Big Talk – WFHB

A software engineer and passionate environmentalist, Bingham takes on incumbent Dorothy Granger and fellow challenger Sue Sgambelluri in next month’s Democratic primary. The winner faces Andrew Guenther, running unopposed in the Republican primary, in November’s general election. Formerly co-chair of Bloomington’s Innovation Task Force, Bingham served on John Hamilton transition...

The ringleader of the whimsical voter participation advocacy group Grassroots Goofballs turns serious with his announcement he’s running for Bloomington’s top political office as an independent. A passionate lover of books and a dedicated student of theater, Arena hopes to bring the perspective of those just turning 30 to the civic forum. He claims it’s …

A “Bloomerang” resident since 2013, Matt Flaherty has returned to Indiana University as a student in his 30s to gain dual master’s degrees in public affairs and environmental science. This, after earning a law degree here in 2010. While working for a high-powered Chicago law firm Flaherty longed for a vocation that would benefit people …

A fundraiser for Indiana University, Sue Sgambelluri has had a foot in each of the worlds of corporate philanthropy and nonprofit organizations since she arrived to Bloomington in 1994. Sgambelluri’s experience witnessing the collapse of the steel industry in Northwest Indiana in the 1970s and ’80s inspires her to make sure Bloomington never suffers its …

Running for the second time for city council, Smith hopes to defeat fellow Democrat Jim Blickensdorf, owner of Grazie Italiano restaurant on the square, to fill the seat being vacated by single-termer Allison Chopra. Smith ran in 2011 against Marty Spechler, himself a one-term council member. Smith has worked all his life in the social …

The 2016 Bloomington Woman of the Year and a clinical social worker, Jean Capler is a first time candidate for elective office. She’s taking on At Large incumbents Susan Sandberg, Jim Sims, and Andy Ruff as well as two other first-time challengers Vauhxx Booker and Matt Flaherty in the May Democratic primary. No Republican is …

He’s the only Republican running for office so far in the 2019 Bloomington election. Guenther, a 2018 graduate of Indiana University, is hoping to unseat incumbent Dorothy Granger on the city council. Guenther already has made his mark in local politics, serving on several civic boards and commissions. He grew up in farm country and …

Currently the deputy director of the Indiana Arts Commission, Miah Michaelsen served as Bloomington “art czarina” (her words) under former Mayor Mark Kruzan. During her stint in city hall, she led the successful effort to declare the state’s first municipal arts and cultural district here. She also was instrumental in getting the city and Ivy …

A veteran of seven previous political campaigns, Kate Rosenbarger has announced her own candidacy for the Bloomington city council District 1 seat now held by Chris Sturbaum. Rosenbarger was deputy director of Liz Watson’s campaign for US Congress in 2018. Now the executive director of TEDx Bloomington, Rosenbarger previously worked as an analyst for NeighborWorks …

His work can be seen in any number of public locations around town, both indoors and outdoors. Joe Lamantia creates three-dimensional art with the help of individuals and groups, his collaborators ranging from pre-schoolers to the elderly. In Joe’s world, the finished work of art is nowhere near as important as the cooperative process that created …

He worked as a reporter and columnist for the Herald-Times for nearly 35 years. Then he went on to write and edit for Bloom magazine for another two years. Leonard is a journalist’s journalist. He’s covered everything from rock stars to elementary school teachers. Journalism has changed since Leonard came out of Ball State University …

Board chair for Bloomington Pride, Cummings has helped guide the LGBTQ advocacy and outreach nonprofit for the last three years. The organization’s signature event, the 2019 Bloomington Pride Film Festival, takes place this weekend, Friday and Saturday, February 1st and 2nd, at the Buskirk-Chumley Theater and several other venues. Cummings characterizes this year’s presentation as &#82...

Future Georgia congressman John Lewis was the 25-year-old chairperson of the Student Non-violent Coordinating Committee (SNCC) on March 5, 1965, when he participated in a voting rights march in and around Selma, Alabama. That day has become known as Bloody Sunday as some 600 marchers were attacked by state troopers and posse members. Lewis suffered …

She comes from a storied Bloomington family that’s produced a Shakespearean scholar, the city’s first civil engineer, and Iraq’s former ambassador to the United Nations. Teacher of the Arabic language and a long-time community activist, Zaineb Istrabadi calls herself a “midwestern gal” despite being born in England, raised in Baghdad, and having lived a large …

She cut her teeth working for a faith-based community advocacy organization in Minnesota and now she’s back in Bloomington, her home town. Hess Pace returned to her roots in 2017 to head up Hoosier Action. Serving as executive director of the citizen-empowerment group, Hess Pace hopes to rouse the troops in Monroe County and surrounding …

Celebrating one year of Big Talk as a stand-alone program following the Daily Local News every Thursday, we present an encore interview with our very first guest, Indiana poet laureate Adrian Matejka. The author of The Big Smoke, a finalist for both the National Book Award and the Pulitzer Prize, Matejka is an associate professor …

Cindy Brubaker loves old buildings. So much so, she’s devoted her professional life to renovating and preserving them. The developer and manager of the I Fell complex, she is a key player in the transformation of the area around Rogers and 4th streets into a burgeoning arts and entertainment district just southwest of downtown Bloomington. …

The two-term mayor of the far-northern Indiana city has announced he will not run for reelection in 2019. Buttigieg gained national attention when he ran for Democratic National Committee chair in 2017 and was even mentioned as a potential party nominee for president in 2020. His decision not to seek a third term has led …

The longtime, plainspoken Perry Township trustee, Combs is a former schoolteacher who has also conducted classes behind state prison walls. A true party loyalist, he calls himself both a Roosevelt Democrat and an adherent of Jeffersonian democracy. His nickname came about when he left the US Army and took up fishing while looking for direction …

George Pinney helped start up the musical theater degree program at Indiana University’s Department of Theatre, Drama & Contemporary Dance. Throughout his 30-year career at IU, he nurtured talented performers who’ve gone on to become mainstays on Broadway and stages around the world. Invariably described as “beloved,” Pinney credits his ear for his success as …