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Radio Free Flint Podcast

Podcast Episodes Interviews, Show Notes, and Transcripts

Conservation and Sustainable Food Growing in Michigan
Dec. 7, 2022

Conservation and Sustainable Food Growing in Michigan

Daniel Moilanen, a Fenton area native, is now living in Flint. Dan is currently the Executive Director of the Michigan Association of Conservation Districts (MACD). His leadership in this organization brings conservation-minded farmers together to reduce toxic algal blooms in …

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Potholes, Roads and the Future of a Michigan Rustbelt Town
Nov. 22, 2022

Potholes, Roads and the Future of a Michigan Rustbelt Town

We discuss how the roads got so bad and how to fix the problem with road and infrastructure expert Dr. John Daly. Michigan has a significant problem with its roads and bridges. The state has one of the country's highest …

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Midnight in the Vehicle City: The Strike Heard Around the World
Nov. 15, 2022

Midnight in the Vehicle City: The Strike Heard Around the World

Midnight in Vehicle City, by author Edward McClelland, is a book that tells the story of the Flint Sitdown Strike during the Great Recession and the struggles of its residents as they try to survive in a city that has …

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Fly Away Home Snowbird
Nov. 8, 2022

Fly Away Home Snowbird

What is a "Snowbird," and why do they want to move around the country chasing the sunshine? Is there something this lifestyle says about us and our culture? Have our patterns of life mimicked the ducks and the geese? In …

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George Winters and his Red Piano
Nov. 1, 2022

George Winters and his Red Piano

Musician George Winters has performed for audiences for over 50 years across America. The Michigan native is well-known in music venues in southeastern Michigan for his fabulous keyboard skills, especially on a Hammond organ...

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In Flint They Don't Name the Streets for Us
Oct. 26, 2022

In Flint They Don't Name the Streets for Us

This is a conversation with Sarah Carson about her book of poems, How to Baptize a Child, in Flint, MI. Carson's poems are a jarring portrayal of life in a declining, once mighty, and still proud American rustbelt town, Flint, …

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Emily Doerr: What Can Be Done To Fix Flint's Schools?
Oct. 23, 2022

Emily Doerr: What Can Be Done To Fix Flint's Schools?

Emily Doerr is a candidate for the Flint Community Schools Board of Education. The election will be on November 8, 2022. She joined a slate of four other individuals running to serve the Flint Community Schools. These candida...

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Comedian Bryan McCree a Joyful Flintstone
Sept. 20, 2022

Comedian Bryan McCree a Joyful Flintstone

Is it possible to make Flint laugh? If anyone can, it's Flint native Bryan McCree, a nationally known comedian, actor, and writer. He regularly tours America with shows marked by their insight into American culture and the od...

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The Poet Daughter of Angelo's Coney Island
Sept. 13, 2022

The Poet Daughter of Angelo's Coney Island

Carl Paul came to America through Ellis Island in New York from a country few in Flint, Michigan, know much about. North Macedonia, officially the Republic of North Macedonia, is a country in Southeast Europe. In 1991, the ti...

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Prep School Transfers Impact Flint Prep Hoops and Culture
Sept. 6, 2022

Prep School Transfers Impact Flint Prep Hoops and Culture

Flint, Michigan, has long been touted as a hotbed for high school basketball. Indeed, Flint has produced some of the top basketball talents in the nation. Many Flint athletes are playing in the National Basketball Association...

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Former Public Safety Chief of Bishop Airport Recalls Flint Terror Attack
Aug. 30, 2022

Former Public Safety Chief of Bishop Airport Recalls Flint Terror Att…

Former Bishop Airport Public Safety Director Chris Miller discusses a 2017 terrorist attack at the Flint, Michigan, airport. He also talks about the changes the 9/11 terrorist attacks on America had on current operations at B...

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Keeping Old Documents,Photos and Donating Your Treasures
Aug. 25, 2022

Keeping Old Documents,Photos and Donating Your Treasures

In our highly mobile society, figuring out what to do with our old papers, photographs, and keepsakes is challenging. We accumulate boxes of possessions over a lifetime, and when moving, retiring, or upon the death of a paren...

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A Conversation with Genesee Historical Center Archivist Colleen Marquise
July 26, 2022

A Conversation with Genesee Historical Center Archivist Colleen Marqu…

Colleen Marquise, Associate Archivist at the University of Michigan-Flint, Francis Willson-Thompson Library, takes podcast listeners on a virtual tour of the Genesee County (MI) Historical Center archive collection. This hist...

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Michigan Serial Killer Unmasked: John Norman Collins
June 21, 2022

Michigan Serial Killer Unmasked: John Norman Collins

John Norman Collins was an all-American boy. He was handsome, lived in Ann Arbor, and belonged to a fraternity. But there was a dark side to this young man. The media and others dubbed John Norman Collins "The Michigan Murder...

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Ben Pauli: Democracy and the Flint Water Crisis
June 8, 2022

Ben Pauli: Democracy and the Flint Water Crisis

Ben Pauli, a Kettering University Political Science Professor, is a water rights activist. Pauli embedded himself with a group of Flint residents during the Flint Water Crisis. This is the group that brought the tainted Flint...

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May 31, 2022

"Mr Flint" Charles Stewart Mott an American Capitalist Pt II

The Life of Mr. Flint, Charles Stewart Mott . Charles Stewart Mott (1875-1973) was an American businessman and philanthropist born in Flint, Michigan. He is best known for his involvement in the automobile industry and his ph...

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Semaj Brown, Flint Poet Laureate, Author and Educator
May 17, 2022

Semaj Brown, Flint Poet Laureate, Author and Educator

Flint Poet Laureate Semaj Brown gives a fascinating reading of her environmental injustice poems. Poet Semaj Brown shares stories of working with the child victims of the Flint Water Crisis. Brown is on a mission to help heal...

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Marquise Gray: MSU Basketball Great & Flint Beecher Coach
May 10, 2022

Marquise Gray: MSU Basketball Great & Flint Beecher Coach

Marquise Gray, the former Michigan State Spartan, is now the head basketball coach at Flint Beecher High School. Marquise Gray has excelled at every level of his sport, including coaching and professional basketball. Gray pla...

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Dave Liske: History of the Flint Style Coney Island Restaurant
May 3, 2022

Dave Liske: History of the Flint Style Coney Island Restaurant

Dave Liske discusses his new book "The Flint Coney: A Savory History." Learn about the history of the Flint food culture and love affair with the Flint-style Coney Island hot dog. In a lively interview with author Dave Liske ...

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Michael J Thorp: Michigan Trivia & People We Should Know
April 26, 2022

Michael J Thorp: Michigan Trivia & People We Should Know

Michael J. Thorp Has Stories to Tell about His Life in Mid-Michigan Television and Radio. Michael Shares Curious Tales from His Latest Book Former WJRT TV-12 morning anchor Michael J. Thorp has been a familiar voice to the p...

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Jan Worth-Nelson: History of the Iconic East Village Magazine
April 19, 2022

Jan Worth-Nelson: History of the Iconic East Village Magazine

Jan Worth-Nelson, former editor of the East Village Magazine, shares stories about the colorful history of the iconic Flint publication The East Village Magazine started about the same time as Michael Moore's Flint Voice back...

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Connor Coyne novel
April 12, 2022

Connor Coyne novel "Urbantasm" Set in Deindustrialized Flint

In this interview, Connor discusses his newest novel, the 4th in the series "Urbantasm." The series is set in deindustrialized Flint, Michigan. Connor Coyne is a writer living and working in rust belt Flint, Michigan, a town ...

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Flintstones: Whats in a Nickname?
April 5, 2022

Flintstones: Whats in a Nickname?

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. B...

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CS Mott: A Giant in Automotive History Part 1
April 2, 2022

CS Mott: A Giant in Automotive History Part 1

CS Mott was a giant in automotive history. Author Ed Renahan discusses the remarkable life of Charles Stewart Mott. "The Life of Charles Stewart Mott" is a fascinating and comprehensive look at the life of one of the world's ...

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Carriage Town Ministries and Homelessness in Flint
March 23, 2022

Carriage Town Ministries and Homelessness in Flint

Cindy Johns discusses homelessness and the causes of homelessness in the Flint area. Carriage Town Ministries began in 1950 as the Flint Rescue Mission on the banks of the Flint River at Grand Traverse Street. The organizatio...

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Rev Robert McCathern and His Hip-Hop Civic Park Church
March 15, 2022

Rev Robert McCathern and His Hip-Hop Civic Park Church

Rev. Robert McCathern, the pastor of a hip church in Flint's Civic Park, tells of convincing young people to put away guns and take up hammers to improve the area. Rev. Robert McCathern, the pastor of the Joy Tabernacle Churc...

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Jeffrey LeValley, Gospel Grammy Songwriter
Feb. 22, 2022

Jeffrey LeValley, Gospel Grammy Songwriter

Jeffrey LeValley is a gospel composer and songwriter. He discusses a Grammy-winning song he wrote, "Revelations 19:1," recorded by hip-hop artist Kanye West. The pandemic brought well-known Flint area gospel composer, directo...

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The First Internet Murder Trial (ft David Nickola)
Feb. 17, 2022

The First Internet Murder Trial (ft David Nickola)

The Sharee Miller murder case is one of Michigan's most notable criminal cases this century. The love triangle that Ms. Miller fostered resulted in the death of her husband, Bruce Miller. Sharee engaged in a torrid affair wit...

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Judge Duncan Beagle Interview Part Two
Feb. 9, 2022

Judge Duncan Beagle Interview Part Two

Genesee County Circuit Judge Duncan M. Beagle's uplifting story of courage and determination to overcome his physical disability. Genesee County Circuit Judge Duncan M. Beagle will retire at the end of his current term. This ...

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Reviving Rust Belt Flint with Phil Hagerman
Jan. 25, 2022

Reviving Rust Belt Flint with Phil Hagerman

Philip Hagerman started a real estate and venture investment firm, Sky Point Ventures, headquartered in Flint, Michigan. He discusses his $50 million investment in reviving downtown Flint including the historic Capitol Theatr...

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