The Charlotte Ledger Podcast

Aging is a stage of life that many of us are either confronting personally or experiencing through the eyes of loved ones. Discussing it can be uncomfortable and overwhelming, especially when there is some resistance or hostility toward extra care as you or your loved one gets older. In this episode of The Charlotte Ledger Podcast, Caregiving Corner CEO Jennifer Szakaly shares practical and compas...

April has been dubbed as “sustainability month,” and sustainability and environmental impact initiatives have become increasingly more important for businesses — especially for bottling companies like Charlotte-based Coca-Cola Consolidated, the largest Coke bottling company in the U.S. Esther Moberly was hired as the company’s first-ever sustainability manager almost two years ago, just a few year...

Engaged and motivated employees are more likely to stay and grow. In this third and final installment of the “Trends in the Workplace 2025” series, experts share the secret sauce to retaining talent and how to transform employees into your company’s biggest competitive advantage. This episode is a recording from March 2025 of the third day of a three-part webinar series, brought to you by Catapult...

What do recruiters and hiring managers think candidates want? What do job seekers actually need? Rethinking your hiring strategy could be the key to long-term success. In this second installation of the “Trends in the Workplace 2025” series, experts break down the shifting workplace expectations and how to attract and retain top talent. This episode is a recording from March 2025 of the second day...

Workforce trends for 2025 are taking shape — from AI and automation to evolving employee expectations and hybrid work models. In this kickoff of the “Trends in the Workplace 2025” series, experts break down what’s coming and what it means for the workplace. This episode is a recording from March 2025 of the first day of a three-part webinar series by Catapult Employers Association and The Charlott...

Growing up, Courtie Coble’s Saturdays were filled with day trips to Charlotte. Her mother, a self-made entrepreneur who never went to college, would load Coble and her siblings into the car and take them to open houses in Charlotte’s gated communities. Coble would see glimpses of a life that, at the time, felt worlds away from her small town of Burnsville, N.C. But to Coble’s mother, these trips w...

John Short, who writes the "Historical Heavyweights" column for The Charlotte Ledger, talks with Ledger editor Tony Mecia about Charlotte's most fascinating historical figures and the importance of the Mecklenburg Declaration of Independence and early settlers. They also discuss two of Short's other projects: The Charlotte Podcast (which has nearly 300 episodes) and the Elizabeth neighborhood's Ha...

Since Marcellus “MT” Turner took over as CEO and chief librarian of Charlotte Mecklenburg Library in 2021, the library system has undergone significant transformation — and it’s not over yet. The library system, which currently has 21 locations, has ambitious plans to expand to 31 branches to better meet the needs of the city’s growing population. Charlotte Mecklenburg Library wants to bring branc...

North Carolina is home to world-class university research — but many groundbreaking ideas never make it beyond the lab. Now, a new nonprofit backed by state and private funds is working to turn university research into thriving businesses, with the goal of creating jobs and boosting the state’s economy. In this episode of The Charlotte Ledger Podcast, Michelle Bolas , executive vice president and...

In 2005, a group of friends with a shared love of motorcycles, beer and barbecue opened a restaurant in an industrial area near uptown known as South End. Today, 20 years later, that restaurant — Mac's Speed Shop — has grown into a company with nine such restaurants in North and South Carolina, with more on the way. In this episode of The Charlotte Ledger Podcast, Tony Salerno, president of Mac’s...

What does it take to turn a city into a top destination for Broadway tours? Tom Gabbard, CEO of Blumenthal Arts since 2003, joins The Charlotte Ledger Podcast to pull back the curtain on Charlotte’s booming arts scene. Under Gabbard's leadership, Blumenthal has transformed into a powerhouse, managing four theaters and hosting more than 1,000 events annually. In this engaging conversation—recorded...

Longtime Republican consultant Carter Wrenn, who spent decades shaping North Carolina politics, has witnessed a dramatic shift in the political landscape since he began his career in the 1970s. Wrenn, a senior advisor to the late U.S. Sen. Jesse Helms, helped build the National Congressional Club, a fundraising powerhouse that revolutionized political outreach and advertising. In a recent intervie...

This week’s podcast guest might sound a little familiar. You’ve been listening to his voice for more than two years. Steve Dunn regularly interviews winners of The Charlotte Ledger’s 40 Over 40 Awards , which are awarded every spring to individuals over the age of 40 who are doing important and inspiring work in Charlotte. While podcasting has become a significant part of his work, Dunn’s primary...

Charlotte Center City Partners, an organization that promotes and advocates for uptown and South End, recently published its annual report on the state of the Center City in 2025 . Charlotte Center City Partners President and CEO Michael Smith and James LaBar, senior vice president of economic development, recently sat down with Ledger editor Tony Mecia to talk about the state of the center city a...

The 2025 Professional Golfers' Association (PGA) Championship is set to take place at Quail Hollow Club in Charlotte from May 12-18, 2025, bringing one of golf’s four major championships back to the Queen City. Tournament Director Jason Soucy, who has spent decades in the sports industry, is leading the effort to organize the event, which is expected to draw global attention. On this episode of Th...

Michelle Crouch is a freelance writer and healthcare reporter for The Charlotte Ledger and North Carolina Health News , which is a nonprofit statewide newsroom that covers a variety of healthcare topics in North Carolina. In this episode of The Charlotte Ledger Podcast, Ledger editor Tony Mecia talks with Crouch about the state of healthcare — why it is the way it is, and where it is heading. It’s...

One of the questions Charlotte Ledger founder and executive editor Tony Mecia is asked a lot is, “How is it going with The Ledger?” As we begin 2025, now is the traditional time to answer. In the spirit of transparency, we’re giving you a peek behind the curtain of our operation. The Ledger published an article on Dec. 30, 2024, recapping the year, what The Ledger accomplished and what we hope to...

Amanda McGough has spent more than two decades helping people navigate their most challenging moments, from suicide prevention to life transitions. As a licensed psychologist, she’s seen firsthand how overwhelming struggles can affect mental health, but she’s equally passionate about the power of conversation and connection in healing. On this episode of The Charlotte Ledger Podcast, McGough talks...

Longtime Charlotteans know Lawrence Toppman from the 40+ years he spent as a critic at The Charlotte Observer. Now, he writes reviews for The Charlotte Ledger several times a month in a column called " Larry At Large ." The Ledger has a partnership with The Sharon at South Park retirement community and hosted a Q&A session in December 2024 for residents. Toppman shared his experiences as an ar...

José Alvarez believes that everyone has the potential to be an entrepreneur. As vice president of Prospera North Carolina, a nonprofit dedicated to helping Latino entrepreneurs, Alvarez works to provide invaluable support to immigrant entrepreneurs by offering bilingual services that guide them through the complexities of starting a business. In this episode of The Charlotte Ledger Podcast, Alvare...

In this episode of The Charlotte Ledger Podcast, we are sharing a speech by Kelly Weeks at the Rotary Club of Charlotte. She is the widow of U.S. Marshal Tommy Weeks, who was one of four law enforcement officers killed in the line of duty in a shootout in east Charlotte on April 29, 2024. In her talk, she discusses what her day was like on that awful day — how it started, how she found out he had...

In 2018, Dr. Dale Owen and nearly 90 physicians left Atrium Health to form Tryon Medical Partners, driven by a vision of patient-centered care without the bureaucracy of large health systems. This bold move, initiated amidst legal battles and skepticism, aimed to prioritize personalized care and coordination while reducing costs. Fast forward six years, Tryon Medical now serves nearly 200,000 pati...

For many people in Western North Carolina, everything changed on Friday, Sept. 27, 2024. Hurricane Helene brought record levels of rainfall, reaching as high as 30 inches in some places and triggering massive flooding and mudslides. Roads, buildings, trees, power lines and entire water systems were wiped out, affecting hundreds of thousands of people. More than 90 people died in North Carolina. In...

The Charlotte region is on track to lose about 19,400 acres of farmland by 2040. The Carolina Farms Fund aims to prevent that. The Carolina Farms Fund is a new initiative from the Conservation Fund, a national nonprofit dedicated to environmental preservation and economic development. The Carolina Farms Fund aims to protect 5,000 acres in the Charlotte region as working farms and to match farmers...

In this special episode of The Charlotte Ledger Podcast, Ledger editor Tony Mecia and elections specialist Sucharita Kodali quickly break down the 14 statewide races on the 2024 general election ballot. In less than 10 minutes, they zip through the races that will be on the ballot for every North Carolinian: the Council of State — including races for governor, lieutenant governor, agriculture comm...