Sally Mixon, the founder of Abijah’s on the Backside, has a passion for horses, horse racing, and mental health. With her Masters in Professional Counseling and certification in the ARCH framework, Sally has founded an organization that uses retired race horses to serve and help military, first responders and stable workers with trauma, depression, anxiety, PTSD, and more. As a young woman, Sally struggled with severe anorexia; she went into rehab, hating every second of it, and moved to East Texas to work at a semi-locked-down facility for youth to run their horse program. It was through her work there, that her idea for Abjiah's was born. Growing up in Wisconsin, in a military family, Sally knows firsthand what it's like to be a part of a veteran and first responder community. 
In this episode, you will learn more about the vision and execution of Abijah on the Backside, hear stories of the impact this organization has had for veterans and first responders, how to access and utilize this organization’s services, and more about Sally as a woman in a predominantly male dominated industry. This organization started at Canterbury Park of Minnesota and also has a non-profit subset through Horses for Mental Health. We all have mental health needs and how we address those needs can come in so many different ways, treatments, therapies, and communities. 

Our Non-Profit Spotlight is Horses for Mental Health

This episode features award-winning, Minnesota based restoration experts and co-owners of Practical Home and Ungerman Inc, Lindsey Uselding and Kirsten Meehan. They are experts in responding to home emergencies and completing the restoration. Growing up watching, observing, and assisting their father in various home emergency projects, prepared Lindsey and Kirsten to take over co-ownership of Ungerman Inc. in 2017 . With degrees in communications and business from UW-Madison, these two women are a force to be reckoned with. Their positive energy is infectious and genuinely real, which is demonstrated in their brand new HGTV show, Renovation 911.

In this episode, we not only learn the story behind their two business, Ungerman Inc and Practical Homes, but also learn some very important tips and tricks to incorporate NOW to prevent catastrophic home emergencies.

Our Non-Profit Spotlight is Edina ABC

Lily Garfield is a beauty industry leader and pioneer, and the Founder of Cos Bar, the original multi-brand luxury beauty retailer. Lily started her career behind the counter at Bloomingdales in Manhattan, New York. Just three weeks in, she left Bloomingdales to become the first female account executive for a cosmetic brand. It wasn’t long before she left New York all together, moved to Aspen as a self-proclaimed ski-bum, and opened the 1st independent beauty boutique in the country in 1976. There is a reason Leonard Lauder, of Estée Lauder, said “the future of the beauty industry in the 21st century will be more stores like Cos Bar”. After one year in business, Cos Bar had quadrupled its sales.In this episode, we learn the story behind Cos Bar and Lily’s background. She shares lessons and insight she has gained over her past 47 years as a woman, owning a business, and disrupting the norm for an industry. We learn the unmatched experience a customer will receive when shopping at Cos Bar, and why it may change your perspective on where and how you shop for beauty products. As a child of Holocaust survivors, a cancer survivor, and female entrepreneur with over 20 stores nationwide, Lily Garfield is unstoppable. Want to know how she did it? Lily will share her daily routines and the advice she shares with all of her staff. You won’t want to miss it.

Our Non-Profit Spotlight is MD Anderson.

You should be excited to buy your next swimsuit - yes, excited - and here is why! This episode, we welcome founder and owner, Jennifer Cermak, of Nani Nalu Beachwear Boutique, which was born of out a bad experience searching for a swimsuit for a honeymoon. After trying on countless options at various stores, Jennifer ended up in tears inside a department store fitting room. Upset from the lack of sizes, limited style options, and little to no staff knowledge…she knew there was a better way for women to shop for swimwear. So, in 2006, Nani Nalu opened and from personal experience, we can say the experience is unmatched.

Each customer is paired with a fit expert who is dedicated to finding a swimsuit that not only looks good, but fits correctly. Nani Nalu offer selections of full style in a complete size range (0-24) with knowledgeable staff members that treat you like the goddess that you are. As Jennifer says best: “You can’t hide a poor fitting suit with an amazing color.” As detailed in this episode, there is a reason that over ninety percent of her customers leave with a swimsuit that they feel emotionally prepared, excited, and confident to wear on their next trip.
In this episode, we discuss overcoming body dysmorphia, the swimsuit industry, how to properly size and fit yourself for a swimsuit, colors and skin tones that work and don’t work, how to properly wash a swimsuit, and so much more. Jennifer also shares her latest business concept to take the incredible services of Nani Nalu, located in Edina, Minnesota, online with swimsuitcase.com; think stitch fix meets swimwear without a subscription. We promise you, by the end of this episode, you will be ready to buy your next swimsuit and feel confident wearing it.

Our Non-Profit Spotlight is Surfrider Foundation

Anne Hed, a lifetime resident of Minnesota, began her career as a worldwide professional triathlete. Through the sport, she met her late husband, Steve. Together, they shared a vision to create and innovate some of the fastest, most aerodynamic bike wheels in the world. In 1984, from Steve's garage and funded in part by Anne's race winnings, HED Cycling Products was born. In this episode, we learn just how this company was founded out of passion over a love for a sport. Upon losing her husband, Anne took it upon herself, with an incredible team of people, to continue to innovate. Hed Cycling is now a certified woman owned business. From competing in the Ironman and the Tour de France to being awarded with several significant patents, HED Cycling is widely regarded as a pioneer in the bike industry. This episode is full of vulnerability, encouragement, inspiration, and womanhood. You may be riding a HED wheel bike, and not even know it. We also get a sneak peek into one of Anne’s new patent-pending ideas outside of the cycling space.

Our Non-Profit Spotlight is Free Bikes 4 Kidz

To most of the world, Michelle Young was a contestant on the Bachelor and Bachelorette; but, that was just a snapshot of who this incredible woman, educator, activist, public speaker, and friend really is. In this episode, we dig deeper. After receiving her bachelor’s degree in elementary education from Bradley University in 2015, Michelle began her career teaching in Minnesota. We discuss the transition from Division I college athletics to the non-athletic working world of educating others. We discuss family life and the role her parents have played in her life and rise to the public eye. We glimpse into what it was like to be on the Bachelor and Bachelorette from the clothes, to the travel, to the girl/boy drama and how this experience impacted her future to date. We learn how Michelle “checks herself” before starting her day and what exactly she is doing while stepping away from the 5th grade teacher role this year.
Through empathy and experience, Michelle speaks on mental health, overcoming anxiety, identity, and practicing self-love. She is a passionate advocate for children and youth, striving to be a positive influence. We hope you enjoy our conversation as much as we did: there is a lesson, take-away, and reflection for everyone.

Our Non-Profit Spotlight is Girl Well

When you walk into yum! Kitchen and Bakery, and you see the menu, there are so many different selections that depending on what your palate wants for the day, you can find something. Patti Soskin opened yum! Kitchen and Bakery 18 years ago, now operating three locations in the Twin Cities, with her husband, Robbie. Patti has been in the restaurant business for her entire career. yum! is first and foremost a family and community restaurant. You are a guest in her restaurants, not a customer - as if you’re a guest in her home.

This episode will leave you hungry for yum!: we learn how the business got started, how a passion turned business remains a passion, how the menu is curated and maintained, how they survived COVID, and just how to maintain a family-like business. Patti says she sells happiness and we can attest to this personally. Happiness is truly in her DNA: she loves loving people and it is so apparent in every way.

Don’t miss the 4th location coming to Woodbury, MN summer 2023 and The Patti Wagon.

Our favorite yum! treats: Patti Cake & Coconut Cake

Our Non-Profit Spotlight is Open Arms St. Paul

Allyson Fanger is best known for her costume design work on the popular Netflix series, “Grace and Frankie,” and recent work with "Shrinking" on Apple TV, "80 for Brady" of Paramount Pictures and "Act Your Age" on Bounce TV/MGM. Born and raised in Minnesota, Allyson’s career as a costume designer was innate but developed over time, patience, and truly putting the work in from the ground up.

This episode is full of fun: have you ever wondered where or how the clothes come together for a movie set or TV series? Allyson answers these questions and so much more. We learn just how integral Allyson’s role is in curating the various characters of a media piece: from reading a script, to assessing the actor filling the character role, to where she shops for the characters. We learn about her methods for putting together the message a character is trying to convey to the audience just as we as people are when we present ourselves out to the world. Allyson has mastered telling a story through clothing even down to details. She has been credited with bringing the notion as well as the visual psychology of truly ageless style into mainstream media, and that couldn’t be more apparent in our conversation with her! By the end of this episode, you will have learned that the only way to present your best self, is to be your best self - and she will provide some tools to do just that!

Our Non-Profit Spotlight is Lady Freethinker.

Allison (Ali) Kaplan is a self proclaimed career side hustler, and that she is! With a “day job” in writing and journalism as Vice President of content for MSP Communications’ Cities Media Group, which includes Twin Cities Business Magazine, where she also serves as Editor in Chief and MplsSt.Paul Magazine, to her “hustle” as Founder of Mother Of, we are so excited to share her story, energy, and insight into the retail industry and all things business journalism.

In this episode, we begin by talking about all things “Mother Of,” the go-to dress resource for mothers of the bride and groom. Whether you are that of the bride or groom, you too deserve to feel and look your best. Her business was designed to curate that list and access to dresses, cutting through the clutter, to find what works for you. We talk about how the business blossomed, functions, and serves the greater community at large. We discuss the woes of the fashion industry and how to curate your best wardrobe.

At heart, Ali truly is a writer, an editor, a speaker and a storyteller who takes an entrepreneurial approach to journalism—from the creation of her own Ali Shops in the “dark ages” before Instagram to the more recent development of TCB’s StartMN magazine focused on entrepreneurship, weekly radio show Shop Girls on myTalk107.1 co-hosted with her mom, and a TCB podcast about business leadership and innovation called By All Means. This episode takes you on the journey of how Ali became who she is in the business world and provides ways you too can lean on her insight and resources.

Our Non-Profit Spotlight is Neighborhood Development Center

As CEO of the Women Presidents Organization (WPO), Camille Burns champions the WPO’s vision to help a diverse and dynamic community of global women entrepreneurs to come together to work on their businesses, taking them to the next level, and creating a community of successful female entrepreneurs. At 44 years-old and twenty-three years into her career at WPO, Camille has not only grown individually, but has witnessed and curated a safe space for female entrepreneurs to grow together from 200 members to over 2000 members worldwide. In this episode, we explore what it really means to be women entrepreneurs. We discuss Adult Learning Theory, and how using this model forges success within a work space and community. Camille shares how entrepreneurship has changed over the years and how multi generational learning can truly bring greater success to a business and relationships. This episode opens by sharing the stories of how co-hosts, Lisa Rubin and Katie Harms created their respective businesses and closes touching on the pieces of Camille’s day that allow her to find her energy for a demanding work-life-balance and how she organizes her spaces living in NYC. This is an episode to celebrate and empower women everywhere.

Our Non-Profit Spotlight is Unicef

Building on more than 30 years of experience as a board certified Internal Medicine physician, business executive, mother, and on-air medical correspondent, Dr. Archelle Georgiou brings a multi-dimensional, data-driven approach to understanding and taking action in your own health. In this podcast, we discuss aging not a disease we need to cure or a process we need to change, but aging as a part of life. We discuss ageism and how to not only overcome it, but celebrate it.
One of the biggest takeaways from this episode is Archelle’s book Health Care Choices: 5 Steps to Getting the Medical Care You Want and Need. This book teaches readers how to use her CARES™ Model, a five-step approach to making medical choices that are both evidence-based and aligned with personal preferences. Clinically trained professionals are experts in diagnosis and treatment. An individual is an expert in his/her/oneself. You need both the expertise of the clinician and that of yourself to come up with the best treatment plan and best outcome FOR YOU. This is a book for every age group, religion, race, and gender. As we learn in this episode, you need to learn this process when there is no urgency or life-threatening circumstance so that when those situations arise, it is second nature.
We finish the episode discussing ways Archelle prepares herself for the various audiences she speaks to: board rooms, students, media personnel, TV watchers, clinicians, etc. This is an episode everyone should listen to or re-listen to with notes on your phone or paper and pencil. You are your own best advocate and the only one who truly knows what you want out of life.

Our Non-Profit Spotlight is CaringBridge

Alexa Curtis is a speaker, podcaster, blogger, influencer who has been impacting the the lives of teens and young adults since she was 12 years old. What started as a fashion blog, in 2011, turned into a platform whereby she could discuss real issues around social media and growing up. She has done more in her 25 years than most have done in their entire careers. Not only did Curtis turn her little fashion blog into a full-time lifestyle platform for teens, through cold-pitching, but she held a show on Radio Disney AND in 2018, founded the Be Fearless Summit. This concept was later acquired by GrasshoppHer: a career road mapping platform with a membership model and reinvented career fairs available to women everywhere. She is an old soul with unbelievable positivity and fearlessness. We cannot wait share her energy, inspiration, and drive with all of you. We cannot wait to see what she is going to do next.

Our Non-Profit Spotlight is Innocence Project.

Judy Wert, a graduate of the University of Michigan, has been working with the leadership of innovative companies for over 25 years. Her career started in Chicago, in 1983, as a young graphic designer. Through the process of publishing a children’s book, Judy fell in love and moved from Chicago to Los Angeles to Israel, and settled in New York where she became a recruiter. It was through this journey that she found her voice, purpose, and true superpower: connecting with people. This is where Wert & Co was born: a firm that perfectly intertwines people, connection, leadership, and design. Judy has earned an international reputation as a pivotal force in executive search and has built partnerships that have shaped––and even reinvented––lives, businesses, and industries.

In this episode, you will learn just how multi-dimensional and non-transactional a career search, change, or path should be. We discuss the various chapters or stages of your professional career and how each one truly serves a different purpose both personally and professionally. We share tips and tricks on organization and keepsakes, and share the deep love of parenthood. The episode closes with some powerful words and advice from Judy on how to truly keep that view in your mirror a positive, purposeful, and humbling one.

Our Non-Profit Spotlight is Save The Children