Shows
Where and WhyEp. 20: Brynn GrantWhen Brynn Grant grew up in Liberty County, she didn’t think much of Savannah. It was where you went to the doctors or to go to the mall to buy a new coat. Since then, wherever she goes, growth seems to follow. She had a key role in the birth of what is now the Savannah Music Festival, in JCB bringing 500 jobs to the area, and in leading the United Way through COVID. Recently, Brynn returned home to Liberty County to lead the county’s economic development efforts in a post-Hyundai Coastal Georgia...
2024-12-0945 minWhere and WhyEp. 19: Burning Man: Christi Hester and A.L. AddingtonWelcome to Where & Why, a podcast where we surface the origin stories of community leaders and influencers.Today, we brought back two guests who have something a bit unusual in common. They both have attended Burning Man - a week-long, large-scale event focused on "community, art, self-expression, and self-reliance.” It is held annually in the Nevada desert, about 100 miles from Reno.The event's name comes from its culminating ceremony: the symbolic burning of a large wooden effigy, referred to as the Man, that occurs on the Saturday evening before Labor Day.The event is...
2024-11-0844 minWhere and WhyEp. 18: Clinton Edminister, Starlandia, Cafe on Waters, former county commission candidateToday we are in conversation with Clinton Edminister, an Oregon native who ended up in Savannah via Homer, Alaska.Of course, SCAD was the draw for a pioneering videographer, but Savannah also gave Clinton the chance to become a true Renaissance man. He is an artist and art advocate, he has started two successful small businesses - Starlandia and Waters Street Cafe, was appointed to the Chatham Area Transit board, and ran, unsuccessfully, for county office.Join the conversation!
2024-10-1535 minWhere and WhyEp. 17: Peter Roberts, curator of Location GalleryToday we are in conversation with Peter Roberts, gallery manager at Location Gallery on Bull Street. It is a joint project with Austin Hill Realty to promote Savannah artists and raise money for local charities. To date, the project has donated around $300,000. Peter is a Connecticut native who 30 years ago came to Savannah for a year at SCAD. And he's still here.Join the conversation!
2024-10-0831 minWhere and WhyEp. 16: Reverend Michael White, Christ Church EpiscopalToday we are in conversation with the Rev. Michael White, the retiring rector of historic Christ Church Episcopal on Johnson Square.Michael came to Savannah in 2008 to navigate the church through some of its most turbulent times in a history that dates back to 1733. The congregation was divided by the Episcopal Church's acceptance of gay and lesbian clergy and same sex marriages. One group called themselves Anglicans and left the denomination; the other group remained Episcopal. What followed was a lawsuit over who had the rights to the historic church building, a legal and moral d...
2024-06-1651 minWhere and WhyEp. 15: Mark Murphy, doctor/authorWelcome to Where & Why, a podcast where we surface the origin stories of community leaders and influencers.Science and Writing have always competed for space in the brain of Dr. Mark Murphy.He is a noted gastroenterologist AND he writes a column for the Savannah Morning News. His first focus was on research, while his first book, Shadow Man, was a well-received thriller. He is now writing the second in a Young Adult/Fantasy trilogy.Mark is almost a native Savannahian, having met his wonderful wife Daphne met at Calvary Day...
2024-04-0539 minWhere and WhyEp. 14: Wade Herring, lawyer, community volunteer, former candidate for CongressWelcome to Where & Why, a podcast where we surface the origin stories of community leaders and influencers. Today we are in conversation with Wade Herring, whose day job is as an employment lawyer with the storied Savannah firm Hunter McClean. Wade, whose mentors included former mayor Malcom McClean, has served on and advised numerous community boards. But most people know Wade for when he stepped out from behind the curtain to run as the Democratic candidate for Georgia's First Congressional seat in 2022. He lost to incumbent Buddy Carter.Wade's story begins in Europe wh...
2024-03-1836 minWhere and WhyEp. 13: Ivy Council, HR leader, chairman of Goodwill Southeast GeorgiaWelcome to Where & Why, a podcast where we surface the origin stories of community leaders and influencers. Today our guest is Ivy Council. She is chairman of the board of Goodwill of Southeast Georgia, a member of the board of directors for the Savannah Book Festival and the YMCA.Council recently retired from CitiTrends, a Savannah-based urban clothing retailer where she spent the last 16 years as EVP Human Resources and Chief Compliance Officer. Before that she was with Wendys, Ross Stores and AraMark.She grew up in Philadelphia and went to Chatham University i...
2024-02-1439 minWhere and WhyEp. 12: Rexanna Lester, ESL teacher, editor of the Savannah Morning NewsWelcome to Where & Why, a podcast dedicated to cultivating the science of conversation.Today, our guest is Rexanna Lester. Rexanna's first job was as a tractor parts salesperson in Garber, Oklahoma. Her love of words led her to be a teacher in Germany, and her ambition led her to become the first woman editor of the Savannah Morning News. Since leaving the paper she has been an ESL teacher for SCAD, a long time board member of the Ships of the Sea Maritime Museum, and is now working on a long-awaited biography of Mills B. L...
2024-02-0740 minWhere and WhyEp. 11: Molly Taylor, ED, Ships of the Sea MuseumToday we are talking with Molly Carrott Taylor, executive director of the Hidden Gem that is Savannah's Ships of the Sea museum. Taylor came to Savannah after growing up in Kansas, spending summers in Michigan, and going to school in the Northeast. Her love of museums and art traces back to her grandmother, of whom she has vivid memories. While Covid interrupted Taylor's professional journey, she is now gathering an impressive team to boost the prospects of Ships of the Sea. Where & Why is produced by Garrett Zajac for ZipZap Media and is a project of...
2023-10-1736 minWhere and WhyEp. 10: Christi Hester, massage therapist, intimacy coachToday we are in conversation with Christi Hester, a certified massage therapist at Savannah’s Temple Day Spa. Hester comes from a family of well-known Savannah performers. Her mom and dad were Broadway actors before her father, Billy Hester, was ordained as a Methodist pastor and moved back to Savannah.Christi started off wanting to be an opera singer or a dancer, then an injury caused her to switch to pursuing organic farming. She spent time in New England and California on a 10 year search for the right mix of massage, yoga, tantra, somatic in...
2023-08-0334 minWhere and WhyEp. 9: Sydney Lance, CEO, Rhoot ManToday we’re in conversation with Sidney Lance, the founder and CEO of Rhoot Man Beverage Company.Sidney was a small town South Carolina boy who went out to see the world, first with his father the preacher and then serving in the U.S. Army.Sidney was voted the city’s best bartender before branching out on his own as a maker of mixers, known in the business as shrubs.Join the conversation!
2023-05-2932 minWhere and WhyEp. 8: Candice Nelms, creative entrepreneurWhen a hurricane washed away her acupuncture practice in the Florida Keys, Candice Nelms followed her gut, and her partner, to Savannah.It was yet another risky move that paid off for this Renaissance woman. Candice has followed “a feeling” throughout her life. She was born and raised in Texas and Florida. Became a nationally-ranked college tennis player, an oriental medicine specialist, an herbalist, as well as a sound engineer for Lily Tomlin, and a writer of screenplays. Her work, which we should start to see late this fall, will feature Savannah and some famous names...
2023-05-0934 minWhere and WhyEp. 7: Ariana Berksteiner with the Emmaus HouseToday, we are in conversation with Ariana Berksteiner, executive director of Emmaus House, which daily serves between 100 and 300 homeless people in downtown Savannah. When she moved to Savannah more than a decade ago, Berksteiner helped new restaurants get up and running. Today, she helps the city’s homeless get through each day by serving a meal, offering a shower and a place to do laundry and arranging for medical assistance. Berksteiner sees homelessness in many forms. Before the Pandemic, the city’s homeless was predominantly Male and African-American. Today, there are men, women, Black, White, Hispan...
2023-04-0437 minWhere and WhyEp. 6: A.L. Addington, business school deanToday, we are in conversation with A.L. Addington. He is former dean of the business schools at Valdosta State University. After a long and successful academic career at schools in Tennessee, Georgia, and Ohio, Addington worked with churches across Georgia matching congregations and priests. He is retired and spending time with family and God.Join the conversation!
2023-04-0429 minWhere and WhyEp. 5: Tom Kohler, former ED of Citizen AdvocacyCitizen Advocacy founder Tom Kohler talks about growing up in Savannah and witnessing how parents of special needs children came together, black and white, to keep and evolve services. To talk with Tom through Coffee and Consulting, you can email him at tkbiggerwe@gmail.com.Join the conversation!
2023-02-2836 min2023-02-0638 min2023-02-0605 minWhere and WhyEp. 3: Mae Bowley of Repurpose SavannahYou can find out more about Mae at www.repurposesavannah.orgJoin the conversation!
2023-01-1334 min2023-01-1328 minWhere and WhyEp. 2: Brittany Curry of inkyBrittany on Graphic FacilitationYou can find Brittany Curry at inkybrittany.comJoin the conversation!
2023-01-1345 min