Bucket List Community Cafe Podcast

Podcast: Journalist Carol McKinley Concludes Career

Within the world of journalism, Emmy award-winning Carol McKinley has done it all. McKinley has covered some of the most significant events in the country for over four decades, including the JonBenét Ramsey investigation and the Columbine and Aurora theater shootings. She also covered the Iraq War and the end of Saddam Hussein.
Now, after firmly establishing herself as one of the most prolific reporters in Denver, McKinley has decided to retire and call it a career. Carol joined us on the April episode of the “Bucket List Community Cafe Podcast” to discuss her legendary career.

Podcast: Regan Linton Challenges Status Quo for Disabled Actors

Regan Linton, a well-known actress from Denver, persevered when life threw her a massive challenge. After a life-altering car accident left her paralyzed from the waist down in 2002, she made a commitment to keep creating.
On March’s episode of the “Bucket List Community Cafe Podcast,” we sat down with Linton to talk about her journey as a disabled actress, work as an activist, the inspiration behind some of her most known work and where her projects will take her next.

Podcast: Colorado Immigrant Rights Coalition Is Fighting Back

Raquel Lane-Arellano from the Colorado Immigrant Rights Coalition joined us on the podcast to talk about their efforts.
As Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) raids continue to unfold across the state, the Colorado Immigrant Rights Coalition (CIRC) has been working tirelessly to advocate for immigrant communities. 
Raquel Lane-Arellano, communications manager and Colorado rapid response volunteer, has been on the frontlines of these efforts. For the February episode of the “Bucket List Community Cafe Podcast,” we spoke with Lane-Arellano to understand the ongoing impact the new administration’s policies have had on Denver’s immigrant communities since its inauguration. 

Podcast: Butterfly Pavilion On Butterfly Crisis

As climate change becomes an increasingly prevalent issue throughout the state of Colorado, the local butterflies are feeling the effects. Butterflies, as pollinators, are critical to the long-term viability of our state’s ecosystem. 
Unfortunately, butterfly populations have been decreasing drastically over the past 50 years due to increased temperature across Colorado, loss of vegetation like milkweed and wildflowers, and increased pollution. A recent study by the Colorado Department of Natural Resources suggests that Colorado’s butterfly population has decreased by over 50% in the last 35 years.
How concerned should we be about Colorado’s falling butterfly population? Is this indicative of more scary and drastic climate-induced changes to come? On December’s episode of the Bucket List Community Cafe Podcast, we sat down with Shiran Hershcovich, senior lepidopterist at Butterfly Pavilion in Westminster, to talk about the role climate change has played on the butterfly population and how it affects everyone.

Podcast: Gen Z on the 2024 election

With a consequential election on November 5 looming, voters’ voices are more important than ever. Even outside of the presidential contest, a slew of other pivotal issues will be voted on in Denver. As the landscape and demographics of the city evolve, Generation Z voters are more important than ever and want their voices to be heard.
On October’s edition of the Bucket List Community Cafe podcast, we sat down with Isabel Guzman and Travis Brooks from Metropolitan State University (MSU). Guzman and Brooks work as student journalists for The Metropolitan, MSU’s student paper, and provided us with invaluable insight into how Gen Z voters are feeling ahead of election night.

Podcast: Denver’s Polly Baca on Voting and 2024 Election

With a pivotal election fast approaching, it’s more important than ever to be engaged. The future of the country is in the hands of voters, who will decide America’s direction on November 5. 
No one knows that better than the former chair of the Democratic Caucus of the Colorado House of Representatives and local political legend Polly Baca. Ryland Scholescaught up with Baca in this month’s episode of the Bucket List Community Cafepodcast to get her take on the current political climate. 

Podcast: Pedestrian Safety is Big Concern to Denver Advocates

For a city whose metro area has grown by nearly 500,000 people in the last 10 years, Denverites should be seeing new bike pathways, better sidewalk infrastructure and improved public transit systems, but according to advocates that’s not happening fast enough. They are calling for more improvements in pedestrian and cycling safety.
In this month’s episode of the Bucket List Community Cafe podcast, our Ryland Scholes discusses Denver’s pedestrian and cycling safety issues with two advocates: David Chen from the Denver Bicycle Lobby and Alejandra Castañeda from Pedestrian Dignity. As experts on traffic safety in the Mile High City, Chen and Castañeda provided valuable context on Denver’s problems and how we can solve them.

Podcast: Super Traveler Daniel Zimny-Schmitt

As Coloradans from around the state flock to the mountains and beaches during summer vacation season, one Denverite has gone above and beyond with his travels. Daniel Zimny-Schmitt is the newest member of the Extra Miler Club, making his way to all 3,143 counties across the United States. He recently finished his cross-country journey and sat down with Bucket List for the July edition of our podcast.
 
 

Podcast: Johnny Nichols, Jr. and the Denver Gay Men’s Chorus

Johnny Nichols, Jr., the artistic director of the Denver Gay Men’s Chorus isn’t your average conductor. He just celebrated his one-year anniversary with the group, and his mission in Denver is clear: build bridges in the Mile High City. Originally aspiring to be a politician, he shifted gears after he realized his true calling was in choral music. 
“It was hard for me to grasp pride at the very beginning, because I was ashamed of who I was, initially,” he shared. “But I recognized who I was, and celebrated myself.” 
Looking toward the future, Nichols envisions a global presence for DGMC, starting with a statewide tour in Colorado in 2026, followed by national and eventually international tours. He emphasized the importance of building community through music on a global scale, saying, “If our mission is ‘building community through music’… community is larger, and it’s global.”
 

Podcast: Renowned Veterinarian and Funny Guy Kevin Fitzgerald

When Dr. Kevin Fitzgerald arrived at our publisher’s house to record our podcast last week, his first instinct was to greet our feisty three-and-a-half-month-old canine correspondent, Daphne. She can be a bit of a talker, as you’ll hear on the podcast, but she was instantly soothed by the 72-year-old veterinarian’s peaceful demeanor. But Kevin isn’t just a dog whisperer. Given a microphone and an audience, he makes crowds of all ages and demographics erupt with laughter during unique standup comedy sets. He frequently says he loves all animals; “anything with a heartbeat,” in fact. Well, except for spiders.