Hey Amarillo

A conversation with Manny De Los Santos, the pastor of Power Church and organizer of the Barrio Bash on July 14, an outdoor community event in the historic neighborhood east of downtown Amarillo. With host Jason Boyett, Manny discusses his path from entrepreneurship into pastoring, as well as his unexpected decision to stop trying to grow his church and focus instead on serving his neighborhood. This episode is sponsored by the Amarillo Economic Development Corporation.

A conversation with John Hintz, an IT professional and prominent leader and activist in Amarillo's gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender community. For years he represented the Panhandle on the board of Equality Texas. June is LGBT Pride Month, so John and host Jason Boyett discuss the local LGBT community and John's experiences—both positive and negative—living as an openly gay man in a conservative place like Amarillo. This episode is sponsored by the Amarillo Economic Development Corporation.

A conversation with Stacy Sanning, a senior project manager at Golden Spread Electric Cooperative. Stacy works in a field that's typically dominated by men. For that reason, she's passionate about getting young girls interested in STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) careers. We discuss her arrival in Amarillo as an 8th grader, the differences between Golden Spread and Xcel Energy, and why Stacy recently has been thinking so much about helium. This episode is sponsored by the Amarillo Economic Development Corporation.

A conversation with Steve Kersh, the chief meteorologist at ABC7. It's a big understatement to say the weather is always on the mind of locals. Panhandle people are obsessed with it. So with this being severe weather season, host Jason Boyett sits down with Steve to discuss how he got into the business, what he does on a daily basis, and how much his job reporting the weather on TV has changed during the last few decades. This episode is sponsored by ROI Online and Xcel Energy.

A conversation with Tony Ensor, President and General Manager of Amarillo Professional Baseball. Last week, the team's management unveiled the five finalist names (Boot Scooters, Bronc Busters, Long Haulers, Jerky and Sod Poodles) to widespread public consternation. Thousands signed a petition demanding new finalists. In this episode, he and host Jason Boyett discuss minor league naming conventions, why the team name is important, and whether the petition means anything. Jason asks him directly: Are these finalists set in stone? This episode is sponsored by ROI Online and Xcel Energy.

A conversation with Matthew Garner, PhD, a scientist and entrepreneur/CEO who manages New York businesses and microbiology labs from his home base of Amarillo. Matt is also trying to build, in his words, "a microbiology company of epic proportions" to serve the ag industry in Amarillo. He and host Jason Boyett discuss Matt's background and career, why he works remotely from Amarillo, and why he believes this area could become a technology haven. This episode is sponsored by ROI Online.

A conversation with Eric Miller, the communications director for the Amarillo Convention & Visitor Council. Eric is as pro-Amarillo as anyone in the city—because promoting the city is literally his job. He spends his days working with writers, travelers and other groups to promote Amarillo as a tourism destination. In other words, he's a salesman, and the product he's selling is Amarillo. He and host Jason Boyett talk about how Eric ended up here in the 1990s, what he actually does, and how his job has changed over the past 20 years. This episode is sponsored by ROI Online.

A conversation with Linda Hughes, a former Globe-News Woman of the Year and a pioneer of local children's theater. Linda was a professional ice skater who performed all over the U.S. in the 1960s before returning home to Amarillo, after which she helped launch children's theater programs at ALT and then Amarillo College. On the eve of her retirement, Linda tells host Jason Boyett about sharing the stage with Ann B. Davis ("Alice" on The Brady Bunch), teaching two generations of local performers, and why Amarillo is such a haven for the arts. This episode is sponsored by ROI Online.

A conversation with Dyron Howell, the founder of Snack Pak 4 Kids. A Clarendon native who had been living and working in the Metroplex, Dyron returned to this area in 2010. He started feeding hungry kids almost immediately. Today SP4K serves more than 10,000 children every year. Dyron tells host Jason Boyett the mostly unknown story of how his organization began, and how Dyron managed its growth while working full-time in the pharmaceutical industry. This episode is sponsored by ROI Online and Xcel Energy.

A conversation with Jake McWhorter, the lead arborist for Arborlogical Inc. Jake is a long-time outdoorsman and the only International Society of Arboriculture (ISA) Board Certified Master Arborist in the region. A university-educated tree expert, Jake grew up in Amarillo—a place with very few trees. (While outsiders lament our lack of trees, locals learn to cherish every tree.) With host Jason Boyett, Jake talks about Amarillo's "urban forest" and the optimism it takes to plant, and care for, trees in this region. This episode is sponsored by ROI Online and Xcel Energy.