Start with a face you know at the farmers market, a teenager in an open doorway, a neighbor at a stoplight. That’s where community begins—where people feel seen, not sorted. We sat down with our longtime friend and local force, Cathie Day—grandmother, educator, school board member, nonprofit founder, and reserve police officer—to explore how empathy turns into action and why small, consistent gestures change the arc of a town.

Cathie shares how teaching is more than a job; it’s a relationship engine. She talks candidly about alternative education, credit-deficient students, and the way safety and trust unlock learning. We go back to the early days of our recovery community organization that became Peers Rising, tracing the wins and the unfinished work. The big gap she names is one you can feel in every district: youth treatment access and a real reentry plan. Without a public, school-connected recovery path, teens return to the same triggers. Kathy outlines what needs to exist—visible supports, social scaffolding, and language that swaps blame for belonging.

Her law enforcement training brings nuance to public safety. Through realistic scenarios, she practices responding with context, not assumptions, showing how shared humanity makes for smarter, safer choices. Along the way we talk grandparenting as a stabilizing force, the power of reading to build empathy, and how visible community hubs—like teen centers and recovery spaces—signal that help is here and people matter. For anyone overwhelmed or doubting themselves, Kathy offers a crisp plan: prioritize by values, slow down, and take the next indicated step. Ask for help; keep asking. Someone will answer.

If this conversation sparks something in you, subscribe, share it with a friend who cares about youth, recovery, and real community, and leave a review to help others find it. Then tell us: what’s one thing you’ll do in your twenty square feet this week?

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What if the first step toward healing isn’t a grand plan, but a simple, human moment—someone staying with you long enough to help you answer the call when opportunity rings? We sit down with Monica Brown, a certified peer counselor at Peers Rising, whose story threads resilience, harm reduction, and the courage to parent with clarity after growing up in chaos.

Monica opens up about becoming a bonus mom and why language—and respect—matter in blended families. She honors the steadiness of her dad and bonus mom and shows how chosen structure becomes a legacy you pass forward. We dig into the everyday realities of recovery support: why housing is foundational, how employment bias undercuts second chances, and the surprising power of a prepaid phone for staying in touch with probation, treatment, and job callbacks. Along the way, Monica dismantles common myths about addiction and unhoused neighbors, reframing the conversation around dignity, safety, and practical help.

We also explore harm reduction with nuance. After quitting cold turkey left her dangerously unwell, cannabis became a stabilizing tool in Monica’s recovery, a perspective she now brings to peers while never glamorizing any substance. With national policy shifts opening real research, we talk outcomes over ideology: fewer overdoses, more connection, and functional, present lives. The heartbeat of our time together is “holding space”—showing up without judgment and with firm boundaries, so people can move from tapping on the window of change to finally stepping through it.

If you believe recovery should be measured by regained relationships, steady work, and safer lives, you’ll find hope here—and a few concrete ideas you can act on today. Subscribe, share this with a friend who needs it, and leave a review to help more people find real stories that spark change.

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A missed calendar invite turned into a masterclass on making change stick. We kick off with a human moment and move straight into the real work: why resolutions collapse, how systems save you when motivation fades, and what it means to choose direction over speed. I read from my 1996 journal—days of high resolve followed by a quick slide—and use that honest snapshot to show how a plan you can live with beats a promise you can’t keep.

Across the hour, we reframe goal setting to fit real life. Goals are directions, not promises, and life will twist along the way. I share simple, durable practices: wake up and go to bed at the same time, build a morning routine, and focus on identity-based habits. Ask two questions: who do you want to be six months from now, and what daily behavior supports that identity? We talk about shrinking goals until starting is easy, tracking visible progress, and adding friction to the habits that hold you back—whether that’s late-night scrolling, sugar, or saying yes to everything.

We also get practical about patience. Change often feels boring before it feels rewarding, but quiet actions compound—ten-minute walks, five-dollar payments on old debt, one paragraph on the page. If you’ve given your all to old patterns, flip it: give six to twelve months of your best effort to being a better you and measure the difference. And don’t do it alone. Your top five people shape your path, so choose a circle that challenges and champions you.

If you’re ready to trade slogans for systems and resolutions for routines, press play. Then subscribe, share this with someone who needs a nudge, and leave a quick review telling me the one behavior you’ll start today.

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