As Park & Oak Restaurant celebrates three years in West Hartford, Jeff and Ryan chat with Owner/Chef David Borselle about his journey in becoming a staple restaurant in the West Hartford community. Chef David’s foray into the culinary world began on a golf course, but his growing passion led him to seek formal training both here in the U.S. and in Asti, Italy.

Learn more about Chef David’s journey, his inspirations as a chef and business owner, his passions for teaching others how to make pasta, and how he balances it all with a working family and twin toddler daughters.

Podcast Episode Chapters:

0:00 – Intro

4:45 – Chef David’s journey to become a chef 

9:12 – Off to Italy to learn and train

14:35 – Differences in Italian culinary 

17:30 – Using ingredients from local farms

21:07 – Back to the states – Ritz Carlton, Miami

24:23 – From chef to business owner 

25:35 – Staff matters

27:20 – Beyond a place to eat – pasta classes, special dinners, and more

32:15 – The inspirations behind the menu

34:15 – Balancing work and life

37:14 – Involvement in the community

40:15 – New projects?

42:57 – Chef David’s favorite We-Ha dish?

At a time of the year when friendship, togetherness, and community take a front seat during the holiday season, people are becoming more and more disconnected as human beings. According to a study by Cigna, loneliness has become an American epidemic with “One in four Americans (27 percent) rarely or never feel as though there are people who really understand them.” Brent Robertson of Fathom LLC, a leadership and future design consulting company, is tackling this issue and it has got people listening.

In this episode of the Experience We-Ha Podcast, Jeff and Ryan talk to Brent about this serious problem which is leading more and more people into depression and even suicide, and talk about what people can do to fight loneliness.

In addition, Brent and Fathom LLC host periodic Sip Sessions or open forums for people to exchange ideas and experiences about a myriad of topics that affect our community. To learn more about Sip Sessions, CLICK HERE.

Podcast Episode Chapters:

0:00 – Intro

2:00 – Introducing Brent

4:36 – The epidemic of loneliness

9:37 – Prevalence in men

11:54 – A business case for friendship

13:15 – Active disengagement at work

15:50 – Friendships matter

26:30 – Correlation between connection and our health

28:00 – The most successful drug to cure loneliness

29:22 – Sip Sessions

42:20 – Brent’s RECENT favorite We-Ha dish

In November the West Hartford Chamber of Commerce hosted its first Business & Community Showcase at the West Hartford Town Hall.  It proved to be a huge success allowing Chamber members to promote their businesses to each other and members of the community furthering the benefits of face-to-face, handshake-to-handshake networking.  Jeff and Ryan set up shop and hosted an Experience We-Ha Podcast to help showcase the members of the Chamber and get to know them a little better.

Episode chapters:

0:00 – Intro – Jeff/Ryan

2:30 – Chris Conway – Executive Director, WHCOC

12:45 – Matt Cuddy – Westfield Bank

19:11 – Billy Grant IV – Ameriprise Financial

28:40 – Nat Mardoc – Comcast Business

36:54 – Andrew Moran – Merchant Solutions

43:00 – Close/Chris Conway

In 2019, out of the 56,700 people who will be diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, 46,000 will not survive.  These are sobering numbers and Barbara Foley of the Ron Foley Foundation is here to raise awareness to help fight this deadly disease.

In this episode of the Experience We-Ha Podcast, Jeff and Ryan learn more about Barbara and about her late husband, Ron Foley. Ron was diagnosed with the disease in 2004 and passed away a year later – which inspired her to help others in need who are diagnosed and suffering from pancreatic cancer.

Listen in and learn more about Barabara’s journey and how you can get involved during World Pancreatic Cancer Awareness Month in November.

Podcast Episode Chapters:

0:00 – Intro

1:00 – Episode Prelude

4:30 – Opening

6:15 – Meet Barbara Foley and about the Ron Foley Foundation

7:45 – Pancreatic cancer statistics

10:08 – Who is Ron Foley and about Ron’s Rescue

13:45 –  Partnering with other organizations

15:45 – Advances in pancreatic cancer treatment

17:25 – Symptoms of pancreatic cancer

18:27 – Partnering with Hartford Healthcare

19:45 – Upcoming events and awareness in November

24:00 – The Foundation team

25:00 – Ron’s Run for the Roses Event

29:50 – Show us your purple

32:05 – Barbara’s favorite We-Ha dish

If we told you that you can help others in need while getting your holiday shopping done (at a discount) AND support local businesses this holiday season, would you believe it?  This is exactly what the We Care Card does and you can get yours today!

Jeff and Ryan had a chance to chat with BK&Co. co-owner and West Hartford Center Business Association Board member Barbara Karsky and Foodshare Corporate and Community Giving Manager Al Marino to talk about what’s in store for this year’s We Care Card program which runs from Nov. 7-17. 

Check back with We-Ha.com later this week for more detailed information about this year’s program.

To purchase your card today, visit the West Hartford Center Business Association website for a list of places where they are for sale (and participating businesses), or purchase a card directly online HERE.

Podcast Episode Chapters:

0:00 – Intro Barbara & Al

2:20 – How the We Care Card came to be

4:21 – How does it work?

5:38 – Keeping it local

6:20 – How it helps Foodshare and where the money goes

11:23 – Turkey Drive

16:32 – Winning the Chamber Spotlight Award

18:01 – How do you get the card?

19:40 – The deals

21:40 – Barbara and Al’s favorite We-Ha dishes