Old news. Bad news. Fake news. Sometimes you want to shut down and get no news at all! I aim to change that by focusing on good people doing good works. I visit with artists, educators, civic & spiritual leaders, musicians, business owners, students, volunteers, and everyday citizens who are using their creativity, resources, and talents to bring hope, happiness, and goodness to their corner of the world.
Episodes
Sunday Oct 06, 2019
Sunday Oct 06, 2019
Find the Good News Journal - Entry 3 - The Good Magnet w/Oran Parker
In this Find the Good News Journal Entry I take on a Sunday morning reflection to Maplewood Commons in Sulphur, Louisiana. We all take vows in some form or fashion. We bind ourselves to things for many reasons. Today I talk about stickers, glue, magnets, adhesives, patches, thread, and how the evidence of those things often remain long after they are gone.
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SUPPORT FIND THE GOOD NEWS ON PATREON >> www.Patreon.com/FindTheGoodNews
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FIND THE GOOD NEWS IS PRODUCED BY PARKER BRAND CREATIVE SERVICES >> www.ParkerBrandUp.com
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Saturday Oct 05, 2019
Saturday Oct 05, 2019
Find the Good News Journal - Entry 2 - The Nestea Plunge w/Oran Parker
In this Find the Good News Journal Entry I take you on my morning reflection at Mimosa Pines Cemetery in Carlyss, Louisiana. I talk about the Feasts of Saint Francis and Saint Faustina (and I admittedly screw up the day of Francis's Feast). I share my thoughts on the incredible display of love and mercy in a Dallas, Texas courtroom this week, and what the Divine Mercy means to me. I hope you'll join me inside this journal entry beneath the trees at Mimosa Pines.
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Thursday Oct 03, 2019
Thursday Oct 03, 2019
HOSTED BY Oran Parker & Thom Trahan (of the Brimstone Historical Society)
In this episode of Find the Good News we go LIVE with Patrick Shawn Bennett of the Lake Charles Film Festival, an event that features films by Louisiana based indie filmmakers.
Patrick was joined by Braylin Jenkins, the emcee of this year's event.
Patrick talks about the value of this amazing event, his love of filmmaking, resources for aspiring filmmakers, and encourages people to get out there and create!
DON'T FORGET THE LIVE WIRE CHALLENGE & LIGHTNING ROUND!
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EVENT FEATURES:
The Lake Charles Film & Music Festival, is a FREE EVENT taking place Oct. 4-5, 2019 at the Brimstone Museum & Henning Cultural Center in Sulphur, Louisiana!
On-site celebrity Guests of Honor are Michael Gray and John Davey from TV's "Shazam!"
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FOR MORE INFO ABOUT THE LAKE CHARLES FILM FESTIVAL >> https://www.facebook.com/LCfilmfest/
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FIND THE GOOD NEWS IS PRODUCED BY PARKER BRAND CREATIVE SERVICES >> www.ParkerBrandUp.com
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Wednesday Oct 02, 2019
Wednesday Oct 02, 2019
1 YEAR ANNIVERSARY EPISODE
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A little over a year ago I came back from a personal retreat and sat down with my creative crew to tell them about something I wanted to do. After reflecting on the state of my mind, my work, and the actual tangible good I was or was not doing through my trade, I had decided that I wanted to change the rules we’d been operating by, and create a signal all our own, a channel, a stream, that was focused on finding and sharing the good. In short, I wanted to stand under this wide umbrella of goodness and take a hard 360-degree look at the community I live in, and invite others to join me under this canopy to share their stories of good works, in all their varieties and colors. More than that, I wanted to feel the sacred hearts that were beating behind these works, and hopefully, through deep listening, curiosity, intimacy, and conversation, I would get to hear the stories, thoughts, fears, hopes, dreams, inspirations, successes, and struggles that shaped these good people to do the good works they were doing. The show would be a podcast produced by the Parker Brand Creative Services team, leaning heavily on our 20 years of experience in marketing, communications, and design. The original name I’d come up with was “Find the Good.” As luck would have it, the name was taken, and so was the domain, but we happened upon the domain FindTheGood.News, so the official name of the pod, “Find the Good News” was created. We created some fun graphics to play with, outlined our format, and started inviting good people on the show,… and they came. Then, more good people showed up. Before long I was doing exactly what the introduction to the show stated. I was visiting with artists, educators, business owners, civic and spiritual leaders, and everyday citizens that were working to bring hope and happiness to their corners of the world. Find the Good News expanded into Road Trips, Mixtapes, round tables, and LIVE episodes. Listenership has grown, and with each conversation, my understanding, awareness, and happiness have grown as well. Producing Find the Good News has touched me on every dimension. I’ve laughed and cried with guests, and each one has left me to think deeply on our talk long after the microphones have powered down. After a full year of Find the Good News, what I know as truth is this; good news doesn’t wear one face. Good News looks like all of the people that have shared their hearts and minds at the Right Round Table and those that are yet to come. This show doesn’t happen without each and every one of these Good Newsies taking their time to do their good work, and then talk about it with me. I’m humbled by each one them. They are my teachers, and I’m so glad to have each of them in my personal history. To you, the listeners, I say thank you for putting your ears on each week and turning your dial to this show. There’s a lot of news in the world, and you’re choosing to find the good.
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Sunday Sep 29, 2019
Sunday Sep 29, 2019
Find the Good News Journal - Entry 1 - The Laughing Buddha w/Oran Parker
In this Find the Good News Journal Entry I take you on my morning prayer and meditation walk to the Maplewood Commons in Sulphur, Louisiana. I talk about the past year of Good News, where goodness comes from, attending Julia O'Carroll's Tea at Walden journaling workshop, forgiveness, resentment, what the best version of me looks like, and what the road to my best self is paved with. I touch on Christianity, Buddhism, and where my spiritual life falls on that spectrum. This is what Find the Good News looks like when I'm talking to you instead of my guests. I hope that this journal entry will be of value to someone on their way.
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Wednesday Sep 25, 2019
Wednesday Sep 25, 2019
Openness. Truth. Honesty. The best stories are made up of these things, and I think that’s the holy trinity of what makes Find the Good News so unique. Each guest has come in here with their openness, truth, and honesty, and for those affiliated with programs, groups, businesses, or non-profits, their truth is tightly wound within the essence of their affiliation. I don’t say this lightly. I’ve seen it over-and-over again with individuals that have come to the Right Round Table. I witnessed it again when Chance Savant—a representative of NAMI Southwest Louisiana—came to visit me on Find the Good News. When I made my initial list of organizations to invite on the show, NAMI was at the top. As can often be the case, the plans we make are superseded by the natural momentum that forms when time and actions march on. Chance coming in to talk about NAMI—almost one year later—reminded me that making space for something to happen, increases the odds of its occurrence. NAMI Southwest Louisiana is an incredible resource for individuals and families that live with mental illness, providing information, resources, and peer-lead groups. For some with a mental illness, NAMI Southwest Louisiana can often offer assistance with housing and some medications. Most importantly, NAMI Southwest Louisiana creates a safe space for people with mental illness to be heard. Being heard, as Chance shared, is often the first step on the road to living a whole and happy life. While we did talk about NAMI, it was Chance’s personal testimony that opened the shutters and let the light in. This young man took me to periods in his life where depression and anxiety firmly gripped his day-to-day. On this journey, he showed me the healthy way out, the value of presence, deep listening, and reminded me of the healing power of personal sharing. He opened his heart to me, and to you, and in pouring out his truth, his words can bring solace to others. This is the great medicine telling our stories. This is the healing hope of finding and sharing the good news.
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FOR MORE INFO ABOUT CHANCE SAVANT & NAMI SOUTHWEST LOUISIANA >> https://www.facebook.com/chance.savant.3 or https://www.namiswla.org/
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CALL THE NAMI SWLA WARM LINE >> 337-433-2500
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Wednesday Sep 18, 2019
Wednesday Sep 18, 2019
Ever since I started producing Find the Good News, I've wanted to do an episode that was explicitly about fathers and their sons. One thing I've never tried to do with this show is to force my energy in a specific direction. I have found that allowing guests to flow through naturally has allowed this signal to become what it's supposed to be, whatever that means. It's still a mystery. Recently, a series of auspicious circumstances placed me in the right place at the right time to hear the most lovely music being emitted by the flittering phalanges of Jack Harrell at Stellar Bean in Lake Charles, and there at a nearby table was Jack's father, Richard, who happened to be an old friend of mine from high school that I'd not spoken to in many years. As luck would have it, Jack and my son were in the Sulphur High School Marching Band together. Suddenly, it all clicked. I started having all of these visual memories of Richard sitting in the stands. I assumed he was there to watch the game, but as I thought on it further, I realized I'd seen him after the games as well, waiting for the marching band to do their after-game performance. If you're a band parent, you know how much these performances mean to the kids. All of that came rushing into my mind, all the nodes connected, and I knew I'd found my father and son. Our conversation went exactly as I'd hoped. We talk about love, the challenges of raising a good human being in this world, and the way a relationship between parent and child evolves over time. Richard and Jack were literally as far apart as two terrestrial beings could be, and somehow they ended up together in this relationship that continues to unfold in new ways every single day. I learned that relationships are going to change, especially those between a parent and their child, but change doesn't mean it has to grow cold. What I learned is that love makes you willing to be there when the change occurs, and it prepares you to bend when the flux occurs. Jack may be the one who plays the piano, but it's their relationship that helped birth the music. If you're a parent or considering becoming one, listen to this father and son visit and share with me, and make sure you stick around… because Jack brought his piano to the Good News studio, and that means you're in store for a musical treat.
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FOR MORE INFO ABOUT RICHARD and JACK HARRELL >> https://www.facebook.com/Retr0pian0-111539696901593/
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Wednesday Sep 11, 2019
Wednesday Sep 11, 2019
It’s not easy for me to avert my gaze when I see someone in needs, especially the homeless or food impoverished. If you’ve listened to this show, then you know that images of the hungry affected me deeply when I was a little boy, and those photos haunt the hallways of my mind every single day. Still, being haunted by something doesn’t always motivate one to take action. I won’t lie to you and say that I’ve always helped or given, no matter how heavy my heart may have felt. Perhaps this is why I am humbled when I meet people who have said yes when the call to serve is placed on their heart, who go do the work even if circumstances aren’t favorable for them to do so. This is what I saw with my own eyes when I visited with Kelli Stawecki at the Waters Edge food pantry in Lake Charles, Louisiana for this Road Trip edition of Find the Good News. Like many, I had heard about the Waters Edge food pantry, understanding that they were serving the needs of the food impoverished and homeless in Southwest Louisiana, but what I didn’t grasp was the swelling number of homeless and impoverished in our area. While headlines boast an economic boom, there are families and individuals that cannot provide the basic needs for their children, or for themselves. While the needs increase, and resources decrease, Kelli Stawecki and the volunteers at the Waters Edge food pantry continue to arrive and serve food and supplies to those in need, but their hearts are bigger than even that. By allowing me to come and film, Kelli invited me into the presence of what I can only call the Loving Heart of God, burning hot with compassion. Many times throughout the day, I simply stood stunned by the waves of mercy I witnessed, and the eyes of gratitude that looked back from those being served. I felt the great blanket of equanimity in this space, and on the faces of each servant, I saw smiles, true joy. Kelli Stawecki and the volunteers at Waters Edge may be offering full bellies for those that enter the doors of their converted sanctuary, but if the love that expanded in my heart was any indication, then I believe those being served leave filled with something that of immeasurable value. They learn that they are seen and loved, that their existence matters. They are reminded that humanity is still good, no matter how hard the world may seem. This is the Good News I have been seeking, and I have found it yet again in Kelli Stawecki and the good people at Waters Edge.
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FOR MORE INFO ABOUT KELLI STAWECKI & WATERS EDGE >>https://www.facebook.com/kelli.stawecki or https://www.facebook.com/watersedgelc/
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Tuesday Sep 10, 2019
Tuesday Sep 10, 2019
HOSTED BY Oran Parker & Morgan Allain (The Inkling Girl)
In this episode of Find the Good News we go LIVE with Kevin Lambert, Thunder John, and Kevin Johnson of the Horror and Hops Podcast, a show about good horror movies, great beers, and even better friends. They talk about the origins of their show, their favorite scary movies, and their upcoming LIVE event at Crying Eagle on September, Friday the 13th, 2019!
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EVENT FEATURES:
6-10pm at Crying Eagle Brewing Co. in Lake Charles, Louisiana
No Cover / Free Event (Buy Your Own Beer at Crying Eagle)
LIVE podcast before and after the screening of Friday the 13th: The Final Chapter
Listen to the Horror and Hops Podcast on all the best podcast platforms.
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FOR MORE INFO ABOUT HORROR AND HOPS PODCAST & THEIR EVENT >> https://www.facebook.com/horrorandhopspodcast/ or https://www.facebook.com/events/229013261349674/
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FIND THE GOOD NEWS IS PRODUCED BY PARKER BRAND CREATIVE SERVICES >> www.ParkerBrandUp.com
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Wednesday Sep 04, 2019
Wednesday Sep 04, 2019
Like you, I’ve looked at a lot of artwork in my life. It comes in all shapes and sizes, and more often than not each work’s beauty is relevant to the particular eye of the beholder. We see it, process it, gauge it, place it somewhere on our value spectrum, often within the first moments of exposure. What most pieces don’t reveal to us is the story of the artist, the textures of their life. This is the treasure I received when I sat down to visit with Jengi Miller, artist & owner of Louise E. Anna Creations located inside Flock of Five Art Emporium in Sulphur, Louisiana. Jengi is an artist, a creator, that gives old and discarded objects a second life through creative adornments, modifications, pairing, and painting techniques. Not unlike Jengi, many of these possessions have stories of their own, and if they could talk they would likely weave tales of joy, sorrow, love, and loss. Unlike the art she creates, Jengi can share her story, giving new meaning to the passion she puts into her work. Hers is a story of impermanence, change, and rebirth, building a new person on the framework of an old life. It’s a story of a life, death, living with the memories of what came before, embracing all of the pains those memories bring and transmuting them into the energy to shape something new. Jengi Miller has taken the parts and pieces of her life, snipping and tossing what didn’t fit, added new things that did, and created a version of herself that is healthier, happier, and able to greet each tomorrow with eagerness and genuine joy. Jengi hasn’t forgotten her losses and pains. She honors them through her transformative artwork, in the rebuilding and repurposing of lost and disregarded things. Perhaps we all carry around old objects inside ourselves, things we’re hanging onto that are only taking up space in our minds and hearts, weighing heavy on our spirits. Maybe, like Jengi, we can find a way to transform them, enshrine them with love, and give new meaning to our lives in the process.
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FOR MORE INFO ABOUT JENGI MILLER & LOUISE E. ANNE CREATIONS BY JENGI >>https://www.facebook.com/jengi.miller or https://www.facebook.com/louiseeannacreationsbyjengi/
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Wednesday Aug 28, 2019
Wednesday Aug 28, 2019
When I started Find the Good News I never really thought about listeners becoming guests. As it turns out, people attracted to good news have ended up being good people themselves. After so many wonderful conversations, I suppose I shouldn’t be surprised when a guest takes me into uncharted waters. The truth is I was surprised and taken places I didn’t expect to go when I visited with Breenie Dowies, woman-about-town and moderator of The Lake Charles Scene, a page focused on promoting businesses and events that make Southwest Louisiana a diverse and exciting place to live. Breenie was an early fan of Find the Good News, interacting, commenting, and sharing many of the interviews through her page. Over the past year, I watched Breenie enthusiastically share information, photos, and videos promoting the area. On her personal page, I noticed something that went further than the surface of her playful fashion sense and lively smile. I saw Breenie going far beyond the average effort to be social, genuinely social, online. She would cut through the simple selfie or highly manicured pictures with personal stories from deep beneath the shallow surface where we’re all invited to dwell. She was showing her heart, her mind, her emotions, her feelings, her true-self—not perfectly crafted for public consumption—in a raw and uncensored way, paired with a take-it-or-leave-it attitude. My emotions were stirred by her posts, her willingness to share without worry. I suspect that many—like me—had relatable experiences, secretly thanking her for having the courage. Has the woman behind the enthusiastic smile, and the fun persona had a charmed life? Absolutely not. In fact, I would say that I have rarely visited with someone so young that has had as much to face, but face it she does. Breenie looks at her life honestly, and with the help of a loving community, she works to transform the empty spaces and lonely times in her life into service and light for others. Next time you see this girl in the city, let her charm and smile serve as a reminder that doing good does not always come from being treated good. Sometimes, in spite of the dark cards they have been dealt, people like Breenie are actively working to find and share the bright lights.
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FOR MORE INFO ABOUT BREENIE DOWIES & THE LAKE CHARLES SCENE >> www.facebook.com/BreenieLynn or https://www.facebook.com/groups/544984835982050/
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Tuesday Aug 27, 2019
Tuesday Aug 27, 2019
HOSTED BY Oran Parker & Mike Brignac
In this episode of Find the Good News we go LIVE with Thom Trahan & Kat Godsey of the Brimstone Museum and Henning Cultural Center in Sulphur, Louisiana. They talk about the Chaos Theory art exhibit on display now at the Henning Cultural Center, and their Totally Rad 80s Party to send off the show in style, Saturday, August 31 from 6-8pm at the Henning Cultural Center.
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EVENT FEATURES:
80s Costume Contest, the movie Ghostbuster on the lawn, the Chaos Theory art exhibit, Artists and Art Vendors, BoomBox Frozen Pops & Ice Cream, the 80s Kids Bedroom display for photo ops, Retro Piano Man Jack Harrell, and the Louisiana Ghostbusters with Ecto-1!
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SUPPORT FIND THE GOOD NEWS ON PATREON >> www.Patreon.com/FindTheGoodNews
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FOR MORE INFO ABOUT CHAOS THEORY & THE TOTALLY RAD 80s PARTY >> www.facebook.com/events/380920635942205/ or www.facebook.com/ChaosTheoryArtShow/
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BRIMSTONE MUSEUM >> www.brimstonemuseum.org or Call (337) 527-0357
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Wednesday Aug 21, 2019
Wednesday Aug 21, 2019
I remember when I was a child, those key moments that softened my heart, the events that really made me tender, that helped me feel for others. Looking back I can see how often those feelings were turned off and on during my life. On reflection, I see the times when I saw the suffering and misfortune of others as benchmarks, moments when I felt my higher self, the part of me that longed to be a balm or a servant to others. If I had one great regret it would be that I didn’t string those moments closer together, with higher frequency recurrence, tuning my focus on them sooner. Perhaps that is why I am fascinated when I meet people like Abbie Dixon, a woman who seems to have found her calling to serve others at a young age, which is one of the reasons I couldn’t pass up this opportunity to visit with her on Find the Good News. Abbie is one of the founders of Ezer Ministries, a newly formed non-profit that is working to help people in our community using whatever resources are available for a variety of ongoing needs. In speaking with Abbie I learn that one doesn’t have to have a lifetime of pains and tragedies to fuel a desire to help. In Abbie’s case, her heart started opening up to the people around her as early as eight years old, and she has used the energy of the things she witnessed as a child to draw her closer to the Divine Heart, a Spirit that has set her on a mission. This mission she has committed to is simple; love others, love those that society deems unlovable, love beyond the boundaries erected by legalism, tradition, and prescribed forms. Abbie quite clearly senses her place within the body of humanity, the place of a servant, and with kindness, gentleness, and humility she settles into this space with each passing day. I can’t go back and stitch the moments of sweetness in my life any closer together than they already are, but after visiting with Abbie I am fully convinced that I can make the days I have left more joyful, filled with service, and kinder still.
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FOR MORE INFO ABOUT ABBIE DIXON & EZER MINISTRIES >> www.instagram.com/ezerministries or wwww.facebook.com/abbied98
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Wednesday Aug 14, 2019
Wednesday Aug 14, 2019
When you find out an old friend has started a hot sauce brand called Jammin’ Jelly’s Hot Sauce,… and you happen to like hot sauce,… and you have a podcast, then you know what you’re supposed to do next. I hadn’t seen Jelly Reynolds since we had worked together a K.D.’s Diner almost 23 years ago, so I invited mad food scientists—Jelly Reynolds and his business partner Charlie Frye—to come sit in the hot seats on Find the Good News. Jelly and Charlie have the honor of being a part of the very first cuisine focused episode of this show, and our conversation does not disappoint. It’s an origin story—which I love—with all the savory details that make the tastebuds in your mind hungry for more. It seems Jelly and Charlie's line of comfort sauces are moving on a steep incline, with the right amount of heat for a solid launch. What you get to be a part of in this episode are the stories behind the clever names, unique colors, and ingredients, plus the curious and mouth-watering flavor profiles that are putting Jammin’ Jelly’s Hot Sauce on the tingling tips of Southwest Louisiana tongues. These are sauces that are born right here in Southwest Louisiana, and they're raising the stakes even further by using them in their signature Louisiana comfort foods that they’ll soon be serving from the Jammin’ Jelly’s Hot Sauce food truck. I don’t want to overcook the intro—I have to leave you something to listen to—so I’ll keep a little simmering on the side. Know this, Jelly and Charlie are cooking up good things. I hope you’ve saved room for more.
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FOR MORE INFO ABOUT JAMMIN' JELLY'S HOT SAUCE >> www.facebook.com/jamminjellyshotsauce/
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Wednesday Aug 07, 2019
Wednesday Aug 07, 2019
I don’t know if you have children, but if you do—as I do—then you’ve had to dig deep when summer ends, and it’s time to buy school clothes, uniforms, and supplies. Sometimes life takes a turn for the better, your resources become more plentiful and paying for school supplies, and fees aren’t such a heavy burden. For many, that turn has not arrived. For some, it never does. I have been in that situation before, shaving money from places that were already thin, to ensure my children could attend public school with the minimum requirements. There were times when I couldn’t afford all new uniforms, secretly praying that my children wouldn’t grow much over the summer, hoping I could squeeze a little more time out a pair of pants, shoes, or shirts. It is a reality for many parents in Calcasieu Parish. It was this stark realization that motivated DeWanna Tarver to take action. That action evolved into DeWanna’s Community Closet, a non-profit service that now provides school uniforms, shoes, undergarments, and school supplies to children all across Calcasieu Parish. I’d heard of DeWanna’s Community Closet before, but I didn’t really understand the full scope of the service, so I asked DeWanna to come and visit me on Find the Good News. What I learned, and what touched my heart the most, is that for so long the teachers of Calcasieu Parish—and I’m sure teachers around the country—were meeting the needs of the children in their classrooms with their own funds. As DeWanna explains, teachers are on the frontline, seeing and assessing the students' needs directly, and for years, they were doing this on their own. In it’s earliest incarnation, DeWanna’s Community Closet was no closet at all; it was just DeWanna, her keen sense for sniffing out good deals, purchasing items herself, and bringing them to schools for students with potential needs. This original inspiration has unfolded and expanded to a fully stocked facility, formerly DeWanna’s guest house, that offers brand new uniforms, undergarments, supplies, shoes, and other resources for educators in Calcasieu Parish. Through the ongoing generosity of DeWanna’s patrons, this facility is able to deliver much-needed resources directly to schools in Calcasieu, with systems in place for teachers to request specific items. Because DeWanna Tarver listened to her heart, her eyes were opened to the needs that parents, teachers, and children face at the beginning of each school year. Because her heart moved her to action, DeWanna’s Community Closet exists to serve. This year when I went school supply shopping I noticed that the list was shorter, something I had not paid attention to in recent years past. On the sheet, it mentioned all the businesses and individuals that donated to help provide the remainder of the school items. On that sheet, I saw the logo for DeWanna’s Community Closet. My eyes filled with tears and my heart swelled. I knew somewhere there was a father that was in my shoes all those years ago, worrying, shaving funds, not sure how he was going to get everything his children needed. As I meditated on that mystery father, I was comforted knowing that his burden was made lighter. I am so thankful for DeWanna Tarver, and that her goodness and love manifested to meet the needs of so many families in our area.
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FOR MORE INFO ABOUT DEWANNA'S COMMUNITY CLOSET >> www.facebook.com/DeWannasCloset/
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Wednesday Jul 31, 2019
Wednesday Jul 31, 2019
If you are having suicidal thoughts, please call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255.
I’ve often wished that I could see the private sufferings of the people around me, to behold their secret worries, fears, and pains on a scale of colors. That may sound dismal to some, but it doesn’t to me. I feel that if I could clearly see their pains, then I’d know exactly what ingredients to include in their particular medicinal balm. A caution light—flashing bright red—I’ve imagined what it would be like if people came equipped with such a signal. It would let others know they had reached the edge of what they believe can be tolerated, and that they are considering taking their own life. In reality, seeing the burdens people carry inside takes a more delicate awareness than my color warning fantasy could muster. Knowing what to do when the red light is flashing takes a set of skills that are sorely needed in Calcasieu Parish. In an attempt to understand these skills, I asked the Assistant Professor of Psychology at McNeese State University, Dr. Kevin Yaudes and Director of Student Health & Development at McNeese State University, Ramie Thibodeaux, to share their experiences and knowledge on suicide prevention with me on Find the Good News. Kevin began our talk with a sobering fact—the suicide rate in Calcasieu Parish is 42% higher than the national average, making death by suicide more common in our region compared to other areas of Louisiana. While Kevin and Ramie could not definitively say why there is such a disproportionate amount of suicides in our area, they did share ways that each of us can help. Kevin believes we need to have more open and healthy conversations about suicide, not just among mental health professionals, but in the actual tribes that make up our communities. Suicide is dyed in manifold pain and grief, a subject with deep stains compared to other mental health-related topics. Kevin and Ramie both working passionately to remove the stigmata from the issue of suicide, bringing it out of the shadows and into the light where it can be discussed in healthy and healing ways. The upcoming Out of Darkness walk on September 21, 2019, in Lake Charles, Louisiana is just one of many national events taking place in September that have been created to bring suicide into the public dialogue. The Out of Darkness Walk is designed to bring families, friends, and survivors together in solidarity, understanding, and love while raising funds for the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention. As a family member of a suicide survivor, I understand all too well how deep the stigma of suicide stains the fibers of your life. I have experienced the verbal dancing that takes place to avoid talking about suicide openly. As a man that was lead to suicidal thoughts through mind-altering medications, I have seen just how seductive depression can be, and how dark and lonely the hole is. I have been one of the lucky ones twice in my life, and I know that silence is not a solution. I’ve received second and third chances. These have tilled my heart, allowing compassion to bloom for those contemplating suicide. Unlike my colorful imaginings, we can’t see the various tints of pain and despair that lead to suicidal thoughts. As Kevin proposes, we can change the way we talk about suicide, and who we talk about it with. More than that, we can each take steps to cultivate awareness, greater listening skills, loving-kindness, and—most important of all—conscious presence for those exhibiting suicidal signs.
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FOR MORE INFO ABOUT DR. KEVIN YAUDES >> wwww.facebook.com/kevin.yaudes
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FOR MORE INFO ABOUT THE OUT OF DARKNESS WALK >> https://www.facebook.com/events/376325236256582/
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Wednesday Jul 24, 2019
Wednesday Jul 24, 2019
When I sit and reflect on all the people I've encountered in my life, I feel grateful. It's not because every person I've met has been pleasant—I'm just thankful to have encountered the variety. On one end of the spectrum, I've met many people filled with pride and hubris, touching others with the subtleness of a shotgun blast. Sometimes I've even been that person. Other times I've met extremely grounded people that choose to affect the world kindly, one day at a time, person-to-person. It was my good fortune to have that friendly and gentle type come and visit me on Find the Good News in the person of Kayla Rigney. Kayla Rigney is the executive director of the Calcasieu Community Clinic, a non-profit free health care clinic located on the McNeese State University campus in Lake Charles, Louisiana. Kayla and the staff at the Calcasieu Community Clinic provide medical care to low-income and working uninsured people in the Imperial Calcasieu region. As it turns out, this is the perfect home for a good-natured person like Kayla, and the more I spoke with her, the more I could see the fit. Kayla has a knack for being realistic yet optimistic, grounded and hopeful. She seems to understand whether life brings you troubles or rewards, it is your attitude that makes all the difference in your quality of life. While the clinic she works for affects the many, Kayla tries to keep her focus on the individuals, the particulars of the people she encounters. She knows their stories, she knows where they come from, and because her heart is open to them, she can genuinely care about them in a personal way. I'd like to adopt more of Kayla's direction in my life, touching people in simple ways, one-by-one, face-to-face, not from a distance. I think we could all benefit from that. The world could benefit from that. The world is full of problems—It's easy to get gridlocked. If we take a page from Kayla Rigney, if we do one good thing for one person, just a little, when and where we can, then we won't have to find the good news. Like Kayla, we'll be making good news every day.
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FOR MORE INFO ABOUT KAYLA RIGNEY >> www.facebook.com/Kayla.Mallett.Rigney or www.calcasieucommunityclinic.com
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Wednesday Jul 17, 2019
Wednesday Jul 17, 2019
I have always been attracted to stories of transformation and enlightenment. A man is one way today, then something critical shifts in his life, and he wakes up as a new man. It had been years since I had seen Mike Brignac, but when he came to visit me on Find the Good News it was clear that I was talking with a man that had come out of a chrysalis. Mike spoke to me with an honesty that I’ve come to appreciate from my guests. He was fearless and truthful in the way he recounted his days as a local media personality. He relentlessly dissected and described the man he was, someone that he painted as filled with ego and self-centered ways. In one of the most humble and graceful testimonies I’ve ever heard, Mike described his shift away from media, local fame, and his decent. After an unfortunate accident, Mike entered a seven-year sentence of declining health which left him debilitated and dependent on others for his care. It was in this state—bed-ridden and imprisoned within his own body—that Mike Brignac changed his mind. He discovered that the healing of his body, mind, and spirit lay within the power of his imagination. Only one word could describe what came next—a miracle. Mike’s story will challenge the logical thinker, the supernatural denier, a hardened unbelieving heart, or a mind that disregards anything fantastic as fiction. Maybe it will challenge you. Regardless, I would encourage you to listen to Mike’s story with an open mind and heart. Listen to every word. Perhaps he has been where you have been, or to places you have yet to go. Maybe you have your cocoon yet to weave, or perhaps you are just emerging from your chrysalis. My conversation with Mike Brignac reminded me—yet again—that we all have the potential to change. Sometimes life is like a wheel spinning around us, out of control, but the good news is that sometimes— through our imaginative thinking—we can turn the wheel ourselves to a better way.
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FOR MORE INFO ABOUT MIKE BRIGNAC >> www.facebook.com/mike.wbrignac or https://feelingtwisty.podbean.com/
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Wednesday Jul 10, 2019
Wednesday Jul 10, 2019
I’ve always tried to be honest in these introductions, hopefully giving you the best short reflection on my conversation with the guest of the week, and a brief sketch of the dialogue I’m presenting. I think it’s vital that I be clear that this episode of Find the Good News with Braylin Jenkins—the creator and host of the show Wide Awake With Bray J—takes a long way around to the find the good. As we drew near to the end of our conversation, Braylin and I lovingly addressed that very point. As creators of digital content, Braylin and I happened to contact each other to do separate interviews on each other’s shows, trading stories, perspectives, and motivations. In following Braylin online, and in visiting with him before our Wide Awake interview, I could tell that he had been through something with stout gravity, maybe several heavy somethings, and that whatever he had been through drafted a new purpose and vector to his work in media. In visiting with Braylin, I was reminded that sometimes the sky is just out of reach, no matter how passionate we are when we first stretch to touch it. We extend our arms, our palms wide, ready to grip, but for all of our efforts, we barely scrape the clouds before falling to the ground. Often, our true resilience doesn’t come from climbing our way to the top. Our real strengths are formed in the times after our wax wings have melted, when we’ve fallen to the ground amidst our scattered pinions, and found the will to get back up—hopefully, wiser and better equipped—to make another solid try for the clear blue sky. Braylin Jenkins took the time to share his story with me, and I listened to his testimony. This is a sketch of a young man finding his way in Southwest Louisiana media, and hoping do a little good.
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FOR MORE INFO ABOUT BRAYLIN JENKINS >> www.facebook.com/braylinjenkins1 or hhttps://soundcloud.com/braylin-jenkins-773954728
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Wednesday Jul 03, 2019
Wednesday Jul 03, 2019
We walk around people everyday, pass by strangers, carried by the momentum of our own agendas, desires, worries, and goals. What happens when we slow things down, get out of the pulling and hauling, drive away from the path we're familiar with, and point our compass toward someone else's world? What happens when we listen to their story, and they graciously offer us port and harbor inside their heart? That's the type of journey I experienced when I drove south toward the gulf coast and visited with Cameron Parish Port Director, Clair Hebert Marceaux, for this Road Trip episode of Find the Good News. There is no fabricated care, forced love, or feigned concern with Clair. When I sat with her at Rutherford Beach in Cameron, it was immediately apparent that I was visiting with a living spiritual heart that is connected to the life-blood and history of the land. Gulf waves gently crested on the beach and washed away as I talked with Clair. Coastal birds offered their audience and songs to our conversation. While there were a plethora of things to stimulate my eyes, ears, and mind, it was Clair's passion for Cameron that consumed my full attention. Her heart is so expansive, so open, and so complete—not unlike the slumbering giant that is the Gulf of Mexico—and it contains a history that runs the full spectrum of Cameron's sorrows and joys. As the Cameron Parish Port Director, Clair is intimately connected to the upper echelon of global affairs that affect the economics and lives of everyone in Southwest Louisiana. This space in which she operates is far beyond the scope of the average citizen. While this work is impressive, it is this shared space where she takes off her shoes and puts her feet in the sand with everyone else that moved my spirit the most. Clair Hebert Marceaux feels the pain and loss that the people of Cameron suffered from the berserker winds and surge of Hurricane Rita, and she still weeps at the ghosts that haunt a coastline forever changed by Rita's wraith. Clair's heart is wide enough to contain the happiness and the sorrows of what has come before, and it is getting bigger still to make room for the good news that comes with the life-giving work she is doing for this gulf coast region she calls home.
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FOR MORE INFO ABOUT CLAIR HEBERT MARCEAUX or CAMERON PARISH PORT >> www.facebook.com/clair.marceaux or http://www.cameronparishport.com/
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