Bridging Chicago

The son of an immigrant family, Ani Rangarajan, learned the value of hard work at a very young age. Ani grew up in the Chicago suburbs and decided to stay local, attending Northwestern University and studying industrial engineering. After graduating and beginning his career with Accenture, Ani and his business partner, Matt Weirich, noticed how difficult the process of finding a new home was for m...

Southside Chicago’s (Beverly) own Nora Gainer joins the BridgingChicago podcast to share how her fascination with the arts and passion for giving back to her community met to bring her to the Art Institute of Chicago. After a year spent in Italy, Nora came back to begin her career in marketing, cutting her teeth in the hospitality field before returning to work at the Art Institute. Nora and the t...

Stephanie Mercado understands the importance of quality healthcare in the US and is passionate about ensuring healthcare professionals have the tools they need to provide quality care for all. Stephanie grew up in small town Illinois, but always found herself attracted to the “big city,” and eventually moved to Chicago to study at Columbia College Chicago. Stephanie now serves as the National Asso...

Growing up in Oak Lawn, Nancy Hughes Moyer learned from a very early age the importance of family and lifting others up who may not be as blessed as she was. Nancy continued her education in Chicago, attending Loyola University and Aurora University, and has also served as a Senior Vice President for Kids Hope United (now One Hope United). Now in her role with Volunteers of America Illinois, Nancy...

This episode of the Bridging Chicago podcast features Dominique Atwood, the Operations/Development Manager at the Deeply Rooted Dance Theater. From the time that she was a child, Dominique has been inspired by music to help people connect to each other through movement. Dominique has a passion for teaching and giving back to the art that she has fallen in love with. Check out this episode to hear...

From curating events that connect people through art and music, DJ'ing for corporate and non-profit organizations, opening a recording studio in North Lawndale, to hosting his own podcast, Johnny Jones is dedicated to sharing people's stories of our city. Hear his story in this week's Bridging Chicago podcast.

See you in 2020!

Ever hear of a story where one grave mistake actually led to a rewarding outcome? On this week’s episode we had the pleasure speaking with Sara Jane Castro, the Marketing and Communications Manager for the National Kidney Foundation of Illinois. Initially wanting to pursue a degree in print journalism, Sara explains how a clerical mistake accidentally marked her down as a PR student. After uninten...

As a mother, personal trainer, and a director in a non-profit organization, Ayesha Akhtar believes that everything you do in life is a stepping stone for something greater. Being the Director of Education at the Epilepsy Foundation of Greater Chicago, Ayesha’s story is sure to move you, as she is a strong advocate for societal collaboration, and the idea of working together to achieve the greater...

It is widely known that heart disease still remains the leading cause of death in both men and women, but did you know that up to 80 percent of heart disease is preventable? Lisa Hinton, the Executive Director of American Heart Association’s Metro Chicago joins us in this week’s episode to talk about this non-profit organization’s combat against cardiovascular diseases and stroke through public he...

Our next Bridging Chicago Podcast episode features Lucas De Jong, a student-athlete and biology major that turned into a marketing guru who knows the value of following your passions, even when the path doesn’t seem clear at the time. An east coast native, college brought Lucas to Chicago, a place he now considers home. From sitting in on major surgical procedures, to being the Senior Director of...

We all know how important it is to be able to strategically budget and plan our finances. With the constant fluctuation of the economy, it is crucial for everyone to create procedures that will allow them to maintain and grow their investments. As a Wealth Management Advisor at Vestor Capital LLC, Thomas Egan has been helping individuals and foundations manage their finances by offering plans that...

“You have to be willing to take risks!” From being the CEO of Sam Zell’s Equity Office Properties Trust to reimagining spaces with living green wall products by founding Sagegreenlife, Kincaid’s story proves to show how by thinking as an entrepreneur, taking risks and stepping out of one’s comfort zone can help lead to advancement and growth. . . . Coming from a small town in Kansas, Richard Kinca...

We conclude Teachers Appreciation Month with a professor who uses both Hip Hop music and theory as an invitation for her students to think of the world around them more critically. Nathan Ciulla sits down with Dr. Lisa Calvente to discuss how growing up during the birth of Hip Hop inspired her to become a professor and a performance artist. She double majored in philosophy and sociology at City Un...

Continuing Teachers Appreciation Month, Savannah Rountree sits down with Gerardo Rodriguez, a 5th and 6th grade science teacher at Darwin Elementary. Raised in the Belmont Cragin neighborhood in Chicago, Rodriguez attended Chicago Public School from elementary to high school. During his junior year of high school, Rodriguez found himself aiding other students and realizing he had a passion for tea...

Kicking off Teachers Appreciation Month, Savannah Rountree sits down with Dr. Edward Podsiadlik, author of Anecdotes and Afterthoughts: Literature as a Teacher’s Curriculum, and Assistant Professor in the Department of Curriculum and Instruction at University of Illinois at Chicago. Dr. Podsiadlik recalls his passion for education beginning as a page for the Chicago Public Library and its Preschoo...

On this episode of the podcast, Nathan Ciulla sits down with Michael Edwards, President and CEO of the Chicago Loop Alliance (CLA), an organization that aims to revitalize Chicago’s Loop to perpetuate the growth and development of its businesses and investments. As a native of Buffalo, New York, he attended Canisius College in his hometown where he received a BA in political science and history. A...

In the conclusion of our two part miniseries featuring Cara Chicago, Nathan Ciulla sits down with Maria Kim, the nonprofit’s President and CEO. After graduating from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with a double major in Comparative Literature and French she found herself climbing the ranks at an insurance company for over a decade. Inspired by her mother, a nurse for over 50 years, Kim wanted...

In part one of our two part miniseries featuring Cara Chicago, Savanah sits down with Jesse Teverbaugh to discuss his life-changing involvement with the non-profit. From student to Director of Student and Alumni Affairs, Teverbaugh walks us through his life experiences which led him Cara Chicago. For over 15 years, Jesse has helped Cara students regain their confidence and find their spark to ensu...

On this episode of the podcast, Nathan sits down with Thomas Dammrich, the President of the National Marine Manufacturers Association, to chat about his background growing up in southern Illinois, coming to Chicago for school, and lessons he’s learned in his career. From starting his career in student housing, to working his current position as President of the NMMA, Thom learned how to wear many...

This episode of the Bridging Chicago Podcast features the father-son team of Ted Joseph and Justin Joseph, from Swap-O-Rama Inc. Ted Joseph spent more than forty years in the public accounting arena, and after a successful career, he planned on an equally as successful retirement. When a former colleague presented the opportunity to join Swap-O-Rama in his current role as COO and CFO, Ted jumped a...

As summer wedding season continues in full swing, Kate Lerman, the Owner and Lead Planner of Chicago Vintage Weddings joins us on this episode of the Bridging Chicago Podcast. Kate talks about her roots in the Chicago area, her dream of going to veterinarian school, and the experiences that brought her to starting her own wedding planning business. Wedding planning allows Kate to use her creativit...

Teresa Ging, owner of Sugar Bliss Cake Boutique and Sugar Bliss Patisserie, joins us this week to share how she went from working in the financial services industry, to moving to Paris to attend the Le Cordon Bleu Patisserie School, to opening her own cake shop! Teresa’s experience as a minority female business owner in the famed Chicago Loop district, provides a fresh perspective that our listene...

Our next guest to join the Bridging Chicago podcast is Allan Kaplan, Principal of a third generation family-owned business in Chicago. As an insurance professional, Allan has extensive experience in providing his clients with services offering consultation on business continuity plans, estate planning, life insurance, and retirement planning. Joining his family’s firm AKORP, in 1995, Allan merged...

Continuing the tech theme presented in last week’s podcast, our next episode features Dugald Hamilton, the founder of the Australian based law firm “23Legal.” As an innovator, Dugald focused on creating a law firm that provided traditional commercial legal services along with incorporating newly emerging technologies. Specializing in litigation, dispute resolution, restructuring and insolvency, Du...