Pancakes for Roger: Love, Service, and the Lessons Our Parents Leave Us — with Susan L. Combs

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Season 2, Episode 5

A Missouri girl in a New York world on founding Combs & Company, honoring her father’s legacy, and why hope is the only thing greater than fear.

This week I’m joined by Susan L. Combs—president of Combs & Company, bestselling author, and daughter of Major General Roger E. Combs. We talk about the moment “Pancakes for Roger” was born, the quiet heroism of caregivers, what the military gave her family (and took), and how a single story can ripple into grants, breakfasts, and thousands of tiny acts of hope every February.

What we get into:

• The kitchen-table moment that sparked Pancakes for Roger
• How Susan turned grief into a living legacy (and a nonprofit)
• Mentorship, “slaying dragons,” and finding the lesson in the hard thing
• Caregiving, oxygen levels, and the strange quiet after loss
• Veterans, VA claims, and why tiny actions scale change
• What hope sounds like when you say someone’s name—again and again

About Susan:
Susan L. Combs is the president of Combs & Company, a full-service insurance brokerage in NYC. She launched the Pancakes for Roger book and foundation to honor her father, Major General Roger E. Combs (USMC/Army/Air Force). Every February, thousands post pancake photos to raise funds for veterans’ legal aid and home grants. Missouri roots, New York hustle, heart-first leadership.

Links & ways to support:

• Pancakes for Roger: share your pancake pic + tag @pancakesforroger (feed posts > stories)
• Donate: pancakesforroger.org (button :
• Combs & Company -for her day-job brilliance
• Susan on LinkedIn

Call to action:
Have pancakes this month. Tag your post. Say Roger’s name out loud. Then share this episode with one person who needs a little light.

Chapters
00:00 Intro
02:00 Meet Susan + her dad, Major General Roger E. Combs
07:00 “Pancakes for breakfast” — the spark
12:30 From post to movement to nonprofit
18:20 What the military gave (and cost)
24:50 Mentorship: finding the lesson + slaying dragons
31:30 Hope, grief, and saying the name
39:30 How to join Pancake Month
45:00 What Susan’s building next

Thank you for listening to Hope Comes to Visit. If this conversation helps, follow the show, share it with someone who needs hope today, and leave a review - it helps others find their way to these conversations.

New episodes drop every Monday, so you can begin your week with a little light and a lot of hope.

For more stories, reflections, and ways to connect, visit www.DanielleElliottSmith.com or follow along on Instagram @daniellesmithtv and @HopeComestoVisit