rEvolutionary Woman

Today, Tes talks with Lyn St. James. Named one of the “Top 100 Female Athletes of the 20th Century” by Sports Illustrated, Lyn St. James has set 21 national and international speed records. As a seven-time competitor in the world's largest sporting event - the Indianapolis 500 - St. James earned Rookie of the Year Honors in 1992 and competed in 15 IndyCar races. She has competed all over the world...

Today, Tes talks with Sara Knizhnik. Sara holds a BA from Northwestern University and an MA from the Middlebury Institute of International Studies at Monterey. She served as a university-level English-as-a-Second-Language Instructor at various universities in the Chicago area for 17 years before becoming first a volunteer, part-time gun violence prevention (GVP) advocate with Moms Demand Action an...

Today, Tes talks with Ilina Ewen. Ilina has been called many things. She is a writer, marketing and brand strategist, communicator, advocate, and ally for equity and representation. With over 25 years of marketing and communications experience in the corporate, government, and non-profit sectors, Ilina specializes in translating consumer insights into profitable ideas. In 2003, Ilina started her o...

Today, Tes talks with Anthea Neri-Best. Anthea is an actress, singer, and human empowerment ambassador who appears as Kailani on TruTV's Tacoma FD, NBC's Brooklyn Nine-Nine, Mr. Mayor and as a chef and judge on Yummy TV's HMExpress. She can also be seen in numerous commercials and heard in many video games. Throughout her career, Anthea has performed at Carnegie Hall, Dodgers' Stadium, the Staples...

Today, Tes talks with Andrea Couture. Andrea is an author and mother of three children. She holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Journalism from Saint Michael’s College in Vermont. Embracing What Remains is Andrea’s first memoir and book. She lives in New Hampshire with her husband, children, and her dog. To learn more about Andrea Couture: Facebook: Andrea M Couture, Author Instagram: @author.andre...

Today, Tes talks with LaTasha Y. Benn. LaTasha is the founder of Love Your Beauty, LLC, a Beauty + Fitness brand. She began her professional beauty journey in 2005 in Chicago, IL, where she started doing makeup for friends and family. Since then, LaTasha has received training from celebrity makeup artists, as well as worked for MAC Cosmetics, Benefit Cosmetics and Laura Mercier. She has grown her...

Today, Tes talks with Jen Kramer. Jen is a graduate of Purdue University, where she earned a Bachelor of Science in Hospitality and Tourism management. Jen has spent more than 25 years in the private sector working for Fortune 500 companies and in the public sector, coordinating large-scale events for the Mayor’s Office of Special Events - working on the Taste of Chicago, the Chicago Marathon, and...

Today, Tes Talks with Lindsay Stein. Lindsay took on the newly created role as Havas New York's Chief of Social Impact in September 2021. She is charged with partnering with marketers and organizations to help them leverage their own values in order to create research-based social impact solutions that drive tangible change. Before that, Stein served as the CEO of nonprofit Today, I’m Brave, dedic...

My guest today is Anne Poirier. Having overcome her own eating, food, weight, and body image challenges, Anne Poirier wrote the book, “The Body Joyful - My journey from self-loathing to self-acceptance” to share her highly personal and life-changing journey. She is the leader of The Body Joyful Community, a private, non-judgmental space to empower women, regardless of size, shape or weight, to fee...

Today, Tes talks with Kymberlee Kaye Raya. Kymberlee is a sought after speaker, fitness presenter and marketing #GirlBoss. Her energy is through the roof and she brings comedy to every audience she embraces. Her approach is bold and transparent. She shows vulnerability and poise and helps shift mindsets with real stories and real failures. To learn more about Kymberlee Kaye Raya: Insta: @kymberlee...

Today, Tes talks with Carolyn Pinta. Carolyn is a teacher, mother and activist from the northwest suburbs of Chicago who is known for her ability to get the job done when it comes to making good trouble. Her biggest accomplishment is acting as Director of The Pinta Pride Project and BG Pride, her family's nonprofit that has brought three pride parades of thousands to the Village of Buffalo Grove....

Today, Tes talks with Elsa W. Smith. Elsa is the founder and principal of the Law Offices of Elsa W. Smith, LLC. Elsa focuses her practice on wills and estate planning. She counsels individuals, families and business owners in the creation of wills, trusts, powers of attorney and advance directives. She has over 20 years' experience as an attorney. She is a native Spanish speaker of Afro-Cuban des...

Today, Tes talks with Heather Rogue. Heather is a stand-up comedian based out of Sacramento, California. Formerly a traveling street performer and homeless activist, Heather settled in Sacramento in order to facilitate her gender transition. She worked as a journalist and writing tutor before discovering her true calling in stand-up comedy. She currently hosts shows at Sacramento's oldest comedy c...

This week marks r(E)volutionary Woman’s 1 year anniversary. Since airing this podcast a year ago, many of my guests have gone on to create incredible initiatives that are benefiting their communities. With that in mind, I thought I would invite my very first guest from a year ago, Cynthia Changyit Levin, to talk about what she’s been up to since she was on my show. Cynthia is a mother, advocate, w...

Today, Tes talks with Ginger Leopoldo. Ginger is an educator, actor, director, and community organizer. She is a proud founding member of Pintig Cultural Group and the founding Artistic Director of the Center for Immigrant Resources and Community Arts (CIRCA). Her work includes performing, directing, producing, and facilitating theatre productions and workshops of all ages. Ginger has helped to cr...

Today, Tes talks with Rita Dave. Rita is a first generation immigrant who arrived from India at the age of 7 years old. After graduating from Queens College with a Psychology undergraduate degree, she attended New York Law School and began practicing law in 1992. Having always worked for lawyers since the age of 14, she's participated in large tort and products liability litigation, and as a lawye...

Today, Tes talks with Melissa DuPrey. Melissa is a multidisciplinary artist with roots from Humboldt Park, Chicago. After earning double Bachelor degrees from the University of Houston, she returned to Chicago to join the all-Latina theatre company, Teatro Luna. Her one-woman show, SEXomedy (2012), was developed during their monthly series for women of color in the arts and received a Chicago Read...

Today, Tes talks with Khem Khoeun. Trustee Khoeun has lived in Skokie since 2005 and was elected to the Village Board in 2021. When initially elected to the Skokie Park District Board in 2017, she became the first Cambodian-American woman elected to public office in the United States. Trustee Khoeun holds a Bachelor of Science in Social Work with a minor in Political Science from Loyola University...

Today, Tes talks with Patricia Pastor. Patricia is a human rights attorney focused on immigration law and sexual assault law. Her work includes representing unaccompanied youth immigrants fleeing their countries due to gang violence, poverty, injustice, political and religious persecution. She pursues the release of detained migrants and works with families seeking permanent residency based on mar...

Today, Tes talks with Osprey Orielle Lake. Osprey is the Founder and Executive Director of the Women's Earth and Climate Action Network (WECAN) International dedicated to accelerating a global women’s climate justice movement. She works nationally and internationally with grassroots and Indigenous leaders, policy-makers and scientists to promote climate justice, resilient communities, and a just t...

Today, Tes talks with Kim L. Hunt. Kim is a lifelong learner who continues to hone and invest her passion in organizational leadership, Black and LGBTQ+ liberation and storytelling. For over 25 years Ms. Hunt has used her platforms in storytelling, public speaking and civic engagement to curate brave, inclusive spaces for social change. She is currently the executive director of the Pride Action T...

Sally Lou Oaks Loveman is the former audience producer for The Oprah Winfrey Show who lives her purpose by connecting with audiences. When she was age fourteen, she tuned into her passion for television when she was an audience member at The Mike Douglas Show and spotted a woman on the set with a clipboard. Sally Lou had no idea what this woman did, but she knew she would do it one day too. After...

Today, Tes speaks with Jannelle So. Jannelle is a Filipino-American media pioneer, who made a name for herself as the creator, and original host and producer of America’s first and only daily talks show for and about the Filipinos, “Kababayan TODAY” on KSCI-TV LA18. The show that ran for 8.5 years under Jannelle's leadership, was also the longest-running Filipino daily talk show outside of the Phi...

Today, Tes speaks with Jeannine Harvey. Jeannine is an award-winning content producer and brand strategist. She is passionate about the possibilities that emerge from the intersection of storytelling, community, and collaborative disruption. Jeannine is co-founder and chief partnerships officer for Feed Our Democracy (FoD), a Public Benefit Corporation that promotes civic engagement and community-...

My guest today is Emily Teng. Emily knows a thing or two about dreaming. She has always dreamed of possibilities when others see problems. She knows what it's like to be the underdog or misfit, fighting to be seen, valued, and heard as a sensitive soul to now leading an award-winning non-profit based in Singapore, Blessings in a Bag. Her friends liken her to Professor X saying: “Emily is not bald,...