Grit & Gravitas

How Do You Unite a State?

When most people think about America’s 250th birthday, they picture fireworks and celebrations.

Cassandra Coleman sees something much bigger.

As Executive Director of America250PA, she’s spent nearly eight years building a once-in-a-generation effort to help Pennsylvanians learn from our history, embrace the present, and reimagine the future. Along the way, she’s united communities in all 67 counties, reached more than 50,000 students, launched statewide programs, and kept one principle at the center of every decision: This celebration belongs to every Pennsylvanian.

In this conversation with Anne Deeter Gallaher and Anne Carnathan, Cassandra shares how a small-town mayor came to lead one of the Commonwealth’s most ambitious initiatives. She talks about the importance of listening before leading, believing in the work even on the hardest days, and building something that will inspire pride in Pennsylvania long after the anniversary has passed.

Whether you’ve spent a lifetime in Pennsylvania or are just beginning to appreciate its role in the American story, this episode is a reminder that history isn’t just about where we’ve been. It’s about what we choose to build together.

How to Out-Human AI

Mark Schaefer, author, speaker, and global marketing powerhouse, joins Grit & Gravitas cohosts Anne Carnathan and Anne Deeter Gallaher for a riveting conversation about AI, creativity, your personal brand, and what it will take to stay relevant in a world changing faster than most of us can process.

Mark compares AI to electricity: inevitable, powerful, and completely transformational. But this is not a conversation about replacing people. It is a conversation about becoming sharper, more curious, more creative, and more fully human in how we lead, work, connect, and show up.

As Mark says, “We have to out-human AI.”

From the future of business to the urgency of personal brand, from AI backlash to the danger of being merely competent, this episode is packed with business vitamins for anyone trying to rise above the noise. Because in an AI world, the work that stands out will be the work only you can do.

This Is My Show

Jessica Ritchie, President of the UPMC Pinnacle Foundation, joins Grit & Gravitas for a conversation about leadership, healthcare philanthropy, and why “be nice” might be one of the most underrated leadership strategies.

A self-proclaimed G&G super fan, Jessica has been with the Foundation since 2014, helping lead its work through growth, change, and evolving community needs. In this episode, she shares how the Foundation supports more than 100 funds across strategic priorities, including farm-to-hospital programs, indigent patient needs, street medicine, food insecurity, and workforce development.

Jessica also discusses the Women’s Mobile Health Vehicle Powered by Universal Media, supported by Don and Annie Young and connected to the Women for Wellness committee. The mobile vehicle brings basic primary care directly to communities, making healthcare more accessible for women and families across Central Pennsylvania. 

Throughout the conversation, Jessica offers practical business vitamins for women in leadership: know your numbers, understand the needs in front of you, listen well, be kind, and do what you say you’re going to do.

Her advice to younger women? Don’t wait to show your value. Step up to the plate. Walk in and remind yourself: this is my show. Learn more at UPMCpinnaclefoundation.org.

It’s Okay to Shed Old Narratives

Our latest Grit & Gravitas guest, Melissa Miller, founded a business at age 21 that became more than a company. For years, her stationery design company, madetokeep was her creative outlet, her livelihood, and her identity.

As madetokeep celebrates its 20th anniversary and Melissa evolves into her next ventures, The FAVOUR Agency and the STAGES Foundation, our co-hosts enjoy a candid conversation about creativity, entrepreneurship, perfectionism, and learning when to let go.

Melissa’s refreshingly honest story is full of business vitamins for anyone ready to shed old narratives and step into what’s next. “I finally feel the identity and the purpose and the completeness,” Melissa says.

Her advice to her younger self? “Never quit. Lean into your purpose and path forward. Everything happens for a reason. You have to go through all this junk to get where you want to go, but you'll get there. Continue to have faith and visualize. Do good, be good.”

Melissa also shares how the STAGES Foundation is opening new doors through her upcoming signature event, Belmont Bourbon Bash, a premier race-day celebration of bourbon, culinary craftsmanship, fashion, and community impact. Learn more at https://www.belmontbourbonbash.com/

When Art Feels Like Home

Theatre Harrisburg’s story is Harrisburg’s story.

This Tuesday’s Grit & Gravitas features special guest Lorien Reese Mahay, Executive Director of Theatre Harrisburg, as the organization celebrates 100 years of creativity, resilience, and community.   

Founded by a group of women in the basement of the Harrisburg Library, Theatre Harrisburg has spent a century bringing people together through productions built by local hands and local talent. Lorien shares what makes community theatre so powerful and reflects on her unexpected path to Harrisburg, stepping into the role on the very day the theatre reopened after COVID. 

As Lorien opens up about stewardship, imposter syndrome, and listening before leading, tune in for business vitamins and a beautiful reminder that art gives us a place to belong. Theatre Harrisburg is presenting Godspell through May 10 and “Follies” & Festivities: A Theatre Harrisburg Centennial Celebration in Two Acts. Learn more at theatreharrisburg.com.

Your Financial Head Start: Five Moves to Make Before Graduation

Recently, Team G&G took our show on the road to Shippensburg University for a live, interactive podcast focused on one thing students don’t get enough of: financial clarity. Today, we’re excited to share that conversation!

Cohosts Anne Deeter Gallaher and Anne Carnathan are joined by fellow SHIP alum Jessica Whitmyer of Members 1st Federal Credit Union and SHIP Finance Professor Lee Fortenberry, CFP, for a conversation built around five essential moves—understanding your credit score, using credit cards strategically, knowing your student loans, building a simple budget, and taking advantage of compound interest early.

This is a topic most of us were never prepared for—discussions about money, debt, and what it really takes to build a life. Join us for a candid, real-world look at the financial choices that shape your future, and the freedom that comes with getting them right.

Students and young people ready to start out on your own, this one’s for you.

Seeing Who You Serve

What happens when a part-time job turns into a 20+ year mission and a leadership role you never planned for?

Today on Grit & Gravitas, Anne Deeter Gallaher and Anne Carnathan sit down with Cheryl Cuddy, CEO of Vision Resources of Central Pennsylvania, whose career began in medical assisting and evolved into something far bigger. What started as screening children’s vision while raising her own family grew into a calling rooted in patient care, purpose, and impact.

From early childhood screenings to low vision rehabilitation, Cheryl shares how her team helps more than 5,000 people each year maintain independence and quality of life, and why leadership means never getting too far from the people you serve.

“If I ever lose sight of what I’m doing, I go sit in the low vision center and watch someone regain their independence,” says Cheryl.

Listen for business vitamins and inspiration in a conversation that brings an often unseen impact into focus.

 

I’m Nervous and I Do It

It’s podcast Tuesday, and Anne & Anne are excited to introduce a guest who embodies resilience, grit, and grace: Dr. Ivy Buchan.

From saving for college at age seven to working multiple jobs and writing checks to pay her way through school, Ivy has always taken ownership of her career and life journey.

She said yes to opportunities before she fully understood them and built a 20+ year career in nonprofit strategy by doing the work and learning as she went. Today, as Principal of Invoke Nonprofit Consulting, she helps organizations navigate governance, fundraising, and strategy. But what stands out most about Ivy isn’t just what she’s built, it’s how she built it.

Ivy's advice is simple: “If you want something bad enough, you will figure out how to do it.”

“I’m nervous—and I do it,” she says.

So many business vitamins in this episode. Don’t miss the last two advice-packed minutes.

 

How to Stay Curious, Courageous, and Engaged

As we celebrate Women’s History Month and the week of International Women’s Day, Grit & Gravitas is marking the moment with a conversation about curiosity, courage, and the power of listening. Anne Deeter Gallaher and Anne Carnathan sit down with Ashley Walkowiak, Executive Director of the Governor’s Advisory Commission on Women, who is leading the most comprehensive look at women’s issues in Pennsylvania in more than a generation.

Ashley’s path to this work is deeply personal. After surviving sexual violence as a teenager, it took years before she felt ready to disclose and begin processing her trauma. Over time, that experience helped shape her commitment to public service and to creating systems that better support victims and families.

She also shares a defining early moment in her career when curiosity pushed her out of her comfort zone. Her advice today reflects both her personal and professional journey: stay curious and listen well.

“It’s easy for us to take experiences and put them aside to get through the day instead of processing it, working on it, and integrating it into the fullness of who you are as a human being,” Ashley says.

Follow the Governor’s Advisory Commission on Women on Facebook and Instagram: @pawomen.

Cure the Clutter with Carolina Harvey

In this episode of Grit & Gravitas, Anne & Anne sit down with Carolina Harvey, founder of Cure the Clutter and host on A&E’s Hoarders, for a conversation that goes far beyond tidy closets.

Carolina started her business in 2008 after becoming a mom of two and feeling called to serve her community. A mathematics major by training, she still looks at spaces like solvable problems. From downsizing families to overwhelmed professionals to messy churches and business offices, what sets Cure the Clutter apart is the listening, care, and compassion Carolina and her team bring to every client and space.

“My goal is to give you your time back. When you have a clean and organized space, then you’re getting to do what you want, not what you have to,” says Carolina.

Desperate for some organization in your life? Join us as we talk about Carolina’s five daily habits anyone can adopt to reduce clutter and regain control, including being one-task minded and scheduling your hardest work for when you are at your best.

If your home, office, or calendar feels heavier than it should, this conversation will deliver business vitamins and practical tips to make your life lighter.