We’ve noticed that there are many misconceptions about what the term “refugee” means, and that there’s often confusion with the concept of immigration. According to the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services website, a refugee is a person of special humanitarian concern to the United States who can demonstrate that they were persecuted, or fear persecution, due to race, religion, nationality, political opinion, or membership in a particular social group. Refugees are people who are in need of help when they are persecuted in their own countries, and they come to America seeking asylum, or protection. This does not include people who come to the United States illegally.

We learned that determining where refugees go within the United States, and how many go to any given state, is a major effort. Idaho, come to find out, is one of the best organized and most helpful states to participate in the program. Holly did a wonderful job of walking us through all the details of how the system works and what we can do to support this community within our community.

We are releasing this in anticipation of a particularly exciting event happening on February 29, 2024. The Idaho Office of Refugees annual Legislative Luncheon will take place from noon to 1:30 PM on the fourth floor of the State Capitol Rotunda. This is a FREE event for the community. We strongly encourage you to come and enjoy authentic food made by the Idaho refugee community and listen to some of their stories. We can’t think of a better way to build community and truly become neighbors than by breaking bread together with people as they share their stories.

To learn more about the Idaho Office for Refugees, visit their website at www.idahorefugees.org. We also recommend you check out Holly’s podcast, Mosaics, where she and her team interview Idaho refugees who share their amazing stories.

With all that said, we bring you a conversation with Holly Beech from the Idaho Office for Refugees.

Feel free to check out City Cast Boise at https://boise.citycast.fm.

Faces of Hope provides a safety net of emergency services to people experiencing domestic violence, sexual assault, child abuse, elder abuse, stalking, and/or human trafficking. Men, women, and children can come to Faces of Hope and receive help, with no judgment, no strings, and no fees. Our dedicated team wraps around an individual or family and provides crisis intervention services to stabilize them.

We are so grateful to have learned all about what Faces does for members of our community. But this conversation was hard. On one hand, what they do for victims of abuse is the pinnacle of compassion, community, and lovingkindness. On the other, that there’s so much need for what they do is heartbreaking, terrifying, and rage-inducing. It’s hard to square up in your mind that this amazing community of ours is so riddled with domestic violence and abuse. Some might say it’s better than many places in the world, and yes, that may be true- AND that’s no excuse that it happens at all, nor is it justification for us turning a blind eye towards it or downplaying it. As we spoke with Paige, it quickly became apparent that there isn’t an easy solution. The scenarios are often very complicated and don’t lend themselves to any sort of quick fix. After listening to some of these examples, the depth and complexity of the problem were overwhelming.

But one can make the case that it’s incredibly encouraging that our community has so many resources for domestic violence and abuse, and Faces is one of them. A simple Google search of “domestic abuse resources” returns a long list of local groups committed to helping those in need in tangible ways (we were brought to tears hearing about how Faces provides what’s called Hope’s Closet).

We encourage you to listen to this episode, if not for yourself, then for someone in your life. The statics show that the odds of you or someone close to you experiencing domestic abuse at some point during your life is staggeringly high. And take note of the ways Paige says we can provide support. Whether it’s through time, money, or donations, getting involved and making a real impact on someone’s life is much easier than you might think. You can learn more about Faces at www.facesofhopevictimcenter.org.

If you are experiencing abuse and need help, please find them. Their website is great and easy to navigate, and their offices are located at 1850 S. Eagle Road in Meridian. Or you can call them at (208) 986-HELP (4357), or call the National Domestic Abuse Hotline at (800) 799-7233.

More than anything, we hope that Shane’s energy for the new year and how he goes about setting and achieving goals inspires you to move to action to take control of this year with hope and confidence (even if a nerdy spreadsheet may not be the tool that would work for you). You can do great things, and we’re here to help with our ramblings. Happy New Year!

This is less a feature on Alyonka specifically, and more a conversation about dedication, community, spousal support, and building relationships and connecting generations through food. Although the food itself is remarkable on its own, what’s more interesting is how it introduced us to an amazing intergenerational and cross-cultural story. Elena is a truly wonderful human and an exemplar of hard work and pursuing your passion to the benefit of a community. We discuss how we met, her immigration and establishment in the United States, starting a business at the onset of Covid, how she sees food and the experience of sharing it and eating it, her deserved success in being featured on national television, and the support and hostility she has experienced as a Russian-American during the course of the Ukrainian-Russian war. Integral to all of this is her relationship with Dan. It’s inspiring to see how proud and supportive he is of her and how his deep commitment has magnified her success.

We hope you enjoy this episode. And with that, we bring you a conversation with Elena and Dan DeYoung.

Natalie was invited to sit down with Kelci for an intimate discussion about working professionally and visibly on social media. They discuss dealing with the algorithm, burnout, trolls and haters, and how to find success on social media. This is the first episode Natalie goes deeply into the beginnings of her social media career and how it started over 16 years ago. It’s a very raw and vulnerable discussion about the realities of being a very visible local public figure. We hope you enjoy. Thank for the invitation Kelci- We love what you are doing!

All his deserved acclaim aside, Anthony was a blast to speak with. He’s the kind of guy you feel you’ve known for years and with whom you want to share a bottle of wine by a fire pit (or as he may prefer, a six pack). He just has such a positive energy. We could have talked for hours, but restrained ourselves to focus on some of the themes of his novels which include the power of ideas to mobilize people to action, authoritative control and censorship, technology’s ability to make wonders or wreak havoc, the dangers of “othering”, and being a force for good in the world. We touch on how many of these issues have affected our local community, the value of libraries, our shared love of Idaho, and even discuss how to be great parents and raise good, strong kids who are ready for a tumultuous world.

FYI: We spoke with Anothy over Zoom, which is usually wonderful, but today caused a few hiccups. Or maybe it was our internet connection. Who knows- I’m not a tech nerd. But there are a few Matrix-y sounding pings and a little static towards the end. We hope you bear with us, because the conversation is well worth it.

If you want to know more about Anthony, just Google him (he’s kind of a big deal and is all over the internet). But you can get an overview at his website anthonydoerr.com or by checking out one of his many writings. We strongly recommend you read either All the Light We Cannot See or Cloud Cuckoo Land, or tune into the Netflix series of All the Light We Cannot See.

The Boise Bicycle Project is a local organization whose mission is to get the community excited about biking and get people access to bikes in the Boise area. They also educate on how to ride and repair. Their shop is on South Lusk Street in Boise where they sell bikes and parts, offer classes on bike repair and maintenance, and host a variety of programs and events.

Devin McComas is a passionate bike enthusiast and the new executive director. In addition to swapping fond bike-related memories with us, he walks us through what the Boise Bicycle Project is all about and tells us all about their major annual event- the Holiday Kids Bike Giveaway. This event is amazing and presents a great opportunity for individuals, families, and businesses to make a real impact in the life of a young person by helping them get their dream bike. The kids actually submit a drawing of their dream bike and together with volunteers and members of the community, the Boise Bicycle Project designs, creates, and gives these bikes to the kids. It’s pretty freaking cool.

The Boise Bubble and our sponsors- Jesse Taff with Waypoint Real Estate Group, Bryce Gonser with Fulcrum Home Loans, and Dr. Dustin Portela with Treasure Valley Dermatology- are all pitching in to support the Holiday Kids Bike Giveaway by adopting a couple of bikes. If you’re interested in supporting this cause this holiday season, you can visit the Project’s website (https://www.boisebicycleproject.org) and click on the link for the Holiday Kids Bike Giveaway. When you get there, you’ll see multiple ways you can contribute: you can donate a bike, you can volunteer at the event on December 16th, make a monetary donation, or adopt a bike.

We hope you enjoy this conversation and learn more about a great resource for our Valley, and if you feel so inclined, check out the Boise Bicycle Project’s website and Boise bike shop. It will definitely brighten your day.

Natalie was invited to be a guest on the national Girl Powerful Podcast. This Boise-based podcast is about having raw and vulnerable conversations with powerful and empowered women. Natalie in turn requested to make it a dual-release so we could also learn about one its founders, Tedi Serge.

Together they discuss some of the missions behind their projects. They spill the tea on why Natalie started social media and why she decided to move from an anonymous page to sharing her personal story. They break down the idea of living apart from culturally imposed concepts and labels, and leading an inquisitive life. They explore what it means to be a good and kind person and how often we should revisit what that means. They chat about what patriotism means to different people and their individual plans for moving into the election year.

They end with a discussion on what it means to be a good friend and building a tribe of safe people. And Tedi surprises Natalie with a pretty blunt and thought-provoking question.

Not just for women, this is an open conversation about reevaluating who we are, what we want to be, how we want our lives to look, and who shares space with us in that life.

So Good!’s mission is pretty simple: do good for good’s sake. No other reason necessary, just be nice to others and put yourself out there to do good. And that’s a message we can get behind. Beneficiaries of his group’s efforts include teachers, first responders, veterans, the Idaho Food Bank, and a horde of perfect strangers just like you and me.

Talking to Parker, hearing his story, and learning that there’s truly no gimmick behind what he’s doing was surprising in the best way. It was doubly powerful coming from a guy who has more than his fair share of reasons to be a pessimist. Parker’s the real deal- a genuinely kind human who gets his dopamine hit by consistently doing kind things for others. And by “consistently” and “others” we mean he’s actively on the lookout daily to do something that will make the day of a total stranger.

We were truly inspired after spending time with Parker. Subsequent to our conversation, we took him up on his challenge to consciously look for a way to render some service to a stranger. We did it, and we can report that it really did feel freaking awesome.

We’re happy to share with you a conversation with Parker Harger of So Good!

In addition to their support for farmers, they run a huge community garden program for family gardeners, host educational farm visits from schools, help provide local childcare centers with fresh produce, and find ways to divert excess produce to underserved communities around the Valley.

It was interesting speaking with Karyn and learning how the organization works; what support really looks like to all parties; and how to get access to fresh, healthy, pesticide-free, farm-to-table produce on a regular basis.

If you are looking for a way to give back, this episode is for you.

May 1st through the 4th is “Idaho Gives”, a program of the Idaho Nonprofit Center designed to bring the state together, raising money and awareness for Idaho non-profits.

We sit down with Kevin Bailey, CEO of the Idaho Nonprofit Center, to discuss what Idaho Gives is all about. We talk about how to search for non-profits, and why non-profits are so important in Idaho. Hint, it has a lot to do with our level of government funding. We learned that only half of Idaho non-profits can meet the demand for their organization’s services. Donating through Idaho Gives can help increase an organization’s abilities to meet demand.

This year there are over 600 non-profits participating. From large and recognizable non-profits to the lesser know organizations such as the “The Rat Retreat".

Last year $3.69M was raised during Idaho Gives. This year the goal was set for over $4 million. Excited to see Idaho reach that goal!

“Are you confused about how to build a connected community with all the social media noise and distractions out there? If so, fear no longer because in today's #soulascendpodcast episode, we interview Community Bad Ass Natalie Plummer from Hello Meridian.

"She gives you simple next steps for how to build your online community and make your mark. Natalie has built a wildly successful online presence in her local area as the Founder of Hello Meridian and The Boise Bubble Podcast

"Some nuggets of gold in this episode:

1. How Natalie started her career as a blogger to now create a wildly successful community in her local area.
2. Why your social media content should be centered around values and not trends.
3. How to create boundaries online and why losing subscribers can actually be a very good thing for your business.
4. Some powerful next steps to begin creating your online community and sharing your message.”

The conversation is continued over on Genevieve’s Podcast “Your Zest Life” episode “The Value in Listening, Acts of Kindness and Setting Boundaries - with Natalie Plummer”

In this episode Mark shares with us snippets of his journey from advertising to grilling to Food Network Star - and what it’s really like to appear in a reality TV show. (Spoiler alert, it isn’t always fun!)
We also discuss what it’s like to create a show for a national television network, and what he’s been up to lately. We’ll get some advice on grilling tips for the summer, and… his very favorite restaurant in the Treasure Valley.

Living in the fastest growing city in America means….development! In this second installment of our conversation with Boise Dev’s Don Day, we chat about what development is coming to the Boise area. Which national businesses he expects to see. And those he does not plan on heading our direction. We discuss the new growth in Meridian Downtown including it’s new urban living center, Old Town Lofts. We chat about our favorite new 8th Street Restaurant, news on Topgolf and “The Boardwalk” - the newest project to come to Garden City.

Also… what’s happening with the huge field on Fairview and Eagle across from The Village at Meridian? We also talk on on the multifaceted issue of affordable housing in the Treasure Valley.

After the episode, keep listening. We have a bonus micro episode with Marc, the Volkswagen of Boise’s fun coordinator. He was a REALLY bad salesman. And he tells us why. ;)

Sponsored By:

• Volkswagen of Boise

Sponsored By:

• Volkswagen of Boise