This list began with a simple question that came to me one evening. It was after a long day of reading about the protests in Cincinnati sparked by the death of George Floyd. As the wave of peaceful protesters marched down the historic streets of our city, the question emerged, “What do I know about the history of Black people in Cincinnati?” The answer was a resounding, “Almost nothing.”
Read MoreI am a comedian, a writer, a playwright, and I also write articles. Really, I think my thing is exploring creativity and conversations in as many different genres as possible. By day, I do a lot of cultural humility and equity training with organizations in Cincinnati and across the country. The work all bleeds into itself, whether it's focused through humor or focused through dialogue. I just started picking up playing a few instruments, so that’s going to be in the mix as well.
Read MoreIn this weird, uncertain time it is more imperative than ever to showcase female-owned businesses in our area and financially support our plucky entrepreneurs. It’s also not a bad time to treat yo’self as we hole up at home.
Read MoreFor the three hours we visited with Radha, Emily and I were transported into her enchanting world. We drank refreshing herbal tea in a home filled Indian artifacts on walls, tables, couches - even the teacups felt unique. The most seemingly innocent item in the house has its own story, and Radha is a beautiful storyteller who knows how to invite you in her world in which, for those moments, the enchantment is quite real.
Read MoreI had gone from being a happy, energetic college student to someone who could sleep for 12+ hours and still lack the zest necessary to pour a cup of tea. The transformation was truly bewildering. This was no simple vitamin deficiency or hormonal imbalance. I was suffering from seasonal affective disorder.
Read MoreSo, it started when I met this woman, and she was collecting saris – which are Indian fabrics – for refugee women to make purses. She showed me some pictures of those purses, and, you know, in the back of my head, I was like, "Do they sell these? They should be selling them.” They looked outstanding.
I asked her, and she said, "No, we just make them for fun." From there I started brainstorming ways to help them sell those products and get a little bit of financial independence. I knew that immigrant women – especially when they don't speak English – don't have a lot of freedom on what they can do. So that's where it all came about. I was able to relate their experiences to my own immigrant experience. While I only understand a snippet of their struggle, it drove me to want to make a change.
Read MoreQ: Who is Ratee at this moment?
A: I'm a newly retired professor from the U.C. College of Business. I taught international business for 17 years. I am the founder of the Cincinnati Sister City Association (Mysore, India) and also the founder and executive director of the Indian Film Festival. I'm also a co-founder and vice president of the consulting firm, Artesia Global Consulting, and an entrepreneur. I run a commodities business called Tellicherry Pepper.
Read MoreWe met Chris Ashwell and Shawn Braley at MOTR, the place where it – Cincy Stories’ first event – all began. Cincy Stories is a nonprofit centered around community and storytelling. In a time of divide, Chris and Shawn realized that sharing stories helps connect people; storytelling is what helps us come together and relate to one another.
Read MoreWe got the chance to chat with Michael Cottrell a.k.a. Brooklyn Tate-Steele, drag queen and community activist. Michael has seemingly endless energy. He performs as Brooklyn at Below Zero Lounge a couple times a week, is the president of the Cincinnati Pride Parade and the Gay Chamber of Commerce, and is an active member of Imperial Sovereign Queen City Court of the Buckeye Empire (I.S.Q.C.C.B.E.), which has raised over $1.3 million for charities across Cincinnati. Oh yeah, and he has a regular 9-to-5 gig working for a mobile medical company – and he thinks you can do it all, too.
Read More“Community means solidarity; it means reaching out to other people, confiding in other people, helping other people.”
Poet and Recovery Center of Hamilton County project manager Amanda Stoddard works every day to make the world and her community a better place. She does this with compassion and vulnerability. Women of Cincy is excited to introduce you to this phenomenal woman of Cincy.
Read MoreAll the tea in the world comes from the exact same plant, Kathleen Kern informed me when we sat down to chat at the Rookwood location of her business, Churchill’s Fine Teas. I find this hard to believe as I survey the options available: The whole wall of the shop is devoted to a menu of more than 250 loose-leaf tea blends – green, black, oolong, and more. We covered Kathleen's tea journey up to this point, but it was clear that she has an exciting journey still ahead.
Read MoreI would say that I’m a supporter. First of all, I play second clarinet in the Cincinnati Symphony. That’s been my position since 2001. I never wanted to be the star and have all the solos and glory. I was much more interested in creating harmony, playing chamber music, helping other voices shine, and being the sideman, like in a band.
Read MoreMichelle’s studio is the result of a desire to uplift others and share confidence with everyone who walks through her door, and it shows. My chat with Michelle was memorable, enthusiastic, and even a bit emotional. And you better believe I tucked a few of her quotes away for days I need a little reminder that I, indeed, am capable of most anything.
Read MoreCincinnati is a city alive with art, music, and theatre. Art is the heartbeat of our culture. It is present in every corner of the city, and it didn’t happen by accident. ArtsWave (formerly the Fine Arts Fund) focuses on funding the future of the arts and bringing it into the community. Alecia Kitner, president and CEO of ArtsWave, strives to keep the organization’s focus on what Cincinnati needs from the arts. That focus also helps ArtsWave make its funding decisions. We sat down with Alecia to discuss the upcoming POWER OF HER project and what that looks like for the community.
Read MoreContinuance is a community arts collective that takes memories and turns them into art. For the past year, they have collected memories in response to the prompt, "tell me about a place you cannot return to." The memories come in many forms: handwritten notes, letters, emails, audio recordings, Instagram messages, photographs, video interviews, and family dinners.
Read MoreWomen of Cincy began on a whim on January 20, 2017, as a way to document stories from the Cincinnati Women’s March. We were a few 20-somethings with cameras, recorders, and an Instagram account. We had no idea what we were creating, how much it would evolve, or how much it would change our lives.
Since that day, we’ve reached over 93,000 people, graduated 18 students from our residency program, expanded our volunteer team beyond 70 people, and so much more.
Read MoreWe met Sarah Curry Rathel at the Ronald McDonald House, where she works with critically ill children and their families. She tells us these children are her heroes, and through her nonprofit, the Smile Books Project, she captures their stories as heroes in their own books. She is a mother, storyteller, and legacy-maker.
Read MoreChinmayee Nagaraj is learning as she goes. She traveled across India performing as a vocalist, unsure if it would lead anywhere. She studied genetics in college, not knowing if it was a realistic career. But she knows herself.
When she speaks, she is deliberate with her words and distinct in her meaning. And her courage has paid off. She now works as a genetics counselor at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital, testing different medical conditions and interacting with patients. When she’s not in the lab, she still trains as a musician, and she spreads her love for music as a teacher for young pupils. Formed by music, science, and the strength of family, Chinmayee’s perspective is one of radical bravery – to willingly throw yourself into the unknown, because, well, how else will you learn?
Read MoreWe met Renee Seward on campus at the University of Cincinnati – her alma mater – in the DAAP building, where she teaches, creates, and collaborates to impact the community. Her See Word Design business makes digital tools to help people achieve reading literacy. She identifies with, serves, and encourages people who are struggling to learn something new, and is always striving to challenge what is possible today.
Read MoreWomen Breaking Boundaries is a new exhibit exploring the role of women in art and art history at the Cincinnati Art Museum. The exhibit is a part of a larger initiative called Power of Her, a collaboration of organizations across the greater Cincinnati region united to activate and amplify women’s voices in the arts.
The exhibition was curated by the Cincinnati Art Museum’s Dr. Ainsley M. Cameron. We caught up with Dr. Cameron in the October edition of Community Mix to learn more about the motivation behind Women Breaking Boundaries, the women featured, and Dr. Cameron’s own connection to the exhibit.
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