200 Proof Life

Ginette Rhodes was a senior at The Ohio State University and President of OSU's NAACP chapter when we found her seated on a panel during a Rosa Parks remembrance event next to a New York Times best-selling author and a university professor. She spoke so eloquently about complex racial issues and shared her personal stories of growing up in St Louis in a predominantly black neighborhood before moving to a new neighborhood in which she was clearly the racial minority. While Ginette is young, her wisdom is deep and rooted in common sense. She challenges you to think hard and gives you a reason to examine your own behaviors in such an inviting way that you want to listen and learn. She's an accomplished public speaker, an academic scholar, a researcher, historian and recently had the honor of participating in the Congressional Black Caucus' Boot Camp under-representation of Congresswoman Joyce Beatty. We take on a lot of topics, and you're going to love her. Grab a beverage and get comfortable. You're not going to want to miss a word Ginette has to say. Enjoy!

This week we invited Matthew Goldstein, Founder and CEO of Besa, an organization that is re-shaping the way a city thinks about volunteering and community involvement. They are leveraging partnerships and focusing the good people are already doing in a really powerful way. Not only are they able to demonstrate their impact by the number of service hours they've tracked, but they see the services that are delivered one project at a time that make a real difference. This is truly what we're talking about when we highlight people building community around a common purpose. You're going to love Matthew and Besa. Enjoy!

Aslyne Rodriguez is the Co-Founder and CEO of EmpowerBus, an organization that strengthens the roads to social mobility by providing dignified, reliable, and on-time transportation to and from employment, education, and healthcare opportunities. They use clustering and strategic partnerships to address the transportation barriers, such as extremely long commute times, that are facing under-resourced communities in Ohio. We sat down in the 200 Proof Life studio to chat with Aslyne about EmpowerBus and her journey as an entrepreneur that led her to this point, and we were really impressed with her approach to living and impacting the communities of which she's a part. You're going to love her sense of humor and sense of purpose, and her approach to serving her country really resonated with us. She's a game changer for sure! Enjoy!

There are some people who make the world better by being in it. They envision what the world could be and make it happen. Quintel Wilson is one of those people. As coach of the Lima Gators, Quin is leading the effort to give boys and young men in his town options, mentors and hope. He uses sports to teach them life skills, build their character and change the trajectory of their lives. We sat down in the 200 Proof Life studio to chat with him about the impact of the programs, the successes of the participants and the challenges he and other organizers face and overcome to change the world they live in. You're going to love his story! Enjoy!

For this episode, we're trying something new. We usually tell the story of a guest. But for this episode, our guest is an expert who is helping us tell a much needed story - a story of the growing concern of a mental health crisis. We are talking about suicide prevention. Bernard Williams is the Coordinator of Suicide Prevention for the Veteran's Health Administration, and he joined us to help inform us and our listeners about the resources available to us, things we can watch out for with our friends and family, and things we should avoid if we find ourselves talking to someone who has had or is having thoughts of suicide. We need to all be better prepared and able to support those around us who are struggling with mental health issues, and Bernard really helped us with tangible actions we can take. We'll also share some statistics that will blow your mind. It's a serious topic, but so important. We hope you find something helpful as you listen.