Reno Street Audio

Our resident street poet Donald Griffin returns with more poetry, as he rebounds from past devastation and addiction, into a sober, productive life, which includes writing and contributing to Our Town Reno.

There have been vigilante actions recently in Reno targeting those without shelter. But what about those who find community at their local park? What about those who find friends to take care of their belongings when they have no other options? What about those who want to live with their pets? Annette has been living on the streets on and off for about three years.  She talks with Our Town Reno Reporter Lucia Starbuck about how much she cares for her ailing dog Keika and what her day at the park is like. Thanks for taking a closer listen to those struggling in our community.

University of Nevada, Reno, graduate Nathaniel Benjamin is a co-founder of Reno's community printing press called Laika Press. As a nonprofit co-operative printmaking space in Reno, it provides accessibility to printmaking equipment for members of the Reno community. Having been a member of Reno's art community for a number of years now, Benjamin also thinks about how the relationship between art and the city of Reno has begun to change amid gentrification and an affordable housing crisis. The reporter for this episode is Scott King.

What’’s the local movement like for climate change here in Reno? Jaren Hutchings is a climate activist who was one of the organizers of the recent National Youth Climate Strike. He’s a senior at the Davidson Academy in Reno, and is passionate about finding ways to slow the effects of climate change, and also get the attention of politicians to put forth policies to do so. He talked with Our Town Reno reporter, Lucia Starbuck, about what Nevada and individuals can do to help the Earth.

After vigilantes threatened to kick out homeless from a park in Reno, they were forced out by police, some of them losing their possessions. Angered advocates then held a donation drive to show their support for those without shelter. Reporters Scott King and Lucia Starbuck were on the scene.

What’s it like to lose a child to addiction? A local chapter of a group called The Addict’s Mom recently held a Lights of Hope candlelight event at the Rail City garden in Sparks, Nevada. Speakers shared stories of how drug addiction affects their lives as well as the lives of their loved ones. Our Town Reno podcast reporter Scott King met with the organizer of the event, Darcy Patterson, herself an Addict's Mom, as well as with others who attended.

Our resident street poet Donald Griffin is back with Police Brutality, He Who Opens a School, Closes a Prison and Faces. Recordings and editing at the Reynolds Media Lab studios by Lucia Starbuck.

In this Our Town Reno episode we visit with Meghan Simons a substance use disorder counselor at the Life Change Center in Sparks. A sign on her door says she meets people where they are. People come to the LCC as it’s known for a variety of reasons. Some are encouraged by family members, a friend, an employer. Some find the courage to go themselves. Our reporter for this Our Town Reno podcast episode is Scott King.

This week’s episode of the Our Town Reno podcast is about painting a large community mural under an overpass. What’s the value of that? How do you find a theme? How do you get a community’s buy in? Our reporter for this episode is Scott King, interviewing Asa Kennedy and Kyle Isacksen.

Morgan Green from the Center for the Application of Substance Abuse Technologies at UNR took part in a recent event marking International Overdose Awareness Day. She passed out naloxone kits, which are used to counter effects of an opioid overdose. “I think we're breaking a lot of barriers in terms of people who are overcoming addiction, but there's still a long way to go,” she said. “A lot of times we tend to pretend that they don't exist, they hide in corners. People themselves don't even recognize when they have a problem because we don't talk about it. We want to make sure that the education's out there, that the compassion is there.” Our reporter for this episode is Lucia Starbuck.