Episodes

  • Dr. Ala Stanford on unifying Philadelphia against COVID | The last living member of The Blue Notes

    Dr. Ala Stanford on unifying Philadelphia against COVID | The last living member of The Blue Notes
    Jul 27 2024
    When COVID-19 hit, Dr. Ala Stanford stepped up to help Philadelphians get access to information, testing, care, and later, vaccines. She founded the Black Doctors Consortium, and after her work gained national media attention, President Biden appointed her Regional Director of the US Department of Health and Human Services. Now, Dr. Stanford has written a book, “Take Care of Them Like My Own”, coming out August 6 with a launch event at the Kimmel Center. It’s about her personal journey, her work, and the importance of equity and representation in medicine. She talks about all of that with our host, Racquel Williams. And on Shara in the City, Lloyd Parks is the last living member of the famous Philly R&B group Harold Melvin & the Blue Notes - and he can still hit those high notes in songs like “I Miss You” and “If You Don’t Know Me by Now”. Shara Dae Howard takes a journey through time to hear Lloyd’s story. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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    42 mins
  • Friends Select School’s anti-racist mission | Olympic gold medalist Jackie Joyner-Kersee

    Friends Select School’s anti-racist mission | Olympic gold medalist Jackie Joyner-Kersee
    Jul 20 2024
    While many schools have faced fights over book bans and how they teach about racism, Friends Select School in Philadelphia is taking an actively anti-racist approach to education. As a Quaker school, they follow the same philosophies that the Quakers who fought in the abolitionist movement did, and they’re able to incorporate social justice into their curriculum, staff training, and how they interact with the greater Philadelphia community. Racquel Williams speaks with educators and staff from Friends Select to find out how they put their mission into action. And on Shara in the City, as we get ready to kick off the 2024 Olympics, Shara Dae Howard remembers when Olympic gold medalist Jackie Joyner-Kersee came through Philadelphia to inspire over 200 elementary students at Drexel University’s Vidas Field Day and give away copies of her children’s book, “Running for the Gold: Connecting Kids to Dreams.” – This episode of Shara in the City originally ran on Nov 4, 2023. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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    41 mins
  • Best of Bridging Philly: Focus on Fathers | New: Wissahickon’s doomsday cave

    Best of Bridging Philly: Focus on Fathers | New: Wissahickon’s doomsday cave
    Jul 13 2024
    The Focus on Fathers parenting education program shows new fathers how to have positive relationships with their kids. The “fathers to the fathers” try to fill in the gaps for men raised without a strong father figure in their lives, through child development education, job readiness, and mental health awareness, with remote and in-person classes. --This interview originally ran on Nov 19, 2023. Then, on Shara in the City, we explore a cave that’s said to be built by America’s first cult of mystics to predict the apocalypse, right in Wissahickon Park - the Cave of Kelpius. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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    31 mins
  • Best of Bridging Philly: Finding the right therapist | The Awbury Arboretum

    Best of Bridging Philly: Finding the right therapist | The Awbury Arboretum
    Jul 6 2024
    Navigating the mental health care system is a challenge for the most experienced of patients, but what about people looking to see a therapist for the first time? Where do you start? Do you go to someone who matches your demographic? Is telehealth a good option? Host Racquel Williams asks these questions and more with our panel of therapists. Then on Shara in the City, Shara Dae Howard spends some time in nature and introduces us to the poets and musicians who are inspired by the historic Germantown Awbury Arboretum. This episode originally ran on May 13, 2023. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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    33 mins
  • A space for teens in South Philly | Smith Memorial Playground

    A space for teens in South Philly | Smith Memorial Playground
    Jun 29 2024
    Pennsylvania’s funding for after-school care ends when children turn 13, and many parents are concerned about where their teens can go after school and in the summer. Caring People Alliance runs a teen program and recently opened a new center at their South Philadelphia Boys & Girls Club where teens can go to get a meal, play basketball, make music and art, and have a safe space to talk and learn. We speak with Branon Gilmore, VP of CPA’s Boys & Girls Club Movement, Jewel Felder-James, Director of Teen Programming, and Alphonso Cobbs, a participant in the teen program. And on Shara in the City, Shara Dae Howard re-discovers the joy of play at the historic Smith Memorial Playground. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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    46 mins
  • Disparities in cancer care | Philly break dancing

    Disparities in cancer care | Philly break dancing
    Jun 22 2024
    We’ve seen tremendous progress in diagnosing and treating cancer, but not all people have benefited from that progress equally. The American Association for Cancer Research recently released their 2024 Cancer Disparities Progress Report, which highlights gaps in diagnoses, treatment, and outcomes for people in marginalized groups. What is being done to close those gaps? We talk with Mitch Stoller, Chief Philanthropic Officer and Vice President of Development for the AACR, and Dr. Camille Ragin, a professor and Associate Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion at Fox Chase Cancer Center and a member of the steering committee for the AACR’s report. And on Shara in the City, we get ready for the first year of Olympic breakdancing by visiting Philly’s longest-running hip-hop and breakdancing event, The Gathering at The Rotunda. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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    40 mins
  • Youth empowerment through international travel | West Philly birding

    Youth empowerment through international travel | West Philly birding
    Jun 15 2024
    The experience of traveling to a different part of the world can be life-changing, but many people don’t get that opportunity because of the cost. A new initiative called Invest in Human Potential aims to take five young Black men from Philadelphia on a two-week trip to Sardinia, Italy, and empower them with the skills to become social justice warriors over the course of a year-long fellowship. Racquel Williams talks with the director, Amir Joshua Palmer, about what the fellowship will involve and what it will take to get it off the ground. Learn more about how you can support the fellowship at investinhumanpotential.com. And on Shara in the City, Shara Dae Howard discovers a hidden sanctuary in West Philly to learn about Black birding. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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    39 mins
  • A Juneteenth dance celebration | The “Love Letter” mural challenge

    A Juneteenth dance celebration | The “Love Letter” mural challenge
    Jun 8 2024
    A Philadelphia performing arts organization is celebrating Juneteenth with a twist on an old tradition: the house party. Running June 20 - 22, Intercultural Journeys’ “The Re-Emancipation of Social Dance” is an interactive party-performance through five “living rooms”, inviting you to reclaim the freedom of dance. We talk with the show’s curator and former Philadelphia Poet Laureate, Yolanda Wisher, and Intercultural Journeys' Executive Director, Carly Rapaport-Stein, about this performance and how Black Americans throughout history have built community through dance. Learn more, get tickets, and listen to their podcast on the history of social dance at reemancipatedance.org. And on Shara in the City, Shara Dae Howard hops on the El to try to catch a glimpse of all 50 murals in Steve Powers’ “A Love Letter For You” series in West Philly. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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    43 mins