Hey Amarillo

In this episode, Will Masters joins me for a powerful conversation about the natural resources that shape our region—especially water. With a legal background and current work at Ogallala Life and Wildcat Bluff Nature Center, Will brings a deep and thoughtful perspective to the complex challenges we face. We talk conservation, community engagement, and the creative, grounded solutions that could h...

This week, Skylar sits down with Samuel Uwimana, a Congolese refugee who resettled in Amarillo in 2018. Drawing from his own story and those of fellow African refugees, Samuel founded United Refugee Services to support and uplift the community. Together, they talk about the challenges and triumphs of resettlement, the realities versus perceptions of "coming to America," and so much more.

This week, Skylar visits with Amanda Mathias. After working across the state in mental health provider capacities, she was given the opportunity to build programs and systems statewide, which she did successfully, before bringing that expertise back home to get to work on quality and accessible access to mental health services in the Texas Panhandle. Outside of her role as Executive Director of Me...

In this episode, Skylar visits with Doug Loomis, former superintendent of Amarillo ISD, just as Loomis enters retirement from a 39-year career, not only in education - but all 39 of those years were in Amarillo ISD. They discuss what is best about the district and the challenges it faces but they also dive into what our schools need to succeed, and what it's like to be the person making some reall...

In this episode, Skylar visits with Sharon Miner. Sharon is the Executive Director of Martha's Home, a women and children's shelter in Amarillo. Sharon has also held some really interesting previous titles and roles, and brings all of that experience, those stories, and her relentless tenacity and pragmatism to her work and to this episode. 

In this episode, Jason is back to announce Skylar Gallop will pick up the podcast and continue telling the stories of our neighbors and community. Hear her background, approach to this new-to-her project, and what you can expect as a listener moving forward. 

From host Jason Boyett: After seven amazing years and more than 400 conversations, I've decided to bring my time on Hey Amarillo to a close. As a writer, I believe in the value of a well-timed ending. Some stories deserve to go out on a high note—before the fire fades and while the gratitude is still fresh. So this is my attempt to end the show with purpose and intention. To do so, I'm joined by m...

A conversation with Holly Ridings, an Amarillo native and the Director of the Exploration Operations Office at NASA . Prior to that relatively new position, her career includes becoming the first woman to serve as NASA's Chief Flight Director in 2018. In this episode, Ridings shares with host Jason Boyett about her path from Tascosa High School to Mission Control. From leading teams supporting the...

A conversation with Marcus Snead, the executive chef at The Barfield and the three-time winner of the "Top Chef Amarillo" competition at Restaurant Roundup. Snead grew up in Canyon before leaving the area for a culinary education, which took him from New York City to the East Coast to Santa Fe to a Michelin-rated restaurant in Chicago. After returning to the Panhandle, he helped launch and operate...

A conversation with Lauren Hough , the  New York Times bestselling author and essayist. Her critically acclaimed 2021 book,  Leaving Isn't the Hardest Thing , details her upbringing in a doomsday cult, her eventual Air Force stint and other careers, and includes several mentions of the years she spent in Amarillo as a child and then a teenager. Hough shares with host Jason Boyett about the role Am...

A conversation with Sheila Sims , a long-time local architect and the president of Sims + Architects . Her firm has designed many prominent local buildings, from the new Amarillo City Hall to the FirstBank Southwest Center at AC to the Harrington Cancer and Health Foundation building near the Medical Center. After earning a degree from Texas A&M, Sims returned to Amarillo to work for Lavin Archite...

A conversation with Steve Burton, the executive director of Children's Learning Centers of Amarillo, which celebrates its 100th anniversary in April. A Colorado native, Burton arrived in Amarillo after having launched Boys & Girls Clubs in rural towns in both Colorado and Texas. He spent six years leading the Maverick Club before moving to Children's Learning Centers, which provides quality, low-c...

A conversation with Shilee Pearson of RuffLife K9 Training . A former horse trainer who grew up in Nebraska, Pearson pivoted to establish an award-winning dog-training business in Omaha. But two years ago, she moved to Amarillo in pursuit of a relationship. (They ended up getting married.) Pearson shares with host Jason Boyett—who happens to be a client—what it's like to uproot your business and s...

A conversation with Meaghan Collier, the communications and marketing manager for the Amarillo campus of the Texas Tech University Health Sciences Center . Collier was recently named 2025 Volunteer of the Year at the Brickly Awards. A native of Canyon, she spent several years as a local television journalist with KAMR 4 Local News. Locals recognize her from that career, but may not know that she s...

A conversation with Greg Lusk, the executive director of Amarillo Botanical Gardens , a four-acre oasis near Medi-Park. Lusk is a trained horticulturalist, and right out of college he worked as the private gardener for legendary local businessman T. Boone Pickens. More recently, Lusk has spent the past decade with the Botanical Gardens, leading that organization through a period of growth thanks t...

A conversation with Marcee Mangiameli, who owns and operates the new Lesson Lounge in Amarillo along with her husband Taylor. This music education co-working space allows multiple music teachers to give lessons on a variety of instruments, offering a relatively new concept in Amarillo. Most of the instructors are local performers in the live music scene. A pianist herself, Marcee shares with host...

A conversation with Lindsay London Baker, a registered nurse and one of the founders of the Amarillo Reproductive Freedom Alliance (ARFA), a local nonprofit formed, in part, to oppose the City of Amarillo's sanctuary city ordinance in 2024. When voters voted against Prop A last November, Amarillo became the first city in the United States to reject an abortion travel ban proposition. Lindsay share...

A conversation with Chris Griffin, who owns Blue Crane Bakery with his wife, Donna. The Griffin family recently were named Entrepreneurs of the Year in the Brickly Awards, and have built a reputation at Blue Crane not just for unique Keto-friendly, vegan and gluten-free baked goods, but for community involvement. In this episode, Chris tells host Jason Boyett about his transition from the Fort Wor...

A conversation with Keralee Clay, the Interim President and CEO of the Amarillo Area Foundation . She's been part of the AAF team for years, but stepped into her new role after the passing of Clay Stribling in December 2024. Keralee has a deep background in operations and management, but her career has also been broad. She spent several years working for Amarillo Little Theatre and the Amarillo Ci...

A conversation with Tony Ensor, the President and General Manager of the Amarillo Sod Poodles , the Double-A affiliate of the Arizona Diamondbacks and baseball's 2023 Minor League Organization of the Year. Before Amarillo, Ensor led the front office of the Colorado Springs Sky Sox and the Birmingham Barons. The first time he appeared on Hey Amarillo (via phone) was in 2019 at the height of the loc...

A conversation with Stephani Serna, who lives in Amarillo but works for Porsche Financial Services . Stephani grew up in Amarillo but was born in Mexico, which means she spent most of her childhood in the High Plains without legal immigration status. A DACA recipient, Stephani grew up in extreme poverty and spent her childhood navigating the anxiety of deportation while also serving as a language...

A conversation with Jim Dewitz, the local owner/operator (along with his wife, Candy) of Big Jim's Pizza , the iconic KN Root Beer , and the Tascosa Drive-In Theater . Originally from the Chicago area, Dewitz came to Amarillo in his late teens, then built a career in construction and apartment management before ending up an owner of the La Bella Pizza on Olsen. He rebranded it as Big Jim's—and soo...

A conversation with Carter Estes, the executive director (and first full-time staff member) of Elevate Amarillo , a nonprofit dedicated to connecting young professionals through networking, professional development, and community service. Estes is also a City of Amarillo employee, having served in multiple positions since earning a Masters of Public Policy at the prestigious Harvard Kennedy School...

A conversation with Elizabeth Pakravan, the founder and executive director of Martha Root Community Building , a nonprofit that equips children and their parents in underserved communities. Originally from Paraguay, Pakravan spent several years in Oregon before moving to Amarillo two years ago. She is a member of the Bahá'í faith, and her work reflects the promotion of unity and betterment of soci...

A conversation with Matthew Wright, an Amarillo-based Assistant Federal Public Defender for the Northern District of Texas . This past summer, Wright argued a landmark case before the U.S. Supreme Court, United States vs. Rahimi , related to firearm possession by individuals who are subject to domestic violence restraining orders. And though the Court decided against his client, the outcome made h...