Experience Jackson

In this episode, host Rachel Buchanan, Experience Jackson Marketing & Development Manager, welcomes Chuck Marshall, organizer of GIG: The Art of Michigan Music Festival, making its debut at ART 634 in Jackson on November 8-10, 2024. Explore the art of Michigan music, meet the concert photographers and graphic artists in Michigan who are creating brilliant images and those iconic posters and al...

In this episode, host Rachel Buchanan, Experience Jackson Marketing & Development Manager, welcomes Jeremy Frew, Executive Director of Ella Sharp Museum. With a variety of amenities, Ella Sharp Museum provides opportunities to explore, engage in, and enjoy history and the arts. With special exhibits focused on both local art and history and those brought in from elsewhere, the museum welcomes...

In this episode, host Rachel Buchanan, Experience Jackson Marketing & Development Manager, welcomes Sandra Phelan, Operations Coordinator for The Potter Center at Jackson College. This season brings not only classic rock and classic country artists, but family shows and even a performance by the Commodores! Learn more at https://www.jccmi.edu/pottercenter . You can always connect to learn more...

In this episode, host Rachel Buchanan, Experience Jackson Marketing & Development Manager, welcomes Leticia Albarran, one of the organizers of the 3rd Annual Jackson Hispanic Heritage Festival, coming to Horace Blackman Park in Jackson on Saturday, September 14, 2024. This free event blends together the foods, art, music and more that bring Hispanic culture to life. Listen as Leticia explains...

In this episode, host Rachel Buchanan, Experience Jackson Marketing & Development Manager, welcomes Laurie Perkins, Site Historian of the Mann House in Concord. Learn about the Mann sisters' legacy, their home and travels, and details of the of the 5th Annual Women’s History Conference (09/19/2024), featuring speakers related to local and statewide travel, music from the Jacktown Ukes, lun...

In this episode, host Rachel Buchanan, Experience Jackson Marketing & Development Manager, welcomes Jacque Austin, festival director for the TOPIA Art & Tech Festival, coming to the historic Michigan Theatre in downtown Jackson on Friday, September 6, 2024. This festival is a play between art and technology, light and music, with interactive components and FREE admission! Learn more at htt...

In this episode, host Rachel Buchanan, Experience Jackson Marketing & Development Manager, welcomes Belle Coty with the Jackson Symphony Orchestra. Celebrating their 75th year of music, they continue to bring in musicians from around the world to join their professional orchestra. Offering all styles of music through a variety of concert series, they bring together people from all backgrounds...

In this episode, host Rachel Buchanan, Experience Jackson Marketing & Development Manager, welcomes Andy and Nick Behling, the two guys best known as MI Playground. As brothers raised in the U.P. and now claim the entire state as home, they have dedicated their lives to exploring this great state. Recently, they continued their adventure in Jackson County. Hear about their visit, and some of t...

In this episode, host Rachel Buchanan, Experience Jackson Marketing & Development Manager, welcomes Jane Flores, General Manager of Jackson Crossing Mall to talk about what makes this shopping center at the crossroads of I-94 and US-127 a bustling place to stop and shop on a visit to Jackson. She’s spent the last three years re-energizing a shopping staple, with community-focused touches and f...

In this episode, host Rachel Buchanan, Experience Jackson Marketing & Development Manager, welcomes Denise Owens, Operations Manager for Jackson County Fair. The August 4-10, 2024 event brings a variety of new additions, including The Taylor Swift Experience, The Jackson Craft Brew Experience Tent, and updates to the ever-so-popular birthing barn! Of course, don’t forget the fair food. Learn m...

In this episode, host Rachel Buchanan, Experience Jackson Marketing & Development Manager, welcomes Emily Thomas, Facilities and Business Manager at Jackson County Parks. Not only are there 18 parks county-wide, but three large venues, two campgrounds, beaches, Falling Waters Trail, and Jackson’s Cascades. Not only is Sparks Park home tothis man-made Illuminated waterfall, but you can experien...

In this episode, host Rachel Buchanan, Experience Jackson Marketing & Development Manager, welcomes Linda Hass, City Historian of Jackson, author, and trustee of the Jackson County Michigan Historical Society. Linda shares some of the fascinating history surrounding freedom seekers and Jackson County’s role in the Underground Railroad. Learn about both self-guided and group tour options for yo...

In this episode, host Rachel Buchanan, Experience Jackson Marketing & Development Manager, welcomes Aaron Dimick, the president of People for the Parks and Trails of Jackson. This non-profit group is dedicated to enhancing Jackson's quality of life by improving the City's public parks and trails through volunteer projects, fundraising, advocacy, and equity. This is one great option to...

In this episode, host Rachel Buchanan, Experience Jackson Marketing & Development Manager, welcomes Chrissy Norris, President and Curator of Tompkins Historical Society: Stewart Farm Museum in Jackson County. The rural 175-acre Centennial Farm is the largest acreage ever donated to any Township in the State of Michigan, by Sheridan J. Stewart, born there in 1917. The grounds feature the farm,...

In this episode, host Rachel Buchanan, Experience Jackson Marketing & Development Manager, welcomes Briston Bamm, co-owner (along with his wife, Amanda) of Nevermore Décor Store in downtown Jackson. Learn about the fanciful and playful way they’ve turned their love of hospitality and home décor into a retail shop to drool over. You’ll also get insight into how they blend their love of communit...

In this episode, host Rachel Buchanan, Experience Jackson Marketing & Development Manager, welcomes Shane Pitmon and Ryan Hudson (both with Hudson Entertainment) with the Summer 2024 Music Festivals at Apex Sports & Entertainment. These festivals include Aces & Eights (country, 6-15-24), Rockin’ the Tee Box (rock, 7-27-24), and Havoc Fest (heavy metal, 8-24-24). Apex Sports & Enter...

In this episode, host Rachel Buchanan, Experience Jackson Marketing & Development Manager, welcomes Clay McAndrews, one of the founders of Bright Walls Jackson as part of the Jackson Young Professionals group. Learn about the local love story that brought the inspiration of one mural, turning it into a 5-year festival resulting in 75 murals from international artists that cover downtown Jackso...

In this episode, host Rachel Buchanan, Experience Jackson Marketing & Development Manager, welcomes Robert Wilke, co-owner (along with his wife, Yvette) of RJ’s Metropolitan Ice Cream Co. in downtown Jackson. This thriving, vibrant, Black owned business offers much more than ice cream; it’s always an experience at RJ’s! Get the story behind the business, along with some of the scrumptious deli...

In this episode, host Rachel Buchanan, Experience Jackson Marketing & Development Manager, welcomes Jon Hart, Executive Director of the nonprofit disability Connections, offering resources to advance the independence, productivity and full inclusion of children and adults with disabilities into our communities of Jackson, Hillsdale and Lenawee Counties. With the help of some of these tools and...

In this episode, host Rachel Buchanan, Experience Jackson Marketing & Development Manager, welcomes Kate Manville-Schwartz, with Crockery Painted Pottery to share about this new, creative opportunity nestled in the vibrant village of Brooklyn in Jackson County. Both drop-in and scheduled pottery painting sessions are available, offering a great activity for crafters age 6 to 99! Once the paint...

In this episode, host Rachel Buchanan, Experience Jackson Marketing & Development Manager, welcomes Jason Heinrich, co-organizer of the Steampunk on the Bricks Festival. The new event, on May 25, 2024, brings steampunk vendors, music, activities and more to Jackson’s art collective, Art 634 – an historic venue and brick lined setting for the festivities. Learn about steampunk and Victorian cul...

In this episode, host Rachel Buchanan, Experience Jackson Marketing & Development Manager, welcomes Hannah Schauer, Executive Director of the Dahlem Environmental Education Center. The Dahlem Conservancy is a non-profit organization that manages and funds the John and Mary Dahlem Environmental Education Center, bridging the gap between people and the natural environment, and function as an out...

In this episode, host Rachel Buchanan, Experience Jackson Marketing & Development Manager, welcomes Denise Owens, Jackson County Fair Manager & Coordinator of Southern Michigan Winter Beer Festival. The event will celebrate 12 years on March 9, 2024, at American 1 Credit Union Event Center celebrating a wide variety of specialty craft beers, ciders, meads and more! It also features live ic...

In this episode, host Rachel Buchanan, Experience Jackson Marketing & Development Manager, welcomes Chris Cummings, owner of Arbor Hills Golf Club, who is celebrating 100 years in Jackson County in 2025. Learn about this legacy public course that began as a private club, and some of the famous footprints that have left their mark in the past on their tree-lined fairway. It’s not only a course,...

In this episode, host Rachel Buchanan, Experience Jackson Marketing & Development Manager, welcomes Andrea Ericksen, current steward of Art 634, an artist community and venue in Jackson. Learn some of the history of this nearly 200-year-old building, along with the significance of the brick road leading to its front doors. From the Carriage Factory venue on site, to the artist galleries and bu...