Posts in Features
Easterseals’ Danielle Gentry-Barth: An Awesome Struggle
Easterseals’ Danielle Gentry-Barth: An Awesome Struggle

Danielle Gentry-Barth, a proud Bearcat, told us to meet her in front of Mick and Mack’s at the University of Cincinnati. We settled comfortably in an office borrowed from the philosophy department, and Danielle shared her journey from a master’s degree in history to her position now at Easterseals. She frequently described her work and her life as “awesome!” She fell into fundraising right out of graduate school and has yet to fall out of it. She also told us about the work she does to help others outside of Easterseals. It was clear that helping people is in her nature.

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Features, Outreach + AdvocacyTracy P. Van WagnerFeatures
Easterseals’ Debbie Smith: ‘Don’t tell me no; tell me how.’
Easterseals’ Debbie Smith: ‘Don’t tell me no; tell me how.’

Debbie Smith’s motto is: “Don’t tell me no; tell me how.” This bold attitude has brought her to develop innovative programs that elevate Cincinnati youth out of poverty. We met her at Easterseals Serving Greater Cincinnati in Walnut Hills and sat down in a conference room, where she shared her story with us. She weaved advice into her stories, thoroughly demonstrating her desire to help others in any way possible.

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Education, Features, Outreach + AdvocacyTracy P. Van WagnerFeatures
Tackling Hunger Differently: Meet Chef Suzy DeYoung
Tackling Hunger Differently: Meet Chef Suzy DeYoung

Suzy DeYoung is a chef with a deep culinary heritage. After studying French and business at University of Cincinnati and training as a chef in Paris, she ran a successful catering business, La Petite Pierre, with her sister. Today, Suzy runs La Soupe, a nonprofit founded to rescue food from grocery stores, farms, and food purveyors that would otherwise be wasted. La Soupe takes a chef driven approach to turn that food into healthy, nutritious meals, which are then donated to schools and community agencies throughout Cincinnati.


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Features, Health + Wellness, Outreach + Advocacy, Food + BeverageKyle SchottFeatures
Nia Baucke: Self-Care and the City
Nia Baucke: Self-Care and the City

We sat down with Nia Baucke outside Clark Montessori in Hyde Park in March and kept our fingers crossed that it would be one of the rare sunny days of spring. It was a quiet morning as a nearby lacrosse practice was ending and we settled down on a bench to get our conversation started. It quickly became clear that the founder of Cypress Beauty was passionate about that project, but Nia refuses to be defined solely by her work.

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Features, Entrepreneurship, Health + WellnessEllen HugginsFeatures, Celebrate Black Stories
Raised By Women, Chapter 3: Emily Boyd and Lindsay Combs
Raised By Women, Chapter 3: Emily Boyd and Lindsay Combs

Lindsay and Emily walk in a few minutes later. I haven’t seen Emily since she’s been pregnant with Macie, a baby girl due in June. With a family like this one, full of powerhouse women, Macie is sure to grow up to be one fierce lady. We sit down and reminisce for a few minutes, and the conversation turns to another fierce lady: Lindsay and Emily’s mom, Dr. Sandra Combs.

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FeaturesKiersten WonesFeatures
Raised By Women, Chapter 2: Patricia Patterson
Raised By Women, Chapter 2: Patricia Patterson

The Patterson family is a tribe of women unlike any I’ve ever met. The bond between the six fierce sisters makes it clear to any outsider that to these women, family always has and always will come first. It’s a loud family full of big feelings, big opinions, and big love, and at the head of it all is Patricia Patterson, a matriarch in the truest sense of the word. I met Dr. Sandra Combs at Roebling Point Books & Coffee on a rainy Sunday, laughing at times, tearing up at others, as she talked about the mother that made her family what it is today.


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FeaturesKiersten WonesFeatures
Raised By Women, Chapter 1: Dr. Sandra Combs
Raised By Women, Chapter 1: Dr. Sandra Combs

I’m overjoyed to see Dr. Sandra Combs walk through the door of Roebling Point Books & Coffee on a rainy Sunday morning in February. I’m good friends with her whole vivacious family, and while she stands in line for a large coffee, we gush about her daughter Emily, who just found out she’ll be having a baby girl this June. We make our way to the comfy armchairs in the next room, and as she begins to tell me about her journey – sharing her gift as a speech pathologist, finding a home in Covington, and more – her bracelets jingle like a soundtrack to her words.

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Education, Features, Health + Wellness, Science + TechKiersten WonesFeatures
Rachel Hodesh: Stories on Life and Aging
Rachel Hodesh: Stories on Life and Aging

Rachel began her career in geriatric care at Glen Manor Home for the Aged in Bond Hill. She has a master’s degree in health and human services and is a licensed nursing home administrator, but she will tell you that her best experience – where she learned the most about aging – was working in Israel and the Chicago Housing Authority. Today, Rachel works for Queen City Home Care as a geriatric care manager and marketing coordinator, crediting her long career to the many seniors who have touched her life over 25 years. She’s a huge piece of the stories of innumerable seniors throughout Cincinnati.

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Features, Health + WellnessJustine DaleyFeatures
Leslie Stevenson: Building a Council on Community
Leslie Stevenson: Building a Council on Community

Leslie Stevenson made history last year when she became the first African American to run for City Council in Norwood. And in November, Norwood voters made history when they elected her, the first African American Council member in the city’s 129-year history.

Women of Cincy recently had a chance to talk with Stevenson about Norwood’s past and present, and how her work in the nonprofit sector led her to public service.

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Politics, FeaturesHillary CopseyFeatures, Celebrate Black Stories
Rachel Roberts: Leap and Trust
Rachel Roberts: Leap and Trust

A happy childhood didn’t keep Rachel Roberts from leaving her hometown of Cincinnati the moment high school was over. From her start as a ski bum and whitewater rafting guide to her positions in the corporate world, she built a life in Colorado that hit all the adult milestones – some good, some not so good. She married, divorced, and discovered yoga. But it was on a solo trip around the world where she finally found her future and her way back home.

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Health + Wellness, Politics, Entrepreneurship, Features, Sports + FitnessTeri HeistFeatures
Tamia Stinson: Cincinnati Style
Tamia Stinson: Cincinnati Style

Start a fashion blog before it was mainstream hip? Check. Co-launch Over-the-Rhine’s super popular Second Sunday on Main and one of its first pop-up shops? Check. Land a coveted magazine stylist position? Check. Run your own podcast? Check. Win a prestigious grant to work on a project you’ve dreamed about for years? Check. Be an all-around badass cool cat? Check.

And the list goes on. Tamia Stinson is a creative pioneer in Cincinnati. Let’s dive in to our conversation, which took place at Iris BookCafe in Over-the-Rhine.

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Arts + Culture, FeaturesHeather ChurchmanFeatures, Celebrate Black Stories
Leah Stewart: Writing Is a Weird Career
Leah Stewart: Writing Is a Weird Career

Leah Stewart is a novelist, with six published books and a 10-year history in Cincinnati. Her newest book, What You Don’t Know About Charlie Outlaw, will be released March 27.

We talked about her latest book, the weird career of writing, perspective on place, and her lovably eccentric neighborhood of Northside. Our conversation unraveled in her office at the University of Cincinnati, where she is head of the English department.

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Arts + Culture, FeaturesSuzanne WilderFeatures
Lauren Eylise: Life, Death, and Black Girl Magic
Lauren Eylise: Life, Death, and Black Girl Magic

People don’t always find it easy to reveal their true selves. Singer-songwriter Lauren Eylise, on the other hand, welcomes you with a smile and vivid stories. She’s expressive as she spills her convictions and details new music that’s on the way. We’re huddled in one of her favorite spots in Over-the-Rhine, 1215 Wine Bar & Coffee Lab.

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Arts + Culture, Features, MusicSandra Okot-KotberFeatures, Celebrate Black Stories
Christa Hyson: ‘Keeping my sunshine.’
Christa Hyson: ‘Keeping my sunshine.’

Christa Hyson had worked in public health for years, navigating government, health statistics, and community needs. But when she moved back to Cincinnati, she was struck by the devastation that the opioid epidemic was causing on her hometown. She started researching prevention programs and discovered a curriculum called HOPE (Health and Opioid Abuse Prevention Education).  

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Health + Wellness, Features, Education, Outreach + AdvocacySuzanne WilderFeatures