Hot Board Podcast: Recent Episodes
Ryan Pastircak
Hot Board Podcast with Ryan Pastircak embodies the spirit of unfiltered conversation with a news-based approach to bring you the topics and people impacting Tuscarawas County and its residents.
In broadcasting, "Hot Board" is a term that means the sound board is on and the levels are up; anything you say is going to be heard by thousands. So when you listen to a Hot Board interview, there are no edits or cuts. What you see or what you hear is the rough draft, master edit and final copy all wrapped into one.
Communities are opening up as life returns to normal, and Historic Zoar Village is giving people an opportunity to once again return to the simpler times. The nations most successful communal town is back open for the 2021 season with live demonstrations and in-home tours once again available. Site Director Tammi Shrum talk about ways they've adapted over the past year, what people can look forward to over the summer and Jon even shares what might be the very first rivalry "beef" between two communities... at least in the region.
Hear from New Philadelphia City School officials as they talk about how they've managed to maintain a normal schedule with district nearing the halfway point of their fulltime in-person classes for the school year.
Marvin Fete is the current New Philadelphia City Law Director, oversees the city prosecutor's office and currently appears as an independent on the November Ballot as a Tuscarawas County Common Pleas Court Judge Candidate.
There's a ten year plan unfolding at Kent State Tuscarawas. Double the student body. Create on campus housing. Develop athletic facilities. Expand entertainment education through the Performing Arts Center. Change the face of local education, economies and lifestyle for Tuscarawas County. Dean Brad Bielski and PAC General Manager David Mitchell discuss the work they are doing now to make all of that a reality with a checkpoint set at 2030.
What better way to start off the "Official Drink" series than a drink with an official? Bob Everett has nearly 40-years experience in Law Enforcement strung through the Dover, New Philadelphia, Plain Twp. and Mesquite, Nevada and also currently serves as the local Fraternal Order of Police President. It never takes anyone long to get to know Bob, always a guy ready to talk and share some stories with you. And he has some experiences you'd expect to hear from someone with almost four decades on the job. But in the spirit of the "Official Drink" series, I threw everything I knew about Bob out the window and tried to get to know him all over again over a glass of Crown and Ginger - a favorite of Bob's that he picked up while serving as a peace officer out west.
Mike Ernest is the Chief Tuscarawas County Assistant Prosecutor, Quaker Cinema Owner, Kent State Tuscarawas Adjunct Professor and former Trustee, Tuscora Park Foundation President, and currently wears the hat of a judicial candidate for the Tuscarawas County Common Pleas Court.
Jeff Bray is a Tuscarawas County Public Library employee who, in his spare time, works to connect the different cultures that make up Tuscarawas County. Dover, Ohio is home to one of the largest Mayan-Guatemalan populations outside of their native Guatemala. Many of them are here with only their partially family or none at all, working to send resources back home. They are a largely misunderstood and underrepresented part of our community. Jeff is taking his experience with Hispanic communities and educating people to bridge the gap between neighbors.
Brett sat down to discuss his work in Columbus, the effects of COVID on Ohio's economy, and specifically his latest legislation that would help bring business to area restaurants by lifting restrictions on regulated outdoor refreshment areas. It would let people buy beer, wine or mixed drinks from bars and eateries and enjoy them in downtown spaces regulated by the municipalities they are in, and I think that's pretty cool.
Paula is the New Philadelphia Fire Department's Community Care Coordinator. Her job was created at the beginning of this year to look into repeat 9-1-1 calls and find ways to mitigate the burden on the fire department by connecting people with social services to improve their lives. Her position, in my mind, is the embodiment of what our community has worked to achieve long before I started watching; caring neighborhoods and healthy residents. There are so many non-profit and government organizations in our county that can help people live a full life, and Paula's job is to make sure they never go unnoticed.
Paula is now taking up a new initiative to get essentials like toothpaste, feminine products, soap and more to people in need. Essentials that are not covered by the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program. The fire department is accepting donations all weekdays and can even make arrangements to pick up large-quantity donations as well. Paula knows people are struggling right now. Those who were out of work are struggling to get by, and with Ohio's unemployment system failing so many during this influx we are lucky to have a fire department that can read the needs of its community and answer the call. In short, we are lucky to have a Paula.
Orvis Campbell is finishing his first term as Sheriff of Tuscarawas County and his 30th year with the county. He has served as a juvenile probation officer, detective and now leads Tusc's law enforcement office.
Mayor Day discusses what his administration is doing to get New Philadelphia through the pandemic while also maintaining a steady focus on growing the city for years to come, long after the virus has left the spotlight.
May is Mental Health Awareness month and Community Mental Healthcare's Miles Riley discusses breaking down the stigma of seeking mental health treatment, as well as his own growth in understanding behavioral health.
Jim and George both found opportunity to help when the COVID-19 response ramped up to full force. Each using their own setups and a little innovation to bring relief to seperate areas of this crisis. Amid the depressing, scary and increasingly-stale daily reports about why we should be worried, these are two men who are showing us exactly why our roots need to be deeply stretched into local soil at times like this.
We’ve all been asked to suffer in silence lately. Spending time stuck in our heads, wrestling our own demons with the unwanted bounty of time the state; the nation; the world has been suddenly allotted. Lucky for me, and for many of the people reading this, that means pulling myself out of mild to moderate depression. Finding the energy to reorganize my belongings for the seventh time and playing both sides of an argument with my pets everyday around dinner. Sure we’re uncomfortable. Understandably worried about the future and uncertain if we really want to know what it holds. But for other people this isolation can lead to literal death.
Isolation is protecting so many of us. It’s necessary and the best hope we have at keeping the fallout from Coronavirus at a minimum. But it’s damning for so many people who are in recovery from drug or alcohol addiction. It’s ruining weeks, months or years of hard work and commitment with just a couple weeks being cut off from sponsors or separated from vital support systems that give people strength to stay sober.
Erik Frederickson knows this. He’s become the local voice for Tuscarawas County’s Fight against addiction and lately he’s been responding to panicked calls for help. This episode of Hot Board is for anyone struggling, anyone who knows someone struggling, or for those who just want to help. Erik talks about his own personal battles, his journey through recovery, an 11-year anniversary and how he’s applying that to his mission, @Recovering Reality where he helps people in similar situations.
I say this a lot, but I’m just some kid who pushes buttons and works in front of a microphone. It’s the people I talk to that make my work special, and Erik has been a big fish in this county pond that I’ve dreamed of finally catching for a conversation. I know he’s going to be one of the main names mentioned when this crisis - this addiction crisis - is in our rear view.
Tuscarawas County is seeing a wave of ingenuity and community support amidst this response to COVID-19. Ingenuity from businesses who are scrambling to meet the governor's demands, and support from the customers who value them. The Daily Grind owner Eric Dietz talks about the dedication of his employees, the creativity of local business owners, and the importance of buying and shopping local.
Vickie and I talk about the latest facts around the coronavirus and how this impact will develop on the local level. This is straight-from-the-tap information, and Vickie pulls no punches in telling how widespread this virus could could be, and what additional measures we should be prepared to take.
Andrew Wilsterman, the self-titled Good Neighbor in Chief, sits down to talk about how he started this movement of doing good in Tuscarawas County, and where he hopes to take the project in 2020.
On this episode of Hot Board New Philadelphia Schools Superintendent David Brand sits down to talk about Issue 4 appearing on the March ballot. The issue, if approved, would fund a $102-million facilities master plan to build new district buildings with 55% of funding coming from the state. David talks about the process of getting to the Ballot, and where things could go in the years to follow, either way the chips fall.
In this episode of Hot Board I sit down with the man making this possible, Rick Arredondo the owner of the Ezekiel Project. We talk about what Hot Board is, what we want it to be, and what we have coming up!