Sue Schmidt

Susanne Schmidt, a native New Yorker, visited Vermont in 1985 with only a cat, a Karmann Ghia, and a guitar. Just over the border, the car broke down, the guitar was bartered to the tow truck man, and the cat ran away. Despite what others might have taken as ill omens, Susanne decided that Vermont was the perfect place to call home. In addition to being a jazz drummer and a storyteller, Susanne is also a professor for Southern New Hampshire University's graduate program in Clinical Mental Health. She is the mother of two amazing sons who would prefer that she not talk about them on stage. She is a standup comic, storyteller, Moth StorySLAM winner, host, and regional producer. Susanne is also the founder of "Say It Forward Productions", a storytelling performance collaborative that raises funds for non-profit organizations. For upcoming events, visit her website!

Robin Utz

Robin Utz is an everyday person who has become a storyteller and advocate for reproductive rights and healthcare access. She has been featured in The Washington Post, Al Jazeera, NPR's "All Things Considered" and "1A", BBC "Newshour", Parents, The Guardian and The New York Times. She has lived her entire life in Missouri, where she frequently has living room pajama dance parties with her husband Jim, and their new little girl, Hannah. You can follow her story at DefendingGrace.com. 

Give Me Liberty: Sue Schmidt & Robin Utz

In this episode, two stories of strong and courageous women. Sue Schmidt bangs to a thunderous beat of her own making. Robin Utz comes to face the hardships of pregnancy and love.

Bring Me Liberty or Bring Me A Dress

by Sue Schmidt

Sue Schmidt bangs to a thunderous beat of her own making.

Loving Grace

by Robin Utz

Robin Utz comes to face the hardships of pregnancy and love.

Hope and Glory

--- This episode is available on your local radio station, on PRX and below via The Moth Player. It will be published on iTunes | Spotify | RadioPublic | RSS --- 11/14/23 --- 

In this hour, four stories of determination, hope and battling for both survival and respect. From bootcamp in Fort Bragg to base camp in Kirkuk, Iraq; from the front lines to the home front. Hosted by The Moth's Senior Director, Meg Bowles. The Moth Radio Hour is produced by The Moth and Jay Allison of Atlantic Public Media.

Jill Morgenthaler battles to earn the respect of her fellow soldiers.

Dylan Park finds hope in the chaos of war.

Franny Civitano anxiously awaits her brother’s return from deployment in Afghanistan.

Jerry Neal describes a bird’s eye view of the English Channel on D Day.

Jaed Coffin

Jaed Coffin is the author of A Chant to Soothe Wild Elephants, a memoir about the summer he spent as a Buddhist monk in his mother's village of Panomsarakram, Thailand. His next book, Roughhouse Friday, chronicles the year he won the middleweight title of a barroom boxing show in Juneau, Alaska. Jaed lives in his hometown of Brunswick, Maine, with his wife and two daughters, and teaches in the MFA and undergraduate writing programs at the University of New Hampshire. He's currently at work on a story about the 50th anniversary of Muhammad Ali's Phantom Punch.

Poppins’ Coffin

by Jaed Coffin

Jaed Coffin becomes an unlikely cat dad when his daughter and wife encourage him to adopt.

A Feline Roamer: Jaed Coffin

Jaed Coffin becomes an unlikely cat dad when his daughter and wife encourage him to adopt. Hosted by Dan Kennedy.

Jill Morgenthaler

Colonel Jill Morgenthaler was a woman of many firsts. Jill was in the experimental class where the Army tested to see if women could lead men. She was a 22-year-old commander along the border of North and South Korea. She was the first woman battalion commander in the 88th Division; and she was the first woman brigade commander in the 84th Division, leading hundreds of Soldiers across six states. In 1980, Jill spoiled a Soviet plot to kidnap an American satellite engineer. In Iraq, she faced off with Saddam Hussein. Colonel Jill was also a global speaker on leadership and empowerment. McGraw-Hill published her book Courage to Command: Leadership Lessons from a Military Trailblazer. You can learn more about Colonel Morgenthaler at coloneljill.com

Dylan Park

Dylan Park was born and raised in the San Francisco Bay Area. From 2004-2010, he served as a member of a U.S. Air Force Special Operations Security Forces Squadron that deployed to locations all over the world, including Iraq. After returning home, he spent a few years as a social worker for homeless veterans, and as a victims advocate for the Santa Clara County’s District Attorney’s office. In 2016, Dylan moved to Los Angeles to pursue writing, and quickly found work in AMC Network’s scripted development department as a writing fellow. Since then, he has had several scripts optioned for tv and film. Currently, he writes and directs music videos. His most recent project being a series of short music films and commercials with acclaimed musician, Wyclef Jean. On the side, he writes for VICE, where he tackles sociopolitics. Dylan is a graduate of Arizona State, from which he holds degrees in Film and Media Studies, and a grad student at the University of Southern California. You can always find him with his face buried in a laptop, hiding in a cafe or bookstore somewhere in Santa Monica, the city he now calls home.

Jerry Neal

Born in Kansas City, Missouri in 1921, Jerome B. Neal served in WWII as a combat bomber pilot and was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross. His professional career includes sales and marketing with an international corporation, owner operator of a large distribution business and managing editor of a trade newspaper. He is now a mentor with SCORE.

Franny Civitano

Franny lives in New York and works at the NYC Ferry service. She is also growing her wedding business where she officiates as well as plans people’s big day.

Miss Foxhole

by Jill Morgenthaler

Jill Morgenthaler battles to earn the respect of her fellow soldiers.

Roadside

by Dylan Park

Dylan Park finds hope in the chaos of war.

Are We Fine Yet?

by Franny Civitano

Franny Civitano anxiously awaits her brother’s return from deployment in Afghanistan.

Way Down Upon the English Channel

by Jerry Neal

Jerry Neal describes a bird’s eye view of the English Channel on D Day.

Navrioska Mateo

Navrioska Mateo is an artistic-nerd hybrid, with a background in Computer Science and Project Management and a vivid interest for art. When she is not learning some new skill (technical or not), she likes to hike, sing, and read. Telling stories and teaching is in her blood. Navrioska likes connecting with people, and her main challenge in life is satisfying her never-ending curiosity.

Faith Salie

Faith Salie is an Emmy-winning contributor to CBS Sunday Morning and a regular on NPR’s Wait Wait…Don’t Tell Me! She also hosts Science Goes to the Movies on PBS. Her book of essays, Approval Junkie: My Heartfelt (and Occasionally Inappropriate) Quest to Please Just About Everyone, and Ultimately Myself has been called “a magic mix of vulnerability and jest.” She attended Oxford University on a Rhodes scholarship, after which her fellow scholars went on to become things like governors and Pulitzer Prize winners, while she landed on a Star Trek collectible trading card worth hundreds of cents. Faith was born in Weymouth, MA and lives in NYC with her family. She promised her husband she’d raise their two kids Jewish if she could also raise them as Red Sox fans. 

Joshua Blau

After twenty years of dealing with the IRS and the Department of Labor, coupled with the early childhood trauma of abruptly moving to Israel from Yonkers with his family at the age of 9 and then moving to Miami at 13, Josh Blau, a Manhattan CPA, has decided it's time to share his tales of woe with the world. He and his wife are raising five children, including 8-year old triplets, here in Manhattan. He's always under a lot of stress.