On this episode of the Life in the Carolinas podcast, Carl sits down with Don Miller, who served as the former President of Penske Racing South, alongside founding the N.C. Auto Racing Hall of Fame in Mooresville. Don takes a trip down memory lane, reflecting on the series of events that culminated in the legacy he left for the industry before retiring from Penske.
Read MoreOn this episode of the Life in the Carolinas podcast, Carl sits down with singer-songwriter Mason Via. Mason grew up in a musical household. Both his mom and dad supported his affinity for music growing up: His mother regularly took him to festivals and his father, a well-known bluegrass musician in his own right, introduced him to the genre via fiddler conventions which Mason likes to call his “stomping ground” for learning how to play bluegrass music in his youth.
Read MoreOn this episode of the Life in the Carolinas podcast, Carl sits down with illusionist, comedian, director, and producer Caleb Sigmon to discuss his journey as a performer. “There’s strength in creative people coming together around a campfire,” says Caleb. He combines his passion for storytelling with his love for the Carolinas by bringing local stories to life.
Read MoreOn this episode of the Life in the Carolinas podcast, Carl sits down with historical performer Kyle Jenks, who portrays Founding Father and fourth U.S. president James Madison.
Read MoreOn this episode of the Life in the Carolinas podcast, Carl sits down with former Navy musician Wayne Taylor. After a 21-year military career, Wayne went back to school at Berklee College of Music in Boston with ambitions to become a recording engineer.
Read MoreOn this episode of the Life in the Carolinas podcast, Carl sits down with painter and retired art educator Margaret Ferguson Carter-Martine. She is the Director of Whippoorwill Academy and Village, which she inherited from her mother, Edith Carter.
Whippoorwill’s purpose is to celebrate local and regional history, art, and period culture. To this end, the village conducts tours for out-of-towners and schoolchildren alike. Whippoorwill’s team includes specialists such as an Appalachian toy expert, a blacksmith, hearth cookers, spinners, weavers, and more
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On this episode of the Life in the Carolinas podcast, Carl sits down with four-time Grammy Award winner David Holt. David has been collecting and performing mountain music for over 50 years and had the privilege of learning from old-time greats like Bill Monroe, Doc Watson, Ralph Stanley, and others in his early days as a musician.
David is the host of the current TV series David Holt’s State of Music. David has had many TV adventures over the years and in this conversation, he shares memories from his exciting journey. It is a role he does not take for granted: Since the early 70s, he understood that TV is a powerful tool to promote different forms of music, not just to existing fans, but to those who are yet to be exposed to them, particularly younger generations.
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On this episode of the Life in the Carolinas podcast, Carl sits down with John Cooley, an Assistant Professor in Residence at the University of Connecticut. They discuss the emergence of Brood IX in North Carolina, Virginia, and West Virginia this May as well as John’s cicada mapping project and its corresponding app, Cicada Safari, which he is currently promoting.
Read MoreOn this episode of the Life in the Carolinas podcast, Carl sits down with Ted Alexander. Apart from working at the North Carolina Senate, Ted also serves as the Western Regional Director for Preservation, North Carolina. Preservation, North Carolina is a statewide nonprofit organization that has been around in some form or another for about 81 years, having first started out as the North Carolina Society for the Preservation of Antiquities in 1939. The group looks to protect, preserve, and even repurpose built environments regarded as significant to the state’s heritage. These included properties that tell rich stories about North Carolina’s history, from Gastonia's Loray Mill Village to the Bellamy Mansion in Wilmington.
Read MoreOn this episode of the Life in the Carolinas podcast, Carl sits down with Liz Parham, the Executive Director of North
Carolina Main Street Center. She works with designated Main Street communities across the state to conduct strategic planning and education programs. These initiatives, among others, are designed to increase the economic capacity of communities.
On this episode of the Life in the Carolinas podcast, Carl sits down with Andy Eversole, banjoist, global citizen, and creator of Banjo Earth.
Banjo Earth is a “world music project” that involves Andy traveling to different countries to find and collaborate with local folk musicians, ultimately producing albums and documentaries on each of these different cultures through the lens of music. “It’s sort of like Anthony Bourdain with a banjo,” says Andy.
Read MoreOn this episode of the Life in the Carolinas podcast, Carl sits down with educator and businessman Larry Biddle. His mission? To help other educators apply business principles in schools, as opposed to government programs. Asked his opinion on the ever-evolving Coronavirus pandemic, Larry refers to the power of the eagle. An Eagle Scout at age 12, Larry has since come to realize that “eagleship is soaring. Eagles soar above whatever is down there, and its wings get stronger only by rising.”
Read MoreWhen asked about his perspective on leadership after his 22-year career in the military, Bill Shilitto, executive director of the CART (Coins for Alzheimer's Research Trust) Fund, Inc, explains that stress occurs when people are brought out of their usual environment; therefore, a good leader should have systems in place to support those who they are potentially bringing into unfamiliar territory. In short, it pays to be cognizant and empathetic with other people.
Read MoreOn this episode of the Life in the Carolinas podcast, Carl sits down with Louis Jeroslow who, along with his wife Carrie and partners Nick and Jennifer White, own Elkin Creek Vineyard. Louis talks about how his influence has led to his becoming a mentor of sorts to other aspiring winemakers. He has also spoken to the media on North Carolina wine—specifically in the Yadkin Valley, which became a federally-approved American Viticultural Area in 2003.
Read MoreOn this episode of the Life in the Carolinas podcast, Carl sits down with musician William Ritter on his love for Appalachian music and culture. Having been raised by Yankee parents in the mountains, Will grew up with his “foot in both worlds”.
Read MoreMarti shares a plethora of incredible experiences in the Navy with Carl and Orlando, including his personal interactions with President Bill Clinton. Marti turned his love for the culinary arts into a profession, becoming a Navy cook. In nine years’, time, he received an opportunity to serve as a chef in the White House.
Read MoreOn this episode of the Life in the Carolinas podcast, Vance Patterson, founder of Foundation Forward, talks about his advocacy to bring the Charters of Freedom to communities across the whole United States in the form of installations—or what Vance calls “Settings”. The Burt County native is a serial entrepreneur, having started 21 companies over the years. Two of them made the list for the Inc. 500 Fastest-Growing Companies; and Vance himself twice became a finalist for Entrepreneur of the Year in the Southeast region.
Read MoreOn this episode of the Life in the Carolinas podcast, singer-songwriter Nikki Morgan talks about what led her down her musical path. Her father being a pastor, Nikki grew up in a church and was exposed almost daily to Christian and gospel music. However, while she appreciated how moving music can be, she never really created any music of her own during her formative years.
Read MoreOrlando talks about his varied career paths and social causes, from becoming a musician as a coping mechanism after surviving the 1983 Beirut bombing, to his time in the US Marine Corps, to his push to bring the deeper issues surrounding America’s troubled history with race to the masses. As diverse as these passions and initiatives are, what they all have in common is a universal emotional core that brings together communities of people.
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