Lives Radio Show With Stuart Chittenden

Author Dave Mainelli talks about his short story book collection https://www.davemainelli.com/ (How to Be Lonely) and how the stories test the limits of the human condition and our occasionally tenuous grip on a life well lived. Mainelli also shares how his writing has bridged from the truth of his own experiences with ill health to inspire some of the challenges facing his protagonists. Dave Mainelli teaches creative writing at Wayne State College and, starting in the Fall, at the University of Nebraska at Omaha. HIs short story collection, How To Be Lonely, was published by WSC Press in March of 2021. Mainelli draws from his diverse experiences in life to muse on our loneliness with a dark humor and a melancholy recipe. The stories test the limits of the human condition and Albert Camus' so called "serious problem" on whether life is worth living. His writing often delves into the American lower middle class and those living just below the veil of the American dream.

Fontenelle Forest’s Matt Darling talks about the wonders of nature and our essential human need to embrace it. Matt Darling is the executive director of https://fontenelleforest.org/ (Fontenelle Forest), one of the largest nature centers in the country. Fontenelle is made up of two properties and multiple ecosystems, 24 miles of trails, a high ropes course and 2,100 acres of forest, prairie and wetlands. Prior to this role at the Forest, he was the executive Vice President of the Omaha Community Foundation, a role in which he focused on an in-depth knowledge of all giving tools and the benefits of active philanthropy. Darling is heavily involved in organizations throughout Nebraska communities including but not limited to the Hastings College Foundation, Nebraska Land Trust, Central High School Foundation, and is a practicing Nebraska Master Naturalist.

Set jetter Robert Patterson talks about his passion for set-jetting – visiting the sites and scenes captured in movies, tv shows, and music videos – and the documentation of the many locations he captures, the scenes he recreates, the people he has met, and the experiences that he shares through his https://www.set-jetter.com/ (website). As the Executive Director of the nonprofit https://kidscan.org/ (Kids Can Community Center) in Omaha, Nebraska, Robert Patterson leads an organization driven to educate, engage, and inspire children through early childhood care and out of school experiences. Patterson is active with a number of community groups and initiatives and his commitment to community has been recognized with numerous awards. Over a decade ago, Patterson launched a blog that has now become the website Set-Jetter.com that records his passion as an avid set-jetter.

Legendary musician https://dereckhiggins.bandcamp.com/ (Dereck Higgins) is my guest in this week’s show. He talks about his life at the vanguard of musical creativity, his origins in a musical family, music as a form of spiritual expression, and his personal journey with grief and with depression through the healing power of music. Inducted into the Nebraska Music Hall of Fame in 2019, Dereck Higgins is a self taught music creator and a multi-instrumentalist, primarily known as a bass player. His award winning experience ranges from classic rock to reggae to punk to jazz to electronic to improvisation, and more. In his craft, he is dedicated to the moment of music making, listening to allow the music to speak. Some bands, past and present, that Higgins has performed with include: David Nance Mowed Sound, Digital Sex, Son Ambulance, RAF, Hotlines, InDreama, Chemicals, Norman & The Rockwells, Icky Blossoms, and many others. Higgins’ creativity extends to visual art, which he exhibits, and a deep involv

Former Nebraska State Poet Twyla Hansen declares that "poetry can save you." In the show, Hansen talks about making sense of the world and of herself through poetry, her affinity for the sacred, wild, and wondrous places around us, and how poetry can be a salvation in the face of pain and grief. Twyla Hansen was born and raised in northeast Nebraska on the farm her grandparents had purchased as immigrants from Denmark in the late 1880s. Hansen served as Nebraska’s State Poet for the term 2013-2018. Her newest book of poetry, Rock • Tree • Bird won the 2018 Willa Literary Award and the 2018 Nebraska Book Award for Poetry. She is the author of six other award-winning books of poetry and her writing has been published widely in numerous periodicals and anthologies.

Communications professor Jay Leighter shares some personal and professional perspectives on making sense of life through the practice of communication, research and insights into communication, community, and culture, including work with the Winnebago Tribe of Nebraska and the ongoing social and ecological consideration of the Nebraska Sandhills, and his own family’s efforts towards creating a sustainable home. https://www.creighton.edu/campus-directory/leighter-james-l (Jay Leighter) is an Associate Professor of Communication Studies and Director of the Sustainability Studies Program at https://www.creighton.edu/ (Creighton University). He teaches courses on communication research and the intersection of culture and communication in everyday life. His research questions how culture influences communication and how people make decisions about the community in which they live. He also teaches a course in sustainability which is modeled after Jesuit teaching practices and discernment. Most recently, Jay i

Scott Jones is the Senior Minister for https://firstcentral.org/ (First Central Congregational Church). In the show, Jones talks about his childhood aspiration to be a preacher, his faith journey, the implications of the pandemic on his ministry and personal life, coming out as a gay man within the church, life advice from his son, and more. Scott Jones grew up in a small town in Oklahoma knowing since the age of five that he wanted to be a preacher. Then at age 29, he came out as a gay man while serving as a youth minister at a Baptist church in Texas, a story that you can read in his book - Open: A Memoir of Faith, Family, and Sexuality. Since 2010 Jones has served as the Senior Minister of Omaha’s First Central Congregational Church. Jones earned a Ph.D. in philosophy from the University of Oklahoma and has taught as a lecturer in the Philosophy Department of Creighton University. Jones enjoys many activities and experiences, but the most joyful is being the father to a wonderfully

Edem Garro is a singer, songwriter, and self-taught multi-instrumentalist who performs as Edem Soul Music. In this show, Edem not only talks about the place of music in her life and the themes she shares through it, but also performs a couple of songs for us live in the studio.  Edem is a 12 times Omaha Entertainment and Arts Award nominee, a 2018 OEAA winner for Best Soul, and a 2020 and 2021 Winner for Outstanding World Music. Playing over 12 instruments including the harp, ukulele, guitar and various forms of African percussion, Edem sings in English as well as in her native tongue ‘Ga’ originating from the Ga Tribe of Ghana, West Africa. Utilizing her gifts, and philosophy of life, Edem curates performances based in the realm of sound, and how it can affect the human spirit. 

Jacob Dahlke is a clinical ethicist and the Director of the Office of Healthcare Ethics at https://www.nebraskamed.com/ (Nebraska Medicine). In this show, he talks about ethics and how they are applied in a healthcare setting, especially in the context of the pandemic and the moral injury and trauma suffered by healthcare workers and himself. Jacob also talks about his own life as an art teacher and his journey to clinical ethics, his endeavors to experience the now and to move towards a form of personal enlightenment, and his advice for facing difficult choices and dilemmas. Jacob is returning to the show as a guest: our previous conversation took place during season two of Lives just as the pandemic was accelerating in March 2020 (that podcast is available on this website). Jacob is a graduate of The Bioethics Program at Union Graduate College – Mt. Sinai School of Medicine. He has contributed to the medical ethics field in Vermont, Colorado, and at Creighton University’s Center for Health Policy and E

Karin Campbell is the Phil Willson Curator of Contemporary Art at the https://www.joslyn.org/ (Joslyn Art Museum) in Omaha. In the show, Campbell shares her first memorable encounters with art, her role as a curator in catalyzing public conversation and the emotional impact of art in and on her life. Since joining the museum in 2012, Campbell has curated several major exhibitions, including 30 Americans, Word/Play: Prints, Photographs, and Paintings by Ed Ruscha, and Sheila Hicks: Material Voices. She oversees Joslyn’s collection of postwar and contemporary art and is the principal curator for the Karen and Doug Riley Contemporary Artists Project (CAP) Gallery, the first space in the museum’s history dedicated specifically to living artists.

CEO and a fifth generation owner of Omaha Steaks, Todd Simon talks about the family legacy, leadership, the nature of the business, and how it and Todd has changed over the years. We also talk about the importance of community and lessons Todd has learned along the way.Todd Simon is a 5th Generation owner of the Omaha Steaks group of companies, currently serving as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Omaha Steaks. Simon joined Omaha Steaks more than 30 years ago after graduating from the Wharton School at the University of Pennsylvania. Omaha Steaks and the Simon family have a strong commitment to community leadership and philanthropy, and Todd Simon has been involved in shaping his family’s leadership in supporting the arts as well as social and human services agencies and programs. In 2017, he was the recipient of the Humanities Nebraska Sower Award which is presented annually to an individual who has made a significant contribution to public understanding of the arts and humanities in Nebraska. Along w

CharDale Barnes and Teddy Young are the two founders of the brand design firm Stable Gray. In the show, they share how their individual creative talents came together as entrepreneurs dedicated to building a company that adds value to their community as well as to the businesses they serve.Stable Gray was founded in 2015 by north Omaha natives, CharDale Barnes and Theardis “Teddy" Young to help small businesses build strong brands at affordable prices. After developing his creative skills early in life, Barnes went on to study and work in the fields of finance and technology. Young similarly developed his creativity early on before earning his MBA and teaching himself an array of design and content creation skills.This show, one of a year-long series, is supported in part by The Greater Omaha Chamber of Commerce.

Ashley Kuhn is the cofounder with Maranda Adams of the 100% woman owned and 100% minority owned Real Estate and Construction company, Blair Freeman. In our conversation she talks about the childhood experiences that sparked her fascination with real estate, the community-minded ethos behind Blair Freeman's work, and the business and life lessons Kuhn has learned along the way. Ashley Kuhn has spent a significant amount of time in the real estate development world while helping to start one of the now largest real estate development companies in Omaha. As Executive Vice President of White Lotus Group for 15 years, Kuhn led over $450M in development and construction. In 2018, with the full support of White Lotus Group, Kuhn stepped away to cofound Blair Freeman. Observing the differing conditions of real estate in her North Omaha Neighborhood Kuhn went on to earn her degree at the University of Nebraska at Lincoln and at Omaha, majoring in real estate and land use economics and investment finance.&nbs

Chanda Chacón is the https://www.childrensomaha.org/chanda-chacon/ (President and Chief Executive Officer of Children’s Hospital and Medical Center) in Omaha. In the show Chacon shares how a car accident as a child influenced her life and stoked a passion to serve in the healthcare field. Chacon also talks about leading an organization during the pandemic and energizing its commitment to caring for every child and for the whole child, within the hospital walls and outside. Chanda Chacón has devoted her career to pediatric health care, focused on the patients receiving care and the people and organizations providing it. Prior to joining Children’s, Chacon had progressive leadership positions at Arkansas Children’s Hospital and before that at Texas Children’s Hospital. Chacón earned undergraduate degrees in Biology and Spanish from Vanderbilt University and a Master’s Degree in Public Health Management from Yale University. She is a Fellow in the American College of Health Care Executives. Her community engagem

Jay Warren Teamer is an Omaha native who has spent her personal and professional life serving our community. In August 2020, she was appointed as the inaugural Director of Diversity and Inclusion at Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Nebraska, where she drives the diversity, equity and inclusion strategy for the company and also oversees the company’s corporate social responsibility and wellness efforts. In our conversation, Jay shares how she came into the new role, how her personal experiences inform her professional endeavors, and how her larger family context shaped who she is today and aspires to be tomorrow. Jay has worked in the non-profit/philanthropic sector for the last ten years, with previous roles at Partnership 4 Kids, United Way of the Midlands, and Mutual of Omaha. With her childhood friend, Ashlei Spivey, Jay co-founded I Be Black Girl and leads the groups’ giving circle, IBBGives. As a highly engaged community advocate, Jay has served on numerous nonprofit boards and been honored with several com

Since Lives launched in January 2017, its focus has been on authentic conversations with fascinating people covering a diverse range of issues. This summer, the show will evolve in terms of content and broadcast platform. Season three will focus on the art of living, asking questions like, what is a good life? Why are we here? How might we feel more connected? These and other big questions about how we live will be considered each week through intimate conversations with intriguing guests sharing their spiritual, philosophical, artistic, and cultural exploration of the wonders of our human experience. Listen every Sunday beginning July 3 as we delve into the practical and profound possibilities of living well.

A thread running through Dr. Jonathan Benjamin-Alvarado’s life is a desire to leave the world better, whether or not his involvement is visible to others. As well as discussing his long career as an educator, nuclear non-proliferation analyst, and community activist, we talk about inclusion, identity, his experience growing up as the son of migrant Mexican farm workers, joining the Navy, and much more. In June 2022 Dr. Jonathan Benjamin-Alvarado begins his new role as senior advisor to the chancellor and as the chief inclusion officer at Texas Christian University. He was formerly assistant vice chancellor of student success at the University of Nebraska Omaha. Benjamin-Alvarado is also the former president of the Latino Caucus in Political Science of the American Political Science Association. He additionally served as the director for the University of Nebraska Omaha's Office of Latino and Latin American Studies. Benjamin-Alvarado earned his bachelor's and master's degrees from Middlebury Institute of Inte

Billy Estes is the executive director of the historic Midwest Theater and of the Midwest Skyview Drive-in Theater in Scottsbluff, Nebraska. We talk about the historic theater and its role in the community during COVID, Billy’s love for the arts and the creative spark of Burning Man, entrepreneurship and his other life as a farmer, and much more. Billy Estes has been part of the Friends of the Midwest Theater team for 21 years starting as a technician and projectionist until he became Executive Director in 2013. Since then, he has managed three capital campaigns and is now in the middle of a major Marquee restoration project due to be completed Fall of 2022. These major projects total $1.4 million in work and fundraising. During COVID-19 Billy was responsible for pivoting the organization, offering a free pop-up outdoor screening. This has led to the opening of a permanent drive-in theater, The SkyView. When Billy is not at the theater he enjoys spending time on the tractor tending to crops on his organic far

Pam Alfrey Hernandez is the entrepreneur and leader who created https://therightreflection.com/ (The Right Reflection) in February 2015 after a distinguished and groundbreaking career at Omaha-based Woodmen Life, a non-profit financial services organization with $10 billion in assets and 1500+ employees/sales agents. We talk about her current work and the coaching needs she observes in the leaders she supports and about her role as a senior female executive in a national business organization. We also talk about the three chapters of her life, with love and loss along the way, including Pam losing her mother early to breast cancer and overcoming that in later life herself.

https://www.unomaha.edu/about-uno/chancellor/index.php (Chancellor Joanne Li) talks with me about being a maverick, her epiphany about the larger opportunities in the world, being a first generation college student and how that shapes her empathy for students today, her plans for the https://www.unomaha.edu/index.php (University of Nebraska at Omaha) as an urban college, and much more. Dr. Li is the first woman of color to serve as UNO's chancellor and the first Asian-American in the history of the University of Nebraska System to hold an executive leadership role. Originally from Hong Kong, Dr. Li is a first-generation college student, earning bachelor’s and doctoral degrees in finance from Florida State University and is a Chartered Financial Analyst. Dr. Li most recently served as dean of the College of Business at Florida International University, the nation’s fourth-largest public university, and served at other universities prior to that. She brings to UNO 15 years of progressive leadership experience i