In the second part of our series on how to master our financial destinies, David goes into further detail about compound interest, dividends and avoiding risk. He says investing in dividend-paying companies is the best way that people can get their money to multiply.

David Hawkins had a desire to do something that would benefit people he didn’t even know, and that was his motivation for writing Ask the Mailman: A Simple Plan of High Yield Stock Investing for Uncommon Wealth. In his book, David shares what has worked for him over decades investing in the stock market. And he says anyone can benefit, from schoolchildren to retirees. 

Geography professor and world traveler John Allensworth has been an explorer since he was a curious little kid pedaling to the far corners of his neighborhood to discover what was there. Many decades later, he maintains his curiosity about places, people and other cultures. His advice for when it’s safe to travel again? See the country, see the world, and try to have a childlike curiosity about the unfamiliar!

A sneak peek at what's ahead on AtHomeRadio!

Del Leonard Jones based his book, At The Bat: The Strikeout That Shamed America, on the well-loved poem "Casey At The Bat." Here, the former reporter for USA Today talks about why he began writing historical fiction and what drew him to the tale of the mighty batter who struck out. Goodreads named At The Bat one of the 10 best baseball novels of all time.

Artist Ben Small describes himself on Facebook as a "Graphic Artist, Cat Owner and Bloviating Plutocrat." While the first two descriptions are certainly accurate, Ben is not a bloviator at all. Instead, he's an engaging conversationalist who is passionate about art, which he's been creating somewhat incessantly since he was 3.

A side note from AtHomeRadio's Kate Jones: I know his graphic design talents firsthand. We were working together at Northern Ohio Live in 2005, the year it was named Best Magazine in Ohio for the first time in its then 25-year history. Ben designed everything in that magazine, from the front and back covers to all the interior pages. And he was fabulous to work with.

I'm also a big fan of the art that Ben does for fun — his drawings of fantastical flying machines as well as the softer dreamscapes reminiscent of the Edwardian period in the early 1900s.

Please visit his websites to see his works for yourself. And if you happen to own an art gallery and want to put on a show of marvelous works featuring movement, swirls and Fibonacci spirals, Ben is the guy to call. There are links in all the chapters, including a couple to Ben's Red Bubble page, which features wearable art and other "colorful, weird stuff." His words, not Kate's. Enjoy!

Berenice Kleiman's latest book, Widowhood 101: Next Steps, is based on her own experience as a new widow after her husband, Herb, passed away in April 2020. She wrote much of the manuscript in the first three months after his death. That’s a remarkable achievement in the midst of grief, plus she faced unexpected challenges — despite having prepared in what she thought were all the proper ways. She wrote this handbook, available on Amazon in paperback and on Kindle, to help others navigate the difficulties of profound loss.

Artist Meaghan Milner Reed aims to create work that makes a person feel alive and hopeful — art that allows the mind to wonder and play. And she succeeds. Her colorful, three-dimensional flowers are definitely hopeful, playful and very smile producing. 

Meaghan holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts and a Master of Fine Arts from Kent State University. She started out weaving on a loom, and credits her KSU professors for encouraging her to follow her true path. Ever since, she's created 3-D pieces out of acrylics, wood, found objects and other materials that brighten the home and lift the spirit. Her art is in private collections in Ohio, North Carolina and Montreal, Canada.

You can hear Meaghan talk about art, life and nature from her studio, located not far from the beautiful Cuyahoga Valley National Park, which inspires so much of her art.