The Blue Star Moms Organization is made up of ladies who want to support their children in the military. In this podcast I speak with April Conway. Listeners to WHO Radio might know her better as "Mrs C" who is the producer for Simon Conway on his show 4 to 7 pm on WHO Radio. We chat about why she is so passionate about this program and what its mission is all about. We also talk about why depression and even suicide is so pervasive among veterans when they leave active. When I conclude the podcast I ask April how we can support Blue Star Moms.

Epilepsy is a cause that is near and dear to my heart as I had Epilepsy as a child. I didn't even know I had it until I was in my teens (which will be part of my Sunday morning trivia question) In this podcast I speak with the head of The Epilepsy Foundation of Iowa about Epilepsy and what causes it and how the Foundation can help. After I originally posted this podcast several folks contacted me, including close friends who have dealt with or are currently dealing with Epilepsy. If you are in need of help listen to the podcast or Google the organization and contact them. They are a great resource and were established to help people who are dealing with this.

Thanks to The Grinnell Chamber Of Commerce website I have more details on all the big events coming up for the next several days in Grinnell. The biggest events this weekend include the HUGE car show that is coming up this Saturday in downtown Grinnell. I attended my first last year and I was amazed by the number of classic cruisers that lined the streets in downtown Grinnell. Check it out, bring the whole family and your camera. Also on Saturday is "Pickle Fest." It will be "Dill-Lightful" fun. Listen for the details. Also, the Farmers Market is this Thursday and Saturday. This Saturday's location will be at different place due to the car show. But there will still be plenty of produce and fresh baked goods available for purchase. Lots and lots of things going on in Grinnell for the next several days.

Many times when I go into a podcast interview I know very little about the subject I will be talking about. That's not all bad as I am also interviewing from the standpoint of the listener. However, the topic I am dealing with today is a topic I know quite a bit about because it's very personal to me. It's Parkinsons Disease. My Sister Deb passed away last November from a form of Parkinson's Disease. During the 6 years she fought the disease I learned much about the disease and the various forms it takes on. In this podcast I speak with folks who are with the Newton area Parkinson's Disease Support Group. They share their stories of how the loved ones in their lives are dealing with this disease and what treatments they are getting to keep the disease at bay. They also talk about their support group and where they meet on a monthly basis. Since this is a "best of" podcast they mention an annual meeting in June so please don't pay any attention to that as the annual conference has passed. However all the other information in this podcast is still very relative. If you or somone you know is dealing with Parkinson's Disease in some way please listen to the podcast and don't be afraid to reach out to this support group. They are here to help.

Today my tour of clothing closets and food pantrys in Jasper and Poweshiek Counties continues with Pay It Forward in Lynnville. I had a great conversation with a couple of ladies who run the organization. In this podcast you will find out what church they are affilated with, what their mission is, how they got started, what their hours are, what kinds of clothes are needed, how you can help and how you can contact them.

I'm on a run of doing podcasts of food pantrys and clothing closets these days. I've been aware of them through Captain's Tim and Peggy of The Salvation Army in Newton. But Angie and Neva of Hands That Help out of Brooklyn turned me on to a couple more in Gilman and Lynnville and the Lynnville location told me about he one in Prairie City; I will be recording the podcast of the Lynneville clothing closet later today and I will try to get to the one in Prairie City either today or next week sometime, But today the focus is on the the one in Gilman. It's amazing the number of peple they serve espically with their food pantry. If you, or someone you know are in need of help due to food insecurity, contact these people, they are to help.

In my 300th podcast I preview this year's Iowa State Fair which begins this Thursday. I speak with Marketing Director Mindy Willimamson about all the changes and improvements they've made at the fair for this year. I think you'll enjoy this podcast about all the work that goes on at the fairgrounds behind the scenes throughout the year on making improvements at the fairgrounds on making the fair bigger and better than ever.

Childrens charities have always been special to me. That includes Make A Wish Iowa. In this best of podcast I speak with Nichole of Make A Wish about the purpose of the program. She shares some of the success stories of Make A Wish and how they have been life changing, She talks about how Make A Wish is funded and their plans for the future. It's a great non-profit and if you have the time and resourses it deserves your support. Enjoy this best of podcast with Nichole of Make A Wish Iowa.

One of the things I LOVE about Iowa are the small town celebrations we have. For example Mount Pleasant has The Old Threshers Celebration, Adel has Sweet Corn Days, and my old stomping grounds of Cedar Falls has Sturgis Falls. For many years Monroe, IA has had Old Settlers Days, which runs from August 7-8 this year. I can remember years ago when Walt Keith and Paul Dennison would broadcast live reports from Old Settlers on KCOB radio. It's a big celebration of the town's heritage. This special Thursday night/Friday morning podcast about the Monroe Old Settlers Days is sponsored my buddy Lynn Donahue at Jersey Freeze in Monore. Lynn has been a sponsor and supporter of my podcast from the very start and he is a supporter of many things going on in Jasper County including at his home location of Monroe, He owns and operates Jersey freeze in Monoe. When your in Monroe make it at point to either stop in to Jersey Freeze or use their convient drive through window and order one of their tasty ice cream treats. Jersey Freeze is sure to please!

Hands That Help is a new Non Profit organization that helps to provide clothing for folks who are in need. They are having a big fund raiser this Sunday at The Eagles Club in Grinnell. In this podcast I speak with Neva who is on the board of Hands That Help. She tells me about their mission, how folks can get the clothes they need the challenges of their organization and their big fund raiser coming up this Sunday and what will be going on at that event. Check out the full podcast on