Make It Happen

"I'm finally getting back to the woman I was born to be." Diana Patton is a former civil-rights attorney turned coach, advocate, and founder of Rise Advocates Academy — and one of the most magnetic people in T-Town. In this episode, Michael opens with a question he's never asked anyone: "Why are you you?" What follows is an honest, funny, wide-open conversation about identity, healing, and showing up as your real self.Diana shares growing up mixed-race and homeless in Fostoria, the trauma that shaped her into a "stereotypically angry Black woman," and the moments that cracked everything open — her brother's actions, law school, motherhood, and a United Way speech where she told her story in public for the first time. She talks about trading revenge for real justice, building a daily practice of meditation and gratitude, mentoring University of Toledo athletes, and her 12-week Academy for executive women built around mindset, calling, and service.Plus a candid, myth-busting deep dive into perimenopause and menopause — why the research was never done, the tools that actually help, and why this can be the best chapter of a woman's life instead of the hardest. Learn more or apply at riseadvocatesacademy.com.The Make It Happen Podcast — cool people doing cool things in Northwest Ohio and beyond, hosted by Michael Vanderpool. As always — make it happen.

Doug Hinebaugh — better known as "Dougie Fresh" — is the conversational photographer whose lens has quietly become the face of everything good happening in Toledo. In this episode, Michael sits down with Doug to talk about leaving town in 2007 convinced anywhere was better, the hard-won sobriety that brought him home, and how a cell-phone car-show hobby turned into a full-time photography career.Doug shares why the photo is the small part — experiencing the event is the real work — his four years on the Toledo Streets editorial committee, his first solo gallery show "One City, Many Moments," and the line that sums him up: "Your enthusiasm is what makes my photos great. Not my camera."Plus, the big one: Techledo — the FREE electronic music festival Doug throws on Saturday, June 13 at Glass City Metropark as part of Watershed Weekend. Three stages, 16 DJs, headliner DJ Heather out of Chicago, glow performers, open till 11 p.m. — and every dollar raised funds Dean Davis's River Gallery Mural Project. Donate, volunteer, or just come dance. Details at wwtechledo.live.The Make It Happen Podcast is recorded at The Loft 419 in downtown Toledo, hosted by Michael Vanderpool. As always — make it happen.

Northwest Ohio filmmaker Anthony Wright joins Mike Vanderpool alongside actor Dillon Sickles to talk about his journey from making VHS Star Wars knockoffs as a kid to screening his feature "The Ride to Nowhere" at the Chinese Theater in Hollywood. Anthony shares what's next with his ambitious new project "The Moonshine Crew," why Toledo's film scene is more alive than people think, and the local spots he'd show off to anyone visiting from LA. A conversation about the grind, the labor of love, and making movies happen in a city that often gets overlooked.More about the movie here: https://themoonshinecrew.carrd.co/Moonshine crew Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61576228345294