KOIN PODCAST NETWORK

Jim Todd is the Director of Space Science Education at the Oregon Museum of Science & Industry. Born with a severe hearing impairment, he tells Ian Costello how the Apollo 11 Mission gave him the inspiration to follow his dreams and the confidence to hear.

This week, Jenny sits down New York Times best-selling author Amy Stewart. She has written about everything from plants, to the fictional Kopp Sisters series. Those books, based on the true story of crime fighting rambunctious sisters, are in development with Amazon Studios. She says while her plant-themed books haven't been adapted for TV, there are a few bars around the world named after "The Drunken Botanist", which is even better.

Summer has arrived and folks are itching to get outside. Meteorologist Kelley Bayern chats with backpacking expert, Stephen Korpi of the Mountain Shop in Portland, about the outdoor essentials, the latest trends in ultra-light backpacking, and technical umbrellas.

Ken Boddie sits down with Lisa Mann and Lara Price to talk about their very different histories, the influential role music plays in their lives and why they are looking forward to this year's Waterfront Blues Festival.

Oregon Music Hall-of-Famer Norman Sylvester Returns to the Waterfront Blues Festival and he's bringing some friends with him. Legendary back-porch blues star Shiela Wilcoxson, soulful vocalist (and Norman's daughter) Lenanne Miller and horn players Renato Caranto and Peter Moss are just some of the big names who will hit the stage with Sylvester. Ken Boddie sits down with one of the godfathers of the Portland Blues scene to talk about his connection to the Waterfront Blues Festival, the artists who influenced him and the special tributes on tap for the performers we lost this year.

Saeeda Wright has been seen on stages backing Prince, as a member of his New Power Generation, the Pacific Northwest’s own Liv Warfield and is featured with the Tim Snider Trio. She is very well known and respected for her work as a soloist with the Oregon Symphony and has been a regular participant in Portland’s Waterfront Blues Festival. This is Saeeda’s long overdue debut at the festival as a band-leader in her own right.

Referred to as the “First Daughter of Funk and R&B” as well as the “Rip City Soul Funk Diva,” Arietta Ward, aka “Mz. Etta” is an artistic force to be reckoned with. Raised in Portland, Arietta is the daughter of Northwest music royalty, the late pianist Janice Marie Scroggins. Ken Boddie sits down with Ward to talk about her connection to Portland and why she is so excited to take the stage at the Waterfront Blues Festival this year.

Novelist Dana Haynes travels to the other end of the globe to research his novels that are set in the international crime world. Jenny Hansson talks to the native Pacific Northwest writer about getting a book published at 20 years old, managing a newspaper and those three interesting years when he served as spokesman for the mayor of Portland, before being asked to resign.

Meteorologists Kelley Bayern and Steve Pierce take a look at the summer to come. They talk about Junes getting warmer, fire smoke, the effects of El Nino, rain in July and whether or not in for more record-breaking heat this year.

April Henry kills people, but only on paper. The New York Times bestselling author of 23 mysteries and thrillers for teens and adults has a new novel coming out this summer. She talks to Jenny Hansson about growing up poor in a small Oregon community, her brush with a famous author when she was a child and the insane lengths she goes to, to research the crimes she writes about.