Bridging Chicago

Though Jessica Mlinaric isn't a Chicago native, her love for the city led her to writing books on Chicago that will help even natives learn more about our history. Reaching many different neighborhoods and landmarks, Jessica's book, Secret Chicago, will uncover some of the weird, wonderful and obscure locations that make Chicago truly unique. Her adventurous spirit and infectious energy makes her an amazing tour guide and author, painting a picture most of us never imagined. Her next book, Chicago Scavenger, is a treasure map that will take a deeper dive into the city and is now available for pre-order. You won't want to miss this adventurous episode!

For those debating about starting a small business, Stella Medina is here to say forget the fear and take a leap of faith—it just may be the best decision you can make! As the owner and founder of CardioBlast, a local fitness center devoted to providing fun and energetic workouts that fortify the body and the mind, Stella turned her dreams of providing lifestyle coaching into a reality as a successful side hustle. Stella shares how Zumba® helped her reverse her prior health problems and gave her the motivation to build a stronger, more energized, and centered version of herself. Now she’s calling everyone to the dance floor to see how movement can positively impact your wellness journey. Get in the groove with Stella on this week’s episode!

You can connect with Stella at https://www.stellascardioblast.net/.

Medical student Dan Bergholz saw firsthand the gaps in health care available to un-housed individuals and decided to bring house calls streetside. Dan joins the podcast to share his journey from growing up in the Chicago suburbs to entering the street medicine movement to build Miami Street Medicine, a program with the goal of improving his community’s access to medical care. Tune in to hear how these doctors are filing the gaps to provide accessible care for their neighbors and put Miami on the mend. It’s just what the doctor ordered!

Let’s get physical! As a matriarch, personal trainer, nutrition coach, and best selling author, Donna Fatigato knows what it’s like to be on the move. On this episode, Donna describes her journey to become a leader in mindfulness education and her passion for helping others lead a lifestyle that incorporates self-love through nutrition and movement. Through her beloved children’s book characters, Bucky and Daisy, she’s even found the secret to helping kids develop healthy habits (and eat their vegetables) too!

From a career in the NFL as a professional athlete, to starting his own company in the creative arts, Kyle Prater is no stranger to big goals. In fact, Kyle is the embodiment of agility—exemplifying the notion that being multi-faceted is not a detriment to success, but rather, a key ingredient. Now the CEO of Chasing Greatness Productions, Kyle has directed and produced some amazing works since discovering his passion. In this episode, Kyle shares how he has made his passions the centerpiece of his different careers by creating high expectations for himself, adding the elbow grease, and leading with authenticity, vulnerability and intensity. It’s clear that Kyle’s drive motivates film-making that tells a compelling story and speaks to culture.

In this episode of the podcast, we finish our conversation with Alida Miranda-Wolff, who has dedicated her work to helping organizations consider diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging in everything they do. Alida has been a very open and honest guest and that has allowed us to learn about her story and inspired us to create change in our lives. Alida's book, Cultures of Belonging is due to be released February 2022, will continue these lessons and help you integrate DEI & B practices in ways that work and create real change. Thank you Alida for your time and inspired thoughts.

In this episode, we continue our conversation with Alida Miranda-Wolff talking about empathy in the work place and how it's changed in recent times. Alida shares about why it's okay to consider emotions and giving yourself grace to live out your true emotional self. We also discuss fairness and it's impact on marginalized groups, and what impact that has on justice. Be sure to subscribe so you don't miss the final part of the conversation next week.

As the Founder and CEO of Ethos, an organization dedicated to closing the gap for underrepresented and underserved groups in organizations, Alida Miranda-Wolff brings her past experiences into her work with the hope of creating transformation--and that is just the tip of the ice berg with Alida. In this episode, Alida shares about multiculturalism and how Chicago changed the ways she saw herself. Though it is difficult, leaning into her trauma has taught Alida lessons in belonging and empathy, influencing how she lives and works today. This is the first part of a multiple part episode that will teach us all about identity and our impact on the world.

We're so excited to start of season 5 of the podcast with a bang: our friends at The Eisenberg Foundation to share about what the organization is up to and the upcoming Real Bright Summit 2022! Eisenberg is an organization dedicated to GI cancer research and real estate education, especially for those communities often under-represented. Cassandra Murff, an associate board member on the foundation joins us to share about why she was so excited to partner with Eisenberg and what she hopes for the future. Visit eisenbergfoudation.org to learn more about their mission and the Summit starting January 31, 2022.

As we wrap up Season 4 of the podcast, we wish you and yours a happy and safe holiday season. Thank you to our listeners; you inspire us to continue to tell the stories of Chicago leaders working towards change. Thank you to our guests for being so vulnerable and sharing your story with us. Thank you for your partnership and for inviting us into your life. And thank you to the Bridging Chicago team. Thank you for using your talents to share stories and to highlight so much good happening in our city. We'll be taking a short break and will be back in January 2022!