The James Protin Podcast

Who is Armand Ferrara? If you know him, you’re thinking:
Real Estate Broker
PA Real Estate Commission Board Member
President of Mon Valley Regional Chamber

And you would be right…

If you really know him, you’re thinking:
Man of God
Husband
Father
Grandfather 

And you would also be right…

Armand is all of those things and more. To me he is a mentor, friend, and brother. He is the lighthouse we all need. He doesn’t judge…never criticizes. He just walks on showing us all what a good man looks like. 

All of us who are blessed to know Armand through any of the many hats he proudly wears, are better humans as a result. 

As always, the visually inclined can catch it on YouTube, or listen in on Spotify or your favorite podcast platform.

Eric McElvenny is one of us, a western PA kid…Belle Vernon to be exact. Eric graduated from Belle Vernon Area High School and the United States Naval Academy. Eric served as an infantry officer in the United States Marine Corps. 

Eric deployed three times as a Marine and on his final tour, an incredible experience in Helmand Province, Afghanistan, was wounded during combat action by stepping on an IED.  

That’s where this story really begins…

Eric suffered the amputation of his right leg below the knee, a life-changing opportunity that began his next journey. Yes…opportunity.

Lying in a hospital bed, recovering from the amputation, inspiration hit him hard. Eric made a promise to himself to run an Ironman Triathlon. 

On his journey from that hospital bed in southern California to the finish line in Kona Hawaii, he realized that the challenge and adversity he was up against and the practical techniques he used to reach the finish line could be used against the challenges we all entertain. 

He now travels the country speaking to and inspiring people to embrace their challenges. 

Our guest for Episode 99 is Christine Brookins of Oakbridge Advisor Group and Outspoken. Christine was introduced to us by our good friend Melissa Migliaro.

During her over 30-year career in financial services, Christine has filled many roles.  As a licensed insurance agent, registered representative, and investment adviser representative, Christine offers a wide array of products and services to small businesses, individuals and families.  

These include retirement accumulation and distribution, estate and education strategies, and a focus on planning for people with Special Needs.  After 20+ years focusing on operations and supervision, to better serve her clients, Christine joined Securities America, Inc. and formed Oakbridge Advisor Group.

Christine is passionate about enhancing the lives of individuals with special needs.  She likes to pay-it-forward by connecting families to resources in her network.  One of the ways she does this is by presenting a monthly virtual speaker series.

As a mother, and professional, Christine Brookins brings her lived experience and specialized training to her efforts serving the disability community.  Christine is mom to an adult son with multiple disabilities. She has been in the trenches and learned the ropes of speaking up, searching for resources, and pursuing appropriate strategies for him.  

Life is tough enough. No one should have to re-invent the wheel.  Christine shares what she has learned.  She is passionate about enhancing the lives of individuals with special needs.  Whether she is coaching Special Olympics, presenting her monthly speaker series, Connecting Our Community, or otherwise engaging with community partners, you will find Christine constantly learning, sharing and supporting individuals with disabilities.

Christine launched Outspoken to give a voice to those who may not be heard.  Through speaking engagements, workshops, family coaching and individual support, Outspoken provides education around, and advocacy for, members of the disability community.  

As always, the visually inclined can catch it on YouTube, or listen in on Spotify or your favorite podcast platform.

Our guest for Episode 98 is Tracy Montarti, an award-winning photographer, educator and the founder and creative force behind Villa Montarti, a boutique portrait studio that creates custom portrait experiences for dynamic midlife women and the people they love. 

A California native, she spent two years in Poland with the Peace Corps during the 90s before moving to Pittsburgh for graduate
school, where she received fellowships at Duquesne and CMU. She met her husband during her studies and made Pittsburgh her home.

As a long-time family portrait photographer and a woman over 50, Tracy is dedicated to empowering midlife women and helping them create lasting legacies. Her 50 over50 Project photographing 50 women over 50 years old has found an enthusiastic audience and created a community of dynamic women who are excited about
embarking on their second act. 

Tracy's passion for helping midlife women through portraits stems from her years of experience in portrait photography, education, community development, and women's networking organizations. 

The 50over50 Project focuses on the strength, wisdom, and beauty of women who are over 50 and celebrates their stories. Having a beautiful portrait is just the beginning – the opportunity to share their stories is the focus. Montarti is creating a magazine that will include all 50 women, their portrait, and their story.

As always, the visually inclined can catch it on YouTube, or listen in on Spotify or your favorite podcast platform.

Our guest for Episode 97 is Marta Sauret Greca, the CEO of MEDIA – The Creative Agency, a marketing and pr agency that provides an entire team of creatives to business owners with missions to serve and heal the world. 
 
Marta has been named “Woman Business Leader of the Year.” Her book, The Minimalist Method: The Emerging Entrepreneur’s Guide to Peace and Prosperity, is a #1 bestseller. She has been featured in national media outlets like KDKA, WPXI, The Today Show Blog, and Inspiring Lives Magazine. 
 
With over ten years of marketing experience, Marta generates her clients millions of dollars a year but more importantly thousands of free hours to do whatever they love to do instead of feeling stuck doing things in their business they really don’t want to be doing. She leads with passion and teaches lessons through humor, launching her clients and listeners alike into life-long success. 
 
Marta was born in Rome, baptized in the Vatican by the Pope, and emigrated from Europe to the USA at 9 years old…not speaking a word of English. 

Today Marta is fluent in English, as well as Italian and French and is a dual citizen of both Italy and France. She takes pride in having created a business that provides careers for many creatives.
 
Her favorite thing to do in the entire world is be a present for her family, most importantly, her six kids…soon to be seven. 
 
You can book Marta as a speaker, influencer, spokesperson, and consultant to help you educate and motivate and inspire your audiences.

As always, the visually inclined can catch it on YouTube, or listen in on Spotify or your favorite podcast platform.

Our guest for Episode 96 is Davis Slagle is the Vice President of BeeGraphix, a thriving business located in Fredericktown , PA nestled just south of Pittsburgh. 

He resides nearby with his beloved wife Chelsea and their delightful twins, Dex and Silver. 

What sets Davis apart is his innate ability to be an early adopter. When the pandemic swept the globe, he was among the first to bring in direct-to-film printing. From those early days, he has worked tirelessly to hone his processes and elevate the quality of his work. 

But Davis is not content to rest on his laurels. He is always looking to the future, and now he has his sights set on the latest and greatest technology: AI and automation. He believes these innovations have the power to transform his business, and he is committed to making the most of them. 

With his determination, his foresight, and his unwavering work ethic, Davis Slagle is a force to be reckoned with in the world of decorated apparel.  

As always, the visually inclined can catch it on YouTube, or listen in on Spotify or your favorite podcast platform.

Our guest for Episode 95 is Lindsey Hanlon. 

Lindsey has been a collegiate swimmer in the ultra-competitive SEC Conference. She now an entrepreneur, podcaster, and author. Oh…and she’s also a wife and mother, she and her husband, Mike, have four children. 

She has been on a journey over the last several years, beginning with joining an amazing community in a network marketing company!  During that time she has been on a path of self discovery.  Almost a catapult of new energy to life and motherhood.  

In that self discovery journey she found her true purpose in life which includes helping lead others to finding what helps them set their soul on fire.  

She has recently published a book about her journey, she is host of the Wing it, Rise Up podcast that holds 100 episodes, she enjoys sharing her heart on social media and is always looking forward to what comes next.  

As always, the visually inclined can catch it on YouTube, or listen in on Spotify or your favorite podcast platform.

Our guest for Episode 94 is Jennifer DiLucia is the host of Spill with Me Jenny D podcast.  She is a wife, mom of three beautiful children and two barking beagles.  She’s a proud Pittsburgh native.  

Jenny D was a Broadcast communications major with a Theater Arts minor from Westminster College.  That’s where she started her own Entertainment Report.

After being a stay at home mom she knew her passion was to help people talk about their stories.  She came up with this idea because she had a lot of people approaching her with their struggles and life experiences and she thought to heal is to talk about it. You just never know who else is going through the same struggles! 

Jennifer wanted to create an open forum for men and women to feel safe to express themselves and share their life experiences to help heal or have a laugh. As she says, “The best medicine is to talk about it!”

As always, the visually inclined can catch it on YouTube, or listen in on Spotify or your favorite podcast platform.

Melanie “Taylor” Bradburn has a voice that almost any Pittsburgher would recognize immediately. She is cohost of the “Bubba Show” 100.7 Star’s morning drive radio show.

A graduate of Monessen high school, and Indiana University of PA, she has never been far from her roots. 

For 28 years beginning her professional journey at WESA on the banks of the Monongahela River in Charleroi, Mel has been a mainstay in Pittsburgh media. She is also a keynote speaker and emcee. 

As Pittsburghers, we know that we must pay it forward…

Melanie’s family founded the Edward V. Monaghan Charitable Youth Foundation, a 501(c)(3) organization with the goal of providing educational and recreational opportunities for disadvantaged youth.

As always, the visually inclined can catch it on YouTube, or listen in on Spotify or your favorite podcast platform. 

Our guest for Episode 92 is Karen Scuilli. Karen’s heroic journey started with a diagnosis of parotid gland cancer in May 2012. She was left emotionally, physically, and spiritually unable to adapt to the altered self-image on the journey of survivorship. 

She experienced many changes and losses causing her to distance herself from supportive family, friends, church, and the community. She asked, “Why did this happen to me?” and “How will I move forward?” This experience has given her a unique perspective on life. 

Face2Face Healing creates this network and provides the opportunity for individuals with a life changing illness to meet and share their stories with others who understand.

Her goal for her organization is to encourage individuals, their families, healthcare professionals, and educators to come together in an innovative healing and supportive network.

Karen has spent 36 years as a nurse, case manager and clinical consultant. She helped develop the Case Management Program at Washington Hospital (PA) in 1997. She was on the Case Management Task Force under the VP and Executive Director of Patient Care Services at Washington Hospital in 1999. 

In 2006, Karen moved to Highmark as a national case manager. After a short time at Highmark, she became Supervisor for National and Western Regional Conflicts Case Management, where she led a team of 60 employees. In 2009, Karen advanced to the position of Highmark Clinical Consultant where she was responsible for analyzing large corporate accounts to establish plan-of-care solutions that improved large employer healthcare. Most recently, Karen has been utilizing her skillset as a hospice case manager. 

In addition to her clinical and administrative experience, Karen is a survivor, having gone through treatment for head and neck cancer, allowing her to understand from personal experience the needs of individuals diagnosed with a life changing disease. 

She has a master’s degree in nursing and Business focusing on Healthcare Administration. Most recently, Karen has utilized her case management and nursing skills for hospice care. 
 
As always, the visually inclined can catch it on YouTube, or listen in on Spotify or your favorite podcast platform.