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Streets Dept founder Conrad Benner chats with us about the power of public art, how he is harnessing that power to encourage people to vote in the 2020 general election, and he reminds us of how much we love the murals and arts in Philadelphia. There are SO many great visuals that you are going to want to check out after listening to this episode. First, click here or check out the image below to see the mural Common Threads that Conrad talked about in the episode. And watch our Instagram feed this week for other To The Polls art pieces. If you want to see it all, follow Streets Dept on Instagram or check out the Streets Dept blog. And finally, if you'd like to be generous on Conrad's behalf, please give to the Philadelphia Bail Fund which is working to end cash bail in Philadelphia. 
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Rachael and Elizabeth are joined by Isaac Saul, a journalist and the founder of Tangle, an independent, ad-free, non-partisan, politics newsletter that offers both sides of the biggest news stories every day. He'll walk us through how Tangle came to be, what Isaac thinks of our shared state of Pennsylvania, and what his daily work looks like. This is a must listen (especially in this week leading up to the 2020 general election)!
When (not if!) you subscribe to Tangle's free M-T daily newsletter and until (not if!) you switch to a paid subscription to get Friday's edition you can do so at www.tangle.substack.com And if you'd like to show generosity on behalf of Isaac, we encourage you to learn about the work of Heavenly Harvst and donate to them. They are making delicious, nutritious shelf stable food "designed to bring a new level of taste and dignity to a home in need." Oh, and don't forget to VOTE! 
Rachael and Elizabeth are joined by horror film scholar and expert, Jennifer Moorman to discuss how she developed a love for horror films, how the genre is described, and how these films can actually be comforting and even a thin place when we are feeling anxious.
Jen gives us a list of horror films 101 based on what you’re in the mood for: Spooky: The Haunting Cat People (1942) Kwaidan Kuroneko Scary: Get Out The Babadook It Follows Vampires: Daughters of Darkness A Girl Walks Home Alone at Night Ganja & Hess Zombies (pandemic): 28 Days Later Night of the Living Dead Jen has a podcast of her own that you should check out - When Animals Attack And totally unrelated to horror films, you can follow Jen on Instagram as @fashionmindedprofessor. If you want to hear hear voice AND see her face, you can even see her on Eli Roth's History of Horror on AMC Learn more about Jen, the courses she teachers and her research on her Fordham University faculty page. And finally, if you'd like to be generous on Jen's behalf, she'd be honored for you to help with the continued work of dismantling of white supremacy by giving to The Movement for Black Lives.
Our technological challenges in recording our interview with Rob Bell yielded an unexpected and fortunate result - we have video of our interview! As promised, here's the video of our conversation with Rob Bell.
The audio-only of all of our other episodes are also on our YouTube Channel, so if you have any podcast-phobic friends who might find YouTube a more friendly platform, send them on over for a listen! 
The one-and-only Rob Bell joins us for a conversation about his latest book, “Everything is Spiritual”. We learn about Rob’s views on death and birth as well as what it means to be human.
One of the central questions in Everything is Spiritual is "Now What?". We hope this week’s episode brings you some clarity on "Now what?" for you. You can find out more about Rob, his books, his other creative endeavors and his podcast on his website www.robbell.com. Follow him on Instagram at @realrobbell Rob encouraged us to check out the work of The Rodale Institute and the Kiss the Ground project (and the documentary film by that same name available on Netflix) and to be generous on his behalf to these organizations pioneering and sharing the good news about Regenerative Farming. 
In this episode, we talk with Halley Kim about her service, “Birthing Your Stories”, which fills a need for women who don’t necessarily have the time to put their birth stories onto paper, but who definitely have stories to share. Halley combines her gift of writing with her passion for birth in order to share stories with a goal of bringing people together and building community. We also reflect on the importance of holding space and sharing stories of deep pain, like pregnancy and infant loss. We think you’ll find Halley to be a loving, honest, and compassionate guest who has a lot to offer our listeners and the world.
(Content Warning: We are offering this episode to honor the fact that October is Pregnancy and Infant Loss Awareness Month. This episode discusses pregnancy loss, infant loss and maternal death. ) You can find out more about Halley's ghostwriting services by visiting the Birthing Your Stories Website, and may also enjoy following Birthing Your Stories on Facebook and Instagram. You can also enjoy Halley's thoughts on faith and justice by following her on Instagram or Facebook. And while there's not a lot of recent content, there's some great classic content from years past on her personal blog - halleykim.com And finally, you can share Halley's heart for some of the most vulnerable pregnant people by helping to support the work of Jamaa Birth Village in Ferguson, Missouri.
Rachael and Elizabeth sit down with Christa Barfied of Farmer Jawn Greenhouses to talk about what inspires her to make her community a better place and, of course, what the earth can teach us about birth, death, and the thin places in between.
You should definitely give Farmer Jawn a follow on Facebook and Instagram and check out their website at www.farmerjawnphilly.com If you are local to Philly you can purchase their freshly grown produce from their Elkins Park location. And even if you're not local to Philly, can still be a part of their online classes and can purchase some 100% Organically Dope t-shirt or sweatshirts to help support the work they do! 
It's Fall! 'Tis the season for crisp air, bright leaves, pumpkins and ... surfing? Apparently it is, so we're talking about surfing with Jeremy Avellino in this bonus episode during water week of our 4 Elements Series. But we won't just be talking about surfing and how it can be a mystical and transformative thin place. We also talk about Jeremy's work as an architect, and take a wandering path that leads us through lots more provocative, challenging and inspiring topics.
You can follow Jeremy's "High Concept. Low Carbon" architecture firm Bright Common on Instagram by clicking here or check out the Bright Common website by clicking here. If our conversation with Jeremy got you feeling excited about environmental justice and better yet feeling generous, then we'd love to direct you to check out and give to Philly Thrive. 
Halcyon Floats owner Keri McGinn joins Rachael and Elizabeth for a discussion on how water can be a thin place. They ask and answer questions such as, “What even is ‘floating’?, “How did Halcyon Floats come to be?”, and “How else can we access the power of water for healing in our everyday lives?”.
You can visit hacyonfloats.com for lots more information about the benefits of floatation therapy and to subscribe to their newsletter. You can also follow along on Instagram and Facebook. Keri shared with us about her friend's non-profit organization Philly Unknown - which is “Bringing cohesion and bridging the gaps in communities one block at a time.” As Philly grows stronger as a city and continues to show signs of forward progression in some areas, there are still many areas and neighborhoods/communities that have become neglected. Most of these communities don’t have the resources available to make them better. The Philly Unknown Project intends to cultivate community cohesion and educate and advocate for those who can’t be a voice for themselves. We are a grass roots non-profit that provides hand-to-hand outreach through several methods. We provide Compassion Bags, which serve as harm reduction kits containing snacks, t-shirts, socks, hygiene supplies, and other resources to provide hope for another day. 
There are a ton of different directions we could have taken for our episode on fire, but we both agreed that an episode on campfires would be so much fun and, lucky for us, we have two campfire experts to join us! Ilyssa and Dave Kyu, authors of Campfire Stories: Tales From America's National Parks talk to us and recount their time spent traveling around the US National Parks and reveal how campfires facilitate community, preserve history, and celebrate our shared heritage.
We go through how Ilyssa and Dave came up with the idea for their book about campfires, how they went about gathering stories for the book, and what is so meaningful and powerful about sitting around a campfire. Follow Campfires Stories on Instagram by clicking here See Benn Pikyavit who was mentioned in this episode by clicking here and see Bill Carpenter who's "Fire" poem we spoke of by clicking here! For more information visit https://www.campfirestoriesbook.com.
See below for a list of the parks that Ilyssa & Dave visited, as well as their suggestions for organizations that you could give to in order to be generous on their behalf!
Park Communities Each National Park attracts its own unique ecosystem of people. Here are some of the friends groups, park advocates and allies, and community organizations we discovered in the 6 National Parks we visited make each place vibrant. Acadia Friends of Acadia Friends of Acadia members make possible essential conservation projects in Acadia National Park and the surrounding communities. www.friendsofacadia.org Mount Desert Island Historical Society Our mission is to foster meaningful engagement with the histories of Mount Desert Island. www.mdihistory.org Abbe Museum With the mission to inspire new learning about the Wabanaki Nations with every visit, the Abbe Museum offers changing exhibitions and a robust programming schedule for all ages, welcoming 30,000 visitors each year. Wabanaki people are actively engaged in all aspects of the Museum, from curatorial roles to policy making. www.abbemuseum.org Beech Hill Farm College of the Atlantic’s Beech Hill Farm is a working farm growing fresh vegetables and raising meat for COA and the wider community. Collaborative work and planning between Beech Hill Farm and the kitchen is helping COA to “close the loop,” forming a more sustainable system of food production and consumption. Beech Hill Farm operates a seasonal farm stand, offers a CSA program, and sells to local markets and restaurants. www.coa.edu/farms/beech-hill-farm/ Southwest Harbor Library To be the place where people of all ages and backgrounds come to improve literacy, explore new ideas and pursue lifelong learning interests. www.swhplibrary.org Jesup Memorial Library The Jesup Memorial Library is a community resource and gathering place. The Jesup is located in beautiful downtown Bar Harbor, less than a block from the Bar Harbor Village Green. www.jesuplibrary.org Smokies Friends of the Blue Ridge Parkway - Roanoke, VA, Chapter Roanoke Valley’s volunteers help to preserve, promote and enhance the Blue Ridge Parkway as it winds through the Plateau District of southern Virginia. www.friendsbrp.org/who-we-are/chapters/roanoke-valley-chapter-2 Friends of the Smokies Friends of Great Smoky Mountains National Park assists the National Park Service in its mission to preserve and protect Great Smoky Mountains National Park by raising funds and public awareness, and providing volunteers for needed projects. www.friendsofthesmokies.org Great Smoky Mountains Association Great Smoky Mountains Association supports the perpetual preservation of Great Smoky Mountains National Park and the national park system by promoting greater public interest and appreciation through education, interpretation, and research. www.smokiesinformation.org Museum of the Cherokee Indian Located in Cherokee, NC, the Museum of the Cherokee Indian strives to perpetuate the history, culture, & stories of the Cherokee people. www.cherokeemuseum.org Rockies Rocky Mountain Conservancy Founded in 1931, the Rocky Mountain Conservancy (formerly the Rocky Mountain Nature Association) is a nonprofit organization supporting Rocky Mountain National Park. When you support the Conservancy, you’re supporting one of our national treasures for generations to come. www.rmconservancy.org YMCA of the Rockies YMCA of the Rockies, located near the town of Estes Park and Rocky Mountain National Park, is an ideal vacation, reunion, wedding and conference destination. Come visit and be inspired by our surroundings! www.ymcarockies.org Zion Zion Natural History Association Zion Natural History Association (ZNHA) was established in 1929 to support education, research, publication and other programs for the benefit of Zion National Park, Cedar Breaks National Monument, and Pipe Spring National Monument. Bookstore sales, as well as support from members and contributors, combines to provide the parks with more than $600,000 in aid annually. www.zionpark.org Zion Canyon Field Institute The Zion Canyon Field Institute will educate and inspire local, national, and international visitors to the greater Zion National Park ecosystem and environment through intensive classes that immerse visitors in the field. www.zionpark.org/classes Yosemite Yosemite Conservancy Thanks to your support, Yosemite Conservancy provide grants to Yosemite National Park based on the highest-priority needs of the park. Your dedication has funded the restoration of the trail to Lower Yosemite Fall, electronic bear-monitoring equipment to keep bears safe, life-changing youth programs and so much more. www.yosemiteconservancy.org NatureBridge NatureBridge provides hands-on environmental science programs for children and teens. Our multi-day programs take place outdoors in the magnificence of nature’s classroom, where students are immersed in the wonder and science of our national parks in Yosemite. www.naturebridge.org Mariposa Museum & History Center Founded in 1957, the Mariposa Museum & History Center has been dubbed “The Best Little Museum of Its Size West of the Mississippi” by the Smithsonian Institution. Our museum’s mission is to authentically portray the people and lifestyle of Mariposa County from the Native American and Spanish periods to the California Gold Rush and through the early 1900s. ww.mariposamuseum.com Mariposa County Library The Mariposa County Library System is committed to supporting lifelong learning and knowledge through self-education for all the residents and visitors of Mariposa County. The Library strives to enrich the lives of all users by meeting the informational, recreational, self-educational and cultural needs of the community. www.mariposalibrary.org Yellowstone Yellowstone Forever With the launch of the nonprofit Yellowstone Forever, we are building a new model of partnership with the National Park Service, one that will engage more visitors and future stewards than ever before. The opportunities that Yellowstone Forever provides—to experience, connect, and contribute—are the first steps in a lifelong journey for people who want to preserve the park for generations to come. www.yellowstone.org Yellowstone Forever Institute The Yellowstone Forever Institute introduces thousands of students to the park’s natural wonders. Programs range from one day to three weeks in length, and highlight the park’s amazing wildlife, geothermal areas, rich history, and awe-inspiring wilderness. www.yellowstone.org/experience/yellowstone-forever-institute Yellowstone Research Library The mission of the Yellowstone Research Library is to collect published and unpublished materials related to Yellowstone and to make these materials available to park staff, researchers, and the general public. The library collection consists of more than 20,000 books, periodicals, theses and dissertations, unpublished manuscripts, microforms of historic newspapers and scrapbooks, brochures, technical reports, and audio visual material. www.nps.gov/yell/learn/historyculture/library.htm Yellowstone Gateway Museum The Yellowstone Gateway Museum of Park County’s mission is to collect, preserve, and interpret the cultural and natural history of Park County, Montana and its relationship to Yellowstone Park for the education of everyone. www.yellowstonegatewaymuseum.org |
