The Voices of Winchester

Willie Edward Taylor Carver Jr. is an accomplished educator, author, and advocate. He was named the 2022 Kentucky Teacher of the Year for his work teaching French and English at Montgomery County High School. He later left his teaching position, citing discrimination against LGBTQ+ individuals.

He has since become a prominent advocate for equality, testifying before the U.S. House Oversight Subcommittee on Civil Rights and Civil Li...

Winchester resident, teacher, and business owner Jeffery Hale is no stranger to contradictions. Unlike many gay people, who have eschewed religion, Jeffery fully embraces his Christianity—although his practice differs significantly from the dominant form that seems to get all the air in today’s America.

Jeffery describes himself as “a simple man trying to live in God’s love.” Yet his relationship with God and his personal spiritual...

A brief announcement about our YouTube channel and upcoming podcasts. 

The Voices of Winchester Podcast brings your stories, our stories, & all of the voices of Winchester to your ears. If you like what you hear, be sure to follow us on social media @wincityvoices & check out more content like this at wincityvoices.org. Want to tell your story on the podcast? Email Lashana at lashanaharney@gmail.com or Pete at peteky1961...

Winchester resident, teacher, and business owner Jeffery Hale is no stranger to contradictions. Unlike many gay people, who have eschewed religion, Jeffery fully embraces his Christianity—although his practice differs significantly from the dominant form that seems to get all the air in today’s America.

Jeffery describes himself as “a simple man trying to live in God’s love.” Yet his relationship with God and his personal spiritual...

Gerica Horn is a vivacious and lovely woman. She is a hairstylist in east-central Kentucky with an open and outgoing personality. Yet Gerica was born a boy named Rodney. Join us as guest host Lisa Bush chats with her friend about what it was like growing up "different" and living her adult life as a transgender woman. This episode contains explicit material and is intended for mature audiences.

The Voices of Winchester Podcast brin...

Lisa Bush is a writer and community activist who has launched a new project in Winchester, Kentucky -- All Voices Reading Room. Host Pete Koutoulas chats with Lisa about her new project, as well as some upcoming podcasts that Lisa will be hosting for us, featuring three members of the local LGBTQ+ community. Links: All Voices Reading Room on Facebook: https://bit.ly/allvoicesreadingroom All Voices Reading Room Amazon wish list (...

Lisa Bush has lived in Clark County her entire life. She calls herself a “vintage resident” of Winchester, having been born in the historic Guerrant Clinic, which now houses the Bluegrass Heritage Museum on South Main Street. But her roots run deep in Eastern Kentucky; her family is from Wolfe County — the Red River Gorge area of the Commonwealth.

For her first novel, Lisa Bush didn't just draw upon her knowledge of the land of her...

In our latest Voices of Winchester podcast, host Pete Koutoulas sat down with Winchester real estate developer Adam Kidd to discuss the past, present, and future of downtown Winchester. 

We talked about saving and restoring historic downtown buildings, the high-side renovation project, the problem of the lack of affordable housing in Winchester, the vision of former city manager Mike Flynn, Adam’s vision of a “fraternity of busines...

When we heard that Winchester residents Brett Cheuvront and Mason Rhodus were planning an event called "The Mrs. Roper Romp," we were quite intrigued! So, we invited the two into our studio to record a short bonus episode of the WinCity Voices Podcast to tell us all about this brand new (hopefully annual) event in downtown Winchester!  Participants are invited to dress up as Mrs. Roper (or Mr. Roper) from the 1970s classic sitcom ...

Ken Howard is a retired educator, potter, farmer, and president of the Winchester Art Guild. The guild's retail store on North Main Street here in Winchester recently re-opened for the season, so we caught up with Ken to talk about the store, the art guild, the resurgence of Main Street, and lots more.  Your host for this episode is Pete Koutoulas. 

The Voices of Winchester Podcast brings your stories, our stories, & all of the...

Welcome to Episode 7 of The Official WinCity Voices Podcast. On today's episode, host Lashana Harney is joined by Willie Carver to talk about his book "Gay Poems for Red States."

About the Guest: Willie Edward Taylor Carver Jr. is a youth advocate who works with the Kentucky Youth Law Project, Progress Kentucky, Narrative 4, and the Campaign for Our Shared Future. He is a Kentucky Teacher of the Year and the author of Gay Poems for...

Welcome to Episode 6 of The Official WinCity Voices Podcast. On today's episode, host Lashana Harney is joined by Latisha Jackson, Executive Director of Ampersand Sexual Violence Resource Center, and Keisha Morgan, the Lead Advocate at Ampersand Sexual Violence Resource Center.  Latisha and Keisha shed light on the organization's mission to support survivors and create safer local communities like Clark County. We dive deeper into...

Welcome to Episode 5 of The Official WinCity Voices Podcast. On today's episode, host Lashana Harney chats with Kentucky's oldest active drag queen Ms. Niagara Falls, aka Brett Cheuvront, about all things drag. Drag queens that is.  Content warning: This episode does feature explicit language and mentions of suicide. 

The Voices of Winchester Podcast brings your stories, our stories, & all of the voices of Winchester to you...

Welcome to Episode 4 of The Official WinCity Voices Podcast. Today's episode features guest Skylynn Burnam reading her essay, "The Diverse You," followed by a conversation with host Lashana Harney.

About the Guest: Skylynn Burnam is a senior at George Rogers Clark High School. She’s been a writer for many years. If her creative writing didn’t speak in her writing at a young age, it definitely shined brightly in her voice and in con...

Welcome to Episode 3 of The Official WinCity Voices Podcast. Today's episode features a conversation between host Lashana Harney, & Winchester's new mayor & first woman mayor, JoEllen Reed.  

The Voices of Winchester Podcast brings your stories, our stories, & all of the voices of Winchester to your ears. If you like what you hear, be sure to follow us on social media @wincityvoices & check out more content like th...

Welcome to Episode 2 of The Official WinCity Voices Podcast. Today's episode features holiday stories from WinCity Voices contributors, Ron Kibbey & Erin Smith.

The Official WinCity Voices Podcast brings your stories, our stories, & all of the voices of Winchester to your ears. If you like what you hear, be sure to give us a follow on social media @wincityvoices & check out more content like this at wincityvoices.org. ...

Welcome to Episode 1 of The Official WinCity Voices Podcast. Join your host, Lashana Harney, as she reads her personal essay, "Always Becoming."

The Voices of Winchester Podcast brings your stories, our stories, & all of the voices of Winchester to your ears. If you like what you hear, be sure to follow us on social media @wincityvoices & check out more content like this at wincityvoices.org. Want to tell your story on t...