Nearly 6,500 businesses in Monroe County alone are owned by someone over the age of 55. If even a third of those close without a succession plan, Rochester loses 2,000 businesses, 25,000 jobs and over a billion dollars in payroll. Chloe Handelman and Bruce Peters, co-founders of Beyond Ownership, are doing something about it.

Discover what Beyond Ownership actually does for second and third stage businesses, the ones that have survived the startup phase but have not yet figured out what comes next, including leadership development, operations consulting, succession planning and CEO peer groups designed to help business owners make decisions they would not make alone. Learn why Bruce believes Rochester has been filling a leaky bucket for years by celebrating startups while quietly watching mature businesses close, and why fixing that back end is just as important as funding the front.

Bruce shares his personal story of selling his business within 11 months after joining a peer group, and how that experience led him to spend years training peer group leaders across the country before coming back to build something lasting in Rochester. Chloe shares her own journey from Accenture in Minneapolis to a six-year stint traveling in Europe, Asia, and Africa, and building an operations consultancy, and why coming home to Rochester felt like the right place to make a real difference.

The conversation also discussed several local organizations that do business differently, focusing on legacy and impact. Including a company that sold to a perpetual purpose trust so it can never leave the community, a company that made 100 employees millionaires overnight, and a 300-person business unit that ended up teaching its parent company how to do succession planning rather than the other way around.

Beyond Ownership's Facilitative Leadership Program runs monthly and is open to the public, and their CEO peer groups are actively forming now for business owners who are thinking five to ten years ahead.

Visit beyond-ownership.com or connect with Bruce and Chloe on LinkedIn to start the conversation.

Most people hear the name Holy Childhood and think school or church. In reality it is an 80 year old Rochester organization serving over 400 individuals with developmental disabilities, from kindergarten all the way through retirement age, and it is one of the most quietly powerful nonprofits in our community.

Nate Zelesnikar, Director of Programs and Services, and Jillian Nalivyko, Public Relations Manager, share what Holy Childhood actually does, including a K through 12 school, adult habilitative and vocational programs, clinical services, respite care and supported employment partnerships with local businesses. Every individual has a personalized plan, every staff member asks whether what they are doing would be good enough for their own family, and the result is an organization that feels less like a nonprofit and more like a family.

Funded through a combination of Medicaid, state and federal support and a generous donor community, Holy Childhood is celebrating its 80th anniversary this year with two major events. Party at Center Ice returns for its 13th year on April 17th at the Tim Hortons Ice Plex, with wine, spirits, beer and local food vendors, drawing 600 to 700 people annually. The 80th Anniversary Gala follows on May 16th at Oak Hill Country Club's brand new ballroom, one of the very first public events to be held there.

Visit holychild.org/events to learn more, get tickets or find out how to volunteer, donate or schedule a tour.

When true economic independence for women was still a radical idea, a group of Rochester women showed up through a blizzard in 1978 to change that. Nearly 50 years later Rochester Women's Network has over 200 members and is still growing, and Kristi Mitchell, board member and Marketing Committee co-chair, is one of the people making sure it stays that way.

Discover what makes RWN different from every other networking group in the city, including a deep lineup of Special Interest Groups spanning everything from wine and hiking to book club, motherhood and the Geek Squad, designed to help members build real relationships around shared interests rather than awkward small talk at oversized events. Kristi joined within six months of launching her own business and shares what she found there that she could not find anywhere else.

Members range from young professionals to retired women who stay involved because the community gives them purpose, men are welcome as allies and participants, and RWN's recent community partnerships include the Breast Cancer Coalition walk, a Habitat for Humanity women build team and holiday donations to Margaret's House. For women working in male dominated industries, solo business owners craving a peer network or anyone simply looking to show up for other women in Rochester, RWN has a place for you.

Visit rwn.org to explore upcoming events, many of which are free and open to the public, and follow along on Facebook, Instagram and LinkedIn.

Barry Howard, President and CEO of the Webster Chamber of Commerce and RocEnroll, joins the show with an urgent reminder that Medicare Advantage enrollees have until March 31st to make a one time plan change for 2026, and what you do not know could cost you.

Discover why thousands of Monroe County residents needed to switch plans this year after major carriers including UnitedHealthcare discontinued their local offerings, and how changes to formularies, hospital network coverage and benefits can quietly make the plan you selected in November the wrong plan by January. Learn how to spot the difference between an official Medicare communication and a solicitation designed to look like one, and why the fine print at the bottom of that mailer matters more than the headline at the top.

Hear why missing Medicare enrollment deadlines can result in financial penalties that follow you for the rest of your life, and how having a trusted local enrollment partner in your corner makes sure that never happens to you. Barry also explains how RocEnroll serves anyone in New York State at any age, from Medicaid and the Essential Plan to marketplace coverage and Medicare, with zero cost to the client, ever.

Time is running out. If your doctors, drugs or hospital system are not fully covered, or if you simply want to make sure you are in the best available plan, call RocEnroll before March 31st.

Visit rocenroll.com or call 585.265.3851.

Ann Marie Stephan, Executive Director, and Mike Hoskins, Director of Development and Marketing at Rochester Child First Network, pull back the curtain on one of Rochester's most quietly impactful organizations, one that has been serving children and families since 1857 and is approaching its 170th year.

Discover how RCN provides a full continuum of care for children ages six weeks through 12, including childcare, Universal Pre-K, preschool special education services and a full kitchen serving fresh meals and snacks daily. Learn why RCN is one of only four community based organizations in Monroe County offering integrated preschool special education, and how children who receive those services often grow out of the need for them entirely before they reach kindergarten.

Hear why 90% of brain development occurs before age five and what that means for the case behind Universal Preschool, an initiative RCN is actively advocating for alongside state elected officials. Mike also breaks down the summer program enrolling now for children ages five through 12, eight weeks of themed learning, field trips, yoga, zoo visits and planetarium adventures designed to prevent the summer slide.

Ann Marie shares the deep roots of inclusivity at RCN stretching back to the organization's founding, and how that same commitment to meeting every child where they are continues to define everything they do today.

To learn about enrollment, volunteer or board opportunities or to support the mission visit rcn4kids.org or call 585.473.2858.

Dr. Cait Loury, Chief Education Officer at Renaissance Academy Charter School of the Arts in Greece, pulls back the curtain on one of Rochester's most distinctive public schools, where arts integration isn't an elective, it's the engine of academic achievement.

Discover how teaching artists co-teach alongside classroom teachers every single day, weaving music, dance, drama, and visual arts into core subjects like math, helping students understand fractions through musical scores and composition. Learn why research shows arts activities regulate the nervous system and unlock higher-order thinking, especially for students who've experienced trauma, and how Renaissance Academy's New York State test scores back it up.

Hear how the school serves students from kindergarten through sixth grade, drawing 80% of its enrollment from the city of Rochester, and why families across the region enter the lottery to secure a spot. Cait also shares the school's whole child approach, three on staff mental health professionals, an on site food pantry, and deep family support services that make it far more than just a school.

The lottery deadline is April 1st. Learn more and apply at renacad.org.

Dr. Ryan Kimmet, Head of School at the Harley School in Rochester, makes a compelling case that academic rigor and student wellbeing are not opposites and that the century old progressive education model pioneered by John Dewey might be exactly what kids need right now.

Discover what progressive education actually means at Harley, where students from age three through 12th grade learn by doing, collaborate on hands on projects, take creative risks and are assessed in ways that go far beyond memorizing for a test. Learn why small class sizes of around 12 students create the kind of trust between teachers and students that Dr. Kimmet believes is the real engine of academic achievement, and how a restorative approach to conflict keeps community at the center of everything.

Hear Dr. Kimmet share his own experience as a Harley graduate from the mid nineties, what became of his classmates and why the goal was never to get kids into the most prestigious colleges but to help them become happy, healthy and contributing adults who found their passions along the way. He also opens up about the burnout epidemic hitting school aged children today and offers one honest recommendation for parents who want to bring more balance back into their kids' lives.

Harley serves students across the greater Rochester area and is currently in active enrollment season for ages three through 12th grade.

Reach out to schedule a visit and see it for yourself at harleyschool.org.

Veronica Ryan, creator of the blog Borderline Babe, shares her deeply personal journey with borderline personality disorder, diagnosed at age 21, and how treatment, vulnerability, and radical honesty became the foundation of her recovery and her mission.

Discover what BPD actually is at a neurological level, including the physical processing deficits in the frontal lobe that affect emotional regulation, and learn about dynamic deconstructive psychotherapy, the intensive treatment developed at Upstate's psychiatry high risk program that helped bring Veronica's symptoms into remission.

Hear why Veronica believes mental health is physical health, why listening without trying to fix is the most powerful thing you can offer someone who is struggling, and how her unfiltered weekly diary drops on Borderline Babe are creating a safe space for people who have never felt safe enough to speak.

Veronica also shares the most important first step anyone can take when they're struggling, and why telling your story should always be on your own terms.

Follow Veronica at borderlinebabe.com and on Instagram at @veronicaeryan.

Miranda Grazioplene, Hunter Johnson and Connor McKenna, co-chairs of the Cancer Support Community Rochester bachelor auction, are back for the 16th year of one of the most beloved and high energy fundraising traditions in Rochester.

Discover what Cancer Support Community at Gilda’s Club actually does for cancer patients and their families beyond the doctor's office, including support groups, music and art therapy, yoga, meditation, jewelry making and educational talks with oncologists, all offered free to the community and funded entirely through events like this one. Learn why having a room full of people who truly understand what you are going through can be just as important to recovery as any medical treatment.

Hear how 26 of Rochester's finest bachelors, ranging in age from 23 to 60 have been fundraising for weeks and will be auctioned off for a date package at a prestigious Rochester restaurant to the highest bidder on Saturday night. Connor McKenna shares how he first walked in as a bachelor in 2019 to honor a friend lost to cancer and never really left.

The event is this Saturday March 21st at Anthology. VIP happy hour starts at 6pm for $55, general admission is $35 and a four pack is $120. The auction begins at 8:30pm. Raffle prizes from sponsors including the Rochester Amerks and the ID Family of Dealerships are also available on the night.

Get tickets and donate directly to your favorite bachelor at cscrochester.org/bachelorauction.

Mike McOrmond, Executive Director of Flower City Outreach, shares the remarkable four decade story of a mission rooted in faith, neighbor love and the belief that serving your community is serving God. Flower City Outreach is a Christ centered nonprofit that exists to mobilize the Church into service that the city might see Jesus. Learn more at flowercityoutreach.org.

Discover how Flower City Work Camp at flowercityworkcamp.org has been the flagship ministry for 40 years, sending hundreds of youth and adults into Rochester every spring break. Worksites put volunteers to work repairing the homes of neighbors in need. Sidewalk clubs bring crafts, games and Bible stories to kids in city neighborhoods Tuesday through Thursday each week. Agency sites send teams to support other Rochester nonprofits doing vital work across the city. And three sports camps, including basketball, soccer and a newer action sports and skate camp, bring energy and mentorship to young people who need it most.

Hear about Weekend Edition at fcwcweekendedition.org, a year round program born out of COVID that offers one day worksite experiences for small groups, men's groups, youth groups and families. With 60 homeowners currently on the waiting list and only two being served per month, more volunteer crews are urgently needed to grow that number.

Learn about Link Youth Mentorship at linkmentorship.org, a one on one program matching godly male mentors with boys ages 8 to 18 who are growing up without fathers. In a city where nearly three out of four kids are being raised without a dad, Link pairs mentors and mentees for a one year committed relationship that more often than not grows into something lasting. The program currently serves 16 young men with a goal of reaching 50 within the next year. Beyond being a mentor, volunteers can contribute through an intercessory prayer team, administrative support, match specialist roles and monthly group activities like rock climbing, Red Wings games and more.

Mike also unpacks what scripture says about serving neighbors as serving Christ himself, and why he believes godly mentorship is one of the most powerful solutions to the cycles holding Rochester back.

Visit flowercityoutreach.org to explore Flower City Work Camp, Weekend Edition and Link Youth Mentorship and find the right place for you to plug in.