Local Motion

This week on Local Motion we’ll hear interviews with a Black pastor from Lake City, Colorado and an ethnic studies professor from CU Boulder. The pastor, Brendan McMillan, is the only Black religious leader in his small mountain town, but he and his family were not invited to a recent Black Lives Matter protest. McMillan and associate professor Hillary Potter discuss the Black Lives Matter movement and racial issues with KVNF's Laura Palmisano.

This week's Local Motion is a special program from independent producer Katie Semro, Parenting During the Pandemic. It includes the voices of 20 parents on the highs, the lows, the unexpected, and the unforgettable of this time. Katie spoke with parents from all over the US as well as the UK, Mexico, and Singapore in this piece. 

More than three-quarters of Western Slope residents say that affordable housing is a serious problem in their community, ranking it above crime and infrastructure as a concern. In this edition of Local Motion, which originally aired July 15, 2019 and was updated in July 2020, we delve into the housing crisis, and talk about how it affects communities and families across the KVNF listening area.

This encore edition of Local Motion focuses on mental health. Originally aired Sept. 24, 2019, it was updated in July 2020 with information about mental health issues during the pandemic. Many Western Slope residents struggle with depression, anxiety, substance abuse and even thoughts of suicide. The Surgeon General of the U.S. has said that one in four people experiences some form of mental illness, and the rates of those illnesses are highest in the American West. KVNF's Jodi Peterson interviews various mental health experts about what assistance is available.

New KVNF reporter and news host Gavin Dahl speaks with KZMU Moab station manager Serah Mead about serving the public during a pandemic, new music discovery, and the uniqueness of freeform radio.

This program was originally aired on KDNK.

KVNF talks with Courtney Frazier from the Colorado Agritourism Association and Executive Director of the Colorado Dude & Guest Ranch Association, Suanne Miller from Western Slope Farmstead and Creamery in Paonia, CO and Jayme Henderson and Steve Steese from The Storm Cellar in Hothckiss, CO.

Mosquitoes aren't just annoying -- their bite can transmit diseases to humans and animals, including West Nile virus.

This edition of Local Motion was originally aired on KDNK's "Immigrant Stories" program. Host Walter Gallacher interviews John Goodwin, a career peace officer and retired professor of Criminal Justice at Colorado Mountain College. John reflects on his life, the death of George Floyd and the importance of community centered police work.

This is an encore presentation of a program that originally aired on May 29, 2019.  "Be a student of fire." That's just part of the advice that Colorado's first all-female wildland fire crew received at a training camp in late May, 2019. Last summer, the women worked on conservation projects and help fight forest fires in the area around Grand Junction.  KVNF spoke to several of the crew members, their instructors, and a couple of longtime female firefighters, and updated the program with a June 2020 interview.

This edition is a special interview from KDNK in the Roaring Fork Valley. Recovering newspaper journalist and Pulitzer Prize finalist Susan Greene joins KDNK's Gavin Dahl to discuss her latest column in The Colorado Independent, "Denver Police agreed to First Amendment training.

Here in Western Colorado, we love our pets. More than two-thirds of us have at least one dog or cat. Many of our pets come from animal shelters, which not only find homes for unwanted pets, they also help reduce pet overpopulation and educate people on animal care.

In the middle of the pandemic small businesses are having to pivot quickly and discover new ways to offer services and products to their customers. KVNF talks with Chelsea Rosty, Director of Business Innovation & Tourism for the city of Montrose, CO and DART about how local businesses are creatively navigating through COVID.

In this edition, we discuss medical approaches to COVID-19, both traditional and alternative. To provide information about prevention and treatment from an alternative point of view, we talk with Rebecca Hitt of  Blue Dragon Acupuncture and Apothecary, and Gwendolynn Diaz of Origins Health. For the more traditional Western medicine perspective, we talk with Dr. Drew Bolton at Montrose Memorial Hospital. 

KVNF's Kori Stanton talks with Paonia, CO native, Naomi Sikora from her hotel in New York City. Naomi left Colorado in mid March to work at a hospital in Manhattan.

  The pandemic has taken a huge toll on area businesses, as retailers have shut down, hair salons and gyms have closed, and bars and restaurants have drastically curtailed operations or closed entirely. As Colorado begins to ease up on restrictions, all these businesses are trying to rebound, but face huge challenges in recovering. On this Local Motion we discuss economic recovery with representatives from Mesa County, Delta County and Montrose.

As we near the end of a typical school year, KVNF talks with an 8th grader, a local mom and two teachers from Delta County School District about their experience with distance learning in the midst of a global pandemic.

It’s no secret that the COVID-19 pandemic, and the anxiety and economic difficulties it’s causing are affecting our state of mind. Kaiser Family Foundation reports that nearly half of adults across the country say that worry, stress and depression related to the coronavirus are hurting their mental health.

This live edition of Local Motion featured two COVID-19 survivors discussing their experience with the disease, and a physician working on a COVID-19 unit at Montrose Memorial Hospital.

This live edition of Local Motion featured Ouray County, Town of Ouray, and Town of Ridgway officials answering questions from listeners about the COVID-19 response. 

This edition of Local Motion features Delta County and Montrose County officials, answering questions from listeners about the COVID-19 response.

Included are Robbie LeValley, Delta Count administrator, Karen O'Brien, Delta County Public Health Director, Dr. Susan Bright, and Montrose County media relations manager Katie Yergensen.

The gold rush is over and there are many questions about the state of the hemp industry in Colorado. 

It’s Census time again – that nationwide government survey that aims to count the members of every household in the country every ten years. This edition of Local Motion delves into the U.S. Census to explain how this nationwide headcount is at the core of power and money distribution in our country, and why it matters if you fill it out. KVNF's Jodi Peterson interviews officials with the federal  Census Bureau and the Census Project, a coalition of national, state, and local organizations supporting an inclusive and accurate 2020 Census.

On this edition of Local Motion, KVNF News interviews veterans and their family members about PTSD, healing, and adventure therapy.  A hand-picked team of 9 gathered together for a 4-day hut ski outside of Ridgway last month as part of the LEADS program. We'll hear stories about the many problems faced by veterans when they come home, as well as stories about healing and redemption.

This week's program is about outdoor recreation, and how Western Slope cities like Grand Junction and Montrose are working to expand that segment of their economies. First, KVNF's Jodi Peterson hears from the president of Colorado Outdoors, a development along the Uncompahgre River in Montrose aiming to bring in outdoor recreation businesses.  Then she talks to a director at the Grand Junction Economic Partnership about how his city is pursuing outdoors-oriented companies. Then she interviews the owner of one of those companies, RockyMounts.

In this edition, we talk about public transit. Here on the Western Slope, distances between towns are long, and we end up mostly driving our own cars to get where we need to go. But the state of Colorado is working to make it easier to leave the car at home for trips between towns, and even to the Front Range, with its Bustang bus service. KVNF's Jodi Peterson interviews a public transit expert, the head of CDOT's Bustang service, and several passengers and drivers.

Soil health is the hot topic in agriculture as consumers become more aware and concerned with the quality of food that they're eating. 

On this edition of Local Motion, we'll have a conversation about death, dying and hospice services available on the Western Slope. KVNF News interviews Dorothy Pew of Hope West and Carrie Lerner, a death doula from Crawford, and the North Fork Valley chapter of the Threshold Choir sings for us.

Delta Brick & Climate Company was founded by Christopher Caskey, a scientist and entrepreneur who is passionate about energy, sustainable business development, and innovation. Caskey's business aims to make a difference in several big picture environmental challenges at once. This piece was produced by Alan Wartes as part of The Flyovers podcast. Through his discussions with various entrepreneurs, Wartes reveals the challenges, opportunities, and the importance of founding a business in a rural community.

Tri State Generation and Transmission Association made several announcements over the new year that will facilitate the energy co-op's efforts to create renewable power sources. Some 600 jobs will be lost, two coal mines will be closed, and the Craig power station will be shuttered within the next decade as Tri State moves to be competitive in the new energy market. KVNF News spoke with Tri State and Grand Junction Daily Sentinel writer Dennis Webb to get the story.

This week’s edition focuses on services available on the Western Slope to help people who have some type of disability. We hear from state agencies and local organizations that offer everything from translation services for deaf people to assistance with finding a job, including the Division of Vocational Rehabilitation, the Center for Independence, and Mosaic. The program starts with an interview with Cindy La Joy of Montrose.