The Elijah Winfrey Show

This week on the show, Elijah gets you caught up on his past week & answers some questions from elementary students in the Seattle area!

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:02):
Welcome to the Elijah Winfrey Show. Each week, Elijah gets
you caught up on his work in the community, talks
with guests about issues and causes that are important to them,
while also answering your email questions. So sit back, relax,
and enjoy the show. Here's your host, Elijah Winfrey.

Speaker 2 (00:27):
That intro, especially in the back, it never gets old. Hello, folks,
Welcome to the Elijah Winfrey Show. I am Indijar host
Elijah Winfrey. I am excited about the show today. We
have We've done something special this week and with the

(00:47):
help of my amazing producer, Great Nice, we are going
to answer questions, a lot of questions today from a
group of elementary school students in Seattle. I'm not going
to mention their names on the show for privacy reasons,

(01:11):
but we're going to try our best to answer all
forty questions. Yep, you heard it right, all forty questions.
I am really excited about this because, as you know,
i am a para educator at Sunset Elementary and I've

(01:36):
learned so much from being in these classrooms and interacting
with the kiddos, and you know, in the Seattle area,
you know I am I'm involved with with students and
families with the help of mister d Gerald Donaldson. So
I am extremely thankful that we were able to do

(02:01):
this today and I've seen a few of the questions.
They're going to be fun and entertaining. Shout out to
the students too in the Seattle area. I really appreciate
you all taking the time and coming up with this
amazing idea to have your questions on my show. And

(02:23):
I'm glad that you listen to the show. So we'll
get to your questions momentarily. First, I hope that all
of you of having a great weekend as it comes
to a close for some of you, for some of us,
not myself, but you know, some of us are starting
out weekends. You know, some of us are off Sunday, Monday,

(02:44):
Tuesday at your particular job. But I hope that you're
you're taking advantage of self care and you're recharging and
you're getting ready for the week ahead. My past week, okay,
it was a tough one. It was pretty rough. I

(03:06):
won't go into detail about it. I'll just share that
there's still a long way to go and there are
some decisions that I'm going to have to make that
I am not really happy about, but you know, that's life.

(03:29):
We have to find a way to make those tough
decisions and move forward. I did, however, get some work done.
I was out in the community as much as I
could be last week and I made a delivery at Yes, Yes,

(03:50):
I made a delivery at the Dignity for Dignity for
Divas organization. And you know, they impact homeless women. Know
they transition them from homelessness to housing. And I got
a tour of their building and Nikki, who runs the

(04:11):
Dignity for Divas organization, is a phenomenal individual. She showed
me around, she gave me a lot of information on
what they do, how they do it. It's a beautiful facility.
I encourage all of you, if you can, to get

(04:34):
out in your communities and help those in needs. And
if you're in the Seattle area, please, by all means
stop buy dignityfadivas dot org or give them a call
or email them, get involved. I think it is so
impactful the work that they're doing. And you know, for

(04:58):
the last couple of years now, I I've worked really
hard with my organization to try to collaborate, assist or
host donation drives for women. I think sometimes we do
a lot of focusing on, you know, the men organizations

(05:21):
and and what they're doing. And you know, we see
a lot of men in the spotlight, and there are
a lot of women that are doing the dog gone thing.
If I may use my Southern uh Southern words and expressions,
they're doing. They're doing great work. And it's a blessing

(05:44):
and an honor to be able to interact with organizations
like Dignity FA Divas. It only helps us get better
in the long run, and we all become better people
for it. So I spend a little time doing that,
a writing grants, having meetings. I've done a it's been

(06:16):
it was a rough week, but it was it was
still very very busy. You know. As April approaches, I'm
gonna have some big announcements coming in the middle of
the month and towards the end, and I'm really excited
about it. So I'm putting things in place now before

(06:37):
we do we go on our spring break vacation. That'll
give me a chance to really unplug from everything and reset.
So business as usual, my role as a paraprofessional, it's
going really well. This is the last year of me

(06:59):
serving as a a pair of educator. The door is
always open, so I will I will say that, but
I you know, the more I'm starting to think about it,
the more I feel like I am I'm ready to

(07:20):
pivot now. So I'll address that late May early June.
As to whether or not I'm gonna do it, I
will say this, uh and and put it on the record.
I'm either gonna be at Sunset Elementary or i won't
be a pair of educator right that much I do know.

(07:44):
So that's that. As far as my health goes, I'm
about maybe ninety you know. I I'm pain free, which
is really really good. And you know, I've started a

(08:07):
workout program because I'm going to be doing some modeling
here in the next couple of months and I want
to be in the best possible shape that I can
be and I'm going to be playing some golf this summer,
so also it helps to kind of get my body right.
But you know, I'm in these programs now that it's

(08:28):
gonna help build things up, and I'm excited about that
mentally again, you know, with the with the rough week,
and I think they're going to be. It's gonna be
rough for a little bit, but mentally, I think I'm
strong enough to deal with it, and I have I
have friends that are outlet to me, and I'm very

(08:50):
thankful for that. So all in all, I am doing well.
Family is doing well. My kiddo doing really good in school.
He's getting ready for track, which I'm really excited about
because he can run. He's a sprinter, you know, he's

(09:13):
not a marathon runner. I think he found that out
last year, but he's excited about that. Lisa doing what
Lisa does, working extremely hard. You know, I think I
think I work hard and work all the time. She
works a lot, and you know, sometimes we're two ships.

(09:37):
You know, we kind of we interact in passing, but
she gets it done. I'm a biggest cheerleader and support.
So that's that. All right, Let's get into the show,
and let's get into these questions. As you know, each week,

(09:57):
I tell you all to send me questions at Elijah
dot Winfrey at gmail dot com. You never disappoint. This week, however,
questions are coming to us from students in the Seattle
Elementary School District, and I am extremely excited to answer

(10:19):
these questions, and I'm gonna see some of these kiddos
late in the month of April, late probably on the
back end, maybe the last week of the month. I
have something planned and I'm excited about that. But these
are some great questions and we're going to do our

(10:39):
very best to get them all answered today, folks. So
if we run a little along today, I apologize for that.
We've been given a green light to try to get
them all in and that's exactly what we're gonna do.
And again, we won't announce the names of these kids
because of privacy reasons, which I think are very important.

(11:01):
So let's put the let's put the questions up on
the screen, Greg and we'll start from there. All right,
all right, I mean this first question is what is
the Elijah Winfrey Show about. So the Elijah Infree Show

(11:23):
is about talking about my work in the community. And
when my co host was here, Tony Bousche, we would
talk about what she was doing in her community in
South Carolina, and we would talk about autism, homelessness, low
income families, underprivileged youth. We would cover, you know, topics

(11:46):
pertaining to that. We would also have some fun shows
where we're talking about our favorite food or favorite movie.
You know, we we had a balance and it works
really well. Now Tony's not on the show at this time.
I do hope to have Tony back at some point,

(12:07):
but you know, you know, life gets in a way
sometimes and you have to really take care of the
things you need to take care of, and I think
she's doing that. I do miss her deeply, but that's
basically what the show is about. And we do have
guests on from time to time. We haven't had a

(12:29):
guest on in a while, and it's not that we
don't want guests, because we do sometimes things getting away
or from a logistics standpoint, it doesn't really work. But
we're going to get back to that, hopefully in the summer.
So that's a great first question. Next question is how

(12:52):
did your Why did you start your show? I started
my show because I wanted another platform to reach people
and to give back. You know, I think we all
help people in a multitude of ways, and I've done

(13:19):
it with golf and with my nonprofit, with my social
media pages, and I just said, why not started a
radio show? What's the worst that can happen? Right? It
doesn't work well, at least I tried it. So far.
We've started this show in twenty sixteen, I want to say,

(13:47):
and we're going strong. We're three hundred plus episodes in,
and you know, we're very thankful, very very thankful. Next question,
and how do you choose your guests? Okay, this is
a good one. I a lot of the guests that

(14:09):
come on the show I've met either in person or
through social media, and I kind of do my homework
on the guests. We strike up a friendship, and you know,
I'm always interested in what they're doing in the community
and how they're giving back, and we make a plan

(14:35):
to get them on and to share their their work
in the community. And it's it's been it's been really good.
I've been really fortunate to have some some very good
guests on the show who have provided the listeners with
a lot of knowledge, including myself. Right, So I'm always

(14:59):
learning from the guests as well. Next question, what's your favorite? Oh? No, sorry,
I want ahead. Have you ever interviewed someone famous? Well,

(15:22):
let me say it like this. I think all my
guests are famous in their own way. You're talking about
Hollywood famous, or you know, or or or a big
time athlete. No, but I do consider folks that I
interview on this show to be famous because they're doing

(15:43):
the work in the community. And I think sometimes when
we when we think of the word famous, we we
think of these people we see on TV that are
in movies and sports and we can't reach out in
touch them directly. But people in the community I feel

(16:05):
were famous, and so I try to. You know, if
I can reach out and touch them, you know that
that means more to me than sitting down with a
famous movie, movie star or sports athlete. So from that standpoint, yeah,
my guests here, I think pretty famous. What's your favorite

(16:27):
part about hosting your show. My favorite part about hosting
the show is it's mine. You know, once I get
into the studio, I'm very comfortable, and I think that's

(16:56):
one of the favorite parts, knowing that it's mine. And
again sitting down with guests, sitting down with friends before
we go live, Greg and I are laughing a lot
about life and the ups and downs and twisting turns
it can take you on. So you know, that's that's

(17:18):
the best part of the show too, you know, before
we go live. You know, my amazing producer and I
just sometimes we just chat and it's fun. I want
to get him on the show at some point, but
he does not want to talk on air. He doesn't. Okay.

(17:39):
Next question, how do you prepare for an episode? Great question.
So I don't have a script. I do take notes
before the show, I do my homework. I do have

(17:59):
a list of questions in my mind in my head
that I want to ask, right, I never write down
any questions. I I like to to feel like I
can speak freely to the guests about topics pertaining to
autism or homelessness, or low income families and what they're
doing in the community. I think it's much it's much

(18:21):
more authentic and genuine. Now, you got to work hard
at it. When I first started the show, it took
me a while to get my footing. But that's the
way I like to operate. I'm not saying that I
can't write things down and ask, but I think when
I'm in the moment, it flows better when I just
you know, kind of come from the heart. And it's worked.

(18:44):
You know, I've been I've been pretty successful in doing
this and and so it's Tony, So it's it's been
it's been easy to prepare because once I've done the homework,
you know, the week prior, and then we get to

(19:06):
a couple of days before the show, I'm okay. I
don't really I don't really sweat it. Next question, do
you ever get nervous if we're talking to guests. Absolutely? Absolutely.
I am nervous about everything that I do, whether it's

(19:30):
pertaining to the show or life. But I'm only nervous
for the first thirty seconds. And I can tell when
I hit the thirty second mark because I start to flow.
But I'm extremely nervous in the beginning, and it's a
good kind of nervousness. I have butterflies, like I'm anticipating

(19:52):
this is going to be really well. But I have
to I have to find a way to get off
to a decent start. And sometimes I don't always get
off to a start, but I never quit. I keep
going because I know it's I'm gonna get into a
flow at some point and it's gonna work. Even now,
when I start the show, the first thirty seconds, I'm nervous,

(20:14):
but once I get going, I'm okay. And again, I'm
not trying to be this. I'm not trying to be
a perfect speaker or a perfect host. It doesn't exist.
We all make mistakes. Whether we're doing the show, or
playing sports, or at work or whatever it is, we
all fall down. So I just laugh at it, get

(20:36):
up and keep moving forward. Next question, have you ever
had a funny or unexpected moment on the show? No,
I don't think I've had a a I don't think
I have anything unexpected happened on the show. Funny moment.

(21:03):
I can't really No, I would say no, no. What
about Greg have? Yeah? He says no, s well, so no, no.
Next question, what's the most inspiring story you've heard from

(21:27):
a guest? Wow, I think I have to think back.
Let me think the most inspiring story I've heard from

(21:47):
a guest. I think they're all inspiring, Like, there's not
just one that I can pinpoint. There was a young
man we had on the show that was he was
based out of New York, and he talked about his

(22:13):
role in his community and him being on the spectrum
and how tough it was in the beginning, but he
persevered and was able to impact a lot of lives.
And if I'm not mistaken, he's said, doctor, I have

(22:38):
to go back into archives and listen again, which is
something I don't I don't do, by the way, folks,
once I record the show, I don't listen to myself
for a lot of reasons. But I think they're all inspiring,
they're all unique, and I'm always moved when we do

(23:06):
have guests on the show because I think sometimes we
we don't really talk about what's really happening in the
community and who's really having an impact. So they're all inspiring.

(23:31):
All right, next question, how do you record your show? Well,
it's my amazing producer, Greg Nice. You know, once we're
once we're done with the live show, he kind of
takes it and he'll process it into a podcast and
he'll he'll send it to Apple, I Heeart, Spotify, wherever

(23:56):
you get your your your your podcast. I'm normally there
as well. And I would like to shout him out
because he he really works hard. He doesn't just produce
this show. I have another I have another show. I
have a sports show that he also produces, and he's incredible.

(24:17):
He works with other hosts as well, and he always
puts this show in a position to be successful. You know,
we see the numbers a lot. He tells me about
the numbers. I am you know, when we have these conversations,
I am moved by the support that we get and

(24:41):
a lot of that I owe to to Greg because
he works extremely hard, and you know, behind the scenes
is where the magic really happens because I get to
see him kind of do his thing and it's been great.
Next question, Can kids be guests on your show? Absolutely?

(25:02):
Kids can be guessed on the show. I had my
nephew on the show years ago, and my nephew is
on the autism spectrum and it was very emotional having
him on the show. You did really well. I would
love to have kids on the show and talk about

(25:22):
what they're doing or talk about their dreams and goals
in life. Right. You know, there are a lot of
amazing kids doing amazing things in the classroom. They have
they have dreams that they want to fulfill and it's
it's good to talk about it. So I would definitely
encourage it, as long as you get that, you know,

(25:45):
permission to consit from your from your parents, of course. Okay,
next question, how long does it take to make an episode? Okay,
excuse me. Each episode that we we tape here in
the studio normally lasts about thirty minutes. It can go

(26:11):
longer if we're a lot at the time, like today,
we're going to go a little long today. But it
processes here and Greg takes it and kind of does
what he does with it and turns it into a podcast.

(26:31):
But it's about thirty minutes and it is a fun
thirty minutes for me. Let me tell you great question.
Next question is what advice do you have for someone
who wants to start their own show? Take the risk,
be brave, have confidence. You know when you when you

(26:54):
when you're dreaming about things like this, you got to
put in the work in order for it to come
true and be successful. You know, I dreamed about this.
There have been times where it's been tough to do
the show, or I've made a mistake during the show,
but I continue to move forward, and you know, I

(27:17):
would encourage you to follow your dreams. Regarding that there
are a lot of people who are podcasting now. It
has become very popular to do it. You just have
to make sure that you have a topic or topics
that are important to you, whether it be your community work,

(27:39):
maybe it's something fun, maybe you want to talk about
you know cartoons, make sure you say it, make sure
you study about cartoons, and make sure you know what
you're talking about. You don't have to be perfect in
your delivery or your knowledge of it all, but you
got to be consistent. But if you want to do it,

(28:01):
I would definitely encourage you to take that chance. You know,
have the courage to try it and stay committed when
it doesn't work out well the first couple of times.
You know, that happened to me in the very beginning,
but look at where we are now. So that'd be

(28:24):
my advice to you. Take the risk, be confident, be patient,
and when you find a topic that's important to you,
no matter what it is, make sure you study that topic.
Don't try to be perfect, and have fun. Have fun
with it. That's one of the most important things. Next question,

(28:51):
what do you hope people learn from listening to your show?
I hope that they learn that they they're learning about kindness,
They're learning about ways that they can help others. I

(29:20):
hope they learn about confidence. A lot of people don't
want to be on radio or they're nervous about being
on radio and having it be live and people around
the world listening to it right, it's your voice. I
hope they learn about kindness and empathy and respect and honesty,

(29:48):
you know, and hosting the show, I continue to learn
about those things. Even now I am fifty one years old,
I'll be fifty two this year, and I'm still learning
about core values and life skills very important. So I
hope they take that from the show. I also hope that,

(30:09):
you know, they're learning from guests that we have on.
We don't always have the answers, but a lot of
the guests that come on, they they do. So those
are the things that I hope that people learn from

(30:30):
listening to the show, and that I also hope that
they learned that, you know, I'm not afraid to try
new things. I'm not. Next question, do you ever make
mistakes while recording? If so, what do you do sure

(30:50):
marking mistakes all the time? You know, I sometimes I misspeak,
Sometimes my questions may be scattered if I'm interviewing a guest,

(31:11):
or sometimes I forget to ask a question. But I
don't let it slow me down or stop me. But
I make mistakes all the time, all the time. But
that's okay. It happens to everybody. Next question is how

(31:34):
did you come up with questions for your guests? I
just I do my homework. Once I studied the guests,
I write, I write down first what I would like
to ask. But on show day I don't have that
set of questions. Right. I may see them in the
green room before we go live, but once we go live,

(32:00):
I don't have that piece of paper because I memorize
what I want to ask, and I may ask it.
I may ask the same question in a different way,
if that makes sense to you. So if they're let's
say they're working with homeless families in the community, I

(32:23):
may say, how did you what made you want to
work with these families? Why is it so important to you?
What's your motivation behind it? Now? The night before, a
couple of days before, I didn't write that question down

(32:44):
that way. But when we go live, I kind of
speak freely and from the heart, and the question sounds
the same, but it comes out different because I'm not
reading a piece of paper, right, I'm thinking, and it works.

(33:05):
Next question, what's the most interesting thing you've heard from
a guest? The most interesting thing I've heard from a guest,
I don't I don't know if i've heard anything interesting
or weird or odd. I think they've all been relatively easy. Like,

(33:39):
there's nothing that I've there's nothing that has stopped me
doing the show where I said to myself, that is
very very interesting. I want to dive deeper into that.
I've never done that as far as I can remember.
I think all all the the things that I've learned

(34:02):
from the guests, I've kind of found out through studying
their work, so it's it doesn't really surprise me. Yes,
but I can't think of any thing that was any
one question that was the most interesting or things that
have happened on the show. Next question, do you have

(34:23):
a favorite episode? No, I don't. I think all the
episodes are great. They're all my favorites. I used to
always say the next show is my favorite show. But

(34:45):
I love them all. They're all really good, you know,
But I don't have a I don't have a favorite.
Next question, what's the hardest part about being a podcast?

Speaker 3 (34:59):
Hope?

Speaker 2 (35:04):
The hardest part? I I don't know if there's a
hard part. Well, I'll say this time, right, You don't.
You don't really have a lot of time once the

(35:26):
show goes, you know, the minutes are ticking down and
you don't get those minutes back. So I think the
hardest part is fitting everything into thirty minutes. Sometimes can
be difficult, especially when you when you have more info,

(35:47):
but you know you can't really get to a certain
topic because of time restrictions. So that's really difficult question.
If you could interview anyone in the world, who would
it be and why anyone in the world alive or

(36:20):
or have passed on. I would have loved to have
interviewed Muhammad Ali, James Baldwin, doctor King, Maya, Angelou, Tony Morrison.
These are civil rights activists. I would have loved to

(36:43):
interact with them on the show and ask them what
motivates them to do the work that they're doing present day,
present day I I think I think people that I

(37:11):
interact with all the time in the community. I would
love to have teachers on the show. I've mentioned that
to teachers before. I would love to have them on
as guests and talk about ways they're helping their school,
their community, What motivates them to get up and teach

(37:31):
every day lesson plan you know, I think I would
love to do that, And there's some wonderful educators, folks,
by the way, that I would love to have on
the show. I'm going to have on the show. Let
me say that. So that's my answer to question twenty.
All right, well halfway, folks, half way. This has been

(37:54):
really fun. Next question, why is helping up so important
to you? I've been this way my whole life. It's
always been about service. I think it's so important to
help others because you never know when you're gonna need

(38:16):
that help, and we're all gonna need it. Everything that
I've done to be successful, I've needed others to help me.
I haven't done any of this by myself at all.
It may look that way, it may sometimes sound that way,

(38:37):
but there are a lot of people that have put
me in a position to succeed a lot of people,
and I think it's important that we continue to do that.
It's so important to me because everything that we do
is about service, and rather than sit on the side

(39:00):
eyelines and do nothing, I think it's our job, it's
our obligation, even all of you students, to give back
and help others. It's part of who we are. And

(39:23):
I knew I wanted to do that as a kid
growing up. I always want to help somebody, a friend,
an adult, and as I continue to grow and evolve
as a person, it only became bigger and bigger my

(39:43):
thoughts on how I can help someone. Really good question. Okay, next,
what inspired you to start the Elijah Winfrey Show. My
niece and nephew inspired me to start the show. You know,
I am an autism advocate. I'm also an advocate for

(40:03):
underprivileged youth and low income families, but advocating for my
niece and nephew was a big deal. And I used
golf as my platform to give back and to advocate
and help kids and adults with autism. And in doing that,

(40:36):
I thought of another way that I could help, and
that was starting this show. So I owe a lot
of the credit to my niece and nephew, who are
doing really well. By the way, my niece is going
to be graduating high school this year. My nephew is
late twenties. He interacts with me every day on social media.

(41:01):
For those of you who follow me on Facebook, whenever
I post something, he's normally the first person to respond,
and you know, I love that he loves it. You'll
text me from time to time, But my niece and
nephew inspired me to start the show. How do you

(41:24):
use your show to help people in the community. Well, again,
I like to have guests on in the community to
talk about what they're doing. Right. It gives them exposure
as well as the show, and I have people reaching
out to me all the time wanting to talk about issues.

(41:47):
Maybe not come on the show, but they'll email me
or they'll you know, they'll find me on social media
and they'll send me a message about how much they
like the show and the work that I'm doing and
how it motivates them to get involved in their community.
So the show kind of once I once Greg posts

(42:09):
to the show, it kind of does the work on
its own. Not saying that we don't do the work here,
of course, but you know, people listen to the show
and I think it motivates them. You know, they hear
this average guy on radio, and you know, it inspires them,

(42:30):
and I'm really thankful for that. Thanks. What kind of
guests do you invite to talk about Wait, what kind
of guests do you invite to talk about helping others?
I you know, there are guests from all walks of life.

(42:51):
I've had doctors, on the show. I've had authors on
the show. I've had lawyers on the show. I have
I've had moms and dads on the show and they
and they all talk about what they're doing to help
others in the community and how it's impactful to them.

(43:13):
And it's fun to hear other perspectives or other people's
opinions on how we can work together and the work
that they're doing so beneficial. Next question, what's the most

(43:35):
inspiring story you've heard from a guest? Gosh, They're all inspiring,
they really are. I'm always blown away by the community
work of others. It is inspires me to continue to

(44:01):
do the work that I'm doing. There's not I can't
pinpoint one inspiring story without sharing the next one. Right.
It's always more than one, so it's hard to pick
one and say this is the story that's an an
impact or the most impactful or the most inspiring. It's
hard for me to do that. I think they're all

(44:21):
great in their own right, and I do my best
to treat them that way, so they all stand out
to me. Next question, how can kids help their community
like you do? It starts with the little things, right,
do the little things in your neighborhood. Maybe you're picking

(44:41):
up trash that you see on the road or in
front of your house. Maybe maybe a group of you
and your kiddos can create an idea as to how
to give back. Maybe you you host ay the old
fashioned eliminate stand where you raise money and then you
take the money and you you donated to an organization

(45:02):
that's doing work in the community. I think that's a way.
You know, being kind can also help. That's a big one.
Being able to listen to your friends tough day or
rough day also helps those in the community. Having the

(45:27):
courage to speak up about things that you see that
that make you feel sad, and maybe you have an
idea as to how to fix that that could help
someone else. That's one. So there are a lot of
things you can do in the community. A lot talk

(45:49):
to your parents about, you know, wanting to help. You know,
you can walk up to mom and dad, Hey, mom,
I really want to help the community. What can we do?
I have a set of clothes that I no longer
can wear anymore. Can I donate it to an organization
that will help a young family? Maybe they have a baby,
maybe they have a younger kid who could wear those clothes. Right.

(46:14):
So there are a lot of things, but it starts
with the small things. You got to take small steps.
Small steps lead the big steps. But both are successful
in their own and their own right. Remember that next question,
have you ever interviewed someone who made a big difference
in the world? Again, all the time. I meet people

(46:36):
all the time. I've interviewed people who they've done more
work than I've done. And it's not a competition, but
they've done a lot of work and they've made a
huge difference in the world. I don't have I don't
have just one person. There are a lot of people

(46:58):
that have been on the show that are making a
huge difference, huge difference. You know. A group of amazing
individuals that come to mind are the Stars for Autism
group that I've interacted with in Springfield, Missouri. They're no
longer together or it's no longer an organization, but the

(47:20):
work that they did for families who have kids on
the autism spectrum was a big deal. And I would
go there every year to speak and to meet with
families and to brainstorm about ideas and ways that we
can help the community. So that's one. I'll give you that.

(47:42):
And I'm going back to Springfield, Missouri this year once again,
and I'm excited about that. So there are a lot
of people who've made a big difference in the world,
and you can too. Next question, what's the best advice
you've got gotten from a guest about helping others? The

(48:05):
best advice I've gotten is to be patient. Things don't
happen overnight. It takes time. Sometimes you don't see the
impact you're gonna have until until later. Eventually you see it,

(48:31):
but it may not be right away, and you're not
really looking for that. You're trying to do the work.
And at some point those same individuals they'll find you
and thank you. But the best advice I've gotten is
to be patient and to take your time. Don't be

(48:53):
in a rush. You might have an idea that's great,
but you still you have to work things out in
order for that idea to be successful, and it takes time.
Next question, Can small acts of kindness make a big difference? How? Yes,

(49:18):
you have to start small. You see the big picture
or you see like this the big result in the end, right,
we've all seen that in our minds, like, oh, this
is what it looks like when it happens. But you
have to start small, take the small steps first, whether

(49:38):
it's saying something nice to someone to make them smile,
helping someone that may be in need of assistance. It
starts there. And if you do that consistently in an
honest way, and you're not looking for someone to say, oh,

(49:59):
thank you, You're the greatest. If you're not looking for that,
then things start to build. But small acts of kindness
very important, very important. That's where it all begins. How
do you find next question, how do you find people
who need help in the community. So a lot of

(50:22):
times I use my social media to meet people, and
it's worked. I'm always watching people in the community, and
I'm watching how they work with others and helping others.
And sometimes I'll send them an email or a message

(50:45):
and I'll say I would love to collaborate or work
with you someday. How can we make this possible? And
I get a response and it normally works out. But
I'm very involved in the community. I may be driving

(51:05):
around town and I see something and maybe in my mind,
I make a mental note, go home, write it down
as to how can I contact this individual or this organization,
and I do it. So I do a lot of things.

(51:28):
I do a lot of things based on what I see,
and a lot of it starts on social media for me,
and it's worked. And I also have friends who have
seen families in the community who have a need and
they'll reach out to me and I'll reach out to
that family. So I need people to make it possible,

(51:54):
and once that happens, the fun starts. Next question, what's
the biggest challenge in giving back to others. The biggest
challenge is you can't. Unfortunately, you can't help everybody you

(52:15):
want to. I try hard to, but I know that
I'm not going to be able to help everybody, and
I think that's one of the biggest challenges because I
see a lot of things and unfortunately, sometimes we can't

(52:38):
always help everybody. I also think time is one of
the biggest challenges. Sometimes there's not enough time in a
day to do the things you want to do. And
I understand that and it's made me a better person

(53:01):
because I know I can't be all things to everybody.
I've tried that. I think you have to do the
best you can, and if you do that, you'll help
a lot of people, and I'm learning that. Next question,

(53:24):
what's your favorite part about helping people? Wow? The best
part I the best the wow the best part for
me or the favorite part is seeing them smile. You know,

(53:51):
whether we are helping from a money standpoint or a
material standpoint. And when I say a two, I mean
maybe we're getting clothes, maybe we're buying them groceries. I
think the smile does it for me right, It's a
genuine smile. I feel grateful that I'm able to do it,

(54:17):
and it makes me feel really good. It really does.
That's one of my favorite things. Next question, have you
ever helped someone through your show? Yes? Again, people reach
out to me all the time about how the show
has helped them, how they listen every week, how they

(54:42):
take notes you know, on the show about the show
or topic that I'm talking about. So yes, I I
have next question, what are some fun ways kids can
give back to their community? Again? I think maybe you

(55:03):
have clothes you can no longer wear. You donate those
items to an organization. Maybe you you host a cupcake
drive or eliminate drive. You know, you set up your
stand and you make a little bit of money and
you donate it, or maybe you help a family that

(55:23):
you know is in need. Kids can do it, you know,
talk to your parents. You can make it happen. But
those are some of the fun ways.

Speaker 3 (55:38):
You know.

Speaker 2 (55:38):
Fundraising is a big one. It's very impactful, very impactful.
All right, Six more questions to go, folks. Next question,
how can we encourage more people to help others? Share
your work, share your work, your ideas. You're not gonna

(56:05):
get everybody to be involved, but you will get a
few people who say, I want to help you do that.
So encourage your friends, encourage your classmates. And you'd be
surprised at how impactful that can be because maybe your

(56:29):
friend is thinking the same thing you're thinking. And when
y'all talk together, you create this fun, this big idea,
and when you help others, I'm telling you, it makes
you feel really good inside, really good. Next question, what's

(56:53):
something you learned about kindness from hosting your show? And
this is everything. And I think what I've learned about
kind as hosting the show is that there are a
lot of people who listen to the show who say
some really nice things about the show and about me,

(57:17):
and a lot of the things are extremely kind, and
it makes me very.

Speaker 3 (57:24):
Happy, and it's why this show has lasted as long
as it's lasted, because people really love the show and
they're very kind in their messages to me, and I'm
very thankful for that.

Speaker 2 (57:45):
Next question, how did you come up with the idea
for the Elijah Infra show. My niece and nephew. They
are They were the driving force of me creating this show,
so I owe them the credit for that. Three more questions.

(58:08):
Next one, have you ever had a guest who overcame
a big challenge? What did you learn from there? I
think a lot of the guests have overcome a lot.
Now we don't really get into a lot of detail
into their personal journey. Some will share, some won't, so

(58:29):
I can't really pinpoint one. And I'm sure there's more
than one, but one story doesn't really come to mind.
So I think they are a lot of the guests
that we've had on have overcome some big challenges. And
I would encourage you to go back into the archives
and and and listen listen to some old shows. There

(58:54):
are some big challenges there. Next question, why do you
think it's import to talk about helping others on your show.
I think because the more you talk about it, right,
the more good you do, the more it starts to spread.
When I talk about my work on this show, my
hope is that it inspires someone and it spreads and

(59:22):
people begin to reach out in their communities to help
other people. So I think it's important that I do
that here, and it's been a great platform. It really has.
I've reached so many people. Last question today, if you

(59:46):
could give one message to kids about making a difference,
what would it be. One message? Have the courage to

(01:00:07):
fail to get something you never had, You have to
do something you never did. We all fall down, we
all make mistakes. But if you continue to get up

(01:00:31):
and you continue to work at it, you're going to
be great. You're going to make a difference. I fall
down all the time, and doing the work that I
do in the community all the time, I make mistakes.
But that is also why I succeed. I am willing

(01:00:54):
to take the risk because I want to help people.
And as my mom used to say to me all
the time, you got to get it wrong before you
can get it right. So I would encourage you all
to take that chance to help somebody. It's really easy

(01:01:19):
to do. Don't be afraid to make a mistake when
you're helping someone. Maybe they don't want your help in
that moment or right away, but eventually they come around
and you feel that. So I would say you want

(01:01:47):
to make a difference in your community with your friends,
in school or out of school. Be patient, be honest,
be respectful, and take a chance because we need you.

(01:02:09):
We need a lot of positivity in the world. And
use students that have sent questions in today. All of
you are making a difference in your classrooms, at home,

(01:02:35):
at the playground. Find a student today or this week
that you haven't played with and play with them. Talk
to them. That's making a difference. That's a big deal. Okay, folks,

(01:03:04):
we have come to the end of the show and
this was great. I want to thank all the students
in the Seattle area for sending in questions. I had
a blast answering all of the questions. We got through
forty questions today, folks. Forty questions. Wow, thank you for

(01:03:29):
taking the time to listen. Do me a favor this week.
Get out in your communities and check in on your
family and your friends. Put a smile on someone's face.
Remember it doesn't take a lot of energy to do

(01:03:49):
that at all. All right, thank you for listening to
the Elijah Winfrey Show. Please be sure to download this
show wherever you download your favorite podcast. Till next week,
Take care, God bless Bye bye