Troy University is restoring and upgrading its seventy-five acre Arboretum, to bring outdoor opportunities to students and the public.  Professor Alvin Diamond, Arboretum Director, talks with Carolyn Hutcheson, In Focus host, about the work that is underway, with help from a grant and university and community volunteers. The Arboretum is an important educational facility and a showcase for the Wiregrass ecosystem of southeast Alabama.

Freelance writer and editor Jennifer Kornegay talks with In Focus host Carolyn Hutcheson about a unique restaurant in Brewton, AL, that serves Southern food without menu prices.  The nonprofit Drexell & Honeybees was profiled by Jennifer for The Bitter Southerner, an online publication and new podcast.  Her story will be the lead story.

Journalist Jim Auchmutey comes from a long line of pitmasters.  He talks with In Focus host Carolyn Hutcheson about how barbecue is intertwined with politics.   His book is "Smoke Lore: A Short History of Barbecue in America."

On The Exchange from In Focus, economist Judson Edwards, Dean of the Troy University Sorrell College of Business, talks with host Carolyn Hutcheson about  the decline of Alabama's textile industry.  The decline parallels the decline of local wrestling, a popular sport with mill workers.  His podcast, The Double Dome, explores the topic further in "The Business of Wrestling" episode.

Summertime is when children head to camp, so Linda Gibson-Young, Chair of the Alabama Asthma Coalition, talks with Carolyn Hutcheson, In Focus host, about asthma and asthma camps. The cost of attending camp is covered by sponsors.

Dr. Karen Landers, a Board-certified pediatrician with 45 years of experience, is the new Chief Medical Officer for the Alabama Department of Public Health. She discusses with Carolyn Hutcheson, In Focus host, the authorization for Covid-19 vaccinations for young children. She also talks about Covid complications in children and long-Covid in adults. The high temperatures Alabama is currently experiencing bear watching for signs of heat illness when citizens are outdoors, according to Dr. Landers.

Dr. Karen Landers, a Board-certified pediatrician with 45 years of experience, is the new Chief Medical Officer for the Alabama Department of Public Health.  She discusses with Carolyn Hutcheson, In Focus host, the authorization for Covid-19 vaccinations for young children.  She also talks about Covid complications in children and long-Covid in adults.  The high temperatures Alabama is currently experiencing bear watching for signs of heat illness when citizens are outdoors, according to Dr. Landers.

Conditions inside Alabama prisons are being monitored by the Department of Justice, and Alabama officials are hoping to avoid a federal takeover.  Mary Scott Hodgin, health and science reporter with WBHM public radio, talks with Carolyn Hutcheson, In Focus host, about her investigation into Alabama prison conditions, resulting in a seven-episode podcast called "Deliberate Indifference: Inside Alabama's Prison Crisis."

With gun violence in the daily news, Montgomery County, Alabama, Sheriff Derrick Cunningham weighs in from his perspective as immediate past president of the Alabama Sheriffs Association.  He talks with In Focus host Carolyn Hutcheson about the proliferation of guns on the streets, especially available to young people.  His office offers several programs to citizens and a summer camp for children ages 9 to 11.

Today, in observance of Juneteenth, food historian Carolyn Quick Tillery traces the story from the 1863 Emancipation Proclamation forward through the Juneteenth writings of "Invisible Man" author Ralph Ellison.  She discusses with In Focus host Carolyn Hutcheson the meaning of red foods in historic African American recipes, and she shares the recipe for Strawberry Champagne Punch.  Her books include "The African American Heritage Cookbook" and "Southern Homecoming Traditions: Recipes and Remembrances."