Paul Weishapl teaches overdose response, harm reduction strategies, and compassion-centered care for people who use drugs. His work is informed not only by public health practice but by lived experience: after roughly two decades of heroin and fentanyl addiction, seven naloxone reversals, incarceration, and profound personal loss, he is now helping Nebraska confront overdose, stigma, and the human realities hidden behind the statistics.

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Today's show and others are supported by the generous membership of Amy and Tom Trenolone.

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Today's show and others are supported by the generous membership of Amy and Tom Trenolone.

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Dr. AnnMarie Marlier has more than 20 years of experience in leadership, education, and talent development across higher education, nonprofit, and corporate settings. A graduate of Leadership Nebraska, president of Omaha Network, and board member of the Nebraska Early Childhood Collaborative, she is a strong advocate for women’s leadership and human-centered growth. Alongside that public work is a life informed by loss, care, and a deep interest in how people live with integrity and remain humane in a complicated world.

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Based in the Midwest, Foo draws on his experience working in kitchens as a chef and his background in culinary arts and film production to bring food, people, and spaces to life with a cinematic and tactile approach. He has photographed and filmed chefs, farmers, and industry professionals all over the world, and his work has been featured in The Washington Post, People Magazine, with collaborations including James Beard Award-winning and Michelin-starred chefs. Foo has led both photo and video projects for companies like Lipton Ice Tea, Qdoba, Pepperjax Grill, and more. Rooted in his perspective as a Queer Asian-American immigrant, Foo values equality, equity, and respect on set, and enjoys working with both small businesses and larger companies to tell compelling stories through his mediums.

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Dr. Karalee Picard is an organizational and leadership expert with a deep background in defense intelligence, where she built her craft around high-stakes decision-making in complex, information-limited environments. A Navy veteran, Picard now serves as principal of Insight Leadership Consulting, helping teams strengthen culture, clarity, and belonging through coaching, strategy, and leadership development. In recent reflections on retiring from federal service, Picard emphasizes a next chapter shaped less by noise and more by discernment: pausing, listening, and choosing what matters.

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Wells is an Omaha-based Afro-Indigenous community leader (Elk Clan of the Omaha Tribe) whose life story spans incarceration, gang involvement, addiction, and a hard-won return to sobriety and service. Sent to prison at 17, Wells reached a turning point that led him onto what he describes as the “Red Road,” a spiritual path of recovery and accountability. Today, Wells supports others navigating reentry and sober life through Native-led community work. He also collaborates with the University of Nebraska Medical Center as a community scientist, helping build awareness and participation in cancer research, as well as advocating for healing, identity, and building pathways forward for Indigenous communities.

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Melissa Wright is a journalist and former North Omaha Neighborhood Reporter and Weekend Anchor at KMTV Channel 3, and she is known for community-centered storytelling that informs, uplifts, and connects people. A graduate of the University of Houston, she earned her master’s in journalism from New York University and is a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority, Incorporated. Raised in California’s San Fernando Valley, Wright brings a deep respect for how neighborhoods shape lives, which guided her reporting in North Omaha. After two years here, Wright is now preparing for her next reporting role closer to home.

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Sahil is a former combat interpreter who served alongside the U.S. military in Afghanistan for nearly a decade before immigrating to the U.S. with his wife through the Special Immigrant Visa program. For almost nine years, he’s supported refugee and immigrant communities through case management, education work, and interpretation, including service with Omaha Public Schools, where he received a 2021 Excellent Service Award. He now leads the Nebraska Afghan Community Center and serves in key community leadership roles, including Chair of the Omaha Refugee Task Force.

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Jewel Rodgers is the 2025–2029 Nebraska State Poet, a 2025 Academy of American Poets Fellow, and a nationally touring interdisciplinary performer who blends poetry, storytelling, and placemaking. A three-time TEDx speaker and Omaha Entertainment & Arts Award–nominated performance poet, she’s shared her work from major arts stages to civic gatherings and moments of social witness. Beyond performance, Rodgers also reshapes neighborhoods through PlaceMade, the resident-led initiative she founded to transform blighted lots into community spaces.

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The end of the year is a time for reflection. In today’s show, I look back on conversations with some guests this year that illuminate what it is to be human. In fact, I look back in astonishment at the sheer privilege afforded to me to be an intimate witness to people’s lives.

I am a humanist, meaning my life is informed by well-reasoned critical thinking, humbled and called to action by empathy, and enlarged by wonder and respect for the world around us. I bring that humanist life stance to my work as an existential coach, providing space, support, and guidance for people asking life’s big questions: Who am I? What matters now? How do I live well?

Lives Radio Show and Podcast is a public expression of that commitment to our shared humanity. Above all, for me, it is the immeasurable gift of bearing witness to the lives of others. I am interested in people’s “who” and “why” - understanding the self - and their “how” and “what” provides some of the narrative illustrating that.

So this week - with the last show for 2025 - you’ll hear excerpts from conversations that stayed with me. The stories are particular. And yet, if you listen closely, I hope you’ll recognize something familiar in your own life.

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Louis has experience in various disciplines including gang intervention, urban farming, entrepreneurship, public speaking, fatherhood, facilitation, and more. Louis has led various community efforts, including the March for Solidarity in Omaha during 2020 unrest after George Floyd’s death, in which more than 2000 people took part. Louis was featured in the Nick Beaulieu 2025 documentary "My Omaha," which addresses racial and cultural prospectives in Omaha; is a recent recipient of the Omaha NAACP Presidents Award, and the Civic Nebraska's Adam Morfeld’s Founders Award of 2025. Louis is most known for his decade plus volunteer leadership role with the Malcolm X Memorial Foundation from which he stepped down in 2024 as the board chair. He currently continues his work serving as a community organizer, strategist, owner of Visionary Lions LLC, and builder of humanity.

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Bakehouse helps heart-centered leaders move beyond performance into presence. Drawing on over 25 years in communication, theatre, and teaching, she guides clients to tune into body, breath, and voice so they can clarify their message and speak with grounded confidence. Her work blends skill, play, and spirituality—shaped by university teaching, storytelling and improv, and training in holistic approaches to the whole person. A two-time TEDx speaker, Leadership Iowa alum, former Walt Disney cast member, and author of Discovering Our Magnetic Speaker Within, Tina empowers people not just to speak, but to resonate—because your voice is not only how you’re heard, it’s how you’re felt.

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Dr. Athena Ramos is an Associate Professor in the Department of Health Promotion at the University of Nebraska Medical Center’s College of Public Health, where she leads community-engaged research focused on farmworker and agrifood worker health, social determinants of health, and reducing health disparities across the Great Plains and Midwest. A native Nebraskan and first-generation scholar, Dr. Ramos partners closely with Latino, immigrant, and rural communities, working with producers, workers, and organizations to improve conditions in agriculture and meatpacking. Her work has been recognized with numerous honors, including UNMC’s 2025 Distinguished Scientist Award, and she serves on multiple local and national boards and networks. Beyond campus, Dr. Ramos is a sought-after speaker, advocate, and mentor, and at home she and her husband are raising four children in Omaha.

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Brian Wetjen is an Omaha-based artist, web developer, husband, and dad who moves between paint and pixels, plants and code—from his home office and Hot Shops Art Center—to create calm, nature-infused art and human-centered websites. A lifelong Nebraskan, his curiosity has recently deepened through plant-medicine journeys that he describes as profoundly transformative, quieting anxiety and OCD and sharpening attention and presence. He shares music, books, and playlists freely, seeing art, psychedelics, code, and culture as different ways to explore, heal, and help people feel more at ease in the world.

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Today's show and others are supported by the generous membership of Amy and Tom Trenolone.

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With an IQ over 160, Sarah Phelps is smart. She is a facilitator, strategist, and community builder who helps organizations weave wellbeing, equity, and innovation into the everyday realities of learning, leadership development, and culture change. Drawing on more than 20 years of nonprofit and corporate experience in strategic HR and organizational development, she’s known for identifying solutions that stick. Phelps has consulted with values-driven organizations nationwide—including OutNebraska and Inclusive Communities—to cultivate inclusive, mission-aligned teams and brave, growth-oriented conversations. She is the founder of the Emerging Speakers Institute, co-founder of Leaders for Equity, Allyship and Diversity, a speaker with Hummingbird Humanity, and Board President of Umbrella US, where she champions neurodivergent and LGBTQ thriving. A voracious reader, gardener, and singer, Phelps brings curiosity, creativity, and deep care for community to every room she’s in.

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Today's show and others are supported by the generous membership of Amy and Tom Trenolone.

*Bonus content* for Lives members only features exclusive content and more. Find a Lives membership tier that fits you - support link here.

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Today's show and others are supported by the generous membership of Amy and Tom Trenolone.

*Bonus content* for Lives members only includes Shelby Seier sharing a favorite snooping story! For that exclusive content and more, find a Lives membership tier that fits you - support link here.

Listeners are advised that today’s show features descriptions of violence that some listeners might find disturbing.

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Today's show and others are supported by the generous membership of Amy and Tom Trenolone.

*Bonus content* for Lives members only includes James Eagle Feather sharing more on the context of his name and heritage and entertaining examples of his discovering new technologies as he returned to the community from incarceration. For that exclusive content and more, find a Lives membership tier that fits you - support link here.

From a big family, Ginny Curley learned early to navigate complex relationships—deepening that knowledge with a theology and sociology degree, a master’s in counseling, and a Ph.D. in educational administration and leadership. After decades in higher education and leading organizational development in industry, she now helps family-owned businesses develop continuity and helps those nearer to retirement navigate change with clarity and confidence. As a survivor of a near-fatal heart attack and of cancer, Curley brings a hard-won clarity about meaning, legacy, and what makes a good life.

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Today's show and others are supported by the generous membership of Amy and Tom Trenolone.

*Bonus content* for Lives members only includes Dr. Curley sharing her perspective on the benefits of studying in Austria and the meaning of life! For that exclusive content and more, find a Lives membership tier that fits you - support link here.

Dr. Schulte leads efforts to promote Religious Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion through community education and engagement. A Nebraska native, he earned degrees from the University of Nebraska–Lincoln, Yale Divinity School, and Claremont Graduate University, specializing in the Hebrew Bible, Second Temple Judaism, and the ancient Near East. His career includes teaching at universities and seminaries nationwide, archaeological work in Israel, and published scholarship, including a book on the Book of Nehemiah and a chapter in The Cambridge Companion to the Book of Isaiah. Today, he brings both academic expertise and practical creativity to advancing interfaith understanding, while also enjoying life with his wife, two children, and passions ranging from biking and cooking to Star Trek and K-dramas.

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Sturdivant-Wilson’s life bridges cultures, tragedy, and service. Born in Thailand to a Thai mother and Black American father, he grew up a military child, moving often but ultimately calling home a small Arkansas delta town. The early death of his mother left a lasting sorrow, yet also shaped his compassion and resilience. Inspired by her courage and his grandmother’s trailblazing achievements in the segregated South, he has dedicated his professional life to philanthropy—strengthening communities through the arts, education, and affordable housing—always grounded in equity, heritage, and belonging.

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Nelson, a Licensed Massage Therapist and Certified Lymphatic Therapist who founded of The “G” Spot Spa & Wellness in Omaha. Nelson has combined determination with vision and resilience with kindness to overcome hurdles in her life, develop her entrepreneurial success, and and respond to a calling to serve people’s wellbeing and healing.

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Today's show and others is supported by the generous membership of Amy and Tom Trenolone.

Dr. Green is a Board‑Certified entomologist specializing in urban and industrial insects. Originally from Ontario, Canada, she earned an associate’s degree in environmental pest management at Sir Sandford Fleming College and went on to complete her M.S. and Ph.D. in entomology at Purdue University. After working as a pesticide applicator, termite inspector and pest consultant, she joined Nebraska Extension, where she serves as an extension educator for Douglas-Sarpy Extension. She co‑hosts the Arthro‑Pod podcast and appears regularly on the PBS Backyard Farmer program on Nebraska Public Television. Known for her no-nonsense style and motto “stop and think before you step on a bug”, Green enjoys sharing how insects play vital roles in ecosystems. When she isn’t answering bug questions for Nebraskans, Green is a keen runner and volunteer with various conservation and nature groups.

Cartoonist and illustrator Caitlin Cass uses comics, cartoons, and installations to explore failing systems, query traditional historical narratives, and pursue irrational hope. Her 2024 book - Suffrage Song: The Haunted History of Gender, Race, and Voting Rights in the US - which won an Eisner Award, dubbed the Oscars of the comic book industry. Her work has appeared in The New Yorker, The Lily, and The Nib. Growing up near Chicago, Cass studied the Great Books at St. John’s College in Sante Fe and earned an MFA in Visual Studies from the University at Buffalo, and since 2021 teaches studio art and illustration at the University of Nebraska Omaha.

Stuart Shell is an architect, sustainability consultant, and passionate advocate for reimagining how our built environments reflect and shape our shared values. Shell believes our cities and buildings are more than structures—they are living habitats that reveal how we care for each other and the planet. As an Associate Principal at BranchPattern, he works to integrate biodiversity, health, and climate resilience into the real estate sector. His journey runs from Omaha to Chicago’s South Side, to rural Nebraska and back, always shaped by a deep commitment to justice, joy, community, and the environment. Shell lives in Omaha with his partner. Their young son, who passed away in 2021, remains a profound source of meaning in their lives.

Brandy Wallar is a lifelong advocate for individuals experiencing homelessness and hunger in the greater Omaha and Council Bluffs area. Wallar brings over two decades of nonprofit leadership rooted in empathy, resilience, and community impact and holds advanced degrees in human services, has received multiple awards for her leadership, and serves on numerous boards and councils, including the Iowa Governor’s Council on Homelessness. Wallar is deeply involved in civic life across Iowa and Nebraska, championing systemic change and human dignity.

Vondrasek is a political activist, community organizer, and bicycle mechanic with deep roots in Omaha and a lifelong commitment to progressive change. A former Nebraska State Senate candidate and co-founder of the Omaha chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America, Vondrasek has organized across cities—from Boston’s transit unions to Nebraska’s legislative districts. By day, he works for Heartland Bike Share; by night, he is dedicated to political education and grassroots activism. Vondrasek gets around Omaha on a bright orange electric cargo bike, often with his dog Kaiju happily riding along.

Cody Jones’s passion for filmmaking began in childhood with home videos and evolved through photography and cinematography into his current role as a Digital Imaging Technician and Colorist, blending technical skill and creative insight to film production. Whether as cinematographer, assistant camera, colorist or Digital Imaging Technician, Jones has worked on projects for major brands like Netflix, Hulu, and Spotify, and - as a member of Local 600 DIT - the International Cinematographers Guild - continues to focus on feature films, including Daft State, The Snack Shack, Going For Two, and The Headliner.

The Hottman Sisters have been immersed in music since childhood, launching their career from Omaha with a 2015 debut EP titled “This Two” and nationwide tours alongside acts like Belle and Sebastian. After years on the road and a 2018 follow up EP titled “Louder", a musical pause gave way to a powerful reunion in 2023, as the trio returned to ARC Studios to record “Human Form.” The sisters are back on tour—recharged and ready for the next chapter.

Jessica and Heather had planned to perform a few of their songs for us live in the studio, but Jessica was recovering from vocal laryngitis, so we hear some of their new recorded music in the show.

Anna Monardo was born in Pittsburgh, spent many years in New York City, and now lives in Omaha, Nebraska, where she teaches in the Writer’s Workshop of the University of Nebraska at Omaha. She is the award-winning author of the novels—The Courtyard of Dreams and Falling In Love with Natassia—and the creative nonfiction memoir – After Italy – exploring her family’s immigration from southern Italy. Monardo is the recipient of residency fellowships from the Djerassi Foundation, Yaddo, and Virginia Center for the Creative Arts among others and her stories, essays, and poems have been published and anthologized in The Sun, Poets and Writers, Salon.com, Huffington Post, and many other magazines and journals.

Grover's work includes exploring how technology enables diverse public participation in large-scale scientific research, particularly in citizen science. Grover has served as an advisor and collaborator to public science initiatives around the globe in disciplines ranging from astrophysics to social sciences. Their recent work focuses on how using generative AI to write speculative fiction can help students develop and demonstrate ethical reasoning skills. Outside academia, Grover is a certified Nebraska Master Naturalist, avid birder, and is passionate about outdoor adventures and community engagement.

AB Gorham's poems have been published in Puerto Del Sol, The Call Center, American Letters and Commentary, DIAGRAM, and Gulf Coast, among others. Her artist books can be found in special collections at UCLA, the Institute of Art Chicago, the Rhode Island School of Design, Miami University, the Bainbridge Island Museum of Art, and many others.

Matthew Henkes's goal at the Iowa West Foundation is to ensure that every outgoing dollar not only furthers the foundation’s goals of well-being, belonging, opportunity, and financial stability but also makes a lasting impact on the community. His journey in philanthropy began at Chemonics International, a global professional services firm, working on a variety of projects, such as an economic development program in Asia and the Middle East, and an environmental grant program covering a three-country area in Southern Africa. Henkes earned a MPA in nonprofit management from the Maxwell School at Syracuse University and an MA in international economics and conflict management from the Johns Hopkins School of Advanced International Studies. Henkes moved to the Omaha/Council Bluffs area in 2014, where he lives with his wife and son.

Bergman Incentives a provider of promotional products and branding solutions based in Omaha, Nebraska with offices from the Western Rockies to the Great Plains. Beyond his role at Bergman Incentives, Battershell honed his skillset through extensive service in Omaha’s nonprofit and civic sectors, holding numerous board and leadership positions. Battershell has consistently embraced disruption as a means of challenging the status quo and fostering progress. As a father of four, Battershell and his wife are vested in improving the experiences and resources available to the next generation and endeavor to make a lasting impact on the region’s business and civic landscape.

Elaine Wells, as a mental health counselor, especially enjoys helping couples to create and maintain happy, healthy relationships. Wells has long been a community activist - advocating for world peace, inclusive justice, and a sustainable environment, working with groups including Nebraskans for Peace, RESULTS, and Omaha Together One Community (often referenced as OTOC). Wells created a Dialogue process to bring people together for constructive conversations on controversial topics, facilitating Pro-Life/Pro-Choice, Black-White, Conservative-Liberal; and Racism in Omaha dialogues. Having grown up in East Texas as a Southern Baptist, she converted to Unitarian Universalism in 1970, and this religion of love and humanism has been a huge part of her evolution.

The Reverend Kevin W. Jagoe was born and raised in small-town Minnesota. He lived in Brooklyn, NY before being called as minister by BuxMont Unitarian Universalist Fellowship in 2018 and now lives outside of Philadelphia. He completed his Master of Divinity at Meadville Lombard Theological School in Chicago and is currently working on his Doctorate of Divinity at United Lutheran Seminary. Prior to seminary, he completed a BA in anthropology, criminal justice, and forensic sciences with minors in psychology and biology as well as a Master of Arts in Nonprofit Management. Beyond congregational life, Jagoe is Adjunct Faculty with the Humanist Studies Program of the American Humanist Association and has worked professionally within the Humanist movement since 2013.

Steve Langan has a background in creative writing and public health. His most recent poetry collection “Bedtime Stories” follows on his previous poetry collections: Freezing, Notes on Exile and Other Poems, Meet Me at the Happy Bar, and What It Looks Like, How It Flies. Langan served as Director and Community Liaison for Medical Humanities at the University of Nebraska Omaha and founded the Seven Doctors Project, in which Omaha area writers guide healthcare workers in writing workshops. Langan developed the course, Writing About Sickness and Health, and currently teaches at Baylor University's Medical Humanities Program.

Barbi Hayes earned her degree in biology from the College of Saint Mary, after which she went on to found Hayes Environmental LLC, an environmental regulatory and research company, which she ran from 1994 to 2020. Hayes is a managing partner in two farming operations - one called Roy Johnson Family Partnership and the other Soybean Babes LLC. Hayes was the first woman appointed to the Douglas County Planning Commission in 1995 and was elected the first woman chairman in 2003. Hayes’s love for nature inspired her donation of her family’s 1900s-era historic barn to Glacier Creek Preserve for the University of Nebraska at Omaha’s environmental research and education facility. As well as her love for nature, Hayes’s love for art resulted in the MoonRise Gallery, an art gallery in downtown Elkhorn, which after several years closed its doors at the New Year.

Carmody is the award-winning author of numerous works of fiction, creative nonfiction, autofiction, and hybrid forms, exploring issues of spirituality, gossip, intersubjectivity and perception, queer relations, friendship, embodiment and the archive, intersectional feminism, and autofiction/autotheory. Their books include Maison Femme: a fiction (published in 2015), The Reconception of Marie (published in 2020), and A Healthy Interest in the Lives of Others (published 2025). They hold a B.A. in interdisciplinary studies from Evergreen State College, an M.F.A. in creative writing from Antioch University, and a Ph.D. in English/Creative Writing from the University of Denver. She currently teaches in the Writer’s Workshop at University of Nebraska, Omaha, and in its low-residency MFA program.

Doug Wilwerding’s business career spanned from the 1980’s through 2020. Following his leveraged buyout of Omnium Worldwide in 1998, Wilwerding served as Chairman and CEO until selling the company to West Corporation in 2007. In 2008, after completing post transaction integration and leadership transition, Wilwerding left West Corporation to form The Optimas Group, a venture investment firm. Wilwerding is a frequent guest speaker and has taught as an adjunct professor at Creighton University. He holds BSBA and MBA degrees from the Daniels College of Business at the University of Denver in Denver, Colorado. He and his wife have three grown daughters and four grandchildren and live in Omaha, Nebraska, and Steamboat Springs, Colorado. Wilwerding is an avid cyclist, fly fisherman, snow skier, hiker, reader, and writer.

Hawkins is the Executive Director of the nonprofit organization, Multicultural Coalition. His journey from Mexico to America as a child and his life as a recipient of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, otherwise known as DACA, is the subject of the documentary short film, “To the State of the Good Life”, showing next week as part of the Omaha Film Festival.

Cedric Fichepain is a chef and founder of Le Voltaire French restaurant and the owner of Le Petit Paris bakery. Fichepain has numerous accolades as a chef and restaurateur, including being inducted into the Omaha Restaurant Hall of Fame and becoming a permanent member of the Honorable Golden Toque. Fichepain is a native of France and, after a few years living in Italy, immigrated to Omaha in 1997. Fichepain is the Honorary Consul for France for the State of Nebraska and lives in Omaha with his wife and three sons.

Running engages audiences in conversations about the impact of human-built systems on the natural world through the creation of arresting objects and installations using material such as cast iron, enamel, glass, bone, and handmade paper. She has been awarded numerous arts grants and residencies, such as being a Foundry Resident in the Arts/Industry program at Kohler Co. and Artist in Residence with Opera Omaha, as well as being one of the artists partnering in creating art for Omaha Library’s new central branch. Running’s work is held by numerous museums and other organizations. She was a Professor of Art at Grinnell College from 2005-2021 and now lives and works in Omaha.

Luke Jensen lives and works at the intersection of neuroscience, anthropology, and the mystical realm of plant medicines. A veteran of the Marine Corps and National Guard, Jensen experienced PTSD and other negative consequences from his deployment to Afghanistan. In 2014, Jensen began to find healing in the Amazon basin learning about shamanic spiritual practices, indigenous wisdom, and the healing properties of ayahuasca and other plant medicines. In collaboration with his mentor, Dr. Richard Soutar, Jensen began field research in Peru of the effects of ritual practice and plant medicines using neurofeedback and QEEG brain mapping resulting in two published academic papers. Through his organization, Tiwaz Awakening, Jensen now offers healing retreats in the Peruvian Sacred Valley that combine the healing properties of plant medicine, the embodied practice of Brazilian jui jitsu, and the modern technology of QEEG brain mapping and neurofeedback. These retreats are the subject of a new documentary, “Crossed Paths: Ancient Wisdom and Modern Science.”

Iowa native Meyer is a member of the TeamUSA wheelchair basketball team that brought home gold from the Paris 2024 Paralympic Games as well as the 2022 USA gold-winning team at the world championships. Already athletic as a child, aged 9, Meyer was paralyzed from the waist down by a drunk driver incident. He turned to wheelchair basketball, often playing at the University of Nebraska - Omaha’s campus, where he later enrolled as a student. Meyer currently works in adaptive sports as a program coordinator and is earning his master’s degree in athletic administration at the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater.

Horner’s extensive professional experience began in 1987. She works with for profit and nonprofit organizations, both large and small, in her learning and organization development consulting in the areas of leadership and team development, communication, and change management. In 2019, Horner created the Spiral of Accountability that expresses the complex dynamic of our self-talk and interactions into a visual representation that allows people to identify, name, and understand what is happening with them and the people around them. In early 2024, her book “The Spiral of Accountability” was released. Horner is certified in several psychological profiling tools and is considered a leader in her field with numerous conference presentations, publications in trade newsletters, and several leadership positions at a variety of industry and civic associations.In her spare time, loving the water, Horner is to be found in the ocean scuba diving.

Chef Djamil Djibril Bah-Traore is a West African immigrant from Togo. He is a chef and entrepreneur who aims to cast fresh and diversified light on Africa's rich culinary history. Prior to founding his House of Bah nonprofit and business entities, Bah-Traore spent over a decade working for corporate America in management capacities in numerous industries before making a major career transition to culinary arts and hospitality in 2013. Bah-Traore holds an associate's degree in culinary arts from Metropolitan Community College, a bachelor's degree in business, and a master's degree in hospitality and restaurant management.

Joe McCaffrey is an Assistant Professor of Philosophy at the University of Nebraska, Omaha and is also a member of interdisciplinary programs in Neuroscience and Medical Humanities. McCaffrey teaches classes on consciousness, moral psychology, bioethics, artificial intelligence, and the meaning of life. Originally from Eugene, Oregon, McCaffrey now resides with his partner in Omaha. When not doing philosophy, he enjoys strategy board games and video games, reading science fiction, fantasy, and horror stories, and dinners and movie nights with his neighbors and friends.

Nick and Rachel Howe met initially in 2005 and later married. Nick worked as firefighter and Rachel as a teacher. In 2016, the onset of severe health issues for Nick was diagnosed as Non-Hodgkin Lymphoma that chemotherapy, immunotherapy and an autologous stem-cell transplant failed to treat. To save his life, he underwent a highly experimental therapy called CAR T-cell therapy and he has been in remission since. After welcoming their two children, in the summer of 2022, Nick experienced more illness and received a heart transplant. A few weeks later, with his new heart failing, Nick was placed in a medically induced coma during which time he had a spinal stroke that has left him paralyzed from the waist down. Nick’s dedication to supporting others now includes serving as the Nebraska State Director for the Firefighter Cancer Support Network and as an ambassador for LLS and Lymphoma Research Foundation. Nick, his wife Rachel, and their two kids live in Omaha, Nebraska.

Leslie Smith, a native Mississippian, serves as the Executive Director for the Omaha Municipal Land Bank, where she leads the organization’s efforts helping to stimulate the local economy by addressing systemic vacancy issues at its core. Before coming to Omaha, Smith worked for Truist Bank developing inclusive lending mortgage strategies. As one of the foundational programs of the Blight Authority Memphis, a quasi-governmental nonprofit, Smith helped launch and lead what became a full-scale operational land bank serving the city of Memphis, energizing her passion for improving all residents’ quality of life regardless of their zip code.

As a musician, Laura Bird Burhenn has toured the world as a member of The Postal Service, Bright Eyes, and her own band, The Mynabirds, releasing four full length albums and a host of other music. As a producer, Burhenn in 2018 founded her production company, Our Secret Handshake, based on one fundamental belief: Art Can Change the World, by exploring the spaces where art intersects activism, and where good storytelling reveals and encourages the human spirit. Burhenn has produced for various media, including The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon, The Ellen Degeneres Show, Late Night with Seth Meyers, The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, The Late Late Show with James Corden, and livestream events including the MTV EMAs, the "Honor Her Wish" Ruth Bader Ginsberg tribute concert, and the "Save Our Stages" concert, which raised nearly $2 million to fund the National Independent Venue Association's work to support music venues during the pandemic.

Bart Vargas is a Visual Artist, Educator, and Advocate from Bellevue, Nebraska. He received his BFA from the University of Nebraska at Omaha, and his MFA at the University of Minnesota-Twin Cities. He has exhibited nationally and internationally, and his work can be found in collections throughout the world. His works have also been featured in many publications including Sculpture Magazine, New American Paintings, and HGTV Magazine. Vargas lives with his wife Bekah Jerde, and their 70+ plants in Omaha where they operate an international studio. Vargas is a Professor and Chair of Visual Arts/Graphic Arts at Iowa Western Community College in Council Bluffs, Iowa, and serves on several boards for local and regional non-profit organizations that support the arts.

Melissa Breazile was born and raised in Southeast Nebraska and has called Omaha homebase for much of her adult life. Intrigued by the healing power of nature, she guides experiences to help participants find ease, embodiment, and connection with themselves and the living earth through her project, Wild Tree Collaborative. Breazile is a trained Mindful Outdoor Guide, certified by the Kripalu School of Mindful Outdoor Leadership, and is a Nebraska Master Naturalist. Her experience also includes communications and public policy work in the nonprofit and political sectors, and public health work as a Peace Corps Volunteer. Breazile earned a Master of Public Administration from University of Nebraska Omaha and bachelor’s in digital media from Northwest Missouri State University.

Doctor Ruth Stark is a nurse with over four decades of global health experience. From humble beginnings influenced by her grandmother's stories of exploration, Doctor Stark worked internationally for the World Health Organization, the United Nations, Catholic Relief Services, and other organizations across Latin America, Africa, Asia, and the Pacific Islands training local health workers, developing nursing programs, and leading initiatives like HIV/AIDS relief in South Africa. Her travels reshaped her perspective on health, deepening her understanding of the cultural, social, and economic factors affecting well-being. Doctor Stark has come to recognize the importance of local partnerships, sustainable solutions, and respecting cultural contexts in global health work, as reflected in her book ”How to Work in Someone Else's Country" published in 2011 by the University of Washington Press.

Carol Russell has been a leading community volunteer for nearly 50 years. She has been the Legislative or Governor’s appointee on multiple task forces, is an advocate for meaningful policy change when she’s passionate about a cause, and has a resume of around 83 nonprofit engagements running from A almost to Z. Russell has won numerous local, national, and international awards for her community service and is an advocate for voices that often go unheard or undervalued. Russell earned a Bachelor’s degree in Zoology and Chemistry and with her Master’s Degree in Pathology, worked as a trained medical technologist and supervised cancer research studies. From people that know and love her, words used to describe Russell include: loyal, compassionate, energetic, sarcastic, witty, passionate, colorful, vivacious, and loving.

Born and raised around Bloomington/Normal, Illinois Maggie Wood came to Omaha in 1997 with the Clark Construction Group, as part of the general contracting team that built the Roman L. Hruska Federal Courthouse and then spent the following decade focusing on business development and operational management within the construction and supplier industry in Omaha. Building on her degree in Theater Arts and Communications from Eureka College, in 2006, Wood transitioned to the non-profit sector with development and operational management roles at Opera Omaha, Film Streams, and Planned Parenthood of the Heartland, before her leadership and strategic acumen took her to Inclusive Communities in 2015, where she served as Executive Director for close to 8 years. Earlier this year, Wood was appointed the new Executive Director of Film Streams.

Being a formerly incarcerated person herself, Demetrius “Dee Dee” Gatson has seen how the lack of housing, resources, education, employment, and other supports can lead an individual back into incarceration. Gaston has worked with nonprofits such as Rise and with programs such as Dance to Be Free which supports incarcerated and formally incarcerated people in present lives and in their return to community.

The ACLU of Nebraska’s advocacy and legal work regularly includes a range of impactful civil rights issues, featuring everything from police practices to LGBTQ+ and reproductive rights. Rush Chipman came to the ACLU of Nebraska after a 3-year tenure as the director of the Lincoln Commission on Human Rights, prior to which she represented Nebraskans through her roles at the Immigrant Legal Center and Legal Aid of Nebraska, as well as in her private legal practice in rural Nebraska. One of her first jobs out of high school was at the Nebraska Department of Correctional Services where, while working in the prison library, her eyes were opened to the many issues faced by incarcerated Nebraskans. Rush Chipman’s keen advocacy for everyone’s human and civil rights started early in life with her personal experience needing legal support from a pro-bono attorney to access reproductive health care. Rush Chipman and her spouse live on a small farmstead and are the proud parents of four independent children.

Alexander Rödlach was born in Innsbruck, Austria. He was ordained after completing his studies of philosophy and Roman Catholic theology and served for seven years in Zimbabwe to support the local church. Subsequently, Rödlach earned a doctorate in Anthropology and a Certificate in African Studies. Since 2007, he has been at Creighton University and teaches undergraduate courses on public and global health. His research tends to be conducted in collaboration with organizations and community groups, and focuses on themes at the intersection of health, volunteerism, and religion. For several years, he has been accompanying the Karenni, a refugee group in Omaha, and is pursuing other research and ministry projects.

Kevin Mahler is the founder and owner of Contributed Line, a nonprofit fundraising consultancy based in Omaha, Nebraska, which engages multiple disciplines, diverse ways of thinking, collaboration, problem solving, and addressing the urgent issues facing the world. Mahler earned a Bachelor’s Degree from The University of Iowa and then a Master’s Degree from Michigan State University. He serves on the Board of Directors of the Nebraska Chapter of the Grant Professionals Association and the Board for The New Territory Magazine. He lives in Nebraska with his wife and children.

With a degree in education from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln and being an Umonhon woman, Renee Sans Souci is a Cultural Consultant, Lecturer, and Curriculum Developer, and has since 2009 been a Teaching Artist with the Lied Center for Performing Arts. She has been invited to speak on topics such as Water and Environmental Science, Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women advocacy, Native Science, History of Indian Education, and Native languages, Poetry, and Sustainability. Sans Souci was featured in the PBS American Masters Series, UNLADYLIKE 2020: Susan LaFlesche Picotte: The First American Indian Doctor. She is also a Co-Leader for the Niskithe Prayer Camp and is a recipient of the UNL Institute of Ethnic Studies 2023 Leo Yankton Award for Indigenous Justice.

Orenda Fink is an acclaimed musician, songwriter, performer, and writer getting her start in Birmingham, Alabama, with the pop rock group Little Red Rocket and later, in 2000, with the lauded ethereal folk duo Azure Ray, formed with longtime friend Maria Taylor in Athens, Georgia. Fink has collaborated with, among others, Moby, Bright Eyes, Sparklehorse, and the Faint, and their music has featured regularly in film and television programs. Fink’s memoir “The Witch’s Daughter: My Mother, Her Magic, and the Madness that Bound Us” is published by Simon and Schuster and is out in August. The experiences described in this book prompted Fink to become a certified Jungian Depth Coach with a specialization in shadow work and dream interpretation. 

As the Founder and Principal Consultant of Mindpower Strategic, Angela Cooper helps organizations shape their cultures. Cooper has over 20 years of experience evolving business environments in ways that help everyone thrive. As the inaugural Chief Diversity Officer at Mutual of Omaha, a Fortune 300 insurance company, for over five years she led the organization’s award-winning diversity, equity and inclusion and culture-shaping programs. Cooper herself has been recognized with numerous accolades for her DEI leadership. Cooper now works as a DEI strategist, change architect, and thought partner having founded her own independent consultancy in June 2022.

Being the same age as hip hop, Paul B. Allen IV was raised in Southern California in a life of music, recording studios, showcase venues, visual art, filmmaking and radio. He moved to Hawaii in his 20’s where he deejayed, built musical acts, helped start a hip-hop radio station and music festivals, ran a record store and a print shop, and worked as a promoter and musician booking shows around the islands for numerous acts. From there, Allen moved to Europe in 2009 to work in film and deejaying. After coming to Omaha, where Allen’s family has a long cultural heritage, he became Program Director of Mind and Soul Radio 101.3FM, a community radio station out of the Malcolm X Memorial Foundation, which evolved into Allen’s 1st Sky Omaha, where the focus is now on news dissemination, community outreach, and citizen journalism training. In 2018 he started consulting on the creation of the Benson Theatre later becoming its Director of Communication. Today, Allen is focusing on his company, 1st Sky Omaha, building alternative news for East Omaha and traveling around the country to work on projects related to media, including documentary films, digital radio and video channels, and music projects.

Amy Mather is the Partnerships Manager at Omaha Public Library and believes in connecting the community through information, storytelling, and relationships. In 2010, Mather won the Library Journal’s Movers & Shakers award for her outreach efforts to young professionals. As well as her library vocation, she hosted her own podcast “Whatever Mathers” for four years and worked as an adjunct instructor teaching human relation skills at Omaha’s community college. Mather completed her bachelor’s degree in psychology from the University of New Mexico, and completed her master’s degree in library and information science from Louisiana State University. Though she grew up in West Virginia and has lived in New Mexico, Louisiana, and Washington D.C., she considers Omaha home. In her free time, Amy is reading, practicing yoga, walking, traveling, bird watching, and, "art-ing."

Davies established Oxide in 2001. He is a national president emeritus of AIGA, the professional association for design, and is the only Nebraskan to have served as a judge for the prestigious design competition, Communication Arts Design Annual. As part of his civic work, Davies contributed to the national ballot design standards for the U.S. Election Assistance Commission and collaborated with the Federal Voting Assistance Program to enhance the registration and voting process for U.S. citizens abroad. In partnership with the Center for Civic Design, Davies designed the Field Guides to Ensuring Voter Intent, which were featured in the Cooper Hewitt Smithsonian Design Museum. He also testified before President Obama’s Presidential Commission on Election Administration. Davies recently designed and co-authored “Creative Genius: The Art of the Nebraska Capitol,” a coffee table book showcasing 100 years of art contained within the State’s grandest building, revealing the themes driving the art, and chronicling the stories behind the artists and their creations.

Reverend McGinness has, with unflinching zeal and hope, dedicated her life, alongside others of all faiths and of other ethical traditions, in advocating for and helping the poor, the persecuted, the oppressed, and the enslaved. Reverend McGinness’s service has been recognized with several awards. She has worked with numerous humanitarian and anti-genocide organizations, including Christian Solidarity International, a Swiss human rights organization, in delivering humanitarian aid to Sudan in times of war and peace. From 2004 to 2018, Reverend McGinness assisted the South Sudanese Underground Railroad in retrieving citizens from the North and returning them to the South. Since her third retirement in 2018, Reverend McGinness continues to visit East Africa and work with refugees. Living in Omaha, she also supports Nebraskans in need, including assisting in the work of those combatting human trafficking in Nebraska and further afield.

Stephen J. Pedersen is the Chief Legal Officer of Medical Solutions, the second largest clinician staffing company in the United States. Pedersen is also the lead singer, guitarist and songwriter for the rock band Criteria. Pedersen is a 5th Generation Nebraskan and 5th generation attorney, but has carved out a non-traditional path in the world of law and business; all while writing, recording, releasing and touring throughout North America, the UK and Europe in support of his music. Pedersen has for more than 20 years balanced his passion for his professional work with a continuing love of music making. He is a graduate of Creighton University with a juris doctorate from Duke University's School of law.

A Cherokee Nation citizen, Keen carries the name “Bison Mane” of the Earthen Bison Clan of the Omaha Tribe, The People Who Move Against the Current. Keen is the Founder of Sacred Seed – a nonprofit that educates and celebrates Indigenous culture and history. Keen also is a Senior Lecturer in the Heider College of Business Administration in Strategy and Entrepreneurship at Creighton University. A graduate of Dartmouth College, Keen went on to earn a Master of Business Administration and Master of Public Administration from Harvard University, where he served as a Fellow in the Harvard Project on American Indian Economic Development.

Uche Okonkwo is a writer whose stories have been published in A Public Space, One Story, the Kenyon Review, Ploughshares, The Best American Nonrequired Reading 2019, and Lagos Noir, among others. A former Bernard O’Keefe Scholar at Bread Loaf Writers’ Conference and resident at Art Omi, she is a recipient of the George Bennett Fellowship at Phillips Exeter Academy, a Steinbeck Fellowship, and an Elizabeth George Foundation grant. Okonkwo grew up in Lagos, Nigeria, and is currently pursuing a creative writing PhD at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. Her debut short story collection, A Kind of Madness, published by Tin House, is now available.

Cayetano serves as the Senior Director of Leadership Development at the Greater Omaha Chamber. A vocation to the monastic life brought them from their hometown, Virginia Beach, to rural Nebraska. A decade spent in a Benedictine monastery instilled deep values of hospitality, community, and service, which Cayetano now carries into their professional life. Their spiritual discernment journey continues as does their commitment to social justice endeavors. Cayetano serves on the boards of Astute Coffee, Tri-Faith Initiative, and Immigrant Legal Center – Refugee Empowerment Center. A graduate of Leadership Omaha Class 44, Cayetano and their spouse, Travis, live in Omaha.

In 1997 Timothy Burke joined OPPD - the Omaha Public Power District - as a vice president, serving in various roles across the company, until becoming President and CEO in 2015, retiring from that position in 2021. In the summer of 2023, Burke served as President and CEO of the Omaha Chamber of Commerce. He is currently the President of the Offutt Community Development Corporation, focused on projects at Offutt Air Force Base. Burke holds a master’s degree from Drake University and a bachelor’s degree from Buena Vista University. He is married to Terri and they have three sons who are married, as well as seven grandchildren.

Ariel Panowicz has built her career on her love for uplifting others through her imagery and creative direction. Graduating from the Art Institute of Colorado with a BFA in Photography, she returned to her hometown, Omaha, to contribute to the growth of the creative community. As well as her professional photography business, in 2022, Panowicz opened Luli Creative House, a community forward creative studio and small event space where people can come together and be celebrated just as they are. Panowicz’s work has been published in People Magazine, Huffington Post, the New York Times, the Associated Press, the BBC, Reuters, The Today Show, and many more.

Brother James Dowd of the Order of the Holy Cross is the founding Prior of the Incarnation Monastery and the Community of The Benedictine Way, which was founded in 2018 in north Omaha. It is the first Benedictine monastery in the history of the Episcopal Diocese of Nebraska. At the time of our 2017 conversation, Brother James had recently joined the staff of the Diocese for a two-year position as “Monk in Residence.” His ministry focused on enriching the community’s prayer and spiritual life, and discovering and building better ways to befriend the poor in our communities. Prior to entering the monastery, Brother James lived in his home town of New York City, where for 20 years he worked as a director of more than 100 theater productions and numerous live events for television.

Orenda Fink is a well known musician, performer, and songwriter. She has been writing, recording, and touring for critically acclaimed records since 1997. Fink got her start in Birmingham, Alabama, with the pop rock group Little Red Rocket. In 2000, she formed the ethereal folk duo Azure Ray with longtime friend Maria Taylor. Their music has regularly featured in film and television programs and Fink has collaborated widely on numerous other music projects. Currently residing in California’s Mojave desert, Fink is a certified Jungian Depth Coach with a specialization in shadow work and dream interpretation. Later this year I’ll be in conversation with Fink about her new memoir, “The Witch's Daughter: My Mother, Her Magic, and the Madness that Bound Us” which will be available in August. At the time of our 2017 show on the theme of Quiet, Fink reflected back on her musical origins, self-reflection brought about by emergency surgery to correct a misdiagnosed heart defect, and the implications for her sense of self in the world when she was required to take an extensive period of complete voice rest.

Laura Roccaforte has for decades worked globally with individuals and leadership teams who want to develop and grow. Originally from Sacramento, California, Roccaforte has lived in Nebraska for over 30 years with her late husband, Rich, and holds a BA in Organizational Communication from California State University, an M.Ed from the University Nebraska Lincoln, and is a certified Senior Professional in Human Resources.

Conor Gearin is a writer from St. Louis living in Omaha. He's the Managing Producer of BirdNote, a daily radio program and podcast. Gearin’s work has appeared in The Best American Science and Nature Writing 2019, The Atlantic, UnDark, The Millions, The New Territory, New Scientist, and elsewhere. He received an S.M. in Science Writing at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and an M.S. in Biology at the University of Nebraska Omaha, where he completed thesis research on grassland bird conservation. Gearin is a member of the Audubon Society of Omaha’s board of directors.

Carolina Hotchandani is the author of The Book Eaters, 2023 Perugia Press Prize Winner, which was one of the ten debut poetry books featured in Poets & Writers Magazine’s 2024 debut poets issue. Hotchandani’s poetry has appeared in The Atlantic, AGNI, Missouri Review, Prairie Schooner, and various other journals. She is a Goodrich Assistant Professor of English at the University of Nebraska Omaha, Nebraska, where she lives with her husband and daughter.

Autumn Pruitt and her husband moved back to Omaha and started a small bakery in 2010. Soon after subleasing a kitchen and tiny storefront from Aromas Coffeehouse they purchased that coffee shop. In 2015, they began roasting their own coffee under the brand Hardy Coffee Co. and later brought every piece and location of the business under the unified name of Hardy – Autumn Pruitt’s maiden name. Since its first shop, Hardy Coffee has opened three additional locations and grown to nearly 70 employees today, with an ethos of striving to create connection in the community.

Raised in Louisville, Kentucky, Morton is an actor and writer living in New York. She's a graduate of the University of Evansville's celebrated theatre department and a member of the Actors Center. Morton is also fascinated by the spiritual dimensions of life and has pursued a vocation in ministry and spiritual direction, accompanying people on the life journey as a self-titled secular chaplain.

Born and raised in Southern California, Butler has lived in the Omaha area for two decades. An award-winning author and Air Force veteran, she’s the Senior Marketing Copywriter for a large financial services firm and a frequent contributor to Omaha Magazine. She also teaches yoga and indoor cycle classes at various gyms in the Omaha area. A major stroke in 2015 left Butler with a host of physical and cognitive deficits. As a result, she learned a hard-earned lesson about what makes a person "authentic," and shared her thoughts about authenticity on the TEDx Omaha stage in 2023.

Tom Trenolone is an architect and design advocate with the international architecture and engineering firm of HDR, where he currently serves as a Design Director and Senior Vice President, currently based in Omaha, NE. Trenolone has led teams working on architectural designs across the world, including the U2 Landmark Tower Competition in Dublin Ireland, the Hinoki-cho Performing Arts Center in Tokyo, Japan, and the USCE Center in Belgrade, Serbia. He is not only the recipient of numerous accolades and awards, but has been a juror on many awards competitions. Trenolone was named the 2019 HDR Fellow for his research proposal entitled “Saving main street U.S.A.” an investigation into the critical access hospital as urban anchor in rural communities. Trenolone’s public advocacy for design has included founding design alliance OMAha, a non-profit focused on greater design awareness in Nebraska and western Iowa.

Zedeka Poindexter is a North Omaha-born writer and performer and is co-executive director with Gina Tranisi of Nebraska Writers Collective. Poindexter’s body of poems and essays draws on all five physical senses to connect with readers and listeners. By sharing stories of people in her community, she creates a relationship with her audience and guides them through the world as she sees and experiences it. Poindexter has earned numerous awards and accolades including the Best Performance Poet award from Omaha Entertainment & Arts; a Public Impact Grant from Amplify Arts, being awarded The Union for Contemporary Arts Inside/Outside Fellowship Prize; and being recognized as a Nebraska Arts Council: Artists In Schools Recipient.

Mandy Kubicek helps online entrepreneurs achieve greater success. Before that she coached dozens of high-achieving women through career transitions and led teams of product managers at high-growth tech startups. Kubicek was last on the show in 2019, since when she has authored two books, the latest titled I Killed Mom and Other Lies: A Memoir of Early Loss, which is an autobiographical account of trauma in Kubicek’s life. A lifelong learner and navel-gazer, Kubicek is a Certified Martha Beck Life Coach, has staffed the Byron Katie School for the Work, and has an MBA from Washington University in St. Louis.

Littleton Alston creates works of art that focus on the essence of the human figure and human spirit. Awarded the commission to create a portrait statue of Willa Cather, in 2023 his statue was unveiled in the National Statuary Hall Collection at the U.S. Capitol Building as one of Nebraska’s two statues. Alston is the first African-American to be represented in that august collection. Alston’s work has been exhibited and collected across the country and he has completed dozens of public commissions. He grew up in Washington D.C. moving in 1989 to Omaha for a residency at the Bemis Center for Contemporary Arts, after which he joined the faculty at Creighton University. He resides in Omaha with his family.

John Waters graduated from the U.S. Naval Academy and was commissioned as a second lieutenant in the U.S. Marine Corps. For six years he served as a scout sniper platoon commander and ground intelligence officer, completing deployments to Afghanistan, Iraq, and Horn of Africa. After leaving the Marines, Waters began writing on war and military affairs for RealClearPolitics based in Washington, DC. His postwar novel River City One was published in November 2023 by Permuted Press and distributed by Simon and Schuster. Waters currently works as an attorney and lives with his family in Sarpy County, where he was raised.

After 27 years with the Omaha Public Schools district, Matthew Ray began serving as the interim superintendent in July 2023. He began his career as a student teacher at Ashland Park-Robbins Elementary. Ray has also worked as a district-wide substitute teacher and in various administrative roles, most recently deputy superintendent. Ray earned two bachelor’s degrees from the University of Nebraska Omaha, one in Criminal Justice and a second in Elementary Education. He earned a Master of Science in Educational Administration from UNO in 2000, and his Educational Specialist (Ed.S.) from the University of Nebraska at Kearney in 2020. Ray and his wife are the parents of three graduates of Omaha Public Schools.

Before his ordination to the priesthood in 2019 and then becoming Rector at Saint Andrew’s Episcopal Church in Omaha, Father Keith was a software developer. He and his wife Lisa, who works in the non-profit sector, have three children, the youngest is a junior at Omaha’s Central High School. In his spare time Father Keith is a musician and a cook.

Carole Boye has served as president and CEO of Community Alliance for 42 years. As the first and only CEO of this nonprofit organization that now serves nearly 6,000 people annually across the metropolitan Omaha and surrounding five counties area, she has overseen provision of services for people living with mental illness and substance use disorders. She has been recognized by numerous professional and consumer groups for her leadership and advocacy in this field. Boye graduated from the University of Nebraska at Omaha with a Masters in Public Administration and received her Bachelors degree in Social Work and Sociology from Concordia University in Seward, Nebraska.

As a founding board member and now Executive Director of Tri-Faith Initiative, Wendy Goldberg has for years been committed to fostering social change, religious pluralism, and inclusivity. In addition to her role at Tri-Faith, Wendy chairs the Greater Omaha Chamber of Commerce's Commitment to Opportunity, Diversity, and Equity (CODE) Advisory Council. She is also an advisory board member of The Journal of Inter-religious Studies and UNO’s Tell All the Truth project and is an alumna of the LeadDiversity and Racial Equity Institute's Racial Equity Workshop. Wendy holds a Master of Arts in Communication and a Graduate Certificate in Creative Writing from the University of Nebraska at Omaha.

Johnson is an artist and engineer born and raised in Nebraska. He received an MAE degree in structural engineering from the University of Nebraska in 2006. He is a self-taught artist and works in a variety of media. Johnson has shown work throughout the metropolitan Omaha area, most notably at the Bemis Center for Contemporary Arts and The Union for Contemporary Art. As a practicing engineer working at TD2, Johnson works on a variety of project types and market sectors throughout the US, focusing primarily on local and regional work. He enjoys close collaboration with architects and designers and has worked on several award-winning designs. Johnson has extensive experience with structural designs for art and performance spaces, including the Jackson Dinsdale Art Center at Hastings College, Hoff Family Arts and Culture Center in Council Bluffs, The Union for Contemporary Art campus, Omaha Benson Theater, and, most recently, the new addition to the Joslyn Art Museum.

Todd Robinson is the author of two poetry collections, most recently Mass for Shut-Ins and Note at Heart Rock. He has led community writing workshops with many organizations, including UNMC, The Kaneko and Bemis art museums, the Nebraska Writers Collective, Omaha and Lincoln Warrior Writers, and the Nebraska Writers Guild. He is an Assistant Professor in the Writer’s Workshop at the University of Nebraska-Omaha and caregiver to his partner, a disabled physician.

Dr. A. Barron Breland has a diverse background in many different fields of music, including the piano and saxophone, and is in demand throughout the Midwest and beyond as a conductor, chorusmaster, clinician, and adjudicator. He is Dean of the Graduate School and Vice Provost for Faculty and Academic Affairs at Creighton University in Omaha, Nebraska. Alongside his leadership of the Creighton University Chamber Choir, Breland is the Music Director of Résonance, a semi-professional chorus whose debut album Pilgrimage was released in July 2020 on the MSR Classics label. Breland also is the Artistic Director of the River City Mixed Chorus and in his tenure with the organization the ensemble has grown to over 160 active singing members.

Anna Schulte is a musician and writer from Omaha, Nebraska. She released her debut EP, Dream Car, in 2022, and her poetry has been published in Paper Darts and 433. Schulte has a BA in English Writing and French from Loyola University in New Orleans and currently is pursuing a Masters degree in Speech-Language Pathology. Her work is centered in her search for belonging and meaning in a world where suffering exists side-by-side with such ordinary miracles as lemon trees, poppy seeds, and the color red. She has spent the last decade living in New Orleans, France, and Omaha. 

Erika Overturff began her training in Iowa at the Academy of Ballet, studying at various summer programs, then after graduating high school early as valedictorian, She earned in just three years her B.F.A. in ballet performance and teaching from the University of Utah. Overturrf went on to dance with various ballet companies performing principal and soloist roles in a wide range of classical and contemporary repertoire. She has also been a faculty member and guest teacher for schools around the United States. Overturff has collaborated with Omaha Theater Ballet, Opera Omaha, Omaha Symphony, and Joslyn Art Museum in choreographing completely original ballets and fresh interpretations of classic works.

Anne Hindery joined the Nonprofit Association of the Midlands in 2008. She has extensive experience in public and nonprofit sector program development and management for which she has received numerous accolades, including being recognized in 2017 as the Nonprofit Administrator of the Year by the American Society for Public Administration (ASPA-NE). Active in the community, Hindery currently serves on the Board of the Metro Area Continuum of Care for the Homeless and has formerly served on the Omaha branch of the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City and on the Board of the National Council of Nonprofits. Hindery is currently co-teaching a class on Cross Sector Leadership at UNO. She received her bachelor’s degree from Creighton University and Master's degree in Public Administration from the University of Nebraska at Omaha.

An Omaha native, Brownrigg is one of few women who hold the title of General Manager among the nation’s 55 classical radio stations. Classical KVNO began broadcasting in 1972 from what is now the University of Nebraska at Omaha campus, recently celebrating 50 years on air. Brownrigg has worked at radio stations in Omaha and across the country, including the role as president of Relevant Radio network, a Christian national radio network headquartered in Green Bay, Wisconsin, and Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Haley Haas is the Artistic Director and Co-Founder of Anastasis Theatre Co. Haas recently directed the tour of the Anastasis play More Than a Number, as well as the original production of the play inside the NE State Penitentiary. She has also directed the Anastasis plays Stories: On the Brink and Voices Unbound. Haas has worked as a teaching artist and facilitator with numerous local organizations and for 15 years as an actor and the Training and Education Director for R.E.S.P.E.C.T., a touring educational theatre company. As an award winning actor, favorite roles in some regional shows at The Blue Barn Theater include Henrietta in Silent Sky, Irene in The Dresser, and Virginia in Red Summer at the Blue Barn Theatre; and an ensemble role in The Blues of Knowing Why at the Union for Contemporary Art. Haas holds a BFA in Theater Performance from Creighton University and trained with the groundbreaking community-engaged theater company Cornerstone, based in Los Angeles, CA.

Jim Begley grew up in a union household in Omaha and spent 15 years addressing labor and human resources issues for the City of Omaha. Since 2012, he has been an elected member of the Metropolitan Utilities District (MUD) Board of Directors in Omaha. Begley is a member of the UNO Chapter of the American Association of University Professors, the faculty union at UNO. Begley received his Master’s degree in Public Administration and Bachelor’s degree in Political Science from UNO. 

Begley and his wife, who is a public-school teacher and union member, live in Omaha with their family. 

Jeff Day is the founding principal of Actual Architecture Company and a Professor of Architecture at the University of Nebraska. Day has received numerous awards including the Architectural League of New York’s 2016 Emerging Voices, a 2019 Progressive Architecture Award, and many more besides, and his work has been published in a wide range of journals, design magazines, and books. In 2019 Day was elevated to Fellowship in the American Institute of Architects, an honor bestowed on only 3% of member architects. Day also serves on the National Architectural Accrediting Board.

Rachel Ziegler is a visual artist whose work is in numerous private collections and has been exhibited across the country Ziegler works across many mediums to create works exploring personal stories while contemplating the role of technology and the mixing of time and symbols. Born in Denver, Ziegler grew up in Omaha as well as a few small towns throughout Nebraska. She graduated with a BFA in Commercial Art from Concordia University in Seward, Nebraska, then worked for the Bemis Center for Contemporary Arts, before moving to Texas where she created music and multimedia paintings while traveling and living primarily in Texas. Since returning to Omaha, Ziegler has been co-creating Reformed, an artist community space in a decommissioned church in South Omaha while making mosaic murals and wall hangings.

By joining the staff at KIOS as the local "Morning Edition" host in November of 2017, Mike Hogan’s radio career came full circle. His first radio job was with St. Louis, Missouri NPR affiliate 88.1 FM KDHX. In between Hogan was an actor based in Los Angeles, appearing in the movie “Stay Tuned” with John Ritter and on the television shows “Hearts Afire” and “Beverly Hills, 90210,” after which he became a play-by-play live hockey broadcaster, including an opportunity with the Omaha Lancers that brought Hogan to Omaha, where he met his wife of more than 24 years. Radio jobs over the years have been mixed with engagements in sales, IT Consulting, and stand-up comedy. Hogan now for KIOS is the Digital Media Coordinator and local host of NPR’s show “All Things Considered” and his own award winning “Live and Local” feature.

Born in Afghanistan in the mid-eighties, Mustafa Babak now serves as the executive director of the Afghan-American Foundation, a national advocacy organization committed to advancing the voices of the Afghan-American diaspora. Prior to moving to the US, Mustafa worked as a public relations executive advising the Afghan government and international partners on key development issues including counter narcotics, civic education, and local governance. Mustafa holds a BA from the University of the Pacific and an Executive Master of Global Public Administration received jointly from New York University and the University College London. He lives in Omaha with his wife and family.

Nathaniel Ruleaux is an award-winning artist and culture worker currently located on unceded land of the Umónhon & Očhéthi Šakówiŋ in Nebraska. A partner, father, and member of the Oglala Lakota Nation, his work combines modern art with traditional indigenous imagery. He is a founding member of Unceded Artist Collective. Recently, he created work for Opera Omaha’s 2023-2024 season and the national 2022 Indigenous Futures Survey. In addition to creating visual art, he is a classically-trained actor and educator. He received his MFA in Theatre from the University of Houston’s School of Theatre and Dance after receiving a BA in Theatre Performance at the Johnny Carson School of Theatre & Film at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln.

Lauren Hance’s plays have been produced from coast to coast, and her career encompasses most areas of theatre. She earned her degree in Theatre from Abilene Christian University and a Master of Arts in Theology with an emphasis in Theology, Arts, & Culture from Fuller Theological Seminary. Her interactive one-woman show The Holy O shares the story of Vera, a vivacious and possibly lost woman, who is contemplating becoming a Catholic nun but has never considered celibacy one of her virtues. Vera’s situation is complicated by the onset of visions and rapturous prayers, leading to the audience becoming characters from her past and saints in her present.

Summer Miller’s work has appeared in Eating Well, Saveur, Every Day with Rachel Ray, Edible Omaha, Edible Feast, and Grit among others. Miller currently works as the Senior Executive Editor for Suzy Karadsheh’s media company, The Mediterranean Dish. In her former life she was a humanitarian aid worker in South Africa, served as the editor-in-chief of The Reader, executive editor of Neighborhood News, and spent time as a public relations professional.

For more than a decade, uber connector, community builder, and entrepreneur Jeff Slobotski has celebrated and championed entrepreneurs and community throughout the Midwest. His relationships, ideas, and collaborative nature are evident in his influence in the region’s entrepreneurial and community ecosystem. Notable endeavors include Silicon Prairie News, the Big Omaha & Big Kansas City conferences, Router Ventures, and now his work at the Millwork Commons development in north downtown Omaha. Slobotski’s efforts in a region formerly known as "flyover country" have been highlighted by the acclaimed author Seth Godin, The New York Times, CNN, TIME, Inc., Fast Company, Forbes, and Kiplinger magazines.

Garner is a writer, practicing psychotherapist, and founding director of Big Feels Lab: a nonprofit promoting collective mental health. A lifelong outcast, she specializes in helping misfits, survivors, and unconventional families turn pain into purpose and connect with each other more deeply. Her debut book is released in July of ’23 from HarperCollins. When not working, she can be found starting dance parties in public and hosting cuddle puddles at her home in NYC.

Nancy Williams has had a diverse career, from serving as an agronomist for local farmers and consultants in a Fortune 500 corporation to grassroots organizing and management for nonprofit community organizations. Williams was Chief Information Officer with Boys & Girls Clubs of the Midlands in Omaha. In 2010, she co-founded then, in 2016, took on the CEO role at No More Empty Pots, a nonprofit supporting the development of local food systems through self-sufficiency of people and economic resilience of communities. As well as all of these activities, Williams serves on multiple local, state, and regional boards and advisory committees.

Shaun Ilahi is the Vice President of Finance and Operations at the Kiewit Luminarium in Omaha. He studied economics at Columbia University in New York and attended Creighton University in Omaha to study law. Aside from his professional endeavors, Ilahi is an artist using photographic and musical expression to capture life as a world traveler and global citizen, exploring our everyday, yet profound shared experiences across the planet.

Quick is a Midwest creative, writer, and the architect of The Howler Project. Her writing has appeared in numerous literary journals and she has been honored by the Academy of American Poets. Quick earned an MFA from the University of Nebraska Omaha, where she is currently an instructor, advisor, and - again - a graduate student in social work and human rights. She also studies integrative medicine at the University of Arizona. Quick’s training focuses on releasing trauma through expressive arts, and her research explores the complexities of human connection.

Mick Mulhall grew up working in the family business, driving for landscape crews as soon as he got his license. He is a graduate of the University of Notre Dame and, of course, Mulhall’s really-long-days-landscaping school of management. Mulhall’s grandfather John, who trained as a gardener in Ireland, immigrated in 1953, and now, three generations later, Mulhall is the CEO for a team committed to making Omaha a more beautiful place to live.

Reverend Debra McKnight earned a Master of Divinity degree from the Perkins School of Theology at Southern Methodist University in 2008 and she was ordained in the United Methodist Church in 2010. Reverend McKnight is the founding pastor of Urban Abbey, a United Methodist congregation in downtown Omaha, Nebraska. In 2015, Urban Abbey became an independent, chartered congregation and grew to three Sunday services and weekday programming. During an era in which attendance at mainline protestant churches in the United States has declined, Urban Abbey has succeeded as a new church start and is continually growing.

An associate professor at Creighton University, DiLeo is also director of its Justice and Peace Studies Program. DiLeo earned his PhD in theological ethics from Boston College and his bachelor’s degree in sociology from Cornell University.

Dr. Arthur Zygielbaum is an Emeritus Research Associate Professor from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln School of Natural Resources. He holds a Bachelor’s degree in Physics from the University of California at Los Angeles and a Master’s degree in Electrical Engineering-Computers from the University of Southern California. He spent nearly 30 years at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, progressing from engineer to executive, and was involved with many space missions. In 1998, Zygielbaum joined the administrative faculty of UNL before retiring, as it were, to pursue a PhD in Geography/Remote Sensing. Achieving that, he joined the research faculty in December 2010 and “retired” again in 2018. Zygielbaum served on several federal oversight boards and now sits on many civic and non-profit boards including Nebraska Appleseed Center for Law in the Public Interest, South Street Temple, and the American Radio Relay League.

Jamaica Baldwin is a poet and educator originally from Santa Cruz, CA. Her first book, Bone Language, will be published by YesYes Books in the Summer of 2023. Her work has appeared in numerous literary journals and among her many accolades are a 2023 Pushcart Prize and a National Endowment for the Arts Fellowship. Baldwin has served as a community based teaching artist, including a generative writing workshop for women in Guatemala. Baldwin is currently the associate editor of Prairie Schooner at the University of Nebraska - Lincoln where she is pursuing her PhD in English with a focus on poetry and Women's and Gender Studies.

Butler is a fiber and textile artist, Quiltologist, ceramicist and storyteller. Her family’s Southern roots and family history plays a major role in the works she creates which can be seen in the themes of family, nature, landscapes and her artistic process. Butler has been honored for her numerous community engagement projects, as an artist, lecturer, and teacher, and been exhibited widely, most recently The Ebb and Flow Between Us exhibit, at the Hoff Family Arts & Culture Center in Council Bluffs, Iowa and now as part of a unique collaboration at the Nebraska Furniture Mart.

Teresa Friesen grew up in a sports-loving family. As she grew older, she realized that the industry chose predominantly to show male sports instead of female. In response, Friesen founded the business SheMate, which betters the sports industry for women through community and publicity. Friesen holds a bachelor's degree from Creighton University and a master's degree from the University of Chicago, and worked as a social worker and college professor prior to starting SheMate. Friesen is also mom to a five year old daughter who fell in love with gymnastics after seeing one commercial featuring Simone Biles.

Felicia Casher, artistically known as Withlove, Felicia is an American poet, educator, healing artist, actor, host, and curator. Casher, formerly Felicia Webster, has been commissioned by and has organized major programs and events with numerous organizations in Nebraska and Philadelphia. With a Master’s in Education, Casher loves to combine textbook knowledge with cultural content, in what often feels like a theatrical experience. Her work colors audiences with the power of spoken word, with a heavy emphasis on affirmation. She is a TEDx speaker and a two time winner of the Omaha Arts & Entertainment Awards Poet of the Year and several other community awards.

John Heaston is the founder, publisher, and editor of Pioneer Publishing, a group of media channels that includes an alternative, metropolitan news monthly called The Reader, a bilingual community news monthly called El Perico, and OmahaJobs.com. He has served on the Board of the Mildred D. Brown Memorial Study Center, where he helped renew America’s oldest Black female founded and run newspaper — the Omaha Star. Through the Association of Alternative News Media, the National Association of Hispanic Publications, and the National Newspaper Publishers Association - called the Black Press - Heaston is helping reshape the national conversation around saving and supporting local media through diverse, locally-owned publishers. Among several community endeavors, Heaston is a founder of both the Omaha Entertainment & Arts Awards and the Maha Music Festival.

Born in Honolulu, Hawaii in 1977 and raised in the California Bay Area, Chung is an artist whose primary medium is clay. He received a bachelors degree from UC Berkeley in 2001 under ceramic artist Richard Shaw and then traveled to Omaha to work for world-renowned artist Jun Kaneko. Chung’s work is included in the collections of public museums and private collectors and he has shown his work nationally. Along with art making, Chung teaches art through various organizations both public and private. I am looking forward to learning more about Chung’s life, his artistic practice, and the themes he explores in his work.

With over twenty years in the areas of human resources and people management and leadership, Ralph Kellogg is currently the Vice President for People and Training at Lutheran Family Services. Kellogg is an advocate in the areas of LGBTQ rights and belonging at work, and frequently speaks to and consults with organizations on the subjects of authenticity, and how leaders can help team members who are challenged by anxiety and panic within the workplace, a subject he explores in his recent TEDxOmaha presentation on normalizing mental health conversations in the workplace. Kellogg has had articles published in Forbes.com, the Society for Human Resources Management Blog, and the HR Gazette.

Brenda Mainwaring is President and CEO of the Iowa West Foundation, one of the state’s largest private foundations having awarded more than $500 million in grants since its inception. From a small country school and an outdoors childhood, Mainwaring started her professional life as an intelligence analyst at the Central Intelligence Agency specializing in demographics and cultural dynamics. She advised elected, appointed and military officials during the First Gulf War, the Yugoslav Conflict and military action in Haiti. Mainwaring has 30 years of experience in government and public relations and regulatory matters, including executive positions at Union Pacific Railroad, communicating through crises that included Hurricane Harvey, contentious layoffs and facility closures, and the COVID pandemic. Her undergraduate and graduate degrees are in Cultural Anthropology from the University of Iowa, where she served as a Teaching/Research Fellow.

Tamayo is a traditional Sicangu Lakota artist whose family originates from the Rosebud Reservation in South Dakota. Tamayo studied the traditional arts of the Umonhon people under Howard Wolf and earned his BFA from Sínte Gleska University in 2011 where he developed and taught the traditional arts program. After more than 30 years of study and practice as an artist and educator, he began consulting educational institutions and other organizations on the history, culture and traditions of the Plains Indians, including being a regular consultant to the curatorial and conservation staff at the Smithsonian’s National Museum of the American Indian. In 2022 Tamayo received a grant from the Creative Capital Foundation to create a series of traditional buffalo robes, which he explores further in our conversation. He founded Bluebird Cultural Initiative to support his vision of preserving and sharing his cultural heritage.  He is a past Nebraska Governor’s Heritage Art Award recipient, an honor bestowed for his contributions in the arts and Native American culture.

CONTENT WARNING: The conversation in this episode references suicidal thoughts and personal experiences with eating disorders that some may find disturbing. Please use your own discretion before listening. You can find help through the National Eating Disorders Association by calling or texting (800) 931-2237. The Helpline is not available 24/7, but anyone needing help can leave a message or text “NEDA” to 741741. You can also schedule a free discovery call with me via Yeager’s website—biggerthanabody.com

Jannette Taylor is a native of Omaha, Nebraska. As well as leading the Women’s Center for Advancement she is also the owner of Social Impact Outliers, a consulting firm working with businesses, universities and nonprofits throughout the Midwest and South Florida on capacity building, leadership development, fundraising and capital campaigns. Prior to returning to Omaha, Taylor served as the CEO of the United Way in Kansas and ran an international nonprofit in Florida that built schools in developing nations. Taylor has long had a passion for working with marginalized youth in the community. Among many endeavors serving that passion, in 2009, she founded a community based nonprofit, Impact One Community Connection, a gang intervention and prevention program serving youth and young adults. Mayor Jim Suttle declared December 5th “Jannette Taylor Day” for her work with youth development and community service.

Christian Gray was born and raised on the sunny beaches of Southern California. For university he moved to Tucson, Arizona where he completed his undergrad in Communications and, more importantly, met his future partner, Sonya. He has worked in the field of national and international community development for 18 years and has served in the role of Executive Director at inCOMMON Community Development since 2006. Gray’s passion for community development led him to pursue advanced studies at the University of Nebraska at Omaha, where he earned a double-Masters in Urban Studies and Public Administration. Gray is also actively engaged in the civic life of his community, including being this year’s recipient of the Lynda Shafer Leadership Omaha Distinguished Alumni Award

JoAnna LeFlore-Ejike is a young cultural activist raised in the Midwest, activating her community through the cultivation of creative entrepreneurs and arts-based programming. For many years LeFlore-Ejike has prioritized cultural awareness and unification in collaboration with several local non-profits including Film Streams, Bemis Center for Contemporary Arts/Carver Bank, the Greater Omaha Chamber, The Reader Magazine, and Threewalls (Chicago). She continues this mission in her recently accepted position as the Executive Director for the Malcolm X Memorial Foundation after having volunteered there for 10 years prior. LeFlore-Ejike lives in north Omaha with her husband and new daughter.

Catherine Ferguson is an artist whose work is featured in public and private collections across the region, including major Nebraska museums and at public venues. Ferguson is particularly well known for installations that are transcendent and transformative. Ferguson has also dedicated herself to benefitting the visual arts in the community serving on numerous public bodies and nonprofit boards.

The fifth of eight children and raised a Catholic, Susan Koenig grew up in Little Italy in Omaha. She is an executive coach, attorney, author, and certified end-of-life doula. As an attorney, Koenig is the founder of the divorce law firm, Koenig|Dunne. Her book, Divorce in Nebraska, has been replicated in over 30 states. Koenig’s brother Tim died of AIDS in 1994. Her late husband, John, received a cancer diagnosis with a prognosis of death in two and a half years. With no options for surgery, radiation, or chemotherapy, they embarked on a holistic healing journey of over a decade. Koenig shared her reflections in her TEDx Omaha talk, The Energy of Eulogy. Koenig has three grown children and makes her home in Little Bohemia with her partner, Kevin, and their two cats. Her word of the year for 2023: TRUE

This episode of Lives was broadcast live on air on KIOS 91.5FM, Omaha’s NPR station and regular broadcaster of Lives Radio Show & Podcast, and this podcast of my conversation with Trey Moody is the recording of that on air show from Sunday Dec. 11.

Trey Moody was born and raised in San Antonio, Texas. His first book, Thought That Nature - published by Sarabande Books in 2014 - won the Kathryn A. Morton Prize in Poetry. His newer poems have appeared in The Atlantic, The Believer, Gulf Coast, Massachusetts Review, and New England Review. He teaches at Creighton University and lives with his daughter in Omaha, Nebraska.

Author, journalist, blogger, and public speaker Leo Adam Biga is an Omaha native known for his writing-reporting on arts, culture, sports, and social justice subjects. For four decades he has been a regular freelance contributing writer for numerous publications and media platforms. Biga was awarded an international journalism grant for a 2015 reporting trip to Africa and is the author of four nonfiction books, including Alexander Payne: His Journey in Film and Crossing Bridges: A Priest’s Uplifting Life Among the Downtrodden. He is currently working on two new nonfiction books due for 2023 release. One project chronicles the eventful life of Afghan refugee Cyrus Jaffery. The other project explores the extraordinary life story of Norfolk, NE obstetrician, Dr. Keith Vrbicky, who only a year removed from a heart transplant, is back practicing medicine and delivering babies.

Hailing from North Yorkshire in England, Glenn Greet moved to America in 2000 and now lives in Omaha with his family. A former British police officer, Greet also studied music education and conducting and has traveled with various brass bands across the world. He is the first Musical Director of the Nebraska Brass Band. In 2021, Greet opened Chippy's. Its success in Omaha has spurred the opening of two other outlets - one in Lincoln, Nebraska, and one in Des Moines, Iowa.

Todd McCollister builds in the zone between Furniture Design and Art, bringing important elements of each into any given object. At times the boundary between the two fields gets thin or hazy. McCollister earned a BFA in Sculpture and Photography in 1996 from Texas Christian University and an MFA in Sculpture in 2000 from Stony Brook University. He then moved to New York City, first pursuing Sculpture and shifting to Furniture in 2006. In 2014 he brought what he learned back to his hometown of Omaha, NE, and founded Long Grain Furniture. An active member of the informal Omaha art community, McCollister currently runs a monthly event series called “Final Fridays at Todd’s,” aimed at bringing the Omaha art community together.

Originally from Istanbul, Turkey, Bilgesu Sisman is a writer, researcher, and film programmer with a background in the humanities. As a PhD candidate in Philosophy at DePaul University, Chicago, her thesis explores the history of necroviolence, meaning posthumous corporal violence, and its formative role in modern, colonial, and postcolonial state power. Besides political philosophy, she specializes in film theory and philosophy of cinema. Her first feature film, KNOTS – which focuses on a mathematics student seeking truth in the face of repressed trauma – is in pre-production stage. She currently resides in Omaha, NE and works as the Community Programming Manager Film Streams.

Marcey Yates is a recording artist, music producer, and sound engineer, and the founder of Culxr House, a creative art and community space where artists and entrepreneurs can grow, create opportunities, and enrich their own artistic talents. In addition to his award winning solo work, Yates is one half of the duo Dilla Kids, and, with collaborator Xoboi, winner of this year’s Omaha Entertainment and Arts Awards' album of the year for, “Culxr House: Freedom Summer.”

This show is supported in part by the Greater Omaha Chamber of Commerce.

Gentzler is a reporter who has found her niche in holding government accountable to the people it serves. She will soon be the state government watchdog reporter at Flatwater Free Press. Most recently, Gentzler worked at the Omaha World-Herald, where she broke stories on Nebraska footing the bill (and refusing to admit it) for deploying state troopers to the southern border and the State’s practice of inking millions in no-bid contracts with an out-of-state company during the pandemic. 

Raised in north Omaha, Enjoli Mitchell has been singing since she was young, Enjoli is now the lead singer in the group Enjoli & Timeless. Formed in 2017, the band has opened for acts such as CeCe Peniston, Keith Sweat, Juvenile, Angela Winebush, Lecrae, and Twista. With solo albums under her belt and a forthcoming album from Enjoli & Timeless, Enjoli Mitchell has recently been dubbed “The Voice of the City” and “The Voice of the Street.”

Katie Marya is a writer and literary translator. Her award-winning work has appeared in numerous literary publications and she has received fellowship support from the Kimmel Harding Nelson Center for the Arts and the Nebraska Arts Council. Sugar Work, her first full-length book collection, was the Editor's Choice for the 2020 Alice James Book Award. Originally from Atlanta, she now lives in Nebraska where she is finishing a PhD in Creative Writing at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.

Rebecca Deterding is the President and CEO of the YMCA of Greater Omaha, an organization she had served as CFO since 2015 prior to stepping into the CEO role in March. She is the first woman to lead the organization in its 155-year history. Originally from North Platte, Deterding earned her undergraduate degree in business administration and accounting from the University of Nebraska at Kearney, her MBA from Bellevue University, and she holds a CPA certificate. In the show Deterding talks about the transformation of the YMCA from its origins over a century ago to an intentional culture today of making all feel included; the meaning of leadership and Deterding’s approach to being a CEO, and living up to her purpose in serving others.

This show is one in a series supported in part by the Greater Omaha Chamber of Commerce.

Rabbi Batsheva Appel has served congregations in a variety of different roles, as a sabbatical rabbi, rabbi educator, settled rabbi, and interim rabbi, including serving as Director of Rabbinic Services for the Goldring/Woldenberg Institute of Southern Jewish Life, located in Jackson, Mississippi. Rabbi Appel is a trained Mussar facilitator and is a certified Interim Rabbi living in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. She is passionate about community, especially diversity. A native of Seattle, she graduated from Wellesley College with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Biological Sciences and Economics, entering the corporate world before her increasing involvement in her faith practice led her to become a rabbi. Rabbi Appel’s hobbies include reading, playing D&D, doing the New York Times Spelling Bee, hiking, and competitive sock knitting. One of her goals is to go back to the Grand Canyon for a rim-to-rim hike.

Shelby VanNordstrand has appeared as a soloist with a wide range of ensembles and companies; including Lorin Maazel's Castleton Festival, New York Lyric Opera Theatre, Opera Omaha, Omaha Symphony, Cedar Rapids Opera Theatre, and the Simon Estes Young Artist Program. 

VanNordstrand is passionate about connecting song and opera repertoire to today’s audience. Her recital project “The Giving Voice Project: Ophelia” examines the gendered oppression of Hamlet’s Ophelia from a twenty-first century view point through song, opera, and dance. She continues to share her love of song across the globe at many locations including Indonesia, Japan, China, Hawaii, and Lithuania. She is an alumnus of the SongFest program and is Associate Professor of Voice, Vocal Area Coordinator, and Director of Opera at the University of Nebraska at Omaha.

Dave Mainelli teaches creative writing at Wayne State College and, starting in the Fall, at the University of Nebraska at Omaha. HIs short story collection, How To Be Lonely, was published by WSC Press in March of 2021. Mainelli draws from his diverse experiences in life to muse on our loneliness with a dark humor and a melancholy recipe. The stories test the limits of the human condition and Albert Camus' so called "serious problem" on whether life is worth living. His writing often delves into the American lower middle class and those living just below the veil of the American dream.

Matt Darling is the executive director of Fontenelle Forest, one of the largest nature centers in the country. Fontenelle is made up of two properties and multiple ecosystems, 24 miles of trails, a high ropes course and 2,100 acres of forest, prairie and wetlands. Prior to this role at the Forest, he was the executive Vice President of the Omaha Community Foundation, a role in which he focused on an in-depth knowledge of all giving tools and the benefits of active philanthropy. Darling is heavily involved in organizations throughout Nebraska communities including but not limited to the Hastings College Foundation, Nebraska Land Trust, Central High School Foundation, and is a practicing Nebraska Master Naturalist.

As the Executive Director of the nonprofit Kids Can Community Center in Omaha, Nebraska, Robert Patterson leads an organization driven to educate, engage, and inspire children through early childhood care and out of school experiences. Patterson is active with a number of community groups and initiatives and his commitment to community has been recognized with numerous awards. Over a decade ago, Patterson launched a blog that has now become the website Set-Jetter.com that records his passion as an avid set-jetter.

Inducted into the Nebraska Music Hall of Fame in 2019, Dereck Higgins is a self taught music creator and a multi-instrumentalist, primarily known as a bass player. His award winning experience ranges from classic rock to reggae to punk to jazz to electronic to improvisation, and more. In his craft, he is dedicated to the moment of music making, listening to allow the music to speak. Some bands, past and present, that Higgins has performed with include: David Nance Mowed Sound, Digital Sex, Son Ambulance, RAF, Hotlines, InDreama, Chemicals, Norman & The Rockwells, Icky Blossoms, and many others. Higgins’ creativity extends to visual art, which he exhibits, and a deep involvement in the vinyl community that finds expression on his YouTube channel. With over 28,000 subscribers and nearly 6 million video views, Higgins shares his appreciation for music and for vinyl records drawing on his 10,000 strong record collection.

This week’s program contains discussion of attempts at suicide. If you or someone you know is struggling with thoughts of suicide help is available by connecting with the 988 suicide and crisis lifeline.

Twyla Hansen was born and raised in northeast Nebraska on the farm her grandparents had purchased as immigrants from Denmark in the late 1880s. Hansen served as Nebraska’s State Poet for the term 2013-2018. Her newest book of poetry, Rock • Tree • Bird won the 2018 Willa Literary Award and the 2018 Nebraska Book Award for Poetry. She is the author of six other award-winning books of poetry and her writing has been published widely in numerous periodicals and anthologies.

Jay Leighter is an Associate Professor of Communication Studies and Director of the Sustainability Studies Program at Creighton University. He teaches courses on communication research and the intersection of culture and communication in everyday life. His research questions how culture influences communication and how people make decisions about the community in which they live. He also teaches a course in sustainability which is modeled after Jesuit teaching practices and discernment. Most recently, Jay is working with colleagues from Creighton University to develop a socio-ecological model of the Sandhills by combining ethnographic interviews of ranchers and ranching families with ecological data. Jay and his family are also trying to coax the land they live on to resemble a restored prairie.

Scott Jones grew up in a small town in Oklahoma knowing since the age of five that he wanted to be a preacher. Then at age 29, he came out as a gay man while serving as a youth minister at a Baptist church in Texas, a story that you can read in his book - Open: A Memoir of Faith, Family, and Sexuality. Since 2010 Jones has served as the Senior Minister of Omaha’s First Central Congregational Church. Jones earned a Ph.D. in philosophy from the University of Oklahoma and has taught as a lecturer in the Philosophy Department of Creighton University. Jones enjoys many activities and experiences, but the most joyful is being the father to a wonderfully precocious seven year old son.

Edem is a 12 times Omaha Entertainment and Arts Award nominee, a 2018 OEAA winner for Best Soul, and a 2020 and 2021 Winner for Outstanding World Music. Playing over 12 instruments including the harp, ukulele, guitar and various forms of African percussion, Edem sings in English as well as in her native tongue ‘Ga’ originating from the Ga Tribe of Ghana, West Africa. Utilizing her gifts, and philosophy of life, Edem curates performances based in the realm of sound, and how it can affect the human spirit. 

Jacob is returning to the show as a guest: our previous conversation took place during season two of Lives just as the pandemic was accelerating in March 2020 (that podcast is available on this website). Jacob is a graduate of The Bioethics Program at Union Graduate College – Mt. Sinai School of Medicine. He has contributed to the medical ethics field in Vermont, Colorado, and at Creighton University’s Center for Health Policy and Ethics, and is a part of the first cohort of nationally credentialed bioethicists through the American Society for Bioethics and Humanities.

Since joining the museum in 2012, Campbell has curated several major exhibitions, including 30 Americans, Word/Play: Prints, Photographs, and Paintings by Ed Ruscha, and Sheila Hicks: Material Voices. She oversees Joslyn’s collection of postwar and contemporary art and is the principal curator for the Karen and Doug Riley Contemporary Artists Project (CAP) Gallery, the first space in the museum’s history dedicated specifically to living artists.

Todd Simon is a 5th Generation owner of the Omaha Steaks group of companies, currently serving as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Omaha Steaks. Simon joined Omaha Steaks more than 30 years ago after graduating from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania. Omaha Steaks and the Simon family have a strong commitment to community leadership and philanthropy, and Todd Simon has been involved in shaping his family’s leadership in supporting the arts as well as social and human services agencies and programs. In 2017, he was the recipient of the Humanities Nebraska Sower Award which is presented annually to an individual who has made a significant contribution to public understanding of the arts and humanities in Nebraska. Along with his wife, Betiana, Todd Simon was named a 2013 Humanitarian of the Year by Inclusive Communities.

Stable Gray was founded in 2015 by north Omaha natives, CharDale Barnes and Theardis “Teddy" Young to help small businesses build strong brands at affordable prices. After developing his creative skills early in life, Barnes went on to study and work in the fields of finance and technology. Young similarly developed his creativity early on before earning his MBA and teaching himself an array of design and content creation skills.

This show, one of a year-long series, is supported in part by The Greater Omaha Chamber of Commerce.

Ashley Kuhn has spent a significant amount of time in the real estate development world while helping to start one of the now largest real estate development companies in Omaha. As Executive Vice President of White Lotus Group for 15 years, Kuhn led over $450M in development and construction. In 2018, with the full support of White Lotus Group, Kuhn stepped away to cofound Blair Freeman.

Observing the differing conditions of real estate in her North Omaha Neighborhood Kuhn went on to earn her degree at the University of Nebraska at Lincoln and at Omaha, majoring in real estate and land use economics and investment finance. As well as Blair Freeman, Kuhn is active in the community, with business, cultural, and female empowerment organizations and otherwise loves her time with her family.

Chanda Chacón has devoted her career to pediatric health care, focused on the patients receiving care and the people and organizations providing it. Prior to joining Children’s, Chacon had progressive leadership positions at Arkansas Children’s Hospital and before that at Texas Children’s Hospital. Chacón earned undergraduate degrees in Biology and Spanish from Vanderbilt University and a Master’s Degree in Public Health Management from Yale University. She is a Fellow in the American College of Health Care Executives. Her community engagement includes serving as a board member for Project Harmony, as a member of the American Hospital Association Committee for Maternal and Child Health, a member of the Greater Omaha Chamber Board of Directors, and speaking at leadership events about the power of leadership. 

This show is supported, in part, by funding from the Greater Omaha Chamber of Commerce.

Jay has worked in the non-profit/philanthropic sector for the last ten years, with previous roles at Partnership 4 Kids, United Way of the Midlands, and Mutual of Omaha. With her childhood friend, Ashlei Spivey, Jay co-founded I Be Black Girl and leads the groups’ giving circle, IBBGives. As a highly engaged community advocate, Jay has served on numerous nonprofit boards and been honored with several community awards. As well as being an old-school R&B aficionado, Jay’s greatest joy is her family. 

In June 2022 Dr. Jonathan Benjamin-Alvarado begins his new role as senior advisor to the chancellor and as the chief inclusion officer at Texas Christian University. He was formerly assistant vice chancellor of student success at the University of Nebraska Omaha. Benjamin-Alvarado is also the former president of the Latino Caucus in Political Science of the American Political Science Association. He additionally served as the director for the University of Nebraska Omaha's Office of Latino and Latin American Studies. Benjamin-Alvarado earned his bachelor's and master's degrees from Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey and his doctorate in political science from the University of Georgia.

Billy Estes has been part of the Friends of the Midwest Theater team for 21 years starting as a technician and projectionist until he became Executive Director in 2013. Since then, he has managed three capital campaigns and is now in the middle of a major Marquee restoration project due to be completed Fall of 2022. These major projects total $1.4 million in work and fundraising. During COVID-19 Billy was responsible for pivoting the organization, offering a free pop-up outdoor screening. This has led to the opening of a permanent drive-in theater, The SkyView. When Billy is not at the theater he enjoys spending time on the tractor tending to crops on his organic farm near Bayard, NE with his partner Jonathan. They grow hay, corn and over 80 types of pumpkins and squash offered via a u-pick pumpkin patch in the Fall.

Dr. Li is the first woman of color to serve as UNO's chancellor and the first Asian-American in the history of the University of Nebraska System to hold an executive leadership role. Originally from Hong Kong, Dr. Li is a first-generation college student, earning bachelor’s and doctoral degrees in finance from Florida State University and is a Chartered Financial Analyst. Dr. Li most recently served as dean of the College of Business at Florida International University, the nation’s fourth-largest public university, and served at other universities prior to that. She brings to UNO 15 years of progressive leadership experience in higher education, with a demonstrated record in improving student outcomes, growing enrollment and programs, enhancing diversity and inclusion, fundraising, and building community partnerships. 

This show, one of a year-long series, is supported in part by The Greater Omaha Chamber of Commerce.

Tony is the Director of Business Development for the AIM Institute. Although known for his past accomplishments in the sports arena, having experienced success at the highest levels, he loves to use his platform, experience, and talents to encourage the next generation to be successful in life beyond the areas of athletics. 

Lindsey Anne Baker is a copy editor for The Atlantic, where she works on web features, poetry published online and in print, podcast copy, promotional materials, social-media copy, exclusive newsletters, and more. She also assists in soliciting and selecting poetry for publication online. Prior to her role at The Atlantic, Lindsey served as editor-in-chief of Quest Magazine, the nationally distributed flagship print publication of the Muscular Dystrophy Association. Lindsey earned a bachelor’s degree in news-editorial journalism from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln in 2004 and has written and edited for numerous local and national publications. In 2015, she received an Individual Artist Fellowship in Literature from the Nebraska Arts Council. Her most recent collection of poetry, titled This Is Bad, was published in 2019 by Gibraltar Editions, which publishes contemporary poetry in handmade limited letterpress editions.

Keith Station's role is to develop and lead a strategic plan for Diversity & Inclusion in city government. Keith was previously Director of Business Relations at Heartland Workforce Solutions and led the YMCA of Greater Omaha. He earned his degree in Business Administration at the University of Nebraska and his Masters in Management at Indiana University-Bloomington. He lives in Omaha with his family.

Nina Sodji first immigrated to America in 1994 with a business visa, hailing from Togo, a west Africa nation. She began her career as a nurse who had a growing passion for cooking. Nina ran with her heart, opened an African grocery market in Omaha in 2004, and later added a restaurant and was successful until the 2008 Great Recession. She went on to achieve a culinary degree from Metropolitan Community College, and a bachelor’s in business management from Bellevue University. It was at MCC Nina that noticed the foods she grew up enjoying in Togo were derived from lots of cultures: French, Spanish, German, Indian and neighboring African countries. The flavors she grew up loving were a result of her country's complicated history of colonialization, invasion, and political unrest. But the flavors were magical together and sparked her curiosity in experimenting with her favorite Togolese dishes. Nina’s restaurant, Okra African Grill, is her vision to bring these dishes to life in Omaha. An homage to all African cultures and the transcontinental history that have influenced Togolese foods, her cuisine tells a complex story.

This show, one of a year-long series, is supported in part by The Greater Omaha Chamber of Commerce.

An active member of the Hispanic and broader community, Itzel has played a key role in the growth of the annual Cinco de Mayo Omaha festivities. She is a recent graduate of the Non-Profit Leadership Institute and Leadership Omaha and is currently participating in the inaugural class of Opportunity Corps 2022, a professional development and entrepreneurship mentorship program for Women in STEAM through the UNeTech Institute and Bio Nebraska.

Whether as a marketer, fund developer, advocate or consultant, Marjorie Maas has helped initiatives and organizations in the Omaha metro area and across Nebraska for nearly 20 years. Roles have included Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Nebraska’s director of corporate social responsibility, development officer for College Possible Omaha and director of Nebraskans for the Arts. She is a 2010 Ten Outstanding Young Omahan winner and a graduate of both Leadership Omaha (Class 32), Leadership Nebraska (Class XI) and Nonprofit Executive Institute (Class 14). Marjorie was appointed to the ServeNebraska State Commission in 2017, now serves as the commission’s chairperson, is a past president for Omaha Network, and served Hear Nebraska as a board member and board secretary. She earned her B.A. in Art History with a business emphasis from Truman State University with fundraising training from the University of Indiana. Marjorie loves cooking at her home, where she and her husband raise their son and daughter.

Casey Putney is the Vice President of Leadership Development for the Business Ethics Alliance, which seeks to build leadership, strengthen organizations, and elevate Greater Omaha by catalyzing an environment where the discussion and practice of ethics is encouraged and expected in the local community. Casey is a John Maxwell certified leadership speaker, coach, and trainer with a master’s degree in Organizational Leadership from Bellevue University, a certification in Business Ethics from Duke University, as well as certifications in Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, Safety, and Lean Six Sigma.

Casey’s career in the United States Air Force helped him understand the implications of high-pressure expectations and relentless deadlines, having held a Top-Secret security clearance serving as director of personnel within the “Nightwatch” program, working within the National Airborne Operations Center supporting the Joint Chiefs of Staff and the Secretary of Defense.

Casey has also served as an Organization Development Manager with public and private organizations and, for over 20 years, has focused on the study and application of training and development, and leadership principles.

As well as leading Heartland Family Service’s remarkable growth over the last decade, John serves on several nonprofit and community boards, including the Leadership Council for HueSpring, a leadership development program tailored to LGBTQIA+ early career professionals, and the U.S. - Ukraine Foundation Board of Advisors. Under John’s leadership, the 146-year-old Heartland Family Service agency has grown tremendously, with operating revenue up by 140 percent, program growth of 77 percent and several large capital projects recently completed, including the $32 million North Omaha Intergenerational Campus, a collaborative effort of Heartland Family Service and Holy Name Housing Corporation. This growth has enabled Heartland Family Service to support 80,000 people annually from 19 locations in east central Nebraska and southwest Iowa.

Passionate about helping leaders transform their company culture, Israel Greene has been listed as one of the “Top Ten Trending DE&I Training Experts” by All American Entertainment. In addition to being the founder of Greene Consulting Group, he is also a Senior Consultant with Envisioning Equity and a contributing member to “A World Without Suicide.”

Esther was born into a large, close-knit family, to parents who emigrated to Nebraska from Mexico. She has served on several boards to fulfill her commitment to her community and to honor her family’s tradition of service. After ten years as an entrepreneur, Esther remains focused on her passion – helping community-driven organizations to connect with their clients. Esther’s leadership efforts focus on organizations that serve immigrants, women, girls and LGBTQIA+ as communities she identifies with most, serving where she knows she can represent others like her and ensure that the voices of diverse populations are heard. 

Prior to Proven Ventures, Nathan’s many endeavors included cofounding MindMixer, a civic engagement startup that quickly scaled from 0 customers to nearly 1,000 in just two years, eventually employing more than 75 employees across the midwest. With Erica Wassinger, a prior guest on this show (see podcast from March 13, 2019), Nathan also cofounded The Startup Collaborative, an entrepreneurship catalyst. A San Francisco expat, Creighton University and University of Nebraska graduate, and now midwest community leader, Nathan is a fixture on the startup scene.

Sharon has published work in “As You Were: Volume II, a publication of Military Experience and the Arts” and another of her works, “Into the Unknown,” was read in performance by Alfre Woodard at the 2016 Gala for the Writers Guild Initiative of America East in New York City. Her most recent work was published in “From Warriors to Warrior Writers” in 2020. Sharon will be wrapping up her memoir at the Key West Literary Seminar with the assistance of Bich Minh Nguyen in January 2022.

Dr. Khan’s professional career has focused on health security, global health, and emerging infectious diseases. He was a disease detective at CDC – the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention – and one of the main architects of CDC’s public health bioterrorism preparedness program. As Dean of the UNMC College of Public Health, his focus is on health system and community based health transformations. In 2015 he supported response activities for the West Africa Ebola outbreak in Sierra Leone as a World Health Organization (WHO) consultant. Dr. Khan is the author of The Next Pandemic: On the Front Lines Against Humankind’s Gravest Dangers.Disease detective at CDC.

This program is supported, in part, by the Greater Omaha Chamber of Commerce. Learn more at omahachamber.org

Born and raised in a small town in rural Nebraska, Naomi moved with family to Omaha and since then has taken her own family to live in places like India and Singapore. Her life experiences have catalyzed Naomi's passion about community building and empowering others to thrive, not just survive, in the places they call home. She ran recently for City Council in Omaha, with a bid to represent District 6, the central section of West Omaha. Her next venture continues her work in affordable housing, this time on a larger scale, that will impact all of Greater Omaha with development, policy and advocacy, and a strong focus on ending homelessness.

Kearns oversees a continuum of services that includes 215 private rooms across five levels of care, 400 employees, and $100 million worth of facilities on a 65-acre campus in Omaha, NE. She and QLI’s talented team have re-created the way rehabilitation is delivered to individuals with neurologic injury. Additionally, QLI has been recognized as a Best Place to Work in Omaha seven times, and the Best Place to Work for the Advancement of Women.  

Avid listeners to this show will recall that on June 14, 2017 Lives broadcast a conversation with Joey Bierman and Jon Schuetz, both clients served by QLI. You can listen back to the podcast of that show to hear them talk about their traumatic spine injuries, life before and after being wheelchair bound, and their courage, resilience, humor and wisdom.

This show is supported in part by the Greater Omaha Chamber of Commerce.

Ashlei works professionally and personally to create just and equitable communities as a community organizer, philanthropist, and activist. Her current philanthropy professional role is as a program officer with the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation (noting that the views in this show are Ashlei Spivey's and not the Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation). Ashlei is also the cofounder of a high-quality fast food outlet, Best Burger, and the founder of the supportive community endeavor, I Be Black Girl and Young Black & Influential. Noting her efforts, Ashlei was nominated as a 2020 Black to the Future Public Policy institute fellow. 

Before joining The Women’s Fund of Omaha, Jo worked with the Coalition for a Strong Nebraska (CSN) helping citizens participate more fully in the public policy advocacy process. She is also an award-winning media relations professional and journalist with experience at the agency Emspace+Lovgren, the University of Nebraska Medical Center public relations department, and as a television reporter/anchor for Omaha’s KPTM Fox 42 News. Jo has a master’s degree in journalism from the University of Missouri-Columbia, a bachelor’s degree in psychology and African American studies from Washington University in St. Louis, and a certificate in public health from the University of Nebraska Medical Center. Jo enjoys community service and is the current board president for the Omaha Public Library Foundation and serves on the Boards of Fontanelle Forest and the Friends of KIOS, a board on which show host, Stuart Chittenden, also serves. She also is a founding board member of the Nebraska Journalism Trust which will soon launch a statewide, independent digital news outlet called, Flatwater Free Press.

Rachelle has given more than 80 presentations about the amazing town of Buxton and has now turned her attention to sharing with corporations the lessons that we can learn today from Buxton. Rachelle recently launched a nonprofit, Uniting Through History, to promote unity by furthering knowledge of and acceptance of the fact that Black history is American history through immersive experiences enabling people to connect with history. Uniting Through History recently wrapped up on their first annual Hip History Contest, in which middle school and high school students used their artistic creativity to bring the story of Buxton to life for a chance to win nearly $6,000 in prizes. Rachelle is a former senior business analyst for Fortune 500 companies, a model, published romance author, and podcaster.

Emily Andersen is a co-founding principal of DeOld Andersen Architecture, an architecture and design partnership based in Omaha, Nebraska. Emily is also a guest lecturer at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln where she has taught both fundamentals courses as well as upper-level undergraduate studios for the last nine years. Emily grew up in Nebraska but her practice has been informed by experience gained while working in New York City as an Associate Architect at Slade Architecture.

Geoff DeOld is a co-founding principal of DeOld Andersen Architecture, and is a graduate of the University of Nebraska-Lincoln College of Architecture. Prior to starting DAA in 2010 in Brooklyn, New York, Geoff was an Associate Principle at New York firm STUDIOS architecture, where he learned the practice of architecture working on headquarters for Bloomberg LP, Grey Advertising, and IAC.

DeOld Andersen Architecture’s interests lie in the design of buildings and spaces that always consider the public sphere.

Her project Beauty in Transition partnered with 18 transitional housing agencies in New York, Colorado, and Pennsylvania to establish a hair salon on wheels serving homeless populations. Elements of this project currently form part of the exhibition “All Together, Amongst Many: Reflections on Empathy” at the Bemis Center for Contemporary Art. Choreographing Care, a project supporting care workers in anti-poverty support, started as a socially engaged art project and was adopted into an emergency shelter in Charlotte, North Carolina as an organizational initiative.

In 2014, she was the winner of a prestigious fellowship award for socially engaged art from A Blade of Grass in NYC. Her work has been honored with grant support from the New York Council for the Humanities, Brooklyn Arts Council, and the Rema Hort Mann Foundation. Her work has been exhibited internationally and featured in press such as The Atlantic, Hyperallergic, and MSNBC.

Among Night Fox's projects are the Sundance hit "Z for Zachariah" starring Chiwetel Ejiofor, Chris Pine and Margot Robbie; "Wildling" starring Bel Powley and Liv Tyler; and the CIA thriller "Against the Clock" starring Andy Garcia, Dianna Agron and Justin Bartha. In the summer of 2019 Night Fox started shooting the mystery thriller film "Stoker Hills" in Los Angeles starring horror legend Tony Todd. The film is currently being acquired by a major distributor for a release soon. Tim has several film and television projects in development including “12” which is the story of Tamir Rice, the 12-year-old African-American boy killed by a Cleveland police officer in 2014 and the TV project "Good Japanese Girls."

• Her own burnout story and how that motivated her transition to her current focus on well-being at Deloitte and beyond
• What is happening now in the world of well-being at work, not least as US businesses and communities begin emerging from the pandemic. Jen talks about the disconnect between management's degree of expectations and that of the workforce, as well as reflecting on how the current “great resignation” is not just about money, but about people wanting to be treated as human beings
• Key well-being themes from her book, including how relationships are an essential element to our professional and personal well-being
• How being a cancer survivor shaped her well-being practices

A well-established figure in philanthropic endeavors, Reding's past positions including Executive Director of Children’s Scholarship Fund of Omaha, President of the Joslyn Art Museum Foundation, Director of Development for Lauritzen Gardens, and Vice President for Institutional Advancement at College of Saint Mary. 

Her work is in the permanent collection of the City of New York, the Museum of Modern Art, the Brooklyn Museum and the MIT List Visual Art Center among other collections. Weist’s public artworks include Public Record (2020, New York City), View-Through (2017, Miami) and Reach (2015, Queens). Her work has recently been exhibited at the Queens Museum, New York; the Hong-Gah Museum, Taiwan; The Luminary, St. Louis; The Shed, New York; nGbK, Berlin; Kunstinstituut Melly, Rotterdam; the Gwangju Biennale and many other venues. She is the recipient of a Camargo Foundation Fellowship, a Jerome Foundation Fellowship, the Net-based Audience Prize from Haus Der Elektronischen Künste Basel and grants from the New York State Council on the Arts and the NYC Department of Cultural Affairs. In 2019 she was named Public Artist in Residence for New York City’s Department of Records and Information Services.

This show, one of a year-long series, is supported in part by The Greater Omaha Chamber of Commerce.

Kathie Klarreich is the author of “Madame Dread: A Tale of Love, Vodou, and Civil Strife in Haiti” and a contributor to two anthologies: “So Spoke the Earth” and “Women, Writing, and Prison.” In 2010 she received a Knight International Journalism Fellowship to train journalists in investigative reporting in Haiti, where she spent half of the last 24 years reporting for print, radio and television, including Time, The New York Times, ABC, and NPR. Kathie started facilitating writing workshops in the correctional system in 2009 and began the writing exchanges with academic institutions in 2013. She founded Exchange for Change, a nonprofit that teaches writing in prisons and youth residential centers in 2014. 

P. Scott Cunningham is a poet and essayist and the author of Ya Te Veo selected by Billy Collins for the Miller Williams Poetry Series. His writing has appeared in numerous journals and reviews as have his translations of Alejandra Pizarnik, César Vallejo, and Frank Báez. Scott is the founder and director of O, Miami, a non-profit organization that celebrates Miami, FL through the lens of poetry, and the co-founder & executive editor of Jai-Alai Books, a regional publishing imprint. A featured speaker at forums including The Aspen Institute, TedX, and more, Scott has been named one of "20 Under 40 Emerging South Florida Leaders" by The Miami Herald and one of 51 “brilliant urbanites who are helping to build the cities of America's future" by Fast Company.

Together, Scott and Kathie host the Florida Prison Poet Laureate initiative. The current laureate is Christopher Malec and the prior poet laureate was Eduardo Martinez.

Note: All opinions expressed in the show are Eric’s own and not those of the organizations he works with.

This show, one of a year-long series, is supported in part by The Greater Omaha Chamber of Commerce.

• The centuries of wisdom and folk knowledge around plants and how modern science and business has minimized that 
• How herbalism is a practice for Andrea, not just intellectual pursuit
• The alchemy behind Andrea’s creation of her tea blends, such as Einstein and Oracle
• The excruciating leap from academia to entrepreneur, including mentoring and modeling from other female entrepreneurs and lessons learned
• Tea sourcing and the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on plants, such as echinacea and elderberry

Her writing has been published in Bitch Magazine, Hyperallergic and Artslant, among others. Her artwork has been published and exhibited in the US and UK. The recipient of two Nebraska Book Awards for illustrating books, Sally edits Les Femmes Folles, a blog supporting women in art, and serves as Curator for West Virginia University. 

When not reading books or writing about reading at the Rose City Reader, or adventuring into book discussions online, Gilion Dumas practices law representing adults who were sexually abused or exploited as kids by trusted adults, usually church, school, or Boy Scout leaders. We speak about her work and its impact, as well as her love for books and reading.