Women Making History

Author Kristine Ochu - Campfire Confessions

Celebrate International Friendship Day with this "From the Vault" episode of Big Blend Radio that features Kristine Ochu, author of "Campfire Confessions" (2022). The story focuses on three childhood best friends - Annie, Sondra, and Jo – who reunite for on an adventure that is equal parts hilarious, dangerous, and enlightening. Of course, when best friends get together….those deep secrets find a way of coming out...KRISTINE OCHU is founder of “The Night of a Woman’s Soul – Creating Your Amazing Life” workshops and is a former Human Resource Executive with a MAIR from the University of Minnesota. She is a member of the Global Women’s Club, Women in Film and Video New England, Harvard Square Script Writers, and community groups. A former log-rolling champion, she still log-rolls along with being an avid hiker, kayaker and explorer. Having previously written screenplays and a children’s book, Kristine incorporates her love of nature and adventure into all her stories. She lives with her husband and their rescue golden retrievers, and splits her time between Hayward, Wisconsin and Amelia Island, Florida. More at: https://www.kristineochu.com/ 

Deena Metzger - Award-winning Author, Poet, Essayist

With today being National Rain Day and Eco Monday, we're revisiting our Big Blend Radio interview with award-winning author, poet, and essayist Deena Metgzer who discusses her novel “A Rain of Night Birds” (2017) which has been called "a momentous and needed confrontation between indigenous knowledge and the modern scientific mind." Deena Metzger is a radical thinker on behalf of the natural world and planetary survival, a teacher of writing and healing practices for 50 years, and a writer and activist profoundly concerned with peacemaking, restoration, and sanctuary for a beleaguered world. More: https://deenametzger.net/ 

Nancy Lawson - The Humane Gardener

With today being World Nature Conservation Day, we're revisiting this Big Blend Radio interview with Nancy Lawson, author of “The Humane Gardener: Nurturing a Backyard Habitat for Wildlife." In this eloquent plea for compassion and respect for all species, journalist and gardener Nancy Lawson describes why and how to welcome wildlife to our backyards.Nancy is also the founder of Humane Gardener, an outreach initiative dedicated to cultivating compassion for all creatures great and small through animal-friendly, environmentally sensitive landscaping methods.  She speaks frequently to local and national audiences and volunteers as a master naturalist and master gardener in central Maryland. After an early career in newspaper journalism, she worked for more than 15 years as an editor and publisher at The Humane Society of the United States, leading the creative teams behind the organization’s award-winning print and digital magazines. More at https://www.humanegardener.com/ 

Sabina Palermo - Growing Houseplants and Happiness

With today being "Take Your Houseplant For a Walk Day" we thought we'd revisit this episode of Big Blend Radio with Sabina Palermo, author of "Hi Cacti: Growing Happiness & Houseplants."  Note: We don't think she walks her houseplants though, unless it's to a more suitable location in her home!
Plant care is self-care. As we all know, spending time with nature reduces stress, anxiety and depression while boosting your immune system, reducing blood pressure, aiding sleep and improving concentration.  "Hi Cacti" shares how to say hello to 20 easy-to-love houseplants, and goodbye to life’s stresses as you learn to mindfully care for your plants, and yourself. This book is perfect for budding beginners or green goddesses alike & rooted in a journey of self-awareness. Learn through mindful moments of watering, nurturing & simply appreciating plants how to grow alongside your own leafy buddies. More:  https://blendradioandtv.com/listing/sabine-palermo-hi-cacti/ 

Photographer Olivia Grey Pritchard

With todaay being National Dog Photographer Day, we're revisiting our Big Blend Radio conversation with award-winning photographer Olivia Grey Pritchard, who discusses her photography and beautiful and heartwarming coffee table book, “MUTTS: A Celebration of Mystery Mixed Breeds.” MUTTS aims to inspire joy and connection when readers look through these photographs. And for people who haven’t considered adopting a rescue pet before, this book shows that mutts have just as many unique, lovable, and desirable qualities as pedigreed dogs.Pritchard’s mission with this book is to call attention to the heartbreaking fact that according to the ASPCA, over half a million dogs are euthanized in US shelters each year, and to encourage more rescue adoptions. In addition to fostering more love for mutts, a portion of the proceeds from the book are being donated to organizations that rescue and spay/neuter, including Take Paws Rescue, Animal Rescue New Orleans, Zeus’ Place, Greta’s Ark Animal Rescue, Trampled Rose Rescue, and the LASPCA.After five years as a United Nations photographer working in combat zones, Olivia moved to New Orleans in 2012 and began serving families with her unique perspective of the visual legacy we want to create for our children (with fur and without!). Through her work behind the camera and creating her archival-quality artwork that families cherish for generations, Olivia preserves both the milestone and the everyday memories.Olivia has owned mutts her whole life—from a border collie mix named Spike that her mom found as a puppy trying to get milk out of a carton and a husky mix named Wylie who met the school bus every afternoon, to the most loyal hound / shepherd mix named Chester who loved to sun himself in a certain spot in the front yard. So it’s no surprise that as an adult, she has a 120 pound St. Bernard / retriever / shepherd rescue named Jasper—the most patient, protective, devoted dog ever.
 More: https://www.oliviagreypritchard.com/ 

Chef and Author Cathy A. Lewis

Today is National Culinarians Day that annually honors cooks and chefs. So, we're revisiting our Big Blend Radio chat from 2022 with Cathy A. Lewis. Hear about her incredible culinary career, but mostly about her novel “The Road We Took: Four Days in Germany 1933,” a gut-wrenching debut from a curious daughter who unlocks a time-capsule and inspires readers to “never forget.”  "The Road We Took" is a historical fiction novel that looks into Hitler’s deadly plans nine years before the start of World War II and the Holocaust. Lewis came up with the idea in 2018, after rediscovering a small, tattered suitcase belonging to her deceased father featuring his daily journal and mementos from his six-week trek in 1933 through Europe with his Boy Scout Troop on their way to the 4th World Scout Jamboree held in Godollo, Hungary. Check out the full story about "The Road We Took" on BlendRadioandTV.com.
Now, what about her culinary career? Cathy has spent over 40 years as a professional chef after graduating from the Culinary Institute of America in New York. She was the first female Executive Chef for the Servico Corporation, where she served The Philadelphia Eagles, The Philadelphia Flyers and The Philadelphia 76’ers. Over the course of her career, Cathy capitalized her creative talents as a restaurant owner and partner, conceptualizing and creating brands for three successful startup businesses, Food Works, in Pittsford, New York, The Bagel Bin in Penfield, New York, and The Nick of Thyme in Brentwood, Tennessee. It was at the Nick of Thyme that Cathy developed long standing relationships within the music industry. Her clients included Donna Summer Sudano, Naomi Judd, Wynonna Judd, numerous Christian and country music artists, world-renowned wine collectors Billy Ray Hearn and Tom Black. After the sale of her business, Cathy cooked for and traveled extensively to movie locations with actress and activist Ashley Judd and her husband, three-time Indy 500 champion Dario Franchitti.  She continues to cook privately for exclusive clients and friends. Learn more about Cathy (she has a second book in the works) here: https://www.cathyalewis.com.

Pioneering Women of the Past and Present

Celebrate National Pioneer Day with today's episode of Big Blend Radio's "Women Making History" Podcast that focuses on Pioneering Women of the Past & Present.
FEATURED GUESTS- GLYNN BURROWS, historian and owner of Norfolk Tours UK talks about social reformer Octavia Hill. Read his article about her: https://tinyurl.com/mr2chjv7 - LINDA BALLOU, travel writer and author, talks about equestrian explorer Isabella Bird, the inspiration behind her novel, "Embrace of the Wild." More:  http://www.lindaballouauthor.com/ - KIMBERLY HESS, genealogist and author, talks about philanthropist Sarah B. Cochran "The Coal Queen," the subject of her biography, "A Lesser Mortal" which is available on Amazon: https://tinyurl.com/43a5hsfa - SHARON K. KURTZ, travel writer and photographer, talks about Alaskan frontier woman Fannie Quigley. Sharon wrote about her in "History Magazine." Read her story here: https://tinyurl.com/mrxb7shd - KATHLEEN WALLS, travel writer and author, talks about country singer Patsy Cline, who she wrote about in her book, "American Music: Born in the USA - A History of American Music," which is available on Amazon: https://tinyurl.com/44znn8ut- ELAINE MASTERS, travel writer and author, talks about renaissance woman Eileen Gregory who created a sustainable luxury getaway that showcases art, local wines, and more in Guadalupe Valley, in Baja California, Mexico. Read Elaine's story about her visit here: https://tinyurl.com/yccanc4h- JO CLARK, travel writer and photographer, talks about ranchers and restaurateurs Carla George and Connie Hale, The Buffalo Gals of the Blue Ridge Mountains. Read her story on them: https://tinyurl.com/3wf4jn6u - JOHNNY SCHAEFER, composer and vocalist, spotlights Teresa Tudury, an acclaimed singer-songwriter, comedienne, and host of the radio show "Live From the Doublewide." Learn more about her at https://teresatudury.com/ and keep up with Johnny at https://hearjohnny.com/ 
Big Blend Radio's "Women Making History" Podcast airs daily, with new panel discussions every 4th Wednesday. Follow the show here: https://women-making-history.podbean.com/ 

Healing Neen - One Woman's Path to Salvation from Trauma and Addiction

In observance of National Women Touched by Addiction Day (July 23), we are revisiting our Big Blend Radio interview Tonier Cain, a recovered crack addict turned nationally recognized inspirational speaker and trauma care expert, who discusses mental health care and substance abuse treatment. During her 19-year crack addiction, Tonier Cain racked up 83 arrests and 66 convictions. She turned to prostitution to pay for drugs, lost custody of four children, and, when she wasn’t locked up, she slept under a bridge. Cain is the subject of the poignant memoir, "Healing Neen," and feature-length documentary of the same name, which exposes her traumatic childhood filled with abuse, rape and neglect, and is also a testament to her amazing resilience.  More at https://www.toniercain.com/about-tonier-cain/