On Track

AMPED is a Louisville non-profit that uses music and technology to empower young people. In November, they opened a new Tech and Learning Center in the city’s West End. Dave Christopher, Senior is AMPED’s president and founder. He joins us to discuss how the new building, at 17th Street and West Market, will help the organization carry out its mission to serve the community.

Louisville continues to face significant challenges around homelessness, with increasing demand for services across the city. One of the organizations responding is Volunteers of America Mid-States. It’s developing a new Community Care Campus through a public-private partnership with Louisville Metro Government, with the goal of helping address some of the factors that keep people cycling in and out of homelessness.LPM’s Ayisha Jaffer sat down with VOA President and CEO Jennifer Hancock to talk about the campus and its potential role in Louisville’s homelessness response.

The Russell Community Land Trust leases land to residents for them to own affordable homes in their community

The countdown to the Winter Olympics is on, and one of the sports that tends to turn heads is curling. It’s the one that involves sliding stones and vigorous ice sweeping. And there’s a curling club right here in Louisville. Derby City Curling Club has painted its ice and started the new season, getting the arena ready for anyone who wants to try it.LPM’s Ayisha Jaffer spoke with club president Joe Sorg about the club’s work and plans for the season.

In late November, Dr. Kelly McCants, a prominent Louisville heart doctor and health equity advocate, died at the age of 50. Russ Cox, CEO of Norton Healthcare, joins us today to discuss McCants’ work addressing healthcare disparities and how his legacy will continue.

It’s the holiday season, a time when we hear a lot about warmth, charity, and joy. If you’re good, maybe Saint Nick will bring you something from your wish list. But there’s also something darker that lives in the shadow of the season for anyone who misbehaves. It’s a half-goat, half-demon creature known as Krampus.LPM’s Ayisha Jaffer speaks with Steve Vessell, the founder of the Louisville Krampus Celebration, about the roots of Krampus and how Louisville has turned this darker holiday icon into a celebration blending art, music, costumes.

Louisville Free Public Library’s new executive director, Heather Lowe, shares her journey into this new role, her hopes for the library, and a few cozy reading recommendations for the winter season.

As Kentucky faces rising need for pet care and support, the leader of the Kentucky Humane Society discusses how a new service center could reshape care for pets and families.

As the Festival of Faiths highlights its theme of “Sacred Belonging,” Berea College professor and bell hooks center founder M. Shadee Malaklou reflects on hooks’ legacy and the practice of radical inclusion.

Americana Community Center has served Louisville’s refugee and immigrant communities for over 30 years. Last month, the nonprofit hired Ricky Santiago to be its new executive director.Santiago talks with LPM about the financial challenges Americana has weathered, his hopes for future sustainability, and the resurgence he believes the organization is making.