Changemakers

Host Jeremy C. Park talks with ChangeMakers, Tom and Ellen Harris, Co-Founders of The Jordan Elizabeth Harris Foundation, who share their story of meeting in college, living in Massachusetts and moving to Texas, starting their family, getting involved in the community and playing an important role in the development of Ft. Worth with Tom’s role as an executive with Hillwood, A Perot Company. Tom and Ellen talk about their family and about launching the foundation that is working to prevent suicide, eliminate stigma, and provide hope to people struggling with depression.The Jordan Elizabeth Harris Foundation, which is based in Ft. Worth, Texas, was created to honor the life of their daughter, who was lost to suicide on March 27, 2012. Jordan was a young woman who touched countless people with her extraordinary love, compassion and kindness, and the foundation carries forward her passion of helping those in need by focusing on research and awareness related to depression and suicide.During the interview, Tom an

Host Jeremy C. Park talks with Michael Graber, Managing Partner of Epic Pivot, who shares his story of growing up in Memphis, Tennessee with both mother and father being entrepreneurs and being surrounded by the musical influences of the city, and how those experiences helped shape his future. During the interview, Michael talks about his work and efforts with Epic Pivot, a transformation, insights, innovation, and strategy boutique on a mission to make business a force of good in the world. He talks about their process, why the transformation to being purpose-driven is so important, and how it can drive new levels of growth for both the organization and the community. The interview covers important trends, Conscious Capitalism, lessons learned, advice for entrepreneurs, and much more.  Visit www.epicpivot.com to learn more. About Michael Graber: Michael Graber is the founder and managing partner of Epic Pivot, a transformation, insights, innovation, and strategy boutique in Memphis. Michael has years of expe

During the interview, Beverly talks about her time with Holiday Inn Worldwide and how it paved the way for her to grow into her role as a corporate executive, sharpening her skills for marketing, branding, communication, and leadership training and development. She talks about becoming an entrepreneur and small business owner with her husband, and then her stepping into the role of President of The National Civil Rights Museum, where she raised $43M during her tenure, which included the completion of an expansion of the Museum ($11M) and capital and endowment campaign ($32M). This capital campaign elevated the museum to world class status. She then talks about stepping into the role as President and CEO of The Greater Memphis Chamber, at a pivotal point in the organization, and how she immediately focused on alignment around creating a positive environment for business and community growth, economic development, and workforce development and readiness. She shares some of the important lessons learned from her

About Dr. Elizabeth Brands: Elizabeth R. Brands, Ed.D., is a dedicated, strategic, and passionate leader. She brings a wealth of organizational leadership experience from occupying key roles in education institutions, nonprofits, and foundations across the region. Elizabeth’s early career experience as a classroom teacher informed her approach that successful community investment must coordinate systems that children and families intersect with to spark impact and demonstrate empathy and respect for others’ lived experiences. As a foundation program officer, she evaluated community organizations to inform allocation of resources and coordinated diverse groups of local, state, and regional stakeholders to develop systems-level change. In her role as Executive Director of Reading Partners in Oklahoma, Elizabeth oversaw a high growth organization, driving towards common city-wide goals and leading the organization to triple in scale within four years. Under her leadership, she created and implemented a city-wide

During the interview, Kris describes how she left her hometown in Wisconsin and became an entrepreneur at an early age, how the military helped prepare her for success, how she shattered glass ceilings and led a global luxury hotel company, some of the leadership lessons learned while leading the global company Rock Springs Retreat Center was founded by Kris Intress, a mother, entrepreneur, Army Reservist, and former CEO of a global luxury hotel company. Kris started working in her teens. By 17, she was already an entrepreneur, running a restaurant, teaching French, and working several jobs. After a few years she followed the family tradition of military service. She joined the Army with the goal of getting into healthcare through the Army’s pharmacy program. She later met her son’s father in Scotland and together they opened several restaurants and nightclubs. When she returned to the United States to raise her son, she went back to school to complete her college degree, which led to an interest in theater.

Deb is an acclaimed communicator, connector, and strategist adept at uncovering potential in individuals and groups, strengthening their abilities to optimize their impact within their organization and the community. Deb believes that disrupters talking across industries and interests to collectively impact social challenges will cause deep sustainable change. Her work experiences here and abroad have found her in the company of disrupters changing the world in areas including education, addiction recovery, social justice, human rights, healthcare, housing insecurity, and animal rights.​Deb has served on local, regional, and international Boards of Directors of social impact organizations and education institutions. These experiences impact her ability to develop leaders, create strategic plans, and strengthen an organization’s operational effectiveness.​Deb is the host of The Macfarlan Group’s podcast 3 a.m. What’s Keeping You Up at Night? As host, Deb interviews leaders in the social impact ecosystem around

During the interview, Dwania talks about her parents, the important role her mother and women played in the Civil Rights Movement, seeing a cross burning in their yard, and how she approaches healing and leading with love to take the lessons of her past to become a spark for building community and connectedness through her efforts today with The Memphis 13 Foundation.Visit https://thememphis13.com to learn more about The Memphis 13 Foundation and http://dwaniakyles.com to learn more about Dwania Kyles. About Dwania Kyles:Dwania Kyles, Civil Rights Advocate, Wellness Consultant and Breath Coach, is an alum of The Memphis 13, subject of the highly touted documentary by the same name chronicling the desegregation of Memphis City Public Schools in 1961 by thirteen, 5 and 6-year-old girls and boys, (dubbed “the smallest pioneers” of the Civil Rights Movement), in answer to the 1954 landmark decision by the U. S. Supreme Court on Brown v. Board of Education.Ms. Kyles is also the eldest daughter of pioneer civil-rig

Visit www.slingshotmemphis.org to learn more. About Jared Barnett:Jared joined Slingshot Memphis in October 2019. Prior to Slingshot, Jared worked at McKinsey & Company for six years. Several years of his career were based in Sub-Saharan Africa, including in South Africa with McKinsey, in Ghana as CEO of a manufacturing company and VP of a financial advisory firm, and in Kenya working in private equity. He brings experience with disruptive innovation, strategic planning, organization building, and operational efficiency to Slingshot. Jared holds a Masters in Business Administration with Honors from the University of Chicago Booth School of Business and a Bachelor of Science in Accounting with a minor in Statistics from Brigham Young University.

During the interview, Heidi discusses her roots in Montana, moving to Texas and what inspired her to join The Cowtown Marathon. She talks about the business of hosting marathons, the mindset of event production and tips for success, starting a nonprofit to focus on helping youth and encouraging health and fitness, some of the secrets to their success and growth over the years, tips for fundraising and marketing, and much more. About Heidi Swartz:Heidi Swartz is Executive Director of The Cowtown Marathon in Fort Worth, Texas. With Heidi’s direction the event has nearly tripled in size since 2004, with over 25,000 participants and seven races taking place the last weekend in February. In 2006, she created The Cowtown Marathon's associated non-profit organization, C.A.L.F. (Children's Activities for Life and Fitness), which in the past 12 years has provided over 40,000 pairs of running shoes to disadvantaged children along with greatly reduced entry fees for The Cowtown Kids 5K Run.By bringing fitness awareness

About Jen Alessandra: Jen Alessandra joined Frontdoor, Inc. in March 2019 as senior vice president and chief people officer. Alessandra brings significant depth and breadth of experience as an HR leader in both public and private companies, has an impressive track record for helping businesses and employees navigate change, and in implementing strategies that positively affect business performance. Alessandra most recently served as senior vice president and chief people officer for SolarWinds, a global IT management software company based in Austin, Texas. In this role, she led HR teams in 16 countries, was a key member of the mergers and acquisitions team and created strong internal capabilities in areas such as organizational development, performance management, talent acquisition and total rewards. Before this, Alessandra held multiple HR leadership roles at Raytheon as part of its Space and Airborne Systems business, and KB Home, a $9.4 billion home building company that operates in 15 states. Alessandra

Ed also talks about forming the Gillentine Group in 2008 to focus on legacy planning and philanthropic strategies to help families have a more significant impact on the world. He shares the story of writing his book,  "Journey to Impact: A Practical Guide to Purpose-Driven Investing," and talks about some of the lessons and steps that have helped him align his values, expertise, and finances in a way that have maximized his unique impact on what really matters. He talks about hosting the podcast Journey to Impact, how listeners can embark on their own unique journeys to impact, and much more. Visit https://www.edgillentine.com to learn more.

Chris and Elaine moved from St Louis, MO to Franklin, TN in 2004 to start a church. Little did they know that in the process of pastoring a church that One Generation Away would be birthed. In 2013 One Generation Away was established and in the first year distributed 400,000 pounds of food from the back of the Whitney’s car. It has now grown to serve over 4.4 million meals to those in need all over Middle Tennessee and in 4 states with disaster relief. Chris and Elaine have a passion to see churches and organizations come together to serve our neighbors in need.In November of 2018, Chris stepped down as the pastor of a local church to focus his time with OneGenAway full time. The ministry of OneGen Away has opened many opportunities for Chris and Elaine to serve in the community and beyond.Chris and Elaine have been married for 34 years and have 3 daughters and 6 grandchildren who all live in Middle Tennessee.Learn more: https://www.onegenaway.com/about/Purchase his book: https://amzn.to/3bzPQ4N

Michael shares his story of traveling the world, how he was able to finance his adventure, some of his favorite moments, many lessons along the way, and what advice he would pass along to others who want to pursue a dream. He also talks about his next chapter with Mindful Media and how he is taking the experiences learned working with media companies to now help organizations gain valuable exposure for their efforts to make a difference. Visit www.mindfulmediapr.com to learn more about Michael Graziano and Mindful Media.Listen / Watch more positive media at www.cityCURRENT.com

During the interview, Rusty talks about growing up in Texas, graduating from the University of North Texas and getting into the insurance business. He discusses being named President and CEO of Higginbotham in 1989 at the age of 27, and implementing the firm’s defining “single source” service model whereby customers can obtain all their insurance and financial services under one roof, as well as Higginbotham’s employee ownership structure, which aligns employees’ interests in the success of the firm.  Rusty shares some lessons learned and helpful advice he's received during his career, the importance of community engagement and volunteerism, as well as some family highlights, and much more. Visit www.higginbotham.net to learn more.

From challenging stereotypes of girls in her Catholic school more than 40 years ago, to her first job after college convincing nonprofits to engage with youth volunteers, or her role as board chair of a global nonprofit transforming the way we do international development, Nancy has experienced the challenges of leading big change within established organizations. During the interview, Nancy talks about these experiences, lessons learned, how to become a credible leader of change, the three types of resistance to change and how to overcome them, how to be a goal getter not just a goal setter, and much more. Nancy has worked in philanthropy for Steve and Jean Case's family foundation, as a federal government program officer with the Corporation for National & Community Service, and as a global consultant for APCO Worldwide, where she designed and implemented sustainability, community engagement and philanthropic strategies for companies such as UPS and Johnson Controls, and nonprofit organizations includin

Recently, Joel co-founded Kosan, a travel clothing company. The company launched one of the most successful Kickstarter apparel products of all time - reaching over $1M in sales in 30 days. He appeared on CBC's hit show Dragon's Den, was one of the inaugural BCBusiness 30 Under 30 entrepreneurs and is also an author and award-winning documentary filmmaker. As a former world-class runner, Joel represented Canada at the World Youth Championships. He competed at the NCAA 1 level and has coached runners individually and operated intensive boot camps. Due to an Achilles injury, Joel is no longer a serious long-distance runner; however, he maintains a vigorous daily exercise regimen, which he shares on Instagram and his blog. In his book, "Getting Naked," Joel shares the valuable lessons learned in his first startup - Naked. He discusses the good and the bad of entrepreneurship, as well as invaluable steps to start your first business. During this interview, Joel talks about his childhood, starting Naked, some of t

Joseph A. Michelli, Ph.D., C.S.P., is an internationally sought-after speaker, author, and organizational consultant who transfers his knowledge of exceptional business practices in ways that develop joyful and productive workplaces with a focus on customer experience. His insights encourage leaders and frontline workers to grow and invest passionately in all aspects of their lives.Dr. Michelli is a Wall Street Journal, USA Today, Publishers Weekly, Nielson BookScan, and New York Times #1 bestselling author. His latest book is Stronger Through Adversity: World-Class Leaders Share Pandemic-Tested Lessons on Thriving During the Toughest Challenges. Joseph’s other titles include The Airbnb Way: 5 Leadership Lessons for Igniting Growth through Loyalty, Community, and Belonging, Driven to Delight: Delivering World-Class Customer Experience the Mercedes-Benz Way,Leading The Starbucks Way: 5 Principles for Connecting with Your Customer, Your Products, and Your People, The Zappos Experience: 5 Principles to Inspire E

Matine now serves as Executive Director of EEqual, a youth-led nonprofit, raising $100,000+ for students in need. Matine has been featured in People Magazine, ABC News, and has won the President’s Volunteer Service Award three times. EEqual’s mission is to level the playing field for students in poverty. The organization provides scholarships and micro-grants to homeless students to go to college.EEqual has a team of over 50 passionate leaders, who have engaged thousands into its programs.Visit www.EEqual.org to learn more and follow Matine on social media at @MatineKhalighi.The ChangeMakers Podcast is hosted by Jeremy C. Park and produced by cityCURRENT powered by Lipscomb & Pitts Insurance.

His teaching career spans nearly 40 years and includes instruction in English, speech and drama, theater arts, and speech communications. Since his retirement in 2016, Dr. Sennett stays busy writing, speaking, serving on the boards of several non-profits, and offering encouragement and expertise to those in need.  HERB'S BACKGROUND AND PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCEProfessional StandingAuthor and public speaker living in South Florida, USARetired college professor of theatrical and communication arts.​Former screenwriting teacher and filmmakerRetired army reserves chaplain (rank of Lieutenant Colonel).Active member of Toastmasters International, The Military Officers Association of America, and The American Legion.Educational BackgroundDoctor of Philosophy, Louisiana State University (Major: Theater; Minor: Speech)Doctor of Ministry, Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary (Major: Christian Ministry)Master of Fine Arts, Florida Atlantic University, (Major: Acting and Directing)Master of Divinity, Southern Baptist Th

During the interview, Owens talks about her efforts, lessons learned and so much more. Learn more about Summer Owens by visiting www.SummerOwens.com.