Kelly Corrigan Wonders

The only person who didn’t know how truly special Ellie O’Connor was, was Ellie O’Connor. A woman of action, not words she was pure magic - able to make everyone’s wishes come true, quietly, humbly. Whether it was sending a letter every single week for 5 years to her grandson who was away at college, helping with family gatherings, cooking, cleaning or giving the perfect gift, Little Ellie’s gener...

It’s a small but life changing miracle when someone tells you about their harder days. This is for anyone who needs a reminder that everyone, even the most famous people in the country, have heartaches, losses, lingering areas of shame and anxieties. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit h...

With the demand for excellent mental health care at its all time peak, it’s a good thing people like Tracy Defina dared to go back to school — for many years — to get a PhD in counseling. This is the story of how she pulled off this enormous achievement in the middle of life already teeming with to dos. My conversation with Tracy is the first of a 4-part series called How’d You Do That? with women...

Moira O’Connor submitted this 2-part eulogy written and originally read by her nephews Jonathan and Jamie to honor her dad/their grandfather, George Hebbel. George was the father of 5, grandfather of 13, and great grandfather of 14. He was a man who was larger than life: a fighter pilot, a water skier who skied with a pipe casually clenched in his teeth, an ocean kayaker able to hoist his kayak on...

For anyone who has ever caught themselves turning away from feedback, this one’s for you. And if you find it hard to learn from your children or their friends, this might particularly resonate! To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Anthony Ray Hinton has been on the pod before. In fact, our listeners chose him for the 2021 Episode of the Year. Recently, Kelly and Ray met up on stage at St. Joe’s in Philly, together in person for the first time, to talk about — well — love, which guided Ray through an unjust 30 year sentence on Alabama’s death row. Nothing we tell you here can prepare you for his story and insights. Just know...

Shawn eulogizes her parents Bobbie and Roy Gomer who she lost to Covid within a day of one another in May 2020. She talks lovingly of her stoic, humble, 5’2” father who beamed with pride over his children and grandchildren and her dynamo, firecracker, renowned bridge player of a mom, who was Shawn’s everything. These two incredible people who always wanted more for their children and grandchildren...

Our greatest act of agency is the minute by minute choice of where we place our attention. Here’s a thought for all of us who feel so damn out of control. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

If you need proof that nothing is quite as endearing as honesty, meet Lilly Singh. She is a smart, funny millennial whose YouTube sketch comedy videos are as brilliant as they are beloved: 3 billion combined views. This is a conversation worth your time, both for yourself and any young adult in your life who would benefit from your expanded understanding of the pressures of modern life. You can wa...

All three of the Tiehel sisters eulogized their incredible mom PT but this one, written by daughter Amy really sums up the way PT lived her life: always on the lookout for the person having a tough go of it, the loner, the one who needed a helping hand. This is a story about taking the time to really notice people and to help make the world a better place, one small, kind gesture at a time. To lea...

From Kelly’s graduation speech at The University of Richmond, 67 legit reasons for optimism even now. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Bestselling author and stage 4 cancer patient Kate Bowler (Duke Divinity professor and host of Everything Happens podcast) asks as many questions as she answers. Where did we get our ideas about what’s fair, what can be manifested, what we’re owed? When it comes to cultural messages of self help, what’s true and what’s a bunch of profitable nonsense? After Kelly sat down with Kate on the set of he...

Carter paints a vivid picture of her popular Baltimore mom Sally who always gave back and had plenty of love to spare. Whether it was founding an organization to help others, sitting on a board, creating the best Christmas ever or simply spreading love and joy to her family and beyond, Sally was a force for good. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacy...

During the book signing portion of a recent speech, I spent a few minutes with a woman whose story hasn’t left me. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Robin Roberts, who has been saying Good Morning America for decades now, has a few hard-earned lessons to share. She was in isolation for 174 days after a bone marrow transplant to save her life. She reported from Katrina only after searching the coast for her own family. She broke every barrier in journalism on her own terms. She personifies grit, which is why we had to bring Angela Duckworth int...

The first time Julie met Pam of Kinderhook, NY, it was in the doorway of their freshman year dorm room. It was the beginning of a supercharged, meaningful friendship that lasted for over 30 years. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The week after I graduated from college I jumped on a boat in Malta and served as the cook for six weeks. I’m still thinking about a few things I learned on the water. Then, not a month ago, I talked a woman next to me on a plane ride who told me something about the north stars that are set for us by our parents and those we set for ourselves that was worth repeating, exploring and sharing here. T...

Samantha Power is devoted, insightful and oozing with compassion for the many pockets of the world that need our support. As part of the PBS series, Tell Me More, we sat down at her offices in DC to talk about loss, intervention, personal agency and progress. She is generous and open about miscarriages, panic attacks, the death of her father and the great man who raised her. Share with anyone who...

Jen remembers her friend and “guardian angel” Hallie. The two women met on a week-long rock-climbing adventure for cancer survivors and quickly bonded. Jokingly nicknamed “Fancypants” by her new rock-climbing friends due to the enormous suitcase of clothes she packed for the trip, Hallie was incredibly warm and full of energy - a woman who sparkled and shined brightly. She had a gift for taking in...

I believe in wonder as a way of life. Here are some thoughts about what hurts and helps curiosity flourish. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyinc.com/privacy-policy Learn more about your ad choices. Visit https://podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Recorded inside the National Museum of African American History and Culture in DC, this is a conversation about how and what we remember with the museum’s director (who is also a poet, an essayist and a New Yorker editor on the side) Kevin Young. Shared with thanks to PBS and easily viewed on www. PBS.org/kelly. To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audacyi...

Kim writes about her mom who a childhood friend named “Lovely Lin”. She says: If you knew her, you were fortunate—whether a brief encounter, a colleague, lifelong friend, or most especially, her beloved family. You were fortunate because she was a bright and warm light in this world. She was a “feeling” - warmth, love, kindness. On this Mother’s day, we honor you Lovely Lin, you and all the amazin...

In my experience over these 20 years, the thing about motherhood that makes me batty is trying to gauge whether I’m overreacting or under reacting. What if I let up at the wrong time? What if I go to the mat over something that just doesn’t matter? This one is for everyone who wrestles similarly and is recorded with love and a ton of respect for my mom, a true wonder named Mary Corrigan. To learn...

Dropping kids off at kindergarten, summer camp, the prom, college, their first apartment…how do we do transitions well? It’s that time of year: capsand gowns are being ordered, fields of chairs are being set out for graduations. Kelly has a tangled pile of questions about each sending off moment for her friend Ariel who is also Dr. Trost, invaluable psychologist. To learn more about listener data...

Kelly B. pays tribute to her mom who created cozy quilts and knit caps, cut peonies from her garden and shared her passion for color and beauty all while working hard, guiding her kids and showering them with love.  This single mom juggled it all and made a beautiful life for her daughters and her grandchildren.   To learn more about listener data and our privacy practices visit: https://www.audac...