Yinz Are Good shares the good stuff - the good news - going on out there and celebrates all the good people who are making it happen: The people who are lifting others up, who are taking care of their neighbors...the people who are saying, “What can I do today to make our world a better place?”.

Building community (literally and figuratively), creating connections, making memories...

Our guest today specializes in transforming overlooked and distressed urban spaces into places that unite the communities around them - and he engages with community members to do it. Enriching public spaces on many levels, his philosophy is that public space, done right, lifts everything around it.

“He” is Ben Donsky, Principal at Agora Partners. Agora Partners is a planning and real estate advisory firm that focuses their efforts on the public realm: parks, plazas, streets, sports and cultural facilities and other public venues. They help to create these spaces all over the country.

They concentrate on “placemaking”, as they say on their website: “While placemaking can often sound like a buzzword, it means more than that to us. It’s about creating emotional connections between people and place, rooted in curated experiences and planned serendipity. Beautiful and thoughtful planning is central to our work, but it’s the experience that makes a place memorable. That’s what drives everything we do.”

If, like Tressa, you've never known much about this side of how these urban spaces come to life - the planning, the building of the partnerships, the community engagement behind it - get ready to be enlightened and inspired. Tressa and Ben also chat about his journey and personal connection to his work, as well as his dedication to community service.

Agora Partners: https://www.agorapartners.com/

Contact Ben Donsky: ben@agorapartners.com

⁠⁠⁠https://www.yinzaregood.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠

*Watch our Tressa Tries…video series on YouTube ⁠ here⁠.

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Instagram:⁠⁠⁠ ⁠@yinzaregood⁠⁠⁠⁠ Facebook:⁠⁠⁠ ⁠@YinzAreGood⁠⁠⁠⁠

*Have a story of generosity or kindness to share with us? Want a Kindness Crate dropped off at your business or school? Email us at ⁠yinzaregood@gmail.com.

Yinz Are Good shares the good stuff - the good news - going on out there and celebrates all the good people who are making it happen: The people who are lifting others up, who are taking care of their neighbors, the people who are saying, “What can I do today to make our world a better place?”.

Hi yinz! It’s Tressa here. First, I want to take a quick moment to acknowledge all of YOU - our listeners in 98 countries and territories on 6 continents. I am truly… amazed, frankly, at how far reaching this little podcast has become. And I am heartened by it. I am made hopeful by it. Because it’s proof that no matter where in the world you call home, you know there is good news to be heard, you know there are good people to learn about and be inspired by. And borders don’t matter. You know you will find common ground here. You know you will find the best of our humanity here. And there is such beauty and joy in that. And I thank you from the bottom of my heart for being part of our community.

And today’s guest is someone who knows a whole lot about building and connecting communities, that’s for sure… Her name is Danielle Gregor and she is the Owner & CEO of SLIP: Sign Language Interpreting Professionals. This family-owned business has been serving the Deaf community for over 20 years, empowering communication and inclusion between hearing and Deaf individuals. And this company is “family-owned” in the truest sense of the word: You’ll hear Danielle’s family’s story, how SLIP is a direct result of their story, and how family continues to inspire SLIP - and Danielle - each and every day.

Ours is a conversation about communication access, about helping others communicate during ordinary and extraordinary moments in their lives, and we even chat about ASL and the intricacies of the language itself.

SLIP: https://signlanguageinterpretingprofessionals.com/

Danielle Gregor on LinkedIn

___________

Watch our Tressa Tries…video series on YouTube⁠ here⁠.

⁠⁠https://www.yinzaregood.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

FOLLOW US on social media:

Instagram:⁠⁠⁠ ⁠@yinzaregood⁠⁠⁠⁠ Facebook:⁠⁠⁠ ⁠@YinzAreGood⁠⁠⁠⁠

Have a story of generosity or kindness to share with us? Want a Kindness Crate dropped off at your business or school? Email us at ⁠yinzaregood@gmail.com.

Yinz Are Good shares the good stuff - the good news - going on out there and celebrates all the good people who are making it happen: The people who are lifting others up, who are taking care of their neighbors, the people who are saying, “What can I do today to make our world a better place?”.

Tressa sits down for a delightful chat with the fabulous Shayna Bodi, Abby Lawler-Morycz, Sam Smith and Morgan Sulik, the women at the heart of LeboGreen, the all-volunteer nonprofit based in Mt. Lebanon.

LeboGreen is a group of citizen volunteers devoted to conserving energy, water and waste in their community and they connect with that community through education, initiatives and events. You’re going to hear not only about Lebo Green’s awesome mission and work, but about connection, collaboration, finding your passion, and making a difference.

Lebo Green: www.mtlebogreen.org

___________

Watch our Tressa Tries…video series on YouTube⁠ here⁠.

⁠⁠https://www.yinzaregood.com/⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠

FOLLOW US on social media:

Instagram:⁠⁠⁠ ⁠@yinzaregood⁠⁠⁠⁠ Facebook:⁠⁠⁠ ⁠@YinzAreGood⁠⁠⁠⁠

Have a story of generosity or kindness to share with us? Want a Kindness Crate dropped off at your business or school? Email us at ⁠yinzaregood@gmail.com.