Between Here and Help

What does it mean to create a healthier, more resilient rural community? In this episode of Between Here and Help , host Nicole Ringgold sits down with Katrina Goering, Executive Director of Room One, to explore the organization's role as the Methow Valley's community resource center and why its work extends far beyond responding to emergencies. Together, they discuss the importance of pre...

In this episode of Between Here and Help , Nicole Ringgold sits down with Brad Helm and longtime teacher Florence Sawyer of Little Star Montessori School for a conversation about early childhood, community, and the quiet work of helping children become confident, compassionate human beings. For more than four decades, Little Star Montessori has served as both a school and a cornerstone of life in...

In this second installment of a two-part series on air medical transport in rural communities, Nicole Ringgold speaks with Jeff Richey, Chief Air Medical Officer for Airlift Northwest and Associate Administrator at Harborview Medical Center. With more than three decades in critical care and emergency medicine, Jeff offers a rare behind-the-scenes look at the systems, training, and coordination req...

In rural communities like the Methow Valley, emergency care often depends on more than a nearby hospital—it depends on time, distance, weather, coordination, and the people willing to respond at a moment’s notice. In this episode of Between Here and Help , Nicole Ringgold speaks with Brandy Bookwalter, flight nurse and business area manager for Life Flight Network, about what air medical transport...

What really happens when someone is lost, injured, or overdue in the backcountry? In this episode of Between Here and Help , Nicole Ringgold speaks with Christina Woodworth, Search and Rescue Coordinator for the Okanogan County Sheriff’s Office, about the volunteer teams who respond when emergencies happen across one of Washington’s largest and most rugged counties. Christina shares how rescues ar...

In this episode of Between Here and Help , Nicole Ringgold sits down with the team behind the Lookout Coalition—a remarkable volunteer program in the Methow Valley that provides in-home medical guidance, advocacy, and compassionate support for people facing serious illness, aging, dementia, and end-of-life transitions. They discuss what it means to meet people where they are, literally and emotion...

In this episode of Between Here and Help , Nicole Ringgold speaks with Three Rivers Hospital commissioners Mike Pruett and Cherri Thomas about the realities of rural healthcare. Together, they explore what it means to operate a critical access hospital, the financial and regulatory pressures facing small medical systems, and the vital role local care plays in supporting community health. From gove...

Episode Summary: Methow At Home — Aging Well in the Valley What does it take to grow older in a rural community and remain connected, supported, and independent? In this episode of Between Here and Help , host Nicole Ringgold sits down with leaders from Methow At Home , a nonprofit organization dedicated to helping Methow Valley residents age safely, actively, and with dignity in the place they lo...

Nicole speaks with Easton Branam, Director of the Methow Valley Elder Care Coordination Network, about how local organizations are working together to support older adults. The conversation explores aging in a rural community, navigating complex health systems, and how coordination helps people stay safe, supported, and connected at home.

In this first episode of Between Here and Help , host Nicole Ringgold explores how emergency medical services work in the Methow Valley. Listeners learn who responds in a crisis, how EMS is funded, what “advanced life support” really means, and why community training and support matter. The episode also demystifies insurance, transport, and aging-in-place challenges, inviting residents to get info...