Personal Journals Episodes

Hey friends! Ever wonder why some of us pack up and head south when winter hits Michigan? In my latest Radio Free Flint video essay, I dig into what it really means to be a Snowbird — not just chasing sunshine, but searching for comfort, identity, and balance after a lifetime of hard work. I share…

Send us a text Good school districts are more than a function of how much money they collect from taxpayers. Schools must connect with the community where they are located in ways that go beyond math, science and reading. Flint, Michigan at one time was the envy of America. Flint leaders developed …

Send us a text What does it mean to be a Flintstone? Rustbelt Flint, Michigan, residents and expatriates, call themselves Flintstones. They discuss their community identity and its rust belt revival. Podcast guests include Judge Duncan M. Beagle, Sandra Branch of the Flint Public Art Project, John …

Send us a text Tawas Point State Park is located on Lake Huron in Northern Michigan near East Tawas, Michigan. The state park encompasses 183 acres at the end of a sand spit that forms Tawas Bay. It has been referred to as the "Cape Cod of the Midwest" and is a notable bird-watching site. Ossineke …

Send us a text Pete "Fat Cat" Flanders is perhaps one of the best remembered radio personalities in the Mid-Michigan media market. He is the owner of Musical Memories, a Flint record shop that specializes in vinyl record sales. Pete recounts his 40 year history in Flint area radio sharing stories f…

Send us a text Local news anchor Joel Feick stepped down from local television news after 35 years. He left familiar seat as "The People's News Anchor". Joel shares stories about his life as a reporter. In this podcast, Joel shares his memories of the characters whom he covered as a journalist. He …

Send us a text At 90 years old Arlene Crane-Curns, who has lived almost a century, authored a book! In Homemade Noodles and Cars, Arlene tells the story of her family-from World War I and how it affected them. Her parents struggled to provide a home for their five children during the Great Depressi…

Send us a text Ryan Lo'Ree, is the former leader of the Rollingwood Skins a white nationalist gang. He participated in this interview. Flint has its share of radical white nationalist groups. Ryan Lo'Ree is a man with a life story made for a television drama production. He has emerged from the roug…

Send us a text Hip Hop recording artist Joe Ryan III a Flint, Michigan native, was profoundly moved to action by the Flint Water Crisis. He called back home to his 90-year-old grandmother, Odessa Houston, who began to sing a song on the telephone. Joe recorded her singing over the phone line, then …