Schmooze with Suze
Hi, I’m Suze. Here with your dose of culture, values and global citizenship- and where we tackle those topics others may consider off-limits. A little about me, I’m a busy GenX mom who, quite frankly, wanted to grow up like the Brady Bunch… But ended up being raised in the shadow of Schindler’s List. So this means I’ve spent a lifetime navigating these mixed messages we get hit with daily. You know those conversations- where we wonder if it’s safe to speak our minds? Can we share our experiences? Voice our fears and concerns, or should we just keep our mouths shut? Well, too bad. I need to know! But I’m no expert. So, I’m going to schmooze the experts and get their thoughts. Why? So when we engage with our kids, colleagues, or the countless committees we interact with, we can do it with competence, kindness, confidence, and maybe a bit of humor. If this sounds like your cup of coffee- welcome to Schmooze with Suze!
Episodes
Why do some big downtown ideas become buildings, parks and neighborhoods... while others never make it past the rendering?
Jacksonville has never been short on plans for Downtown.
We have seen the glossy renderings. Heard the promises. Watched projects get announced, redesigned, delayed, revived and, sometimes, quietly disappear.
So what actually separates a beautiful picture from a ribbon cutting?
On this episode, I si...
What if the most important infrastructure in a city isn’t a building, a bridge or a billion-dollar development? What if it’s connection?
This episode on Schmooze with Suze, I sit down with Kady Yellow, a social architect, tactical urbanist, civic entrepreneur, artist, educator and internationally recognized Placemaker who has built a career asking a deceptively simple question:
What happens when we treat t...
Accents taught me something I didn’t understand until much later: people don’t just “sound” different, they carry different histories. That lens is why I’m obsessed with the storytellers behind the stories, the directors and producers making choices that shape what our community remembers and what gets left out of the frame.
Filmmaker and City of Jacksonville Film Production Coor...
You can fly to Europe for a history fix, or you can turn down a Jacksonville road you’ve driven a thousand times and realize the best stories have been sitting behind a garden gate all along. This episode we talk with Brittany Cohill, executive director of the Mandarin Museum, about why local history matters, how a small “boutique museum” can feel bigger than its square footage, and what it means t...
The fastest way to lose a city is to stop listening to it.
That's the topic at the heart of this conversation with Mike Hightower, Mike Miller, and Mike Tolbert- the hosts of Three Mikes on Mic Podcast. We examine what podcasts can do that much of today's media cannot: restore context, reward curiosity, and create space for thoughtful civic conversation about Jacksonville, Florida.
In this episode, we explore:
- &nbs...
As a Gen X mom born in 1976, I've had a front-row seat to one of the greatest transformations in human history: a technological revolution. I grew up in a world where advertising was something that happened to me. Companies bought television commercials, radio spots, billboards, and full-page newspaper ads, planning for us to know what was coming. Today, anyone can create a video in their kitchen, wearing sweatpants...
Freedom is easy to celebrate. It's surprisingly easy to outsource in our minds until you meet the people who actually stood watch for it.
This episode on Schmooze with Suze, I'm joined by Jonathan Richmond, a retired Navy officer whose service didn't end when he hung up the uniform. Today, Jonathan leads Mission United at United Way of Northeast Florida, helping veterans, active-duty service members, and military fam...
Some truths don't arrive wrapped in comfort.
They arrive through heartbreak. Through discipline. Through music. Through the quiet decision to become someone better than your circumstances.
Hate can be ancient, loud, and deeply personal. Yet every morning we still have to answer one question:
Who are we going to be today?
This episode on Schmooze with Suze, I sit down with Reese the Poet. Marine Corps veteran, composer, ...
Jacksonville doesn't have a culture problem. It has a visibility problem.
If you've ever said, "There's nothing to do in Jacksonville," this conversation may completely change the way you see our city.
This week, I'm joined by Diana Donovan, Executive Director of the Cultural Council of Greater Jacksonville, for a fascinating conversation about why arts and culture aren't simply entertainment. They're economic develop...
Cities love to celebrate the things you can see. New buildings. New roads. New development. But the strongest infrastructure in any community may be the part that's invisible.
The stories people tell. The risks they take. The collaborations that happen when creative people find one another and decide to build something together.
In this episode I sit down with filmmaker, producer, festival organizer, and community bui...
The Jetsons promised us flying cars, robot assistants, and futuristic technology that seemed impossible. What they really got right was something simpler.
One day, the things that sound ridiculous become normal.
Artificial intelligence has crossed that threshold, and for many people, the pace of change feels exciting, confusing, and occasionally overwhelming. That's why I sat down with global technologist, executive A...
What happens when a player puts up a once-in-a-generation stat line and still gets overlooked?
That question sparked this conversation with Donna Orender, one of the most influential voices in sports, business, and women's leadership. It also reveals something deeper about the way women's achievements have often been evaluated through a different lens.
In this episode, Donna shares her journey from New York athlete to...
A rent increase doesn’t sound like a siren, but it can be the first crack that breaks a family’s whole scaffolding. Today we sit with that uncomfortable truth and follow it where it leads: to grocery checkout lines, week-to-week hotel rooms, kids trying to hide the same outfit, and seniors on fixed incomes forced to choose between food and medication.
I’m joined by returning guest Colleen Ro...
City Hall doesn’t feel dramatic until you realize a single vote can reshape a neighborhood for generations. We sit down with Jacksonville City Council Member Jimmy Peluso to get past the headlines and into the decisions that actually change daily life: where investment lands, how development gets approved, why some communities thrive while others get ignored, and what it takes to build trust when residents hav...
Language class shouldn’t feel like a worksheet factory where conjugation is the only goal, and instead the mission is to learn a language... share a culture... change the world.
In this episode we learn from Donna Guzzo, President and CEO of Language Exploration Enrichment, about what happens when we teach language to kids through stories, art, kindness, and cultural immersion instead of fear and memorization. ...
Titles change fast. Identity changes slower. And when you’ve spent years living inside a mission, walking away can feel like you’re leaving part of yourself behind. I’m joined- for the third time- by Alexa Jenkins, former United States Navy commander, a wife and mom who’s now building her next chapter in the corporate world. We get honest about what “reinvention” actua...
Being “the first” sounds like a celebration until you realize how often it comes with no blueprint. I grew up in a family shaped by immigration and four Holocaust survivor grandparents, where education meant security, not prestige and nobody was sitting around the table talking about college applications, networking, internships, or career strategy. That’s why this conversation hits so hard: talent...
A jar of loose change can be a financial plan, a love letter, and a blueprint for resilience all at once.
This week on Schmooze with Suze, I begin with a childhood memory that has stayed with me for decades. My parents kept one of those giant water jugs from the water machine, not for water, but for coins. Pennies, nickels, dimes, and quarters collected one sacrifice at a time. That jar eventually bought their first ...
In this episode I sit down with Daniel Davis, for a conversation that goes far beyond networking events and business cards.
Because if you think a Chamber of Commerce is simply about ribbon cuttings and after-hours mixers... think again!
We unpack what happens when business, leadership, and community collide in one room. We explore who gets invited in, who feels like they belong, and how cities create ecosystems where...
Some children walk into a room carrying more than backpacks.
They carry noise.
The noise of uncertainty. The noise of expectations. The noise of circumstances they did not choose. The noise inside their own heads.
In this episode of Schmooze with Suze, I sit down with Kathryn McAvoy, founder and executive director of The Performers Academy, for a conversation about what happens when creativity becomes something much bi...
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