Spokane Stories

The return of Herb! After we shared Herb Batterson's story in January, many of you asked for more Herb, and Herb was happy to oblige. He shares a story of, as a younger man, a treacherous day spent on a logging job and with it many thoughts on work and life. We proud to call Herb our first official Friend of the Show.

Herb Batterson looks back on 1960, when he was a freshman in high school, and a night with his two friends, neither of whom lived a long life. 

Matthew Vinci, Fire Chief for Spokane County Fire District 9, joined us to share about his journey from firefighter to national advocate for firefighters to fire chief and all the successes and challenges along the way. To learn more about Matt and the work of Fire District 9, go to www.scfd9.org.

Kristina Kenagy joined us to share a powerful and vulnerable story of growing up in very challenging circumstances with undiagnosed autism. She shares about the challenges she overcame and the work she now does in building community and connection. If you'd like to learn more about Kristina, you can find her website here,

Ana Alonzo Juarez joined us to tell her story of coming to the United States, being welcomed  by a foster family in Spokane, learning English and graduating from high school, and now beginning college to study Social Work.Ana is a student and an immigrant from Guatemala. She lives with an amazing foster family and loves spending time outdoors.Find out more about Lutheran Community Services Northwest Refugee Foster Care program.

Bob Stout, the Development Director at FāVS News and a Realtor in Idaho and Washington joined us to share about growing up a ranch with a father from a much older generation. He shares about all the things he learned and took with him into his life now. You can follow the work with FāVS News here and find out about Bob's real estate business here.

Chauncey Jones, Executive Director of Take Up the Cause and Partner in A Better Way, joined us to share about the power of his grandmother's love and stabile home. Through the love of his grandmother, Hannah Jones, Chauncey received unconditional love and a stable place to call home. Chauncey now takes the lessons his Grams gave him and works to provide housing through Take Up the Cause and A Better Way.Chauncey Jones is a Beloved Community developer and wealth esteem builder.

Aimee Brooks, from Banana Slug Books, joined us to share here journey in creative writing, applying for and receiving a SAGA grant, and the creation of Spokane Campfire Stories, a soon to be released anthology of creative writing by Spokane area writers.You can join Aimee and her team for a Campfire Stories Merch Party at Spokane Print & Publishing Center on Tuesday, July 15, 2025 from 5 PM to 8 PM.Look for the release of Spokane Campfire Stories with a Launch Party on Friday, August 22, 2025 from 7 to 10 PM at the Frist Memorial Fireplace at Manito Park.You can learn more about Aimee's work at Banana Slug Books. 

Braxton Jones joined us to share the story of welcoming his first pet, a black cat named Jack. When he and his family welcomed Jack, they also welcomed joy, mischievousness, and a new family member who shares and receives love. To learn more about adopting a pet through the Spokane Humane Society, you can click here.Braxton Jones is entering the second grade this fall. He is a baseball and soccer player, he loves friends, Minecraft, and Legos, he is a cat enthusiast, and in the opinion of the podcast producer, the best little boy in the world.

Craig Flinn tells the story of taking a job as a restaurant server and finding joy, connection with others, and a mystical moment of seeing the value of every person. You'll often find Craig Flinn talking with a neighbor and enjoying delicious food.

Roger Lynn walked the 500 miles of the Camino de Santiago, a 500 mile pilgrimage, experiencing surprise all along the way. Roger's journey eventually led him back to Spokane to experience joy and surprise here, too. Roger Lynn is a photographer, Native American flute player, retired Disciples of Christ and UCC minister, and a past and now, again, present resident of Spokane. To follow Roger’s work, you can find more at rogerlynn.com. If you'd like to read about Roger's Camino experience, you can find his book here.

Kelsey Doerr, the Foster Parent Recruiter from Lutheran Community Services Northwest, joined us to tell the story of her welcoming into her home a young mother and a baby and how she grew in connection and joy in doing so.Kelsey enjoys working with refugee foster youth, hosting a teenager and her baby, and too many of the social and outdoor activities Spokane offers to name just one.To learn more about LCSNW's Unaccompanied Refugee Minor program, please visit Refugee Foster Care - LCSNW.To learn more about Catholic Charities Host Home program, contact Gage Spicer at [email protected]

Tracy Simmons joined us to share her story of being raised in a restrictive cult to finding freedom in education and religion journalism. Tracy is a long-time religion reporter, a journalism professor, and cycling enthusiast. To follow Tracy's work go to favs.news.

Chris Snow, pastor of North Hill Christian Church, shares with us his experiences of disablity, both as an individual and as a parent, and his journey to advocacy and inclusion for all people. Chris Snow is a pastor, disablity advocate, husband, and father.

Lisa Kissinger's childhood dream was to work at Disneyland, and she got to live it! Hear her tell the story of going to Disneyland and coming back home and all she learned along the journey.Lisa Kissinger is a writer, life-long Disney enthusiast, and friend.

One of our hosts, Jason Jones, kicks things off with telling the story of how he became a dad.