Amy Longtin is an IT professional leader, that invests in leadership of young women in technology and a positive role model for young women in her community. Amy is the Founder and CEO of Tech4Kids, a non-profit designed to repurpose used laptops, Ipads, and MacBooks that are donated to children that do not have access to technology in their home. She is also a Senior Systems Administrator Lead at Tharaldson Hospitality Management.

Amy is the current Mrs. North Dakota America, 2020, and is committed to inspire, empower, and give opportunity to women of all ages to help build self-confidence, invoke inspiration, and help mold young girls into becoming strong independent women. Amy and her husband Mark, live in Horace, ND and have two beautiful girls Brooke and Alayna.

Amy is a powerhouse of a woman full of drive, passion, and kindness. Even though I struggled capturing great audio for our episode, I couldn't pass up sharing Amy's great wisdom and advice. Grab your headphones to listen in and hear more about Amy journey representing North Dakota in the Mrs. America pageant on March 19-27 in Las Vegas.

 S2:E9 // March 2, 2021

Teri Winkelman is a community leader whose empathy, compassion, and kindness for others is inspiring and deeply humbling. Teri works for Bushel as a Talent Acquisition Specialist where she creates strategy around building future pipelines of talent for the organization as well as assisting with implementation around new strategy around employee engagement and positive company culture. 

A graduate from North Dakota State University, she spent time traveling various parts of the world before settling back down in Fargo and has visited 14 countries and lived on three different continents. 

She has worked in several roles in human resources such as recruitment, training and workforce development; and sits on various committees and boards in the Fargo-Moorhead area regarding workforce initiatives, employee engagement and company culture. She is currently the President Elect for NDSU's Communication Advisory Board and a graduate of the United Way 35 Under 35 program. Shifting goals, the impact of community, and career growth are at the forefront in this conversation. 

"To experience a culture different than your own is extremely rewarding! How are we to understand and appreciate others from various backgrounds if we aren't willing to understand their culture?  I learn something new from each trip that makes me a more empathetic and understanding person." - Teri Winkelman

To connect with Teri:

• Email: [email protected]
• LinkedIn: Teri’s Profile 
• Website: Bushel

 S2:E8 // February 16, 2021

Nyamal Dei is a fearless community leader, activist, and visionary. Nyamal is the founder of Kondial Kel International, formerly known as South Sudan READS, a nonprofit focused on improving lives through education and community outreach efforts. Nyamal envisions a world whether everyone has the opportunity to learn and be empowered, especially in her hometown of South Sudan, where illiteracy affects 71 percent of women and girls. 

 Nyamal’s journey of fleeing war, escaping to a refugee camp, coming to the United States as a young child unable to speak English, to now earning her master’s degree at Benedictine University, is an inspiring and heart wrenching story of resilience, strength, and determination. It is women like Nyamal who truly make our community and world a better place. 

 S2:E7 // January 28, 2021

“I may not have the whole world in my hand, but the small thing that I have as long as I can share it and make someone else smile, that’s okay with me.” - Nyamal Dei

To connect with Nyamal:

Email: [email protected]

LinkedIn: Nyamal’s Profile

Facebook: 

• Kondial Kel International
• International Women’s Day Fargo-Moorhead

Karli Moch is the Director of Business Development with Bio Girls, an impressive nonprofit organization spanning across the Midwest whose focus is building self-worth in girls. She is also the founder of Create Your Crew, a blog where Karli shares her personal experiences with motherhood, relationships, career, and health to provide an inclusive and welcoming space for others. Karli’s journey has taken her on several life altering and life-threatening circumstances, one being diagnosed with ulcerative colitis, an autoimmune disease that affects the lower digestive tract. We discuss the need for community, the strength of persevering in the worst of moments, the importance of mentors, and life pivots. Here is one honest conversation from one momma to another.  

 S2:E6 // January 12, 2021

“Make your voice heard, be authentic, be vulnerable, and be a shameless truth teller. You just might change someone’s life.” - Karli Moch

To connect with Karli:

Email: [email protected]

LinkedIn: Karli’s Profile

Website:

• BIO Girls
• Create Your Crew

Facebook: 

• @BIOGirlsInc
• @createyourcrew

Instagram: 

• @biogirlsinc
• @karlimoch

Coffee in one hand, confidence in the other. 

Christy Dauer and Kayla Mediger are the Strong Women, Strong Coffee duo brought to the Fargo-Moorhead area community by the North Dakota Women’s Business Center (NDWBC). Christy and Kayla’s passions are focused on empowering women in their entrepreneurial journey along with giving their time and talents to local nonprofits, including Furniture Mission. Life changes, shifting goals, and taking risks are on the docket for this conversation with these two powerhouse women. 

 S2:E5 // December 29, 2020

"Go after that goal, take the risk, do something you love. Your whole life will change when you find and do something you are passionate about!" - Kayla Mediger

"I would tell you quit doing that negative self-talk and go after it, because you can." - Christy Dauer

To connect with Christy and Kayla:

LinkedIn:

• Kayla’s Profile
• Christy’s Profile

Email: 

• Kayla’s Email: [email protected]
• Christy’s Email: [email protected]

Website: www.ndwbc.com

Facebook: @ndwbc

Instagram: @ndwbc

Tim Eissinger is the Chief Executive Officer for the Anne Carlsen Center, serving over 4,000 individuals and leading an organization of 700 team members  across North Dakota and western Minnesota.

Tim is a life-long North Dakotan and has over 35 years in the non-profit sector, where prior to Anne Carlsen he worked in the adolescent residential treatment field.  He is known as a servant leader, a trust builder, and a leader with a talent for approaching problems from multiple points of view.

Tim resides in Fargo with his wife, Becky, and has two grown daughters. In his limited spare time, he likes to build his own computers and has produced computer graphics and animations which have aired on networks such as the History Channel, Discovery Health and PBS.

S2:E4 // December 15, 2020

Alissa Leedahl is one of those women whose calming presence immediately puts you at ease.  The kind of woman who walks into relationships with an intentionality to encourage and lift those up around her. 

Alissa is a labor and delivery nurse at Sanford Health. She also serves as a ministry leader and volunteer with Northview Church, and is mom to three children under the age of five:  Jay, Harper, and Jones. 

In our conversation, Alissa shares the moment where she knew she had to make a pivotal change in her life, to the honest feelings we women may experience of trying to measure up to the high expectations we set on ourselves, to small and impactful ways we can be intentional with our relationships during this challenging season. 

Alissa’s thoughtfulness, honesty, and wisdom will leave you inspired to take a breath, a pause, and see the beauty around you.

“My eyes were really opened to the importance of sharing your life with others, making others feel loved, and accepting people where they are at. At the end of your life, what really matters? ” — Alissa Leedahl

 S2:E3 // November 24, 2020

Continuing the Uncharted theme for Season 2, Tajae Viaene, the Chief Flight Instructor at the Fargo Jet Center, shares her journey on the podcast. 

With more than 3,000 flight hours and an Airline Transport Pilot Certificate earned, she chooses to focus her energy on teaching our next generation of pilots and flight instructors. Tajae frequently publishes flight training articles, speaks at safety seminars, and spends her free time soaring the air in her very own Cessna 180 taildragger aircraft.

"If you can find a job where your passion lies, and where you find contentment in inspiring others...you'll never work a day in your life." - Tajae Viaene

To connect with Tajae: 

Email: [email protected]

Facebook: @fargojetcenter

Twitter: @fargojetcenter

Instagram: @fargojetcenter

Website: www.fargojet.com

Laken Samis was so much fun to connect with. Her smile, laugh, and kind demeanor immediately puts you at ease and makes you want to get to know her more. She is mom to Greyson, a real estate agent, and the Operations Director for You Betcha, a Midwest entertainment channel media company taking the internet by storm with their hilarious videos, media content, and You Betcha Radio of what it’s like living in the Midwest. 

We connected on personal and professional pivots, who she finds her inspiration in, how she works through her anxiety being in a very public position, and words of advice for someone who is thinking about trying something new. 

In typical You Betcha fashion, you’re going to laugh at how our conversation starts (hint: it involves donuts) and leave inspired by this incredible and authentic woman.

"Be you, don't worry about other people's perception of you." - Laken Samis

To connect with Laken: 

Instagram: @lakenoperationsgal

Website: www.ohhyoubetcha.com

There are so many things to admire about Karla Rose Hanson. She is the founder and owner of KRH Communications, is a legislator in the North Dakota State House of Representatives, mom of two boys, smart, community-focused, and driven. 

Karla Rose Hanson worked at Microsoft and Great Plains Software for 13 years in various communications and marketing roles before starting her own corporate communications business. She co-founded two grassroots public policy advocacy groups and serves on the Fargo Theatre board. Karla is also the Assistant Minority Leader for the North Dakota State House of Representatives and has provided leadership on issues such as paid family leave, suicide prevention, veterans advocacy, and criminal justice reform. 

Karla’s goals every day are to be open-minded, accessible, and to find common ground. 

To connect with Karla: 

Website: KarlaRoseHanson.com

LinkedIn: Karla’s Profile

Facebook: @karlarosehanson44

Twitter: @karlarosehanson

Email: [email protected] (legislative related)

Email: [email protected] (campaign related)