Our Town With Host Andy Ockershausen - Homegrown History

Matheos Mesfin, Founder and Executive Director of the Institute for East African Councils, on IEA Councils' mantra for their work~ "I always say that the mantra for our work is that there's no growth in comfort, and so the more concentration you have with the same kind of people, the more your comfort zone will cement. So we interject and we take them out of that comfort zone and say, "Go to school in rural Massachusetts." Matheos Mesfin - Founder and Executive Director of IEA Councils with host Andy Ockershausen in-studio interview Andy Ockershausen: This is Andy Ockershausen, and this is Our Town with a very special conversation with a young man that I happened to... I mean literally this was an accident. I was at an affair in the city and Our Town about Washingtonian of the Year and Donald Graham, who has been a friend for 50 years, says to me, "There's a young man here that's being recognized today I want you to meet. He is going to make a huge impact on parts of Our Town." When Donald asks, we all rea

Jimmy Lynn on what went into his decision to stay in Our Town after grad school ~ "When I was coming out of AU after grad school, a couple mentors pulled me aside and said, you think you might need to move to New York or LA? I wasn't sure. And they said, you might be a small fish in a big pond. Why not stay here in DC where you can be a big fish in a medium sized pond." Jimmy Lynn, Entrepreneur, Servant Leader and Georgetown Professor and host Andy Ockershausen in studio interview Andy Ockershausen: This is Our Town. This is Andy Ockershausen. And this is such, I say this in all sincerity, a great, great opportunity and a pleasure to talk to a friend for many, many years. At one time, a big part of WMAL radio. Things have changed, Jimmy. The big days that you and I grew up are gone. But to have you in this studio to me is special and Jimmy Lynn, welcome to Our Town. Jimmy Lynn: Thank you, Andy. It's so great to be back to see you. To see Janice. To be back at the studios from back in the 80s when WMAL and Q

Phil Hochberg on revenue generation in Major League Baseball today ~ "Well, interestingly, Major League Baseball is now suffering attendance losses over the past few years, but Major League Baseball is making more money than it ever had because of the media rights and everything . . . everything has just changed so much. It is no longer just radio. It is no longer radio and television. It is not radio, television and cable. It is the Internet. It is the streaming services. It is just everything." Phil Hochberg - Former Voice of the Redskins and Lawyer with host Andy Ockershausen in-studio interview Andy Ockershausen: This is Our Town. This is Andy Ockershausen. In a conversation with not only a friend, but I would say a world known friend from doing his work as the public address announcer for so many of Washington sports teams that they could hear you all over the world because of the coverage. Welcome to Our Town, Phil Hochberg. Phil Hochberg: Thank you Andy. Thank you very much. Andy Ockershausen: And

Lisa Baden on internal conflict of the overwhelming desire to be first to report, and the discipline to verify before: So I had to confirm it and I was like chomping at the bit. We're calling M Dot. We're calling Transportation. We're calling the police. Well finally we got confirmation. Yes. A tar truck just turned over and that was hours of cleanup. I mean hours but so although I would love to be first, I desire accuracy more. Lisa Baden, Traffic Reporter and Radio Personality, with host Andy Ockershausen in-studio interview Andy Ockershausen: This is Our Town. It's Andy Ockershausen and what an absolute treasure and pleasure it is for Janice and I to welcome a very, very famous person in our life and a life of broadcasting. Miss Lisa Baden. Lisa Baden: Aw. Thank you. Andy Ockershausen: Lisa, you know to see you in the flesh after all these years of watching you on camera, because I grew up in the business as you know and to see what you had you matured and all the good things you had done. I had the opp

Marianne Haney Brennan on the importance of manners today ~ "We need to get back to being kind to each other. . .we're in a sad state of affairs right now and it breaks my heart. And that's why I teach etiquette from A to Z. I don't care. You know what? Time goes on but manners don't change. Manners are manners. Whether they were the 1800s or they're the 2019." Marianne Haney Brennan, Etiquette Coach, and host Andy Ockershausen in studio interview Andy Ockershausen: This is Andy Ockershausen. This is Our Town speaking and I wanted to explain to her, this is not an interview. We are having a conversation. Marianne Brennan, welcome to Our Town. Marianne Haney Brennan: Andy I am so just excited to be here and honored. I can't tell you anything else other than that. Andy Ockershausen: Well I'm afraid to say Haney because nobody will know what that mean. Marianne Haney Brennan: Oh no, I love it call me Haney. Andy Ockershausen: But you know, Marianne Haney. Marianne is local, a local girl. As a matter of fact,

Tom Davis on politics today in Northern Virginia~ They've done it to themselves because they've emphasized these social issues, in an area that's becoming much more widely diverse, instead of focusing on the bread and butter and the economic issues that basically decide the success or not of every jurisdiction. They just priced themselves out of the market. So even where they were right on a number of issues, you had young people, people of color, just pushing the mute button when you had the Republican label. Tom Davis - Retired Congressman and Rector, George Mason University and host Andy Ockershausen in-studio interview Andy Ockershausen: This is Our Town and this is Andy Ockershausen and we're so fortunate to have a friend for many, many years who sort of disappeared part of our life, but thank God, not totally. Congressman Tom Davis, welcome to Our Town. Tom Davis: Andy, it's great to retire from my life of quiet anonymity to come on to your show. Andy Ockershausen: Tom, I can't tell you Tom, how much

Mahan Tavakoli on connecting and networking in Our Town region~ Leadership Greater Washington . . . brings people from different backgrounds, different industries, and different parts of our region together. But there's also a connection to meaning . . . All of us want to connect and network, want to do good and have meaning in our work lives, in our networking. So Leadership Greater Washington allows for the senior leaders in the region to address those issues and have meaning in terms of their involvement. Mahan Tavakoli, Servant Leader, Strategic Leadership Ventures and Leadership Greater Washington, and host Andy Ockershausen in-studio interview Andy Ockershausen: This is Andy Ockershausen. This is Our Town, and I have the opportunity to talk to a wonderful, wonderful man who means so much to this community, to Our Town. He was one of the leading business executives in my estimation. Mahan Tavakoli, welcome to Our Town. Mahan Tavakoli: Andy, thank you very much. I am super excited to be here with you a

Deborah Marriott Harrison on Marriott's culture of putting people first~ And my grandfather started it by making a sign he put over the kitchen doors in the Hot Shops that says, "If you take care of the employee, the employee will take care of the customer and the customer will come back again and again." And we really pride ourselves in taking care of our associates. Deborah Marriott Harrison, Global Cultural Ambassador Emeritus Marriott International (r) and host Andy Ockershausen (l) in-studio interview Andy Ockershausen: This is Our Town. And I'm so delighted to have in one of the most important people in representing the families and I could probably, the number one family in Washington was the Marriott family, and I'm so delighted to have Debbie Marriott Harrison on Our Town. Welcome to Our Town, Debbie. Deborah Marriott Harrison: Thank you Andy. I'm delighted to be here. Andy Ockershausen: Well, our relationship, my relationship personally goes back to Marriott for many, many years before you were

Caroline Carter, Author of Smart Moves, and Founder and CEO of Done in a Day, Inc., on the process of transitioning from home to home~ "But the reason I wrote the book was to allow people to say, okay, I get it. We all dread this process but we don't have to. Okay. There is a way that we can go through this and make very solid emotional, financial and physical decisions that will affect us over time." Caroline Carter, Founder and CEO, Done in Day, Inc. | Author, Smart Moves with host Andy Ockershausen in-studio interview Andy Ockershausen: This is Our Town and this is Andy Ockershausen to talk to a friend of many years who has shocked me beyond belief because I lost track of her, what, 10, 15 years ago in our neighborhood and now she's turned out to be a fabulous writer, I think. Caroline Carter, welcome to Our Town. Caroline Carter: Thank you, Andy. I'm pleased to be here. Andy Ockershausen: It is unbelievable what you have done in this book. Like you're new to me and yet you're not. You're ... we're frie

Tom Sherwood on what he tells journalism students when asked about making Journalism a career: I tell every journalism student intern that I meet that one thing about being journalist, it opens doors to everything and anything that you want to see or do. I mean, I've been places and seen things . . . I never would have access to had I not fallen into the news business." Tom Sherwood, Analyst, WAMU's Politics Hour and Former WRC TV Politics Reporter and host Andy Ockershausen in-studio interview Andy Ockershausen: This is Our Town. This is Andy Ockershausen, starting part of what we hope will be a long fifth season. We are especially, especially... I mean this because I've been trying to get this guy for two years, and he finally agreed to do it, to be part of Our Town, because he's such a big part of Our Town. That's my friend, and ex-neighbor, and a guy I've admired for so many years. Welcome to Our Town, Tom Sherwood. Tom Sherwood: I see you had to read my name, so, so much for that introduction. Andy

Stephen S. Fuller, Ph.D. on Amazon and future job and economic growth in Our Town~ They worked together to make this happen, and it will benefit the region broadly, but it isn't the final, it isn't all that is coming. This is just the beginning. We expect there to be almost 400,000 new jobs in the next 15 years and this is just 25,000 of them. Stephen S. Fuller, Ph.D. and Our Town host Andy Ockershausen in-studio interview Andy Ockershausen: This is Andy Ockershausen and this is Our Town. I have been so excited to know that we could talk to this man and we could talk to him away from his usual role as the head of some meeting or group because I have been following him through the Washington Board of Trade since he first worked for GW. It was way back in the '60s I guess. Steve Fuller, welcome to Our Town. Stephen S. Fuller, Ph.D.: Pleasure to be with you. Andy Ockershausen: You know, we think Our Town and we created the show - my Janice recreated it. We had a television program on channel 50 called Our Town

Our Town podcast Season 4 through a millennial's eyes. Liz Bubes shares her views on Season 4 of Our Town podcast interviews~ "Well, as a millennial and for someone who had never heard of a vast majority of these people but learned way more than I thought. . . I think that the highlight of Our Town podcast for me was having Monique Samuels on and getting on the Real Housewives of Potomac. . . Getting all the cameras all set up, and getting mic’d up and you know, being near a celebrity." Our Town Season 4 Wrap Up - Andy and Janice Ockershausen in studio, Looking Forward to Season Four Andy Ockershausen: This is Andy Ockershausen. This is Our Town podcast and unfortunately this is the last of our Season 4. Our Town, we'll be starting Season 5 sometime in this late Summer, early Fall. But this has been a wonderful, wonderful ride for us, especially since Janice has been in charge of the whole program. But to have Liz Bubes take over and work with us as sort of our finding producer. It's just been a great,

Monique Samuels on being the only one on Real Housewives of Potomac with babies~ "I can't wait for someone else to have a baby on this cast. I can't be the only one because it is very difficult trying to navigate, just making sure that your family feels whole and they don't feel like they're being left out and then trying to give your all to the show as well. I've never had a nanny until I joined the show. So I had to spend more money. Get somebody to take care of my babies while I'm off filming and doing other things that I need to do. So it's been a transition for our family but I think we're handling it pretty well." Monique Samuels - Real Housewives of Potomac and Not for Lazy Moms founder - with host Andy Ockershausen in studio interview Andy Ockershausen: This is Our Town, Andy Ockershausen with the unique Monique Samuels. Monique an absolute super pleasure for us to have you as part of Our Town. Monique Samuels: Thank you, I'm so excited to be here. I'm so honored to be here. A

Tyler Balderson, Tree Hugger and Arboriculturist at Bartlett Tree Experts, on the importance of knowing your trees~ "Being a board certified master arborist, the most important part is to be able to identify the tree. Each tree has either its mechanism of growth, or its concerns that I need to identify for the client, but there's also bad trees, there are trees we don't want on your property, and we call those invasive species. . . they can impact the health and growth of a tree that we do want." Tyler Balderson - Tree Hugger and Arboriculturist, Bartlett Tree Experts and host Andy Ockershausen in-studio interview Andy Ockershausen: This is Our Town, and this Andy Ockershausen. And I'm just so excited to welcome a very special guest, my favorite tree hugger. And I use that term in all affection. This man is a very, very famous forester. He's famous because I think he's famous. We found him as the local manager at Bartlett Tree Experts about probably 15 to 20 years ago, Tyler. It's been a great

Peter Abrahams on a priority for him right now in his new role as Publisher of the Washington Business Journal~ "I'm on a listening tour, really, talking to a lot of the business leaders in the city. Trying to get to meet with our clients, our stakeholders, really understanding what's important to them. I have some ideas . . . " Peter Abrahams - Publisher, Washington Business Journal and Andy Ockershausen in-studio interview Andy Ockershausen: Well this is Our Town. This is Andy Ockershausen with an old friend. He'll never be old, and he's a wonderful friend. His name is Peter Abrahams, he's just taken over the job at head of the Washington Business Journal, but I knew him when he was selling magazines here in the studios of WMAL. Peter, welcome to Our Town. Peter Abrahams: Thanks Andy. Good to be here. And by the way, you said I'm an old friend, let's just be clear. I'm not that old. Andy Ockershausen: Yeah, I've been around a long time. Peter I've had some people tha

John Lyon on finding his way after WMAL ~ "For two years . . . I floated around . . . It wasn’t the same, what I’m used to all these years being here. Strangely enough, I connected with Montgomery County to work in the Victim Assistance Program. I was on the air at WGAY on a Sunday morning. . . I picked up this card and the card said, 'Volunteers needed for the Victims Assistance Sexual Assault Program of Montgomery County.' . . . put that one in my pocket. The next day I called the number on the card . . ." John Lyon, Retired Announcer and WMAL Swingman, and host Andy Ockershausen in-studio interview Andy Ockershausen: This is Our Town. This Andy Ockershausen, and what a pleasure and what an extreme, extreme happiness for Janice and I to be with the original WMAL Swingman. We call him The Swingman 'cause he could swing on every show on WMAL. John Lyon, welcome to Our Town. John Lyon: Thank you very much. I've been looking forward to this. Andy Ockershausen: I first remember that people said, "It's not Ly

Ray Benton on the current state of Tennis~ "A lot more to be done. We've gotta rebuild the base of our sport. I mean, tennis participation's been going down in the United States for 40 years. It's ridiculous." Ray Benton - Mr. Tennis - CEO of Junior Tennis Championship Center (JTCC) Andy Ockershausen: This is Andy Ockershausen, and this is Our Town. I'm welcoming an old friend who's not old. He's a young man. He's the CEO of the Junior Tennis Championship Center in College Park, Maryland, but before that, he was Ray Benton and will always be Ray Benton, Mr. Tennis, to me. Ray, welcome to Our Town. Ray Benton: Thank you Andy. Great to see you. Andy Ockershausen: Well, you know, you've done so much, Ray, in your career and realized that you're from Iowa. I keep wondering, how did you get connected with all the people you got connected with in Washington? You went to school there. You were born there in Iowa? Ray Benton: No, but I lived there since I was eight years old. Andy Ockershausen: Is that it? Ray Be

Cathy Hughes, the first African-American woman to head a publicly traded company and voice for Black community in Our Town, tells Donald Graham what she learned from her "Take It Back" protest in 1986 against the Washington Post for its disrespect of the Black community with its choice of the first Black person for its Sunday magazine cover~ "But let me tell you something that I've learned from this demonstration. It is not your job to tell the story of me and my people. It is my job to tell the story of the Black community." I said, "So I thank you." I said, "Because throughout this demonstration, the best thing that was learned was that to have my own voice for my own people is the most important thing I could do." Cathy Hughes, Media Mogul, Urban One and host Andy Ockershausen, in-studio interview Andy Ockershausen: This is Our Town. This is Andy Ockershausen. I don't know how this has come about, but this lady has been the most important person I can think of in the broadcast world for many, many years

Roger Mitchell, Jr, MD on hope, and why becoming a minister is so important to him ~ "It's not enough for me just to speak to families. It's extremely important for me to be on sides where we can really promote hope in a way that frees people so that we can make the best choices in this city." Roger Mitchell, Jr., MD, Chief Medical Examiner, Washington DC, with host Andy Ockershausen in-studio interview Andy Ockershausen: This is Andy Ockershausen and this is Our Town. I say this from the bottom of my bottom heart, it's so delightful to have Roger Mitchell on Our Town. Do you realize Roger that you are one of the most important persons in the city of Washington? You're the Chief Medical Examiner for the Capitol City of the United States if not the world. What a title. Roger Mitchell, Jr, MD: Listen, I made it to Our Town and the word on the street is if you can make it to Our Town, then you might very well be an important person. I'm excited about being here, Andy. Andy Ockershausen:

Mary Gavin, Chief of Police Falls Church Police Department, on what's it's like to work in law enforcement ~ "Once I got into the profession, I tell you I loved it. It's like the front seat of life you see people at their very best. You see a lot of people at their very worst, but the camaraderie within the profession, is very real and genuine." Mary Gavin - Chief of Police Falls Church Police Department with host Andy Ockershausen in-studio interview Andy Ockershausen: This is Our Town, Andy Ockershausen, and I have the pleasure today to talk to a wonderful lady who is a cop. I used that term in admiration. She's a wonderful, wonderful example of somebody that really worked hard to get what she's got. She's the Chief of Police for Falls Church. Mary Gavin welcome to Our Town. Mary Gavin: Thank you, Andy. Thank you for that nice introduction. Andy Ockershausen: Well, it's so incredibly important that we try to be diversified in our life and we try to diversify with our podcast and you know we had Chief New