Girl Power

Episode 24: F*CK IT! Let's Do It! with the Founders of Sip City

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At 25 these ladies are busting through the beverage industry! With bottles of switchel in hand a SpitFire approach to business development, they are showing up, delivering and asking for what they need.

I got to sit down and taste their amazing concoctions mixed with sparkling wine. This stuff is amazing (and I don't have a poker approach). WARNING: There are a bunch of F bombs dropped in the show, so make sure you have ear buds in. Enjoy!

About The Founders of Sip City

In 2012, both women battled parallel autoimmune and digestive issues—Josie in Nashville, and Nikki in Boston—and began tinkering with homemade concoctions to improve their health. While Josie and her mother began crafting apple cider vinegar drinks called Haymaker’s Punch in the kitchen, Nikki was home-brewing switchel, the same product under a different name and an alternative to expensive kombucha. When Nikki brought her concoctions to work at PBS, her coworkers were immediately hooked. Before long, Nikki had established an underground smoothie/switchel subscription service with loyal customers, run right out of the WGBH newsroom.

Fast forward to January 2017. A mutual friend brought Nikki and Josie together at the Women’s March in Boston, and it was like love at first sight. Bonding over everything from all-natural, gluten-free products to kombucha cocktails, the two quickly discovered that they had been making the same apple cider vinegar and ginger drink—switchel, or Haymaker’s Punch in the South—to help alleviate their health symptoms. That commonality sealed the deal: both women realized the need to do something more with their lives, and they needed to do it together.

In June, Nikki moved to Washington DC, inspired to take a chance and create something new. She and Josie had become closer since the Women’s March. The two linked up one night in NoMa, over boozy homemade popsicles on Nikki’s roof. That’s when they decided: “Screw it, let’s start something.” They researched and realized the untapped potential for the drink that they both turned to in their time of need. After building a business plan and creating product samples, Nikki and Josie pitched Union Kitchen. Today, they are co-owners of Sip City, a functional beverage company focused on convenient, on-the-go drinks for mindful consumers.

www.sipcitydc.com

@sipcitydc

 

Episode 23: Real Talk About Working in Media with Britt Waters

The voice of The Mystics and 94.7 Fresh FM, Britt Waters is no stranger to the mic or bold opinions on her love of Justin Bieber's swag and her drive for education and hard work. Britt battles the assumptions of non-accessibility and the myth of the overnight success.

@itsbrittwaters
www.brittwaters.com

Support The SpitFire Podcast!

About Britt Waters

Britt Waters is a Jersey girl residing in the nation’s capital where she has become a recognizable face and voice of the city through her work as a radio, television and arena host. She continues to bring success to the entertainment, sports and news fields in the powerful city she now calls home. She is the nightly radio jock on CBS Radio’s 94.7 Fresh FM and a TV host on the DC Cable Network as well as working for Monumental Sports and Entertainment as an in-game host at DC’s Capital One Arena for the Washington Mystics (WNBA) and Washington Valor (AFL). Whether on-screen or in the community Britt brings laughs, conversation and lots of energy.

Britt got her big break in the broadcasting world entertaining millions on the nationally syndicated Russ Parr Morning Show immediately after obtaining her BA in broadcast journalism from University of Maryland, College Park. Britt Waters calls her social media the “uncut,” view of her life. When asked about her legacy she says, “I’d like to be known as someone that shared the lives of others to greater the lives of all, because that to me is what journalism is all about.” Outside of work, she loves to bake, socialize and catch up on her five magazine subscriptions. Her goal is to use her platform to promote education and independence. She stays motivated by the scripture, Proverbs 31:25.

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Episode 20: Growing Bold with Patricia Brooks

The SpitFire Podcast: Growing Bold with Patricia Brooks
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Assumption: Introverts are Home Bodies that Don't Take Risks

Fact: Patricia Brooks is an introvert who quit her job, wrote a book and moved to France to a city she didn't know a soul in.

How does someone who didn't own a passport until 2013, get the courage to put herself out there, write a book and start fresh in a brand new country and city? Here Patricia Brooks' story and find out how.

About Patricia Brooks

Patricia Brooks is a certified life coach and speaker.  She is the author of Growing Bold: How to Overcome Fear, Build Confidence, and Love the Life You Live.  Known as The Courage Catalyst, Patricia helps people, who are underwhelmed by the life they are living, find what makes them happiest.  She inspires them to take bold action and pursue their dreams so they can live the extraordinary lives they were meant to live.

 

During the course of her 25-year project management career in Corporate America, Patricia found herself dissatisfied and underwhelmed with her life. After the deaths of her parents she woke up to the reality that life is short.  Not wanting to die without really having lived, she decided to follow her dream.  Now Patricia has grown bold and is walking the talk. She is currently living in France where she continues to coach and write her next book.

 

Links

Growing Bold: How to Overcome Fear, Build Confidence, and Love the Life You Love

Vivez une vie d’audace

The Courage Catalyst Blog

Patricia’s YouTube Channel

 

Snag yourself a copy of Growing Bold: How to Overcome Fear, Build Confidence, and Love the Life You Live

Episode 18: From the Baltimore Projects to Projecting Passion, Cheryl Wood of Cheryl Empowers

The SpitFire Podcast: Cheryl Empowers
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Cheryl Wood is a passionate, mission-driven woman determined to live life on my own terms. Cheryl grew up in poverty in a housing project in the inner city of Baltimore, MD. She graduated high school with good grades but didn't go to college so she could go straight into the workforce to support her mom. Even without a college degree, she was able to make a good salary as a legal secretary, which she did for 15 years until she needed a change. In 2009, Cheryl started a small mommy t-shirt business on the side. A year later (September 18th to be exact) she was asked to speak at Morgan State University. And that's exactly where she discovered her natural born talent for public speaking.

From that moment forward she spoke at as many places as she could until she felt confident leaving her full-time job. Cheryl is now speaking around the globe and teaching others how to own their power on the stage. www.cherylempowers.com 

Episode 17: Writer, Actor and Activist Kyla Garcia

The SpitFire Podcast with Actor, Write and Activists Kyla Garcia
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I got to sit down with the multi-faceted and uber talented, Kyla Garcia who is currently starring in "Sovereignty" at DC's own Arena Stage. Kyla happens to live on my floor for the moment and my dog, Rico Suave is OBSESSED with her.

Get a cup of tea as you listen to the amazing knowledge being dropped about Native Americans, Sovereign Rights, Female Empowerment, and Self Accountability.

This is a super quotable episode, so be prepared to take copious notes!

Here are some links to help re-frame the narrative:

https://www.narf.org

 

http://www.ncai.org

 

http://www.niwrc.org

 

Here are a few TED talks on Native American culture: 

 

https://youtu.be/GIzYzz3rEZU

 

https://youtu.be/TMSyBmQt7iY

 

https://youtu.be/e2bs1TTc4gk

 

https://youtu.be/4qwCyhE5QFA

 

And here is a book Kyla highly recommends: https://www.amazon.com/NotYourPrincess-Voices-Native-American-Women/dp/1554519578