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Success isn't about waiting for the perfect moment—it's about stepping into the unknown and building the confidence to make things happen. Bayleigh dives into an inspiring conversation with Brittany Connor, who shares her journey of embracing fear, taking bold action, and proving that the biggest breakthroughs happen outside of your comfort zone. From leaving behind limiting beliefs to redefining success on your own terms, this episode is a powerful reminder that the life you want is within reach—you just have to be willing to go after it. Key Takeaways: Confidence isn't something you wake up with—it's built through action. Start before you feel ready, and growth will follow. Fear will always be there, but it shouldn't hold you back. Success comes from moving forward despite uncertainty. Success looks different for everyone. Define it on your terms, and stop chasing someone else's version of it. The right people can elevate you. Surround yourself with those who challenge, support, and inspire your growth. Growth happens outside your comfort zone. Embrace challenges as stepping stones to your next level. Resources: Sleep Course - https://onlineprograms.smallchangesbigshifts.com/courses/rejuvenating-sleep/ Join us in celebrating Dr. Michelle Robin's birthday by supporting the Small Changes Big Shifts scholarship fundraiser—help us empower the next generation with the tools for lifelong well-being! Embark on a transformative six-month journey with the Shift Experience, a holistic wellness program designed to empower young adults aged 18 to 30 to discover their best selves through comprehensive health practices. This program offers a blend of education, personalized assessments, one-on-one wellness coaching, monthly group learning circles, and access to various wellness services. The upcoming program runs from June through December. For more details and to apply, visit: https://smallchangesbigshifts.com/discovery-program/ About Brittany Connor: Brittany Connor, PhD, is a strategic leader dedicated to mission-driven initiatives, leveraging over a decade of experience in nonprofit, sports, and entertainment. She currently serves as the Director of Corporate Partnerships at United Way of Greater Kansas City, where she builds impactful relationships, engages donors, and develops innovative solutions to drive collective change. A recent doctoral graduate of the University of Kansas' Sport Management program, Brittany is passionate about the collective impact of sports in fostering physically and psychologically safe spaces. A 2022 graduate of the Shift Experience, Brittany has remained committed to her own health and well-being while advocating for holistic wellness in her community. Connect with Dr. Michelle and Bayleigh at: https://smallchangesbigshifts.com hello@smallchangesbigshifts.com https://www.linkedin.com/company/smallchangesbigshifts https://www.facebook.com/SmallChangesBigShifts https://www.instagram.com/smallchangesbigshiftsco 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 also subscribe in your favorite podcast app. 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.
In the final of a three-part series, Holly continues chronicling the unconditional love she and her husband have shown their son. Holly shares that after her son attacked both her and her husband, her son was taken by ambulance to the emergency room. Holly then shares about her injuries from the attack and the permanent problems she has as a result. Holly tells us that while she and her husband did press charges against their son for their own protection and his, she has never given up on him. Since the attack, he has been better but still relapses. He started Job Corps (https://www.jobcorps.gov/) in January and is finishing high school part-time. Holly stresses the importance of therapy and her faith in this journey and how important self-care is for her. Lastly, Holly educates us on NAMI (https://www.nami.org/) and the myriad of resources they provide for free.
*Trigger warning: This episode contains conversations about sex and pornography addiction and sexual abuse.This is the second of a three-part series with Holly Miles. In this episode, Holly discusses some of the behaviors her adopted son started exhibiting after she and her husband adopted him. Some of these behaviors included inappropriate sexual behaviors and pornography use, sexual abuse, and physical violence. Holly and her husband worked incredibly hard to find the appropriate treatment for her son, which eventually led them to the Capstone Wellness Treatment Center in Arkansas (https://capstonewellness.com/). Holly discusses in-depth their experience with her son's residential treatment at Capstone, which included extensive parent and family therapy as well. Even though Holly says her son left treatment as a completely changed kid, it was only a matter of weeks before her son violently attacked her and her husband physically.
Don't miss the first of this three-part series featuring Holly Miles. Holly has quite a story of her own mental health journey, her work as a psychiatric nurse, her journey with the foster care system, and her eventual adoption of her son, Jacob. Holly shares her personal and professional experiences that led her to her present work as the Executive Director of NAMI Greater Kansas City. Holly always wanted to have children but was unable to do so. She and her husband went through the process of becoming foster parents. Holly conveys her feelings vulnerably about fostering twins and eventually adopting a 12-year-old boy. Holly does not sugarcoat her experience with and feelings about the foster care system and the impact on her son, who was in the foster care system from the age of two until Holly and her husband adopted him at age twelve.
It is a pleasure to welcome Alana Muller, author, entrepreneur, and business relationship coach, to The Jake's Take with Jacob Elyachar Podcast. Alana is the best-selling author of the books Coffee Lunch Coffee: A Practical Field for Master Networking, the anthology Growth – Deconstructing GRIT Collection, and the blog CoffeeLunchCoffee.com. Her work has also been featured on CNBC, Forbes, and The Huffington Post. She travels the world to share her expertise in Networking, Coaching, Strategic Planning, and Business Consulting. She offers an accessible, relevant, and immediately actionable approach to professional networking for those interested in connecting with others. This approach has helped thousands of people formulate a strategic mindset about Networking while creating a game plan to get out there and connect. Coffee Lunch Coffee is a WBENC-certified WBE.Alana Muller is an entrepreneurial executive leader whose primary focus is to connect, inspire, and empower the community. Alana enjoys connecting with people worldwide and sharing stories on topics such as Networking, Executive Presence, and Purpose. The Kansas City community has recognized Alana's work, and she has received numerous accolades, including an Emerging Leader Award from the Jewish Community Relations Bureau | American Joint Committee (JCRB | AJC), Instructor of the Year from the Turner Construction Management Program, and a NextGen Leader from the Kansas City Business Journal. She also served on corporate and volunteer boards for the American Public Square, the Jewish Community Center of Greater Kansas City, the Midwest Center for Holocaust Education, and SevenDays. Alana is also an alumna of the Civic Council of Greater Kansas City's Kansas City Tomorrow and Coro Kansas City and was the past president of the Kansas City Chapter of the International Women's Forum. In this edition of The Jake's Take with Jacob Elyachar Podcast, Alana Muller discussed transforming Coffee Lunch Coffee from a blog into a book and shared advice on the best ways to develop professional relationships.Let's connect on social media: A) BlueSky: https://bsky.app/profile/jacobelyachar.bsky.socialB) Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/JacobElyachar/C) Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/jacobelyachar/D) Threads: https://www.threads.net/@jacobelyacharE) Twitter (X): https://x.com/JacobElyacharF) YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@JacobElyacharBecome a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/jake-s-take-with-jacob-elyachar--4112003/support.
Gwendolyn Grant, president and CEO of the Urban League of Greater Kansas City, said her colleagues and community members are outraged that Missouri Gov. Mike Parson freed former KCPD detective Eric DeValkenaere last week.
Qiana Thomason draws from over twenty years of leadership at the intersections of health and behavioral healthcare, corporate healthcare payment, health policy, health philanthropy and business. This aerial command of the political, private market, and social factors that shape health uniquely positions Qiana to impact the wellbeing and prosperity of communities. Qiana's “self to systems” leadership practice, her commitment to organizational care and accountability, and her practice of centering people in driving change and managing transitions makes her a trusted executive in ensuring the effectiveness and sustainability of the organizations and movements she supports. Further, Qiana's prowess in strategy, enterprise risk management, regulatory and compliance agility, human capital optimization, organizational sustainability, ESG facility and DEI expertise makes her an effective partner on boards. As President & CEO of Health Forward Foundation, Qiana guides the $1B foundation in stewarding diverse capital investments, leadership in public policy, and institutional social capital that fosters health and economic equity throughout Missouri and Kansas. Qiana's leadership has positioned Health Forward as a national model for health equity through trust-based public, private, and philanthropic partnerships, spanning resident and faith leaders, grassroots to large non-profits, Chambers of Commerce and business councils, municipal and state government. Qiana's leadership in governance and civic spheres is multi-level. Nationally, Qiana is a board member of Grantmakers in Health, the National Association of State Health Policy, and the National Rural Health Resource Center. Regionally, Qiana is as a board member of the Greater Kansas City Chamber of Commerce and William Jewell College. She is a member of the International Women's Forum, a global organization of preeminent leaders and Women of Influence. Qiana's impact is recognized broadly. The Greater Kansas City Chamber of Commerce recognized Qiana with the international ATHENA Award (2024) and the national Business Journal recognized Qiana on its inaugural listing (2022) of BizWomen making an impact in their local business communities. The Urban League of Greater Kansas City recognized Qiana with its Difference Maker award (2024), Kansas City University bestowed upon Qiana an honorary doctorate in Humane Letters (2023), and Kansas City Friends of Alvin Ailey conveyed its Race, Place, and Diversity award (2022). https://healthforward.org/Citations:Glover Blackwell, A. (n.d.). The Curb-Cut Effect. PolicyLink. Retrieved December 3, 2024, from https://www.policylink.org/resources-tools/curb-cut-effectHosts: MaryAnne Metheny, and Tina Johnson If you are in an emergency, call or text 9-1-1.For information about our services and how Hope House can help, call our 24-Hour Hotline at 816-461-HOPE (4673) or the National Domestic Violence Hotline 800-799-7233.hopehouse.net
Episode 114: A Time Was Had (2024 NWSL Championship Weekend Recap) ft Eboni Navidad and ThomBomb Welcome to Episode 114 of Shea Butter FC, a podcast by, for and about Black women in soccer. In this episode, Skye and Sylvs welcome the famous Eboni Navidad (Walkin 90, DRSC FC, SixPoint Weekend, THEE Manager and Women's Soccer Supporter Legend) and ThomBomb (Shade of Blue and our KC Current Shea Butter FC Team) to recap the 2024 NWSL Championship Weekend in Kansas City. The crew discusses overall impressions of Kansas City, and breaks down the experiences of the leagues' Media Days, Press Conferences, and other league media events, and discusses the reality, the wild ride of the Skill Challenge, FanFest and the entire game day experience. Then they discuss and reflect on their content collaboration with the Black Women's Player Collective during championship weekend, diving into the amazing experience at the “Elevate The Next” Soccer Clinic done in partnership with the Boys and Girls Club of Greater Kansas City, the vibes of BWPC Member Dinner, and the Cleats and Kickbacks: the Watch Party and After Party. Finally, they share in their collaborative trip with the BWPC and Athlete Ally to tour the Negro League Musuem, the Athelete Ally's Braintust Activation, and Anessa's collaboration with Google Pixel and her interviews with Megan Rapinoe and Gisele Thompson. Make sure you follow and support Eboni Christmas on Instagram at Ebonic25 & BlueSky @ebonic25.bsky.social ThomBomb on Instagram at ThomBomb & BlueSky @thombomb816.bsky.social Black Women's Players Collective on instagram @ blackwplayercollective Athlete Ally on instagram @ athleteally Make sure you subscribe and dive into On the 2 and the 4: A SheaButter FC Newsletter! ,our official newsletter for Shea Butter Football Club, bringing content to you in a new way, so you can continue to moisturize your skin and lay your edges. We're bringing you weekly content from the team so you get to know us a bit better. Of course we're going to bring you stats and match recaps and some lessons about the game. But, you'll also get our unique stories and perspectives on the game and the culture and how they intersect. Check it out at https://sheabutterfc.beehiiv.com/subscribe As noted in the episode, we are partnering with Black Rosie Media to play select Shea Butter FC Throwback Episodes on their media platforms. This partnership is made possible through sponsorship by Bounceless Control Sports Bra use PROMO CODE SBFC for 15% off your first purchase at bounceless.com. More information on this partnership with Black Rose Media, and Bounceless Bras can be found here. As always, like, rate and subscribe to the podcast on your favorite platform and Follow us on: Twitter - @sheabutterfc Instagram -sheabutterfc Join our SBFC Patreon - https://www.patreon.com/sheabutterfc Visit our website, get up to date on episodes and all things SBFC at our Linktree: https://linktr.ee/sheabutterfc SBFC Website: www.sheabutterfc.com Make sure you support Maya and follow Kick Undefined on IG @ kicksundefined Much love and appreciation to KC Nevijay for letting us use some of his beats and mixes within many of our episodes. His beat appears at the intro piece at the beginning of the episode. Peep his other work at YouTube Channel @ KC Nevijay Also much love and gratitude goes to D.O.P.E Chick Beats for allowing us to use some of her beats for several of our episodes. Her beats appear during SBFC Superlatives and at the end of the episode. Follow her on ig : alexandria_theaudiowiz and on twitter: DOPECHICKBEATS The photo of Marta and the Orlando Pride celebrating with fans post win after the NWSL Championship Final featured in this episode was taken by Eboni Christmas for Shea Butter FC.
This week on The Northeast Newscast, we sat down with Gene T. Chavez — Kansas City Museum's historian in residence — to discuss Hispanic and Latino representation within the museum and Greater Kansas City. As we kick-off Hispanic Heritage Month, we take a look at how Hispanic and Latino culture has shaped not only our area but our history.
In this lively episode, Pissed and Pickled hosts from their home outside Greater Kansas City, joined by the Meaty family, including the charming Papa Meat. The group discusses various topics, from technical issues with YouTube subscriptions and hilarious 4th of July celebrations, to personal stories about fireworks, carnival memories, and anxiety-inducing dental visits. The episode also touches on the awkward yet amusing moments of going to the doctor, the importance of regular medical check-ups, and dealing with online fame and parasocial relationships. Notably, there's a heartfelt recount of a past scam experience involving a so-called 'military man.' This episode is packed with humor, candidness, and relatable experiences. - Special Guest Appearance - Sponsor Shoutouts - Addressing Viewer Comments - Fourth of July Stories - Carnival Memories - Dental Adventures - A Chaotic Encounter - Dental Anxiety and Procedures - Fear of Medical Visits - Proctologist Concerns - Health Scares and YouTube Stories - Parasocial Relationships - Scammed in Love
Being a life-long blind person I have never served in the military and thus only understand the military way of life vicariously. There is reading about it, of course and there is talking to military people about their lifestyle. Today you get to hear a conversation not only about military life, specifically the army world, as it were, from a 20-year career soldier, Chase Spears who recently retired from the military as a major in the army. Chase grew up always interested in the news and what was going on in the world around him. He attended college, both undergraduate studies and later graduate work at universities in Tennessee. Along the way an army recruiting officer persuaded him to join the army. By that time, he was well married to a woman who, surprising to him, supported his decision to leave college and join the army. Chase's telling of this story is wonderful to hear. As you will see, he is quite the storyteller. He and I talk a great deal about the world of a soldier, and he puts a lot of things into perspective. For those of you who have served in the military much of what you hear may not be totally new. However, since Chase served in public affairs/relations duties throughout most of his army career, you may find his observations interest. Chase and I had a good free-flowing and informative conversation. I personally came away fascinated and look forward to talking with Chase again in the future. A few months ago, Mr. Spears retired and entered into a doctoral program at Kansas State University where he is conducting research concerning how military life impacts the citizenship of those who serve. You will get to hear a bit about what he is finding. About the Guest: U.S. Army Major (Ret.) Chase Spears is first and foremost a Christian, Husband, and Father to five children who help to keep him and his wife young at heart. Having grown up with a passion for news and policy, Chase spent 20 years in the Army as a public affairs officer, trying to be part of a bridge between the military and the public. He merged that work with a passion for writing to become one of the Army's most published public affairs officers, often to resistance from inside the military. Chase continues that journey now as a doctoral candidate at Kansas State University, where his dissertation research explores how military life impacts the citizenship of those who serve. His other writings focus on topics including civil-military dynamics, communication ethics, and the political realities of military operations. Ways to connect with Chase: LinkedIn/X/Substack/Youtube: @drchasespears www.chasespears.com 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 also subscribe in your favorite podcast app. 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 Hi there and welcome once again to unstoppable mindset. And we have a I think really interesting show today are interesting episode we get to chat with major retired Chase Spears. I've been saying ret all morning because he's got Rhett in parentheses. And I didn't even think about it being not a name but retired. But anyway, that's me. Anyway, he has been involved in a lot of writing in and out of the military. He was a major military person for 20 years. He's now in a doctoral candidate program, Kennedy C candidacy program. And my gosh, there's a lot there, but we'll get to it also. Major Rhett major Chase spears. Welcome to unstoppable mindset. We're glad you're here. Chase Spears ** 02:13 just thrilled to be with you, Michael. Thanks for having me. Now Michael Hingson ** 02:17 that now that we've abused you with Rhett, but that's okay. Chase Spears ** 02:20 I think God worse. Well, there Michael Hingson ** 02:22 you are. And by your friends, I bet. So that's what really makes them more fun. But we're but I really am grateful that you were willing to come on and spend some time with us. Why don't we start I love to, to start this way to give people a chance to get to know you. Why don't you tell us some about the early Chase spheres and growing up and all that stuff? Chase Spears ** 02:44 Well, it's yeah, it's been quite a journey. I grew up in the southeast us My family was out of Florida. And when I was a teenager, we ended up moving we went out to Texas, which was really just kind of a an entire change of culture for us. If you can imagine going from the kind of urban parts of Florida that are really highly populated a lot of traffic, a lot of tourism, a lot of industry. And we went up to North Central Texas in my teen years. And if you can imagine going from from that, you know, Florida to a town of about 9000 people it was a an oil and agricultural cattle town, and Graham, Texas and it was really kind of a culture shock at first, but turned into some of the best and most formative years of my life where I I really learned the value of hard work working on the fields with my dad really got to kind of connect with nature and just taking some gorgeous sunsets in the evenings out working in the fields enjoying the views of the wildlife Hall. I was out working. But one thing that I did learn from hard manual labor, was it made sure that I kept on track for college. And so I ended up going to Lee University in Cleveland, Tennessee in 1998. Right after I graduated from high school, I was homeschooled and met my Hi my sweetie there, Laurie. We were married by senior year we decided neither one of us we wanted to graduate and leave the other one behind. So we got married start a family pretty young afterwards. Went on to the University of Tennessee at Knoxville afterwards because I thought, hey, I want to work in journalism. And it'd be great to have a master's degree in journalism to prove my commitment to the field make people take me seriously. And it was during that time that I ran into an army recruiter while I was working my part time job at a law firm. I was working at the courthouse one day filing paperwork. And this gentleman and I just struck up a conversation in an elevator he was there in his full dress uniform was very impressive to me as a civilian at the time. And so I started asking him questions about what he did. In what army life was like just trying to be friendly, conversational, I was genuinely curious, though I was not looking for a military career. Well, as a good recruiter does, he managed to coax a phone number out of me. And seven months later there I am raising my right hand, swearing into the army in Knoxville, Tennessee. And so we were in the army for 20 years, we moved to several different parts of the nation, we've landed in northeastern Kansas, just on the outskirts of the Greater Kansas City, Missouri area. And now we're kind of starting a new phase of life after the army enjoying being kind of planted Gayndah. Watch our kids grow in a smaller community. And we're excited about what's next. So Michael Hingson ** 05:42 what is the postdoc? Where are the doctoral degree in, that you're seeking. Chase Spears ** 05:47 So I am in a program entitled leadership communication. But I'm kind of a misplaced public policy scholars what I've learned, but the faculty there have been so wonderfully gracious to me, and I've been very supportive of my research agenda. So I'm a career communicator. In the army, I was a public affairs officer. So everything I did was about stuff like this. I didn't community engagement, I did interviews, I was did social media strategy, I was part of the bridge that the military tries to build between it and the public, which is incredibly important in our form of governance. And so I love all things communication. And I also love team leadership, small organizational leadership, I had the chance to, to lead teams, I had the chance to lead a company while I was in the army, so fell in love with that. So when I saw a degree program that merged both of those, you know, they had me at hello, I was a sucker from the get go when I saw the marketing. So I applied and they very kindly accepted me. So I've been studying leadership communication, but my research agenda is actually more in the policy realm. My dissertation work is studying how did we come to this concept that the military isn't a political and air quotes institution, when it is funded by the government when it is commanded by elected leadership? When when we exert our national will, on other nations with it there absolutely political connotations to all of that. And And yet, we kind of say the opposite. So I was curious, I was like, this would be something fun to explore, how did we How did we get to where we believe this in spite of what we do? And so that's what my research Jind agenda is all about. And I'm having a lot of fun writing. Michael Hingson ** 07:37 Well, and I guess we could go right to why well, so why do you think the reason is that we are not a political but we say we are? Oh, are you still researching it to the point where you're not ready to answer that yet? Well, I Chase Spears ** 07:57 have, I have some theories and what I believe are pretty educated guesses. I'm trying to make sure that I don't bore your audience going too deep in the weeds on this. It's really kind of comes out of the Second World War. When you look at the history of the United States. Traditionally, we are a nation, our ancestors were part of a nation that were really cautious about the idea of having large standing military forces during peacetime. Because there had been this historical observance over hundreds of years, particularly in Europe, that large forces during peacetime ended up causing problems for society and the nations that bred large armies inevitably found ways to use them, that might not always be to the benefit of the populace. So we come out of the Second World War, and the nation has decided we're going to become the global military superpower, we didn't want to be caught off guard again, like we were for what Germany had done in the years after the First World War. And we also have a rising Russia, we need to counter that. So we decided as a nation, yeah, we will become a global, permanent, large, highly industrialized, highly institutionalized force. Well, how do you gain public support for that when the public has traditionally for hundreds of years been very, very suspect of that and very much against it? Well, Samuel, in walk Samuel Huntington, a brilliant political scientist who writes the book, the soldier in the state, and in it he proposed a theory of military supervision in which officers would abstained from voting and then over time that grew legs into Okay, well, now we're just not involved in politics and then in time that grew legs into where a political, but if you go around the force and ask most people what that means, if you ask them to define that word, few would actually be able to define it. It's one of those kind of discursive terms that we've come up with kind of like for the public good. Well, what is for the public good? Can you actually define that, and it's largely often in the eyes of the beholder. So that that's where I believe it came from, I'm still doing quite a bit of work and reading in that. But historically, it's very fascinating to see where we've come and just 70 years on that topic. Yeah. Michael Hingson ** 10:25 And also, we're in a phase of all of that, where it seems to be at least that it's changing and morphing again, I mean, with what's happened in the last seven years in this country, and the, the lack of desire for discourse, the the desire on some people's parts to really involve the military and a lot of things. It seems like we're possibly changing again, or perhaps even strengthening the military in some way. And I'm not sure what that is. Chase Spears ** 11:04 We there's really kind of been somewhat of a public backlash, the last, I'd say, five to 10 years, we saw an increasing comfort with military members publicly advocating for political policy for political parties, which is absolutely within their constitutional right to do, George Washington himself said, we did not lay aside the citizen to assume the soldier. But again, that that discourse coming out of the Second World War, really kind of conditions the American public to think that when you're in the military, you do give up your rights to expression that you do give up your rights to citizen agency, and, and, and meaningful involvement in civic processes. And while we do rightly give up some expressive rights, and that is captured and codified in military regulations, and the Uniform Code of Military Justice, there's some legitimacy to that argument. But I would say, you know, if you're, if you're holding a ruler in your hand, the regulations kind of restrict us somewhere between the two and three inch mark on the ruler, whereas the perception that's just kind of come out of the repetition of these terms and ideas is more that we're up around the nine or 10 inch mark on the ruler, if that makes any sense for you. So we we've seen in the last few years, more military people being willing to get involved politically, and there has been somewhat of a backlash to it. And therein is the problem. You if you're going to hold to a belief to a doctrine to a discursive claim, then you have to match it. And the military is really kind of at a point right now they have a decision to make, are we going to hold on to this discourse to this idea? Or are we going to acknowledge that? Well, the regulations are much less restrictive than what people have been led to believe? It's it's a tough spot to be there's not a perfect answer, to help the institution requires cracking down on constitutional freedoms. And well, what is the institution there to serve? So it's a very sticky issue? Michael Hingson ** 13:11 Well, it does seem to me that in no way, because the person becomes a soldier. And even in their oaths, do they give up the right to be a citizen of the country? So I'm with George Washington? Chase Spears ** 13:26 Oh, absolutely. No, I am with with George Washington himself, you know, the greatest American? And I think we would, it's a, it's a good reminder of the importance of knowing our history and knowing where we came from. It's in my interviews with military members on this topic. In my research, I'm finding that that like me, most of them were just kind of told these things verbally. They were never pointed to the actual rules. They were never actually pointed to the actual laws. I only know the regulations because I have a personal fascination on the topic. And I went and looked them up. But no one ever told me where to find them. That was research on my own team and figure out where do I look for this. So it's, we really need to do better, nationally, to know our history and know where we came from. Michael Hingson ** 14:14 We do have a really interesting paradox in the world, because we've gotten in the last two government administrations, to different views of not only how to govern, but to a degree how the military needs to be a part of it, and that's gonna not be very helpful to things either. Chase Spears ** 14:34 Absolutely. The the military at the end of the day is controlled by the Civilian governance. Now. I'll acknowledge that General Mark Milley didn't really seem to think so and there have been other figures in military history who MacArthur being one of them who who seemed to challenge who was actually in charge of the military. But at the end of the day, constitutionally, we We are governed by by civilians. And that that is right, that is proper any anything else would be a coup and you don't want that. So we, it comes down to how does the military try to hold a consistent line? When you have governments that change every two to four to eight years and have drastically different perspectives on policy? How do you as a military hold an even keel and another wise stormy sea. And in previous generations, we had senior general officers who were pretty good at that they were pretty good at saying, regardless of what the ship of state is doing, the ship of military is going to remain on a heading to serve everyone. And there's been somewhat of a lack a breakdown of discipline at the senior ranks in the last probably 10 years, that's really kind of shuttered the ship of the military. And I think the current some of the recently promoted, general officers understand that I think General GA is the new Chief of Staff of the Army, I think he understands that and he's trying to do some things to reintroduce some stability, but it's a hard thing. Michael Hingson ** 16:16 Yeah. And the other part about it is that the military, in some ways is a part of society. So we've had things like the whole Don't Ask, Don't Tell dealing with LGBTQ types of issues. And, and of course, even women in the military, and there's been a lot of things that haven't necessarily been as visible as they have become, and are issues that we are starting to face and deal with more. But it seems to me that the military, like it or not, is part of society. And we do need to recognize that collectively, as well. Chase Spears ** 17:02 We were absolutely drawn from society. We serve society, we exist, you know, for the protection of society. But I will say there's one thing that's all always kind of set Western militaries apart a little bit, and the US military hails from that Western tradition of understanding that just because society chooses to take a move in one direction, doesn't necessarily mean that it's in the national security interest of the United States for the military, to follow suit. And then there's kind of a reason that the military has always tried to, in some way, set itself apart, of acknowledging that there's some things that society will do or want to that are affected by the times as Shakespeare himself noted, there's always a tide in the affairs and man, the tide comes in the time tide goes out the the, the winds shift. And but one thing that was said at the military part was this idea of, at the end of the day, if it's a societal change that enables us to better defend the nation, then that's the direction we'll move. If it's a societal change that could potentially be a friction point or cause additional challenges in securing the nation, we might, we might think on that one a little bit harder, we might be a little more a little slower to adopt that. And we've seen that has kind of broken down the military is very much going out of its way to be reflective of society. And in some ways that can be good in some ways that's caused additional unnecessary frictions to the force and is rightly being having questions asked about it. Michael Hingson ** 18:45 And that's where having good solid leadership in the military at the highest echelons, has to be an important part of it, because that's where ultimately, the direction that the military goes, is at least in part, going to be authored. Yes, there is a civilian government that and civilian commander in chief, but still the military leaders have to really be the ones mostly to figure out where the military should go in terms of policies and how it deals with different issues or not, I would think. Chase Spears ** 19:27 And the key word that you hit on there, Michael is leadership. Back a few months ago, I wrote a piece that was published by real clear defense called seven new things the new Sergeant Major of the Army could do to restore trust in the force. And the argument that I made his predecessor was one who was very kind of reactive to the, to the whims you might say, of a the younger generation of soldiers. He was very much all over Twitter about telling me your issues. Let me get involved in your issues. And he was, in some ways a very divisive, senior official in the military. And I equated it to you, you want to look at kind of the British constitutionalist position, the British Crown, if you're looking overseas, it has traditionally been something that it's kind of the rock, unmovable, unshakable, the parliament will do what parliament will do that the Tories and Labour will do what they will do, but the crown is unmovable the crown serves all. And that's kind of something that the military reflected, and I call out to the new rising generation military leaders to remember that, to remember that we don't own this, we owe nothing in the institution, we all leave it one day, as I left it a matter of weeks ago. All I have are my memories and and hopes that I was able to leave some things better than I found them and that the people I served that I hope I served them well. But at the end of the day, we hand it off to someone else. And it's so important for to have good leaders who recognize that we we steward the profession, that we we want to do the best we can with it in our time, and recognize the decisions that we make, will impact those who serve long after our time and do our best to hand it off in the best possible condition that we can for them. Because then to the to society, we returned. And then we depend on this who came after us for our national defense. And so it's the steward mindset to me as key. Michael Hingson ** 21:41 Yeah. Well, and going back a little bit. So you're in graduate school you got recruited in and accepted and went into the military. What did you do? What was it like when you first went and that certainly again, had to be quite a culture shock from things that you would experience before? Ah, Chase Spears ** 22:02 yeah, I figured absolutely was you'll never forget your first shark attack at basic training for for anyone who's unfamiliar with that, it's when you once you've done your initial and processing there, whatever base you get your basic training at, for me, it was Fort Jackson in South Carolina. And then they eventually buss you off to your your training companies, which is where you will actually conduct your combat training. This is after you've received your uniforms and done all your finances, paperwork, and life insurance and all that. And then the buses stop and the drill sergeants, they're just there waiting for you. And it's a moment you never forget. And of course, you jump off the bus and they're giving you all these commands that they know it's impossible for you to, to execute to any level of satisfaction. And then when you fail, as you inevitably will, you know, the entire group just gets smoked over and over and over again. And I remember that moment just having that realization of I have not in Kansas anymore, like the next next few months of my life are about to be very different than anything I've ever experienced. And it was it absolutely was. I got through that. And I think the first thing that was really kind of shocking to me be on to the training environment was the use of last names. So yeah, I go by chase my friends call me chase people who know me call me chase. I'm I'm not hung up on titles. I'm a simple guy. In the military, you are your rank and last name. I was specialist Spears sergeants First Lieutenant spears or LT Captain spears, major spears. And I remember at my first unit, there were other other people who in my unit there were the same rank as me. And so I thought were peers I'd call them by their first name. And they never gave me problems about it. But our higher ups would you know, people have rank spears, we don't go by first names spears. And I never I never 20 years and I still never really adjusted well to that I learned how to how to keep myself from getting as many talking to us about it over the years is I had in previous times. But that was a culture shock. And, and just the the constant what we call the military, the battle rhythm, you know, civil society would call it your work schedule, while in the military. It never really ends your day start very early. You have physical training that you're doing with your unit at 630. Depending on what unit you're in, you may be off at a reasonable time in the late afternoon, early evening, or you may be there. I've remember staying at work one night till 4am Just because the boss gave us a job to do. Frankly, it was an unreasonable job. But he gave us a job to do and an extraordinarily tight deadline and it took us till 4am to get the job done and And I was at work by 630, the next morning. So you never, ever really do get used to that in some ways, because you kind of come to accept it. But it's been really eye opening to me in the last nearly three months now that I've been now, looking back and having some control over my schedule now for the first time in 20 years, and realizing, wow, that was such a foreign existence I lived. But when you're when you're swimming in a fishbowl, you don't know you're wet. So every time you do adapt to it, but it's been neat being on the other side and realizing, you know, can kind of breathe in and start to have some say over what a schedule looks like, because I'd forgotten what that was, what that'd be like. Michael Hingson ** 25:44 But as you rose in the ranks, and I assume took on more responsibility, did that give you any more flexibility in terms of how you operate it on a day to day basis. Chase Spears ** 25:56 It all depended on the position, there were there were some jobs I had, where were, regardless of the rank, I had flexibility. And then there were other jobs, where I absolutely did not even as a major want, there was a job that I had, where the boss was very adamant. This is the time you will be here and you will be sitting at this desk between these hours and you are authorized authorized is a big term in the military culture, you are authorized a 30 minute lunch break period. And you will be here until this time every day. And this was when I had you know, I think I was at my 1718 year mark. And I remember thinking to myself, golly, do I need to ask permission to go to the bathroom to see, it seemed I didn't. So it really kind of depended on your job. There's a perception a lot of times that the higher you go in rank, the more control you have over your life. And I observed that the opposite is actually true. The higher you go, typically, the more the more demands are placed on you. The more people are depending on the things that you're doing. And and the bigger the jobs are. And the longer the days are was my experience, but it had been flooded depending on what position I was in at the given time. Michael Hingson ** 27:17 Now, when you first enlisted and all that, what was Laurie's reaction to all of that. Chase Spears ** 27:23 I was shocked. She was so supportive. She actually grew up in an Air Force household. And so she knew military life pretty well. Her dad had been been in, he spent a lot more time in the air force than I did the army. And then even after he retired from the Air Force, he went on and taught at the Naval Academy as a civilian. So she is just always had a level of familiarity with the military as long as she can remember. She joked with me that when she got married to me and then had to give up her dependent military ID card that it was kind of a moment of mourning for she didn't want to give that thing up. So one day, there we are Knoxville, Tennessee, and I approached her. And I'm trying to be very careful, very diplomatic, very suave, and how I bring it up to her and let her know I've been thinking about the army. And I'm kind of curious what she might think about that. Because it'd be such a drastic lifestyle change from everything we've been talking about. And I was bracing for her to look at me and be like, are you insane? And instead, she was like, Oh, you won't get in the military. And I get an ID card again. Yes. She was she was supportive from from Jump Street. And so you talk about a wife who just was there, every minute of it, and loved and supported and gave grace and rolled with the punches. milori Did she was absolutely phenomenal. Though, I will admit when it got to the point that I was starting to think maybe 20. I'll go ahead and wrap this up, because my original plan had been to do 30. But when I started talking with her about that she was she was also ready, she was ready to actually start having me home regularly for us to be able to start making family plans and be able to follow through with them. Because we had the last three years we had not been able to follow through with family plans, because of the different positions that I was in. So she was very, very supportive of me joining and then she was equally very supportive of me going ahead and and calling it calling it a day here or the last just at the end of this year. But what a what a partner could not have done it Michael Hingson ** 29:41 without her. So where did she live when you were going through basic training and all that. Chase Spears ** 29:46 So she stayed in Knoxville for nonGSA. Yeah. And then from there, she actually ended up moving up to her dad's and his wife's place up in Maryland because my follow on school after base See training was the Defense Information School. That's where all the Public Affairs courses are taught. And it's so happens that that is located at Fort Meade, Maryland, which is just about a 45 minute drive traffic dependent from where her dad lived. So while I was in basic training, she went ahead and moved up there to Maryland so that while I was in school up there, we could see each other on the weekends. And then from there, we didn't have to go back to Tennessee and pack up a house or stuff was already packed up so we could get on the road together there to wherever our next duty station was. And it turned out funny enough to be Colorado Springs, Fort Carson. And here's why that's funny. When, when I approached Laurie, about joining the army, one of the things that she was really excited about was seeing the world if you're in the military, you get to see the world, right. And my first duty assignment was the town that she had grown up in, because her dad had spent the last few years of his career teaching at the Air Force Academy there on the northern end of Colorado Springs. So so her her dreams of seeing the world with me, turned out that our first tour was going to write back home for her. Michael Hingson ** 31:14 Oh, that has its pluses and it's minuses. Chase Spears ** 31:17 Yep. So it was neat for me to get to see where she had grown up and learn the town little bit. Michael Hingson ** 31:23 I've been to Fort Meade, and actually a few times I used to sell technology to folks there. And then several years ago, I was invited to come in after the World Trade Center and do a speech there. And so it was it was fun spending some time around Fort Meade heard some wonderful stories. My favorite story still is that one day somebody from the city of Baltimore called the fort because they wanted to do traffic studies or get information to be able to do traffic studies to help justify widening roads to better help traffic going into the fort. So they call it the fort. And they said, Can you give us an idea of how many people come through each day? And the person at the other end said, Well, I'm really not sure what you're talking about. We're just a little shack out here in the middle of nowhere. And so they ended up having to hire their own people to count cars for a week, going in and out of the fort was kind of cute. Chase Spears ** 32:23 Well, there's quite a bit of traffic there. Now that basis when Michael Hingson ** 32:26 I was then to there wasn't just a little shack, of course, it was a whole big forest. Chase Spears ** 32:32 Yeah, yeah, it's I was back there. Golly, I want to say it wasn't that long ago. But it was about five years ago now is back there. And I almost didn't recognize the place. There's been so much new built there. But oh, I know, as far as army assignments go, it's a it's a pretty nice place. Michael Hingson ** 32:50 Yeah, it is. And as I said, I've had the opportunity to speak there and spend some time dealing with folks when we sold products and so on. So got to got to know, people, they're pretty well and enjoyed dealing with people there. They knew what they were doing. Yeah, Chase Spears ** 33:07 yeah, that's a it's a smart group of people in that base. Michael Hingson ** 33:10 So you went through basic training and all that and what got you into the whole idea of public relations and what you eventually went into? Chase Spears ** 33:20 Well, I had studied in college, my undergraduate degree was in television and radio broadcasting. My master's was in journalism, I'd grown up kind of in the cable news age, and the at the age of the emergence of am Talk Radio is a big, big tool of outreach. And I grew up thinking, this is what I want to do. I love communication. I actually thought it'd be really neat to be an investigative reporter on if, if you remember, back in the 90s, it was this big thing of, you know, Channel Nine on your side, yeah, had this investigative reporter who tell you the real deal about the restaurant or the automotive garage. And I always thought that would be amazing, like what a great public service like helping people to avoid being ripped off. And so I wanted to be a news. I'm sure you're familiar with the Telecom Act of 1996. That That caused a tremendous consolidation of media for your audience who might not be familiar with it. It used to be that really, if you had the wherewithal to buy a media station or a television station or radio station, you were unlimited in what you could you there were limits, I should say on what you could buy, so that you couldn't control too much, too much media environment, the Telecom Act of 1996, completely deregulated that and so large media companies were just swallowing up the nation. And that meant there's a tremendous consolidation of jobs and the my junior year in college. I was in the southeast us at the time at Lee University. Atlanta. Nearby was our biggest hiring media market, my June Your year CNN laid off 400 people. So I could tell really quick, this is going to be a chat and even more challenging field to break into than I thought. And that's why I ended up working part time in a law firm was in, in Journalism School. Afterwards, because I was looking great. I was looking for a backup plan. I thought if journalism doesn't work out, I also love the law. It'd be nice to get some experience working in a firm to see if I want to go to law school. So it was a natural fit for me when the army recruiter started talking to me. And he was asking me what I was interested in. And I told him, Well, here's what my degree is in, here's what my career plan had been, here's who I really want to do with my life. And he said, we have public affairs, I said, What's that? It turns out, the military has radio stations, and they have television networks and you PR, I had no idea. I was a civilian. And I was like, Well, that sounds good. And so I thought, yeah, sure, I'll I will enlist for that come in, do one four year contract, I'll build a portfolio and and then I'll be able to take that portfolio out into the civilian realm. And hopefully that will make me more competitive for a job in the news market. And of course, a couple of years into that. I was in Kuwait deployed to camp Arif John. And my brigade commander sat me down to lunch one day, and made it very clear that he expected me to apply for Officer Candidate School, which was nowhere on what I was interested in doing was nowhere on my radar, I applied, I really didn't have a lot of confidence. I thought, I looked at officers and I thought they were people who are way, way more intelligent than me, way more suave than me. And I really didn't know if I'd get in, well, I got in. And after I commissioned officer candidate school is about like basic training all over again. So that was fun. And I ended up being assigned to a combat camera unit. And then afterwards, I was able to put my paperwork in to branch transfer right back into public affairs, it was a perfect mess was everything I wanted to do. I didn't get to work in news directly. I wasn't a reporter. But I got to work with reporters, I got to be an institutional insider and help facilitate them and help to tell the stories of what some great American patriots were doing, and wanting to serve their countries. And so it was, for the most part, more often than not, it was a really, really fun way to earn a living living. Michael Hingson ** 37:34 I collect as a hobby old radio shows I'm very familiar with but back in the 40s was the Armed Forces Radio Service, then it became Armed Forces Radio and Television Service. And so I'm aware a little bit of, of the whole broadcast structure in the military, not a lot, but but some and know that that it's there. And it does, I'm suspect, a really good job of helping to keep people informed as much as it can as they can with the things that they have to do in the world. It's Chase Spears ** 38:04 definitely it's a comfort over the years, if you're spending a lot of time overseas to have kind of that that taste of home and our forces network does a really good job of that letting I think we're starting to see some debates inside the military. Now. What do we want to continue of it? Because now information is so ubiquitous, if you will, you can pull it down, you can stream whatever you want, wherever you are in the globe. So I kind of wonder in the next 1020 years, will it still be a thing, but during my early career during my early deployment before he could stream stuff, it was really cool to have an AFN radio station to tune into is really cool to have an AFN television network to tune into to be able to get a taste of home. That was much a comfort, Michael Hingson ** 38:52 right? Yeah, it is. It is something that helps. So you can't necessarily stream everything. I spent a week in Israel this summer. And there were broadcasts I could get and pick up through the internet and so on. And there were stuff from here in the US that I couldn't get I suspect it has to do with copyright laws and the way things were set up but there was only so much stuff that you could actually do. Chase Spears ** 39:20 And what a time to be in Israel you will I bet that trip is even more memorable for you now than it would have been otherwise. Michael Hingson ** 39:27 Fortunately, it wasn't August. So we we didn't have to put up with the things that are going on now. But still Yeah, it was very memorable. I enjoyed doing it. spending a week with excessively over there and got into getting to meet with with all the folks so it was definitely well worth it and something that that I will always cherish having had the opportunity to do get Chase Spears ** 39:51 for you. If it's on my bucket list. I've always wanted to spend some time over there. Michael Hingson ** 39:56 Hot and humid in the summer, but that's okay. Let's say but they love breakfast. Oh, really? So yeah, definitely something to think about. Well, so you, you joined you got you got the public relations, jobs and so on. So how did all that work for you over? Well, close to 20 years? What all did you do and what, what stories can you tell us about some of that? Chase Spears ** 40:25 It was it was fascinating. It was fascinating because everything that I got to touch was, in some way a story. And so my first job was in radio and television production. I did quite a bit of that in Kuwait. And it was actually there that I got my first taste of crisis communication, and I was immediately addicted. Do you remember back in? It was December 2004. Donald Rumsfeld said you go to war with the Army you have not the army want or might wish to have it another time? Yeah. I was there. That that was uttered in camp you're in Kuwait. And that was such an interesting moment. For me in terms of a story to tell. I was with the 14 Public Affairs Detachment we were deployed to camp Arif John to provide public affairs support for for Third Army's Ford headquarters. This was back during the height of the war in Iraq and Afghanistan. And so there's a lot of military going over there. We were part of that. And I remember hearing this tasking that had come down that the Secretary of Defense is going to come out here is going to do this town hall meeting with the troops. There's going to be no question that you can't ask. You're going to be allowed to say anything you want to say to the Secretary of Defense, nothing's going to be scripted, nothing's going to be put through for review. And by the way, 14 pad you guys are going to make sure that it can be televised live back to the United States. And so here I am thinking what can possibly go wrong. And so we helped we all the event, Secretary Rumsfeld hindered and handled it really, really well. They set up this big, you know, fighting machinery display, they're in a in a big aircraft hangar epic camp bearing which is in northern Kuwait, just not too far south from the Iraqi border. And he gets up he gives the speech. He's well received by the troops. And it goes to the q&a part. And soldiers were asking him all sorts of questions. Most of them are jovial, you know, hey, when when do we get to go to Disney World, stuff like that. They were kind of big jocular with them. Michael Hingson ** 42:42 Seems a fair question. Chase Spears ** 42:44 Yeah, you know, I felt them right. And so finally, this one guy, I'll never forget his name, especially as Thomas Wilson from the 2/78 Regimental Combat Team. Tennessee National Guard asks him a question about when are they going to get the body armor that's needed? And in true Rumsfeld style, he's he says, Well, I'm not quite sure I understood the question. Can you ask it again, which is a great technique. He used to buy him some time to think the answer. And then it came back after the second question. And the whole hangar about 1000 of us in there. It was hast. I'll bet you could have heard a plastic cup hit the floor at the back back of the room. I mean, everyone was like, what? Oh, no, what just happened? What's about to happen? And Rumsfeld makes that remark, you go to war with the army have not the one you want or need. Yeah. And and then the questions went on. And there was not be after that. There was no awkward moment for the rest of the time. And I and I thought, wow, that could have gone south. But it didn't cool. It was just it was neat to watch. I was running the television camera that caught the moment. I was in the room. And so we me and my sergeant had to stay up there the rest of the day because there were some other television network interviews with other officials that we were running the satellite transponder for. And it was a long day our commander was kind of being a jerk to us. So by the end of the day, we were tired we'd been up there sleeping on cots for a couple of days, we were kind of just ready to get back to data camp Arif, John to our beds and put the whole mission behind us. And then we drive to three hours through this pouring pouring rainstorm in Kuwait, and a Canvas side Humvee that's leaking. All you know, water just pouring into this thing on us. So we're done. We're done. We're done. We're like, we just want to get a bed. We get back to our base. We're offloading all the equipment, putting everything away. And at this point in time, I forgotten about the moment earlier in the day when that question was asked, and I walk in and there we had this wall of televisions you know, tracking all the different news networks back in the US and on all of them Their Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld, you go to war with the army have not the army won or wish to have another time. And at that moment, I was like, it's about to be an interesting few weeks around here. And it turned out, it turned out indeed to be an interesting few weeks, an interesting few months. And I got to be on the front end of what the public affairs response to that looks like. And I can tell you, I've never seen armored vehicles flow into a place as quickly as they did in the following month. So the power of a message transmitted is a real thing. Well, Michael Hingson ** 45:39 so whatever happened to specialist Wilson? Chase Spears ** 45:44 I don't I don't know. I know that news coverage. When that news reporters were asking that very question and coverage that I saw said, Oh, his unit, his assured that nothing bad will happen to him. He was a national guardsmen, so he kind of fall under a different, different command structure than us. From time to time, I have wondered that and I've tried to look him up online, and just try to find out what happened to the sky and what was life like for him? I'd love to talk to him and ask alright, what was it like, man, what is your unit do? But I, I have no idea. I can't find him. I presume he's gone about his life and doesn't want to be famous about it. But it also goes back to National Guard culture versus active duty culture. We talked earlier about the citizenship aspect. And the National Guard gets that way more than the active component. At the end of the day, they demobilize. And they go home. Right, you're running into the same people you serve, with the church, at the grocery store, at the grocery store, at the PTA, places like this, some of them might be your neighbors. And so they have an entirely different outlook. This is what they do to serve the country when needed. And then they go on about their lives. I don't think you would have seen an active duty soldier ask that question. I really don't because the culture is so so markedly different. And there's a level of kind of freedom of thought and expression, present that guard that that is much more lacking in the active component. Michael Hingson ** 47:19 Should there be more freedom, in that sense in the active component? Or do you think that it's really appropriate for there to be the dichotomy that you're describing? Chase Spears ** 47:32 And the act of force you need discipline? You need a discipline force, who, when they're given a lawful order, will carry it out hastily, because lives could hang in the balance. That's absolutely important, and we can never lose that. But sometimes we can use discipline I say sometimes, often, more is the more appropriate term often we confuse discipline with silence. We confuse discipline with a lack of willingness to ask tough questions. We confuse discipline with just saying Yes, sir. When you know, in the back of your mind, there might be something you need to dig into more. We we need, unfortunately, since the end of the Second World War, going back to my comments earlier about this large, industrialized, institutionalized force we have it breeds careerists. It breeds a mindset that's fearful to ask tough questions, even if you know they need to be asked. Because you want to be promoted. Right? You want to get assignments, right. And it breeds a culture where you really are much more timid. Or you're much more likely to be timid than someone who's maybe a reservist or National Guard member. We need people who will ask tough questions. We don't need indiscipline, we don't rush showmanship, we don't need people who are being performative just to be seen. But there are valid questions to be asked is, you know, is US defense policy? Better set for a 400? Ship navy or a 300? Ship? Navy? That's a valid question. Is it better for us to use this route of attack versus that route of attack? Given the Give Me Everything we know, those are valid questions. We need people in the military who who are willing to be critical thinkers, and there are a lot of extraordinarily brilliant people in today's armed forces, as there always has been. But there is on the active duty side a culture that works against original thought and that's really to our detriment. And I think the manner in which the evacuation of Afghanistan ended is one more blatant indicator of that. Michael Hingson ** 49:48 It was not handled nearly as well as it could have been as we have seen history tell us and teach us now Chase Spears ** 49:56 Absolutely. i It broke my heart. I'm A veteran of that conflict I'm not one who cries easily, Michael but I can tell you that morning when I saw the some of the images coming out of cobbles especially there's a video of a C 17 cargo jet taking off and people literally hanging to and falling to their deaths. Just i i fell off, I fell off my on my run into a sobbing human being on this on the ground for a little bit it is there's a lot to process and it has continued to be a lot to process. And there again, there's a great example of why you gotta be willing to ask tough questions. There was no no reason at all. We should have abandoned Bagram and tried to evacuate out of downtown Cabo. But that's a whole nother conversation. Yeah. Michael Hingson ** 50:52 Well, speaking of you, I understand that you weren't a great fan of jumping out of airplanes, but you got used to doing them? I Chase Spears ** 51:01 sure did. Oh, yeah. I always thought that would just be something that no, I don't want to say no sane person would do. I mean, I enjoy watching skydivers, I think it's really cool. And obviously, they're saying, I never thought I'd be among them. I thought, Nah, that's just something, I don't think I'm gonna do that. And when I was an officer candidate school, I was roommates with a guy who had been to Airborne School earlier in his career. And he was like, man, don't do it. Don't let him talk you into going to Airborne School, though, you'll be stuck at Fort Bragg, you'll just you'll be broke all the time, you'll be hurting all the time, the army takes the fun out of everything. And he's right. To an extent the army does take the fun out of most things that touches. But I got to my first unit as an officer. So I'd done enlisted time for three years, then I went to Officer Candidate School. And then my first job as an officer was at the 55th combat camera company, which is not a full airborne unit, but it's a partial airborne unit. And they had a hard time keeping enough active duty paratroopers on hand. And so I remember day one, when I was in processing the unit, there are all these different places you go, when you're in process, you gotta go see the training room, and you got to go see the administrative room, and you got to go see the Transportation Office and all these places, and they're just checking your paperwork. And so I see the training room, and there's the sergeant in there. And he's looking through my list. And he's asking me all these questions, you know, when was your last PT test? Where's the last physical, you know, making notes on me for the unit record? And then he says, Do you want to go to Airborne School? And without thinking, I said, Absolutely not. I have no interest in going to Airborne School. And his reply to me was go ahead and get an airborne physical. And I thought, There's no way I'm ever getting an airborne physical because I'm not going to Airborne School. So a few weeks later, I'm in the unit, I'm more comfortable. And I'm across. I'm in a different office across the hall from where this guy worked. And I'm joking around with this other sergeant. And I'm like, sir, and you're just such a cool guy. Like you've got all together, you're, you're like everything I want to be when I grow up. What how do you do it? He said, Well, sir, you got to go to Airborne School. That's step one. The other guy across the hall ever hears that, you know, mouse ears, I don't know how. But he darts out of his office across the hall into this opposite we're in, looks me straight in the face and said, Did you say you want to go to Airborne School? Like no, is not what I said, I absolutely have no interest. I'm not going to Airborne School. And he again replies with schedule your physical. And I thought, I'm not going to disappoint me scheduling a fiscal. So I get back to my office that later that day. And I thought this guy is not going to give up. So I came up with this brilliant plan. It was smart, smartest plan you'll ever hear of, I'm going to pretend I'm going to get my airborne physical and then he'll forget about me, leave me alone. So I called him and said, Hey, Sergeant, what's the phone number I have to call them schedule an airborne physical and it gives me the phone number and the the name of the person to talk to and I said, Great. I'll talk to him. There were two or three other lieutenants set to show up to the unit next in the next month. So I thought he will assume I'm getting a physical which I'm not getting and there's other guys will show up and he will convince them to go and I will fall off his radar. I was incorrect. That was a bad bad miscalculation on my part, you might say a flawed operation Michael Hingson ** 54:39 with your the and you were the one who was talking about brilliant people in the army Anyway, go ahead. Chase Spears ** 54:43 I know I know. Right? Yeah, I am a paradox. And so that within an hour I get an email from him with my he's already put me in for school. I already have orders generated to go to jump school. And then he calls me he's like Hey, by the way, your report in like three weeks, I need your physical as soon as you can get it. And I thought this guy, I told him I'm not going to Airborne School. Well, at the same time, our unit commander was a paratrooper, and he loves jumping out of airplanes. And I had two or three paratroopers in my platoon who were underneath me. And I thought, There's no way I can go now. Because if I, if I get the commander to release me, one, I'll lose face with the old man. And I'll lose face with the troops that I lead because the soldiers have to compete for this. They're just giving it to me. And so I went, protesting, kicking, screaming the whole way. I hated ground week. I hated tower week. And then they put took me up to the 250 foot tower and dropped me off the side of it under a parachute. And I loved it. I was like, Oh, this is fun. I actually asked if I can do it again. And they said, they don't get what's right. So the next week, we go into jump week in there I am in the back of an airplane, and it comes to my turn to get up and exit it. And I do, and I get to the ground and I survive. And I literally just sat there and laughed uncontrollably because I couldn't believe I just jumped out of a plane. And it was my first of 40 jobs. So I was I was absolutely hooked from that moment on. Michael Hingson ** 56:20 And what did Lori think of that? Chase Spears ** 56:23 She was a little bit surprised. She She again, was supportive. But she was surprised she never thought it's something that I would take to and it ended up being a great thing for us. Because having been on jumped status, it opened the door for me to request the unit and Alaska that we ended up going to for six years, you had to be on airborne status to be able to go to that job. And so had I not going to jump school, I would not have qualified to go into Alaska for that particular job. And so it ended up being a wonderful, wonderful thing. But I would have never guessed it, it just it's another one of those poignant reminders to me that every time that I think I've got a plan, it's God's way of reminding me that he has a sense of humor, because what's going to work out is always going to be very different from what I think. Michael Hingson ** 57:10 And you help Laurie see the world. So well worked out. Absolutely. Chase Spears ** 57:15 Yeah, she we never, we never got to spend time together overseas. But Alaska was an amazing adventure. And, gosh, if if no one in your listeners haven't been there yet to go see a Sunday? Michael Hingson ** 57:29 Yeah, I went there on a cruise I didn't see as much as I would have loved to but still, I got to see some of them. It was great. Chase Spears ** 57:38 It's nothing like it. No. Now you Michael Hingson ** 57:42 as you advance in the ranks, and so on you, you started being in public relations, being a communicator, and so on. But clearly, as you advanced, you became more and I'm sure were viewed as more of a leader that was kind of a transition from from not being a leader. And just being a communicator and doing what you were told to be more of a leader, what was that transition like? Chase Spears ** 58:07 That was another one of those things that I would have never seen coming. After I did my three years as the spokesman for the Airborne Brigade. In Alaska, I ended up becoming the deputy communication director for US Army, Alaska, which was the highest army command there in the state responsible for 11,000 troops and their families in multiple locations. And I remember one day, my boss came to me and saying, hey, the general is going to give a speech to the hockey team at the University of Alaska, about leadership. And so I need you to write it. And I looked at him and I said, boss, all right, whatever he told me to write, but the general has forgotten more about leadership than I know, like, how do where do I start with this? And I don't remember the exact words, I think it was something to the effect of, you're smart, you'll figure it out. And so I put together a speech, it was by no means anything glorious, but it was the best I had to give that moment in time and what leadership was fully convinced that I was not one. And then over time, I there are people who spoken to me at their headquarters who called out leadership that I didn't see they were pointing out influence that I had there pointing out people who I was able to help steer towards decisions that I didn't realize that I didn't know and it made me start looking back in other parts of my career and realizing, Oh, my goodness, I actually led that team. This man actually looks to me for decisions. I actually I am a leader, I had no idea. There's something I always thought if if you were in the military and you're a leader, you were some grand master, you know, like, like Patton or Eisenhower and I didn't think think myself anything like that. And so finally, in 2015, I was offered A chance to take command of a company which in civilian terms, that's kind of like being the executive director, if you will, of an organization of 300 people. And I was so excited for it. Because by that point in time, I finally made the mental transition of saying, I'm not, I'm not merely a communicator, communicating is what I've done. But occasionally it's I've worked on delivering us on passionate about, by came to realize, I love that so much because communicating is a part of leading and, and I, I am a leader, it's just something. Looking back. Of course, my life has always been there, I just never knew it. I never saw it, I never believed in it. And so by the time I was offered the chance to command, I was very excited for it, I was very eager for it, because I realized this is going to be an a wonderful adventure getting to lead a team at this level of this size. And it was the hardest job I ever did in the army, and the most rewarding. I don't know if you've ever watched any of the Lord, Lord of the Rings movie. But there's this moment where Aragon is being chided, is set aside the Ranger Be who you were meant to be to be the king. And that meant that came back to my mind several times I had to challenge myself that just because I only see myself as a communicator all these years doesn't mean that I can't do other things. And so it was a joy to actually walk into that. Believing is not easy. There's there are a lot of hard days or a lot of hard decisions. Especially when I was a commander, I agonized every decision. So I made because I knew this will have an impact on a person, this will have an impact on a family this, this will change the directions and plans that people had. And so it's a heavy weight to bear. And I think it's good that those kind of decisions come with weight. And I would question someone who who can make those kinds of calls without having to wrestle with them. Michael Hingson ** 1:02:01 When you look at all the things that you've done, and the work that you do, and the work that you did, at the end of every day, or at some time during the day, I know you were pretty busy. But did you ever have the time to just kind of sit back and reflect on how did this go today? How did that go? What could have been better? Did you do any kind of introspection? Or did you feel you had time to do that? Chase Spears ** 1:02:24 I didn't really feel I had time. And it would be easy for me to blame the unit, it'd be easy for me to blame people. But that responsibility rests with me. It's a discipline that I didn't develop until way too late in my career. And I eventually did develop it, I eventually came to realize the importance of reflection of introspection of taking a mental inventory of what I've accomplished I didn't accomplish and what I can learn from it. But it was sadly something that I didn't do as much as I should have. And I didn't do it as early, I was really, really bad at assuming well, because the unit needs this right now. I can't take care of this thing that I need to take care of that will that will allow me to be the leader that I need to be you know, I get in a car, someone slams on my car, and I need to get them to take care of it. Why don't have time unit Scott has to have me We gotta move on. Well, I've got six screws in my left hand and my left shoulder right now because I was always too busy to listen to the physical therapist and take care of myself, you know, the unit needs me the unit needs me the men need me. And so it, it was a hard, hard learned lesson. The importance of sitting back and reflecting is something I wish I would have learned much sooner. But once I did, it served me well. And it's a discipline that I still practice now. Michael Hingson ** 1:03:46 Yeah, yeah, it's, I think a very important thing. And a lot of things can can stem from that. What's the best position your favorite position in the army and why? Chase Spears ** 1:03:59 The best thing I ever got to do is company command. And it's hard to say that because it's really it's really closely tied with being a brigade director of communication. And t
Send a Text to the MomsGuests: Angela and Michael Brisbin(plus 3 Moms updates and we read some Fan mail!)INTO THE LIGHT Meaningful Recovery From Psychosis, a 60 minute documentary discusses how to achieve Meaningful Recovery from Serious Mental Illness with education, medication and advocacy. A message of hope and real help, the film's topics include: barriers to treatment, the underutilized medication, clozapine, and the importance of a supportive community. There are over 25 interviews of patients, parents, leading medical professionals, healthcare professionals, advocates – from across the USA, including:(Bolded names have been guests on this podcast too!) Dr Xavier Amador, LEAP; Dr Lisa Dixon, CUIMC; Dr Ken Duckworth, NAMI; Miriam Feldman, SCZ: Three Moms in the Trenches; Dr Rob & Ann Mandel Laitman, TEAM DANIEL; Dr Jeffrey Lieberman; Dr Jonathan Meyer; Lynn Nanos, Michael Orth; Bill Rodgers, The Marathon Runner; Dr Fuller Torrey; Elyn Saks, Rachel Streiff; and Bethany Yeiser, CURESZ. Narrated by Tony Shalhoub and Brooke Adams. Sponsored by TEAM DANIEL Running for Recovery from Mental Illness, a 501c3 charity.Angela Brisbin Angela is the Lead Administrator for Team Daniel and the Clozapine Community Facebook group. She is the Associate Producer for the documentary Into the Light: Meaningful Recovery from Psychosis. She is a full time nursing student pursuing a Master's degree as a Psychiatric Nurse Practitioner. Her mental health advocacy includes serving as a board member for NAMI or Greater Kansas City, as well as being a NAMI-certified family support group facilitator and “Ending the Silence” presenter. Angela also serves as a mentor for the CURESZ Foundation. In 2016 Angela's father Gary who had schizophrenia passed away and her son Michael was diagnosed. Michael BrisbinAngela's son Michael Brisbin has been in meaningful recovery from schizophrenia for six and a half years. He is a full time college student and works part time as a campus librarian. He'll graduate in December with a Bachelor of Science degree in Social Work and a minor in Psychology. He plans to continue his education and obtain a Master's degree as a licensed clinical social worker and work in the mental health field.Michael is on the Board of Directors for NAMI of Greater Kansas City, and has founded NAMI on Campus groups at his previous community colleges and his current university. He also facilitates a weekly NAMI young adult Zoom support group.Links:https://www.intothelightmeaningfulrecovery.com/ https://www.iMOM PodcastIf you need a mom friend right now, you've come to the right place. On iMOM.com we...Listen on: Apple Podcasts SpotifyWant to know more?Join our facebook page Our websites:Randye KayeMindy Greiling Miriam (Mimi) Feldman
Episode 44: In this episode of The Connected Advisor, Kyle talks with Scott Colangelo, Chairman and Managing Partner at Prime Capital Investment Advisors (PCIA) and Managing Director of Qualified Plan Advisors (QPA). Scott has earned several industry awards and recognition for his vision, leadership, and innovation. He leverages his industry knowledge and expertise to create customized solutions that help clients achieve their financial goals and objectives. Scott is also passionate about empowering clients with education, guidance, and tools that enhance their financial well-being and security. Scott talks with Kyle about the collaborative nature of local wealth management firms in Overland Park, Kansas. He also discusses the four pillars of a healthy firm: wealth, retirement, education, and production. Scott believes that clients will continue valuing education and personalized guidance and that technology will free up advisors' time to build relationships. Scott shares his optimism about the industry's future, emphasizing the importance of technology and AI in enhancing client relationships. In this episode: [01:15] - Why Overland Park is a hotbed for wealth management firms. [03:50] - Collaboration among asset management firms. [10:17] - How Prime Capital practices intelligent flexibility. [14:26] - Scott's money moment that led him to a career in wealth management. [16:40] - The promise Scott made to his advisors. [21:03] - Revolutionizing company culture through equitable ownership. [22:11] - Cultivating an ego-free workplace culture. [24:26] - How Scott came up with the four components of a healthy firm. [27:56] - The characteristic shared by fast-growing companies. [32:34] - Scott's take on the future of the industry. [34:46] - Scott's Milemarker minute: potential career outside finance, bucket list travel destination, favorite books, hobbies, and favorite restaurant outside Greater Kansas City. Key Takeaways The industry is trending toward a more holistic approach, with firms offering comprehensive services in wealth management, retirement planning, education, and product production. Alignment is crucial in a firm, and Prime Capital Advisors has implemented an ownership structure that aligns the interests of advisors and the firm. Education and wellness programs are essential in helping participants reduce stress and improve their financial well-being. Technology and AI will enhance the wealth management industry by streamlining processes and allowing advisors to focus more on building personal relationships with clients. Quotes "There are simple ways for us to grow this industry, grow our practices, get more efficient, and scale better, and you can still be just as good of a fiduciary." ~ Scott Colangelo "Alignment is everything. If we're all rowing at 100% and one person is rowing at 99%, we'll eventually go a big circle and end up back where we started." ~ Scott Colangelo "If you get somebody in a good financial spot, their kids learn from that, their grandkids learn from that. They're happier in retirement. This is real impact stuff, and you're going to make more money because you're going to end up getting all their business whenever they have needs." ~ Scott Colangelo Links Scott Colangelo on LinkedIn Prime Capital Investment Advisors Morgan Stanley Goldman Sachs Merrill Lynch Mariner Wealth Advisors Redtail Technology Nitrogen Wealth eMoney Advisor MoneyGuidePro Glenn Spencer Connect with our hosts Milemarker.co Kyle on LinkedIn Jud on LinkedIn Subscribe and stay in touch Apple Podcasts Spotify YouTube Google Podcasts Produce game-changing content with Turncast Turncast helps your company grow by producing top-quality content and fostering transformative conversations. We specialize in content generation, podcasting, digital strategy, and audience growth for fintech and financial services companies. Learn more at Turncast.com.
The Black Achievers Society of Greater Kansas City is where building Self-Esteem gaining Leadership Skills and developing Confidence and Community Connections is taught, coached and mentored. Our guests are Heather Rollins, Manager of Individual Sales at Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Nebraska, Grant Lewis, President of the Black Achievers Society of Kansas City and special guest Tiana Rollins. Grant Lewis: “With our time, talent, and treasure we are working hard to influence our youth, impact industry with minority youth who will be college or trade school prepared and filling roles at various companies in the Greater Kansas City area creating a pipeline of minority youth that will be ready to change the world.” Learn more: https://www.blackachieverskc.org Need help or have something to share? Let me know what's on your mind, issues you are dealing with, or other health, healthcare, and health insurance questions and concerns. https://www.americashealthcareadvocate.com/contact-us
“This is something that connected our region like never before.” - Eileen Weir There's a famous saying that goes, “It only takes one tree to start a forest, one smile to begin a friendship... one thought to change the world” and that's exactly what happened in the Kansas City community through the Parade of Hearts that began from one drawing on a napkin. During its last auction in 2022, it raised more than $2 million for Kansas City charities. During today's episode, Dr. Michelle invites Jenn Nussbeck and Eileen Weir to share how this project began, the doors that it opened in our community, and the opportunity it provided to build connections with people in different neighborhoods across the metro. They also explain why public art has become a crucial piece to our community's well-being and why it evoked certain senses for the people who live here. Jenn will also tell a moving story about two people who met at one of the hearts and how that location formed their new friendship. At the end of the episode, they will give listeners an exclusive update about what's next for the Parade of Hearts in Kansas City, which means you will be the first to hear it on this episode! About Today's Guests: Jenn Nussbeck is the Parade of Hearts Executive Director. She has served on numerous public charity boards as well as dedicated the last 15 years supporting organizations throughout communities in Kansas City. Assisting those navigating the philanthropy and civic channels is not only her work, but her passion. Jenn was born in San Diego but raised in Kansas City. She comes from a large Irish family. Her great uncle (Pat O'Neill Sr.) started the Kansas City St. Patrick's Day Parade with Mike Murphy. Eileen Weir was elected Mayor of the City of Independence, Missouri, in 2014. Prior to her election, she served on the Independence City Council representing the city's 4th District from 2012 to 2014. She began her career in communications and public relations with the Kansas City Chiefs in 1992, acting as the team's Manager of Public Information and Media Services. She served as the Chiefs Charity Game Coordinator from 2009 to 2013 for the Children's Center for the Visually Impaired and Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Kansas City. Eileen and her husband Tom live in southwestern Independence with their twins, John and Nora. Mentioned in the Episode: Parade of Hearts website Parade of Hearts mobile app Parade of Hearts on Facebook Parade of Hearts on Instagram Parade of Hearts on Twitter The story about the heart at Your Wellness Connection
Matt Taranto is back on this episode with Kathy to talk about the impact of being involved in philanthropy around the community. When Matt started AesthetiCare Medspa, Matt knew he wanted to be involved in the community. After 20 years, the impact of charitable participation cannot be overvalued. Matt shares his best tips for contributing while bringing the most value to your clinic. The pair also share their journey and love for being Bigs for Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Kansas City. Tune in to see how you can bring your clinic into the community through charitable engagement. In today's discussion:Being visible in your communityParticipating in silent auctionsConnecting with causes you feel passionate aboutManaging requests for philanthropic participationFinding support in virtual trainingClient parties vs Girls Night OutCreating an entertaining presentationFocusing on conditions treatedCreating an army of marketersIncorporating your team into after-hour eventsThe value of participating in community eventsProviders To Watch:CONGRATULATIONS, CHARLOTTE SIMS!Read her Providers To Watch article Visit their website Follow on Instagram If you know a clinic or provider doing amazing things, nominate them here.Links from the episode:Events: Big, Small, & VirtualAesthetiCareAesthetiCare: Donations PageVirtual TrainingBig Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Kansas CityThe Rose Brooks FoundationNOMINATE A CLINICAd links:Clinics To WatchMINT Online E-coursesVirtual Immersion Seminar
Trigger Warning: Domestic Violence CasesIlluminating Hope, a podcast of Hope House brings you Voices of Justice, a series of podcasts where law enforcement officials, judges, and advocates come together to unravel the entangled web of domestic violence. Join us as we dive into the complex challenges faced by those on the front lines of justice, exploring real-life stories, legal nuances, and the human side of these cases. In each episode, our guests share their experiences, insights, and perspectives, shedding light on the multifaceted nature of domestic violence. Tune in for a compelling journey into the criminal justice system, where compassion meets the pursuit of truth, and where professionals strive to bring justice to those affected by the cycle of abuse.Judge Sill-Rogers was appointed to the Jackson County Circuit Court (16th Judicial Circuit) in September 1993. She obtained a Bachelor of Arts degree in administration of justice from the University of Missouri-Kansas City. She obtained her law degree from George Washington University National Law Center. Her judicial assignment since her appointment was handling a domestic docket in Family Court. She is a member of The Missouri Bar, the Kansas City Metropolitan Bar Association, and the Association of Woman Lawyers of Greater Kansas City. She served as a member and of the board past president of Operation Breakthrough, Inc., president of Lawyers Encouraging Academic Performance, a Core Team Leader of the Jackson County Safe Family Coalition and was the founding president of the Kansas City Youth Court. She received the Kansas City Metropolitan Bar Foundation award for community service. Additionally, she received an award from the Daily Record in 2006 as a Legal Leader of the Year. Hope House Domestic Violence Hotline 816-461-HOPENational Domestic Violence Hotline 800-799-7233
Sersie and Gigi sit down with the amazing vegan superhero, Dr. Daphne Bascom. Dr. Bascom shares her journey to lifestyle medicine and becoming vegan. They have a candid conversation about Health Equity and how lifestyle medicine concepts can help underserved communities prevent, treat, and possibly reverse common chronic diseases. About Daphne Bascom: Daphne Bascom, MD, PhD, is a certified health coach and Coaching Team leader with The Vegan Gym. Before relocating to Virginia to join the MITR corporation, Daphne was the Vice President of Population Health for St. Luke's Health System in Kansas City. As part of the population health team, she partnered with health systems, payors, and community partners to support managed care contracts with multi-million-dollar performance-based incentive opportunities. Daphne continues to work as a consultant for MITRE Corporation as a Principal Health Practice and Systems Engineer with the VA Health, Innovation & Central Office. As part of her multifaceted career, Dr. Bascom was a senior vice president and the medical director at the YMCA of Greater Kansas City. In 2018, Dr. Bascom also served as Y-USA's Chief Health Officer. In this role, she helped local Ys define and operationalize local clinical integration strategies while leveraging existing evidence-based health programs. Dr. Bascom was previously a Vice President and Chief Medical Officer with Cerner Corporation. Before re-joining Cerner, Dr. Bascom was Chief Clinical Systems Officer for Cleveland, Ohio's Cleveland Clinic Health System. During her time at the clinic, Dr. Bascom was part of the innovative team implementing the enterprise health record. Daphne also partnered with the Wellness Institute to support the Lifestyle 180 program. Dr. Bascom completed her fellowship in microvascular and reconstructive surgery of the head and neck at Oregon Health Sciences University and her medical degree, internship and residency in otolaryngology-head and neck surgery at the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center. She earned her PhD in physiological sciences at the University of Oxford, Laboratory of Physiology, in the United Kingdom. The Vegan Gym: https://thevegangym.com/ Daphne's Websites Wingman Wellness: www.WingmanWellness.com Perfectly Planted: www.PerfectlyPlanted22.com Social Media Instagram: @WingmanDaphne Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/dabascom Twitter: @DaphneBascom YouTube Wingman Wellness: https://www.youtube.com/@dabascom Perfectly Planted: https://www.youtube.com/@perfectlyplnted6071 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/daphne-bascom/ Healthy Christian Woman Bootcamp: https://www.healthyformypurpose.com/healthy-christian-woman-bootcamp --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/healthyformypurpose/message
"It feels good to be grateful. Gratitude opens your heart and unleashes a power of love.” - Mark Hulet As we head more into the holidays, this season helps us become more aware of the level of gratitude in our lives. Join Dr. Michelle Robin as she invites Mark Hulet from the YMCA of Greater Kansas City to share some lessons and insights he's learned over the course of this year. He'll speak about what it means to reflect and forgive, and why sometimes we can get stuck in a place with relationships by thinking about what should be next – when really it's important to first pause and find gratitude in those relationships. As he prepares to start his 24th year at the YMCA, he'll also explain the impact their nonprofit has had on families' lives in Kansas City this year – and why they couldn't do what they do in the community without their volunteers. About Today's Guest: In July 2023, Mark Hulet became the 11th chief executive officer to lead the YMCA of Greater Kansas City since it was founded in 1860. Hulet has served as interim president and CEO from January 1, 2023. Hulet's background includes all aspects of YMCA leadership, philanthropy, operations, and support. He began his YMCA of Greater Kansas City career in 2000 as an executive director of a Y membership center, and has held various positions including chief operating officer, senior vice president of capital assets and risk, and vice president of membership. As interim president and CEO, Hulet successfully launched the current strategic plan to address organizational culture, operational excellence and sustainability as the Y recovers from the pandemic. During the pandemic, Hulet led the reopening of Y centers and programs as chief operating officer, including mobilization of resources and programs to provide childcare for essential workers, combat social isolation for older adults and support vaccine distribution throughout greater Kansas City. Over the years, Hulet has provided operations and philanthropic leadership and established innovative partnerships. Projects have included partnerships for the Y to operate community centers in Platte County and North Kansas City and bringing the University Health primary care clinic to the Linwood YMCA/James B. Nutter, Sr. Community Center. In addition, he led capital projects including the construction of the new Kirk Family YMCA in downtown Kansas City, MO, and the renovations of the Linwood and Atchison Y's as part of the largest capital campaign in the Y's history. A longtime Kansas City resident, Mark has two sons, Keagan and Killian, and three grandchildren, Gracelynn, Raiden, and Ruari. Mentioned in the Episode: YMCA of Greater Kansas City YMCA – find a location around the U.S. Your Wellness Connection Volunteer at the YMCA of Greater Kansas City
"I'm grateful for where I'm planted in each season of life.” - Caleb Cooper What would you do differently with your health if there were no barriers? Would you choose more organic? Workout at a gym? Plug into your community through classes or even see a therapist? Join Dr. Michelle Robin as she invites Caleb Cooper from the YMCA of Greater Kansas City to share why their organization is focused on health equity in our community - a state in which everyone has a fair and just opportunity to attain their highest level of health. He'll also explain how kindness and gratitude overlap within their mission, and why he recognizes that many people choose the Y because they find kindness and gratitude within their walls. Caleb will also explain why it's a human need to feel like we belong, and how the Y delivers on that need. At the end of the episode, he'll also share some personal stories that he recalls over his 20-year career with the Y. Each one is rooted in the power of what happens when we give people an opportunity to reach for the best version of themselves. About Today's Guest: Caleb Cooper joined the YMCA of Greater Kansas City as Chief Operating Officer. He brings mor than 20 years of experience from the Ys across the country. Most recently, he was the Vice President of Equity and Belonging for the YMCA of South Hampton Roads. In previous roles, Cooper successfully led more than 14 Y locations, raised over 2 million to benefit marginalized communities, created a diversity, equity and inclusion department, and rebranded six Ys as Health Equity Campuses. As COO of the YMCA of Greater Kansas City, he is a key member of the executive leadership team which is focused on supporting the vision and setting the strategy for all operations and programs. Cooper leads a comprehensive and complex array of services and programs that focus on healthy living, youth development, and social responsibility in 11 membership centers and more than 90 before- and after-school programs and summer-day camps in 14 school districts. He also provides leadership for Marketing and Communications. Cooper has a bachelor's degree in business management (Human Resources). His volunteer work has included serving as a board member for Rotary, Exchange Clubs, Sentara College of Health Sciences, Hampton Roads Diversity and Inclusion Consortium, and Kappa Alpha Psi Fraternity Incorporated. Outside of work, Cooper enjoys golf, coaching soccer, fishing, and spending time with his family, which includes his wife Crystal and their two children. Mentioned in the Episode: YMCA of Greater Kansas City YMCA locations in the U.S. Small Changes Big Shifts Quadrants of Well-Being
"Kindness is showing an investment to each other.” - Darcy Swan A recent study revealed that two in three millennials don't feel like they belong in their local community. Looking a little further up the stream, another study showed that one in five students don't feel like they belong at their school. There's a growing void developing among the younger generations, who are looking for who they are in this great big world – and the YMCA wants to close that gap for them. Join Dr. Michelle Robin as she invites Darcy Swan from the Y to talk about why they've implemented specific Youth Development Services in our community to help kids find their belonging and develop a purpose in life. Darcy will also share some impactful encounters she had during her school years that led her into a teaching profession and later to the Y. The power of kindness will also become a cornerstone in this conversation, which proves how far small acts go in another person's life – such as calling someone by name or remembering what they are interested in. At the end of the show, Darcy will provide some wisdom to families looking to improve their overall well-being. About Today's Guest: Darcy Swan is Senior Vice President of Youth Development at the YMCA of Greater Kansas City. She providesleadership and strategy while building relationships to advance before and after school, summer day camp, preschool, and other YMCA out-of-school time programs throughout the greater Kansas City area. Prior to joining the YMCA in 2022, she was an executive director of curriculum and instruction for Kansas City, Kansas, Public Schools. She started her career in education with the Shawnee Mission School District as a middle school teacher and served in multiple advancing roles in the Shawnee Mission district including district resource specialist, interim elementary principle, and elementary curriculum coordinator. The Y is the largest provider of childcare services in the greater Kansas City area, serving more than 4,600 youth a year through before- and after-school programs, in addition to 2,300 youth a year in summer day camps. The Y provides before- and after-school programs and summer-day camps in districts throughout the metro, including Blue Valley, Bonner Springs, Lansing, Leavenworth, Lee's Summit, Piper, Platte County R-3, Shawnee Mission, Spring Hill, and Turner, as well as Crossroads Charter Schools, University Academy, Ascension, and St. Ann. Mentioned in the Episode: YMCA Kansas City website YMCA locations in the U.S. Youth Development Programs at the Y 31 Days of Kindness email series – sign up for free Big Shifts Foundation website
"Connectivity is so important – no matter what age.” - Amy Jewell A recent study showed that 2 in 5 Americans haven't made a new friend in five years due to shyness or introversion. Even more, another study revealed that the loneliness rate in America has doubled since the 1980s. That number has now reached 40 percent of adults in America, and some experts believe the “real number” may be a lot higher than that. During today's episode, Dr. Michelle Robin invites Amy Jewell from the YMCA of Greater Kansas City to share the multitude of ways their organization is helping to address the loneliness and mental health crisis for all ages. Amy will share why connection and relationships make all the difference in the world when we're going through challenges – saying that she can see relationships building everywhere you look at the YMCA. She will also explain why creating friendships can be a powerful form of therapy for kids and how some of their longest and lifelong friendships begin at the Y. About Today's Guest: Amy Jewell joined the YMCA of Greater Kansas City as the Senior Vice President of Operations in April 2023. She provides operations leadership for 11 of the Greater Kansas City Y Centers and their programs, including membership, healthy living, aquatics, youth, and family. Jewell has more than 15 years of experience in operations leadership at organizations including the Joplin YMCA in Joplin, Missouri; the Jewish Community Center in Overland Park, Kansas; Central Florida YMCA in Orlando, Floraida; and the City of Mount Dora, Florida. Most recently, she was a consultant facilitating partnerships between public and private sector clients to meeting community needs in Boca Raton, Florida. Mentioned in the Episode: YMCA of Greater Kansas City YMCA locations around the U.S.
This week, my mentor, The Godmother/Meryl Streep/Julia Roberts of Greater Kansas City perinatal mental health, Meeka Centimano joins me for a chat about perinatal mental health disorders (PMHDs), recurrence rates in subsequent pregnancy journeys, and how to set ourselves up for success along the way. Meeka practically created the ever-changing and growing landscape of perinatal mental health in the area, utilizing a social worker background that focuses on the bigger picture, inclusivity, and justice, as well as clinical acumen. She and her team focus on taking care of the many layers of people facing perinatal concerns in a nuanced way, setting the stage through a biopsychosocial lens for people to have support in line before a crisis can arise. So much more discussion on such an important topic, we look forward to having you watch this spectacular discussion with our KC Perinatal Auntie, Meeka Centimano. Thanks for joining us again on The Perinatal Podcast, and remember to Be Curious, Not Judgmental! Find Meeka! Website: https://www.centimano.com/ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/centimano_counseling/ Thanks so much for joining me for this episode of The Perinatal Podcast. I'd love for you to write a review of my show on your app, and don't forget to subscribe so you get a notification when new content is posted. Take a moment to leave a 5-star rating, too! You can also support this podcast by purchasing a monthly subscription for the amount of your choosing at https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/theperinatalpodcast/support. Follow me at @AmplifyWellnessWithMeg on Instagram and find Meg Duke LCSW on Facebook. You can also look for The Perinatal Podcast content by searching the hashtag, #ThePerinatalPodcast. Our show is executive produced by David Presley and produced by Meg Duke. Our theme song was written and performed by Antwone McDuffie.
As we hit summer this week, it's a great time for baseball camp. And it's a great time to pick up our bimonthly chat with C You In The Major Leagues Founder and Executive Chair Dayton Moore. This was recorded during our ninth annual C You In The Major Leagues Baseball Camp at the Jewish Community Center of Greater Kansas City.This week we chat with Dayton about his old friend Rusty Kuntz, who was one of our camp instructors, the art of scouting, C You At Topgolf, his gig with the Texas Rangers, and much more.LINKS:For more information about the C-10 Mentoring & Leadership program for high school students, visit our website.To make a financial gift to give students life-changing one-on-one mentoring, visit our secure donation page.For all episodes of the C-10 podcast and ways you can listen, click here.If you'd like to make a comment, have a suggestion for a future guest, or your company would like to help underwrite this podcast, please visit our contact page.
May 15 marks the 75th aniversaryof the Nakba, the Arabic word for “catastrophe” when 3/4 of the indigenous population of Palestine lost their homeland in the establishment of the state of Israel. Commemorations of the anniversary are taking place across the United States, including in Kansas City where Palestinian- Americans and their friends will gather Saturday, May 20, at 6 p.m. at the Islamc Center of Greater Kansas City both to recognize the Nakba and to celebrate the survival of Palestinian culture. In this episode members of the local Palestinian community in Kansasa City share their recollections of the Nakba, their reflections on its continuance and why they are commemorating it.
“This is something that connected our region like never before.'” - Eileen Weir There's a famous saying that goes, “It only takes one tree to start a forest, one smile to begin a friendship... one thought to change the world” and that's exactly what happened in the Kansas City community through the Parade of Hearts that began from one drawing on a napkin. During its last auction in 2022, it raised more than $2 million for Kansas City charities. During today's episode, Dr. Michelle invites Jenn Nussbeck and Eileen Weir to share how this project began, the doors that it opened in our community, and the opportunity it provided to build connections with people in different neighborhoods across the metro. They also explain why public art has become a crucial piece to our community's well-being and why it evoked certain senses for the people who live here. Jenn will also tell a moving story about two people who met at one of the hearts and how that location formed their new friendship. At the end of the episode, they will give listeners an exclusive update about what's next for the Parade of Hearts in Kansas City, which means you will be the first to hear it on this episode! About Today's Guests: Jenn Nussbeck is the Parade of Hearts Executive Director. She has served on numerous public charity boards as well as dedicated the last 15 years supporting organizations throughout communities in Kansas City. Assisting those navigating the philanthropy and civic channels is not only her work, but her passion. Jenn was born in San Diego but raised in Kansas City. She comes from a large Irish family. Her great uncle (Pat O'Neill Sr.) started the Kansas City St. Patrick's Day Parade with Mike Murphy. Eileen Weir was elected Mayor of the City of Independence, Missouri, in 2014. Prior to her election, she served on the Independence City Council representing the city's 4th District from 2012 to 2014. She began her career in communications and public relations with the Kansas City Chiefs in 1992, acting as the team's Manager of Public Information and Media Services. She served as the Chiefs Charity Game Coordinator from 2009 to 2013 for the Children's Center for the Visually Impaired and Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Kansas City. Eileen and her husband Tom live in southwestern Independence with their twins, John and Nora. Mentioned in the Episode: Parade of Hearts website Parade of Hearts mobile app Parade of Hearts on Facebook Parade of Hearts on Instagram Parade of Hearts on Twitter The story about the heart at Your Wellness Connection
“There's something about these kids just getting on the field or court because it's their turn to try.” - Raegan Shurr Research shows that early intervention for kids with autism spectrum disorder can significantly improve their quality of life as they grow older. In today's episode, Dr. Michelle Robin invites Raegan Schurr to share how the YMCA of Greater Kansas City has built something called the Challenger Program that helps these kids fulfill some of those critical early intervention needs through sports and teamwork. Raegan explains why they have cultivated an environment that helps parents let their guard down and watch their kids explore and grow by learning about patience, why it's important to show up on time, how to be a good teammate, and so much more. With over 300 volunteers across Kansas City who are giving their time to impact these kids' lives, the Challenger Program has multiple benefits for early intervention learning opportunities. At the end of the show, Raegan shares a heartfelt story about a boy who was in the Challenger Program many years ago, and why he decided to return when he was older to pay that kindness forward. About Today's Guest and Co-Host: Raegan Schurr is the Senior Director of Adaptive Programs for the YMCA of Greater Kansas City. Having been with the YMCA movement for 29 years, her greatest love has been working with individuals with disabilities and the many volunteers through the Challenger Program. She also holds certification for faculty trainer for YUSA 's Strengthening Inclusion: Engaging Communities of Diverse Abilities and is a founding member of the Access and Ability Network. When not on the field or court with Challenger, you will find her on a golf course or enjoying music by her firepit with friends. Desiree Cole is the Content Director and Brand Manager at Small Changes Big Shifts. She creates, writes, and manages the voice and content for the brand. She has loved all things wellness since she was introduced to the lifestyle in college, where she learned to cook more plant-based food and care for the whole body in holistic ways. She began her journalism career in Chicago and New York City, where she worked in Manhattan as an editor for news agencies, magazines, and book publishing. She's part of the Small Changes Big Shifts team because she believes words are powerful messengers to the spirit, heart, and mind. Desiree was born and raised in Kansas City and believes there's no place like it. Her husband (Zach), son (Ollie), and two golden retrievers (Linus and Lucy) live in a loud and happy house with its eight paws and a very joyful little boy who loves them. Mentioned in the Episode: The Challenger Program at the YMCA YMCA Challenger on Facebook Fred and Shirley Pryor YMCA Sports Complex YMCA Greater Kansas City YMCA around the country
Last summer we talked a little bit about growing extra produce in our gardens specifically for donation. I will leave a link to that episode in this episode description. This week I have the pleasure of interviewing two folks from After The Harvest, an organization here in the Kansas City Metro area that rescues fruits and vegetables from going to waste and donates them to agencies that serve hungry people in the Greater Kansas City area. Their volunteers glean after the harvest, picking what's left in farmers' fields and picking up already harvested leftover produce. They bring together volunteers, growers, financial donors and food agencies all participating in fighting hunger, improving nutrition and reducing food waste. Our farm has donated to After The Harvest for years at one of our local farmer's markets and I was happy to reach out get them on this show to not only spread their mission here locally but to speak to you about how you can get involved in whatever organization facilitates the movement of fresh fruits in vegetables in your area to the people who need it the most. So, take a listen to my conversation with Brooke and Clay from After The Harvest and maybe think about the ways you can be helping this movement in your own area with produce from your own garden. Let's dig in. RESOURCES: Ep. 95 - Grow a Row to Donate After the Harvest | Healthy Food for Hungry People » After the Harvest (aftertheharvestkc.org) Volunteer » After the Harvest Gleaning Calendar Laws, Resources, & Organizations for Gleaning & Food Recovery - National Gleaning Project Map of Gleaning & Food Recovery Organizations in the USA (nationalgleaningproject.org) Get a Free Bloom Juice from Elm Dirt: Use Code JustGrow Say Thank You! Just Grow Something Gardening Friends Facebook Group Check out how you can become a patron on Patreon Follow me on Instagram JustGrowSomethingPodcast.com Merchandise | Just Grow Something Positively Farming MediaPodcast Playlist on Spotify --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/justgrowsomething/message
Amal Ramadan menjadi bentuk kontribusi Muslim AS di komunitas, seperti dalam program bantuan makanan masjid Indonesia IMAAM Center atau LSM Ameen Project. Selain melihat kegiatan di California, Rivan Dwiastono dan Ariadne Budianto juga berkunjung ke Islamic School of Greater Kansas City di Missouri.
“We're all connected to serve.” - Mark Hulet Mark Hulet's life was forever changed when he decided to leave football coaching days behind him and take a job at the YMCA of Greater Kansas City, where he would serve for the next 22 years in a variety of roles. In today's episode, Dr. Michelle Robin invites Mark to share his journey with the Y, and how this organization brings people in from the community to build a connection with others. Because this month's theme is about heart, Mark will also share how the Y supports the heart for people – not just physically, but mentally and spiritually as well. People may come in to get on a treadmill or take a swim, but he shares that once they come inside and get to know the “heart” of the organization, a lifetime relationship is made. At the end of the episode, Mark shares his dream of being able to take people forward with all the seeds they are currently planting in our community. About Today's Guest: When Mark Hulet left college, he began college football coaching. But after bouncing around from city to city with his young family, they decided to permanently move back to Kansas City where he landed his first job at the YMCA, now 22 years ago. Mark has been with the YMCA of Greater Kansas City ever since that day, serving in a variety of roles. Today, he is the Interim President & CEO of the YMCA in KC. The reason he has stayed with the YMCA all these years is because of the people. He especially loves being able to see the connection kids, families, and seniors are making here within their community. Mentioned in the Episode: YMCA – Find a location near you in the U.S. YMCA of Greater Kansas City Drive-thru food pantries at the YMCA
In this episode, Equus' Bob Knight is joined by Clyde McQueen, CEO of the Full Employment Council, Inc. in Greater Kansas City, Missouri. The pair dives into public policy, the complexities of jobs of the future, economic development drivers, and more.
On this episode of Banking on KC, André Davis, Corporate and Community Engagement Executive at Built Interior Construction, joins host Kelly Scanlon to discuss how to leverage relationships to create change and positively impact the community. ABOUT ANDRÉ DAVIS André Davis is the Corporate and Community Engagement Executive for Built Interior Construction, a prefabricated interior construction company that builds commercial environments. An accomplished thought leader, influencer, social activist, mentor/coach, speaker, philanthropist, André has more than 20 years of experience working with CEOs, executives and entrepreneurs while continuing to give back to the community. Among his list of community and civic engagement: Board member for PrepKC, which creates and implements strategies to improve college and career preparation for Kansas City's urban high school students. Ambassador board member for Big Brothers Big Sisters - Kansas City, where he and other members personally fund and award scholarships to local kids in the BBBS program. Board member/board president for the Civic Council of Greater Kansas City - Kansas City Tomorrow Alumni Association (KCTAA), which supports members who are interested in enhancing their nonprofit and civic leadership skills and talents. Former board member for UMKC - Marketing Advisory Council (MAC). Founding board member for The Beacon, a new nonprofit online media outlet focused on public interest journalism. Board member for C3KC Conference (corporate, civic, community), the Junior League's annual collaborative conference that sparks change for a better Kansas City. Former chair of the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Board for Big Brothers Big Sisters – Kansas City. Awarded the Jane Bryan Distinguished Alumni Award by the Grandview Education Foundation, which honors individuals whose deeds and character exemplify outstanding achievement in their life's work and/or service to their communities. Awarded Ingram's Magazine 2022 Local Heroes Award recognizing extraordinary philanthropic work in our region and was featured in the magazine's 26th annual Philanthropy Special Edition. Selected for the Civic Council of Greater Kansas City, Kansas City Tomorrow leadership program, which develops leaders for civic, community and non-profit engagement. Alumnus of The Independent Magazine's Rising Star Award, which highlights up-and-coming leaders. Co-founded and personally funds The NexTus scholarship at his Alma Mater College geared towards African-American students. Country Club Bank – Member FDIC
The KC Pioneers and the Boys & Girls Club of Greater Kansas City began a partnership to help connect kids in Kansas City with career opportunities in the world of esports. The groups also collaborated to build an esports lounge in northeast Kansas City, Kansas, and hold multiple youth esports tournaments.
The colder months can make it difficult to stay active, which is why today's episode is all about how to keep our bodies moving, even indoors. During today's show, Dr. Michelle Robin welcomes Danelle Husk from the YMCA to share how organizations like theirs are offering new ways for people to stay active during the wintertime. Danelle shares some of her favorite indoor activities, but also speaks to the YMCA 360 portal that allows their members to explore classes that promote a spirit, mind, and body connection to stay well this winter. She provides some examples of why this new platform has been so successful for their members, especially since it gives people an opportunity to try a new workout inside the comfort of their own home rather than a public gym. Later in the show, Dr. Robin welcomes Ant the Trainer, who shares his inspiring story of how he lost 65lbs in 8 months by becoming a mailman – and what motivated him to begin learning the science behind how our bodies work and what they need. He covers some important topics such as why people struggle with a healthy lifestyle, and also gives listeners a few tips that will inspire you to keep focusing on the impact small changes can have in your life. About Today's Guests: Danelle Huske is a Program Director II for the YMCA of Greater Kansas City, supporting membership and healthy living at the Olathe and Prairie Village locations. She has a Master's degree in Health, Physical Education, and Recreation from Emporia State University. She first worked at the Y in 2001, and returned in 2004 and has worked at the Y since then. Her favorite part of working at the Y is helping people improve their overall health and making it a welcoming place for all. She's from Silver Lake, Kansas. In her spare time, she enjoys spending time with family and friends, going to sporting events, watching sports, and staying active. Ant the Trainer used to be a truck driver that delivered farm equipment from coast to coast. His eating habits were poor from always being on the road. He struggled with his breathing and was borderline hypertension. In 2018, he moved to Kansas City and became a mailman, which meant he went from sitting all day to now walking 10-15 miles nearly every day to deliver mail. He quickly lost 65lbs in 8 months, and this was just the beginning of his brand-new story. After he realized how good he felt, he enrolled in a Bachelor's program for Exercise Science to learn everything he could about how our bodies functioned and what they need to stay well. Today, he is a professional personal trainer who helps others to build confidence and change their life like he did. Mentioned in the Episode: YMCA 360 YMCA of Greater Kansas City YMCA – Find a location in the U.S. Big Shifts Foundation Ant the Trainer's website Ant the Trainer Instagram Small Changes Big Shifts Kansas City Wellness Consortium MajorMove.fit
Sh*t You Wish You Learned in Grad School with Jennifer Agee, LCPC
Emily Sterk, LCMFT and I discuss the differences of non-profit counseling practices vs for-profit private practices. Emily is the founder of Healing Towards Wellness, a non-profit counseling practice in the Greater Kansas City area. There are a lot of ways to meet the mental health needs of our communities and Emily shares her knowledge and experience in connecting the communities needs by reimagining what it means to create accessible care in our communities. After moving back to KC in 2018, Emily saw a a major crisis surrounding suicide rates and connected that to lack of available and affordable mental healths services, from there Healing Towards Wellness was created. Since its start in 2019, HTW has supported over 50 teachers with six months of free therapy, the average cost of session is $50 and continues to stand by the belief that supporting local and being heavily involved in the community lowers mental health crisis.OFFERS & HELPFUL LINKS:Healing Toward Wellness websiteCounseling Community TikTokJennifer Agee coaching pageCounseling Community Facebook communityCounseling Community InstagramAlaskan Cruise: Experiential Therapeutic Intervention Training for Therapists June 3-10, 2023Portugal Marketing Retreat October 2-7, 2023
“Stress tends to occur when there's an imbalance from a demand being placed on you, and it seems like you might be incapable of meeting that demand.” - Megan Walker Many people experience higher stress levels during the holidays, mainly due to having a lot more on our plate. However, creating a stress response toolkit can better help your body and mind manage that stress. In today's episode, Dr. Michelle Robin welcomes Megan Walker, who is the Healthy Living Director at the YMCA in the Greater Kansas City area to talk about what that toolkit can include for you. She dives into the importance of understanding what stress is in the body and why it happens, then provides some steps you can start making today before the holiday parties and family events begin. Some key tips that are mentioned include reframing our mindset, physical activity to release stress, blood sugar, hydrating with water, the role fiber has in your body, and where we need to allow more self-compassion on ourselves during the holidays. About Today's Guests: Megan Walker is the Healthy Living Director for the YMCA of Greater Kansas City, at the Platte County Community Center North location. She has a passion for helping others lead a healthier lifestyle and approaches overall wellness from a holistic perspective. She joined the YMCA in 2021 as a Healthy Living Coach, Group Exercise Instructor, and Personal Trainer, and now gets the pleasure of serving the community in her role as director. Although she is relatively new to the YMCA, she has been in the exercise and sport science field for eight years having worked within higher education as a collegiate softball coach, Mental performance Consultant providing services to individual student-athletes and teams, and as a faculty member teaching Sport and Exercise Psychology. Mentioned in the Episode: YMCA.org - Locate all locations nationwide YMCA of Greater Kansas City Big Shifts Foundation
“When you look at the Y's core values since the beginning, it's all about honesty, respect, responsibility, and caring.” - John Mikos The YMCA was established 178 years ago – and 162 years ago the Kansas City location was founded. Since then, the nonprofit organization has expanded to 135 countries around the world, and annually serves 155,000 people in just the Kansas City community. During today's episode, Dr. Michelle Robin invites John Mikos, who is the CEO of the YMCA in Greater Kansas City, to share why kindness is such an integral part of who they are and everything that they do. John began his career at the Y as a lifeguard when he was a teenager, quickly deciding this was the place he wanted to work for the rest of his life – a big reason being the kindness the organization shows every day to its community. He also shares some examples about how they incorporate many of their core values into their youth programs to help kids grow with an understanding and awareness about how these things impact their spiritual, mental, and physical health. About Today's Guest: John Mikos became the CEO of the YMCA of Greater Kansas City in 2019 after serving as the Chief Operating Officer since 2013. He's led many progressive developments with the Y in Kansas City, bringing focus to innovative integrated health programs, fostering the Y's vision, and building great relationships with health and community partners across the region. Since joining the organization, Mikos has been part of the downtown YMCA/Kirk Family Community Center breaking ground at the former Lyric Theatre building, as well as the expansion and renovation of facilities, including the Atchison Family YMCA/Cray Community Center and the Linwood Family YMCA/James B. Nutter, and Senior Community Center. Mikos has also worked with North Kansas City government to renovate its area location. Prior to joining YMCA of Greater Kansas City, John held the Chief Operating Officer positions at both the YMCA of Western North Carolina in Asheville and the YMCA of Greater Tulsa. Mentioned in the Episode: 31 Days of Kindness – Sign up for the free email series YMCA of Greater Kansas City YMCA- to find a location near you Before & After School Y Club Youth Sports Nutritional, Personal Training & Weight Loss Challenger Buddy Program Youth Swim Programs Be Good to People Online Store Be Good to People Foundation
10.5.2022 #RolandMartinUnfiltered: KCMO Police Troubles & White Media's Supremacist Hypocrisy, OPEC Cuts Oil Production, WeKinkfolk App The Mayor of Kansas City, Missouri addresses the DOJ's investigation of the city's police department. When we had the CEO of the Urban League of Greater Kansas City on the show, I called out the President of the Kansas City Board of Police Commissioners, Bishop Mark Tolbert. He heard it, and he's here tonight. Plus, the black folks in Kansas City, Missouri, feel neglected and unheard regarding crimes in their community. I'll talk to the Founder and Editor of the Kansas City Defender, who is calling out the supremacist hypocrisy of Kanas City's white media. Some white folks in Wisconsin are suing President Joe Biden's student loan forgiveness plan. They claim it violates federal law by intentionally seeking to narrow the racial wealth gap and help Black borrowers. Yeah, we'll talk about that. OPEC's latest move could drive up gas prices. We'll show you what happened when a CNBC reporter asked Saudi Arabia's Energy Minister if the decision to cut oil production was a power play right before the midterm elections. Fort Leavenworth makes history by installing its first black commander. And in our Tech Talk segment, a black IT guru creates a social media platform that celebrates black and brown culture, unity, and love. I'll talk to the creator of We-Kin-Folk. 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
Invest Like a Billionaire - The alternative investments & strategies billionaires use to grow wealth
“Give like a Billionaire.” Many times when you are so focused on growing our wealth, it's easy to lose sight of your “why”. And for many, that “why” is to leave a legacy. In this episode, Bob Fraser and Ben Fraser bring on Evan Lange, President of the Midwest region at The Signatry, to discuss giving strategies used by Warren Buffet, donor-advised funds, giving assets versus cash, tax benefits, and much more. If you want to learn how to strategically create a legacy roadmap, you don't want to miss this episode. Evan serves as the President of the Midwest Region for The Signatry, a global Christian foundation. As President, his primary role is to assist attorneys, advisors, and business owners to develop strategies and solutions to minimize their tax liability and maximize their charitable giving. This includes charitable gifts of complex assets like real estate, closely-held business interest and intellectual property. Evan is a frequent speaker at conferences and legal/tax educational programs throughout the United States. He and his wife, Farah, have three children and reside in the Greater Kansas City area. Read the full transcription https://aspenfunds.us/podcast/warren-buffetts-giving-strategies---feat-evan-lange Connect with Evan - https://www.linkedin.com/in/evanlange/ Learn more about The Signatry - https://www.linkedin.com/company/the-signatry/ Invest Like a Billionaire podcast is sponsored by Aspen Funds which focuses on macro-driven alternative investments for accredited investors. Learn More about Aspen Funds. https://www.aspenfunds.us Join the Investor Club to get early access to exclusive deals. https://www.aspenfunds.us/investorclub Subscribe on your favorite podcast app, so you never miss an episode. https://www.thebillionairepodcast.com/follow Rate us! We really appreciate your feedback and support. https://www.thebillionairepodcast.com/reviews/new/ Ask Anything! We'd love to hear what's Top of Mind. https://www.thebillionairepodcast.com/contact
9.23.2022 #RolandMartinUnfiltered: DOJ KCMO PD Probe, FAMU Students Sue Fla. over State Funds, McClain Autopsy Amended, IL Cop Charged Kansas City civil rights groups have long known their police department had high incidences of violence against Black and Latino people and racist hiring practices. Now the Department of Justice is investigating. The President and CEO of the Urban League of Greater Kansas City, Gwen Grant, and Marc Morial, the President, and CEO of the National Urban League, are here tonight to discuss what they hope to come of this probe. An amended autopsy report says Elijah McClain's death was caused by being injected with ketamine by paramedics after being forcibly restrained. A former Illinois police officer is charged with murdering a black man after a brief car chase. A white Mississippi man gets indicted on federal hate crime and arson charges for burning a cross to intimidate a black family. Thursday, congress members met with faith leaders to discuss Congress's responsibility to act on voting rights, living wages, and healthcare for the poor. I'll talk to California Representative Ro Khanna, who was at that meeting, to find out if they have come up with a plan. In our Education Matters segment, Texas Southern University has a new Student Success Satellite Center in Arlington. I'll talk to Ron Price, a TSU Board of Regents member. And I'll show you some of my interviews from the screening of the Sidney Poitier documentary. 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
“Sometimes it's the things that come most natural to us that we take for granted. We don't even realize what a superpower that is until we see people who don't have that ability.” - Jana Stanfield Welcome to our Special Topics episode in September, where we invite our sponsors to present unique topics that help listeners build community, boost wellness prevention, and provide educational opportunities to further their well-being. Today's Special Topics Episode Music has been a part of Jana Stanfield's entire life – ever since she was a little girl when she began learning the piano, but eventually chose guitar. In today's episode, Jana shares part of her life story that includes the moment she had a wake-up call about her career. She began as a hard news television reporter, but quickly realized the words that were getting people to tune in to the network were only inciting fear. Jana realized it was time for a change, and that going forward she wanted to use her words – combined with her musical gift – to inspire and lift people up. This launched her into a profound speaking and performance career all over the world. Listeners will even get a chance to hear her perform some of her music in today's episode, and again as one of the speakers at the Living in Vitality annual event by AdventHealth this year. Later in the show, Dr. Robin welcomes Andrea Toney, who is the Executive Director at the YMCA of Greater Kansas City. Because September is Hunger Action Month, Andrea shares how the YMCA of Greater Kansas City is helping people who are hungry find their next meal. Through their mobile food drive and the development of soon-to-be food pantries at some of the Y locations, this organization is all about finding what the gaps are in our community and filling them through these hunger initiatives. Andrea shares that 1 in 8 people in the Kansas City community are hungry, and 1 in 6 kids don't even know where their next meal will come from. She goes on to explain why the Y is on a mission to strengthen this community so that kids do better in school and help alleviate the stress many families are feeling from the unprecedented times. About Today's Guests: As a motivational performer, Jana Stanfield combines music with a message that entertains, inspires, and encourages. Her mission is to give organizations a “faith lift” by delivering music, humor, and a message that makes people feel better about who they are, what they do, and why they are doing it. Jana teaches half-day life skills workshops and often delivers the motivational close at conferences and conventions, sending attendees out with a message that is empowering and uplifting. She is a multi-platinum songwriter, and many have heard her songs on the radio, television, and in movies – one even being sung by Reba McEntire. She is the founder of Refugee Film School, and the co-founder of Together We Can Change the World. She now spends her time overseas helping teen refugees. Andrea Toney is the Executive Director at the Cleaver Family YMCA in the Greater Kansas City area. She has a deep passion for serving and leading others and has been lucky enough to get to do this through the YMCA of Greater Kansas City for the last 20 years. She loves coming together with others in the Kansas City community to serve a need and to be a bright light in their lives. Andrea enjoys spending time with her family, cheering for her kids from the sidelines, and gathering with friends and family. Mentioned in the Episode: Unity Church of Overland Park Living in Vitality event at AdventHealth – September 30, 2022 The E Factor: Engage, Energize, Enrich book by Dr. Michelle Robin Mobile Food Pantry at the YMCA in Greater Kansas City Volunteer at the YMCA in Greater Kansas City Donate to the YMCA to help them continue their mission
Global Investors: Foreign Investing In US Real Estate with Charles Carillo
Logan Freeman has facilitated over $150MM in over 125 separate real estate transactions and focuses on working with local and out-of-state investors to acquire investment property in the Greater Kansas City market. Learn More About Logan Here: FTW Investments - https://ftwinvestmentsllc.com/ LiveFree Investments - https://www.livefreeinvestments.com/ Connect with the Global Investors Show, Charles Carillo and Harborside Partners: ◾ Setup a FREE 15 Minute Strategy Call with Charles: http://ScheduleCharles.com ◾ FREE Passive Investing Guide: http://www.HSPguide.com ◾ Join Our Weekly Email Newsletter: http://www.HSPsignup.com ◾ Passively Invest in Real Estate: http://www.InvestHSP.com ◾ Global Investors Web Page: http://GlobalInvestorsPodcast.com/
“Lower back pain is not bad genetics or bad luck. A majority of the time it's just a mechanical issue.” - Dr. Sean Cailteux Between medications, surgeries, treatments, and missed work, lower back pain is costing people in the United States over 200 billion dollars per year. Even more, research shows that 4 out of 5 people will experience lower back pain at some point in their lives, and most of them either feel hopeless about it or unsure how to treat it. In today's episode, Dr. Sean Cailteux shares his story about how he found his calling in chiropractic medicine and how God played an integral role in getting him to this point in his life. Dr. Cailteux specializes in lower back pain, so he provides several methods that chiropractors can do to help people who experience it. He recommends what every good chiropractor should do when someone comes in with pain in the body as well as a few prevention tips. He also describes why decompression treatments and the Kinesio Taping Method are growing holistic treatments. Later in the show, Dr. Michelle Robin welcomes Starla Bargmann from the YMCA of Greater Kansas City. Starla explains how their LIVESTRONG program is impacting our community who are currently fighting cancer or cancer survivors. The LIVESTRONG program helps them work on their physical and mental health by providing fitness activities and a community of others who are along a similar journey. About Today's Guests: Dr. Sean Cailteux specializes in lower back pain conditions and the care of extremities using Cox Flexion Distraction, Diversified, Activator, Spinal Decompression, Kinesio Taping Method, and Cold Laser therapy. He received his undergraduate from Washburn University in Exercise Physiology and Pre-Med. Graduating with Honors, Dr. Cailteux continued on to Parker University for a Doctorate in Chiropractic, Bachelor of Science in Human Anatomy, and a Bachelor of Science in Health and Wellness. Dr. Cailteux finished his time at Parker University Cum Laude and was awarded The Robert J. Czopoth Service and Leadership Award as well as Best Technique Award, awarded to one member of every graduating class. He grew up in St. Mary's, Kansas, and now calls Kansas City home, where he has been chiropractor at Your Wellness Connection for 12 years. Starla Bargmann is the Healthy Living Director at the YMCA in the Greater Kansas City area. She joined the YMCA team in 2012 when she became a group exercise instructor, healthy living coach, personal trainer, and LIVESTRONG certified instructor. She is also a NETA certified personal trainer and a YUSA certified group exercise instructor. Starla has a Master's degree in teaching. Before the YMCA, Starla taught high school history for six years and preschool for two years. When she isn't working, she's gardening. She and her family have a mini farm where they raise chickens, sell eggs, and raise turkeys for Thanksgiving. Mentioned in the Episode: Cleveland Chiropractic School Chiropractic Experience Wellness Center in Lawrence Cleveland Clinic Research Small Changes Big Shifts Kansas City Wellness Consortium Network Spinal Hygiene Exercises from Dr. Sean – Download will begin immediately LIVESTRONG program at the YMCA in Greater Kansas City
On June 19, 2019, a college student with her entire life ahead of her returns to her family's Prairie Village, Kansas home after studying abroad in Italy. Ellie Green is the only child of Angela and Geoff Green, and the trio was an incredibly tight-knit family. Ellie was likely expecting a happy homecoming, but instead, she and Angela got into an argument. According to Ellie, the argument wasn't a bad one, but Angela told her to leave. Ellie went to stay the night at her boyfriend's house, figuring her mother would cool off soon. But instead of hearing from her mom that night, three days went by without a word. Then Ellie received a shocking text from her father that would just be the first in several stories of where her mother was. Now, over two years later, Ellie is still left wondering what really happened to her mother, Angela Green?Anyone with information can anonymously call the Greater Kansas City Crime Stoppers tips hotline at 816-474-TIPS or the Prairie Village Police Department at 913-642-6868. Crime Stoppers offers up to $2,000 for any tip that leads to an arrest for any felony crime. Tips can also be submitted at tips.fbi.gov.Cualquier persona con información puede llamar de forma anónima a la línea directa de sugerencias de Crime Stoppers de Greater Kansas City al 816-474-TIPS o al Departamento de Policía de Prairie Village al 913-642-6868. Crime Stoppers ofrece hasta $2,000 por cualquier pista que conduzca a un arresto por cualquier delito grave. Los consejos también se pueden enviar en tips.fbi.gov.GoFundMe for Angela Green: https://www.gofundme.com/f/justice-for-angela-greenChange.org petition for Angela Green: https://www.change.org/p/justice-for-angela-greenWe are proud members of Spreaker Prime and The Darkcast Network.Find us everywhere: https://linktr.ee/attwgpodGet episodes early and ad-free on Patreon: https://patreon.com/attwgpodMerch store: https://www.teepublic.com/stores/attwgpodFor a full list of our sources, please visit our blog: https://andthentheyweregone.com/blogThis week's promo is from Spotlight on Darkcast: Got a long drive? Maybe you need something to listen to while house cleaning? Spotlight on Darkcast - great Binge Buffet of fantastic shows with dark themes. pod.link/1593743905Partial list of sources:https://uncovered.com/cases/angela-greenhttps://www.doenetwork.org/cases/4392dfks.htmlhttps://twitter.com/ell_green0/status/1284221569376673795https://www.namus.gov/MissingPersons/Case#/65746/detailshttps://www.facebook.com/FindAngelaGreenhttps://www.crimeonline.com/2020/11/02/where-is-angela-green-daughters-recorded-phone-calls-with-her-father-raise-more-questions-than-answers/https://heavy.com/entertainment/angela-green-missing/https://www.facebook.com/pvpolicedept/photos/a.115985938530859/2539010356228393/?type=3https://fox4kc.com/news/warrant-served-at-lawrence-home-in-search-of-prairie-village-woman-missing-since-june-2019/
Welcome to our Special Topics episode in July, where we bring in two of our sponsors to help bring our listeners community-building engagement, prevention and education opportunities available. Today's Special Topics Episode Diane O'Byrne presents an amazing opportunity for women in the Kansas City area on September 3, 2022 – the Living in Vitality conference at AdventHealth (formally known as Shawnee Mission). This year marks its 25th anniversary, where they have spent all prior years bringing women together to learn and receive lifelong self-care takeaways that will finally get them closer to stepping into their best lives. She highlights what the day encompasses and what the admission includes for each woman. She even shares a heartwarming story about a friend's sister who experienced a life-changing moment for herself while at this event, which is often why so many women choose to return again and again for this event every year. In the last segment of the show, Kathy Armitage from the YMCA in Greater Kansas City joins us to break the barriers that we often put around ourselves as we age. After her father experienced a tragic fall, which led to complications and his passing, Kathy has spent the last 22 years of her career at the YMCA creating programs for people aging and looking for a way to stay active, improve their flexibility and strength, all while removing limitations we often put on ourselves as we age. She shares a handful of opportunities and programs available at the YMCA of Greater Kansas City that have helped thousands of people see that society has put folks who age in a box – but each person has an opportunity to go outside that box and start gaining strength and confidence at any age. She even shares some tips you can do at home to improve balance and fall prevention, since most falls happen at home. About Today's Guests: Diane O'Byrne is the Co-Chair of Living in Vitality annual event at AdventHealth. She has four generations of women in her family who are living in vitality, and has a passion to see more women in our community discover the power in self-care and resources available for them to live a life better than they could have ever imagined. Kathy Armitage is the Active Lifestyles Program Director at the YMCA of Greater Kansas City. She specializes in working with people who are 50 and older through healthy living programs that support body, mind, and spirit. She has spent the last 22 years at the YMCA developing programs for these ages, and pioneered the programs that help people see that aging doesn't mean they will lose their flexibility, strength, or mobility. Mentioned in the Episode: Living in Vitality Event – September 30, 2022 Get Moving like an Animal with Tony Temple – Kids Living in Vitality YMCA in Greater Kansas City SmartStart Program at the YMCA
This week on JobMakers, host Denzil Mohammed talks with Pedro Zamora, executive director of the Hispanic Economic Development Corporation of Greater Kansas City. Pedro and his organization work on initiatives that are crucial to the economic vitality of the area, and they've helped more than 4,700 businesses. Immigrants there are having an outsized economic and […]
“I want my kids to grow up knowing who I am in real life, not just in their head. I cry in front of them, I'm peculiar, I'm a little weird. I want to show them all facets of myself so they can embrace it for themselves.” - Brandon McAnderson Brandon McAnderson is a former All-Big 12 Running Back at the University of Kansas, and today is a sideline reporter and pre-game host for KU football games. He is also an active member in the Kansas City community who brings men together to grow spiritually and address commonly held (and harmful) male stigmas present in today's world. In today's show, Brandon shares why Father's Day is a good time for men to check in on their mental health. That means pausing and reflecting on all you have done as a father this year, and more importantly celebrating the big and small moments that you bring to your kids' lives – spiritually, mentally, and even a vulnerable side to let them see the real you, and not an idea of who you are. Brandon shares stories about his father, and the gratitude that has grown in his heart over the years for his dad, so much that his fatherhood has impacted the way he sees and loves his own two boys today. Brandon also opens up about his own bout of depression, and his inspirational journey toward healing and how it led to helping more men in our community. Later, Dr. Robin chats with Sabrah Parsons, who is an Aquatics Director at the YMCA of Greater Kansas City. When she finished swimming lessons at age 15, little did she know that when her mother signed her up to be a lifeguard, that would be where she found her passion for swim safety. Sabrah shares that drowning is the number two leading accidental death for ages 0-8 – and it's completely preventable with drowning prevention classes. Sabrah describes what parents can look for in flotation devices for kids, and how to know if a swim class will teach their kids the proper techniques to self-rescue if there comes a time. Three Takeaways: How depression can show up in subtle ways and hide behind failure in our lives. Relying on other people to make us happy isn't realistic – we need to search for the right mental health tools that work for us and have them ready in our pocket before a crisis happens. Why swim lessons can prevent drownings up to 80% - plus three important moves the YMCA aquatic program teaches kids to promote self-rescue. Mentioned In the Episode: The Four Agreements by Don Miguel Ruiz Big Shifts Foundation YMCA of Greater Kansas City Drowning prevention classes at the YMCA Puddle Jumper flotation devices for kids Connect: Facebook Instagram LinkedIn Twitter YouTube
Twenty years ago, when I first came to America, I felt like a complete outsider. I didn't look like, sound like, or dress like people around me. I chased goals that I didn't really care about because I thought that's what was expected of me. But the harder I tried to fit in, the more I struggled personally and professionally. You see, I was defining success from other people's perspective. Our guest today is US Congresswoman Sharice Davids, from Kansas' Third Congressional District, who shares her inspiring story of overcoming obstacles and rising to the top by defining success on her own terms. Sharice was raised by a single mom who spent more than 20 years serving in the US Army. A proud graduate of Leavenworth High School, Sharice was the first person in her family to attend college. She worked her way from Johnson County Community College to Cornell Law School, juggling multiple jobs to put herself through school. Sharice went on to work in economic and community development on Native American reservations, helping tribes to create programs and initiatives for growth. This work inspired her to apply for the prestigious White House Fellowship program, where she served under President Barack Obama and continued to create economic opportunity for others. Sharice ran for Congress to give Kansans a voice, and to make sure everyone has the same opportunities to achieve their goals that she did. In 2018, Sharice was elected to represent Kansas' Third District, becoming one of the first two Native American women ever to serve in Congress. In 2020, she was re-elected to her second term. She has spent her time in office working tirelessly to tackle the issues most important to Kansas families, including strengthening small businesses, lowering the cost of healthcare and prescription drugs, and making sure the government is working for the people — not special interests. In this episode, Rep. Davids shares her perspective on why it's important to first embrace who you are for others to embrace and accept you as you are. She also shares why service matters, how to build a thriving community, and what strategies helped her achieve her goals. Visit www.iambeyondbarriers.com where you will find show notes and links to all the resources in this episode, including the best way to get in touch with Rep. Davids. Highlights: [03:57] What shaped Representative Davids' life[09:22] Gaining clarity on your career path[12:50] How Representative Davids got into politics[15:31] First time running for office[24:18] Facing the possibility of failure[26:52] Campaigns are entrepreneurial[29:22] Owning her seat at the table[35:23] Advice to other on pursuing a career in politics[41:36] How to engage with Representative Davids[43:07] The meaningful work of LPAC Quotes: “When dealing with rejection on the campaign trail, I had to remind myself that this is not about me, this is about the future of our country, our democracy.” - Rep. Sharice Davids “The biggest opportunities for growth come from moments when you are experiencing something that is hard and challenging.” - Rep. Sharice Davids "Running a campaign is a very entrepreneurial process." - Rep. Sharice Davids "One thing that changed my life was realizing that I get to decide what success means to me." - Rep. Sharice Davids About Sharice Davids: Sharice Davids is currently serving Kansas' Third Congressional District in Congress. Sharice was raised by a single mom who spent more than 20 years serving in the US Army. A proud graduate of Leavenworth High School, Sharice was the first person in her family to attend college. She worked her way from Johnson County Community College to Cornell Law School, juggling multiple jobs to put herself through school. Sharice went on to work in economic and community development on Native American reservations, helping tribes to create programs and initiatives for growth. This work inspired her to apply for the prestigious White House Fellowship program, where she served under President Barack Obama and continued to create economic opportunity for others. Sharice ran for Congress to give Kansans a voice who represents our values and interests, and to make sure everyone has the same opportunities to achieve their goals that she did. In 2018, Sharice was elected to represent Kansas' Third District, becoming one of the first two Native American women ever to serve in Congress. In 2020, she was re-elected to her second term. She has spent her time in office working tirelessly to tackle the issues most important to Kansas families, including strengthening our small businesses, lowering the cost of healthcare and prescription drugs, and making sure the government is working for the people — not special interests. Sharice was raised by a single mom, who spent more than 20 years in the Army followed by a career in civil service at the US Post Office. Sharice graduated from Leavenworth High School. She attended Haskell Indian Nations University and the University of Kansas before graduating from Johnson County Community College and later the University of Missouri-Kansas City. She went on to earn a law degree from Cornell Law School. Sharice calls herself a “former” first generation college student, since her mom earned a degree in history from UMKC in 2016. Sharice is a member of the Ho-Chunk Nation, a Native American tribe in Wisconsin. Sharice is highly trained in martial arts and has competed as both an amateur and professional in Mixed Martial Arts (MMA). Sharice was one of 16 selected to participate in the prestigious White House Fellowship program (2016-2017). Sharice has lived and worked on Native American reservations, working with tribes to create economic development opportunities, programs, and initiatives. Sharice regularly speaks at conferences as a nationally recognized expert on economic and community development in Native communities. Sharice, along with her brother, created Starty Pants – a video podcast that highlights entrepreneurs in the Greater Kansas City area with a focus on women, people of color and LGBTQ founders. Links: LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sharicedavids/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/ShariceDavids
5.12.2022 #RolandMartinUnfiltered: Racism in the Kansas City Police Department: Addressing the Black and Blue Divide Town Hall Roland Martin Unfiltered is LIVE from Kansas City, Missouri, at the Robert J. Mohart Center Tonight, we have a town hall sponsored by The Urban League of Greater Kansas City. And we are talking about Racism in the Kansas City Police Department: Addressing the Black and Blue Divide. We have folks from this community here to talk about the discrimination issues within the Kansas City Police Department. Just yesterday, two black female officers filed a lawsuit against the Kansas City Board of Police Commissioners for discrimination against their race and gender. We'll also discuss why there is a push for a Department of Justice Investigation and a need for local control. We aren't here just to talk about the problems. We want to find the solutions for reimagining public safety and building community trust. We have a lot to unpack and discuss tonight, live from Robert J. Mohart Center here in Kansas City, Missouri. 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
4.1.2022 #RolandMartinUnfiltered: Black Men & Economic Recovery, S.C.& Amputation Rates, Men of Change Exhibit, Color Noir Producer Will Packer is speaking publicly about what happened at the Oscars for the first time. We'll show you parts of that Good Morning America interview with T.J. Holmes. Kansas City civil rights groups have long known their police department had high incidences of violence against Black and Latino people and racist hiring practices. The groups even called for a DOJ investigation. Now, an investigation by a local Kansas newspaper has some proof. Tonight, the President and CEO of the Urban League of Greater Kansas City will tell us what happened to their plea to the DOJ. An investigative report uncovers how many police departments across the county used Covid relief funds. We'll talk to the journalist who followed the money. March proved to be an excellent month for job creation, but what did it look like for us. I spoke to Cecilia Rouse, Chair of the President's Council of Economic Advisers, who broke down the numbers. #RolandMartinUnfiltered partner: Nissan | Check out the ALL NEW 2022 Nissan Frontier! As Efficient As It Is Powerful!
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