Podcasts about Illinois

The Drive goes LIVE from Pia's Sports Bar for a special show with three Illinois football legends — J Leman, Kevin Mitchell, and former Sports Information Director Kent Brown! The Illini greats share their memories of playing in Champaign, discuss what makes Illinois football special, and offer their thoughts on the current Illini program. Hear stories from the past, insight into Illinois football, plenty of Illini pride, and a great conversation with three individuals who helped leave their mark on the program.

Du Quoin, Illinois is having a rough week, and this one hits close to home.Massive downtown fire in Rafe's hometown of Du Quoin. Multiple businesses were destroyed, including Home Lumber Company, BJ's Garden Inn and other properties along the downtown business district. Making an already difficult situation even worse, the fire happened during the Du Quoin State Fair, one of the biggest economic weeks of the year for the small Southern Illinois community.Rafe talks about seeing the damage to a downtown that's already watched businesses disappear over the years, while Lern shares her own memories of growing up nearby and planning entire summers around the Du Quoin State Fair. Thankfully, the transcript reports no injuries or deaths, but the loss is still devastating for a town of roughly 6,000 people.So the crew sends some love south and encourages everybody heading to the fair to support Du Quoin however they can.Then, eventually, the daily comedy machine starts malfunctioning again.The conversation turns into a full Southern Illinois State Fair nostalgia session, complete with Wiz Khalifa, Russell Dickerson, demo derbies, Night Ranger and Rafe remembering the time he watched Joe Diffie put on what felt like a full stadium concert inside a tiny Budweiser beer tent. Rafe also officially declares the Du Quoin State Fair superior to the Illinois State Fair in Springfield. Complaints may be directed to somebody who cares.From there, September 3rd's collection of completely necessary national holidays introduces National Welsh Rarebit Day, which briefly causes confusion over whether anyone is eating a rabbit. They're not. It's cheese. That discovery leads directly to Worcestershire sauce, pork-steak marinades and the shocking revelation that Rafe doesn't own a grill.On Labor Day weekend.We don't make the rules, but we're pretty sure that's grounds for deportation from the Midwest.Luckily, Lern has an even worse idea.After talking with Tim Virgin, she introduces a potential reality-dating concept called Rock Hard Island. The premise involves eligible bachelors from St. Louis rock radio, women applying to date them and enough trash-TV energy to immediately attract hypothetical sponsors. There isn't actually an island involved, but that's apparently a minor logistical concern. Even more alarming: sales is interested.Nothing bad has ever happened after those three words.The crew also takes a trip through September 3rd history, covering everything from the beginning of World War II to Vince Lombardi, Iron Maiden's Powerslave, Prince's massive Warner Bros. deal, Charlie Sheen's 1995 marriage and the founding of eBay.Then Lern takes over for Crap on Celebrities with a packed entertainment rundown. There's a documentary about late Rush drummer Neil Peart featuring Geddy Lee, Alex Lifeson and fellow drummers including Stewart Copeland, Chad Smith and Danny Carey. Rush is also headed back to St. Louis, giving Moon another chance to see a band he thought he'd never get to experience after Peart's death.There's Beck news for local record-store fans, TV talk involving Chad Powers and The Gentlemen, a rundown of the upcoming Dancing with the Stars cast, and news involving Wheel of Fortune. The show also discusses an upcoming documentary about The Office and remembers Gloria Steinem and her enormous influence on American journalism and the women's movement.Then we arrive at one of those debates designed specifically to waste productive adults' time: the greatest movie and television villains ever.Darth Vader? Obviously.Annie Wilkes? Terrifying.Voldemort? Sure.Hannibal Lecter? Yep.The Joker? Somehow they almost forgot him.The crew runs through villains ranging from Cruella de Vil and Scar to Patrick Bateman, Magneto, John Doe and Dr. Evil, proving once again that this daily comedy show can turn almost any entertainment list into an argument.Finally, Moon breaks down which music genres are supposedly most popular in different states based on search trends, with pop leading the country, metal putting up an impressive fight and Sleep Token emerging as a heavily searched metal act.Then it's birthday time, which means any remaining professionalism is escorted from the building.We've got Charlie Sheen, King Scott's twin Shaun White, Kaia Gerber, Todd Lewis, Steve Jones and more before Rafe handles the final birthday honors and everybody briefly convinces themselves that Amber Lynn is dead.She isn't.Great work, team.It's a show that starts with genuine concern for a Southern Illinois community, takes a detour through State Fair memories, somehow invents a trashy St. Louis dating show, argues about fictional villains and ends with an accidental celebrity death announcement.In other words, another perfectly normal episode of daily comedy from The Rizzuto Show.Follow The Rizzuto Show → linktr.ee/rizzshow for more from your favorite daily comedy show.Connect with The Rizzuto Show Comedy Podcast online → 1057thepoint.com/RizzShow.Hear The Rizz Show daily on the radio at 105.7 The Point | Hubbard Radio in St. Louis, MO.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Things start surprisingly deep when Lern talks about listening to Rafe's appearance on The HoneyDew, where he discussed difficult experiences from childhood and finding comedy in darker moments. He explains the idea of turning life's lowlights into highlights, everybody agrees that nobody escapes childhood completely unscathed, and for one fleeting moment this sounds like a mature conversation between emotionally intelligent adults.Turns out King Scott likes his coffee like he likes his women... According to former Starbucks professionals, black-coffee drinkers might enjoy torturing themselves, caramel macchiato fans barely want coffee at all, vanilla-latte people play it safe, Frappuccino drinkers are basically ordering milkshakes, matcha people might be doing it for the aesthetic, and macchiato drinkers know exactly what they want—and apparently want the barista to know that they know.McDonald's fries enter the conversation. So does the Wendy's Frosty, Taco Bell's spicy potato soft taco, the Frisco Melt, Lion's Choice, Dairy Queen onion rings, Rally's fries, Del Taco, Freddy's and more. Nobody reaches a universal consensus because democracy has failed once again.Things somehow become less appetizing when the crew discovers a Walgreens three-in-one product described as a douche, enema and water-bottle combination system. There are some household products where “multipurpose” is a selling point. This may not be one of them.The show then gets into a study suggesting men have a complicated relationship with dieting, including the idea that some men may respond better to “goals” and “challenges” than the word “diet.” Rafe offers his own theory after seeing wildly confident dudes criticize women online while looking, in his words, like a thumb melting into a suit. Poetry remains alive in St. Louis.And because the current calendar apparently isn't irritating enough, Moon brings up a viral proposal to replace our 12 months with five beautiful 73-day monstrosities: Jebruary, Maple, Jaugust, Soctober and Nissember. Is a 73-day Jaugust horrifying? Absolutely. Are we intrigued by Soctober? Unfortunately, yes.Then Tupac conspiracy content leads into a survey asking whether Americans believe they could successfully fake their own deaths. Younger adults are more confident. Older adults have apparently lived long enough to understand that the IRS, prescription refills and bill collectors are undefeated.Du Quoin, Illinois is having a rough week, and this one hits close to home.Massive downtown fire in Du Quoin. Multiple businesses were destroyed, including Home Lumber Company, BJ's Garden Inn and other properties along the downtown business district. Making an already difficult situation even worse, the fire happened during the Du Quoin State Fair, one of the biggest economic weeks of the year for the small Southern Illinois community.From there, September 3rd's collection of completely necessary national holidays introduces National Welsh Rarebit Day, which briefly causes confusion over whether anyone is eating a rabbit. They're not. It's cheese. That discovery leads directly to Worcestershire sauce, pork-steak marinades and the shocking revelation that Rafe doesn't own a grill.After talking with Tim Virgin, she introduces a potential reality-dating concept called Rock Hard Island. The premise involves eligible bachelors from St. Louis rock radio, women applying to date them and enough trash-TV energy to immediately attract hypothetical sponsors. There isn't actually an island involved, but that's apparently a minor logistical concern. Even more alarming: sales is interested.Then Lern takes over for Crap on Celebrities with a packed entertainment rundown. There's a documentary about late Rush drummer Neil Peart featuring Geddy Lee, Alex Lifeson and fellow drummers including Stewart Copeland, Chad Smith and Danny Carey. Rush is also headed back to St. Louis, giving Moon another chance to see a band he thought he'd never get to experience after Peart's death.The crew runs through villains ranging from Cruella de Vil and Scar to Patrick Bateman, Magneto, John Doe and Dr. Evil, proving once again that this daily comedy show can turn almost any entertainment list into an argument.Finally, Moon breaks down which music genres are supposedly most popular in different states based on search trends, with pop leading the country, metal putting up an impressive fight and Sleep Token emerging as a heavily searched metal act.We ask one of the great questions of our time: why is everybody bringing their dog to the airport now? After seeing dogs everywhere at LAX—and hearing two cats meow their way through an entire flight—the crew falls directly into a pet-themed rabbit hole that somehow gets stranger from there.The crew admits to giving pets updates before leaving the house, whispering compliments to one dog so the other one doesn't hear, telling cats “I love you,” debating which pet is secretly the favorite, asking dogs what they want to watch on TV, and generally treating animals like tiny roommates who contribute absolutely nothing financially.That sends the crew back to 1993's The Three Musketeers, Tim Curry as Cardinal Richelieu, Charlie Sheen, Kiefer Sutherland, Chris O'Donnell, Oliver Platt, and the gloriously over-the-top “All for Love” combination of Bryan Adams, Rod Stewart, and Sting. This funny podcast briefly becomes a 1990s movie-and-music appreciation society nobody asked to join.Finally, a listener asks a dangerous question for people who have spent years working in radio: what song have you heard so many times that you never need to hear it again?In other words, another perfectly normal episode of daily comedy from The Rizzuto Show.Follow The Rizzuto Show → linktr.ee/rizzshow for more from your favorite daily comedy show.Connect with The Rizzuto Show Comedy Podcast online → 1057thepoint.com/RizzShow.Hear The Rizz Show daily on the radio at 105.7 The Point | Hubbard Radio in St. Louis, MO.Baristas Are Revealing The Coffee Orders They Associate With Super Specific StereotypesHigh school's entire football season canceled amid developing criminal investigationFire destroys three downtown Du Quoin businessesKirkwood City Council considers Walmart drone deliverySee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

We continue our Sixers vs. Celtics playoff rewatch, as we remember the losses in Games 3 and 4. Then we discuss the Clippers massive penalty from the NBA, and Rich Paul's newest podcast discussing Joel Embiid (again).Sign up for the Bark In The Park Ricky team and get the Rebel t-shirt here: https://www.rightstorickysanchez.com/p/barkThe Rights To Ricky Sanchez is presented by Draft Kings.Become a MortgageCS Ricky VIP at mortgagecs.com/rickyAnthony Degli-Obizzi is the official financial planner of the Ricky, text RICKY to 484-471-4873 to set up a conversationSurfside Iced Tea and Vodka is the official canned cocktail of The RickyGambling Problem? Call one eight hundred GAMBLER, one eight hundred MY RESET. Connecticut: call eight eight eight seven eight nine seven seven seven seven, visit CCPG dot org. On behalf of Boot Hill Casino in Kansas. Bet tax pass-through may apply in Illinois. Twenty one plus. Void in Canada. Bet with DraftKings Sportsbook to get Bonus bets that expire in seven days OR Trade with DraftKings Predictions to get Predictions Dollars that expire in one year. Event contract trading involves risk of loss. Predictions offer void in New York. Non-withdrawable Rewards issued as Fifty dollar click-to-claims every seven days for twenty-one days. Terms at d k n g dot c o slash offer. Limited time offer. Nationwide based on Sportsbook, Predictions, and Free-to-Play Sports Contest availability. Varies by State.

How do you solve a problem like SCOTUS? Kate kicks off our Hot Supreme Court Reform September series with the New York Times' Jamelle Bouie. They dig into the ins and outs of expanding the Court: what the process could look like, the argument for making the entire federal judiciary bigger, and how to avoid an FDR-style fail.Take the Strict Scrutiny survey.New Strict merch available here.You can now listen to Strict Scrutiny for CLE credits in California, New York, Texas, Pennsylvania, Illinois, Virginia, North Carolina, Georgia, Washington, and Oregon! More info at crooked.com/strict_cleGet tickets for STRICT SCRUTINY LIVE on November 6th in Washington, DC: Crookedcon.comBuy Melissa's book, The U.S. Constitution: A Comprehensive and Annotated Guide for the Modern ReaderBuy Leah's book, Lawless, now out in paperbackFollow us on Instagram, Threads, and BlueskyFor a transcript of an episode of Strict Scrutiny please email transcripts@crooked.com

This is the Live Call-in Show from this past Sunday night, August 30, 2026! Mike and Scott were back together for the hour taking your calls! We started the show with a great call from Francois from Canada discussing using a Placeholder and an exisiting reservation, as well as a Start, Bench, Cut game with Disney ice-cream options! We also talked with Morgan from Alabama about her upcoming first runDisney Half-Marathon at Wine & Dine! Jason called in from the Polynesian Tower to share the start to his trip, and Jared from Illinois called in to let us know, in fact, that he HAD experienced STK at Disney Springs! Come join us in the BOGP Clubhouse this week at www.beourguestpodcast.com/discord. Please visit our website at www.beourguestpodcast.com. Thank you so much for your support of our podcast! Also, please follow the show on Twitter @BeOurGuestMike and on Facebook at www.facebook.com/beourguestpodcast. Become a patron of the Be Our Guest Podcast over at www.patreon.com/BeOurGuestPodcast. Thanks to our friends at The Magic For Less Travel for sponsoring today's podcast!

This series highlights the highs and lows of hunting public land across different regions of America — the early mornings, the pressure, the competition, and the grind that comes with earning every bird.In this episode, Jeff Stanfield and Andy Shaver are joined by Clayton Apke from the Quad Cities area to talk about waterfowl hunting on the Mississippi River.Clayton shares what it takes to find success on one of the country's most famous waterways, including dealing with large crowds of hunters and camping out the night before to secure a quality hunting spot. They discuss the competition for prime locations, the lengths hunters will go to for a good spot, and what makes Mississippi River duck hunting such a unique experience.The guys also talk about Clayton's dream ducks and dream hunt, along with the species and destinations that remain at the top of his bucket list.The conversation eventually turns to public land turkey hunting, as Clayton shares his experiences chasing gobblers and the challenges that come with pursuing turkeys on pressured public ground.This series is brought to you by the great people at Chêne Gear.

Mayor Zohran Mamdani assembled an army of nearly 200 political “influencers,” giving the social media stars VIP access to push the lefty administration's talking points. Minneapolis Mayor Jacob Frey went to a Somali chiropractor for an adjustment by a chiropractor in a hoodie. An Illinois mom killed her kid then tried to kill herself in what people are calling a Clancy copycat killer. Ed Markey says Democrats' top priorities are defunding our military and impeaching Donald Trump if they seize power. Plus, more commentary.Thank you for supporting our sponsors that make The Dana Show possible…Relief Factorhttps://www.ReliefFactor.comYou could be the next person sharing a Relief Factor success story. Get started today with the 3-Week QuickStart for only $17.76 and tell them you heard about them on The Dana Show. Ghost Bedhttps://GhostBed.com/DANAFor a limited time during Ghost Bed's Labor Day Sale, they're offering my audience an extra 10% off their lowest prices of the season with promo code DANA. Chapterhttps://AskChapter.Org/danaAsk Chapter today if you could be saving money on your medicare coverage. Alliance Defending Freedomhttps://JoinADF.com/DanaAlliance Defending Freedom is on the front lines defending the freedoms and values that matter. Join the fight today. Byrnahttps://Byrna.com/DanaTrusted by law enforcement, security professionals, and everyday Americans—defend yourself and your family with Byrna.HumanNhttps://Humann.com/DanaGet the limited edition HumanN Watermelon Flavor and find out how to get a FREE 30-day supply before they sell out.Patriot Mobilehttp://PatriotMobile.com/DANAMake the switch to Patriot Mobile today. Visit online or call 972-PATRIOT and use promo code DANA for a FREE month of service.Webroothttps://Webroot.com/DanaSave 60% off Webroot. Protect your devices. Protect your family. Protect your peace of mind. Live a better digital life with Webroot. Subscribe today and stay in the loop on all things news with The Dana Show. Follow us here for more daily clips, updates, and commentary:YoutubeFacebookInstagramXMore InfoWebsite

August 17, 1992. Waukegan, Illinois. While babysitting two children, 11-year old Holly Staker is sexually assaulted and brutally murdered inside their apartment. Two months later, a suspect named Juan Rivera is brought in for questioning and confesses to the murder after four straight days of interrogation. He is subsequently convicted and receives a life sentence, but no physical evidence links Rivera to the crime and the veracity of his confession is called into question. After Rivera serves 19 years in prison, DNA evidence eventually links Holly's death to another murder… but could another innocent person also be serving time in prison for that particular crime? Additional Reading:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Juan_Rivera_(wrongful_conviction)https://www.law.umich.edu/special/exoneration/Pages/casedetail.aspx?caseid=3850https://courts.illinois.gov/opinions/AppellateCourt/2011/2ndDistrict/December/2091060.pdfhttp://www.law.northwestern.edu/legalclinic/wrongfulconvictions/exonerations/documents/rivera_brief.pdfhttp://articles.chicagotribune.com/2014-06-10/news/chi-dna-links-murder-and-rape-of-holly-staker-11-to-second-murder-8-years-later-20140610_1_holly-staker-dna-evidence-dna-match

This is a Vintage episode from 2012.Why This Episode MattersChef Paul Virant explains how preservation can extend truly seasonal cooking well beyond the growing season.Canning and pickling can deepen a restaurant's relationship with local farmers while creating new possibilities in the kitchen and behind the bar.Preserving peak-season ingredients isn't necessarily cheaper. The value comes from flavor, identity and having something uniquely your own.From pickled vegetables and aigre-doux to cocktail ingredients, preserves can become ingredients rather than simply condiments.BanterMark Pascal and Francis Schott visit DeBragga & Spitler and get a hands-on look at dry-aged beef at different stages of the aging process. They talk about why properly aged meat costs more, what actually happens to a piece of beef as it ages, and why tasting and comparing things side by side is one of the best ways to learn.The ConversationChef Paul Virant joins Mark and Francis to talk about The Preservation Kitchen and the preservation program that became a signature of his acclaimed restaurant Vie.For Paul, preserving wasn't simply about opening a jar of pickles alongside a dish. Brines, pickled vegetables, preserved fruits and sweet-and-sour preparations became building blocks in his cooking adding acidity, contrast and unexpected flavor to everything from roasted meats to cocktails.The conversation explores the practical side of cooking seasonally in places like Chicago and New Jersey, where the growing season doesn't last all year. Paul and the Guys discuss buying directly from farmers, preserving crops when they're at their peak, reducing waste and creating a restaurant pantry that reflects the local harvest long after summer is over.They also get into the economics. Preserving food takes ingredients, jars, storage and substantial labor, and it often costs more than simply buying a commercial product. The payoff is something different: exceptional ingredients captured at their best, stronger relationships with farmers and food that belongs uniquely to your restaurant.Also: home winemaking gone wrong, preserving fruit with spirits, using every drop of a pickling brine, and Paul's beer-jam Manhattan made with Goose Island Bourbon County Stout.Guest BioPaul Virant is an acclaimed Chicago-area chef known for his focus on seasonal Midwestern ingredients, preservation and relationships with local farmers. His restaurant Vie earned a Michelin star and operated in Western Springs, Illinois, for 19 years before closing in 2023. Virant currently operates Petite Vie in Western Springs, Vistro Prime in Hinsdale and Gaijin in Chicago.He is the author, with Kate Leahy, of The Preservation Kitchen: The Craft of Making and Cooking with Pickles, Preserves, and Aigre-doux, originally published in 2012.Timestamps00:00 Dry-aged beef and why artisan food costs more 05:45 Paul Virant on preserving the seasons 11:30 How preserves become part of the cooking 15:30 Working with farmers and preserving the harvest 17:45 Beer-jam Manhattans and unexpected uses for preserves 25:45 Why preserving isn't cheaper, yet it's still worth doingInfoPaul's bookThe Preservation KitchenPaul Virant with Kate LeahyPaul's Places (all in Illinois)Petite Vie Vistro Prime GaijinWe're bringing our kitchen to the farm!Join us at Dreyer Farms in Cranford, NJ for a Table-to-Farm Dinner.Sunday, September 13 @ 5:30https://www.stageleft.com/event/91326-table-to-farm-dinner/ Subscribe: Restaurant Guys' Regularhttps://restaurantguysregulars.buzzsprout.com/Magyar Bankhttps://www.magbank.com/Stage Left Wine Shophttps://www.stageleftwineshop.com/Our PlacesStage Left Steakhttps://www.stageleft.com/Catherine Lombardi Restauranthttps://www.catherinelombardi.com/Stage Left Wineshophttps://www.stageleftwineshop.com/Reach Out to The Guys!TheGuys@restaurantguyspodcast.com

The Drive gets you ready for Illinois football's season opener against UAB! Former Illini linebacker and Rose Bowl standout Brit Miller joins the show after being named Illinois' honorary captain for Thursday night's game at Gies Memorial Stadium. Miller reflects on his Illinois career, the honor of returning to Champaign, and what it means to represent the program. Plus, The Drive delivers a complete Illinois vs. UAB preview, breaking down the biggest storylines heading into the 2026 season opener, including new quarterback Katin Houser, the Illini defense under new coordinator Bobby Hauck, key players to watch, UAB quarterback Ryder Burton, and what Illinois must do to start the season with a win. Illinois and UAB meet for the first time Thursday night at 8 p.m. CT on Big Ten Network.

The Drive continues the countdown to Illinois football's season opener against UAB with Alex Kyi from Armchair Illini joining the show! Kyi breaks down the matchup from an Illini perspective, including the biggest questions surrounding Illinois entering the 2026 season, Katin Houser's debut at quarterback, the new-look defense under Bobby Hauck, key players to watch, and what could determine the outcome against the Blazers. Armchair Illini's gameday coverage also highlights the excitement surrounding the season opener and Illinois looking to build on 19 wins over the previous two seasons. Plus, Kurtis and Evan make their Illinois vs. UAB score predictions, discuss expectations for the Illini in 2026, and look at whether Illinois can live up to its status as a heavy favorite in the opener.

How many engagements does it take to land in JB and Sandy's Amazing Book of Records?Tricia's friend Jack calls in with five rings on the board, lake-day walkouts from work, Dallas nightclub magnetism, and a cowboy-only type. Sandy answers with the movie-scene story of her Air Force colonel dad clearing the hotel room on her first wedding day and holding out a passport.Caller Steve nominates himself for most baby mamas, then JB pitches Poplin, the Uber for laundry, until Tricia spots the fatal flaw. Coach Taylor still gives Tricia goosebumps, a Longhorn tailgater ranks food, girls, and beer, and JB would pay to watch two humanoid robots fight. Illinois high school fishing cheerleaders close the hour.If you love The JB and Sandy Show, subscribe, leave a review, and share this episode with a friend who needs a laugh on the way to work.

Welcome back to another episode of the unSeminary podcast. Today we're joined by Sam Hamstra, Lead Pastor of Anthem Church, a fast-growing, multi-ethnic and multi-generational church serving Northwest Indiana and Chicagoland. Anthem became an independent church in March 2020—the same week the world shut down—and has since grown to multiple locations and thousands of people. In this conversation, Sam shares how clarity around mission, values, discipleship, and vision has helped Anthem develop a distinct ministry culture and sustain healthy growth. Does your church know exactly who it is and how it does ministry? Are your leaders aligned around a shared playbook—or are you borrowing someone else's model without adapting it to your context? Sam offers practical lessons on creating organizational clarity that shapes everything from calendars to leadership development. Move from imitation to innovation. // Sam is quick to acknowledge how much Anthem learned from churches and networks that came before them. But even before Anthem launched, he began recognizing that another church's model could not simply be copied and pasted into Northwest Indiana. The local culture, demographics, ministry environment, and people were different. Healthy leaders learn from others while also doing the harder work of discerning what God is uniquely calling their church to become. Clarity takes courage. // Copying an established model feels safe because leaders can see evidence that it works somewhere else. Developing your own approach requires greater faith because the outcome is less predictable. Sam believes churches must have the courage to move into that uncertainty. Rather than endlessly chasing the next successful strategy, leaders should prayerfully identify the unique blueprint God has given their church and commit to it. Define your “way.” // Inspired by Patrick Lencioni's The Advantage, Sam and his leadership team spent roughly nine months working through five foundational questions: Why do we exist? How do we behave? What do we do? How do we live? Where are we going? Their answers eventually became what they call “The Anthem Way”—a framework that brings clarity to mission, values, discipleship, spiritual formation, and long-term vision. Mission and vision are not the same thing. // Anthem's mission is to lead people to know Christ and make Him known. That mission remains constant because it flows from the Great Commission. Vision answers a different question: where is God taking this particular church? Separating those ideas has helped Anthem distinguish between the timeless calling of the church and the specific future they believe God is leading them toward. Let your discipleship pathway drive the calendar. // One of the biggest benefits of clarity has been simplifying Anthem's yearly ministry calendar. Instead of allowing every ministry to bring new ideas and events to the table, leaders evaluate opportunities through their defined discipleship pathway. The result is greater focus and consistency. Sam says their annual rhythm has remained largely the same for years, helping both staff and attenders understand what comes next. Boring can be a strength. // Churches often feel pressure to constantly create something new, but Sam has learned that repetition can be one of the greatest drivers of health. Anthem maintains a weekly prayer gathering, predictable discipleship rhythms, and recurring ministry events rather than continually reinventing the calendar. The goal is not novelty. It is consistency around the few things the church believes matter most. Create intentional invite moments. // Anthem builds four major invite opportunities into its annual rhythm: Easter, a Summer Kickoff, Homecoming, and Christmas. These predictable moments give the congregation specific opportunities to invite friends and family. Sam has seen the church grow following these events because people know when the church is intentionally creating space for them to bring someone who may not normally attend. Values have to become behaviors. // Anthem's core values include “We Love People,” “We Choose Joy,” and “We Bleed Passion.” But Sam emphasizes that values only matter when people can see them lived out. Loving people means creating a culture where people can belong before they behave. Choosing joy means approaching ministry with gratitude rather than obligation. Bleeding passion means refusing to settle for the status quo and remaining willing to change as God leads. Use clarity to protect multisite culture. // As Anthem expands to additional locations, the Anthem Way provides clear boundaries for what must remain consistent. Sam is not claiming Anthem's approach is the only way to do church, but he does believe it is important for every one of their locations to understand and embody Anthem's distinct way of doing ministry. That documented clarity gives leaders freedom while protecting the culture across campuses. Check out Anthem Church’s About page to see how their story, mission, values, and discipleship pathway fit together. You can also follow @SamHamstra and @ThisIsAnthemChurch on Instagram. Thank You for Tuning In! There are a lot of podcasts you could be tuning into today, but you chose unSeminary, and I'm grateful for that. If you enjoyed today's show, please share it by using the social media buttons you see at the left hand side of this page. Also, kindly consider taking the 60-seconds it takes to leave an honest review and rating for the podcast on iTunes, they're extremely helpful when it comes to the ranking of the show and you can bet that I read every single one of them personally! Episode Transcript Rich Birch — Hey friends, welcome to the unSeminary podcast. Really looking forward to today’s conversation. This is a funny one because literally yesterday I was talking to a church in a coaching call. We were talking about this exact issue that we’re going to unpack today. They’re wrestling with these things. I know that this is going to help you. So you’ve tuned in for a great conversation today with Sam Hamstra. Super excited to have him. He and his wife, Taylor, they founded Anthem Church in March 2020 with a vision and heart to lead people to know Christ and make them know known. Rich Birch — Over the past few years they have seen this mission become a reality, continues to grow. It’s a multi-ethnic, multi-generational family made up of thousands of people from all walks of life in Northwestern Indiana, Chicagoland, and beyond. It’s one of the fastest growing churches in the country. So honored that you’re with us today, Sam. Welcome.Sam Hamstra — Rich, so honored to be with you. This is a full circle moment for me. I’ve been following you for quite some time. So super honored to be on your on your show.Rich Birch — Oh, come on. That’s I’m glad you’re here. We, we’ve got a lot to learn from you today. So March, 2020, it’s one of those dates that sticks in all of our brains. Cause like, we all know, what were you doing? March 15th, 2020. We all can say exactly what we’re, where we were. That’s a wild month to, to launch.Rich Birch — It’s funny because I keep bumping into people who are telling a similar story. They’re like, we started during the pandemic, right at the beginning, right after that sort of thing. Give us a picture today and kind of from that moment all the way on to today, kind of bring the story, bring us, tell us a little bit about Anthem. Give us a flavor of the church.Sam Hamstra — Yeah, so we currently today we’re headquartered in Hammond, Indiana, which when we say Indiana, different people have different thoughts. But we’re we’re actually butting up to Chicago.Rich Birch — Yep.Sam Hamstra — Joking around right now, we’re going to be the future home of the Chicago Bears soon.Rich Birch — Nice.Sam Hamstra — Yeah. But um yeah, so we’re headquartered in Hammond. Our second location is in Merrillville, Indiana, about 30 minutes from here. So currently um our family’s grown to about 2,500 people in English. And we also have a Spanish service as well. And God’s done a phenomenal work over a six-year time frame.Sam Hamstra — Yeah, so we did launch in March of 2020. Our first Sunday was the same Sunday the world shut down.Rich Birch — Wow.Sam Hamstra — And so the third week of March was our first service on the internet.Rich Birch — Dude, that’s amazing.Sam Hamstra — Yeah.Rich Birch — That’s incredible.Sam Hamstra — Yes. So in God’s divine plan, kind of underneath our origin story, we we were actually a part of a church in Tinley Park, Illinois. We were a location of that church called Christian Life Center.Sam Hamstra — And our senior pastor and I, Pastor Jerry McQuay, we had been having an ongoing conversation about him making us independent, which is a whole long story. And he decided to really lean into what he believed God was doing in our lives and in this region and made us independent in God’s divine plan. That started in March of 2020. Rich Birch — Wow.Sam Hamstra — And so we transitioned from being a multi part of a multi site church a location up to being independent in March. And yeah, we started with nothing. We didn’t have any cameras, didn’t have anything. I called our media guy and said, do you have anything at your house? And he brought it. Yeah.Rich Birch — What gear you got in your basement? Yeah, that’s amazing.Sam Hamstra — Yeah and he he brought a camera from his house. And yeah, that’s how we started. One continuous shot streaming online. And that was the start of Anthem Church in March of 2020.Rich Birch — Wow. Yeah, that’s amazing.Sam Hamstra — So God’s done a great work.Rich Birch — Yeah, that’s amazing. That’s incredible. That’s cool to hear and fun to see where it’s come, you know, since then. When you look back on that experience, you know, a lot of what you’re trying to define in those early days of a church, you’re trying to bring clarity to like, what is our approach? And part of what we do is you know, we there’s ah there’s, I think, some good copying and pasting. You’re like, hey, here’s the way they do it over here. Maybe we could try a little bit that. But then eventually you start kind of coming up with your own way. You kind of birth your own a approach, playbook, you might call it. Rich Birch — When did you start to feel… ah the kind of transition from, hey, I just want to do it like in this case, either CLC or another church over there. And you started to realize, hey, there’s something unique here at Anthem. And we got to try to define some of that. Talk us through maybe from um a timeline point of view or from a revelation point of view, like, oh, this is kind of things I started to see. Talk us through what that looked like.Sam Hamstra — Yeah, so about two years before we launched Anthem, God started to really kind of do a work in our heart just on unique DNA. And we were coming out of like heavily influenced by ARC, Church of the Highlands, and learned so much from there.Sam Hamstra — And we’re seeing just how like clarity really was so important on where we’re going.Sam Hamstra — And so we were coming in there and I just was really praying and seeking the Lord on, okay, this is great. But in our context here, there’s some some differences, there’s some nuances.Sam Hamstra — This is, um we’re over here. what What does this look like here? And so really took the foundation of that and started looking at what does this look like? So when we started Anthem, it was with the thought of, we really want to lean into this unique blueprint of how God designed us and what God has called us to here. Sam Hamstra — So it really started from the jump from from day one. And so but it was a couple years ahead of time to say, OK, this is great. Let’s let’s use this. Let’s we’ve been imitating. Let’s imitate now move to a little bit of innovation and what the Lord would have for us.Rich Birch — Yeah, and there’s obviously there’s like an art and science to that, right? There’s like the, the yeah, insert whatever church, Church of the Highlands is fantastic. They’re doing a great thing, but you’re not Birmingham, Alabama. And you know and so there’s cultural differences, there’s community differences, there’s different resources and all that. That’s like the kind of science-y part of it. Rich Birch — But then there’s the art part of it, which is a little bit more… like intuitives, it’s like vibes, that kind of thing. How did you discern, okay, what are those things that we should be thinking about that are different that you start, or maybe things you started to see, evidence you started to see like, oh, maybe this isn’t working, just importing. Was there evidence of that that you saw?Sam Hamstra — Yeah, so like, and it was like small things, you know, just on approach to Sunday service. Rich Birch — Right.Sam Hamstra — You know, like, hey, this is open door, we don’t do this on Sunday. And we had just been starting to see like pretty early on, we’re we’re reaching lost people through like a hard approach to the gospel.Sam Hamstra — And it was just like, it wasn’t really seeker sensitive. Rich Birch — Sure.Sam Hamstra — It wasn’t, not saying they are, but just, it was just a little bit different in in our context where people were coming from. On the multi-ethnic side, it was just some approaches being super intentional with sounds, sights, all of that in in our context. And so, and even on the discipleship model, you know, groups, what kind of groups are we doing? How are we setting these up?Sam Hamstra — And so it was definitely like these nuances in the different categories, I would say, of discipleship that we started to pay attention to. That that was really the start, I think, of innovating what we have now.Rich Birch — Yeah, that’s cool. Why do you think so many of us just reach for someone else’s model rather than doing the longer, harder, deeper, like it’s more annoying work to try to define you know our own thing and and then ultimately to document it which we’re going to get to here. what What did you actually do to kind of try to codify that? But why do you think we avoid that as leaders?Sam Hamstra — Yeah, so I think on one end, what’s established, you can see that the model works. And so um there’s great success you’re seeing. I mean, it’s working everywhere. And so I think it’s safe. And so deep down, it’s like this is established. I see it work. And so I can kind of press play on this. And and I know to a level that this this works. Sam Hamstra — And so it takes courage to do something that you haven’t seen before. Rich Birch — Right.Sam Hamstra — And deep, deep down, i think in our hearts, to me, that’s probably foundational thing. It’s like, man, I haven’t really seen this so his is going to require some courage, require some faith to press into the unknown.Rich Birch — Right. Right. Sam Hamstra — And so I do think that unknown word leads to some different decisions sometimes.Rich Birch — Well, and your church is an interesting um example just because it’s grown so quickly. I, you know, even in the… the lead up to it, I was thinking about, you know, the word, the term church plant.Rich Birch — Like, I don’t know when that term, you know, I was talking with a church that had been around for 30 years and they’re a big church. They’re like 20,000 people. And they, the lead pastor was like, well, we still think of ourselves as a church plant. And I’m like, yeah, I don’t at some point you stop being a church plant and just be, you start being a church. Rich Birch — And I think actually this is one of those, one of those differentiations is when you start saying, okay, like we’re going to, we believe that kind of God’s called us to this unique thing. There’s something in there. You built something that I think you call the Anthem Way. Sam Hamstra — Yeah. Rich Birch — Walk us through what that is. How does it function? What is the Anthem Way? Help us understand that.Sam Hamstra — Yeah, so this was actually birthed in an odd place. I was reading “The Advantage” by Patrick Lencioni,…Rich Birch — Yeah. Sam Hamstra — …and he was talking about organizational health, and one of the keys is clarity. Rich Birch — Yes.Sam Hamstra — And I had I have kind of, I’m somewhat of a mutt in church in my upbringing. Rich Birch — Love it.Sam Hamstra — So I’ve been in a lot of different environments and seen to a lot of different things. And so it was really just kind of like looking like, how can we just be crystal clear on who we are, where we’re going and different things. And so I read that book and in that book, he actually laid out these questions that he was like kind of pointing to every successful organization needs to answer.Sam Hamstra — And Iwas kind of seeing that with some of the stuff I’ve been hearing. And I’m like, and there’s a couple of missing pieces for me that he pointed to that I thought was so important in church world that I would actually point to that have been some of the biggest things I think that have been what I would call probably the secret sauce of what we’ve seen as far as clarity. Sam Hamstra — Just the separation of something simple, but the difference between mission and vision, you know, why we exist compared to where we’re going. And so, yeah, I read that book and in there he laid out questions that you need to answer. I took that to our leadership team and we wrestled with these probably for about nine months. Sam Hamstra — I’m just going back and forth on wording, how we say things. question by question in five different questions. We answered those and we gave it a name called the Anthem Way. And so that was the foundation, but I want to give credit where credit is due. It came through the book, The Advantage by Patrick Lencioni. Yeah.Rich Birch — Yeah, no, that’s great. That’s fantastic. And I, you know, one of the things I love that you’ve hit on here is I’ve talked in other contexts that our vision, well, this is the problem with with vision, mission stuff is it’s like, first you have to have a conversation. How do you define vision? How do you define mission?Sam Hamstra — Yeah.Rich Birch — But the big thing that we’re called to, the big idea, it comes from Jesus, right? We’re supposed to reach people and grow them up in in in relationship with him. All churches should have that as their core. That is at the core of what we do. Sam Hamstra — Yeah. Rich Birch — But getting clear on how we do that, you know, these other questions I’m assuming has helped give you a bit of a more of an edge, something that’s a little bit different. Do you want to rattle through the five questions… Sam Hamstra — Yeah. Rich Birch — …and maybe some high level, I know we can’t get into all the detail, but kind of high level how you’ve answered it. And then the follow-up I’m going ask you is, which are those couple that have given you what you think are the biggest distinctives around Anthem… Sam Hamstra — Yeah. Okay. Rich Birch — …that kind of that that kind of, um you know, that provide that edge that’s a little different, you think.Sam Hamstra — Yeah. So five questions and I’ll rattle them off quick. But so first one is why do we exist? Mission – the mission question, um which you just said it, I 100% agree, you know, every church really is called to the same thing. Let’s make disciples who make disciples, the Great Commission is still our first priority.Sam Hamstra — And so the way we say that is to lead people to know Christ and make them known. That was something we just prayed into language. We want to share language that people could really rally around. Sam Hamstra — Next question is how do we behave? The values question. We wanted to boil down in our culture those not aspirational values like truly who we are. So we boil those down to three things and wrestle with the language a lot. We wanted them actionable, but we choose joy. We love people and we believe passion. Sam Hamstra — And those all have disclaimers and really feed into our culture of what we call multi-everything. We love people from all walks of life, belong before you behave, and all that falls in there.Sam Hamstra — What do we do? Patrick Lencioni was talking about how that’s really your your business definition, so to speak, not for external use, but internal. We answered that with, we provide defined discipleship pathway.Sam Hamstra — It’s what we do day in and day out. It’s why we wake up in the morning. We’re not trying to reinvent the wheel. We’re not a country club. We’re not here to make money, we’re a church and and this is this is how we do, like what we do to ah to reach our why.Sam Hamstra — How we live is the spiritual question for us. We wanna make disciples. So we wanted to be able to weigh spiritually what a disciple is. And so we looked at Acts 2:42, which we felt like was a really good, definition of these handles on a disciple. And so we have five kind of disclaimers on what we want to see in our people at our church. And we offer resources on those, but from daily devotion to prayer to we share our Jesus story. How do you testify? How do we share? How do we make Christ known?Sam Hamstra — And then the last one is where are we going, which is the vision question. And we’ve we’re wrestling with the timing right now. We currently have a 10 year vision statement, which is just kind of pointers on like, this is where we believe God is taking us as a people.Sam Hamstra — And so those five questions are give us the framework for what we call the Anthem Way. What I’ve seen, as basic as it sounds and in our context. And I don’t know if this resonates with anybody. One of the most frustrating meetings I had in church context was the yearly calendar meeting.Rich Birch — Yeah, so true.Sam Hamstra — And I just felt like everybody was coming every year with their own ideas. Some of them had to do with our mission, some didn’t. And these are just in past experiences. And so it just felt like everybody was trying to, and some, you know, just different reasons, good, bad, indifferent.Sam Hamstra — And what what gave me great clarity was to look at our defined discipleship pathway and say, this is how we create our calendar. And um that’s been one thing that has simplified everything for us.Sam Hamstra — So every year in the last six years, our our yearly calendar flow has been the same. And our people are starting to understand it. The next steps fall within it when we even, you know, baptisms, we’re doing it this time. And So that’s been one thing is basically that sounds like what do we do?Rich Birch — No, no, that’s good. I like it.Sam Hamstra — I found a lot of confusion on that in the past, on like, how do we do groups? How do we have services? To define everything within that in the discipleship pathway, to me has been life-giving, not only for us as a team, but as as our church as well.Rich Birch — Yeah. Pull that apart a little bit more. I think, because I think this is where we fall down on this type of work is, you know, and, and I know it’s none of the people that are listening in, but there are churches that like, they do a retreat and we’re like, we’re going away. We’re going we’re reading Lencioni. We’re going to define the five questions. We even make a snappy poster and we put it up on the wall. And then we go back to business as usual. It’s the same thing we’ve always done. But you’ve been able to make the connection there, particularly with the calendar.Rich Birch — Maybe talk us through, give us some examples of how this work is shaping, how you’re actually defining, you know, how you operate as a church.Sam Hamstra — Yeah, so one example I would say is prayer. I had somebody call me and I like to think our prayer culture is strong. And they said, how did you get your prayer culture strong? And I said, well, this is really mind blowing. We have a weekly prayer meeting.Rich Birch — Right. Right.Sam Hamstra — And so because of that, and and still as the lead pastor still today, I take responsibility for leading that because I believe it’s it’s a high value for the church. Rich Birch — Right.Sam Hamstra — So it’s on the calendar. We you know And we’re not adding to it. It’s just 6 p.m. to 7 every Thursday. And we support it, which I think is the secondary layer behind that because it’s important. Now we have staff support. We have worship team support. We’re, we’re like staying very focused, on a few things rather than getting broad and going to a retreat and saying, this is a silver bullet. I don’t think there, I think the whole thing is a silver bullet, the whole pathway.Rich Birch — Right. Sure.Sam Hamstra — And so we always say, you know, I took this from somebody, but, you know, we want to be Ruth’s Chris, not Ponderosa. We want a one page menu and we really want to just do that.Rich Birch — Yep.Sam Hamstra — And it might even get boring. And we we’re trying to learn that boring is good.Rich Birch — Yeah, yeah. Boring stuff grows churches. I love it.Sam Hamstra — Yeah.Rich Birch — One of those five is sharing Jesus. Every disciple has one mission, to make Christ known. We don’t keep the gospel to ourselves. We share it through our words, our actions, our lives, wherever we go. We carry the hope of Jesus to a world that needs him.Rich Birch — Unpack some ways that that value drives behavior at the church, that actually drives calendaring and and you know what you’re talking about, that sort of thing.Sam Hamstra — Yeah, so deep, you know, we always want to empower everybody to be inviters and not just share. I think the key word in that is share your Jesus story. You know, we have to be people who understand how to share a testimony outside the four walls with it, you know, with a pretty quick invite to be like, hey, come be part of this community if you don’t have a community.Rich Birch — Right.Sam Hamstra — And so that is really through calendaring. We that’s really probably intrinsically baked into what we’re doing. So anytime I bring a guest to church, I’m saying it from the pulpit. And this is my friend. They’re here. I invited celebrating those through baptisms.Sam Hamstra — We let people testify of so you’re hearing stories of that. And then really resourcing people to make Christ known by sharing their story, teaching them how to do that.Sam Hamstra — So In the context of the calendar, um you know I took this from your playbook, sir, so thank you. We wanted to create four big events in our flywheel… Rich Birch — Yep. Love it. Sam Hamstra — …that are big invite events, that these are the moments where you need to bring 10 people. Rich Birch — Right. Sam Hamstra — We have found in our calendar since day one that we are seeing people respond to that and our church grows after every single time we do a big event. Rich Birch — That’s great.Sam Hamstra — And so we’re we’re doing four quarterly things.Rich Birch — Are those are those four the same every year? Are they, are they, yeah.Sam Hamstra — Yeah, yes.Rich Birch — So what are they? What are those four? If you don’t want me asking.Sam Hamstra — So, you know, Easter, of course… Rich Birch — Yep. Sam Hamstra — …summer kickoff was something we just created… Rich Birch — Yeah, great. Sam Hamstra — …to start the first Sunday of June. We rented a football field and we just say, bring everybody. We don’t… Rich Birch — That’s great. Sam Hamstra — …in our culture here, this is one thing, like, we’re like, we don’t shrink in the summer. This is a great time to grow.Rich Birch — Keep going forward. Yep. Love it.Sam Hamstra — Yeah. And then we created something years ago called Homecoming, just, you know, it was really show up Sunday, invite day. Rich Birch — Yeah. Yep. Sam Hamstra — And then Christmas. Rich Birch — Love it.Sam Hamstra — So those are our four homecomings in November on the calendar. It just kind of flows quarterly for us that way.Rich Birch — That’s great. I love it. Well, I love what we’ve seen in fastest growing church in the country, friends that are listening in, is, you know, lots of churches will get, they have two big days, Christmas and Easter. But what we see is the behavior that you’re doing, which is you kind of end up having to make up a couple other days where you’re kind of injecting energy. We’re recording this in the summertime. You know, lots of churches have pulled a page out of Life Church’s book around At the Movies. And they, at the movies is one of their biggest attended days of the year on the the front end of that.Rich Birch — It’s just made up. There’s no reason for you to come the first week of August… Sam Hamstra — Yeah, absolutely. Rich Birch — …but they’ve decided, hey, we’re going to do that. That’s great. So we’re going to link to your about page where a lot of this is on that that page.Sam Hamstra — Yeah.Rich Birch — On the how our core values, how we behave: We love people. We bleed passion. We choose joy. There’s some unique stuff in there. So talk me through. We love people, I think could be universally true of lots of churches… Sam Hamstra — Yeah. Rich Birch — …but I’m not sure that every church would say we bleed passion. We choose joy. Talk me through those as how those are kind of a unique thing that is helping you define what it means to be Anthem.Sam Hamstra — Yeah, so you know on the love people thing, is you do hear that a lot. And I found there’s a difference between hearing it than living it out. And in religious environments sometimes, you know, I think we all pray we wanna reach the lost until you reach the lost. Rich Birch — True.Sam Hamstra — And our first service, our first Easter Sunday here, we only had one door into our auditorium. And I still remember we had the whole back of the auditorium smelled like weed.Rich Birch — Oh, wow. Okay. Love it.Sam Hamstra — And it was like this tense moment, you know, like of like, okay, this is what we pray for.Rich Birch — Yes.Sam Hamstra — And kind of diving deep into that. So we really own that language within that of we belong before we behave. And so we’re, you know, you can come from all walks of life and we believe Jesus died for all people. So we love all people.Sam Hamstra — And then the we choose joy…Rich Birch — I love that. Before we move on, the thing I love about that… Sam Hamstra — Yeah. Rich Birch — …that you’re calling out, that I do think is a nuance that we miss in too many churches, which is oftentimes we say we want to reach people. But what that comes with is messy pastoral care, hard conversations, stuff that doesn’t make sense, and long nights. Like, it’s just hard. Rich Birch — And, um you know, if you’re, it’s easy to reach Christians from the other church across town. It’s hard to reach people who don’t normally journey in this stuff.Sam Hamstra — Yeah. Yeah.Rich Birch — And I love I love that story, even of your opening weekend with the the smell of weed in the back of the room.Sam Hamstra — Yeah.Rich Birch — I love it.Sam Hamstra — Yeah. Definitely messy.Rich Birch — That’s great. Yes, yes, love it.Sam Hamstra — Yeah. You know, the “We choose joy” has just been, um i think one of the greatest testimonies we had was from somebody that just, it was their first time guest. So like, man, everybody feels like they’re the same here. Everybody’s so happy. And we just wanted to build in just this, we believe that, you know, joy should be a badge that every believer wears. It’s just been, you know, you go into the different environments and some people just, it seems like a chore to be alive.Sam Hamstra — And so we just wanted to drive in. This is a privilege to be part of what God is doing in the earth in this hour, even if it doesn’t look perfect. Rich Birch — That’s great. Sam Hamstra — And then with “We bleed passion”, um that’s really our way to say here, you know, if you’re looking for a place that’s content with status quo, you’re probably not going to like it here. We’re always going to be changing. We’re always going to be moving. We’re always going to be shifting. We always want to go with where the Lord is leading. And so we’re a sending church. Don’t get comfortable. There’s always going to be more services. There’s always going to be new churches. Sam Hamstra — So we tried to to really get that in the DNA from the front side.Rich Birch — Yeah, that’s so good. I love it.Rich Birch — I love that “we choose joy”. When I was at Liquid Church, are one of our three in this in this coupling was “Church is fun”. And you know the way we would talk about that is we would say, you know we we we say good news or we say gospel. We’re like, we should be gospel people or we should be good news people. Rich Birch — But what that actually means, how that actually should work itself out in our culture is when people interact with us, those people are a lot of fun to be around. Sam Hamstra — Yeah. Rich Birch — Because they’re redeemed people who have figured out, man, we’re following a God who loves us dearly. So what that should actually like, I love the way you’ve said it, we choose joy. Joy should be the natural outcome of our churches… Sam Hamstra — Yes. Rich Birch — …which is, again, that should not be rocket science, but it’s amazing how much that is a cultural difference or can be a huge cultural difference in many churches.Sam Hamstra — Yes. 100%. Yep.Rich Birch — That’s cool. So um you’ve been using this really throughout your how you develop leaders, how you onboard people, how you, you know, how do you come back to this time and time again? What are you using? How are you using these tools in your leadership development, in your raising up of volunteers, that sort of thing?Sam Hamstra — Yeah, so foundationally, I got to give credit where credit is due once again on this. I heard University of Kentucky’s baseball coach say this about culture, and it was like the best thing I’ve ever heard. He totally transformed his program, and he said it was culture at at the root of it. He said culture is every day. Culture is what you accept, and culture is what you reinforce.Rich Birch — It’s good.Sam Hamstra — And so we try to keep that in front of us as much as we can. It’s you know not something we just say we want to lead the way every day. So within these three, we actually just came out with 10 leadership values that all fit within those three…Rich Birch — Oh, that’s cool.Sam Hamstra — …that give a little more language to our leadership, like, you know, we love people, so we park in back. And so really speaking to the culture of, you know, we put other people first, we serve. Rich Birch — Oh, that’s good.Sam Hamstra — And so, you know, we try to outdo each other. You know, I park about a half mile away from church on Sundays. We don’t we don’t do pastor parking, you know, or anything like that. umAnd so just, it’s every day.Rich Birch — Yes.Sam Hamstra — We do a value at every single one of our pre-service huddles on Sunday. So we’re taking those three values every Sunday, one, here’s what we’re doing.Sam Hamstra — And then Leadership Pipeline, we implemented this two years ago and we’re teaching our Anthem way across the board to a new set of leaders three times a year. And so we really zone in on culture a lot. We’ve just realized people coming from a lot of different places and what makes our culture, our culture are these distinctives. And so we’re teaching those and then really trying to walk them out. And the best testimony we’ve been hearing is people say, yeah, we see that in the leadership of the church. So that’s been really cool to hear.Rich Birch — That’s really cool. I love it. And friends, this just reminds me of the like such a foundational thing we’ve all got to get right and work on and then repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat, repeat.Rich Birch — We’ve got to keep on top of this language and and just come back to it time and time again. So you’re multi-site, you’re you’re going to launch more campuses down the road. Sam Hamstra — Yeah.Rich Birch — How does this tie into that conversation around, you know, there can be in you know, some multi-site churches, there’s like this tension of uniformity, you know, versus autonomy. And like, how how does that how does how does your thinking work out with the Anthem Way in multiple locations?Sam Hamstra — Yeah. So I want to preface this with I’m new, so I am figuring this out in real time. Rich Birch — Sure. Yeah, yeah, yeah.Sam Hamstra — I’m coming from from being a campus pastor to now being in the position I’m in. We’re two years into our first ah plant location campus. So and we’ve seen it be successful.Sam Hamstra — But what we’ve agreed on is we are going to be uniform in the Anthem Way. So we’re choosing uniformity and everything that falls within that box of the Anthem Way. Um, and so that has been like the running lanes for us to define what we’re doing, how we’re doing it, the way we talk, the way we move, our style of church, um, and all of that. So that’s been, you know, we’ve been really struggling with, with, with what you just said, that uniformity versus unity versus, you know, autonomy. Sam Hamstra — And so, the Anthem Way is to become our framework on how we’re starting locations. And we feel like as long as everybody’s in sync with all, and it and it entails a lot, right? I mean, how we do church, our approach to a lot of things.Sam Hamstra — And so that’s been that’s been our overarching theme is we want to be uniform in this. Rich Birch — yeah that’s good. Sam Hamstra — And so that’s what we’ve been trying to make sure it’s documented, ready to go.Rich Birch — Yeah, that’s good. Yeah, that’s an interesting, that’s like a, we could have a whole other half an hour just on on on that issue.Sam Hamstra — Yeah.Rich Birch — But one of the things we have seen over the long arc of the multi-site movement is churches that are choosing clarity and um and more, yeah, an understanding of, in your case, what is Anthem and how do we do what we do, those churches are the churches that, from my perspective, and not just statistically, are actually benefiting more from the multi-site movement. Rich Birch — The churches where they’re like, hey, let’s spend a lot of time. It can actually be the worst model because it’s like, we have a lot of people thinking about all the different ways you could potentially do church. As opposed to saying, no, no, like this is the way we’re not, we’re not saying this is the best way. We’re just saying it’s our way. We’re not saying that this is the only way to do it.Sam Hamstra — Yeah.Rich Birch — We’re just saying this is the way we do it. And, um and we’re okay with that. We’re settled on on that as an issue.Sam Hamstra — Yeah. That’s good. That’s good.Rich Birch — That’s interesting. Is there anything that changed or that has changed as you, I realize you’ve influenced ben to this from the beginning, but like, has there been anything that has kind of changed as you got clearer on the Anthem Way over the over the years? You know, something you cut or improved or, you know, is there anything that jumps to mind on that front?Sam Hamstra — Yeah, we’re would I might use the word refined rather than changed. Rich Birch — Sure. Yep, that’s good. Sam Hamstra — I was just talking to our discipleship director this morning just on, you know, is there is there a small group model? So like our three kind of handles in our discipleship pathway are know Christ, grow in Christ, and and make Christ known.Sam Hamstra — And, you know, our small group model isn’t working. We added what we call the Mosaic School of Ministry, which is is another thing in Grow. And we’ve actually seen way more interest and success in that. And so, you know, we have a way higher percentage right now going through what we call a School of Ministry, which is classes and and discipleship then we’re getting in small groups. Sam Hamstra — And so we’ve been just kind of wrestling with that a little bit. Like, is that culture, is it good, is it bad? And so I think those those refining moments have have really changed. We started off, though, I feel soft saying this, but it worked in our context. But we would start every year with 21 days of prayer and fasting in the beginning. And do 21 days again in the fall.Rich Birch — Love it.Sam Hamstra — We’ve actually gone down to seven days to start the year. There’s seven days in the fall. We just feel like we’re seeing actually better results with more people getting involved just with those minor tweaks, just to say this…Rich Birch — Yeah, that’s good.Sam Hamstra — …his is we’re we’re seeing bigger impact there. Rich Birch — Sure. Sam Hamstra — But so I think those refining things have been really good.Rich Birch — Has there been any of that refining that has come not from you, but from a member of your team? Like, has anyone called you out or called the church out on like, hey, like on prayer or on any of these where, you know, like when that’s happened in my life, I kind of like that. Sam Hamstra — Yeah.Rich Birch — I’m like, oh, well, that’s a pleasant thing that just happened there, even though it feels weird to be the person being called out.Sam Hamstra — Yeah.Rich Birch — Have you had any experiences like that?Sam Hamstra — Yeah. Yes. I’m laughing because, yeah, I’ve had quite a few. I could point to the one with prayer fasting. Rich Birch — Yes. So somebody on our team was like, hey, pastor, you know that there’s really no a place in the Bible where there’s a three week corporate fast. Rich Birch — Sure. Sam Hamstra — Yeah like where the whole church is coming together for three weeks and I’m like well I got a challenge, I’m gonna look. And I’m like sure enough you know, I’m maybe somebody could find it, but it was like these times and seasons where people come together for specific things of like, oh man you’re right. Rich Birch — Yeah. Yeah, love it. Sam Hamstra — So and so that was like one of those um yeah it’s it’s definitely happened quite quite a bit and so which I love that too and so it’s been such a blessing of solid team that feels free to speak when when they need to.Rich Birch — Yeah, that’s great. Well, this has been a good conversation, just as we’re kind of coming to land. If you think about a church out there that feels like okay they’ve listened to this and they’re like okay, we maybe they’ve opened up your website. And they’re like, hey, we’re not as clear on this that as we could be, we need to get much clearer on that.Rich Birch — What’s kind of one first step that you would encourage people to take? What would be kind of the best first step towards getting clarity on this front?Sam Hamstra — Write the vision, make it plain so that he that reads it may run.Rich Birch — Dude, I love it. And with that, we end the episode. That’s fantastic. No, that’s great. Unpack that a little bit.Sam Hamstra — Um, you know, I for so much of my life, I was always looking to be so unique and so different. Rich Birch — Right.Sam Hamstra — And I felt like I just needed the next best thing. And it was wasn’t until I just locked into this is what the Lord has for us. And it might sound like somebody else it might look and that’s OK, but this going to be very unique to us. And this is what we’re doing. And just to be very clear on that and then just this is for me, but I get bored so easily. And to just, just not get bored and just keep doing the same thing in the same direction day after day.Rich Birch — Right.Sam Hamstra — And in that that flywheel, to use your words, it does work. And just to see that go and to to get very clear and and simple and and let people know where you’re going and just keep saying the same thing over and over is so life-giving.Rich Birch — That’s so good. So good.Rich Birch — Well, I really appreciate you being here today. If we want to send people anywhere online to track with you or to track with the church, where do we want to send them?Sam Hamstra — So first name, last name would be all my personal stuff. So @samhamstra, last name H-A-M-S-T-R-A.Sam Hamstra — And all church stuff is weareanthemchurch.com. And then weareanthemchurch on social as well.Rich Birch — Love it. So good. Appreciate that, Sam. Thanks so much for being here. Honored that you take some time to be with us today.Sam Hamstra — Yeah, thanks so much, Rich, my honor.

Who the hell gave them a CDL .... and why did it take a family paying the price before Washington started listening?This episode of Brake Check isn't an attack on professional truck drivers. It's an investigation into the systems, safeguards, bad actors and policymakers that are supposed to keep unqualified drivers from ever getting behind the wheel of a commercial truck.Professional truck driver and father Marcus Coleman joins Charles  after taking his family's story to Congress. His daughter Dalilah suffered catastrophic injuries in a crash, and Marcus is now fighting for Dalilah's Law and stronger accountability throughout the commercial driver licensing system.We dig into the questions Washington needs to answer:How does an unqualified driver get a CDL? Where can the licensing and verification process fail? Who is responsible when safeguards aren't followed? What would Dalilah's Law actually change? And why does government so often react AFTER somebody pays the price?Then Zach Meiborg, owner of Meiborg Transportation, joins the conversation.Meiborg isn't just talking about supporting Dalilah's family — they're opening their Rockford, Illinois headquarters September 26 for the Stand With Dalilah Charity Motorcycle Ride.But we also tackle another side of the same accountability problem: legitimate motor carriers spending real money to hire qualified drivers, maintain equipment, follow hours-of-service regulations and operate legally while bad actors can gain an unfair advantage by cutting corners.Running illegal isn't innovation. Cheating isn't competition. And a government-issued piece of paper shouldn't replace actual qualification.This episode is about CDL standards, trucking safety, driver qualification, hours-of-service compliance, FMCSA enforcement, bad carriers, Dalilah's Law and government accountability.Professional truckers deserve better than being lumped together with operators who never should've been on the road.Families deserve better than finding out where the system failed after the crash.And policymakers?CONGRESS, IT'S YOUR TURN.#Trucking #CDL #TruckDrivers #TruckingSafety #FMCSA #Congress #Transportation #TruckingIndustry #OwnerOperator #BrakeCheck Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

TVC 747.1: Tony, Donna, and Ed remember the life and career of Tom Dreesen, the pioneering comedian, actor, and motivational speaker who was also the opening act for Frank Sinatra for many years. Tom Dreesen passed away on June 17, 2026 at the age of eighty-six. Topics this segment include the night when Dreesen visited Story Salon in 2009 (shortly after the publication of his first book, Tim & Tom: An American Comedy in Black and White), and how he incorporated the stories of every performer who preceded him that night before taking the stage himself at the end of the show; how Dreesen's formative years in Harvey, Illinois left an imprint on him; his partnership with Tim Reid as the first interracial stand-up comedy duo; and how Frank Sinatra once affectionately referred to Dreesen as "a saloon comic."

What does it really take to grow a family business, build a trusted local brand, and compete in a market full of short-term competitors?In this episode of the Builders of Authority Podcast, Adam McChesney sits down with Angi Hess, Vice President and General Manager of Spas and More, to talk about family business, leadership, marketing, company culture, and the evolution of the health and wellness market.Angi brings more than two decades of retail experience, including 19 years in management focused on human resources, payroll, and P&L management. Around 2016, she transitioned into the day-to-day operations of Spas and More as her father's health began to decline.Founded by her father in 2006, Spas and More has grown into a three-generation family business serving customers across Missouri, Kansas, and Illinois.In this conversation, Adam and Angi discuss:• Transitioning from retail management into leadership of a family business• Building Spas and More into a recognizable local brand• Shifting the company's messaging from luxury products to health, wellness, and recovery• Expanding beyond hot tubs into swim spas, infrared saunas, and cold plunges• Competing against fly-by-night companies through trust, consistency, and local service• Using home shows and expos as a major customer acquisition channel• Managing advertising internally to stay connected to performance data• Understanding how economic and political uncertainty can affect consumer buying behavior• Expanding across a large multi-state territory while keeping delivery and service in-house• Creating a family-first company culture with competitive wages and employee benefits• Leading from the front and being willing to do any job required to support the teamAngi also explains why Spas and More made the decision to build its own brand rather than relying exclusively on the Master Spas name. By emphasizing in-house delivery, service, and long-term customer relationships, the company has been able to differentiate itself in a competitive market.She also shares how the business has evolved alongside changing consumer priorities, positioning hot tubs, swim spas, saunas, and cold plunges not simply as luxury purchases, but as investments in physical health, recovery, and mental well-being.

A former SWAT cop who hates gun shops bought a 100-year-old bank and built one of the most creative firearms businesses in the country.In this episode of Founder Talk, Alex Sheridan sits down with Matthew Gerard, founder of Down Range CC in Rochelle, Illinois. From John Wick-style tastings inside a historic bank vault to challenge coins that replace business cards, Matthew is building an experience-driven brand in a lower income town that pulls customers from miles away.Key takeaways:00:00:00 Introduction00:01:36Q: How do you build a unique business in a traditional industry like firearms retail?A: Matthew Gerard explains that he hated the standard gun shop model, so he designed his store around education and premium experiences rather than volume sales. The building itself, a historic 1908 bank with an original vault, became the centerpiece of a completely different customer experience.00:36:35Q: How do you market a luxury product in a lower income area?A: Matthew Gerard spends as little time in his shop as possible and instead goes to golf outings and Chamber of Commerce events in wealthier surrounding towns. He gets in front of people with money rather than waiting for them to find him.00:40:10Q: Why are women the fastest growing market in firearms and how should gun shops respond?A: Matthew Gerard notes that most gun shops are not female friendly and default to handing women a small pink gun. Down Range has offered ladies-only classes for years and designs every element of the store experience to be welcoming regardless of gender.00:55:04Q: How do you market a firearms business when social media platforms shadow ban gun content?A: Matthew Gerard discovered that Facebook monitors the first 30 seconds of live streams. He opens every stream with "Welcome to the Down Range Natural History Museum" to bypass the filter, then transitions to gun sales content. The hack worked so well that Facebook is now paying him for engagement.01:00:01Q: Why is firearms training so critical even if you already own a gun?A: Matthew Gerard compares most gun owners to Linus from Peanuts carrying a security blanket. The gun makes them feel safe but they have never trained under stress. Down Range uses force-on-force training with airsoft to simulate real threat scenarios.

With College Football starting, Melissa bet the Boys on over/under win totals for Illinois and Mizzou.

Moon kicks things off with the full report from the Cali Country Cruise, sailing from Long Beach to Ensenada, Mexico. The lineup included Tracy Lawrence, Gretchen Wilson, Jo Dee Messina, Chase Rice and plenty more, while Moon performed with Sullivan. There were some musical highs, some musical... let's call them learning opportunities... and the revelation that Jo Dee Messina may have discovered the ultimate cruise hack: perform before the ship leaves and then GET OFF THE BOAT.Gretchen Wilson, meanwhile, delivered one of Moon's highlights of the entire trip with a killer performance and band. Unfortunately, the actual cruise experience wasn't getting the same review. We're talking pricey Wi-Fi that barely worked, a balcony-room mix-up, limited excursion options, fake Cuban cigars, a stage built over the pool and a tiny backup pool populated by people who apparently had no interest in ever getting out.From there, this funny podcast turns into a tour of America's most overrated attractions. Four Corners gets roasted. Mount Rushmore gets called smaller than expected. Times Square takes a hit. The Las Vegas Strip lands at the top of the list. Lern also reveals she once got emotional seeing Chicago's Bean, proving once again that public art can be powerful when it looks like a gigantic piece of silver produce.A swimmer at Lake Tahoe reportedly gets attacked by an otter and requires 38 stitches, prompting Rafe to immediately begin defending the otter because apparently wildlife now has legal representation on The Rizzuto Show. Then there's a possible shark attack near the Massachusetts location associated with Jaws, followed by the deeply upsetting story of a woman waking from a dream about a mouse crawling toward her mouth... only to discover there was actually a BAT near her mouth.We also discover a Hawaiian shirt designed to confuse AI-powered surveillance cameras, which means Weird Al may have been preparing for the surveillance state this entire time.Missouri and Illinois get dragged into America's "worst vibes" rankings before the crew investigates which states hate each other the most. Missouri's answer? Kansas. Obviously. Centuries pass, civilizations rise and fall, and Missouri will apparently still find time to be annoyed by Kansas.Moon kicks things off with the glamorous realities of modern air travel after seemingly every flight on his trip decided that “on time” was more of a suggestion. A canceled connection, rerouting through Dallas, delays into Los Angeles and another delay getting back to St. Louis gave him plenty of time to catch up on movies. Unfortunately, that included The Mandalorian and Grogu, which gets a very enthusiastic C-minus review. Somewhere, a Star Wars fan just felt a disturbance in the Force.Then we discover that Americans apparently hit an energy wall around 2:48 in the afternoon, which explains basically every email you've ever received after lunch. Rafe's sleep schedule is wrecked, Lern is fighting afternoon cravings with hard-boiled eggs, and that leads to perhaps the most important culinary advice ever delivered on a funny podcast: if you've already hard-boiled the egg, you're halfway to a deviled egg.That discussion somehow turns into stale cereal confessions. Lern admits to eating old strawberry vanilla Chex after band practice while Rafe reveals that he knowingly ate stale Pops AND stale Golden Grahams. This is less a morning show and more four adults slowly admitting things that should probably stay between themselves and their pantries.Then it's time for Crap on Celebrities, where things get appropriately ridiculous. A woman is accused of stealing and crashing an ambulance outside an Avenged Sevenfold and Good Charlotte concert. Sevendust drummer Morgan Rose gets some love. Gibson is releasing an extremely limited Billy Gibbons “Pearly Gates” Les Paul. Sean Ono Lennon welcomes his first child, making John Lennon and Yoko Ono grandparents for the first time. There's also a Matthew Perry documentary on the way, more Tulsa King, and the crew tries to understand the enormous world of people watching other people play video games.Speaking of gaming, Grand Theft Auto gets everybody talking about Twitch, streaming communities, gameplay fandoms, and the strange realization that watching someone else play a game can become an entire entertainment ecosystem. Scott even admits he made “multiple dollars” streaming, so please respect the media mogul.Hollywood keeps the nonsense rolling with Emmy gift bags, Marvel's mysterious Secret Wars casting, Hamnet, and Ridley Scott reportedly having some thoughts about Paul Mescal and Gladiator 2. That opens the floodgates because Rafe and Moon are more than happy to discuss just how much they hated that movie. Sharks in the Coliseum are put on trial. The verdict is not favorable.There's also a live-action Street Fighter movie coming with a completely unhinged cast, including Jason Momoa, 50 Cent, Roman Reigns, Cody Rhodes, Eric André and more. Apparently somebody looked at the casting board and selected “yes.”Finally, Journey brings Steve Perry look-alike Hugo Valenti onstage during shows in Japan, causing some fans to apparently wonder whether the real Steve Perry had returned. The crew listens to the results, and that goes exactly as respectfully as longtime listeners would expect.Throw in birthdays, Terry Bradshaw, Keanu Reeves, Salma Hayek, Rafe's increasingly dangerous wordplay, and all the other nonsense that somehow qualifies as broadcasting, and you've got another funny podcast from The Rizzuto Show.Delayed flights. Deviled eggs. Stale Pops. Celebrity fails. Video games. Gladiator sharks. Fake Steve Perry.We accomplished nothing and covered everything.The Cali-Country Cruise7 most overrated US attractionsWoman attacked by otter while swimming says 'it felt like a human'Woman gets potential shark bite off Martha's Vineyard, in the town "Jaws" was filmedWhich US state has the worst vibes?See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Moon is back from the Cali Country Cruise, and apparently all it took was several days trapped on a boat with country music, expensive Wi-Fi, questionable pools and enough alcohol to sink a smaller boat to make our resident cruise defender reconsider his entire belief system.Welcome to Episode 146 of The Rizzuto Show, the funny podcast where a perfectly normal vacation recap somehow ends with violent otters, bats trying to enter human mouths, artificial intelligence being defeated by Hawaiian shirts, and Missouri discovering that the rest of America apparently doesn't love our vibes.Moon kicks things off with the full report from the Cali Country Cruise, sailing from Long Beach to Ensenada, Mexico. The lineup included Tracy Lawrence, Gretchen Wilson, Jo Dee Messina, Chase Rice and plenty more, while Moon performed with Sullivan. There were some musical highs, some musical... let's call them learning opportunities... and the revelation that Jo Dee Messina may have discovered the ultimate cruise hack: perform before the ship leaves and then GET OFF THE BOAT.Genius. No notes.Gretchen Wilson, meanwhile, delivered one of Moon's highlights of the entire trip with a killer performance and band. Unfortunately, the actual cruise experience wasn't getting the same review. We're talking pricey Wi-Fi that barely worked, a balcony-room mix-up, limited excursion options, fake Cuban cigars, a stage built over the pool and a tiny backup pool populated by people who apparently had no interest in ever getting out.Nothing makes you rethink vacation choices like sitting in a hot tub in Mexico wondering how much human broth is legally allowed before it becomes soup.And somehow that's not even where the cruise chaos ends. The ship was reportedly delayed while authorities dealt with passengers suspected of bringing meth aboard, while another passenger managed to get cut off from the alcohol package before the ship even left. Imagine getting grounded by a cruise ship while you're still within swimming distance of your car.From there, this funny podcast turns into a tour of America's most overrated attractions. Four Corners gets roasted. Mount Rushmore gets called smaller than expected. Times Square takes a hit. The Las Vegas Strip lands at the top of the list. Lern also reveals she once got emotional seeing Chicago's Bean, proving once again that public art can be powerful when it looks like a gigantic piece of silver produce.Then the animals arrive.A swimmer at Lake Tahoe reportedly gets attacked by an otter and requires 38 stitches, prompting Rafe to immediately begin defending the otter because apparently wildlife now has legal representation on The Rizzuto Show. Then there's a possible shark attack near the Massachusetts location associated with Jaws, followed by the deeply upsetting story of a woman waking from a dream about a mouse crawling toward her mouth... only to discover there was actually a BAT near her mouth.Sleep tight, everybody.We also discover a Hawaiian shirt designed to confuse AI-powered surveillance cameras, which means Weird Al may have been preparing for the surveillance state this entire time.Finally, Missouri and Illinois get dragged into America's "worst vibes" rankings before the crew investigates which states hate each other the most. Missouri's answer? Kansas. Obviously. Centuries pass, civilizations rise and fall, and Missouri will apparently still find time to be annoyed by Kansas.Follow The Rizzuto Show → linktr.ee/rizzshow for more from your favorite daily comedy show.Connect with The Rizzuto Show Comedy Podcast online → 1057thepoint.com/RizzShow.Hear The Rizz Show daily on the radio at 105.7 The Point | Hubbard Radio in St. Louis, MO.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

#chrisdistefano Ryan Serhant joins Chris Distefano for a chaotic conversation about New York City, the insane state of the real estate market, renting vs. buying, building wealth and what it actually takes to become successful. Ryan breaks down why he still believes owning is better than renting if you can afford it, what would actually have to happen for NYC home prices to fall, and some of the wildest prices he's seeing in Manhattan right now, including a SoHo apartment renting for $72,000 a month. Plus, Ryan talks about waking up at 4:30 AM, learning when to say no, running a massive company, his Russian driver Yuri, Owning Manhattan and where LeBron James should live if he moves to New York. 00:00 Chris & Ryan Serhant Cause Chaos in SoHo 02:04 Ryan's Bracelets Have an Incredible Story 04:22 Meet Ryan's Russian Driver Yuri 05:29 Chris' Daughter Roasts Him During Road Rage 06:25 Ryan's Advice for Making $1 Million 06:59 Why Ryan Used to Work 7 Days a Week 09:59 Ryan's Insane 4:30 AM Morning Routine 11:28 Ryan Explains Management vs. Leadership 12:11 Should You Rent or Buy a Home? 13:30 What's Wrong With the Housing Market 15:24 What Would Actually Make Home Prices Fall? 16:40 The Best Kind of NYC Landlord 20:30 How Much Do These SoHo Apartments Cost? 21:35 $31K Rent Became $72K a Month 22:29 Ryan Gets Fired Up About NYC 25:30 How Ryan Would Fix NYC Housing 28:36 Why Ryan Loves New York 29:59 Ryan's Secret: Do What You Say You'll Do 30:30 Going From "Yes, And" to "No, But" 31:30 Where Should LeBron James Live in NYC? 32:28 Ryan Talks Owning Manhattan 34:12 Peptides, Chris' Tattoo & One Final Roast #StandUp #Comedy UNCUT WILD CONTENT GO HERE

This week, we remember two iconic figures who helped make the world feel a little more accepting in very different ways. Dolly Parton embodied a version of Christianity rooted in love, generosity, and an instinctive refusal to exclude people who weren't like her. Tim Curry, meanwhile, helped bring transgressive sexuality, camp, and gender-bending performance into the cultural mainstream. Together, they represent two very different paths toward the same idea of giving people permission to be fully themselves Also: An Anglican church in hot water after a visit from a sex worker. Miss North Carolina loses her crown—and calls it Christian persecution. Catholic doctors push back against Illinois' assisted-dying law. Did New Jersey make prayer illegal? Milo Yiannopoulos gets an unexpected lesson in immigration enforcement. AI-generated religious influencers are gaining millions of followers.

Episode 1019 asks the question rarely posed — "Is our Republicans learning?" — and finds them relearning the exact same 2006 playbook: distance yourself from an unpopular president, rebrand as "independent," and blame everyone but yourselves. Driftglass and Blue Gal line up MAGA voters furious about tariff-driven beef prices, ICE snatching their own spouses, and grocery costs, all while insisting none of it is their fault after voting for Trump three times. The episode traces the eerie parallel between Bush's 2006 collapse — GOP candidates scrubbing his name from campaign ads and a mass rebranding into "independents" that eventually became the Tea Party and then MAGA — and today's Illinois Republicans barely mentioning Trump's name at the state fair. It's about pattern recognition as the Left's greatest weapon, and why this time "the lifeboats" need to burn.Stay in Touch! Email: proleftpodcast@gmail.com Website: proleftpod.com Support via Patreon: patreon.com/proleftpod or Donate in the Venmo App @proleftpodMail: The Professional Left, PO Box 9133, Springfield, Illinois, 62791Support the show

Illini Inquirer's Jeremy Werner catches up with former IHSA football head coach Mat Pistole to break down the X's and O's of Bobby Hauck's new Illinois defensive scheme, how it fits the Illini's personnel and the exciting and concerning things about the defense in 2026. Then Werner and Joey Wagner preview Illini football's season opener against UAB, what they want to see from the offense and defense, their picks to click and their bold predictions.Follow the Illini Inquirer Podcast on:Apple: https://apple.co/3oMt0NPSpotify: https://spoti.fi/2Xan2L8 Other: https://bit.ly/36gn7Ct Go VIP for 60% OFF: https://tinyurl.com/2fkhmjdz (0:00) - Intro(1:05) - Mat Pistole on Bobby Hauck's 3-3-5 scheme(5:05) - Thoughts on bringing defense to Illinois(9:01) - How Hauck deploys the defensive line(14:52) - Importance of LBs in this defense(20:50) - The secondary in this defense(28:50) - Keys for defense vs. UAB(30:45) - Question marks of the defense(33:30) - Illinois vs. UAB preview(36:38) - What we want to see from offense(43:02) - What we want to see from defense(45:34) - Picks to click offense(49:48) - Picks to click defense(53:03) - Bold prediction offense(55:50) - Bold prediction defense

We preview Rutger, Illinois, and Michigan from the Pick Six Preview magazine.

Some people irritate us for reasons we cannot explain. This episode offers a Jewish framework for what is really happening, and a practical way to use it. Adrienne Gold Davis tells the story of a rooftop dinner in Jerusalem, where a young speaker got under her skin until the woman beside her leaned over and said the speaker could have been Adrienne's daughter. What followed was an uncomfortable education in projection: judging in others what we have buried in ourselves. For a Jewish approach to judgment, self-awareness, and loving your fellow as yourself, LISTEN, SUBSCRIBE, and SHARE.   The Rise & Shine Podcast Series is made possible by the generous support of Bonnie Vozar of Chicago, Illinois. If you would like to sponsor an upcoming podcast, please email us at info@momentumunlimited.org

There are nine data centers operating in Missouri today, with another 52 in the works. Illinois already has more than 90. The growth of these facilities is pitting voters against big tech – often with elected leaders caught in the middle.

In this episode of Beyond The Loop, Dr. Patty Lindstrom, Founder of Creative Logic, and Bill Pasmore, Professor of Practice in Social Organizational Psychology at Columbia University, explore how purpose can transform everyday work into meaningful impact. Drawing on her doctoral research and book, Purpose at Work, Patty introduces a practical, evidence-based model showing how organizations that operationalize purpose build three critical conditions: Clarity in direction, decisions, and priorities; Confidence through trust, shared values, and collaboration; and Commitment to sustainable performance and resilience over time. The conversation moves beyond inspiration to application, examining how leaders embed purpose into strategy, culture, and daily decision-making to drive coordinated execution, meaningful innovation, and long-term value creation. From what happens when clarity, confidence, or commitment breaks down, to how the best leaders activate purpose across their organizations, this episode offers a roadmap for why purpose is no longer optional — it's foundational.   Subscribe on Apple, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you listen to podcasts.    Thank you to our podcast sponsor, Shure Incorporated. For nearly 100 years, Shure Incorporated has developed best-in-class audio products that provide high-quality performance, reliability, and value. Headquartered in Niles, Illinois, our history of innovation and expertise in acoustics, wireless technology, and more enables us to deliver seamless, transparent audio experiences to a global audience. Our diverse product line includes world-class wired and wireless microphones, networked audio systems and signal processors, conferencing and discussion systems, software, a loudspeaker, and award-winning earphones and headphones. Find Shure on: Facebook | LinkedIn | Instagram 

In Hour 2, Matt has some questions to ask as the Blues announced a new way to watch their game this season, Amazon Prime. But is this a good deal for Blues fans? IlliniInquirer.com's Jeremy Werner joins Pauley to break down the expectations for the Illini football team as they boast a strong QB and a stronger defense ahead of their season opener. Mizzou analyst Howard Richard joins the show for the Mizzou perspective, including some preseason hype after the ribbon-cutting for a massive stadium improvement and why he thinks Mizzou could surprise people (and win 9 games).

Crain's residential real estate reporter Dennis Rodkin and host Amy Guth discuss the latest local housing news, including a mansion built by Mrs. O'Leary's son that's headed to demolition court. Plus: Downtown apartment projects score big construction loans as lending eases, S&P upgrades Illinois' credit rating, a nonprofit buys Fulton Market loft office for new HQ and Mayor Johnson's starring role in World Business Chicago videos draws ethics hearing. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

We're proud to welcome Dr. Brooke Elliott, Dean of the Gies College of Business at the University of Illinois to the show this week. She shares her perspective on leading with purpose during a time of rapid change in higher education. Dean Elliott discusses how a mission-driven culture, intentional innovation, and a commitment to expanding access have helped Gies grow its impact while preparing students for an increasingly dynamic workforce. Rather than chasing trends, Dean Elliott makes the case for building durable systems that empower faculty, strengthen student outcomes, and ensure institutions remain adaptable while staying true to their core mission. Guest Name: Dr. Brooke Elliott - Dean of Gies College of Business at University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign Guest Social: LinkedIn Guest Bio: Dr. Brooke Elliott is the Josef and Margot Lakonishok Professor in Business and Dean of Gies College of Business at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. She leads the College in developing a compelling, strategic vision while continuing to build upon its distinctive brand and identity. This includes assessing and expanding Gies Business' portfolio of on-campus and online programs to strengthen its position as an innovative leader among the nation's best business schools. - - - -Connect With Our Host:Dustin Ramsdellhttps://www.linkedin.com/in/dustinramsdell/About The Enrollify Podcast Network:The Higher Ed Geek is a part of the Enrollify Podcast Network. If you like this podcast, chances are you'll like other Enrollify shows too!Enrollify is made possible by Element451 — The AI Workforce Platform for Higher Ed. Learn more at element451.com. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

At 89, Cynthia Goren is navigating a profound new chapter. Since the death of her husband last October after 67 years of marriage, she has become more aware of her own mortality—and more determined to live meaningfully. For Cynthia, that means continuing to learn, staying engaged in the things she loves, and, above all, helping others.“People need favors,” she says. “Physical help, someone to listen to their stories.” Listening and helping have been threads throughout Cynthia's life.A lifelong learner and teacher, Cynthia traces her love of learning to her parents. Teaching became a natural extension of her curiosity: she taught English in elementary school and literature at community college, delighting in explaining ideas and sharing what she was discovering. Even today, learning remains an essential part of who she is.Cynthia's Jewish faith and traditions have also shaped her sense of responsibility to others. Wanting to pass those traditions on to her children and grandchildren, she wrote Tales from a Jewish Grandmother: A Book of “Bubbe Meises,” using stories, food, Jewish education, family life, and humor to preserve a heritage she treasures.Now she is turning to another family story: the life of her father, who grew up in a shtetl before coming to the United States at age nine. Using handwritten notes he left behind, Cynthia is transforming his memories into historical fiction—preserving one generation's story for those who come after.Her compassion has extended beyond her family. Trained as a para-chaplain, Cynthia met weekly with older adults in a nursing home, using conversations about the Sabbath to create a space where people could talk openly about sadness, loss, and the realities of their lives.Cynthia's story reminds us that meaningful living doesn't require standing still when life changes. It can mean adapting, remaining curious, listening deeply, preserving the stories that matter—and continuing to ask, “How can I help?”“Helping others is the Jewish way of life.” - Cynthia GorenConnect with Cynthia:Book: Tales from a Jewish Grandmother: A Book of “Bubbe MeisesEmail: cyngoren@gmail.comThanks to our Platinum Sponsor, AARP Illinois, a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization dedicated to empowering people 50 and older to choose how they live as they age. With nearly 1.7 million members in Illinois, AARP volunteers advocate for better health, financial security, and stronger communities. Visit AARP.org/IL to learn more.

Every lifeguard learns the same thing before they are allowed near the water. You do not swim into someone's arms. A panicking person will climb you, and then there are two people in trouble instead of one, so you bring something that floats and you keep it between you. Nobody watching from the sand thinks the lifeguard is being stingy about it. This week we talk about aging parents who are running out of money, and what a physician's household has to keep standing while it helps. We also answer your colleagues' questions. A Surgeon in Pennsylvania says, “I currently have a HDHP with an HSA and contribute the family amount since my son is also on my insurance. He will drop off mid-year and I will then have single coverage. Does this affect my HSA contributions?” A Urologist in Minnesota wonders, “Our oldest starts college next fall and the 529 has more in it than I expected. How do we actually spend it, and do we tell him what's in there?” A Radiologist in Illinois asks, “I inherited an after-tax retirement annuity from my dad. What is it?” Are you ready to turn worries about taxes and investing into a plan for college and retirement? If you're evaluating your options and want to learn more, visit physicianfamily.com and click 'Get Started' or you can ask a question of your own by emailing podcast@physicianfamily.com. See marketing disclosures at physicianfamily.com/disclosures

The September 2, 2026 edition of Illinois Public Media's Closing Market Report, hosted by Todd Gleason, examines commodity market trends, local environmental policy, and global agricultural weather patterns. Following the opening commodity market settlements, Greg Johnson of Total Grain Marketing analyzes multi-year highs in corn and soybean futures, the psychological dynamics of farmer selling, early harvest expectations driven by late-summer heat, and updated crop budget estimates from the University of Illinois farmdoc team. The broadcast then highlights civic discourse in Champaign County, featuring University of Illinois environmental science student Bruce Beem, who details public testimony regarding proposed hyperscale data centers—specifically emphasizing concerns over long-term site remediation, and inadequate human-centric noise metrics and artificial light disruption along avian migratory corridors. Finally, meteorologist Drew Lerner of World Weather Incorporated delivers a regional and global forecast, evaluating persistent drought conditions across the U.S. hard red winter wheat belt, planting moisture outlooks in central Brazil, and international El Niño impacts spanning Indonesian wildfires and drenching rainfall in the Philippines.01:21 Ag Markets with Greg Johnson, TGM08:28 Data Centers, Civic Engagement, and University Educations14:38 Ag Weather with Drew Lerner, World Weather Inc ★ Support this podcast ★

Dmitry Pavlovsky came to motorcycling later than some, but he wasted little time making up for it. Born in Eastern Europe and raised in the Chicago area, Pavlovsky was 35 when a friend suggested taking a Motorcycle Safety Foundation course as a relationship-building exercise. By the time the class arrived, the relationship had ended—but a new one with motorcycles was just beginning. After learning on a Honda Rebel 250, Pavlovsky bought a 1977 Honda CB750 and started exploring the roads around Chicago. He eventually became an MSF rider coach himself, helping everyone from teenagers to returning riders develop the skills and confidence needed to ride safely. Motorcycles also gave Pavlovsky a new creative direction. After more than 20 years as a graphic designer, he launched the Vector Burn YouTube channel, focusing on lesser-known gear brands and practical equipment for riders on a budget. Today, he serves as the Chicagoland marketing representative for Law Tigers, connecting with riders, dealerships, independent shops, and events throughout northern Illinois. On this episode of “Driven to Ride,” host Mark Long talks with Pavlovsky about finding his identity on two wheels, teaching new riders, creating motorcycle content, protecting the riding community, and crossing the country through desert heat and Rocky Mountain snow. Connect with Us:Website: www.driventoridepodcast.comInstagram: www.Instagram.com/driventoridepodcastFacebook: www.facebook.com/driventorideEmail:hello@driventoridepodcast.com

Why do marching band uniforms trigger such fierce, lifelong nostalgia? Whether you marched in a halftime show decades ago or watched from the bleachers, the wool, buttons, and feather plumes of vintage uniforms hold a unique place in American material culture.In this episode of Grandma's Silver, we explore the theatrical pageantry and stories stitched into the seams of marching band attire. To do this, we're "traveling" to Greenville, Illinois, to step inside the legendary DeMoulin Museum with founder and curator John Goldsmith.DeMoulin Brothers & Co. is one of the oldest and most iconic uniform manufacturers in the United States. However, their corporate history has a surprisingly bizarre origin story rooted in creating eccentric secret society initiation pranks before the uniforms they're known for today.In this episode: How a family shifted from pranks to outfitting the nation's halftime shows.The shift from heavy fabrics to more versatile uniforms.Why marching band alumni make pilgrimages to the museum and save uniform fragments as family heirlooms.RESOURCES:Learn more and plan your visit to the DeMoulin Museum.Follow along on Instagram and/or Facebook.If you enjoy Grandma's Silver, follow the podcast and share this episode with a friend who loves heritage, design, and timeless living.

Wil Jorgensen started a machine shop at 22 with a $4,000 screw machine he found on Craigslist. He's 26 now, running Evolution CNC in Wenatchee, Washington, with seven people and a pallet automated 5-axis machine that runs close to around the clock. What makes this conversation worth your time isn't the growth curve though. It's how he thinks. Wil and his team wrote a four page manifesto before they made the big bets. Not a business plan, an emotional document about what would make betting their careers on this thing feel worthwhile. Then they bought a Matsuura MAM72 35 with 32 pallets when they had almost no money in the bank, overdrew the account by $4,000 to close it, and gave themselves about 30 days to make it work. It worked. Bookings went from $252,000 in 2024 to $1.1 million in 2025, and they're pushing toward $2 million this year. His advice on automation is blunt. Don't wait until you think you can afford it. The smaller the shop, the more automation you should have. The part that stuck with me most is the promise Wil makes to everyone he hires. He will not be angry. He spent a stretch of his early twenties running on anger and determination, and then decided he didn't have time for it. If one of his guys scraps $25,000 in parts and Wil stays calm, nobody else in the building gets to be angry either. That one decision shapes how the whole shop operates. There's a lot in here about buying machines you can't afford, cutting loose customers who don't pay, and getting out of your own people's way. If you're early in building a shop, or you're still touching everything yourself, this one will land. What's Covered in this Episode (0:00) The one promise Wil makes to everyone who works for him, he will not be angry (2:56) Evolution CNC today, and how a job at L.E. Wilson at 17 led to screw machines at Pacific Aerospace (5:33) The $4,000 Craigslist Citizen L16 that started the shop in December 2022 (6:29) Buying Evolution from his mentor Leonard, and working six months for free to do it (8:55) Cutting ties with every customer who didn't pay on time, and keeping the one who did (9:27) Hiring his old boss Ted Keyes, then Dale Siegel and Gerard McGlashan (11:39) IMTS Job Shops Workshop and Networking Reception on September 15 (12:16) Committing to 5-axis and automation before anyone on the team had seen a 5-axis machine (14:09) Todd Newhouse at Selway, and the Matsuura MAM 72-35 that was wildly out of their wheelhouse (15:38) Nobody checked whether the machine would fit through the door until the day before delivery (16:10) Going from a comfortable $2,000 Haas payment to one that could end the company (18:40) Cutting chips before the trainer arrived, and shipping a 100 piece order the week after (19:30) Why one Matsuura carries 60 to 70 percent of throughput across four machines (20:51) Running the Matsuura around the clock, with five hours of downtime over a full weekend (22:05) No credit line, running on cash, and 30 days of runway if the machine didn't work (23:34) Overdrawing the bank account by $4,000, and the four page manifesto behind the bet (27:25) Bookings from $252,000 in 2024 to $1.1 million in 2025, and the push toward $2 million (27:25) Hennig Workflow Automation System (31:51) Why he'd still start with an automated Haas if he were doing it over today (34:11) Turning down work, and the 30 inch ring he ran on a VF4 with the doors removed (38:35) The MakingChips machine giveaway with DN Solutions and Kennametal (41:55) George McCorley and Ty Neff, and trading a drill jig for installing airlines in Illinois (47:22) Everything I touch is bad, and learning to get out of his own team's way (56:44) The shift from running on anger to deciding he didn't have time for it (57:58) Why Gerard pushed him to stop working weekends, and what didn't break when he did Resources Mentioned IMTS Hennig Workflow Automation System MakingChips Machine Giveaway Matsuura USA Mastercam Renishaw REVO Lights Out podcast Connect with Wil Jorgensen Connect on LinkedIn Evolution CNC

This September is National Recovery Month. What better way to celebrate six years of this podcast than to discuss why recovery—real recovery—requires the individual's, the family's, and the community's efforts. Guida Brown initiated this podcast six years ago and today joins us as the Principal for Guided by Guida. She serves as a Community Relations Consultant for US Drug Testing Laboratories in Des Plaines, Illinois. She also serves as President of the board of Orchids FASD Services Wisconsin, the Wisconsin affiliate for FASD United. Guida is certified by the State of Wisconsin as a Substance Abuse Counselor and a Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder trainer. She is also a Kenosha, Wisconsin, County Board Supervisor. She can be reached at https://guidedbyguida.guide/. The State of Wisconsin's Dose of Reality campaign is at Dose of Reality: Opioids in Wisconsin. More information about the federal response to the ongoing opiate crisis can be found at One Pill Can Kill. The views and opinions of the guests on this podcast are theirs and theirs alone and do not necessarily represent those of the host or Westwords Consulting. We're always interested in hearing from individuals or organizations who are working in substance use disorder treatment or prevention, mental health care and other spaces that lift up communities. This includes people living those experiences. If you or someone you know has a story to share or an interesting approach to care, contact us today! Follow us on Facebook, LinkedIn, and YouTube. Subscribe to Our Email List to get new episodes in your inbox every week!

The team discussed recent updates and personal experiences. Keith shared details about a problematic incident involving their grandson, Rahim, who damaged their Toyota Highlander vehicle while it was in his care. The vehicle sustained significant damage, including a crushed unibody, and the insurance company is likely to total it. Rahim has since disappeared, and his access to the family home has been disabled. The group also briefly discussed local movie productions in St. Louis and Litchfield, and Keith mentioned attending a wedding at a barn in Iuka, Illinois over the weekend. Support our podcast by visiting ourAmazon Affiliate! visit the page, shop like you typically would and we receive a tiny portion of your qualified purchase (that means you need to buy something). News of the Week The team discussed several unusual news stories during their meeting. Terry shared a story about a Dutch TV host who built a car shaped like a wooden shoe that reached 70 mph, while Jill reported on the 65th annual German finger wrestling championship in Bavaria, where competitors tie middle fingers together and try to pull opponents across a table. Keith presented fake movie reviews for three upcoming films: “Confinement,” “I Want Your Sex,” and “Just Play Dead.” Additionally, Terry shared a story about a sheep that accidentally boarded a bus and went through a car wash, and Jill discussed a cat with 29 digits that set a new record for polydactyly. Keith shared slang words from the week, including “Ohio,” and Terry closed out with a story about a venomous snake found inside a high school football helmet in Arkansas. Jill's Trivia Quiz Jill led a quiz about Dolly Parton, covering topics such as her birthplace, instruments she plays, and notable songs. The participants answered questions about Dolly Parton’s career, including her famous song collaborations and album releases. Terry's Top 10 List Terry presented a top 10 list of ridiculous things people do when nobody is looking, covering behaviors like pretending to be in shampoo commercials, arguing with imaginary people, checking for the “Snack Fairy,” and rehearsing acceptance speeches. The group discussed various examples from the list, with Keith and Jill sharing personal experiences related to the behaviors described. Anchor Topic This is the part of our show where we discuss blindness-related topics. Skipping our scheduled topic on computers, we spent our time focusing on living skills—specifically, how to make cake pops. Keith and Jill discussed different types of wedding cakes, including regular cake, cupcakes, and cake popsicles (also known as cake sickles), with Jill sharing her experience making them for baby showers. They described the step-by-step process of making cake popsicles: crumbling cake, adding frosting, and dipping them in chocolate. Jill suggested using egg cartons for drying to help maintain their shape. Email and Final Thoughts Keith shared a humorous true crime story about a car burglary incident involving a K9 unit and a suspect’s comment about the dog having a “taste for dark meat.” He also read a listener’s email about a man discovering lettuce growing from his rear end, which he reported to his doctor. Keith played a voicemail from a listener who shared a story about an “accidental divorce” following an unnoticed birthday. Finally, Keith wrapped up the show with a story about a bus driver who provided accurate life advice based on passengers’ destinations over several months, eventually leading to a romantic relationship and engagement. The final word from our AI companion The show featured a segment of comedy jokes and puns from multiple participants, including jokes about binary code, Homer Simpson, pirates, and various wordplay. Keith concluded the episode by encouraging listeners to visit the website, share the show with friends, and leave messages with funny stories or questions about blindness for potential inclusion in future episodes. Show notes written by AI, edited as needed by Keith. Sponsored by: Retro Radio Podcast. Bringing you family-friendly entertainment through classic, old-time radio. Episodes are posted daily. Keith and his Retrobots share everything in his collection from the days of vintage radio. Adventure, comedy, detective, westerns, and lots in between. If you don't hear your favorite show? Just ask. Visit the web page today, Retro Radio Podcasts

Hosts Josh Welge and Steve Soucie go over what they are seeing in terms of the number of two-win teams that might make the IHSA football playoffs, whether or not games will start on time, or even happen, this week and look at the games to watch across northern Illinois.Become a supporter of this podcast: https://www.spreaker.com/podcast/friday-night-drive--3534096/support.

My buddy Martyn Ford hangs with me and we get into his insane journey from cricket player to battling an eating disorder, finding himself through training, and eventually building a career in movies. We talk about Arnold Schwarzenegger's influence, the ridiculous Fast & Furious premiere Martyn basically threw for himself, the emergency surgery that nearly killed him, and the pressure he feels trying to break through as a leading actor. Plus, we talk about working together on The Machine, his latest Mortal Kombat 2 success and spending hours in hair and makeup just to have it mostly covered by a helmet. Follow Martyn: https://www.instagram.com/martynfordofficial Sponsors: Everything420 - Go to https://Everything420.com or download the e420 app now and use code BERT for an extra 15% off your order. Square - Get up to $200 off Square hardware when you sign up at https://square.com/go/bert! #squarepod DraftKings - New DraftKings customers, sign up with code BERTCAST spend five bucks to get $200 in rewards within 21 days - includes all markets. BlueChew - Right now, when you buy two months of BlueChew Gold, you get the third for FREE with promo code BERTCAST. Tempo - For a limited time, Tempo is offering my listeners SIXTY PERCENT OFF your first box! Go to https://tempomeals.com/BERT Brunt Workwear - Get $10 off at BRUNT with code BERTCAST at https://www.bruntworkwear.com/BERTCAST and enter THE BRUNT POTTY OF GOLD SWEEPSTAKES for your chance to win $50,000. No purchase necessary. Ends 9/18/26. Official rules apply. #Bruntpod SUBSCRIBE so you never miss a video https://bit.ly/3DC1ICg Stream FREE BERT on Netflix: https://www.netflix.com/title/81696123 PERMISSION TO PARTY WORLD TOUR is on sale now: http://www.bertbertbert.com/tour Subscribe to Berty Boy Clips: https://www.youtube.com/@BertyBoyClips For all things BERTY BOY PRODUCTIONS: https://bertyboyproductions.com For MERCH: https://store.bertbertbert.com/ Follow Me! Facebook: http://www.Facebook.com/BertKreischer Instagram: http://www.Instagram.com/bertkreischer YouTube: http://www.YouTube.com/user/Akreischer TikTok: http://www.TikTok.com/@bertkreischer Threads: https://www.threads.net/@bertkreischer X: http://www.Twitter.com/bertkreischer Text Me: https://my.community.com/bertkreischer Gambling Problem? Call one eight hundred GAMBLER, one eight hundred MY RESET. Connecticut: call eight eight eight seven eight nine seven seven seven seven, visit CCPG dot org. On behalf of Boot Hill Casino in Kansas. Bet tax pass-through may apply in Illinois. Twenty one plus. Void in Canada. Bet with DraftKings Sportsbook to get Bonus bets that expire in seven days OR Trade with DraftKings Predictions to get Predictions Dollars that expire in one year. Event contract trading involves risk of loss. Predictions offer void in New York. Non-withdrawable Rewards issued as Fifty dollar click-to-claims every seven days for twenty-one days. Terms at d k n g dot c o slash offer. Limited time offer. Nationwide based on Sportsbook, Predictions, and Free-to-Play Sports Contest availability. Varies by State. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Rizz is preparing for his extremely prestigious duties as a Wing Ding judge, specifically in the traditional buffalo category, which is apparently the kind of responsibility this show has been training him for his entire life. The crew debates proper wing-eating strategy, whether fasting beforehand is genius or idiotic, and naturally gets Joey Chestnut involved in the conversation without Joey Chestnut actually being there to defend himself.Then there's actual rock-star business: Chad Gray of Mudvayne is coming into the studio. That sends everybody down memory lane with LD 50, old Mudvayne tattoos, central Illinois geography and the important question nobody else had the courage to ask: what exactly does “Mudvayne” mean? Welcome to the hard-hitting journalism portion of your favorite funny podcast.September also means Sober September, an idea Rizz immediately rejects because there's a wedding coming up and apparently his liver already accepted the calendar invite. The gang talks declining alcohol consumption, cocktail attire, velvet suits, bolo ties and the possibility of Rafe attending a wedding dressed like a cowboy who recently discovered formalwear.From there, things get considerably less responsible.A conversation about cannabis use turns into stories about modern weed being approximately 4,000 times more powerful than anyone remembers. Lern recalls taking an edible and calling her mom to talk her down. Rizz remembers falling asleep at the helm of a boat. Rafe wonders whether the ecstasy he took in the late '90s has a delayed expiration date. Nobody learns anything.The substance discussion somehow gives way to altitude sickness, canned oxygen and e-bikes capable of sending a teenager to school at highway speeds. With local schools introducing new rules for electric bikes and scooters, the crew reminisces about riding regular bikes to school—the primitive version that required legs, poor planning and occasionally missing first period.And because this is a funny podcast that refuses to behave for more than seven consecutive minutes, we eventually arrive at the day's disturbing collection of public indecency stories.There's an arrest connected to incidents on the Fee Fee Greenway. There's a Steak 'n Shake employee accused of exposing himself while delivering food to a customer's car, leading to entirely too much discussion about what accessories would somehow make that scenario worse. Then comes the truly horrifying revelation that understaffed Dollar Tree locations have allegedly become targets for public indecency incidents.Yes. Dollar Tree.As if retail employees weren't already dealing with enough.The crew dives into reports of understaffing, blind spots, online creep behavior and the increasingly obvious conclusion that some people desperately need hobbies that don't result in police reports.Then Australia enters the chat.Authorities responding to what appeared to be a mangled body stuffed inside a suitcase instead discovered a discarded silicone doll. That launches a conversation about increasingly realistic customizable dolls, AI technology, questionable ethics and one very practical problem nobody puts in the brochure: what exactly are you supposed to do with a roughly 100-pound silicone companion when you're finished with it?Goodwill probably has questions.It's buffalo wings, rock stars, bad weed experiences, e-bike rebellion, bizarre crime stories and technology moving considerably faster than humanity's ability to act normal.So basically: another day at The Rizzuto Show.This funny podcast proudly continues its mission of taking perfectly ordinary news stories and asking all the questions responsible adults had the good judgment not to ask.Follow The Rizzuto Show → linktr.ee/rizzshow for more from your favorite daily comedy show.Connect with The Rizzuto Show Comedy Podcast online → 1057thepoint.com/RizzShow.Hear The Rizz Show daily on the radio at 105.7 The Point | Hubbard Radio in St. Louis, MO.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Just when you thought Vin Diesel's greatest contribution to emotional storytelling involved family, fast cars, and staring intensely into the middle distance, he goes and surprises everybody with a heartfelt tribute to Dolly Parton.Welcome back to The Rizzuto Show, the funny podcast where we apparently begin with Vin Diesel singing “I Will Always Love You” and somehow get MORE unpredictable from there.The crew tries to identify the mystery celebrity behind the surprisingly vulnerable performance before learning it's Vin Diesel—and, against all reasonable expectations, everybody is impressed. His deep voice and emotional delivery lead to the obvious conclusion that somebody should probably get this man “Ol' Man River” immediately.Then comes another Dolly Parton connection we absolutely did not have on the bingo card: Keanu Reeves.Keanu's mother, Patricia Taylor, worked as a costume designer for Dolly, including creating the famous black bunny outfit Dolly wore for her 1978 Playboy cover. That outfit eventually made its way into the Reeves household, where teenage Keanu reportedly wore it for Halloween—bunny ears, bustier, fishnets, bow tie, sneakers and all. Somehow, this only strengthens the crew's argument that Keanu Reeves may be next in line for the title of universally beloved celebrity.From there, Crap on Celebrities gets moving with Miley Cyrus seemingly entering her one-name era, discussion surrounding Kelly Osbourne and public speculation about her appearance, and Bad Wolves releasing their metal version of “Jolene.” The crew also gets into the Sphere making The Wizard of Oz even more ridiculous, chart talk, Lionel Richie's health scare following his St. Louis performance, ZZ Top continuing forward, Kelly Clarkson wrapping her talk show, Jamie Pressley's reported hotel drama, and Mel Gibson apologizing after an awkward moment involving a sign-language interpreter.You know. Normal morning activities.Then Chad Gray joins the show ahead of his 30 Years of Madness stop at Delmar Hall, and the conversation turns into a trip through three decades of heavy music.Chad talks about building a set from roughly 12 albums of material across Mudvayne and HELLYEAH, including deep cuts that force him to keep lyric sheets nearby because apparently even the guy who wrote the songs occasionally needs the musical equivalent of checking his notes.He explains how he's kept his voice intact after decades of screaming and singing, what he learned from vocal coach Melissa Cross, and how his approach has evolved from essentially hitting every note “like a linebacker” to using more technique and finesse.The conversation gets deeper as Chad remembers being an outcast kid in Illinois and discovering heavy metal as both an identity and a tribe. That eventually leads into the incredible story of how HELLYEAH came together and Chad's first nerve-racking phone call with Vinnie Paul. Chad remembers going to Texas, entering the studio connected to Dimebag Darrell, and seeing firsthand how emotional returning to music was for Vinnie.Playing those HELLYEAH songs today remains emotional for Chad because, as he explains, performing them is one way of keeping Vinnie's memory alive.Chad also opens up about reaching five years of sobriety and how dramatically his life has changed. Rafe shares his own experience with 15 years without drinking, giving this funny podcast one of those rare moments where everybody stops roasting each other long enough to have an unexpectedly meaningful conversation.Don't worry. It doesn't become responsible for too long.The crew and Chad also revisit Mudvayne's unforgettable early-2000s rise, including their MTV appearance, winning the inaugural MTV2 award, meeting major stars backstage, and the absolutely stacked Ozzfest era. Chad reflects on what Ozzy Osbourne did for generations of metal bands by putting younger artists in front of enormous audiences and helping create opportunities that changed careers.There's talk of Peoria, Decatur, Illinois metal culture, touring, Mudvayne's future, Chad's current band, the legacy of HELLYEAH, and why sitting around waiting for something to happen simply isn't in his DNA.So yes, this episode begins with Vin Diesel singing Dolly Parton and eventually arrives at Vinnie Paul, Ozzfest, sobriety, Mudvayne history and Keanu Reeves wearing fishnets.We'd explain how those things belong together, but that would suggest this show has a plan.It does not.That's why you listen to this funny podcast in the first place.Follow The Rizzuto Show → linktr.ee/rizzshow for more from your favorite daily comedy show.Connect with The Rizzuto Show Comedy Podcast online → 1057thepoint.com/RizzShow.Hear The Rizz Show daily on the radio at 105.7 The Point | Hubbard Radio in St. Louis, MO.See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Rizz is preparing for his extremely prestigious duties as a Wing Ding judge, specifically in the traditional buffalo category, which is apparently the kind of responsibility this show has been training him for his entire life. The crew debates proper wing-eating strategy, whether fasting beforehand is genius or idiotic, and naturally gets Joey Chestnut involved in the conversation without Joey Chestnut actually being there to defend himself.Then there's actual rock-star business: Chad Gray of Mudvayne is coming into the studio. That sends everybody down memory lane with LD 50, old Mudvayne tattoos, central Illinois geography and the important question nobody else had the courage to ask: what exactly does “Mudvayne” mean? Welcome to the hard-hitting journalism portion of your favorite funny podcast.September also means Sober September, an idea Rizz immediately rejects because there's a wedding coming up and apparently his liver already accepted the calendar invite. The gang talks declining alcohol consumption, cocktail attire, velvet suits, bolo ties and the possibility of Rafe attending a wedding dressed like a cowboy who recently discovered formalwear.The substance discussion somehow gives way to altitude sickness, canned oxygen and e-bikes capable of sending a teenager to school at highway speeds. With local schools introducing new rules for electric bikes and scooters, the crew reminisces about riding regular bikes to school—the primitive version that required legs, poor planning and occasionally missing first period.The crew dives into reports of understaffing, blind spots, online creep behavior and the increasingly obvious conclusion that some people desperately need hobbies that don't result in police reports.Just when you thought Vin Diesel's greatest contribution to emotional storytelling involved family, fast cars, and staring intensely into the middle distance, he goes and surprises everybody with a heartfelt tribute to Dolly Parton.Welcome back to The Rizzuto Show, the funny podcast where we apparently begin with Vin Diesel singing “I Will Always Love You” and somehow get MORE unpredictable from there.The crew tries to identify the mystery celebrity behind the surprisingly vulnerable performance before learning it's Vin Diesel—and, against all reasonable expectations, everybody is impressed. His deep voice and emotional delivery lead to the obvious conclusion that somebody should probably get this man “Ol' Man River” immediately.Keanu's mother, Patricia Taylor, worked as a costume designer for Dolly, including creating the famous black bunny outfit Dolly wore for her 1978 Playboy cover. That outfit eventually made its way into the Reeves household, where teenage Keanu reportedly wore it for Halloween—bunny ears, bustier, fishnets, bow tie, sneakers and all. Somehow, this only strengthens the crew's argument that Keanu Reeves may be next in line for the title of universally beloved celebrity.From there, Crap on Celebrities gets moving with Miley Cyrus seemingly entering her one-name era, discussion surrounding Kelly Osbourne and public speculation about her appearance, and Bad Wolves releasing their metal version of “Jolene.” The crew also gets into the Sphere making The Wizard of Oz even more ridiculous, chart talk, Lionel Richie's health scare following his St. Louis performance, ZZ Top continuing forward, Kelly Clarkson wrapping her talk show, Jamie Pressley's reported hotel drama, and Mel Gibson apologizing after an awkward moment involving a sign-language interpreter.Then Chad Gray joins the show ahead of his 30 Years of Madness stop at Delmar Hall, and the conversation turns into a trip through three decades of heavy music.Chad talks about building a set from roughly 12 albums of material across Mudvayne and HELLYEAH, including deep cuts that force him to keep lyric sheets nearby because apparently even the guy who wrote the songs occasionally needs the musical equivalent of checking his notes.He explains how he's kept his voice intact after decades of screaming and singing, what he learned from vocal coach Melissa Cross, and how his approach has evolved from essentially hitting every note “like a linebacker” to using more technique and finesse.What happens when an Amazon delivery driver sees a cooler of cake pops next to a sign that basically says “treat yourself”? Apparently, you get a social media controversy, an apology, a payment, an angry bakery owner, and millions of people choosing sides over four dollars' worth of dessert. Welcome back to The Rizzuto Show, where today's funny podcast begins with celebrity birthdays and quickly escalates into the Great Cake Pop Incident.First, Rizz runs through another batch of celebrity birthdays, including Zendaya, Gloria Estefan, Billy Blanks, Dr. Phil, Barry Gibb, and Lily Tomlin. Naturally, Billy Blanks gives Rafe the opportunity to explain how knowing Tae Bo has apparently prepared him for street combat. Nothing says “please don't fight me” quite like threatening a man with a dance kick.After dessert-based international diplomacy fails, First Alert 4 morning anchors Claire Kellett and Maurice Drummond join the show to talk about the launch of First Alert 4 on ABC in St. Louis. We compare morning-show schedules and discover that waking up around 2:30 a.m. is apparently a perfectly normal lifestyle choice when you've abandoned all hope of respecting your circadian rhythm.Claire and Maurice talk about balancing early mornings with family life, the changing television business, working alongside people who become family, and what it means to be part of the daily routine for viewers across St. Louis. Maurice looks back on his years covering sports, including Cardinals World Series celebrations, the Blues winning the Stanley Cup, and Mizzou's huge win over Kansas at Arrowhead. Claire shares memories from covering Ferguson and talks about growing up in the St. Louis area before eventually coming home to work in local television.Follow The Rizzuto Show → linktr.ee/rizzshow for more from your favorite daily comedy show.Connect with The Rizzuto Show Comedy Podcast online → 1057thepoint.com/RizzShow.Hear The Rizz Show daily on the radio at 105.7 The Point | Hubbard Radio in St. Louis, MO.Cannabis use linked to 37% higher stroke risk in massive studyCannabis Use Disorder: What It Is, Symptoms & TreatmentMaryland Heights man charged after women say he exposed himself on Fee Fee GreenwayNSW Police say 'body' found in suitcase at Oallen believed to be sex dollSee Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

In this bonus episode, Leah and Melissa break down the Supreme Court's decision to let Trump move forward with plans for a White House ballroom, despite lower courts finding that the project cannot proceed without congressional authorization and appropriated funds. They also discuss a whistleblower's allegations that the federal government is defying court orders on voting by mail, and new reporting from Jodi Kantor on the Supreme Court's secretive policies governing when the justices' papers and internal records will be made public. Take the Strict Scrutiny survey. New Strict merch available here. You can now listen to Strict Scrutiny for CLE credits in California, New York, Texas, Pennsylvania, Illinois, Virginia, North Carolina, Georgia, Washington, and Oregon! More info at crooked.com/strict_cle Get tickets for STRICT SCRUTINY LIVE on November 6th in Washington, DC: Crookedcon.com Buy Melissa's book, The U.S. Constitution: A Comprehensive and Annotated Guide for the Modern Reader Buy Leah's book, Lawless, now out in paperback Follow us on Instagram, Threads, and Bluesky For a transcript of an episode of Strict Scrutiny please email transcripts@crooked.com 

Season 40: America's 250th Anniversary. Fifty states. Fifty crimes. Two hundred and fifty years of Americanhistory, told through the true crime cases that other shows leave behind.New Mexico, 1892. A former sheriff walks into the dark with a man he trusts and never comes home. Illinois, 1871.A former Secretary of State steps off his porch for a midnight train and is shot dead in the street. Both menserved their communities. Both were killed for it. Both were largely forgotten — until now. This is historical truecrime, and tonight both cases are about what happens when political power turns lethal.Case A: Francisco Chavez and the Santa Fe RingFrancisco Chavez was born around 1851 in New Mexico Territory, the son of a family that had shaped this regionfor generations before the American flag flew over Santa Fe's plaza. He was Hispanic, a nuevomexicano, and hebecame sheriff of Santa Fe County at a time when the territory's government had been captured by the Santa FeRing — an informal network of Anglo-American lawyers, politicians, and land speculators who exploited Spanishand Mexican land grants to strip Hispanic families of land they had occupied for generations.At the center of the Ring stood Thomas Catron, a Confederate veteran and Missouri lawyer who arrived in NewMexico in 1866. By the 1890s, Catron had acquired interests in thirty-four land grants totaling approximatelythree million acres — making him, by most accounts, the largest private landowner in the United States. He hadserved as district attorney, territorial attorney general, and U.S. attorney. He owned the territory as surely asanyone could.Chavez stood against him. Historian Tobias Duran, writing in the New Mexico Historical Review, called Chavez aformidable foe of the Santa Fe Ring. He was the rare Hispanic Democrat using the blunt authority of the sheriff'soffice to push back against the most powerful men in the territory.On the night of May 29, 1892, Chavez was lured from a Santa Fe bar by a man named Atilano Gold — someonehe trusted. Gold walked him toward the Guadalupe bridge, near the Santuario de Nuestra Señora de Guadalupe,the oldest shrine to Our Lady of Guadalupe in the United States. Armed men waited behind a telegraph pole.Chavez was shot multiple times. His last words, spoken in Spanish, were that brutes had assassinated him.Four men were indicted: Francisco Gonzales y Borrego, his brother Antonio, Laureano Alarid, and PatricioValencia. Their defense attorney was Thomas Catron — the man widely suspected of ordering the murder,now defending the accused killers. The prosecution's key witness, Juan Gallegos, testified that a $700 paymenthad been offered through intermediaries for Chavez's death. Judge Seeds ruled that he did not believe Catronpersonally made the offer, but accepted the conspiracy existed. That distinction shielded Catron from criminalliability.All four defendants were convicted and sentenced to death. Appeals dragged on for nearly five years. On April2, 1897, they were hanged simultaneously at the Santa Fe jail grounds. Forty-five National Guard soldiers werepresent. At 9:09 AM, the trap bolt was drawn. Three necks broke on impact. Patricio Valencia strangled for threeto four minutes before he died.Thomas Catron was never charged. When New Mexico achieved statehood in 1912, the territory he had helpedplunder elected him as one of its first two United States Senators. He died in 1921. A former senator. Nevercharged. Never tried.Case B: Sharon Tyndale and the Seal That Outlasted HimSharon Tyndale was born in Philadelphia on January 19, 1816. He arrived in Belleville, Illinois in 1833 — the sameyear Chicago was incorporated as a town — and spent the next three decades building railroads and building acareer. Abraham Lincoln personally appointed him Postmaster of Belleville in 1861. When Lincoln was assassinatedin 1865, Tyndale was among the committee members who received the president's coffin in Springfield. He wasone of the original fifteen members of the National Lincoln Monument Association, the group that built Lincoln'stomb at Oak Ridge Cemetery.In 1865, Tyndale was elected Illinois Secretary of State. His younger brother Hector had bled for the Union atAntietam, was promoted to brigadier general, and was later breveted major general for gallantry. The family'sloyalty to the Union was bone-deep.In 1867, the Illinois legislature authorized a new state seal. Tyndale proposed reversing the state motto from "StateSovereignty, National Union" to "National Union, State Sovereignty." The Civil War had settled that question withblood. The Senate rejected his proposal. So the legislature gave him the wording and handed him the design.Tyndale kept the words in their mandated order. But he designed the banner in the eagle's beak to twist, placingthe word "Sovereignty" upside down. The seal entered use in 1868. More than a hundred and fifty years later, theword "Sovereignty" still hangs inverted on the Great Seal of the State of Illinois.On April 29, 1871, two years after leaving office, Tyndale walked out of his home on Adams Street in Springfieldjust after one in the morning, heading to the Chicago & Alton railroad station for a 1:50 AM train. On the darkstreet, steps from his own front door, someone clubbed him to the ground and shot him behind the right ear witha single-shot Derringer — the same type of weapon used to kill Abraham Lincoln six years earlier. His $50 walletwas taken. His gold watch was not. His killer was never identified.A five-thousand-dollar reward went unclaimed. Four theories competed — robbery, romantic entanglement,political enemies, railroad business dispute — and the competition destroyed the investigation. The 1929 IllinoisState Journal concluded the welter of possible motives had hindered the case. No arrest was ever made.The seal lives on. Every official document issued by the State of Illinois, every state flag that flies over Springfield,still carries the handiwork of a man who was murdered two years after completing it.Our Sponsors:* Check out Kensington Publishing: https://www.kensingtonbooks.comAdvertising Inquiries: https://redcircle.com/brandsPrivacy & Opt-Out: https://redcircle.com/privacy

Illini Inquirer's Jeremy Werner and Joey Wagner make their bold predictions for the 2026 Illinois football season. The guys discuss some potential big goals for the Illini offense, a wide range of possibilities for the defense and some potential breakout performers.SUPPORT OUR SPONSORGameday Spirit: Use code Gameday15 at checkout for 15% off your next purchase online at gamedayspirit.com. That's code Gameday15 for 15% off your next order at Gamedayspirit.com. Brought to you by the Official Fanstore of the Fighting Illini - Gameday Spirit!Follow the Illini Inquirer Podcast on:Apple: https://apple.co/3oMt0NPSpotify: https://spoti.fi/2Xan2L8 Other: https://bit.ly/36gn7Ct Go VIP for 60% OFF: https://tinyurl.com/2fkhmjdz

Shark Farmer Podcast — Chandler Janes In this episode of Shark Farmer, Rob talks with Chandler Janes of Urbana, Illinois about life, farming, faith, and the path that shaped her career in agriculture. Chandler shares how growing up in central Illinois, losing her dad unexpectedly at a young age, and finding her place on the family farm influenced both her personal life and professional journey.They kick things off with a lively conversation about Beck's Hybrids' big event and the energy of ag shows, including how farmers and ag professionals tend to bring a more positive attitude than the average trade show crowd. Chandler, who works on the digital marketing team at Beck's, talks about the trust farmers place in seed decisions and how the rewards program has helped build long-term confidence on her farm.From there, the conversation turns more personal. Chandler opens up about studying agriculture leadership education at the University of Illinois, then earning a master's degree in agriculture production after her father passed away unexpectedly when she was 20. She talks honestly about grief, faith, and how the loss pushed her to stay close to home, support the family farm, and build a life in Champaign-Urbana.The episode also explores: Chandler's role in agriculture marketing and social media Her experience working for an ag agency and Precision Planting A memorable trip to Germany through an agriculture policy program How she and her husband Connor learned to farm together The realities of raising a young child while balancing work and farm life Why authenticity matters more than polish in interviews and leadership Chandler's perspective is grounded, thoughtful, and refreshingly honest. She talks about resilience not as a buzzword, but as something shaped by real life — tragedy, responsibility, family, and choosing to keep moving forward. Key Takeaways Farm shows and ag events can create a uniquely positive, community-driven atmosphere. Loss and adversity can reshape career direction and personal purpose. Authenticity builds stronger connection than a polished persona. Expanding your network and job shadowing are powerful ways to enter agriculture careers. Family, faith, and adaptability are central to Chandler's life and work. Memorable Themes Resilience after loss Faith in difficult seasons Family farming and shared responsibility Agriculture careers for young women Marketing, communication, and leadership in ag Guest Bio Chandler Janes is an agriculture marketing professional from Urbana, Illinois, with experience in social media, paid media, dealership marketing, and ag communications. She works for Beck's Hybrids and remains closely involved in her family farm while balancing work, motherhood, and community life.

SPONSORS: https://dkng.co/bears New DraftKings customers, sign up with code BEARS spend five bucks to get $200 in rewards within 21 days, includes all markets. For simple, online access to personalized and affordable care for Hair Loss, Weight Loss, and more, visit https://hims.com/bears If your revenues are at least in the seven figures, go to https://netsuite.ai/bears. Visit https://Betterhelp.com/BEARS. Get started with ShipStation today and get sixty days free at https://ShipStation.com, with code cave. Tom Segura and Bert Kreischer are back in the cave and surprise surprise, Bert opens with a confession: he wishes he'd never quit drinking. What follows is a full inventory of the modern male brain, the online pastor Tom watches every morning to get inspired, why 17-year-olds have no business being nostalgic for anything, the exact moment each of them gave up on playing pro sports, and why comedians never seem to get that same reality check. The guys break down Bert's Whoop addiction and the blood clot that started it, get talked into a completely fictional performance-enhancing stack for a 5K, fall in love with bull riding legend JB Mauney, pitch the worst sponsorship idea in podcast history, and watch a food delivery driver take on the entire Barstool office. Then it's cringe cancellation, sobriety influencers, 4:23 a.m. morning routine guys, and a long, very funny argument about which movie stars are actually men and which ones just look at themselves in the mirror. Plus Bert's new fragrance obsession, the colognes of Napoleon, Elvis and JFK, Sebastian Maniscalco's four seasonal robes, Joe Rogan's splits, Billy Bob Thornton at the CMAs, and a big announcement about the future of the show. 2 Bears, 1 Cave Ep. 337 https://tomsegura.com/tour https://www.bertbertbert.com/tour https://store.ymhstudios.com Bet with DK Sportsbook: Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER, 1-800-MYRESET. Connecticut: call 888-789-7777, visit https://CCPG.org. On behalf of Boot Hill Casino in Kansas. Bet tax pass-through may apply in Illinois. 21+. Void in Canada. Event contract trading with DraftKings Predictions involves risk of loss. Availability varies. Predictions offer void in New York. Bet to get Bonus bets that expire in seven days. Trade to get Predictions Dollars that expire in one year. $50 in rewards issued every seven days via click to claim for twenty-one days. One non-withdrawable reward redeemable. Terms at https://dkng.co/offer. Limited time offer. Nationwide based on Sportsbook, Predictions, and Free-to-Play Sports Contest availability. Varies by State. Chapters 00:00:00 - Intro 00:00:17 - The Jewish Joke Bert Can't Tell On Stage 00:04:26 - Pastor Manning 00:09:09 - Period Sex Confessions & Giving Up On Sports 00:21:50 - Nobody Quits Comedy Or Drinking 00:31:31 - Whoop Obsession, The Blood Clot, & Tren 00:37:09 - JB Mauney & The PBR 00:44:27 - Motorcycles & The 12 O'clock Boys Sponsorship 00:46:56 - The Barstool Helmet Fight 00:52:58 - Fighting Women 00:56:13 - Cringe Cancellation 01:01:35 - Tom's Pep Talk & Bert's Therapy 01:05:05 - Sobriety Influencers & Morning Routine Guys 01:09:04 - Cringey Actors vs. Real Men 01:19:33 - Bert's Fragrance Obsession 01:30:00 - Drakkar Noir Nostalgia 01:36:49 - Sebastian Maniscalco Is A Study 01:40:04 - Bert Meets Billy Bob At The CMAs 01:44:26 - 2 Bears Is Going Back To Weekly Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices