He’s been called one of the best athletes to ever play the game of football. But J.D. Hill’s greatest accomplishments were still before him. J.D. excelled not just in football, but also lettered in baseball and track in college, an NCAA record that still stands today. He was drafted by the Buffalo Bills and also played for the Detroit Lions. But after his pro career came years of personal struggle and addiction to crack cocaine that led to loss of his three sons and wife of 20 years. That could ...
Nov 28, 2024•26 min•Season 4Ep. 34
Every life matters. Yet once every 11 minutes, someone in the U.S. takes their own life. As president of the board of directors for the Arizona Suicide Prevention Coalition, Nikki Kontz leads the charge in providing resources and education to support individuals, families, and communities impacted by suicide. The organization is comprised of a diverse group of mental health leaders, educators, healthcare professionals, survivors, and concerned citizens, all committed to making a positive impact ...
Nov 21, 2024•26 min•Season 5Ep. 30
It’s estimated nearly 7 million Americans have Alzheimer’s, and the ripple effects of the disease impacts families from all walks of life. As executive director of the Alzheimer’s Association – Desert Southwest Chapter, Terri Spitz is on the front lines of battling the disease and working to accelerate global research, drive risk reduction and early detection, and maximize quality care and support. The organization offers tremendous services both to those diagnosed with Alzheimer’s and the careg...
Nov 14, 2024•26 min•Season 5Ep. 29
Kelli O’Toole has dedicated her career to serving others. From working at Central Arizona Shelter Services to being COO for STARS (Scottsdale Training and Rehabilitation Services), she has found her passion and her calling in working to help those with intellectual and developmental disabilities as CEO of The Opportunity Tree. The organization has touched lives for 60 years – there are 75 people who have been members more than 30 years – with services including: Employment Services Adult Day Pro...
Nov 07, 2024•26 min•Season 5Ep. 28
David Johnson says his greatest joy in life is inspiring men to take their walk with Christ seriously. He is also a student at Phoenix Seminary and when people ask what his goals are he says he wants to become a better foot-washer. And why does he call himself “the worst men’s ministry volunteer ever?” Tune in and find out! Original air date: October 31, 2024 See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information....
Oct 31, 2024•26 min•Season 5Ep. 27
Josie Brandon had a profound spiritual encounter at age 7 that would be the foundation of her life calling. Today, she uses her gifts to help people break free from trauma, brokenness, and repeating life patterns from abuse to addiction. Josie provides a safe, judgment-free space for participants to discover self-love and the love of God. Click here to learn more about Pain to Promise workshops: www.paintopromiseworkshops.com Original air date: October 24, 2024. See omnystudio.com/listener for p...
Oct 24, 2024•26 min•Season 5Ep. 26
Patti Luttrell was starting a great career as a pediatric nurse when she overheard a family in the hospital who had just lost their young daughter to cancer. In the midst of their heart-wrenching grief, they were also burdened by not having the gas money to make the two-hour drive back to their home. She started thinking about all the ways families whose children were dealing with cancer struggled with financial needs. Then in 2005, using proceeds from a garage sale and her daughter Jenny’s visi...
Oct 17, 2024•26 min•Season 5Ep. 25
The impact of traumatic events in a person’s life are far-reaching. The approach to helping them has historically been “what’s wrong with you?” Trauma-Informed Care changes that question to “what’s happened to you?” Dr. Robert Rhoton has focused his career in the mental health field in developing and teaching others how to help hurting people. He founded the Arizona Trauma Institute to train other professionals in the principles of Trauma-Informed Care. His goal is to increase human compassion i...
Oct 10, 2024•26 min•Season 5Ep. 24
Arizona has the 12th highest poverty rate in the country – more than 19 percent of the state’s children live in poverty. Kelly McGowan leads an organization designed to not only help those who need it most, but works to prevent poverty in families throughout the state. Originally known as the Arizona Community Action Association when the organization started in 1967, Kelly led the effort six years ago to rebrand ACAA as Wildfire: Igniting Community Action to End Poverty in Arizona. That means a ...
Oct 03, 2024•26 min•Season 5Ep. 23
Stacey Womack has a heart for the survivors of domestic violence. And she also wants to help those who commit that violence who are seeking to change. After years of homeschooling her six kids, in she felt a calling and in 1997 Stacey formed Abuse Recovery Ministry Services (ARMS), leading it to become a nationally and internationally recognized force in the battle against domestic violence. The organization’s mission is to provide a safe and empowering environment for survivors to heal, while a...
Sep 26, 2024•26 min•Season 5Ep. 22
Movement.org has two primary foundations: a commitment to cities and a commitment to prayer. When Josh Miles joined Movement.org at the first of the year, he came alongside founder Mac Pier. Among many other projects, Mac co-founded the first Movement Day in 2010 with pastor and author Dr. Tim Keller. Josh was chosen for his post in part due to his balanced background both in the faith and business communities. He helps build connections between leaders across industries, connect real research t...
Sep 19, 2024•26 min•Season 5Ep. 21
Who knew that a movie released 29 years ago would change the lives of hundreds of thousands of kids by giving them the opportunity to learn and play music in school? Mr. Holland’s Opus Foundation was inspired by the acclaimed motion picture of the same name, based on the true story of the impact a dedicated music teacher had on generations of students. Composer Michael Kamen, who wrote the score for the film, started the foundation in 1996 as his commitment to the future of music education. The ...
Sep 12, 2024•26 min•Season 5Ep. 23
Brad Schneeflock knows first-hand the impact faith can have on students, so it comes as no surprise that he has dedicated himself to helping others make that same discovery. So when he got a calling to move 1,500 miles to the Seattle-Tacoma area, he and family – including his wife Rainy and the four of their seven kids still living at home – said yes. He accepted a mission with Northwest Collegiate Ministries in a location that had been dormant for 13 years. The organization provides a safe comm...
Sep 05, 2024•26 min•Season 5Ep. 19
Kevin McCabe has been a sports broadcaster for 44 years. In decades of covering high school events throughout the state, he has gotten to know thousands of young athletes. But that’s only the beginning. Kevin doesn’t just report the scores. He gets to know the people behind the numbers. The kids. Their families. Their coaches. He has touched each of those lives and developed meaningful relationships that become treasured memories. Learn how a broadcaster takes his role and builds on it to earn t...
Aug 29, 2024•26 min•Season 5Ep. 18
It’s a simple concept. Neighbors helping neighbors. Individuals, businesses, nonprofits, government, and faith communities, all working together to help older adults in our community. Ann Wheat first served on the Duet board in 1999 when she was still working for the City of Phoenix. When she retired as Acting Deputy Director, she joined the Duet team and in 2019 was named executive director. Ann has been in the position of being a caretaker for a loved one. She has a special passion for Duet, w...
Aug 22, 2024•26 min•Season 5Ep. 17
Jody Boyd’s journey began with a deeply personal loss – the passing of her dear friend Michelle Singleton to cancer in 2005. She took that pain and created a remarkable nonprofit devoted to supporting single-parent families facing cancer. The Singletons offers critical monthly programs including Singletons Monthly Care Days, Bare Necessities, Beyond Books, and Healing Harvest. She collaborates with oncology nutritionists and local chefs to ensure the meals provided in the Monthly Care Days are b...
Aug 15, 2024•25 min•Season 5Ep. 16
The seeds of the Center for the Rights of Abused Children were planted when a social worker told Darcy Olsen that city shelters were overflowing with newborns due to the opioid epidemic. Darcy felt a calling. In just a few years, she took in 10 boys and girls … and witnessed firsthand the system’s repeated failures, including sibling separations, prolonged cycles of entry and re-entry, and premature deaths. She founded the Center, with a unique Children’s Law Clinic offering free legal help to c...
Aug 08, 2024•26 min•Season 5Ep. 15
United Cerebral Palsy of Central Arizona has served families with disabilities across the Valley for more than 70 years. The organization provides comprehensive services to individuals with disabilities and their families, through providing physical and developmental support as well as educational growth which is the foundation for independent living. Gail Stelling brings more than 35 years of experience in the nonprofit arena to her role as Vice-President of Adult Operations. She’s eager to sha...
Aug 01, 2024•26 min•Season 5Ep. 14
Sometimes a job is a job. Sometimes it’s a calling. Russ Funk already had a 22-year career in the airline industry. But his passion has always been child welfare and social justice. He and his wife Pam are adoptive parents and former foster parents, so his current role as Director of Community Engagement and HCBS (Home and Community Based Services) for Aid to Adoption of Special Kids (AASK) is a perfect match. Over the past 18 years Russ has led the effort to recruit new foster parents, adoptive...
Jul 25, 2024•26 min•Season 5Ep. 13
Brent Downs has dedicated his life to working with nonprofits, and he’s made a commitment to only choosing causes with which he shares a personal connection with their missions. That’s what brought him to the Foothills Caring Corps, an organization whose staff and volunteers serve homebound seniors and people with disabling conditions scattered over 256 square miles covering north Phoenix, Cave Creek, Carefree, and north Scottsdale. This army of committed individuals help with socialization, hea...
Jul 18, 2024•26 min•Season 5Ep. 12
Hal and Cheryl Sacks had a vision more than 40 years ago to ignite, fuel, and sustain the next Great Awakening by sounding the alarm to God’s people. What does this look like? Initiatives pursued through their organization BridgeBuilders International Leadership Network have mobilized intense targeted prayer on issues such as sex, drugs, and weapons trafficking on the Southwest border, suicides, and academic performance in schools. The BridgeBuilders’ team has empowered more than 5 million Chris...
Jul 11, 2024•26 min•Season 5Ep. 11
On August 11, 2020, Officer Sean Stoddard pulled his patrol car over to simply move a ladder out of the roadway. A distracted driver in an SUV plowed into his vehicle before he had a chance to open the door, crumpling his unit into an unrecognizable tangle of metal. The resulting traumatic brain injury totally erased everything in his life before the accident. He had to relearn everything from colors and shapes, to how to feed himself, to walk, and to talk. He now refers to himself as Sean 1.0 a...
Jul 04, 2024•26 min•Season 5Ep. 10
Jake Lambert is a third-generation teacher. His passion for helping kids prepare for a productive future has been a driving force from the time he was a kid himself. To pursue that end, he earned a degree in special ed, coached cross-county and track and field, has taught exceptional students, and dedicated himself to thinking outside the box to create the most opportunities for his students. That dedication earned him the opportunity to be named principal of historic Central High School at the ...
Jun 27, 2024•26 min•Season 5Ep. 9
Gordon Wickert sees a promise from God in every street sign, clock, license plate, or number he sees in the world around him. And he wants to share that vision with others. Memorizing Bible verses is not a new practice - Jesus memorized many scriptures Himself. Gordon’s Hope in Numbers Ministries is designed to help get the Word back into schools, work places, in daily conversations at the supermarket, and at your homes with your families. He envisions it as a powerful way to witness to others t...
Jun 20, 2024•26 min•Season 5Ep. 8
Mimi Hymel was 3 years old when Hurricane Katrina destroyed her home and her life as she knew it. In a cruel act of fate, it also claimed a source of comfort, her cherished teddy bear Cuddles. That led years later to her founding Comfort Bears in a Catastrophe, a nonprofit that provides a special stuffed bear along with a handwritten note of encouragement to children impacted by disasters. Most children living through a hurricane, flood, earthquake, or other disaster lose their belongings and ha...
Jun 13, 2024•26 min•Season 5Ep. 7
When Tom Loegering began serving on the Peoria Education Foundation board in 2014, he witnessed the resilience of students struggling to overcome challenges in their pursuit of education. Their challenges were not only financial, but in developing a lifestyle that leads to academic success. As the CEO of the Sun City Country Club, Tom was inspired his two passions and began teaching golf to 5th – 9th graders in their schools, promoting not only physical health but also family unity and community...
Jun 06, 2024•26 min•Season 5Ep. 6
Randy Elliott’s passion is serving his “orange church,” the incarcerated at Yavapai County Detention facilities in Camp Verde and Prescott. As chaplain, he drove more than 19,000 miles last year to lead Bible studies, distribute Bibles and devotionals, and minister. He leads a team of letter writers that sent more than 1,500 messages to incarcerated women. He offers a Bible correspondence course that 900 people completed last year. And he distributed more than 1,200 Bibles in 2023. That’s all ju...
May 30, 2024•26 min•Season 5Ep. 5
Rich Ganley is a serial entrepreneur. He’s an idea guy. And he’s also obsessed with service and helping others. His title is Positive Impact Executive, and his projects have included a no-cost corporate relocation program, the first online interactive tools and calculators, programs to help the mental and physical health of seniors, and a dispatch and tracking system for Hospice of the Valley. His most recent venture is the Recharge Room – an innovative new space installed to help first responde...
May 23, 2024•26 min•Season 5Ep. 4
Bruce McCracken was first interested in helping marriages and families when he was in college. Wisely, he figured it might help to have a little experience in a marriage himself, so waited a couple of decades after he and his wife Karen got married, and got his Ph.D. in Christian education before starting The Marriage Hub. The couples they seek to help are not just struggling in their marriage, but those who are at the crisis stage, maybe even actively in the process of divorce. Key to the progr...
May 16, 2024•26 min•Season 5Ep. 3
Cathy Droz is a community treasure. Professionally, she’s the founder of H.E.R. Certified, the industry's first comprehensive certified dealer program aimed at helping dealerships better serve female car buyers. She’s also the author of “A Woman’s Guide to Buying a Car with Confidence and Street Smarts.” But she’s so much more than that. Cathy is generously donates her time and talents as a marketer, especially to organizations that have personal meaning to her. She’s co-founder of The Women 360...
May 09, 2024•26 min•Season 5Ep. 2
