Host Michelle Beck welcomes Jacobsen Valentine, Executive Director of Feed The Mass in Portland, Oregon.

Feed The Mass aims to empower and connect the community through food. Feed The Mass promotes wellness and nutrition while serving nutritious meals to vulnerable neighbors by turning donated food into high-quality meals.

Jacobsen Valentine was born in Honolulu Hawaii and moved to Portland at age 11. He began his culinary adventure as a kid learning from his Grandmother who became a chef in her 40’s. Food is Jacobsen’s love language, and he started his career in cooking at age 20. He created Feed the Mass in 2016 as a cooking school to teach kids and adults how to cook for themselves. He then started the FED Program, a food insecurity meal program, when the 2020 pandemic started. This program serves tens of thousands of meals yearly to people throughout the Portland metro area.

For today's "Happy Hour" we are talking about Thai Iced Tea!

“We're just handing out meals out this giant door and people were lined up down the street and giving drive-by meals. People were bicycling meals out to people that were in need. And it just felt good. It felt right. Being able to just cook a meal and show that 'Hey, you know, this is made with love. We care about you. We're here with you. We're going through this together.'" – Jacobsen Valentine, Executive Director.

You can find out more at www.feedthemass.org to learn more and follow on https://www.instagram.com/feedthemass/  and https://www.facebook.com/feedthemass. 

Sign up to volunteer at https://signup.com/client/invitation2/secure/756997441282134023/false#/invitation 

For more information – www.werisebyliftingeachother.com and follow Michelle on social media: IG: RiseByLiftingEachOther and everywhere else @ We Rise By Lifting Each Other.  Just look for the phoenix! Michelle can also be found on IG: INeverLikedPink
 
The goal of the “We Rise By Lifting Each Other” podcast is to highlight good in the world by speaking with individuals and organizations who help others heal beyond adversity by rising together.

Moments by Sarah Jansen - https://soundcloud.com/sarahjansenmusic Licensed under: CC-BY 3.0 Unported https://bit.ly/2Htah7g Download: https://bit.ly/2Ivn5KN

Host Michelle Beck welcomes Brad Franklin, Executive Director of Every Body Athletics.

Every Body Athletics is working to create lasting impact on the physical, social, and emotional wellbeing of adults with disabilities through inclusive group exercise.

Brad founded Every Body Athletics in 2017 after seeing the need for services that focus on both the physical and social strengthening of adults with ID/DD. He received his Master’s degree in Special Education from the University of Oregon, and spent five years as a high school teacher before moving on to serve four years as the Director of another nonprofit serving people with disabilities. He has been certified in both Personal Training and Special Populations Personal Training, and considers himself a lifelong learner in the field of exercise. He firmly believes that everybody is an athlete, and that we all win when everybody is included.

Outside of EBA, Brad likes to spend time with his wife and two children, hang out with friends, and root for his teams: the Ducks, Red Sox, and Suns.

For today's "Happy Hour" we are highlighting the Pina Colada, the favorite drink at all-inclusive resorts!

“Disability doesn't mean inability. The more that we are including people with disabilities, the more that we realize this is a mutually beneficial thing." – Brad Franklin, Executive Director, Every Body Athletics.
 
 You can find more about Every Body Athletics at https://www.everybodyathletics.com and follow on social media https://www.instagram.com/everybodyathletics/ and https://www.facebook.com/everybodyathletics.

 For more information – www.werisebyliftingeachother.com and follow Michelle on social media: IG: RiseByLiftingEachOther and everywhere else @ We Rise By Lifting Each Other.  Just look for the phoenix! Michelle can also be found on IG: INeverLikedPink
 
The goal of the “We Rise By Lifting Each Other” podcast is to highlight good in the world by speaking with individuals and organizations who help others heal beyond adversity by rising together.

Moments by Sarah Jansen - https://soundcloud.com/sarahjansenmusic Licensed under: CC-BY 3.0 Unported https://bit.ly/2Htah7g Download: https://bit.ly/2Ivn5KN

 
Host Michelle Beck welcomes Lindsay McDonnell, Executive Director of Project Lemonade, based in Portland, Oregon.

Since 2012, Project Lemonade has provided high-quality services to meet the needs of the foster youth community. Our programming now includes the flagship Project Lemonade Store, internships, programs for teens aging out of care, and funding opportunities that allow youth to pursue their dreams. 

Lindsay McDonnell is a passionate nonprofit leader who began her involvement with Project Lemonade as a volunteer in 2016. Lindsay holds a BS in Systems Engineering from the University of Virginia and Graduate Certificate in Nonprofit Management from Portland State University. Lindsay is also involved with the foster youth community as a CASA volunteer.

For today's "Happy Hour" we are highlighting lemonade, of course!

“From the beginning, we've really grounded ourselves in meeting the needs and centering foster youth and having a very high quality selection in that these are clothes that anyone in the community would feel comfortable bringing their own child to, that these children are not less than other youth and they deserve the same access to the same things." – Lindsay McDonnell, Executive Director.
 
 You can find more about Project Lemonade at www.projectlemonadepdx.org and follow on https://www.instagram.com/projectlemonadepdx/ and https://www.facebook.com/ProjectLemonadePDX.

For more information – www.werisebyliftingeachother.com and follow Michelle on social media at https://www.instagram.com/risebyliftingeachother/ and everywhere else @ We Rise By Lifting Each Other.  Just look for the phoenix! Michelle can also be found at https://www.instagram.com/ineverlikedpink/.
 
The goal of the “We Rise By Lifting Each Other” podcast is to highlight good in the world by speaking with individuals and organizations who help others heal beyond adversity by rising together.

Moments by Sarah Jansen - https://soundcloud.com/sarahjansenmusic Licensed under: CC-BY 3.0 Unported https://bit.ly/2Htah7g Download: https://bit.ly/2Ivn5KN

Host Michelle Beck welcomes MESO – Micro Enterprise Services of Oregon, Cobi Lewis – CEO/Executive Director & Joshua Jacobs – Business Development Manager. MESO’s mission is to elevate under-resourced and excluded entrepreneurs to build resilience, equity and thriving communities through access to capital tailored business assistance and education.

Cobi Lewis has earned a reputation as a dynamic force in the realms of community development and corporate responsibility. As the executive director and CEO of Micro Enterprise Services of Oregon (MESO), she leads the nonprofit’s work to provide historically underserved entrepreneurs in Oregon and Southwest with access to capital, technical assistance, and education to empower them to launch small businesses. In addition to recently being named one of the Portland Business Journal’s Top Executives for 2024, Cobi serves on the board of directors of the National Association of Minority Contractors – Oregon and Portland Housing Center and is a member of the Leadership Council of the Albina Vision Trust.

Joshua Jacobs is the Business Development Manager for Micro Enterprise Services of Oregon (MESO) and their satellite offices. In this role, Joshua oversees a team of business advisors who work with small business owners to develop their strengths, improve their businesses, accomplish their goals, and become successful. Joshua has also been a successful entrepreneur himself. He has run an IT consulting business, a marketing consulting business, an event production and promotion company, and now runs his own business which offers DJ and event services.

For today's "Happy Hour" we are learning about Guinness Beers.

“Our technical assistance, which is our one-on-one advising, that is free for any business that comes to MESO. We offer 10 free one-hour sessions through that process. That's our short-term, what we call, “Engage” program.” – Joshua Jacobs
 
 You can find more MESO at www.mesopdx.org and follow at https://www.instagram.com/mesopdx/ and https://www.facebook.com/MESOPDX.

 
For more information – www.werisebyliftingeachother.com and follow Michelle on social media: IG: RiseByLiftingEachOther and everywhere else @ We Rise By Lifting Each Other.  Just look for the phoenix! Michelle can also be found on IG: INeverLikedPink

Moments by Sarah Jansen - https://soundcloud.com/sarahjansenmusic Licensed under: CC-BY 3.0 Unported https://bit.ly/2Htah7g Download: https://bit.ly/2Ivn5KN

Host Michelle Beck welcomes Rachel “Rae” Crowder to discuss the company she founded, Black Health Lit.

Black Health Lit’s mission is to ignite a movement that promotes better health for Black Americans through culturally specific health equity programming. With a vision of creating a world where everyone has a fair and just opportunity to attain their highest level of health.

Rachel “Rae” Crowder is the Founder of Black Health Lit and CEO and Principal Consultant of Raette Consulting. Inspired by the events of 2020 to be a part of the change, Rachel founded Black Health Lit, a social enterprise empowering individuals with health resources they need. Through podcasts and online tools, she is using her platform to connect individuals with the information necessary to be healthy - mentally, spiritually, and physically. A breast cancer survivor, daughter, sister, and cousin, she recently moved into the consulting space, taking previous work experiences and her own public health knowledge to empower others.

For today's "Happy Hour" we are learning about the Peach Bellini.

“My goal is that hopefully through Black Health Lit, Black Americans and healthcare providers will be able to support Black Americans . . . Ultimately Black Americans will be able to go into the health system and be able to navigate it and understand just like we understand our favorite songs on the radio.” Rae Crowder.
 
You can find more Rae and Black Health Lit at https://www.blackhealthlit.org/ and follow on social media @ https://www.instagram.com/blackhealthlit/ and https://www.facebook.com/BlackHealthLit .

 For more information – www.werisebyliftingeachother.com and follow Michelle on social media: IG: RiseByLiftingEachOther and everywhere else @ We Rise By Lifting Each Other.  Just look for the phoenix! Michelle can also be found on IG: INeverLikedPink
 
The goal of the “We Rise By Lifting Each Other” podcast is to highlight good in the world by speaking with individuals and organizations who help others heal beyond adversity by rising together.

Moments by Sarah Jansen - https://soundcloud.com/sarahjansenmusic Licensed under: CC-BY 3.0 Unported https://bit.ly/2Htah7g Download: https://bit.ly/2Ivn5KN

In this episode, Host Michelle Beck shares more about who she is, her book, I Never Liked Pink: Lessons Cancer Taught Me, why she started this podcast and the next step of her career on stage to help others Kick Trauma to the Curb!

For today's "Happy Hour" we are talking about Michelle’s biggest vice: Diet Coke.

“Once you find a community and an organization like I did [Breast Friends] that will help you heal together through whatever adversity you're going through, it is completely life-changing." Michelle Beck.

For more information – www.werisebyliftingeachother.com and follow Michelle on social media: IG: RiseByLiftingEachOther and everywhere else @ We Rise By Lifting Each Other.  Just look for the phoenix! Michelle can also be found on IG: INeverLikedPink
 
The goal of the “We Rise By Lifting Each Other” podcast is to highlight good in the world by speaking with individuals and organizations who help others heal beyond adversity by rising together.

Moments by Sarah Jansen - https://soundcloud.com/sarahjansenmusic Licensed under: CC-BY 3.0 Unported https://bit.ly/2Htah7g Download: https://bit.ly/2Ivn5KN

Host Michelle Beck welcomes Robert Washington-Vaughns to discuss how the Black Men Flower Project celebrates the Power of Flowers!

Black Men Flower Project is a non-profit program focused on the celebration and well-being of Black men through art, nature, and community. Black men nominate one another to receive professional floral arrangements in select cities across the U.S. Every arrangement is artistically crafted and uniquely prepared for each recipient by a curated list of florists.

The Black Men Flower Project is dedicated to fostering mental health and well-being within the Black community. Through extensive research and personal experiences, they have discovered the transformative effects of giving flowers to Black men.

For today's "Happy Hour" we are highlighting the whiskey Old-Fashioned.

“We have an obligation in every which way to like take our privilege and how can we ship that down to the next person that has maybe less than us." – Robert Washington-Vaughns, Founder, Black Men Flower Project.
 
 You can find more Black Men Flower Project at https://blackmenflowerproject.org/ and https://www.instagram.com/blackmenflowerproject/

 For more information – www.werisebyliftingeachother.com and follow Michelle on social media: IG: RiseByLiftingEachOther and everywhere else @ We Rise By Lifting Each Other.  Just look for the phoenix! Michelle can also be found on IG: INeverLikedPink
 
The goal of the “We Rise By Lifting Each Other” podcast is to highlight good in the world by speaking with individuals and organizations who help others heal beyond adversity by rising together.

Moments by Sarah Jansen - https://soundcloud.com/sarahjansenmusic Licensed under: CC-BY 3.0 Unported https://bit.ly/2Htah7g Download: https://bit.ly/2Ivn5KN

In this episode, Host Michelle Beck looks back at her major accomplishments for 2023 and does a quick recap of each of the 23 episodes of 'We Rise By Lifting Each Other.'

In honor of the episode's New Year's Eve release, the Happy Hour cocktail is a Kir Royale!

For more information – www.werisebyliftingeachother.com and follow Michelle on social media: IG: RiseByLiftingEachOther and everywhere else @ We Rise By Lifting Each Other.  Just look for the phoenix! Michelle can also be found on IG: INeverLikedPink
 
The goal of the “We Rise By Lifting Each Other” podcast is to highlight good in the world by speaking with individuals and organizations who help others heal beyond adversity by rising together.

Moments by Sarah Jansen - https://soundcloud.com/sarahjansenmusic Licensed under: CC-BY 3.0 Unported https://bit.ly/2Htah7g Download: https://bit.ly/2Ivn5KN

Host Michelle Beck welcomes Erik Conradson, Founder and Executive Director of Courage Incorporated, focused on helping individuals and veterans with physical disabilities and those dealing with chronic or terminal illness participate in outdoor activities. 

They host excursions that are centered around camping, fishing, boating, canoe/kayaking, ice fishing, hiking, and outdoor cooking.  It is their goal to help their clients achieve feelings of accomplishment and self-confidence by allowing them to challenge themselves in nature. Excursions free of charge for all of the Courage Incorporated participants.

Erik was born in Ishpeming, MI and grew up enjoying the beautiful Upper Peninsula outdoors. Erik is married with two kids and now lives in Appleton, WI, but don’t let that fool you though; he’s still a Yooper through and through. He is passionate about fishing, camping, and helping others experience what nature has to offer. Since starting Courage Incorporated in 2015, he’s been enjoying seeing the company grow and help more and more people.

For today's "Happy Hour" we are highlighting the unofficial drink of Michigan, the Hummer.

“It's one of those things where it's hard to put into words because when you get people out there and you actually see them open up and decide for themselves . . . I'm not gonna be defined by what I thought I was going to be defined as." – Erik Conradson.
 
 You can find more Courage Incorporated, Erik and his team at https://www.courageincorporated.org/ and follow at https://www.facebook.com/CourageIncorp/.

 For more information – www.werisebyliftingeachother.com and follow Michelle on social media: IG: RiseByLiftingEachOther and everywhere else @ We Rise By Lifting Each Other.  Just look for the phoenix! Michelle can also be found on IG: INeverLikedPink
 
The goal of the “We Rise By Lifting Each Other” podcast is to highlight good in the world by speaking with individuals and organizations who help others heal beyond adversity by rising together.

Moments by Sarah Jansen - https://soundcloud.com/sarahjansenmusic Licensed under: CC-BY 3.0 Unported https://bit.ly/2Htah7g Download: https://bit.ly/2Ivn5KN

Host Michelle Beck welcomes Mike Ball, Executive Director, & Gretchen Pleuss, Associate Director, to talk about Lost Voices – Saving Lives, One Song at a Time.

Lost Voices is an organization founded to bring life-changing creative programs to kids who are recovering from severe emotional trauma due to factors like abuse, neglect, violence, addiction, and human trafficking. 

Mike Ball is an author, humorist, and singer-songwriter. He received the Erma Bombeck Award for his internationally syndicated column, What I’ve Learned… So Far. He has four books in print, including the 2012 humor bestseller Banjos, Boats, and Butt Dialing and the novel, Olympus, Indiana. He’s also been also been a photographer, the president and creative director of an ad agency, a high school hockey coach, a scuba divemaster, and a nationally-competitive pairs water skier.

Gretchen Pleuss has a Master of Public Administration with experience in arts and nonprofit operations, program coordination, purchasing, accounts, constituent data management, grant writing, customer service, and communications. She is passionate about music, art, public service, equity, and environmental conservation. 

For today's "Happy Hour,” in honor of Thanksgiving, we are talking about the Holiday Punch – envision your grandmother’s punch with ice cream!

“Suddenly they're writing a song together . . . One person will say something and the other kid will say, yeah, that let's use that. And it's so it's also this really nice bonding experience that only exists in that setting." – Gretchen Pleuss, Associate Director.
 You can find more about Lost Voices at https://www.lostvoices.org/ and follow on Facebook at Lost Voices.org.

For more information – www.werisebyliftingeachother.com and follow Michelle on social media: IG: RiseByLiftingEachOther and everywhere else @ We Rise By Lifting Each Other.  Just look for the phoenix! Michelle can also be found on IG: INeverLikedPink
 
The goal of the “We Rise By Lifting Each Other” podcast is to highlight good in the world by speaking with individuals and organizations who help others heal beyond adversity by rising together.

Moments by Sarah Jansen - https://soundcloud.com/sarahjansenmusic Licensed under: CC-BY 3.0 Unported https://bit.ly/2Htah7g Download: https://bit.ly/2Ivn5KN