Rumors of Doing Good

In today's conversation, I'm joined by my friend Eric Knox from Portland Oregon USA. As a former pastor, Eric noticed how  students of color often lacked role models of color within the  Portland school system. As a result Eric started the HOLLA Foundation in 2013 with the goal of providing mentors for students of color in response to the lack of representation. Through HOLLA, Eric also started a...

In today's conversation we are joined by Johanna Puirava from Helsinki, Finland where she started  Levähdyspaikka (Finnish for Resting Place), a mobile outreach program for those struggling with homelessness and substance abuse out of the back of her Volvo.  The underlying vision of Levähdyspaikka is the idea that every person is created and precious by God, and deserves to be heard and seen. Join...

  Navigating life with a disability presents profound challenges, often catching us off guard. We all tend to take our health for granted—until it's gone. Then, it's all too easy to obsess over what we've lost. But while we can't wish away our limitations, we can change the way we think about our disabilities. Ken Loyd joins Rob as they reflect on their growing awareness of their respective disabi...

Rob & Ken Loyd kick off season four of Rumors of Doing Good with a short but poignant conversation about navigating life's transitions such as stepping into new opportunities and recent health challenges. Reflecting on the mantra of never letting the pressure exceed the pleasure, they share about the need to sometime make changes in their lives in order to continue doing good and still do the thin...

Throughout Season 3 of Rumors of Doing Good, Ken Loyd and Rob have been taking time to answer a few questions from listeners they have received over the last few years. In today's season three finale, Rob and Ken  takes the time to answer the question of what advice they would give to their younger selves and those who are looking to start doing good in their neighborhood. Thanks for taking the ti...

In today's conversation Rob and Ken are joined by Deborah Loyd who you might have guessed is Ken's partner. In 1998 at an invitation from a friend, they moved to Portland Oregon USA and helped start a church called The Bridge with those in the subcultures. The Bridge offered refuge and a safe space for those who did not fit in but nevertheless loved Jesus with their hearts and proved it by sharing...

In today's conversation Rob and Ken are joined by  Andrea Campanale from Kingston upon Thames, in Southwest London, England. In 2005 a friend approached Andrea with an unexpected spiritual experience. Andrea found it difficult to find the words to help her friend, and connect the experience with her own faith.  Becoming more aware of spiritual seekers in her community, Andrea began to attend her l...

In today's conversation, Ken Loyd joins Rob as they reflect on how not everyone has had a positive experience with those who are seeking to do good such as faith based communities, the foster care system, the police and so on. What if every interaction you had with someone trying to do good was painful, what if every interaction you had with a person in the support system made you feel like a wast...

In today's conversation Rob and Ken are joined by Sesay Abdul Rashid from Makeni Town, Sierra Leone where he and his family noticed hundreds of children living out on the streets, having lost their families due to the Ebola Epidemic in 2014. Previously a teacher, Sesay and his family began to recognize the knock-on effects of Ebola. Parents were dying, leaving children to fend for themselves, espe...

In today's conversation Rob and Ken are joined by Elizabeth Sparks from Tacoma, Washington USA where she lives and works with the Catholic Worker community for the past seven years. Since 1983, the Tacoma Catholic Worker seeks to build community defined by deep respect and mutal belonging with their houseless neighbors. They do this by providing a place to stay for houseless folks as well as folks...

Throughout Season 3 of Rumors of Doing Good, Ken Loyd and Rob will be taking time to answer a few questions from listeners they have received over the last few years. In today's conversation, Rob and Ken  takes the time to answer the question of what keeps them from giving up on themselves when doing good becomes hard. Listen in to their candid conversation as they share their innermost thoughts o...

In today's conversation, Ken and Rob are joined by Vivian Labib Nouer, an award winning artist and social entrepreneur from Cairo, Egypt. Initially an interior designer, she decided to combine her skills in marketing and interest in the arts to start up Charisma Arts in order to showcase local artists who were struggling to market themselves. However on a life-changing trip to Upper (read Southern...

How we make sense of our world is shaped by the culture in which we find ourselves. In contrast, uncommon sense can be described as thinking outside of the box that culture presents us with. In today's conversation, Ken Loyd joins Rob as they talk about how the prevailing common sense of Western culture may not always be helpful in seeking to engage or trying to help people in doing good. At times...

In today's episode, Ken and Rob continue their conversation with Peter and Liz Digitale Anderson who happen to live a few blocks away from where George Floyd was murdered by a white male police officer in Minneapolis Minnesota. As community peacebuilders, Liz and Peter decided to journey with their neighbors towards healing and justice in light of Floyd's murder. Join us in part two of our convers...

In today's conversation, Rob and Ken are joined by  Peter and Liz Digitale Anderson who happen to live a few blocks away from where George Floyd was murdered by a white male police officer in Minneapolis Minnesota. Within days the protests spread all over the world as Floyd's murder inspired a global reckoning with racism.  As community peacebuilders, Liz and Peter decided to journey with their ne...

Throughout Season 3 of Rumors of Doing Good, Rob and Ken Loyd will be taking time to answer a few questions from listeners they have received over the last few years. In today's conversation, Ken and Rob will be taking time to answer the question of how their childhood experiences have influenced who they are and what they  are passionate about today. It is wild to think about how our childhood ex...

In today's final conversation of season two of Rumors of Doing Good podcast, Ken  & Rob  are joined by Josh Hawk who  helps lead  St. Johns Church  in Portland Oregon which was born when two local churches merged together when they realized they were better together than apart. With limited resources, they made a decision to partner with the city of Portland to provide a stable tiny house communit...

You might have heard the expression,  "A little bit of kindness goes a long way". Join Rob and Ken Loyd as they share and reflect on their experiences of how practicing goodwill with others can do  wonders for the person we are helping as well as ourselves. If you have enjoyed today's conversation, why not practice kindness today  by sharing, rating as well as reviewing the podcast on your favorit...

In today's conversation, Ken & Rob are joined by Turinawe Samson from Kampala, Uganda where he seeks to create space for the LGBTQ community as well as creating spaces for dialogue and understanding in a society that is actively hostile towards the LGBTQ community. Samson believes that "every human being should be respected simply for being who they are, a part of Life's creation." Through his tea...

In today's conversation, Ken Loyd reads a page from his dairy about the time he had the runs but nevertheless needed to go out and take care of some errands when he noticed he wasn't exactly alone. Join Rob and Ken as they reflect on how the world can be a shitty place for the most vulnerable among us. If you have enjoyed today's conversation, it would mean the world to us if you are able to subsc...

In today's conversation Rob and Ken are joined by Zion Tauamiti, Samoan born and raised in Christchurch, New Zealand where he currently lives to this day working with young people as a wellness chaplain. At the age of 33 Zion suffered a cardiac arrest and subsequently went into coma for six days. As a result of this life changing event, Zion was inspired to start an organization called Healing Son...

In trying to do good, we often measure success in a variety of ways such as how many meals we have served or how many people we have helped.   In today's conversation, Ken Loyd joins as they Rob take the time to talk about the ups and downs of trying to measure success in their adventures of doing good. If you enjoyed today's conversation, please consider sharing, rating as well as subscribing to...

In today's conversation Rob and Ken are joined by Annika Spalde from Vadstena, Sweden. Annika is a deacon in the church of Sweden as well as an activist for peace, animal rights as well as climate change. One of the many ways she commits to doing good is by practicing veganism which is the practice of abstaining from the use of animal products, particularly refraining from eating anything made fro...

Oftentimes we hear what is being said, however hearing is a lot different from listening. In today's conversation Ken Loyd and Rob talk about how listening is often something we take for granted when communicating with those we are journeying with. Join them as they discuss how active listening can do wonders for the person we are in conversation with- and for ourselves. If you enjoyed today's con...

In today's conversation Ken and Rob are joined by artist and musician John Friedrick from Silverton, Oregon USA, a rural town where he has lived for the last 13 years, pastoring Oak Street Church. Listen in as John shares about the joys of getting to know his neighbors, including starting an annual arts event focusing on inclusion and participation, and the challenges of seeking to do good in a sm...