Reno Street Audio

Michael Carson said he had a turnaround in 2020, with the pandemic and the murder of George Floyd. Seeking guidance from mentors, he is now taking it upon himself to help create a better world, including in northern Nevada. If there’s a sweep going on, he tries to be on the scene doing a Facebook live, to show the community what’s happening. He’s also organized community cleanups along the Truckee...

During this difficult stretch in his life, Jeremy is grateful to have people that still look out for him. “I have people that manage some places around here and they let me come in and get my showers and let us do our thing,” Jeremy said of living on the streets but getting help. “They're very cool about it. I've known them a long time and they're not going to let us completely fall on our face. I...

It’s another windy day in Reno along the Truckee River. Austin and Eric with the Eddy House are going from tent to tent checking in on people, and if they are young adults offering their services to get them back on track. We’ll also meet one of them Matt who’s been living with his husband in a tent for six months after losing a warehouse job. Our reporter for this episode is Richard Bednarski.

A legend of the local graffiti and skateboarding scene recently passed away. In his tribute a mural is being created in Reno, part of which includes his trademark letter style. Our reporter for this episode Richard Bednarski interviews another graffiti artist taking part in the project who goes by Easoe. He has plenty to say about who he calls the godfather of graffiti in the Truckee meadows as we...

It was a week to remember. Snowfall was following snowfall and the temperature was getting lower and lower. Advocates for those without stable shelter were arguing with Reno City Council members over social media. Officials kept saying beds were still available at the main shelters but what about those who had bad experiences and never wanted to return to those shelters? What about opening up hote...

Many people don't realize there is an informal economy and mutual aid society of sorts that continuously operates in tent cities. Gracie Gordon interviews James, a Baptist from Alabama living along the Truckee River, who helps others by fixing their bikes. He says he's "fixing to move" though because he's heard of an oncoming police sweep.

Troy says he’s been in Reno since 2006 and without stable shelter for the past three years. He says he used to be a carpenter who helped build houses, but his disabilities have made it impossible for him to pursue that line of work anymore. One of his prized possessions is a small solar panel he uses to charge his phone. He avoids shelters, he says, because he doesn’t want to be told when to wake...

After experiencing roughly 13 years of living on Reno’s streets, Linda, 70, says she wants to leave the Biggest Little City. She recently survived a stroke, but says she will not stay in local shelters anymore. “They're not nice. Everybody fights to their teeth. I'm staying out on the streets where I’m safe,” she said. Although Linda is among the demographic most susceptible to Covid-19, she remai...

“Currently, I'm homeless. I got my own little camping set up," Darius said when we met him on the streets of Reno. He said he’s found ways to get early morning day labor without needing an ID, which he says was recently stolen. People don't always realize what an ordeal it is to get an ID back when you are also trying to survive moment to moment. Biggest Little Streets is that rare podcast which g...

Our reporter Gracie Gordon goes to two skate parks in northern Nevada to get an update on the skateboarding scene which perseveres despite COVID-19 and occasional winter storms. She interviews Chase McMullen, a veteran skateboarder who says he used to be a troublemaker, but now he’s working on an Instagram page full of videos and photos to support, inspire and motivate younger skateboarders. Graci...

Elaine Voight, who takes no salary for herself, has been helping ex-felons rejoin their communities in northern Nevada by helping them navigate the uphill battles they face when released from prison. The paralegal began another group called “Friends and Family of Prison Inmates” in 2002. “The goal for this group was to provide understanding to those who have been left behind when a loved one goes...

Reporter Richard Bednarski goes into the church kitchen of Cowboy Tom as he prepares holiday meals for groups helping those without stable shelter in northern Nevada. What started as a small catering business grew into a community wide initiative to help others struggling.

Ashley, a mother separated from her children, has been staying at Barbara Bennett park in downtown Reno by the tennis and basketball courts and the Truckee River for the past several months and has been without housing for the past year. She used to work in housekeeping but she says a broken foot derailed her life. Reporter Scott King finds out more about her difficult journey.

As part of our series of street audio postcards, Scott King interviews Rico who was carrying around tree branches after others asked him to try to make some DMT with root bark. He says he lost his way after losing three brothers in short succession, but that he's a good soul. “I’ve been in Reno for approximately six years and I would sum up my experience in Reno with patience, pain, and love,” Ric...

As a graduate student at the Reynolds School of Journalism, Scott King spent his entire 18 months as an Our Town Reno reporter. From podcast episodes to share your story at the downtown library sessions, from night time street photography to documenting early morning police sweeps, Scott has been from tents to motels to the river and alleys of Reno interviewing and listening to those who live on t...

Chris Fegert, who does community communications for Northern Nevada Hopes, takes us on a tour of HopeSprings, a tiny home village already built up but which still needs operational money. What is causing these delays? What will future residents get from living in this so-called village in downtown Reno? Our reporter for this episode is Scott King.

“I think the act of scooping rice and beans onto a plate is gratifying." After testing positive for COVID-19 and quarantining, UNR student Stephen Zipkin has been back out on Saturday mornings with Washoe Food Not Bombs, who also now distribute blankets, jackets and tarps at Barbara Bennett Park where there is a small encampment. Our latest #heroesofreno #humansofreno story on why people help peop...

In part two of our series about River Stewards in Reno, Scott King interviews Byron, who lives in a tent along the Truckee River, but has joined the new program with One Truckee River, where he gets paid daily to help clean up the trash. “I know that you know, all this garbage out here, it looks really, really bad for our community, but I'm working on the inside to try to change that for you guys,...

Grant Denton, well known locally already for his Karma Box project of neighborhood donations, and morning workouts for women in recovery, now coordinates the River Stewards program to help keep the Truckee River clean. As we pass tents, Denton stops to talk with the person inside and offers them a trash bag and the opportunity to join his crew. The River Stewards have already collected and dispose...

Marcus Stewart, 25, who has albinism and is legally blind, had been sleeping at the big tent shelter on East Fourth Street about a week when we met him. He said he moved from Winnemucca to Reno in August, but he says the sun here makes it hard for him, and he’s not sure what to do next. He’s originally from Oklahoma City, where he says he might try to get back to. He was living with family in rura...

Zach Cannady is the driving force behind Prema Farm, overseeing a small organic farm in Long Valley just twenty minutes north of Reno. Along with four employees, he cultivates just over an acre of farmland along with three greenhouses. He estimates his team produce senough food to feed 600 to 800 families in the summer. “I hope to be a hub for inspiration,” Cannady said on a recent Fall day, insid...

Matt doesn't understand why shelters kick people out every morning in the dark when it's still freezing cold. While we all await for election results in Nevada and elsewhere, he struggles every morning with this stark reality. On this podcast, we ask can't we do better as a society. And we give the microphone to people like Matt, recently divorced, in a bad accident, having lost his retail job, in...

In this episode, we hear from Lily Baran who recently helped organize the People's Summit at Miguel Ribera park in Reno, to gather forward thinking, solutions oriented progressives. Our reporter Gracie Gordon also interviews several participants, including RoMarTolliver, representing the Black Wall Street non profit in Reno, a new group helping the community’s youth, reaching out to the homeless a...

Seth Bradley, 23, a head server at Liberty Food and Wine Exchange in downtown Reno, is proud of how well the restaurant responded to help its staff when the pandemic shutdown began. “When Covid first hit, we had everybody come in, this was like pre quarantine, obviously and we had everybody come in like the whole staff, and we have a pretty large staff, and they (Liberty) gave us a bunch of food,...

“Love seems pretty radical to me,” Nightingale said of joining PERCh several months ago, and taking part in solidarity crosswalks and other actions. The group plans to broaden its efforts and help those without stable shelter with their laundry. The group is also organizing a special Halloween event in downtown Reno for kids who live in motels and in other precarious situations. Reporter Richie Be...