Most of us have experienced that always exhilarating, and sometimes frightening, feeling when we end up doing something we never quite expected doing. Chris Alexander's path took her from theater to stained glass to metal working. As co-owner of Alexander Artworks, Chris has found herself busier than she ever imagined as she and her co-owner husband try to keep up with orders. Rachel and Chris talk about metal working, the importance of personal connection, and what it's like to be a business ow...
Jul 09, 2019•38 min•Season 2Ep. 7
Of course anyone can go online and research a trip. But it isn’t every day you’re able to get vacation planning ideas straight from the Director of a Visitors Bureau. That’s exactly what you’ll get in this (part II) episode. Rachel talks with Jan Stevens, the Director of the Dodge City Convention and Visitors Bureau and Joni Whitman, the event coordinator for Dodge City Days. Want to learn to mosey? have a hankering to try some Prickly Ash Bitters? or want to enjoy a rodeo? Then you’re sure to h...
Jun 07, 2019•33 min•Season 2Ep. 7
It’s finally stopped snowing, and the rains have come, and the kids are getting out of school. You’re starting to plan your summer vacation. Part of our mission is to encourage Kansans to get out and learn more about our state, so we’ve put together a new travel episode series (that we’ll post every once in awhile) that allows you to listen to locals share places to see and things to do in their towns in order to give you ideas for your travel plans. For summer 2019, we are going to highlight 3 ...
May 31, 2019•24 min•Season 2Ep. 6
David Hanzlick is a native Kansan who has written a book titled Benevolence, Moral Reform, Equality: Women’s Activism in Kansas City, 1870-1940. Most of us have forgotten that the women’s movement started long before we started burning our bras in the 1960s. In the early days of Kansas City —when we were still a frontier town and a newly forming society— the women of Kansas City had a national voice in the push for equality under the guise of moral reform. This was the generation that brought ch...
May 14, 2019•35 min•Season 2Ep. 5
The Kansas Sampler Foundation is dedicated to connecting Kansans across rural communities. One way they do this is through the Big Kansas Road Trip. This happens May 2-5 in 2019, and the Road Trip will be in Cheyenne, Sherman, and Wallace counties in northwest Kansas. Here’s how Marci Penner, founder of the Kansas Sampler Foundation describes the event. “Create your own adventure at your own pace the same day that other people are doing the same thing.” The Big Kansas Road Trip website Cheyenne ...
Apr 04, 2019•34 min•Season 2Ep. 4
Angie Pickman is a Kansas artist with a national reputation. Angie imagines and creates artwork in her Lawrence studio that is a modern twist on the traditional Chinese art form of paper cutting. Her love of nature is front and center in her work and growing up in Kansas provided her with a wealth of inspiration. In this Uncovering Kansas episode, Rachel talks with Angie about her round trip journey from Kansas to New York. While travelling her creative path Angie built both her talent and her f...
Mar 13, 2019•30 min•Season 2Ep. 3
Once upon a time… That’s a classic way to begin a story. And it’s the best way to begin this episode. This month we share with listeners the story of the Kansas Storytelling Festival that takes place the last weekend in April in the town of Downs, Kansas. Rachel talks with Glennys Doane, one of the organizers of the Kansas Storytelling Festival who offers insights into an event that draws people from across the country for a weekend of storytelling. The festival is an annual celebration of stori...
Feb 09, 2019•31 min•Season 2Ep. 2
Andy Wise found himself unmotivated by the conference rooms at his office filled with blank walls. Andy longed to see whiteboards at his workplace covered in art. A trip to his local library gave him an idea to create a robot that could be attached to the white board and draw whatever picture it was asked to draw. And, so Andy created what he calls a drawing robot. He is an example of someone participating in the Maker Movement – a DIY movement that started to gain momentum in 2005. Technology i...
Jan 12, 2019•32 min•Season 2Ep. 1
This mini-episode contains on-location interview with Wichita native and Kansas City Developer Dan Clothier, who gave us a tour of the Cedar Point Mill during the Chase County Christmas event (see episode 10). Cedar Point Mill is on the National Register of Historic Places and is one of the most fascinating buildings Geoff recalls ever having come across (Kansas is not immediately thought of as a place of old millhouses constructed of stone). The structure needs restoration. Learn about the proc...
Dec 23, 2018•5 min•Season 1Ep. 12
Kansas is known, often infamously so, as a flat state. For those of us who have done some exploring, we know that isn’t true. There are plenty of flat stretches, certainly. But there are also areas where the hills undulate and take your breath away. The Flint Hills are spread across the central part of Kansas, and Manhattan is situated toward the upper end the expanse. In this episode, we will talk with Eric Doran, who has spent the last 10 years exploring the Flint Hills. Eric shares some of hi...
Dec 09, 2018•24 min•Season 1Ep. 11
In November 2017, on Small Business Saturday, the Saturday during Thanksgiving weekend, we took a day trip to Chase County for their Country Christmas Festival. It was the community’s official Christmas season kick-off. Here’s a fun fact: The very first recordings we did for this podcast are in this episode! We needed to practice. More importantly we knew we’d return to Cottonwood Falls in November 2018 and the journey and experience was worth an episode. We’ve appended and updated these first r...
Nov 06, 2018•33 min•Season 1Ep. 10
While on the Big Kansas Road Trip, I came up with an idea to set up a pop-up restaurant in small towns in Kansas that can't support a wide variety or large number of restaurants. I think it would be fun, but can't pull it off by myself. If you are interested in joining the effort to establish a pop-up restaurant in Kansas small towns, let me know - there is a form on our website that you can submit.
Oct 27, 2018•10 min•Season 1Ep. 9
This is the second episode of the 3-part series about the 2018 Big Kansas Road Trip. This episode focuses on the experience we had on the trip. Specifically, the people we met. As a reminder, the Big Kansas Road Trip (BKRT) is hosted by the Kansas Sampler Foundation – whose mission is to preserve, sustain, and grow rural culture by educating Kansans about Kansas and by networking and supporting rural communities. And the Big Kansas Road Trip (BKRT) is a multi-day event where people are encourage...
Oct 07, 2018•14 min•Season 1Ep. 8
This is the first in a three-episode series about the Big Kansas Road Trip. 2018 was the inaugural year for the Big Kansas Road Trip (BKRT), a cultural event conceived by the Kansas Sampler Foundation , whose mission is to preserve, sustain, and grow rural culture by educating Kansans about Kansas and by networking and supporting rural communities. Three Kansas counties and a specific weekend were chosen as the official venue and timeframe for the BKRT. The 2018 counties were Barber, Comanche, a...
Sep 27, 2018•8 min•Season 1Ep. 7
On this episode, we uncover a unique program in Johnson County Kansas that enables and encourages commercial art-making by people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Papercrete Works is a program created by Johnson County Developmental Supports (JCDS) that marries art, commerce, and recycling to create an opportunity for clients of JCDS to earn an hourly wage. I learned of the program’s existence when I visited their open studio at InterUrban ArtHouse. The term Papercrete is used t...
Sep 05, 2018•25 min
On this episode of Uncovering Kansas, we talk to Sarah about foster care and her plan for Joy Meadows. We think that you’ll learn a lot about the state of foster care in Kansas and find that another innovative Kansan has come up with a great idea to help improve the system. (Note: this is an abridged version of the interview because we had such a great conversation!) The foster care system in Kansas is facing some pretty big challenges. With about 7,600 children in foster care in Kansas, there a...
Aug 08, 2018•36 min•Season 1Ep. 5
August is a time for County Fairs in Kansas. All County Fairs have the same key elements: animals, carnival rides and games, crafts, and plenty of food. We encourage you to change things up and visit a county fair in a county you’ve never been to. This way, you get to enjoy all of the traditional County Fair elements while also experiencing a part of Kansas you’ve never experienced before. Here are the featured county fairs: Dodge City Days July 27-Aug 5 Crawford County Fair Aug 1-4 Cowley Count...
Jul 04, 2018•6 min•Season 1Ep. 3
In this episode of Uncovering Kansas, we talk with Kate McNair, Managing Editor of Elementia Literary Magazine, a publication written, edited, and produced completely by teens. Website
Jun 17, 2018•31 min•Season 1Ep. 4
In this episode of Uncovering Kansas, we talk with Mike Paget, the founder of Green Guitar Folk House, a music series in Lenexa that brings national touring singer songwriters into an intimate venue for people who love music. Green Guitar Folk House Website Green Guitar Folk House Facebook Page
Jun 04, 2018•23 min•Ep. 2
In our first episode, we’ll cover what Uncovering Kansas is all about and how it came to be. We hope you are as excited about it as we are. We are working on getting iTunes set up, but in the meantime, please follow us on Facebook so that you can get updates when future episodes are released.
Jun 04, 2018•7 min•Ep. 1
