Fill To Capacity (Where Heart, Grit and Irreverent Humor Collide)

Send us Fan Mail

In this episode we discover how veterans and beekeeping is a win-win combination! 3 Bee Veterans Program instructors, Ben, Jessica and Joshua talk about all things bees; from hive life, foraging, transpersonal beekeeping to Colony Collapse Disorder.

For veterans who miss a sense of community and shared purpose of military life,  the Bee Veterans Program offers beekeeping training, shared camaraderie in this hands-on world of honeybees!  

Ben Ziegler, former USAF,  works with the U of MN Spivak Honeybee Lab, the Bee Squad, and Bee Veterans Program.  Jessica Helgen manages colonies and collects hive data for the U of MN Bee Squad Bee Network Program. She is coordinator and primary instructor for the Mentoring Apiary workshops. Joshua Munoz, former USMC, is an Agricultural Teacher at Como Park Senior High School, instructor for U of MN Bee Veterans Program and ambassador for the Minnesota Honey Producers Assoc.

QUOTES

JESSICA: “I still remember the first time they opened a hive for me and there were bees flying all around and I could smell the honey and the wax coming out of the colony. And it was just really magical.”

JOSHUA: “...there's this rhythm into beekeeping. And I think having an open mind... and being willing to learn about something that people have been working with for so long... Be humble when you work with... honeybees.”

BEN:  “....a honeybee colony...have like a two mile radius around their hive that they'll forage from... If you have a, say a suburban hive, that's a lot of blacktop, that's a lot of roofs, that's a lot of just Kentucky bluegrass lawn that they can't use. If we are wanting to make a difference on a personal level here, I think a lot of people would really need to add... flowering plants to their yard.”

LINKS

University of Minnesota Bee Lab

University of Minnesota Bee Veterans Program

University of Minnesota Spivak Lab

Rebecca Masterman, University of Minnesota, 2018 President's Award for Outstanding Service

Marla Spivak, University of Minnesota, Dept. of Entomology

Heroes To Hives Program (Heroes to Hives’ National Director Dr. Adam Ingrao)

Bee Wise farms, LLC (lacey Ann Ingrao, M.A. Transpersonal Psychology

Transpersonal Psychology

Today's episode is brought to you by the Joan of Arc Scroll Medal, a beautiful brass alloy medal, designed by award-winning artist, Pat Benincasa. This uniquely shaped medal is ideal for holiday or as a special occasion gift!    Visit www.patbenincasa-art.com

Please Note: The views expressed by our guests do not necessarily reflect the views of the podcaster.

Follow me on Instagram!

Send us Fan Mail

FTC in-btwns are quick (under 5 min) insights at the intersection of art and life! Watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gRBxI9a4_64&t=19s 

Please Note: The views expressed by our guests do not necessarily reflect the views of the podcaster.

Follow me on Instagram!

Send us Fan Mail

In this revealing and insightful episode, Damon Maloney takes us behind the scenes in his work as a broadcast journalist. Damon discusses the personal impact of the Flint Water Crisis and how that tragedy affected so many. He’ll also discuss how being a reporter, news anchor and producer has strengthened his belief in the power of journalism to touch lives and affect change.

At the heart of his investigative reporting is a passion for truth, respect for the many  people in the newsroom behind each story, and his abiding belief that “journalism is a people  business.”

Damon Maloney is an Emmy award-winning journalist who has covered national and regional news stories including Flint water crisis, devastating tornado to high-profile murder trial.

QUOTES:

DAMON: “So it took more work, I would say, on behalf of journalists, but also the people of Flint. They were determined to get somebody in to listen...with credence.”

DAMON:  “I thoroughly enjoy just getting out and meeting people... in their environment, figuring out what their story is, and sharing that with others. You encounter so much tragedy. Yeah. But on the flip side, you also meet so many inspiring people.”

DAMON: “And you have to respect people when they don't wanna talk to you....I've had many doors slammed in my face...and from some very interesting situations! But you always have to conduct yourself as a professional. Now that doesn't mean that you're not aggressive or competitive, or you ask those tough follow up questions, but you do so with dignity, with professionalism and respect.”

LINKS:

https://www.damonmaloney.com

ThreeSixty Alumni Spotlight: Damon Maloney: A local reporter covering the Flint water crisis, Lucas Johnson, September 2018

Marc A. Edwards, Charles Lunsford Professor, University Distinguished Professor @ Virginia Tech

Virginia Tech's Marc Edwards testifies on contaminated drinking water in Flint, Michigan 

Flint water activist LeeAnne Walters wins environmental prize,Detroit Free Press, Associated Press, April 23, 2018Without These Whistleblowers, We May Never Have Known the Full Extent of the Flint Water Crisis, Smithsonian Magazine, John McQuaid, December 2016

National Association of Black Journalists 

Today's episode is brought to you by the Joan of Arc Scroll Medal, a beautiful brass alloy medal, designed by award-winning artist, Pat Benincasa. This uniquely shaped medal is ideal for holiday or as a special occasion gift!    Visit www.patbenincasa-art.com

Please Note: The views expressed by our guests do not necessarily reflect the views of the podcaster.

Follow me on Instagram!

Send us Fan Mail

FTC in-btwns are quick (under 5 min) insights at the intersection of art and life! Watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wFy1jMmTV10

Please Note: The views expressed by our guests do not necessarily reflect the views of the podcaster.

Follow me on Instagram!

Send us Fan Mail

In this powerful episode, Angelo Paparelli, takes us inside the US immigration system of changing laws, history, quotas, political parties, and bureaucratic turf wars. In his many years of practicing immigration law, he understands the delicate balance of working within multiple agencies, navigating laws and amendments while never losing sight of the human toll of each decision.

Angelo Paparelli is a partner at Seyfarth Shaw LLP, practicing in Southern California and New York. He is the recipient of the Edith Lowenstein Award conferred by the American Immigration Lawyers Association. He is an expert witness/consultant on immigration to law firms, businesses and individuals. His blog, “A Nation of Immigrators,” affects public policy and has a world-wide audience.

QUOTES

ANGELO:  “It's helping people who were fleeing persecution from their home country. And boy, putting together an affidavit that describes someone's life-threatening fears is far more meaningful than drafting a contract.”

ANGELO:  “... I think we've forgotten our history and we don't really make the connection... I mean, the founder of Intel was an immigrant, the founder of Apple computers was an immigrant. He was the son of a refugee... and I believe at least one of the two founders of Google was an immigrant. So you just name these companies and you see the tremendous wealth creation that there has been, but you don't see that. It doesn't register. And why it doesn't register is a kind of selective perception, cultural or historic amnesia.”

ANGELO:  “I believe that American exceptionalism, if that term is still to be used, derives from the constant replenishment of human capital, human ideas that come from elsewhere, where people who will do anything to sacrifice for their children's betterment and work and contribute in ways that they push it to the level of human capacity...”

LINKS

Angelo A. Paparelli, Vialto Partners

Nation of Immigrators Blog Gumption, Resilence, Courage: Immigration attorney Angelo Paparelli finds inspiration in clients, Wayne State University Law School, August 27, 2018 

https://law.wayne.edu/news/gumption-resilience-courage-33878

AILA Presents Angelo A. Paparelli with the 2010 Edith Lowenstein Memorial Award 

Today's episode is brought to you by the Joan of Arc Scroll Medal, a beautiful brass alloy medal, designed by award-winning artist, Pat Benincasa. This uniquely shaped medal is ideal for holiday or as a special occasion gift!    Visit www.patbenincasa-art.com

Please Note: The views expressed by our guests do not necessarily reflect the views of the podcaster.

Follow me on Instagram!

Send us Fan Mail

Doubt and creativity are never far apart, here's why! To watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xLxtiUiqmcs

Art works referenced in the podcast:

"Falling Water Skylight" for the Minnesota Judicial Center,  14’ x 30’ x 6,’ seven-ton, glass and steel skylight sculpture for the Grand Stair Hall of the Minnesota Judicial Center on State Capitol Grounds, St. Paul, MN.  ( Percent For Art Commission )

"Redemption Window" for Hill-Murray Chapel, Maplewood, MN, 14’x8’ x 6,’ glass, steel, limestone rock, 34 windows

"Republic Steel Ohio," 2016, Encaustic, wood, cement, paint on sheet metal, 25” x 20” x 4”  

"Central Furnace Cleveland," 2018, Encaustic, wood, cement on sheet metal, 59" x 21.5" x 2" 

Please Note: The views expressed by our guests do not necessarily reflect the views of the podcaster.

Follow me on Instagram!

Send us Fan Mail

In this episode, Michelle Kolling, candidly shares her story about losing her husband, months after his diagnosis and her grief journey in search of the person she would become. With wit, humor, and grace she  found her calling as an end-of-life doula.

Her firsthand, intimate connection to loss, grief and transformation gave her clarity in that she could help patients and their loved ones, make their way in an end-of-life process that is humane, compassionate, and meaningful. “Approaching the last days with intention, gives the dying person a sense of control and creates a sacred space for loved ones to enter the dying experience.”

Michelle Kolling trained with the INELDA (International End of Life Doula Association,)  and earned a Proficiency Badge from NEDA (National End of Life Doula Alliance.) She is also a member of the Minnesota Death Collaborative and Institute of Birth, Breath, and Death.  Her website is: heldoula.com.

QUOTES

MICHELLE:  “After kind of that initial shock wears off, what is really important starts to become very clear now. All the stuff that isn't that important, it's like, why was I spending time on that? So ... you're all of a sudden shifting too into a different way of being. “

MICHELLE:  “But yeah, making sure that that whole person is being seen and that that whole person is being taken care of in a way that is in alignment with their values.”

MICHELLE:  “I just think, grief is a sacred, sacred time because you are broken open. You do have an opportunity to come to a different place or build your life in a different way to be, be more real, be more authentic, see what's left. It just feels like you're never gonna be put back together again. And maybe that's okay. “

LINKS

Held Doula  

(INELDA)  International End of Life Doula Association

(NEDA) National End-of-Life Doula Alliance  

University of Vermont Professional & Continuing Education End-of-Life Doula Professional Certificate

Doulagivers

Sacred Passage: End-of-Life Doula Certification Program   

Hole in the World: Finding Hope in Rituals of Grief and Healing by Amanda Held Opelt

Today's episode is brought to you by the Joan of Arc Scroll Medal, a beautiful brass alloy medal, designed by award-winning artist, Pat Benincasa. This uniquely shaped medal is ideal for holiday or as a special occasion gift!    Visit www.patbenincasa-art.com

Please Note: The views expressed by our guests do not necessarily reflect the views of the podcaster.

Follow me on Instagram!

Send us Fan Mail

Another OH SO QUICK art/life insight about the  creative process! To watch on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iEGEdRp6_hg 

Please Note: The views expressed by our guests do not necessarily reflect the views of the podcaster.

Follow me on Instagram!

Send us Fan Mail

In this episode, Richard Whittaker, founder of works & conversations magazine, who has interviewed over 200 artists, candidly shares his and other’s experiences and insights about the struggle, mystery, and ecstatic joy of living a creative life.

The stories, quirks, twists and turns of being creative are viewed in a larger context of what it means to be authentic and present in the choices we make and the paths we follow.

Richard Whittaker is the founding editor of works & conversations and is the West Coast editor of Parabola magazine. Although he holds degrees in philosophy and clinical psychology, he has been immersed in the arts for over 50 years and works in ceramics, painting, sculpture, and photography.

QUOTES

RICHARD: “I could say the words, but in a way, I, I couldn't bring the rest of myself to my own words. And when I saw that, because I was trying to reach deep and reach high in my work, I felt it was inauthentic and not responsible and not honest if I couldn't bring my whole self to my words and stand there behind my words or under my words. “

RICHARD: "You see poetry in many forms when you see something that embodies the beauty of wholeness and grace and your heart is touched. That's ... poetry."

RICHARD:  “I don't care if I call myself an artist or not...What's important is this experience. And if I make things that are art...it doesn't matter so much. But I had a decision to make, and I made this decision that I would try to give myself a hundred percent to this creative side of myself that I had never explicitly decreed to be my path.”

LINKS
works&conversations.org

4 Interviews About Richard Whittaker:
A Conversation with Richard Whittaker: To see from the intelligence of the heart

by James Manteith, Tatiana Apraksina,  Apr 9, 2020 

A Conversation with Richard Whittaker: Berkeley Treasures by Robbin Henderson, Jan 22, 2018
Interview: Richard Whittaker: Talking with Artists by Carl Cheng, May 31, 2012

War Babies: A Generation’s Stories and America’s Soul: Richard Whittaker

"Sunday Morning" by Wallace Stevens 

Who Makes Originals, Ever? A Conversation with Viola Frey by Richard Whittaker, Aug 8, 2002
The Four Noble Truths of Buddhism

Godfrey Reggio, life and works

Luis Bunel

Magic Flute: A Conversation with Marvin Sanders by Richard Whittaker, 4-2-2007

A Conversation with Lee Hoinacki: Conscience & Courage by Richard Whittaker,9- 21, 2002
A Conversation with Dickson Schneider: Free Art by Richard Whittaker, 8-12-2007

Looking for Something That's True: A Conversation with Dickson Schneider by Richard Whittaker, Jan 8, 2001
Ivan Illich
servicespace.org  

Today's episode is brought to you by the Joan of Arc Scroll Medal, a beautiful brass alloy medal, designed by award-winning artist, Pat Benincasa. This uniquely shaped medal is ideal for holiday or as a special occasion gift!    Visit www.patbenincasa-art.com

Please Note: The views expressed by our guests do not necessarily reflect the views of the podcaster.

Follow me on Instagram!

Send us Fan Mail

In this episode, Lori Arent reveals the heart of  the The Raptor Center where staff, doctors and volunteers focus their passion for raptors with ground- breaking research, rescue and rehab that affects thousands of birds! Listen to her harrowing story of battling the Avian Flu with creative quarantine methods. This is a story of dedicated innovation that impacts bird, human and environment.

Lori Arent, MS  is Assistant Director of The Raptor Center at University of Minnesota and author of “Raptors in Captivity: Guidelines for care & management."

QUOTES

LORI:  “Every single bird that comes into our clinic has a story to tell. “

LORI:  “Raptors really are such amazing sentinels for what's happening in our environment...And so if we just listen to what they’re telling us, we can actually help people too. It’s...called the One Health Concept, where environmental health, human health, and animal health are all linked together.”

LORI:  “...just like people... Every bird's a little bit different....And a lot of it is really based on their experiences. What has happened in their life before they've come to us...Everyone has had different experiences in their lives, just like people.”

LINKS

The Raptor Center, College of Veterinary Medicine at University of Minnesota   1920 Fitch Avenue, St. Paul, MN 55108, 612-624-4745  

Volunteer at The Raptor Center 

Donate to The Raptor Center  

“Raptors in Captivity: Guidelines for care & management by Lori Arent

One Health Concept

Avian Influenza (HPAI)

2022 Confirmations of Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza in Commercial and Backyard Flocks 

Fomite: is an object (such as a dish, doorknob, or article of clothing) that may be contaminated with infectious agents (such as bacteria or viruses) and serve in their transmission

Hawk Ridge Bird Observatory 

Today's episode is brought to you by the Joan of Arc Scroll Medal, a beautiful brass alloy medal, designed by award-winning artist, Pat Benincasa. This uniquely shaped medal is ideal for holiday or as a special occasion gift!    Visit www.patbenincasa-art.com

Please Note: The views expressed by our guests do not necessarily reflect the views of the podcaster.

Follow me on Instagram!