This is Episode 7 of the Hopeful Locals, but this installment can also stand alone. Today you’re going to meet John Doyle, and I’m going to let him tell most of the story, because I like the way he tells it. John has had an interesting life, and he tells his story in the same warm, frank, meandering way that he seems to approach most things. 

He lives and works in the town of Crow Agency, and it’s small enough that the only directions he gave me to his office were to “drive through town and look for the pink house.” Inside, I found John, surrounded by machines and samples that related to his scientific research, and I found a story of hope, resilience, and reconciliation, beyond what I’d imagined – and beyond what I, myself, can muster, even on my best days. 

This episode is brought to you without commercial interruption by Tink Media, Podcast the Newsletter, and our paying subscribers on Patreon and Substack.

Big thanks to John Doyle for sharing his story. He’s getting ready to retire from Little Big Horn College where he’s served as Principal Investigator and Project Coordinator for the Crow Water Quality Project and several environmental health grant research initiatives. He also works closely with Montana State University and with the Crow Environmental Health Steering Committee, which he co-founded. John serves on the Board of the local non-profit, Plenty Doors, which he helped Charlene Johnson start. They’re a native CDFI, supporting new businesses on the reservation, and they run a number of great programs, including a workforce development program and an Elders and Youth program, where the youth learn from the elders and benefit from their cultural knowledge and wisdom. Be sure to check out and support their work!

Thanks to Paul Dreux Smith for making the music and mixing, and to my Associate Producer, Vix Jensen, for her help with this story and so many other things. Also thanks to my project editor, Christina Thyssen, and to Pernille Clifforth for illustrating this series. A special thanks to Heather Kitching and Jen Alevizos for their help this month.

If you'd like to see photos for John's story and all the stories we share, become a FREE newsletter subscriber on Patreon or Substack, or join my community on Facebook and Instagram. If you'd like to support my work, you can also become a paying subscriber and get invited to my member hangout in Copenhagen on June 25, our monthly community hangs on Zoom, our member-only Discord, our Episode Debriefs, AND you'll get lots of bonus episodes.

You can email us anytime at [email protected]. We love hearing from you!

The entire back catalogue of Strangers can be found at STORIES by Lea Thau on Patreon and Substack, where you can also find my new work in its entirety, all of it ad-free. You can join as a free or paid member, so come be part of my community! Or follow my new work in my new public feed, STORIES by Lea Thau, which you can find wherever you get your podcasts.

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As L.A. burns behind me, I drive deeper into cowboy country through Wyoming to Montana, trying to untangle the many contradictions of the country I call home.

This is Episode 6 of The Hopeful Locals, and it is in loving memory of Crawford White Eagle.

This series is made with suppport from our sponsors Tink Media and Podcast The Newsletter, and from our paying subscribers on Patreon and Substack.

Big thanks to Jackie White, for letting me visit with her. Jackie's husband, Crawford White Eagle was a ceremonial leader and one of the Northern Arapaho’s Four Old Men. He worked tirelessly for preservation of the tribe’s language and culture, and he helped establish the Northern Arapaho endowment for tribal students at the University of Wyoming, where he also received an honorary doctorate. Crawford served his country in the Vietnam War and was twice wounded in combat, receiving a Purple Heart and many other medals for his service. He was also a master jewelry maker and silversmith.

Thanks to Paul Dreux Smith, for making the music and mixing this episode, and to my Associate Producer, Vix Jensen, for her help with this story and many other things. Also big thanks to Pernille Clifforth for illustrating the series, and to Heather Kitching for her support.

Lauren Passell of Podcast The Newsletter also created the newsletters Podcast Marketing Magic, where you can find all sorts of awesome marketing tips and tricks, and Podcasts We Text About. Enjoy them all!

We’d love your thoughts on this episode (and anything else) and you can email us at [email protected], or find us on Facebook and Instagram.

Thanks for listening!

The entire back catalogue of Strangers can be found at STORIES by Lea Thau on Patreon and Substack, where you can also find my new work in its entirety, all of it ad-free. You can join as a free or paid member, so come be part of my community! Or follow my new work in my new public feed, STORIES by Lea Thau, which you can find wherever you get your podcasts.

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The hope holds strong in this second episode about people working for change on the Wind River Reservation.

It is brought to you by Tink Media, Podcast The Newsletter, and our supporters on Patreon and Substack. 

Huge thanks to the visionaries of this episode: Jackie White, Kelly Pingree, and Erika Warren-Yarber.

Please visit The Wind River Sage Fund, which was established by The Wind River Development Fund to manage their Recompete grant projects, and please check out and support the Sweetgrass Food Lodge and the Wind River Food Sovereignty Project.

We have a COMMUNITY HANGOUT, open to all FREE & PAID members, TOMORROW:

Thursday, May 21: 11:30am PT – 12:30pm MT - 1:30pm CT – 2:30pm ET – 7:30pm GMT – 20:30 CET – 4:30am (Fri) AEST. 

Become a FREE member on Patreon or Substack to join, and to see photos from this episode.  

Or become a paid member and join our IN-PERSON hangout in Copenhagen June 25th!

INTERN WITH US:

We’re looking for a summer intern. If you think that might be you email us at [email protected] and tell us a little bit about yourself — your interests, relevant skills, and availability. Position can be remote. 

Thanks to our sponsors, Tink Media, a woman-founded, gender-inclusive podcast growth and discovery company, and Podcast The Newsletter, which is a weekly roundup of the best things in podcasting from Lauren Passell. If you like my work, I think you’ll like the things Lauren writes about. 

And thanks to the Just Transition Fund for introducing me to Erika, and for supporting communities like hers and helping organizations like The Wind River Development Fund secure the grant funding they need to make a real difference.

As always, I’m grateful to my associate producer, Vix Jensen for all her help, to Paul Dreux Smith, for making the music and mixing, and to Pernille Clifforth for illustrating this series. Also big thanks to my project editor, Christina Thyssen, and to Heather Kitching and Jen Alevizos for their help.

Last but not least, thanks to all of you for listening. If you like what we do, please rate and perhaps review the show wherever you listen to podcasts. It helps our rankings!

Questions, comments, story ideas? Email us at [email protected].

The entire back catalogue of Strangers can be found at STORIES by Lea Thau on Patreon and Substack, where you can also find my new work in its entirety, all of it ad-free. You can join as a free or paid member, so come be part of my community! Or follow my new work in my new public feed, STORIES by Lea Thau, which you can find wherever you get your podcasts.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This is Episode 4 of The Hopeful Locals (Episode 7 if you’re a paying subscriber and get bonus episodes!). 

You’re getting this episode ad-free because the people in it deserve not to be interrupted by ads, I feel. If you agree with that and would like to support my work, you can join us at 'STORIES by Lea Thau' on Patreon and Substack, where you’ll find all my new work and the entire Strangers archive.

Big thanks this week to Art Lawson and Wilma Wagon of the Wind River Fish & Game and Jason Baldes of the Tribal Buffalo Initiative, as well as Paul Huberty and Erika Warren-Yarber, who run The Wind River Development Fund and The Wind River Sage Fund, where you can track the progress of their Recompete grant projects and support their work. 

I also want to thank the Just Transition Fund for introducing me to Erika. They’re the only philanthropic initiative focused on coal community transition in the U.S., working to create economic opportunities for the frontline workers and communities hardest hit by the transition away from coal.

Huge thanks to my Associate Producer, Vix Jensen, to Paul Dreux Smith for making the music and mixing, to our resident artist and illustrator Pernille Clifforth, to my project editor, Christina Thyssen, to our production intern Jen Alevizos, and a special thanks this week to Heather Kitching for her help.

Questions, comments, story pitches, feedback? Email us at [email protected] or find us on Facebook and Instagram.

See you next week!

The entire back catalogue of Strangers can be found at STORIES by Lea Thau on Patreon and Substack, where you can also find my new work in its entirety, all of it ad-free. You can join as a free or paid member, so come be part of my community! Or follow my new work in my new public feed, STORIES by Lea Thau, which you can find wherever you get your podcasts.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This is Episode 3 of The Hopeful Locals for free subscribers (Episode 6 for paying subscribers). 

Our storyteller today is Erika Warren-Yarber. She’s the COO of the Wind River Development Fund and the Wind River Sage Fund. Please consider supporting their work.

And please consider supporting my work by becoming a paying subscriber on Patreon or Substack. 

Thanks to the Just Transition Fund for connecting me with Erika. I directed a storytelling show for their partner convening, and Erika was one of the storytellers. If you’d like to hire me to direct a storytelling show, or teach a storytelling workshop, or help you craft your story, email me at [email protected].

The champion song that played when Erika got the big news was by Indian Hill at Sho-Ban Festival Powwow 2022. 

Thanks, as always, to Paul Dreux Smith for making the music and mixing. Also big thanks to my Associate Producer, Vix Jensen, and my Project Editor, Christina Thyssen, and to Pernille Clifforth for illustrating the series, to Avi Odenheimer for making The Hopeful Locals logo, and to Heather Kitching and Jen Alevizos for their input and support.

The entire back catalogue of Strangers can be found at STORIES by Lea Thau on Patreon and Substack, where you can also find my new work in its entirety, all of it ad-free. You can join as a free or paid member, so come be part of my community! Or follow my new work in my new public feed, STORIES by Lea Thau, which you can find wherever you get your podcasts.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This is Episode 2 of my series, The Hopeful Locals. It’s a direct continuation of Episode 1, so if you haven’t heard that, I’d go start there.

Huge thanks to my husband, Paul Dreux Smith, for making the music and mixing this episode, to my Associate Producer, Vix Jensen, for her help with the story, the production, the logistics – all of it – and to my Project Editor, Christina Thyssen, for always making my early drafts better. 

Also big thanks to Avi Odenheimer for making the Hopeful Locals logo, and to Pernille Clifforth for making an original art piece for every installment in this series. 

One of the greatest things about coming back to podcasting is that I get to work with such brilliant people. The other great thing is that I get to connect with you. 

Endless gratitude to my paying subscribers for making my work possible. It means everything to me, and you can join us on Patreon or Substack. Prices go up May 1st, so join now to lock in maximum access at minimal cost and get a lot more content – without ads –and other great benefits. We'd love to have you, and the first eight episodes of The Hopeful Locals are up and ready for you to binge.

You can also sign up for my free newsletter on Patreon or Substack to get some public content without ads, plus invitations to our all-community hangouts.

Thank you for the warm reception during my first week back. A week ago today, I was honestly terrified of the launch, but you’ve made it feel like a good time and a warm bath, and I’m deeply thankful for that. 

If you have comments or questions, or if you might want to sponsor this show, email me at [email protected]. 

Or find me on Facebook, Instagram, Substack or Patreon as STORIES by Lea Thau. 

The next episode drops May 4th. Until then, dare I say….don’t be strangers:)

The entire back catalogue of Strangers can be found at STORIES by Lea Thau on Patreon and Substack, where you can also find my new work in its entirety, all of it ad-free. You can join as a free or paid member, so come be part of my community! Or follow my new work in my new public feed, STORIES by Lea Thau, which you can find wherever you get your podcasts.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This is the prologue to my new series, The Hopeful Locals, and I hope you’ll enjoy it. The story continues on Friday. 

Huge thanks to Dengue Fever, Paul’s band, for letting me use the recording from their live show at The Chapel. They have two very special shows coming up on May 15 and 16 at Gold Diggers in LA, a more intimate club than they normally play, and you can also find them in other cities this spring and summer. Big thanks to their drummer and my true love, Paul Dreux Smith, for making the music for this episode and mixing it. 

Enormous gratitude to my associate producer, Vix Jensen, who has been my rock editorially, practically, and emotionally over the last year; my project editor, Christina Thyssen, who has helped give the stories shape and make them better; and our resident artist, Pernille Clifforth, who has illustrated this episode and every episode in the series. Also big thanks to Avi Odenheimer for making The Hopeful Locals logo. 

And thanks to all my supporters on Patreon and Substack for making my work possible, especially my Inner Circle. In the Inner Circle, we support each other’s creative work and commiserate about life through special meetings on Zoom and a private Discord. We’d love to have you if this sounds like fun, and I’m offering a discounted price on the upper tiers through the end of this month. Or join at any level, and I’ll be so grateful for your support. If nothing else, become a free subscriber on Patreon or Substack and get invited to our next Community Hangout tomorrow, Wednesday, April 21 to celebrate our public launch. 

Questions, comments, story pitches, feedback? Email us at [email protected] or find us on Facebook and Instagram.

See you Friday!

The entire back catalogue of Strangers can be found at STORIES by Lea Thau on Patreon and Substack, where you can also find my new work in its entirety, all of it ad-free. You can join as a free or paid member, so come be part of my community! Or follow my new work in my new public feed, STORIES by Lea Thau, which you can find wherever you get your podcasts.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Hi friends, I’m back! New episodes start dropping Tuesday! 

Also, heads-up: I’ll be changing the name of this podcast from Strangers to STORIES by Lea Thau on Monday. That hurts a little, I know – for me too – but I promise it’s not the end of Strangers. The plan is for STORIES by Lea Thau to be an umbrella for all my work, including Strangers, and I want to do a new season of that show next year. 

But first we’ll kick off next week with episodes from my latest series, The Hopeful Locals. 

If you can’t wait for the public release and would like to binge the first eight episodes of The Hopeful Locals right now, you can do so on Patreon, where you’ll also find 70 episodes of Strangers that are only available there, and much more.

If you can’t afford to pay, you can also join my Patreon community for free and get access to some new and old episodes without ads – Episode 1 of The Hopeful Locals is already up there! 

If you have questions or comments, or perhaps a story you’d like to share, you can email me at [email protected] or message me on Patreon, Facebook,  Instagram, or Substack. My name on all those platforms is now STORIES by Lea Thau. 

I look forward to spending a lot more time with you again, so please….don’t be strangers!

The entire back catalogue of Strangers can be found at STORIES by Lea Thau on Patreon and Substack, where you can also find my new work in its entirety, all of it ad-free. You can join as a free or paid member, so come be part of my community! Or follow my new work in my new public feed, STORIES by Lea Thau, which you can find wherever you get your podcasts.

Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Part two of Sequoia Schmidt's story. Enjoy! You can find her at sequoiaschmidt.com. And you can find me at patreon.com/strangerspodcast.  

Meet Sequoia Schmidt - a most interesting and unusual young woman from a most interesting and unusual family. This is Part 1 of her story.  Part 2 drops next week. Enjoy!