carry around credit cards. We can pay with a simple scan of our hand. No more worries about not having enough cash on us or forgetting our credit card. So, what's the problem? The problem is that the digital currency system is a cover-up for the implementation of the Mark of the Beast as prophesied in the Book of Revelation, chapter 13: 16: "He [the AntiChrist] required everyone—small and great, rich and poor, free and slave—to be given a mark on the right hand or on the forehead. And no one could buy or sell anything without that mark, which was either the name of the beast or the number representing his name."  That number, as we learn in the following verse, is 666, the number associated with the AntiChrist. Amazon has already rolled out its "pay by palm" platform to pay for purchases in its brick-and-mortar stores. Based on the Amazon model, the Panera Bread chain has announced that it is planning to roll out a digital system for purchases in its restaurants. J.P. Morgan Bank has also announced such a roll-out and plans to make it available to the banks and businesses within its purview.  Other credit card companies have already introduced payment systems based on hand or face scans. For example, VISA calls its biometric system "contactless payment".  If you visit Visa's website, you can find a list of retailers already participating in its contactless payment system. These include McDonalds, CVS Pharmacy, 7-Eleven, Dunkin' Donuts, Starbucks, OfficeMax, Whole Foods, Aldi, and Costco, among others. Mastercard has introduced a similar biometric payment system that it calls "Smile to Pay". Well, we won't be smiling any time soon when we learn what is really going on.  The truth of the matter is that the world is being set up and programmed to accept the Mark of the Beast, the mark that will be required during the Tribulation in order to buy or sell anything. You might ask, "What's wrong with that?" If it makes my life easier by making shopping more convenient, what's the harm? The harm is this. The mark of the beast is not simply a financial transaction tool. The mark of the beast is an indication that one has chosen to worship Satan instead of the one true God....

If you've ever given out a fake number, what # did you give them?  Was it Jersey Mike's?  CVS Pharmacy?  An ex?  The Callin' Oates line?!?  Bill started off the morning by confusing multiple shows coming to Cleveland this summer.  Tomorrow is Morgan's one-year anniversary of getting engaged...is this a moment to celebrate?  Also, will you be outraged if TikTok goes away?  And Bill continues his obsession with A.I. and how do you know if you're talking to a robot or a human? Plus, Battle of the Burbs, Kyle from Ohio City confessed (or bragged) about the excuse he used to get out of a recent date.  What is the lamest reason someone gave you to cancel a date?  

In 2020, retail pharmacy giant CVS launched CVS Health Clinical Trial Services in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. They aimed to increase patient recruitment and encourage equitable participation in clinical research to accelerate COVID trials. In this episode, Jill Pellegrino, vice president of recruitment and RWE at CVS Health Clinical Trial Services, speaks with host Deborah Borfitz about CVS' service offerings and its collaborative work to improve the efficiency and applicability of clinical trials beyond vaccines. Pellegrino discusses how the company secured nearly 33,000 clinical trial participants in just two years and their work with pharmaceutical companies to understand patient behaviors and drive positive behavioral change through real-world evidence. She also talks about their cohesive data set of “100 million lives” and how the business works seamlessly with CVS' MinuteClinics to execute pragmatic trials. Finally, she discusses the company's goal to expand into multiple therapeutic areas—including oncology trials—and partner with Aetna to access a new potential patient base. Links from this episode:  Clinical Research News CVS Health CVS Health Clinical Trial Services CVS MinuteClinic 

Robyn Strader, a highly educated nurse practitioner, was fired from CVS Pharmacy for her faith and for pushing back against the “woke” ideals of CVS. First Liberty stepped in and this week filed an official lawsuit against CVS for religious discrimination. Robyn joins the show to share her story and explain her heart behind the decision to take on CVS. Christine Pratt, counsel, also appears in the episode to unpack the legal implications behind the case and the precedent it could set for the future. Be sure to watch this episode to hear more about how people of faith are standing against woke corporations. Learn more about Robyn's case here >>

Let's say a woman goes to CVS Pharmacy to pick up her prescription. She gives the pharmacy tech her insurance card to see what kind of coverage she can get on her medicine. After running her information, the total for a three month supply of her medication comes to around $142.00. Now, the next time she needs more medication, she decides to have the prescription filled at Main Street Pharmacy in Manteno. The owner and pharmacist, Eric Urbanowski, noticed how expensive that medication is through her insurance. He takes his time to look up and see what the cash price would be without going through her insurance. It turns out, her prescription would only cost her around $13.00 for a three month supply WITHOUT going through her health insurance coverage. So, Eric gives her the cash price for the medication and she's on her way with more money in her bank account. This is a daily accurance at Main Street Pharmacy.   How is a small locally owned pharmacy able to do this? Eric Urbanowski explains in full detail on this episode of Kankakee Podcast. I think you'll be fascinated with what Eric has to say. I found it to be truly mind blowing.    Learn more about Main Street Pharmacy at https://yourmainstreetpharmacy.com/. Like them on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/yourmainstreetpharmacy   Thank you for sharing this valuable information, Eric!   Much Love, Jake LaMore   P.S. Support the podcast for as little as $1/month: https://patron.podbean.com/kankakeepodcast

It's In the News.. a look at the top news stories in the diabetes community over the past seven days. This week, The US FDA gives the green light to Dexcom's G7 CGM, Mark Cuban's Cost Plus Pharmacy puts out a survey all about insulin, new studies looking at teens with type 1 and blood pressure as well as CGM and hospitalizations at the VA and much more! Previous episodes on Dexcom's G7: https://diabetes-connections.com/?s=g7 Check out Stacey's book: The World's Worst Diabetes Mom! Join the Diabetes Connections Facebook Group! Sign up for our newsletter here Episode Transcription Below (or coming soon!) Please visit our Sponsors & Partners - they help make the show possible! *Click here to learn more about OMNIPOD* *Click here to learn more about AFREZZA* *Click here to learn more about DEXCOM* Hello and welcome to Diabetes Connections In the News! I'm Stacey Simms and these are the top diabetes stories and headlines of the past seven days. XX In the news is brought to you by T1D Exchange! T1D Exchange is a nonprofit organization dedicated to improving outcomes for the entire T1D population. https://t1dexchange.org/stacey/ XX Our top story is big news.. Dexcom's G7 gets FDA approval. This device with a shorter, half hour warm up time, with the sensor and transmitter all in one piece was approved for people age 2 and up with all types of diabetes. It was approved as an iCGM as expected, which is good news for the automated systems the G6 currently works with.. much more to come of course, we've done a lot of episodes on the features and design of the G7 so I'd urge you to listen to those if you haven't yet and of course we'll follow up with a new episode with Dexcom as soon as they'll talk to me! XX In other news.. Illinois Attorney General files a fraud lawsuit, accusing Eli Lilly, CVS Pharmacy, Novo Nordisk and several other pharmaceutical companies of artificially inflating the cost of insulin by over 1,000% since the late 1990s. The complaint singles out Eli Lilly in particular, noting the price for a dose of its analog insulin Humalog rose by 1,527% between 1997 and 2018. "Remarkably, nothing about these medications has changed," the complaint states. "Today's $350 insulin is the exact same drug defendants originally sold for $20." The suit also notes that 13% of Illinoisans, about 1.3 million people, live with diabetes, making the pharma companies' alleged monopoly scheme a public health threat. There are several other state and class action suits against the insulin makers going through the courts right now. So far none have landed more than a glancing blow. https://www.courthousenews.com/illinois-attorney-general-sues-over-sky-high-insulin-prices/ XX A new contender, though, might be entering the arena. Mark Cuban's Cost Plus Pharmacy put out a tweet this week asking for feedback on adding insulin to their lower-cost inventory. Quote - Insulin users: we are evaluating a future insulin test program and would like your feedback. If we offered a 90-day supply of a fast-acting insulin (up to 12 vials/8 packs of pens) for $170 incl. shipping, what would you think?” There's a feedback form and I'll link that up in the show notes. https://forms.office.com/Pages/ResponsePage.aspx?id=nlWlyavTPES7xglhq5HvDwx1m5bO2mRDq1ekDvUshMtUNUZBM0dDUTA3RVpUOEY1WVNWVDE4U0JTMiQlQCN0PWcu XX People with diabetes who used glucose lowering drugs prior to getting COVID-19 seem to have fewer COVID-19 related adverse outcomes during hospitalization. The mediations have already been shown, albeit in conflicting findings, to have possible benefits regarding morbidity and mortality among patients with diabetes who become infected with COVID-19. These meds include orals like Metformin as well as injectables like sglt2 inhibitors like Jardiance and Invokana GLP-1 agonists like Ozempic and Trulicity. https://www.ajmc.com/view/glucose-lowering-drugs-may-reduce-risk-of-covid-19-related-adverse-events-in-patients-with-diabetes XX New research about opioids and diabetes. This study says people People with diabetes who underwent surgery had a significantly increased rate of prolonged opioid use (POU) compared to people without diabetes who underwent surgery. 56% higher for people with type 2 and more than 200% higher for those with type 1. This was a big, retrospective, observational study of more than 43,000 people who had operations at a single diverse healthcare system in 2008-2019. The researchers say this shows that in a real-world setting healthcare providers are generally not accounting for individual risk factors when prescribing postoperative opioids. https://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/985068 XX Teens with Type 1 diabetes (T1D) who took bromocriptine, a medication used to treat Parkinson's disease and Type 2 diabetes, had lower blood pressure and less stiff arteries after one month of treatment compared to those who did not take the medicine, according to a small study published in Hypertension, an American Heart Association journal. People with type 1 are at higher risk of high blood pressure and those diagnosed with T1D as children have even higher risks for heart disease. Therefore, researchers are interested in ways to slow down the onset of vascular disease in children with T1D. The study's small size is a limitation. However, the researchers note that further research into bromocriptine's impact on vascular health in a greater number of people with Type 1 diabetes is warranted; they are planning larger trials. https://medicalxpress.com/news/2022-12-parkinson-medication-blood-pressure-teens.html XX CVS is facing a fraud charge with a lawsuit accusing them of deceptive fundraising in a campaign it held for the American Diabetes Association. Prior to each customer's transaction, a checkout screen prompts the customer with several options for pre-selected dollar amounts, as well as an opt-out option, allowing donations to the diabetes association. Yet, the plaintiff alleges, CVS did not forward donations to the diabetes association, but instead applied the donations toward a legally binding $10 million obligation CVS made to the diabetes association. In November, Edward L. Powers, a lawyer for CVS, filed a motion to dismiss the case, challenging the plaintiff and his lawyer on their interpretation of the alleged $10 million “debt.” CVS says they agreed to fundraise from customers and turn over the donations to the diabetes association. After more than three years of fundraising, CVS would make up the difference between the cumulative customer donations and $10 million, according to the motion. The group bringing the suit disagrees and says everyone who made a campaign donations” are entitled to damages. https://www.bostonglobe.com/2022/12/05/metro/tweet-draws-attention-lawsuit-accusing-cvs-fundraising-fraud-checkout-cvs-has-filed-motion-dismiss-suit/ XX Wearing a CGM can keep you out of the hospital.. according to a new study focusing on Veterans Affairs clinics in the US. Wearing a CGM was associated with a lower risk for all-cause hospitalization and mortality in adults with type 1 and type 2 diabetes. This was even though the people with type 2 who received CGM were actually unhealthier [than non-CGM users] according to the researchers, who called the mortality reductions, dramatic. During a presentation at the World Congress on Insulin Resistance, this researcher said: “All of this data suggests that we may need to look at these types of outcomes in a much more serious fashion, because there may be some additional benefits that we didn't appreciate. If true, then maybe CGM use may become more like the SGLT2 inhibitors, and we'll start using them in a much more comprehensive way.” https://www.healio.com/news/endocrinology/20221202/cgm-use-lowers-hospitalizations-may-reduce-mortality-in-type-1-and-type-2-diabetes XX Back to the news in a moment but first.. The T1D Exchange Registry is a research study conducted online over time, designed to foster innovation and improve the lives of people with T1D. The platform is open to both adults and children with T1D living in the U.S. Personal information remains confidential and participation is fully voluntary. Once enrolled, participants will complete annual surveys and have the opportunity to sign up for other studies on specific topics related to T1D. The registry aims to improve knowledge of T1D, accelerate the discovery and development of new treatments and technologies, and generate evidence to support policy or insurance changes that help the T1D community. By sharing opinions, experiences and data, patients can help advance meaningful T1D treatment, care and policy. The registry is now available on the T1D Exchange website and is simple to navigate, mobile and user-friendly. For more information or to register, go to www.t1dregistry.org/stacey XX outed by celebrities, raved about by TikTok users, and advertised by med spas, a new class of drugs for treating diabetes and obesity has exploded in popularity for its weight-loss effects, leading to rippling shortages across several of the medications. Amid the surge in demand, Eli Lilly and pharmacies have started to tighten access to the latest of this type of drug, tirzepatide, focusing on giving it to people with type 2 diabetes, the only population it's authorized for so far. But that's left another set of patients scrambling — people with clinical obesity who turned to the medication as one of their few options for treatment. The class of drugs are GLP-1 receptor agonists, which mimic the effects of a hormone that can help people feel full. Within this group, Novo Nordisk's obesity drug Wegovy and diabetes drug Ozempic have been in short supply for months due to manufacturing issues and increased demand. Lilly's diabetes medication Trulicity has also been in tight supply, according to the drugmaker. That leaves tirzepatide, sold under the name Mounjaro. Lilly said in a statement that the drug is currently not in shortage, but that the company is continuing to monitor availability of competitor therapies and “supply with a focus on access for people with type 2 diabetes.” Related: Patients seeking novel weight loss drugs find a ‘wild west' of online prescribers In October, Lilly made changes to a discount program for the drug, now requiring people to attest they have type 2 diabetes. The coupons allowed patients to get the drug for $25 a month when it would otherwise cost about $1,000. Some pharmacies are also now checking if people have a diabetes diagnosis before filling prescriptions. https://www.statnews.com/2022/12/07/eli-lilly-tightens-access-tirzepatide-mounjaro-diabetes-obesity/ XX XX On the podcast next week.. yale lacrosse player Bri Carrasquillo was diagnosed just after her freshman year. Now she's part of Dexcom U – a new program for college athletes with type 1. Last week's show was One Drop is making a CGM? We'll talk to CEO Jeff Dachis about that. Listen wherever you get your podcasts That's In the News for this week.. if you like it, please share it! Thanks for joining me! See you back here soon.

In this week's release of Season 3, Episode 4 (16-minute podcast) of the Future Construct Podcast, our host Amy Peck (@AmyPeckXR) is thrilled to be joined by Barry Wurzel, the Founder and President at Wurzel Builders.Join our host, Amy Peck, to learn from Barry about Wurzel Builder's work renovating commercial projects in several sectors. Barry brings 33 years of construction management experience to his work. He spent fifteen years working with excellent companies like The Target Corporation and CF Jordan before forming Wurzel Builders in 1998. Over the years, they've worked with numerous companies, including HEB, Walmart, Starbucks, Target, CVS Pharmacy, and Charles Schwab. While it takes a lot to put a building together, Barry has learned over the years that it's just as important to pull together a team, to orchestrate the personalities toward reaching a common goal. Barry is confident that not only will the company be able to offer clients the best quality of work, but also offer coworkers an exciting environment of growth and opportunity.Wurzel Builders' transparent process, comprehensive services, and key sense to detail ensure that they can confidently deliver on time and on budget. They see the gaps ahead of time and offer proactive solutions and discover new possibilities designed with their team's creative viewpoint. As a full-service general contractor and construction manager, we have extensive experience in construction, renovating projects in the hospitality, multifamily, healthcare, retail, industrial, office, and restaurant industries. Their comprehensive construction services, leadership, planning, and proactive approach to projects ensure each client's vision is executed efficiently to meet or exceed their expectations.Highlights of Barry's interview with host Amy Peck (@AmyPeckXR) include:Some of the ways the industry has changed and optimized the building processHow Wurzel Builders find that balance, in our modern times, and shift into more modern building constructs, regardless of archaic methods still in useThe change in types of projects at Wurzel Builders that come with their rapid growth and how that has catapulted them into new sectorsThe origin story and focus of Barry's other company, Southern Cutting and CoringAs a commercial builder and general contractor, Barry Wurzel is a strategist, known for his hands-on approach and open communication style in everything he does, and he's a problem solver who values moving forward over looking back.SHOW NOTES0:12  - Amy Peck introduces Barry Wurzel, the Founder and President at Wurzel Builders.3:26  - Amy: "In your long career, what are some ways, whether it's technology or processes, what are some of the ways the industry has changed and hopefully optimized the building process?"4:35  - Amy: "Coming to more recent times, where we have our mobile devices, iPads, and BIM, there's a lot of technology out there to optimize, but there's still an 'if it ain't broke, don't fix it' component in the industry. So how do you find that balance and shift into more modern building constructs?" 7:10  - Amy: "So let's talk about a few of your projects. You mentioned that you're growing rapidly. Have the types of projects changed? You made a shift from public to private sector. Have you grown into other sectors as the company's grown?"9:54  - Amy: "So in your day to day, what's the focus of your other company, Southern Cutting and Coring? Why did you start that yourself?"14:28  - Amy: "If you could project yourself 20 to 25 years into the future, and you could have any product or service that would just make you personally happy or make your life better in some way, what would it be, and what would it do?"

About the Show: We sat down with Joe Donaldson, Owner, and President of https://samsfurniture.net/ (Sam's Furniture) in Springdale, Arkansas.  Joe is a second-generation furniture store owner who learned the business from his Mother and Father, Sam and Becky Donaldson.  Sam, a successful business leader in the corporate world, moved his family to Northwest Arkansas in the early 90s. Joe's dad was the President of Long's drugs which was a large drug store chain based in California. They were eventually purchased by CVS/Pharmacy.  Sam retired from Long's and set his family up in Springdale but it wasn't long before he started what would become Sam's Furniture.  They started with a small operation in downtown Springdale and eventually grew and moved their location to a big plot of land right off I-49 in Springdale.   Joe served in the military, and when he retired, he returned to Northwest Arkansas to work with his dad, eventually taking over the store in 2005.   He has led https://samsfurniture.net/ (Sam's Furniture and turned it into a Destination Furniture) store where people go just to hang out as much as they do to buy furniture. According to Joe, it is not uncommon to see many men in the “Man Cave” at the store watching football games and enjoying free hot dogs and soda on weekends.   There is also a place for kids with a vast Arcade and plenty of things to do.  The best part about Joe's success is that he has worked hard to support several nonprofit groups in the area, including https://2ndmilk.org/ (Second Milk) which provides Milk and food to malnourished children in Malawi and three other African nations.   Finally, Joe shared some tips on his company's success. It begins and ends with the people that work at https://samsfurniture.net/ (Sam's Furniture).  He said that in business If you serve your people the same way you serve customers, you will never have a problem.  All this and so much more are on this episode of the I am Northwest Arkansas podcast. Important Links and Mentions on the Show*: Sam's Furniture Email https://samsfurniture.net/ (Sam's Furniture Website)  https://www.instagram.com/getitatsams/ (Sam's Furniture Instagram)  https://www.youtube.com/user/samsfurniturenwa (Sam's Furniture YouTube)  https://2ndmilk.org/ (Second Milk Website) This episode is sponsored by*: https://www.signature.bank/ (Signature Bank of Arkansas) -   https://www.signature.bank/ (Signature Bank) was founded here in Northwest Arkansas in 2005 and focuses on personal and community banking. When you bank with a community bank, you're investing in local businesses, local entrepreneurs, local charities, and the causes close to home. They have worked hard to earn their tagline, “Community Banking at its Best.” You may ask why bank at Signature?  Because they focus on the customer instead of having a branch on every corner, you can have your questions answered by a real person, whether you're reaching out to the call center or your banker's cell phone. You can access any ATM in the country without fear of a fee.  They will refund all of those fees at the end of every month. Finally, they are constantly improving their digital offerings to ensure you can access the best financial tools from your laptop, phone, or tablet 24 hours a day. Signature Bank of Arkansas is a full-service bank offering traditional checking and savings accounts, investment accounts, business and personal loans, and mortgages. Give the folks at Signature Bank a call (479-684-4700) or visit their websitehttps://www.signature.bank/ ( Signature.Bank) and let them know you heard about them on the I am Northwest Arkansas Podcast.  https://www.signature.bank/ (Signature Bank of Arkansas) is a Member of the FDIC and an Equal Housing Lender.     http://www.iamnorthwestarkansas.com/canva (Canva) -   Are you...

Claude came to the U.S. and worked as a pharmacist. Because of his persistence and hard work, he landed a job in the biggest pharmacy in the country. Claude was successful in his career but still needed to find additional income streams to pay his bills and support his family. He learned about real estate and decided to enroll in a coaching program. Claude started investing in real estate and eventually left a flourishing career to start his own pharmacy business. He used his passive real estate income to boost and support it. Then, he transitioned from residential to commercial real estate while his pharmacy business grew. Claude believes that having multiple income streams is key to financial success. He shares his advice and strategies for pharmacists like him and everyone who wants to get a foot in real estate and get their first passive income source. Learn how to make your money work for you. Listen now!Key Points from This Episode:Claude Condo's childhood to teenage years in Congo.How and why Claude got into the path of pharmacy.What it was like to move to the U.S. in Maine at 23 years old and with no English.His persistence got him his first break as a pharmacist in the U.S.The role of his mentors in his success.His transition to Miami to work for CVS Pharmacy.What pushed him to look for another stream of income?How Claude got under Robert Kiyosaki's coaching program.What attracted him to real estate?Claude talks about his first property.What happened to his pharmacy career as he was starting in real estate?What made him leave the biggest pharmacy in the U.S.?The strategies that worked for Claude when he started his pharmacy.How did he juggle a pharmacy and commercial real estate business?Claude's first transition from residential to commercial real estate was an investment property in Johnson City, Tennessee.Claude's biggest lessons in this journey.How has investing in real estate boosted his pharmacy business?What's next for Claude?Links Mentioned:Claude Condo on LinkedInClaude Condo's emailRx Real Estate Investment websiteCondo Foundation websiteHomestead Community PharmacyRich Dad Poor DadRich Dad Poor Dad: What the Rich Teach Their Kids About Money That the Poor and Middle Class Do Not! by Robert KiyosakiAtomic Habits: An Easy & Proven Way to Build Good Habits & Break Bad Ones by James ClearDr. Myles Munroe Podcast

8.31.2022 #RolandMartinUnfiltered: FAMU prez meets with students; Biden: State of emergency in Jackson, MS; NC town fires Black mayor FAMU's president, Dr. Larry Robinson, held a press conference after meeting with students. We'll show you what he had to say. And Head Football Coach Willie Simmons says he supports his players and is proud that they are speaking up for themselves.  President Joe Biden approves an emergency declaration for Jackson, Mississippi's water crisis. We'll update you on what's happening in Jackson, including what Deion Sanders is doing for his players at Jackson State University.  CVS Pharmacy is being called out for policing prescriptions of drugs that are also used for medical abortions. We'll talk to an OBGY about what's being done to maintain women's health.  One of the three candidates vying for Louisiana's Senate seat will join tonight. I'll talk with Syrita Steib; a formerly incarcerated woman turned advocate.  Akron, Ohio, police department releases more bodycam video of the Jayland Walker shooting where you can hear an officer telling other officers to turn off the audio on their bodycams.   A North Carolina town fires its black city manager a month after its entire police force.  In today's Tech Talk, an app that is designed to help you stay safe while interacting with police officers. We'll talk to the creator of Legal Equalizer.  Support RolandMartinUnfiltered and #BlackStarNetwork via the Cash App ☛ https://cash.app/$rmunfiltered PayPal ☛ https://www.paypal.me/rmartinunfiltered Venmo ☛https://venmo.com/rmunfiltered Zelle ☛ roland@rolandsmartin.com Annual or monthly recurring #BringTheFunk Fan Club membership via paypal ☛ https://rolandsmartin.com/rmu-paypal/ Download the #BlackStarNetwork app on iOS, AppleTV, Android, Android TV, Roku, FireTV, SamsungTV and XBox

Jennifer and Dana wrap up "L.A. Connections" with the culmination of the fourth book, "Revenge." The girls hear from fan favorite vagrant, Knox Jernigan, and are approached to invest in an elderly boudoir photography studio. The podcast officially congratulate the CVS Pharmacy near Dana's house for carrying vibrators on their shelves. Stay tuned through the summer for updates from Jen and Dana and we'll see you when we return for Season 5!This episode is dedicated to the best girl, Alabama "Bama" Marie Compton (2006-2022). We love you and hope you are up there having fun with Cat Stevens and Peanut.

Lebron to Enter the Metaverse? Is the Executive Order Issued Good for Crypto? Biden signs executive order on crypto. All Bitcoin ATMs in UK ordered to shut down. AMC now accepts SHIB and DOGE. Chevron, CVS Pharmacy, Red Bull, Skechers, and Lebron James enter into the Metaverse. Stripe now supports crypto and NFT transactions. Warner Bros. planning to sell tradable cards with redeemable NFTs. Sign up for Token Metrics at https://tokenmetrics.com Token Metrics Media LLC is a regular publication of information, analysis and commentary focused especially on blockchain technology and business, cryptocurrency, blockchain-based tokens, market trends, and trading strategies. Like the podcast to let us know you like the content! Podcast: https://tokenmetrics.com/podcast Blog: https://blog.tokenmetrics.com/ Forum: https://forum.tokenmetrics.com/ Follow us on social media below: Telegram Alerts Channel: https://t.me/TokenMetrics Telegram Discussion Group: https://t.me/TokenMetricsDiscussion Twitter: https://twitter.com/tokenmetricsinc Instagram: https://instagram.com/tokenmetrics Facebook: https://facebook.com/tokenmetrics Token Metrics Media LLC does not provide individually tailored investment advice and does not take a subscriber's or anyone's personal circumstances into consideration when discussing investments; nor is Token Metrics Media LLC, registered as an investment adviser or broker-dealer in any jurisdiction. Information contained herein is not an offer or solicitation to buy, hold, or sell any security. The Token Metrics Media LLC team has advised and invested in many blockchain companies. A complete list of their advisory roles and current holdings can be viewed here: tokenmetrics.com/disclosures. 0:00-5:23 Biden signs Executive Order 5:24 UK-6:37 All BTC ATM Shut Down 6:38-7:08 Shiba and Doge are accepted in AMC Theaters 7:09-7:41 Warner to create 6M Trading Cards 7:42-8:37 Stripe to support Crypto and NFTs 8:38-11:18 Chevron and CVS to enter the Metaverse 11:19-12:11 RedBull also to enter the Metaverse 12:12-12:49 Decentraland welcomes Skechers 12:50- Lebron to enter the Metaverse