MoxieTalk with Kirt Jacobs

Louisville-born Greg Fischer is an entrepreneur and community leader. In 2008, Fischer ran for the Kentucky Democratic Primary for the U.S. Senate and finished second among the seven candidates. Fischer co-invented and holds the patent for a combination ice and beverage dispenser. This invention led to forming SerVend, a family business with his father and brother. Under his leadership the small b...

Jackie Green, write-in candidate for mayor of Louisville, focuses on the local economy, central neighborhoods, education, energy, quality affordable housing, local food, safety, health, downtown, and transportation. Green originally moved to Louisville in 1975, and has lived in several places around the U.S. and world. He bought and renovated four historic buildings on East Market Street (now the...

Living with a core of gratitude and an attitude of caring and sharing, Bernard Trager founded and built Republic Bank, always with a heart to serve. In 1958, Trager co-founded and became CEO of Union Trust. Almost 20 years later, Union Trust and its seven subsidiaries became part of Commercial Credit of Baltimore, where Trager worked as president and CEO. In 1980, he founded Republic Bank and Trus...

Ramona Johnson is driven by the desire to help those with mental illness. She leads Bridgehaven Mental Health Services, which provides the highest quality psychiatric rehabilitation and recovery services for adults with severe and persistent mental illness. Johnson served as Clinical Director at Bridgehaven for four years, before taking the role as president and CEO. In 1976, Johnson earned her nu...

John Y. Brown, Jr. credits his father as the prime motivator and confidence builder in his life, driving his later successes. Brown began working at age 16 selling Electrolux vacuum cleaners and encyclopedias door to door. He made his way to the University of Kentucky, where he earned a J.D. In 1962, his partner and he purchased Kentucky Fried Chicken from its founder, Colonel Sanders for $2 milli...

David Jones Sr. co-founded Humana Inc. and considers the good job opportunities and chance for success that the company ultimately provided as his greatest achievement. Treating people the way he wants to be treated is his guiding principle. In 1961, Louisville-native David Jones Sr., with his late partner Wendell Cherry, borrowed $1,000 and founded the company, Extendicare. Before the decade was...

A native of Ireland, Dr. T. Pearse Lyons is driven by making a difference in the world and has built his company, Alltech, based on doing the right thing. In 1980, Lyons founded Alltech, an animal health company. What started as a very modest company has grown into a high technology, high-concept global giant with revenues of $500 million. Alltech is now located in Nicholasville, Kentucky, on a 14...

Matt Bevin's intellectual curiosity and love of learning have led him through several career opportunities in his lifetime. Bevin is currently the CEO and principal of Integrity Asset Management, which manages $2.5 billion in assets. He recruited several asset managers and started the firm with eight people, no customers and a modest start. With hard work and long hours, Integrity Asset Management...

A Louisville native and self-proclaimed life-long student, Dan Jones has a vision for the future Louisville landscape. And his vision is coming to life. Jones is the Chairman and CEO of 21st Century Parks, a non-profit organization seeking to develop a 4,000 to 5,000-acre park and trail system in the last major undeveloped corridor surrounding Louisville. Jones grew up near Cherokee Park and sets...

A custom builder and remodeler, Joe Pusateri thrives on challenge and using his talents to the best of his ability. Pusateri counts his parents holding all of their children to a high standard as the beginning of his leadership style. He founded Elite Homes in 1976, specializing in the design, building, and remodeling of custom homes. In November of 2007, his company was responsible for building a...

Driven by a desire to give back drives Cathe Dykstra to lead the Family Scholar House and help families thrive. Dykstra and Family Scholar House are changing the lives of families and communities by providing self-sufficiency through career-track employment. Her goal is to end the cycle of poverty by giving very low income, single-parent students the support needed to achieve a four-year college d...

Councilman Kevin Kramer's compassion for people has led him to be a public servant and educator. Kramer represents the Louisville Metro Council in District 11. He also assists on the National League of Cities Information Technology and Communications steering committee. He was the 2006 Metro Council president and named a distinguished alumnus of Bellarmine University. Kramer is a life-long residen...

Joni Jenkins is a member of the Kentucky House of Representatives and serves as chairwoman of the Jefferson County Legislative Delegation. She identifies with the people she serves, focusing most of her time on helping the marginalized and disadvantaged. As a Louisville-native, Jenkins grew up with a strong interest in politics. She is a well-respected lawmaker, responsible for passing the High Sc...

As in-house counsel and corporate attorney for GE Consumer and Industrial, India Jewell serves on the employee community fund board at GE, supplying grants to non-profit service organizations. She has practiced as a trial attorney specializing in corporate, commercial, and business law. Jewell's many accomplishments include serving as President of the Louisville Black Lawyers Association, where sh...

Louisville-native and restaurateur Kent Taylor has a passion for the food industry and for skiing. Taylor began with a humble start as a worker at Captain's Quarters along the Ohio River. He left this position to attend school at the University of North Carolina. His love for skiing led him to Colorado after college, where he managed nightclubs and restaurants. Taylor returned to Louisville in 199...

Louisville Metro Council president David Tandy is fueled by the desire to serve his community and to leave it a better place for his children. Tandy is a respected attorney with a packed resume. His accomplishments include the first president of the Louisville Urban League Young Professionals Organization, working in the Washington D.C. office of former U.S. Senator Wendall H. Ford, former treasur...

Dale Orem has an extensive career in politics, civics, sports, and business. Orem's public service career began in 1968 with the Jeffersonville city council. He then served as mayor of Jeffersonville, Ind. from 1984 to 1991. Orem also started the Community Foundation of Southern Indiana. Orem's impressive sports achievements include captain of the 1957 undefeated University of Louisville baseball...

Adventurer, educator and administrator Tori Murden McClure believes integrity is the hallmark of leadership. Not only a local university administrator McClure has achieved a lifetime of adventure along the way. This vice president for external relations, enrollment management, and student affairs at Spaulding University holds an impressive number of degrees, as well as athletic records. Among her...

Louisville-native Scotty Davenport is enjoying a notable career as a basketball coach in his own hometown. Davenport is currently the men's head basketball coach for Bellarmine University. Since his arrival at Bellarmine University in 2005, attendance at games has increased an amazing 50%. In addition, Davenport took Bellarmine to the school's first NCAA Division II National Championship in 2011!...

Curiosity and a love for food drive Joe Castro, best known as "Chef Joe" in his career as a nationally renowned award-winning chef. Castro's savory dishes have been served across the globe. He was formerly an executive sous-chef for the Lucy Restaurant in Washington D.C. and the executive chef at English Grill in the Louisville Brown Hotel. Castro has appeared on well-known television shows making...

Connecting people and telling stories fuel Marc Masterson as the artistic director of Actors Theatre of Louisville (ATL). Masterson works hard to keep the arts represented in the area communities. He helped develop ATL's first education department and continues to be a supportive proponent for arts education. Actors Theatre of Louisville is also home to the Humana Festival of New American Plays. M...

After watching a close family member go through a painful bankruptcy, Mark Lamkin decided to pursue his dream of becoming a financial planner and made a promise never to let bankruptcy impact someone in his life again. Lamkin founded Lamkin Wealth Management, a financial planning firm in Louisville, with the pursuit of building a world-class financial services firm that enables small business owne...

Angie Fenton is an award-winning and esteemed writer driven by a passion for serving her community. Originally from Michigan, Fenton is now a prominent figure in Louisville, which she has been calling home since 2002. She is a buzz columnist for The Courier-Journal, an instructor of English literature at Brown Mackie College, and a regular radio show and television guest. Fenton has written for nu...

A core believer in the servant leadership model, Greg Fischer is a successful businessman and civic leader in Louisville, Ky. Also a believer in the concept of citizen soldiers laid out by Thomas Jefferson, Fischer felt there was an opportunity and responsibility to participate in the country's leadership and ran for the U.S. Senate, a race in which he finished second out of a field of seven. In 2...

Driven by the need for, and impact of, arts education on young people, Paul Lenzi and his wife, Geraldine, co-founded the Blue Apple Players Theatre Group a children's theatre company. As its executive director, Lenzi helps lead the group while they present plays and original musicals throughout the region. The group also provides workshops in schools, focusing in theatre and structured improvisat...