North Country Kitchen Table Conversations

Eileen Visser left on a 2200-mile kayaking adventure on July 1st, for what she says is the first human powered traverse through the NorthWest Passage. The journey will take her through the summer and into early Fall. The seasoned paddler joins Jody Tosti on “Community Connection.”

Nancy Wilson of the famed rock band, Heart, has named Sierra Levesque as being one of the “new generation” of female singer/songwriters. In a poster that Wilson had designed to highlight the women in music she admires, Sierra is listed among artists that include Taylor Swift and Billie Eilish. From her home in Pembroke, Ontario, she joins Jody Tosti on “Community Connection.”

It is National Crime Victim’s Week and the St. the Lawrence County Safe Harbour Program is raising awareness of human trafficking and sexual exploitation through a week-long series of talks and films on the SUNY Potsdam campus. Bekah Charleston will share her personal story of survival tomorrow as she presents, Tragedy To Triumph: A Survivor’s Perspective.

Nancy Wilson of the famed rock band, Heart, has named Sierra Levesque as being one of the “new generation” of female singer/songwriters. In a poster that Wilson had designed to highlight the women in music she admires, Sierra is listed among artists that include Taylor Swift and Billie Eilish. From her home in Pembroke, Ontario, she joins Jody Tosti on “Community Connection.”

This was an amazing conversation with Sam Miller. I hope you enjoy it.  It’s not uncommon to see an Amish horse-drawn buggy in the North Country or to see Amish folks shopping in local businesses or grocery stores. And while they’ visible, they’re lifestyle is still somewhat unknown to many of us. In a new book, “Memoir: Reasons Why I Left the Amish Community” Sam Miller shares his story of leaving his family and what that journey has looked like for more than a decade.  https://www.amazon.com/Memoir-Reasons-Left-Amish-Community/dp/1639373101

To spice things up in the North Country, Beau Soleil avec Michael Doucet will be performing at the Norwood-Norfolk auditorium. Jody Tosti caught up with the two-time Grammy winner to talk about his long history of making Cajun music with his Louisiana band.

You may not have heard of Jackie Mitchell, but she took the baseball world by storm 90 years-ago when she struck out Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig in a preseason game against the Yankees. Her story of being a female athlete in the 1930’s for the Chattanooga Lookouts is chronicled in a new book by baseball historian John Kovach and he joins Jody Tosti on “Community Connection.”

If you’re a fan of the Boss, you’ll want to listen to today’s “Community Connection.” Retired SUNY Potsdam professor, John Massaro, will talk with Jody Tosti about his latest work, Shades of Springsteen: Politics, Love, Sports and Masculinity. The book focuses on the Springsteen course that he taught for nearly a decade and his experiences as a lifelong fan of the New Jersey musical icon.

Governor Andrew Cuomo, a three-term Democrat was forced to resign two weeks ago to avoid impeachment after sexual harassment allegations by 11 women. Yesterday, Lieutenant Governor, Kathy Hocul took over the job as Governor, making her the first female to hold the position in New York. Jack McGuire is an associate political science professor at SUNY Potsdam and joins Jody Tosti on “Community Connection.”

Kathy Hocul takes the title of New York governor today in the wake of Andrew Cuomo’s resignation two weeks ago. The decision came after New York’s attorney general, Letitia James, released the results of an investigation that found Cuomo sexually harassed at least 11 women. St Lawrence County democratic legislator, Margaret Haggard, joins Jody Tosti on “Community Connection.”