Voices & Stories
✨ Voices & Stories that Inspire
Here are some of our most recent — and most listened to — episodes sharing voices and stories that uplift, empower, and connect.
You'll also find a complete playlist on our YouTube channel featuring not-for-profit organizations making a difference, inspiring conversations about meaningful friendships, and personal stories of courage, resilience and heart.
255. Go Be Great: Irma Neal on Resilience, Bullies and Chaos
Welcome back to Girl, Take the Lead! — the podcast where we share real, raw, and remarkable stories that inspire us to lead with courage and heart. Today’s guest is Irma Neal — seasoned executive, entrepreneur, and author of Leading in Chaos: Insights to Lead Through the Storms. From her early years...
254. Rita Lussier on Love, Loss, and Rediscovering Yourself
Welcome back to Girl, Take the Lead! — the podcast where we explore the real, raw, and remarkable stories of people breaking cycles, finding freedom, and leading with courage. Today’s episode features Rita Lussier , Boomer, writer, longtime Providence Journal columnist, and now author of And Now, Ba...
253. We Got This: Thriving Through Cancer, Grief, and Community with Elissa
In this heartfelt episode of Girl, Take the Lead! , I sit down with Elissa Kalver , Millennial author of We Got This , stage 4 metastatic breast cancer thriver, nonprofit founder, and advocate for re-imagining how we support one another through life’s hardest challenges. Elissa shares how her diagnosis...
250. Empowering The Next Generation Girls to Lead with Mary Jane Strom
Today’s guest is Mary Jane Strom , the CEO of Girl Scouts Northern California since April 2025. Mary Jane has over 20 years of experience in youth development, nonprofit leadership, and outdoor programming. She’s a lifetime Girl Scout member and a Gold Award recipient—the highest honor a Girl Scout can ac...
243. 36 Years Unbroken: Judy Henderson’s Journey of Grace and Strength
Judy Henderson and Jimmy Soni join us for a deeply moving conversation about resilience, forgiveness, and hope in the face of injustice. Judy spent 36 years wrongfully imprisoned, a journey that could have broken most people—but instead, she transformed it into a story of grace, growth, and unwavering str...
241. What We Learned from COVID: Truth, Trauma, and Transformation
Michele Weldon, Boomer, award-winning author, journalist, and emerita faculty member at Northwestern University, joins us to reflect on the deeply personal and cultural shifts we experienced during the pandemic years. Through her latest book, The Time We Have: Essays on Pandemic Living , Michele invites ...
239. Confidence, Courage, Action: The Mindset Shift That Changes Everything
Kayla Logue, a bestselling Millennial author, keynote speaker, and founder of the nonprofit Move Into Words, joins us to share her inspiring story of transformation and impact. Through her book Always Squeezing Lemons, Kayla offers a refreshingly honest take on what it means to face adversity, take radica...
238. From the Slopes to the Struggle – Athena Brownson on Resilience, Reinvention, and the Power of Passion
Athena Brownson, a Millennial light bearer, embodies resilience like few others. Once a professional skier, Athena underwent nine knee surgeries and two neck operations—yet her toughest challenge came off the slopes. Diagnosed with chronic Lyme disease, she found herself bedridden for months. But instead ...
230. Mothers’ Day Movement 2025: Supporting Family Promise
Eva Hausman, Silent co-founder of the Mothers’ Day Movement (MDM) joins to remind us that $35B are spent on Mother’s Day and what if for the cost of a bouquet of flowers we could change a life? Eva’s interest in starting this organization grew out of a column in The New York Times by Nicholas Kristof, wh...
