Amanda McGough has spent more than two decades helping people navigate their most challenging moments, from suicide prevention to life transitions. As a licensed psychologist, she’s seen firsthand how overwhelming struggles can affect mental health, but she’s equally passionate about the power of conversation and connection in healing.

On this episode of The Charlotte Ledger Podcast, McGough talks with host Steve Dunn about how to know when to seek professional help and the critical role of openness in addressing issues like mental health and suicide — issues that have historically been shrouded in silence.

McGough, who holds a Ph.D. in psychology, also discusses bereavement and her work with families who have experienced loss.

For more information about The Charlotte Ledger, or to sign up for our newsletters, visit TheCharlotteLedger.com. This episode is part of a series in which we interview winners of The Charlotte Ledger 40 Over 40 Awards, which honor people aged 40+ who are making our community a better place. Find out information about those awards at Ledger40Over40.com.

This podcast was produced by Lindsey Banks.

Longtime Charlotteans know Lawrence Toppman from the 40+ years he spent as a critic at The Charlotte Observer. Now, he writes reviews for The Charlotte Ledger several times a month in a column called "Larry At Large."

The Ledger has a partnership with The Sharon at South Park retirement community and hosted a Q&A session in December 2024 for residents. Toppman shared his experiences as an arts critic, how he approaches his reviews and what he’s learned along the way. He also answers residents’ pressing questions, like how he decides what things to review, his opposition to most Charlotte standing ovations, and if he ever regretted a review or wishes to take one back. (Hint: The review was for a popular sci-fi film in the 1970s.)

He also discusses his opinions on a wide range of movies, including "Ghost," "Moana," "Monty Python and the Holy Grail" and "O Brother, Where Art Thou?"

His conversation with Ledger managing editor Cristina Bolling and Sharon residents was so good, we turned the recording into a podcast to share with you. Enjoy!

This is a recording of Lawrence Toppman’s talk at The Sharon on December 2, 2024.

You can find out more about The Charlotte Ledger at TheCharlotteLedger.com.

The Charlotte Ledger Podcast is produced by Lindsey Banks.

José Alvarez believes that everyone has the potential to be an entrepreneur. As vice president of Prospera North Carolina, a nonprofit dedicated to helping Latino entrepreneurs, Alvarez works to provide invaluable support to immigrant entrepreneurs by offering bilingual services that guide them through the complexities of starting a business.

In this episode of The Charlotte Ledger Podcast, Alvarez discusses trends he's noticed among immigrant entrepreneurs in Charlotte, the importance of offering support in someone’s native language and how Prospera gives guidance in understanding the U.S. business and financial systems.

You can find out more about Prospera at ProsperaUSA.org.

For more information about The Charlotte Ledger, or to sign up for our newsletters, visit TheCharlotteLedger.com. This episode is part of a series in which we interview winners of The Charlotte Ledger 40 Over 40 Awards, which honor people aged 40+ who are making our community a better place. Find out information about those awards at Ledger40Over40.com.

This podcast was produced by Lindsey Banks.

In this episode of The Charlotte Ledger Podcast, we are sharing a speech by Kelly Weeks at the Rotary Club of Charlotte. She is the widow of U.S. Marshal Tommy Weeks, who was one of four law enforcement officers killed in the line of duty in a shootout in east Charlotte on April 29, 2024.

In her talk, she discusses what her day was like on that awful day — how it started, how she found out he had been shot — and all the support she has received from the community and law enforcement.

She talks about:

* how she and her family are coping with her husband’s death

* what they have learned as they have moved forward, even through tough times

* her passion for encouraging people to appreciate and support the good things in this world, including law enforcement

This is a recording of her speech at Rotary on November 19, 2024. Many thanks to the Rotary Club of Charlotte and to Kelly Weeks for allowing us to share this audio with you. In this recording, she is introduced by Rotary’s executive secretary, Christine Cipriano.

Weeks mentions several charities that have been helpful, including the Tunnel to Towers Foundation and the U.S. Marshals Survivor Benefit Fund.

You can find out more about The Charlotte Ledger at TheCharlotteLedger.com.

The Charlotte Ledger Podcast is produced by Lindsey Banks.

In 2018, Dr. Dale Owen and nearly 90 physicians left Atrium Health to form Tryon Medical Partners, driven by a vision of patient-centered care without the bureaucracy of large health systems. This bold move, initiated amidst legal battles and skepticism, aimed to prioritize personalized care and coordination while reducing costs.

Fast forward six years, Tryon Medical now serves nearly 200,000 patients in the Charlotte-Mecklenburg area, demonstrating the viability of independent practices despite immense challenges.

In this episode of The Charlotte Ledger Podcast, Owen recounts the obstacles faced in establishing Tryon Medical "out of air" — from securing facilities and staff to building insurance partnerships. In a conversation with The Ledger's Tony Mecia, he discusses the lessons he has learned building a medical practice, the challenges of Covid, the complexities of the U.S. healthcare system and Tryon's growth plans following a partnership with a private-equity investment company.

This podcast was produced by Lindsey Banks.

For more information about The Charlotte Ledger, or to sign up for our newsletters, visit TheCharlotteLedger.com.

For many people in Western North Carolina, everything changed on Friday, Sept. 27, 2024.

Hurricane Helene brought record levels of rainfall, reaching as high as 30 inches in some places and triggering massive flooding and mudslides. Roads, buildings, trees, power lines and entire water systems were wiped out, affecting hundreds of thousands of people. More than 90 people died in North Carolina.

In this episode of The Charlotte Ledger Podcast, Ledger editor Tony Mecia talks with Ledger staff reporter Lindsey Banks about the storm and its aftermath. Banks is a Buncombe County native with close ties to Western North Carolina, and she spearheads The Ledger's Mountain Updates newsletter. The Ledger created it in September 2024 as a pop-up (temporary) newsletter focused on the crisis and recovery in the North Carolina mountains.

The two talk about her experience growing up in the mountains, what it was like seeing her hometown destroyed by the hurricane, what her friends and family have described in the aftermath and the experience of reporting and writing about the mountains.

All issues of Mountain Updates can be found online here. If you’re not on The Ledger’s email list, you can sign up for Mountain Updates and other newsletters at TheCharlotteLedger.com. Ledger subscribers can sign up for Mountain Updates on their account settings page.

This podcast was produced by Lindsey Banks.

For more information about The Charlotte Ledger, or to sign up for our newsletters, visit TheCharlotteLedger.com.

The Charlotte region is on track to lose about 19,400 acres of farmland by 2040. The Carolina Farms Fund aims to prevent that.

The Carolina Farms Fund is a new initiative from the Conservation Fund, a national nonprofit dedicated to environmental preservation and economic development. The Carolina Farms Fund aims to protect 5,000 acres in the Charlotte region as working farms and to match farmers to those properties with a path toward ownership.

The fund was started in November of 2023 by Tim Belk, the former chairman and CEO of Belk. Belk’s passion for farming comes from the organic farm he started with his wife, Sarah, in 2017, called Wild Hope Farm, in Chester.

On this episode of The Charlotte Ledger Podcast, staff writer Lindsey Banks sits down to talk to Tim Belk, fund program manager Aaron Newton, and Cherie Jzar, who co-owns Deep Roots CPS Farm, which was the first farm to partner with the Carolina Farms Fund, with her husband, Wisdom. They discuss how the fund works and why preserving local farmland is important.

This podcast was produced by Lindsey Banks.

For more information about The Charlotte Ledger, or to sign up for our newsletters, visit TheCharlotteLedger.com.

In this special episode of The Charlotte Ledger Podcast, Ledger editor Tony Mecia and elections specialist Sucharita Kodali quickly break down the 14 statewide races on the 2024 general election ballot.

In less than 10 minutes, they zip through the races that will be on the ballot for every North Carolinian: the Council of State — including races for governor, lieutenant governor, agriculture commissioner and so on — as well as statewide judicial races and a constitutional amendment.

Check out the accompanying 10-minute podcast on the Mecklenburg ballot.

For full details on the candidates and the races, be sure to check out the Charlotte Ledger Election Hub at NCElectionHub.com. It has brief biographies of 200 candidates in five Charlotte-area counties (Mecklenburg, Union, Gaston, Cabarrus and Iredell), as well as links to candidate questionnaires and articles from other media.

The goal is to provide you with trustworthy, unbiased information you can use to cast your vote.

Find out more about The Charlotte Ledger at TheCharlotteLedger.com.

This episode of The Charlotte Ledger Podcast was produced by Lindsey Banks.

In this special episode of The Charlotte Ledger Podcast, Ledger editor Tony Mecia and elections specialist Sucharita Kodali quickly break down the Mecklenburg County ballot, including state legislative races, county commissioner races, local judicial elections and bonds.

In less than 10 minutes, they zip through the under-the-radar races that many voters haven’t considered but will find on the ballot.

Check out the accompanying 10-minute podcast on statewide races, such as those for governor, lieutenant governor, insurance commissioner and attorney general.

For full details on the candidates and the races, be sure to check out the Charlotte Ledger Election Hub at NCElectionHub.com. It has brief biographies of 200 candidates in five Charlotte-area counties (Mecklenburg, Union, Gaston, Cabarrus and Iredell), as well as links to candidate questionnaires and articles from other media.

The goal is to provide you with trustworthy, unbiased information you can use to cast your vote.

Find out more about The Charlotte Ledger at TheCharlotteLedger.com.

This episode of The Charlotte Ledger Podcast was produced by Lindsey Banks.

In 2019, Melissa Sutherland made a dramatic career shift, leaving her role as a bank executive at Bank of America to join Best Impressions Catering as the company’s chief operating and financial officer. Her move from a global financial institution to a small catering business offered her the chance to take her expertise to a new industry, she says, helping the company expand from a single location in Charlotte to three, including Raleigh and Charleston.

But just as she was settling into her new role, the Covid pandemic hit.

Facing a sudden halt in operations, Sutherland and her team pivoted to launch "Table & Twine," a home delivery service that helped keep staff employed and kitchens running during the shutdowns. Today, Table & Twine remains a successful arm of Combined Caterers, showing how innovation during a crisis can create lasting change.

In this episode of The Charlotte Ledger Podcast, Sutherland talks with host Steve Dunn about the transition from a big banking job to a small catering company, the challenges of navigating a small business through the pandemic, what she learned from watching Hugh McColl, former CEO and president of Bank of America, and more.

Sutherland was a recipient of The Ledger’s 40 Over 40 Award in 2024. The awards celebrate often unheralded people over the age of 40 who are making important contributions to Charlotte.

This episode of The Charlotte Ledger Podcast is presented by Trinity Episcopal School, marking 25 years of creating scholars, nurturing spirituality and embracing diversity in Charlotte's center city. Trinity offers a unique K-8 curriculum with a focus on critical thinking, curiosity about the world around us, and service to the community. Learn more about the admission process for the 2025-26 school year and register for an open house at TESCharlotte.org.

For more information about The Charlotte Ledger, or to sign up for our newsletters, visit TheCharlotteLedger.com. This episode is part of a series in which we interview winners of The Charlotte Ledger 40 Over 40 Awards, which honor people aged 40+ who are making our community a better place. Find out information about those awards at Ledger40Over40.com.

This podcast was produced by Lindsey Banks.