South Bend on Purpose

Andrea Cramer is the founder of Neighbor to Neighbor, a friendship-based network cultivating mutual relationships among the South Bend area’s refugee, immigrant, and non-immigrant communities. Growing up in rural Indiana, she never imagined that she would team up with the ACLU to sue the state BMV as an act of friendship.

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The Studebaker Talks is an annual gathering on a former Studebaker factory floor to...

Kathe Streeter is the district coordinator of restorative justice and restorative youth leadership at the South Bend Community School Corporation. Using Circle process in her classrooms and meetings, Kathe gives children and adult learners a tool for sharing stories about their lives.

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The Studebaker Talks is an annual gathering on a former Studebaker factory floor to listen to stories about South Bend&ap...

Juan Constantino is the executive director of La Casa de Amistad in South Bend, Indiana. For the inaugural Studebaker Talks, he shared his personal story of immigrating to the United States and finding a sense of purpose here in South Bend.

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The Studebaker Talks is an annual gathering on a former Studebaker factory floor to listen to stories about South Bend's people, ingenuity, and progress. Our fir...

Magistrate Judge Andre Gammage presides over a variety of civil and criminal matters in the St. Joseph County Circuit Court in South Bend and teaches as an adjunct professor at the University of Notre Dame School of Law. In 2020, he gathered judicial officers, community leaders, and clergy to develop a series of four expungement clinics called "Fresh Start Fridays," and over 400 people showed up at the first clinic.
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Kathy Burnette is the owner of Brain Lair Books, a bookstore in South Bend focused on developing empathy and building community with inclusive books. In 2020, The Oprah Magazine included the store in their "125 Black-Owned Bookstores in America That Amplify the Best in Literature." She is on a mission to build empathy, one book at a time.

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The Studebaker Talks is an annual gathering on a former ...

Joe Molnar is a local demographer and proud 4th generation son of South Bend. He is the author of More People, a podcast and article series about how our city lost 50,000 people in 50 years and what we can do about it. Joe believes that Studebaker was only South Bend's prologue, so it's time to give up the ghost.

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The Studebaker Talks is an annual gathering on a former Studebaker factory floor t...

This week, guest host Pam Blair is reading "Between" from Groshonda McDonald’s book In The Process and reflecting on what it might be saying about our life together in South Bend.

South Bend on Purpose is a podcast about place, belonging, and South Bend co-hosted by Jacob Titus, Dustin Mix, and John Garry. We enjoy conversations with the people who shape our city by practicing their purpose. And read poetry to re...

This week, we enjoy a conversation with Karen White, who has devoted over 28 years of service to South Bend as an elected official.

We discuss her upbringing on Kenmore and Cherry Streets, how she learned a sense of responsibility to our community, and why we need to visualize the kind of city we want to become.

South Bend on Purpose is a podcast about place, belonging, and South Bend co-hosted by Jacob Titus, Dus...

This week, we are reading "Paradise on Fire" by Jahnari Pruitt and reflecting on what it might be saying about our life together in South Bend.

South Bend on Purpose is a podcast about place, belonging, and South Bend co-hosted by Jacob Titus, Dustin Mix, and John Garry. We enjoy conversations with the people who shape our city by practicing their purpose. And read poetry to reflect on our city and our own story ...

This week, we enjoy a conversation with Alex Ann Allen. Alex is a South Bend-based artist best known for spending the past couple of years painting murals all across the city.

We discuss Alex's path to becoming a muralist in her hometown, the joys and challenges of being a full-time artist, and her vision for a new mural festival right here in South Bend.

In case it's not evident—we are big fans.

This week, we are reading "Where We Are" by Gerald Locklin and reflecting on what it might be saying about our life together in South Bend.

South Bend on Purpose is a podcast about place, belonging, and South Bend co-hosted by Jacob Titus, Dustin Mix, and John Garry. We enjoy conversations with the people who shape our city by practicing their purpose. And read poetry to reflect on our city and our own story in i...

This week, we enjoy a conversation with Joe Mittiga. Joe is a husband, father, and the second-generation owner of Corby's Irish Pub in the East Bank neighborhood. 

We discuss his path to being a small businessman, which includes a surprise (to us) stint at South Bend Lathe in its last days on Sample Street, the complexities of owning a bar during the pandemic, beer salespeople moonlighting as virologists, and more.

This week, we are reading a selection from Galway Kinnell’s poem "When You Have Lived A Long Time Alone” and reflecting on what it might be saying about our life together in South Bend.

South Bend on Purpose is a podcast about place, belonging, and South Bend co-hosted by Jacob Titus, Dustin Mix, and John Garry. We enjoy conversations with the people who shape our city by practicing their purpose. And read poetry to r...

This week, we enjoy a conversation with Antonius Northern. Antonius is a public servant in the truest sense—whether as an activist, artist, resident, or municipal employee, he has a record of bringing goodness to the city. 

He is currently helping the City of South Bend foster a more inclusive economy, particularly with women- and minority-owned businesses, through his role as Inclusive Projects Manager.

Frankly, ...

This week, we are reading selections from Audre Lorde’s poem “New York City 1970” and reflecting on what it might be saying about our life together in South Bend.

South Bend on Purpose is a podcast about place, belonging, and South Bend co-hosted by Jacob Titus, Dustin Mix., and John Garry. We enjoy conversations with the people who shape our city by practicing their purpose. And read poetry to reflect on our city and our ...

This week, we enjoy a conversation with Beth Graybill, a resident of South Bend's near-west side historic neighborhood, who moved to the city with her husband and children two and a half years ago. Beth has found our city to be warm, welcoming, and gritty—and is refreshingly thoughtful about her decision to make a life here.

We walked away from this conversation encouraged.

South Bend on Purpose is a podcast ...

This week, we are reading Alice Walker’s poem “We Alone” and reflecting on what it might be saying about our life together in South Bend.

South Bend on Purpose is a podcast about place, belonging, and South Bend co-hosted by Jacob Titus and Dustin Mix. We enjoy conversations with the people who shape our city by practicing their purpose. And read poetry to reflect on our city and our own story in it.

New episodes ...

This week, we enjoy a conversation with Mayor James Mueller about his time leading our City government during the pandemic. We discuss why he is not often active on social media and why he is hopeful for South Bend's future—and briefly entertain the possibilities of a new aquarium and the return of Pinhook public beach.

South Bend on Purpose is a podcast about place, belonging, and South Bend co-hosted by Jacob Titus ...