Buzz4Good! Nonprofits + Marketing

Merry Christmas! On today’s show we are featuring the sounds of the season with recent – and a few vintage – holiday recordings by Southwest Virginia nonprofit organizations like: Roanoke Valley Children’s Choir Blacksburg Master Chorale Opera Roanoke Roanoke College Choir And a special treat from Soul Sessions Roanoke.

On today’s show we’re still buzzing about the sounds of Christmas! Last week we previewed some holiday performances being produced on by various nonprofits throughout Southwest Virginia. Today we’re featuring Mill Mountain Theatre’s production, Holiday Inn, with an interview with MMT artistic director Ginger Poole! We hope you'll be inspired to attend these events to enhance your holiday spir...

Not only is it beginning to look at lot like Christmas … it’s beginning to sound a lot like Christmas as well throughout Southwest Virginia. On today’s Buzz4Good, we highlight some of the nonprofits in our community that have been working hard on their upcoming holiday productions and performances in hopes you will be inspired to attend them to enhance your spirits … and provide some cheer in retu...

On today’s show BUZZ creator Michael Hemphill learns from two marketing experts how nonprofits can get the most out of #GivingTuesday and year-end contributions.  We also showcase the incredible variety of these life-giving and community-building organizations by featuring the likes of: RAMP , a regional accelerator for tech and biotech startups Theatricus Logos’ upcoming holiday production  The L...

On today's Buzz4Good, creator Michael Hemphill previews the new "Construction Zone" exhibit at downtown Roanoke's children's museum, Kids Square , and shares lessons learned about engaging corporate sponsors to help fulfill a nonprofit's mission. Don't just ask local businesses for sponsorship dollars. Align your nonprofit's mission with theirs! In creating...

On today’s show, BUZZ creator Michael Hemphill highlights two incredible fundraising events that not only benefit two equally incredible nonprofits but perfectly showcase their respective missions:  Children’s Assistive Technology Service , whose Hallowheels fundraising kicks off Oct. 29 and runs through Nov. 4.  FRIENDS of the Blue Ridge , which on Nov. 5 is hosting its first ever Blue Ridge Jamb...

On today’s show BUZZ creator Michael Hemphill features a nonprofit whose services we hope you'll never have to use. But in the unfortunate event that you do, the Compress & Shock Foundation gives you the tools and skills to save a life. Here on our first episode of Season 2 of Buzz4Good , listen now to Michael's conversation with Dr. Karen Perkins, Compress & Shock vice director....

Today's show takes BUZZ creator Michael Hemphill   back to his first job in Virginia when he was a cub reporter at The Roanoke Times. Michael chats and swaps some war stories with his former editor, Dwayne Yancey, who is now the executive editor of Cardinal News , the nonprofit news source for Southwest and Southside Virginia.  On Tuesday, Sept. 27, Cardinal News celebrates its first birthday...

So many nonprofit leaders who are passionate about their mission get frustrated when they’re unsuccessful attracting businesses to their cause. In today's episode, BUZZ creator Michael Hemphill talks to Steve Hildebrand, Senior Vice President of Marketing and Product Development at Freedom First Credit Union , among the most philanthropic companies in the region. Steve shares the do's an...

We're celebrating the start of Hispanic Heritage Month (Sept. 15 to Oct. 15)  with an interview featuring the founders of Latinas Network , a nonprofit that provides entrepreneurial resources and support for Hispanic women. BUZZ creator Michael Hemphill also chats with Kat Pascal and Iliana Sepulveda about public events happening throughout Southwest Virginia to celebrate Hispanic Heritage, a...

On today’s show, BUZZ creator Michael Hemphill talks to his good friend and professional grant writer Lori McAnnally, owner of Write On , who provides invaluable grant writing tips and tools to help nonprofits secure vital foundation dollars. Lori recently secured a grant for Buzz4Good to produce two episodes of the TV show BUZZ featuring Saint Francis Service Dogs and West End Center. Also Buzz4G...

On today's show, BUZZ creator Michael Hemphill previews the next new BUZZ television show starring Saint Francis Service Dogs. And he revisits his recent radio show on the Blue Ridge Jamboree , a fundraising concert for the nonprofit FRIENDS of the Blue Ridge, featuring "Doc Watson at 100" as performed by Wayne Henderson, Jack Lawrence, T. Michael Coleman and Jack Hinshelwood. About...

It’s that time of year when millions of children across the U.S. return to school.  On today’s Buzz4Good Back to School special, we feature three nonprofits that provide incredible after school programs that help parents by providing a safe, enriching refuge for their kids while they finish their workdays … and  help children become better students, better leaders, even better filmmakers! Listen t...

On today’s show, BUZZ creator Michael Hemphill features the music and legend of Doc Watson as an all-star lineup of musicians – Wayne Henderson, Jack Lawrence, T. Michael Coleman and Jack Hinshelwood, joined by East Tennessee State University Appalachian Studies professor Ted Olson – prepare to perform at the first ever Blue Ridge Jamboree in Roanoke, Virginia, on November 5, and Asheville, North...

Today’s show features nonprofits that use the arts to help people suffering from psychological, spiritual and physical illnesses. BUZZ creator Michael Hemphill shares portions of his newest PBS TV episode that focuses on “the healing arts” and connects with two of the leading voices involved who helped envision this show: Shaleen Powell, executive director of the Roanoke Cultural Endowment , and D...

On today's show, BUZZ creator Michael Hemphill talks to the leaders of VERGE , the nonprofit that houses the Roanoke Blacksburg Technology Council and RAMP. These organizations help technology entrepreneurs accelerate their startups and grow their businesses. Interestingly, in a tech space traditionally dominated by men, VERGE's leadership is all women. Co-host Carrie Cousins offers mark...

On today's Buzz4Good, host Michael Hemphill talks with Greg Brock, CEO of Firefli digital marketing agency about the company's launch of Firefli Gives , a grant-based initiative aimed at helping nonprofits in Southwest Virginia thrive online. And proof that nonprofits really do everything in our society, Michael previews these two new episodes of BUZZ television show : Airing July 27 on...

On today's Buzz4Good, host Michael Hemphill celebrates Independence Day with a conversation with former Roanoke City Council member and Boys & Girls Club of Southwest Virginia CEO Michelle Davis. On July 4, the nonprofit hosts its annual fundraiser: Four on the 4th . Michelle shares her reflections from her time on City Council and how it shaped her work today as a nonprofit leader. And s...

For this Father's Day special, BUZZ creator Michael Hemphill talks to the leaders behind Black Father Family Initiative : founder Ryan Bell and United Way of the Roanoke Valley president Abby Hamilton. They talk fatherhood and in particular one question: why the initiative's emphasis on Black Fathers? We also offer another sneak peek into our newest BUZZ television show featuring Brain I...

As a professor in Norris Hall, Catherine Koebel's father would have been a victim of Virginia Tech's 2007 mass shooting had his class started an hour earlier. Brenda Hale wasn't as lucky: when she was a little girl, her father fatally shot her mother. Now both have teamed up to launch an aspiring nonprofit – Groceries Not Guns – that seeks to stem this cycle of death one household a...

It can be challenging enough for someone to create an artistic experience. It's something else entirely to secure the marketing and funding support to get the art in the public eye. In today's show, BUZZ creator Michael Hemphill visits the Taubman Museum to learn about its "Healing Ceiling Tiles" project, which will be featured in an upcoming episode of BUZZ on PBS. And he atte...

In honor of graduation season, we highlight an amazing college graduate ... and the nonprofit that helped her and thousands of other former Virginia foster care children achieve their college dreams. In today's show, BUZZ creator Michael Hemphill interviews:  Dr. Jennifer Gentry, executive director of the Virginia Foundation for Community College Education . Dr. Rachel Strawn, Great Expectati...

We celebrate Moms on this Mother's Day Special episode of Buzz4Good! BUZZ creator Michael Hemphill shares his conversations with: Huddle Up Moms director of community outreach Kim Butterfield. Huddle Up Moms began in Southwest Virginia with the mission of empowering mothers through education, connection, and support. Blue Ridge Women's Center , which provides resources for women encounte...

Yes, we know Cinco de Mayo (May 5) is just a minor Mexican holiday that's become Americanized. But on today's show, Buzz4Good creator Michael Hemphill uses the day to: Highlight a slice of Southwest Virginia's Hispanic community with a conversation featuring Kat Pascal and Illiana Sepulveda, co-founders of Latinas Network , which supports Latina Women with business development, prof...

In honor of Earth Day, today's show features nonprofits whose mission is environmental conservation and outdoor recreation – along with a for-profit business that's helping support their work. BUZZ creator Michael Hemphill talks with: New River Land Trust , which helps landowners preserve the rural character of their property in perpetuity. LEAP (Local Environmental Agricultural Project)...