Carousel of Happiness Podcast | Podcast Guru

Details

Welcome to the Carousel of Happiness Podcast! It all starts with Scott Harrison, a Vietnam veteran, who channelled his grief into art by hand-carving and restoring a 1910 Charles Looff-designed carousel that actively spins today. On the podcast, you'll hear stories about how the carousel came to be and how it found an unusual home 8,000 feet above sea level in the quirky mountain town of Nederland, Colorado. The Carousel of Happiness Podcast is your weekly hub of positivity where we'll spin yarns and tell tales about the carousel itself, the people who keep it spinning, and the over 1 million visitors who are fundamentally changed as a result of their visit. Not sure how a $3 ride ticket can change your life? We'll show you how on the podcast. In the meantime, take care. Be well. And don't delay joy. We'll see you next time around.

Recent Episodes

The Wood Wept | Ep. 65

Today is the one year anniversary of the terrible fire that destroyed the Caribou Village Shopping Center, and about 20 local businesses. It very nearly took the carousel too. We’ll hear what happened that night from the perspective of some of the people closest to the carousel, including its carver Scott Harrision and carousel operator and poet Burt Rashbaum. As you’ll hear, they had front row seats, in addition to important roles to play. Do you have a story to share? Leave us a messa...

20 MIN

Mountain Strong Families with Betsy Epp | Ep. 64

Fall is in the air and we’re going back to school. Instead of numbers and ABCs, we’re learning about emotions, empathy, about the transformative power of parenting, and how the Carousel of Happiness has an important role to play as "third space" in our community. Our guest is Betsy Epp, my colleague, friend, and parenting mentor. Betsy is the Social Emotional Learning Coordinator at New Explorers Learning Center, Nederland Elementary School, and across our community. You can learn more about ...

34 MIN

Painting & Spinning with CB Miller | Ep. 63

Not only is CB Miller tied as the youngest paid operator of the Carousel of Happiness... they also hosted our first Paint & Spin. CB and I discussed what it was like to grow up alongside the carousel, how it has impacted their art, the mining history of Nederland, and how it all connects to animals, the environment, and AI. Do you have a story to share? Leave us a message! Support the show The Carousel of Happiness is a nonprofit arts & culture organization dedicated to inspirin...

32 MIN

Songwriting & Catharsis | Ep. 62

Today, we’ll talk to Sarah Bishop, the carousel’s assistant director and my sometimes collaborator – about how the process of writing and playing songs has helped us both get through challenging passages in our life. You can find more of Sarah's music at https://sarahbankermusic.com/ You can find some of Nick and Josh's music at https://wearenewborn.bandcamp.com/ and https://lamplightlamplight.bandcamp.com/ We would be honored if you would share a personal story of songwriting and catharsis w...

38 MIN

The Music Box with Scott Harrison | Ep. 61

Scott Harrison, the carver and founder of The Carousel of Happiness, talk about the similarities between music boxes and carousels, how the former helped Scott to relax, reboot, and renew – and how he hopes the latter can do the same for others. You can find Scott’s books, the “Carousel Soul” and “Haiku Poetry” at The Carousel of Happiness gift shop, or on our website, linked here: https://carouselofhappiness.org/product-category/books/ After that, Sarah and I catch up on our summers and the ...

28 MIN