Host Jeremy C. Park talks with Jordyn Hay, Program Director and Lead Facilitator at SongwritingWith:Soldiers, who highlights the Nashville, Tennessee-based nonprofit organization that works nationwide to pair professional songwriters with veterans to share their story and connect with others through the songwriting process. SongwritingWith:Soldiers (SW:S) holds nationwide creativity and wellness based retreats for veterans, active duty, and their families. The organization partners professional musicians and songwriters to lead collaborative songwriting sessions with participants to help put their stories into song, and rounds out the retreats with workshops in creative journaling, mindfulness, nature walks, strengths coaching, and peer to peer community building. Since its founding, the organization has served more than 2,000 combat veterans through retreats and partnership programs. In 2024, more than 1,100 songs were written with veterans and first responders.

During the interview, Jordyn discusses the SW:S model and talks about the power of the retreats, including the importance of the facilitators who bring a depth of understanding of positive psychology, post-traumatic growth, and how to use creative outlets to tell one's story. She shares how working with SW:S has allowed her to bring both her lived and learned experiences to help facilitate retreats, guide veterans in telling their stories, and empower both the veterans and their families along their healing journey. Jordyn talks about impact and how a pilot study conducted by Harvard University found participants experienced a 77% increase in hope and optimism post retreat.

Jordyn wraps up talking about some of their other programs, partnerships, and initiatives and how the community can get involved, which includes helping to spread the word, create connections, and listen to the music, which is meant to help bridge the gap between civilians and veterans.

Learn more about SongwritingWith:Soldiers by visiting https://songwritingwithsoldiers.org/.

Host Jeremy C. Park talks with Elaine Kay, Director of Rally Tennessee of Rally Foundation for Childhood Cancer Research, who shares how Rally Foundation began in 2005, the same year her 11 year old son, James, was diagnosed with a rare aggressive sarcoma, and how that lead her to launch the Rally Tennessee chapter in 2010.

Rally Foundation for Childhood Cancer Research is a nonprofit that empowers volunteers across the country to raise awareness and funds for childhood cancer research to find better treatments with fewer long-term side effects and, ultimately, cures.

During the interview, Elaine shares how the organization funds research, but also helps families going through a child's cancer diagnosis: (1) Rally has a national program called the Family Emergency Fund which directly pays bills for families. In Tennessee, all five hospitals treating pediatric oncology patients use this fund. (2) Rally takes meals to the hospitals for the patients, their parents, and their siblings. (3) Rally provides counseling for the families. (4) Recently, Rally set up a Travel Fund to help patients travel to their treatment locations. Rally also provides support and love to these families through social events, like a Christmas party and summer ice cream party.

Elaine wraps up by talking about how much the community support means to the children and families and how the community can get involved, like with their upcoming event, RALLY ON THE RUNWAY, a fashion show with the Tennessee Titans taking place on April 10, 2025 at Marathon Music Works in Nashville, Tennessee.

Visit https://rallyfoundation.org to learn more.

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Host Jeremy C. Park talks with Tomeka Hart Wigginton, President and CEO of United Way of the Mid-South, who shares some of her background and why she was excited to be selected to lead and build on the legacy of the nonprofit organization that has been serving the Mid-South for more than 100 years. As the Mid-South’s largest public charitable foundation, United Way of the Mid-South continues to support area nonprofits with aligned grantmaking to the programs that address the region’s most critical issues. For almost 30 years, Tomeka Hart Wigginton has worked to improve education outcomes and increase social and economic mobility at the local, state, and national levels.

During the interview, Tomeka talks about being a Memphian with a deep passion to find and leverage power to support the community. She talks about her journey from education to becoming an attorney, to leading education policy and advocacy grantmaking to civil rights and equity organizations with the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, becoming President and CEO of the Memphis Urban League, and serving two terms on the elected school board in Memphis, including a term as Board President. She shares how those experiences serving in the public and private sectors, education and philanthropy, have played a key role in shaping her leadership and providing the foundation for success in the role as President and CEO of United Way of the Mid-South. She then talks about the unique role that the United Way of the Mid-South plays in the community and her collaborative vision for the future. She talks about how the community can support her and the organization and to actively help craft the next 100 years for the organization and benefit the region.

Visit www.uwmidsouth.org to learn more and to get involved.