The American Tributaries podcast will explore the various currents of people in the United States of America, like a modern-day Lewis & Clark journey, talking with...learning from...and being amazed by...people of all stripes from all places doing all sorts of things. Although a broad mission, the podcast will focus on a particular and very important niche: cultivating hope in – and celebration of – America. Host Michael Whidden (Brooklyn, NY), in this origin episode, expands upon these themes and discusses his background, which includes service in the U.S. Navy, time as a corporate lawyer and years in wholesale wine sales.