Relentlessly Resilient Podcast

Self-care and sleep are necessary for soldiers and civilians alike, explains Utah Army National Guard Major, Wes Porter on this episode of Relentlessly Resilient. With over 15 years of experience in leadership roles in complex operations in the U.S. and internationally, he has seen firsthand how “sleep (and self-care) is one of the most important weapons in our resilience arsenal. Wes shares his i...

With Memorial Day barely in our rearview mirror, it's time to talk about the stretch of time between that holiday, past labor day, to Veterans Day. With summer parades, city days, and patriotic holidays, host Jennie Taylor calls this season “America Season,” it means so much to her. In this episode of Relentlessly Resilient, she discusses how patriotism is a feeling of gratitude that encourages se...

May is Mental Health Awareness Month , and with 1 in 5 U.S. adults experiencing mental illness each year, it’s past time to put aside the taboo of asking for help. On this episode of the Relentlessly Resilient podcast, Mental Health Counselor Jenny Howe returns to explore anxiety and Obsessive Compulsive Disorders . Jenny specializes in treating adolescent anxiety and depressive disorders with exp...

Principal Matthew Patterson returns to Relentlessly Resilient to share wisdom gleaned from his long career as an educator. He shares four things to remember when teaching students and youth; connect by building a relationship, youth DO want to learn new things, they want to know where the boundaries are, and consistency builds your credibility. Principal Patterson continues to share his experience...

Twenty years after a sexual assault that changed her life, today’s guest on Relentlessly Resilient shares her continued struggle to come to terms with the trauma. When she was raped as a teenager, the criminal system and social structure surrounding her caused her to doubt everything, from the consent given to the violence she received. Now, after years of therapy, and contemplation, she is ready...

Karen Wright lost her eldest daughter at an athletic meet after a lifetime of helping her through medical battles. Now some 20 years later, she is sharing with others the concepts that helped her through that grief as well as the tools of endurance she cultivated while getting out of an emotionally abusive marriage. Karen is an international best-selling author with her book “ Now or Never: Shine...

For Matthew Patterson , he had to learn to choose to see the positive from early in life. At the tender age of 10, he had the misfortune of discovering his father’s body after a successful suicide attempt. Shortly after that tragic loss, he remembers knowing he had to choose to see the positive and seek joy in a life that can be downright dark and discouraging. Now decades later, as a teacher turn...

In the final part of a three-part series ( see part 1 here and part 2 here ), Widow 180 podcast host and Widow Squad founder Jen Zwinck continues her life-altering story of losing her husband to a random act of violence . Since that time, she has founded a community through her Widow Squad Membership , Widow 411 resources ,  facilitating courses on subjects like confidence and dating , as well as...

In this second part of a three-part series ( see part 1 here ), Widow 180 podcast host and Widow Squad founder Jen Zwinck continues her life-altering story of losing her husband to a random act of violence , the four-year legal battle to prosecute the murderer, her time of healing in the Caribbean, and her journey into re-marriage. Now years later, she invites others to share their story of widowh...

 In the first part of this three-part series, Widow 180 podcast host and Widow Squad founder Jen Zwinck shares the life-altering experiences of losing her husband to a random act of violence . Now years later, she invites others to share their story of widowhood, creating a community of strong women who support and comfort each other. Relentlessly Resilient host Michelle Scharf has already joined...

We have spoken often about life coaching on Relentlessley Resilient, particularly with our host Michelle Scharf so close to finishing her courses on coaching. In this episode, we are joined by Life Couch Tawnya Kirkland , who shares about her calling to help others as she helps them explore “What is next for you.” Together Tawyna and Michelle discuss what life coaching actually is, how it works, a...

In our Host Michelle Scharf's continual journey of self-improvement, she has discovered a surprisingly fun and poignant therapy; dance! In this episode of Relentlessly Resilient, we are joined by her Dance instructor Jake Trembath , who shares how dance helped him heal after a broken relationship. While trust is an important aspect of any partnered dance, Jake dives deeper into how trust, vulnerab...

In our first episode with Kimberly Reeder Kemp Montieth , she spoke about losing her first husband, Chris, to cancer at an early age. And how choosing to live each day to the fullest helped her whole family find hope and gratitude during that hard time. Now, in this second episode, she shares how she has used her experience to connect with other members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day...

Kimberly Reeder Kemp Montieth did not know she would become a widow so early in life when she married her husband, Chris, by the age of 19 years old. But she will forever be grateful for having as much time possible with the kind man, husband, and father before he passed away from colon cancer after a four-year battle . They choose to continue to “live with cancer” by living each day to their full...

We have found time and time again on this podcast that the opposite of grief is connection. This principle of connection is embodied in the work of the Utah Refugee Connection , which helps create meaningful links between refugees, communities, and public and private organizations to support refugees in developing self-sufficient and fulfilling lives. On this episode of Relentlessly Resilient Utah...

Valentine’s Day is often a day of too much pressure for couples and a day of loneliness for singles. But no matter what your romantic relationship is or is not, we can prepare ourselves to enjoy it! Our host Michelle Scharf brings on her good friend Des Willard to offer tips to face February 14th with gratitude, self-care and giving space for others to show appreciation. It might not be our goal t...

2020 was a hard year for most people as it marked the start of the worldwide coronavirus pandemic, but for listener Leticia Upton the difficulties of 2020 marked it as a year of death and sorrow. In that year, she lost her husband Thomas unexpectedly early in life to Lung Cancer caused by Radon gas exposure . Now, as a widow, she raises their twin boys with resilient poise and determination to fin...

Parenting always has inevitable bumps in the road, but when you are a parent of a special needs child, those numerous bumps can feel even more aggravated by bureaucracy, systematic educational insufficiency, and, hardest of all, burn-out of all sorts. This is what mother Kim Weinreb discovered when her son was diagnosed with a pre-natal stroke while in the womb, and the subsequent difficulties of...

Holistic Practitioners, educators, authors, and twins, Corinne and Camille Sullivan , are using epigenetics to encourage self-healing as founders of Liberated Living . They teach ways of inspiring and higher consciousness through holistic sciences of health, nutrition, wellness, psychology, and natural medicine. They join this episode of Relentlessly Resilient to share how acknowledging our geneti...

In 2008 an industrial accident left lineman Fatu Matagi severely injured, causing the death of his coworker , and the loss of his own arm.  Now, this amazing man, father, husband, and teacher joins this episode of Relentlessly Resilient to share how the electrical tragedy has not taken away his zest for life or his sense of humor. As an amputee, he has helped fight for industrial safety, volunteer...

In this New Year’s 2023 Cohost Conversation episode of Relentlessly Resilient, hosts Michelle Scharf and Jennie Taylor discuss their vision for 2023. How has Intentional Vision Boarding helped Michelle with her 2022 goals? And what are some Grounding Techniques designed to help Jennie with her hectic life? While life never happens like we hope and plan, we can always press through discomfort to dr...

While the holidays bring joy, traditions, gifts, and more, they are also a costly time of stress. In this Christmas edition of Relentlessly Resilient, hosts Jennie Taylor and Michelle Scharf discuss the ups-and-downs of tackling the holiday as a non-traditional woman. Producer KellieAnn Halvorsen joins for a portion of the show to talk about embracing the holiday season as a “forever single” adult...

This week’s Relentlessly Resilient podcast continues our conversation with community leader Kari Malkovich from Woodland Hills, Utah. While part 1 of her two-part podcast series focused on her journey toward personal resilience , this week’s episode centers on the community resilience in her town, as they literally fought fires in 2018 and supported one another through the flames and floods beyond...

Kari Malkovich is best known as a community leader in Woodland Hills, Utah, but not many know her past struggles that drive her desire to serve and lift others. In this first-part of a two-part series, she expands on her backstory to our hosts (and her good friends), Jennie Taylor and Michelle Scharf. She compares the problems of life to running a relay race, wherein each lap, we are leaning on ou...

For this special Thanksgiving cohost conversation,  Relentlessly Resilient hosts Jennie Taylor and Michelle Scharf share how they are tackling this holiday with gratitude and remembering the power of "and." As Jennie faces her first hosting of the turkey feast, Michelle offers guidance and insight into her own holiday traditions.  Even though we live in challenging times, we can become Relentlessl...