From those first steps to that first heartbreak to the first moment we master a generation-old family recipe, mothers have been through it all. Our relationships with our mothers vary: whether we can’t get enough of their advice and support, or sometimes it feels like we have too much of it, moms continue to shape the stage that we dance upon.
Read MoreLeslie 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.
Read MoreA 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.
Read MoreIris Book Cafe was the perfect spot to spend a cold and rainy Sunday morning, surrounded by books and the comfortable crowd while sipping coffee, listening to Julie Fay’s story, and looking at pictures of her past projects in Over-the-Rhine and her current project: the Imperial Theater in Mohawk.
Read MoreIn this special edition of Stories Behind the Booze, we sat down with three artists on an uncharacteristically warm and sunny mid-March day. The trio came together over Listermann Brewery’s International Women’s Day event to create beer label designs.
Read MoreStart 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.
Read MoreLeah 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.
Read MoreOn a rainy morning, we sat down with Morgan Owens, entrepreneur and founder of Curvy Cardio. Morgan brought her own sunshine to the conversation as she spoke about helping young women boost their self-esteem and empowering them to be better every day.
Read MorePeople 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.
Read MoreFive years ago, Mary Ellen Mitchell co-founded Lydia's House with her friend Meridith Owensby and husband, Ben Eilerman. Mitchell was expecting her second child and Eilerman, an architect, had a full-time job. Both Mitchell and Owensby had left their positions with local nonprofits. It wasn't, Mitchell acknowledges, an ideal time to be starting a nonprofit organization.
Read MoreChrista 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).
Read MoreOn a cold winter day in early December, Shanequa Johnson, founder of Barcode Glam, had her business displayed in a shoe- and accessory-packed pop-up boutique in College Hill. When I walked in, hip hop music was playing in the background, and I immediately felt surrounded by glam.
Read MoreIt was 6 degrees above zero when we started the 30 minute drive from Cincinnati to Dark Wood Farm. It was 3 degrees by the time we arrived. We knocked on the door of the small cabin set back along the treeline, hoping for a quick reply and shelter from the cold. The door swung open immediately, and we were greeted with the ready smile of Annie Woods, along with the much appreciated sound of soup bubbling on the stove.
Read MoreOne drizzly Monday in December, we sat down with Nancy Yerian. We drank coffee, ate muffins, and talked about Nancy’s journey to becoming a public historian. She shared her experiences finding a sense of community in the Ohio Lesbian Archives, managing heavy workloads, and the creation of the Vibrant Kin exhibit.
Read MoreAbigail Murrish is Hoosier turned Ohioan, a born and bred Midwesterner. A year ago, she started a podcast, “Our Midwestern Life,” to tell the stories and share the wisdom of all the people around her. Women of Cincy sat down with Murrish to talk about the podcast, life in Cincinnati, and the differences between the national idea of the Midwest and real life here in the center of the United States.
Read MoreWe chatted with Lourdes Ward on a drizzly Saturday morning in her office in West Chester. The Director Emeritus of Reach Out Lakota sits at her desk, “a nice one from Costco” that she says is a bit of an improvement over the green metal table in between clothing racks that she used when she first became director of the pantry 25 years ago.
Read MoreWalking into the Wave Pool art gallery, temporary home for The Welcome Project, I was greeted by a flurry of activity. Sheryl Rajbhandari, her mother Shirley Richards, volunteers, and a group of refugee women meet there every Monday through Thursday for what they call “girl time.” Everyone is happy, laughing, and smiling as they participate in the week’s sewing project, creating passport covers for the Pasaporte Program, which processes passport applications for children who are unable to do so themselves. You can feel the camaraderie, even though many of the women don’t speak English.
Read MoreSometimes the best things happen by accident.
Around 6 a.m. on January 20, 2017, I woke up feeling unsettled. A divisive election had come and gone, but it felt like an unprecedented cloud of negativity was only just starting to gather. Even friends and families who would usually put their differences aside were attacking one another. What ever happened to simply seeing one another as people?
Read MoreOn the first day of the Applehead City Pet’s holiday pop-up shop in Crafts and Vines in Mainstrasse, we met up with the business’s creator, Desh Rain. We learned a little more about the woman behind this holistic, vegan dog brand that is all over Northern Kentucky and Cincinnati.
Read MoreAs the first real snowflakes of the year float down from the sky, I hurry through the overcast cold to the warmth of Northside’s The Listing Loon. Kate Wakefield, a local musician specializing in operatic vocals and haunting cello chords, is at the bar chatting with the bartender, who also happens to be her bandmate in her punk electric cello duo, Lung.
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