By Miriam Raftery

Hear our interview (originally aired on KNSJ):  https://www.eastcountymagazine.org/sites/eastcountymagazine.org/files/au...

December 11, 2014 (La Mesa)—It’s beginning to look a lot like Christmas in La Mesa’s downtown village, where holiday lights are twinkling and festivities are set to begin for the 25^th annual Christmas in the Village celebration on Friday and Saturday, December 12 and 13.  

East County Magazine sat down for an interview with John Vigil, self-proclaimed “Chief Elf” from the La Mesa Village Merchants Association and Shannon O’Dunn, owner of O’Dunn Fine Art, for a sneak preview of this year’s event—and why it’s especially important this year for local merchants to have a strong community turn-out.

Our interview is now online! Listen to the full interview, with excerpts of 3 of Dannie Marie's songs, here: https://www.eastcountymagazine.org/sites/eastcountymagazine.org/files/audio/2019/August/DannieMarie-FINAL-interview%2B3excerpts.mp3

December 8, 2014 (San Diego’s East County) – Hear our interview with Dannie Marie, a talented local singer, songwriter and actress who is taking Nashville, Memphis and Los Angeles by storm.  Those of you in East County may know her as Danielle Marie Pupa, a graduate of Steele Canyon High School. 

Watch the sneak preview excerpt here http://youtu.be/nIEdflaq_MI and full interview at the link above, which originally aired on KNSJ 89.1 FM. .The program also features excerpts from three songs that will be featured on Dannie Marie's soon-to-be-released CD, along with our interview with this rising local star.

Dannie Marie’s hit music video, “Flavor of the Week” has been winning awards and recognition at music festivals; it was also featured in the movie “Music High.” She’s been in movies and commercials, and on TV.  She’s also been performing at major venues across our region, including a performance coming up in February at House of Blues in San Diego. Her songs serve up country music with a pop flair—and her musical style has been likened to Taylor Swift.

Photo, left: Anne Hoiberg and Marie Johnson

December 2, 2014 (San Diego’s East County) – The United Nations is hosting 16 days of events aimed at stopping violence against women, culminating in international Human Rights Day on December 16^th.  East County Magazine interviewed Anne Hoiberg, past president of the United Nations Association of San Diego, who is also president of the International Museum of Human Rights in San Diego.  We also interviewed Marie Johnson, president of Activist San Diego, which recently hosted a forum on violence against women; she is also a survivor of domestic violence in her family.

You can listen online now to our interviews, which originally aired on KNSJ 89.1 FM, by clicking here: https://www.eastcountymagazine.org/sites/eastcountymagazine.org/files/au...  (sound file may take a few moments to load)

November 27, 2014 (San Diego’s East County) – Our October radio shows are now online!  You can listen online now (note sound files may take a minute to load). For links to listen to the shows plus a full list of topics and interviews in October, click here and scroll down.

We spoke with top newsmakers including Congresswoman Susan Davis, many candidates for local offices (note: we invited ALL candidates in races we covered to be interviewed), authors, a theater producer, a mother who started the EP Save-a-Life foundation after losing her own son, the founder of Angels for Haiti, a Water for Children Africa spokeswoman on a new technique to derive drinking water from air, an executive from the East County Boys and Girls Clubs, and a Comic Fest organizer, among others.  We also went on location--covering events from the Jacumba Hot Springs Centennial to a Ramona benefit to save wild cheetahs. Plus we had news stories on many more hot topics.

You can listen to the East County Magazine Radio Show live on KNSJ 89.1 FM on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays at 5 p.m. and reruns airing Tuesday and Thursday at 9.a.m. and Saturdays at 8 a.m.

November 15, 2014 (Spring Valley) – Our interview with Gretchen Burns-Bergman, founder of A New Path, is now online. Listen now at : https://www.eastcountymagazine.org/sites/eastcountymagazine.org/files/au...  .   Hear from this Spring Valley mother who helped lobby successfully to change drug sentencing laws and put more emphasis on getting help for those battling addiction. 

In the interview, she discusses newly announced reductions in federal drug sentencing laws that can also impact those already behind bars, as well as the impacts of Prop 47, the California ballot initiative recently passed.  This interview originally aired Wednesday on KNSJ 89.1 FM radio.

Listen now! (audio files may take a few moments to load)

Congresswoman Susan Davis:  https://www.eastcountymagazine.org/sites/eastcountymagazine.org/files/au...

Challenger Larry Wilske: https://www.eastcountymagazine.org/sites/eastcountymagazine.org/files/au...

October 23, 2014 (San Diego’s East County) – We sat down for in-depth interviews with Congresswoman Susan Davis, a Democrat, and her opponent, Republican Larry Wilske, a Navy Seal.   Hear their views on jobs, the economy, energy, women’s issues, education, healthcare, Social Security, military actions in the Middle East and the refugee crisis, immigration, border security, the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, the needs of veterans and military families, the prospects of another government shut-down, and more.

Wilske called for boots on the ground in Syria, reform of NAFTA to encourage manufacturing in the U.S., creation of a cross-border rail line, increased use of oil refineries, nuclear and algae fuels, arming teachers to reduce school violence, stopping employers from hiring illegal immigrants, and allowing veterans to receive private healthcare when VA hospitals are backlogged.  

Davis discussed ideas to increase commerce at the border, boost funding for National Institute of Health research on Ebola, strengthen public education and keep college affordable, boost the economy through immigration reform, protect healthcare , Social Security and women’s rights, address climate change and seek a long-range strategy for addressing the ISIL terrorist threats in Syria and Iraq.

East County News Service

Four candidates are running for two seats on the Helix Water District Board.  We invited all four to be interviewed on our radio show and two of them responded. In our radio interviews, we asked candidates their views on the drought, creating new regional water supplies, the tiered rate structure, budget priorities, the future of Lake Jennings, and transparency, among other issues.

You can listen to their interviews here:

Kathleen Hedberg interview: https://www.eastcountymagazine.org/sites/eastcountymagazine.org/files/au...

Steven Rotsart interview:  https://www.eastcountymagazine.org/sites/eastcountymagazine.org/files/au...

Hedberg is an incumbent and civil engineer who is running as a ratepayers’ advocate. She voted against rate hikes passed by the board majority.  Her opponent is Maria Mariscal, who has worked for the County Water Authority. 

Rotsart says he’s running because rates are too high, having nearly tripled in the past nine years. He He believes his experience in nonprofits will help him bring financial accountability to the board. He is running against incumbent Deana Verbeke, whose website says she is a voice of ratepayers but who voted consistently to raise rates despite objections from the vast majority of ratepayers who submitted public comments.

Here our interview with Vickie Butcher, Water for Children Africa: https://www.eastcountymagazine.org/sites/eastcountymagazine.org/files/au...

Water for Children Africa launches pilot program in Africa that could be applied here, too

October 6, 2014 (San Diego) – What if we could create pure alkaline water from the air?  This futuristic technology will be explored as pilot projects for rural villages in Africa next summer, says Vickie Butcher, executive director of Water for Children Africa.

Listen to our full interview here (it may take a few moments to load): https://www.eastcountymagazine.org/sites/eastcountymagazine.org/files/au... For highlights, click “read more” and scroll down.

By Miriam Raftery

October 14, 2014 (San Diego’s East County) – East County Magazine invited both candidates for the 50^th Congressional District to be interviewed on our radio show.  Congressman Duncan D. Hunter did not respond, but we did sit down for an in-depth interview with his opponent, Navy veteran and medical professional James Kimber, who talked about his views on topics including Social Security, healthcare, education, veterans, women's issues, bringing jobs to the district, student loans, energy issues, the Iraq and Syria conflicts, and the need to bring back compromise and end the partisan divide in Congress. 

Kimber has served in the healthcare field for 30 years, currently as a physician assistant specializing in neurosurgery. Asked why he’s running for Congress, he states, “I see the inaction going on within Congress. There are a lot of issues facing this country and some of them are very serious right now, but Congress has stepped back and they’re not working together very well right now.”

Listen to our interview with Frank Tsimboukakis, now online at:  https://www.eastcountymagazine.org/sites/eastcountymagazine.org/files/au...

October 9, 2014 (San Diego's East County)-- Frank Tsimboukakis, candidate for State Senate running against incumbent Senator Joel Anderson, sat down for an interview with the East County Magazine Show. The interview originally aired on KNSJ 89.1 FM radio on October 1st and is now available online at the link above.

Tsimboukakis talked about his goals if elected, drawing clear distinctions between himself and his opponent on issues ranging from education affordability to jobs. He also questioned Anderson's slogan as a "tax fighter" given that Anderson has had multiple tax liens filed in the past, both personal and business, including business tax liens that records indicate have never been paid. 

For more information, click "read more" and scroll down.

Listen to our interview with Jerry Fazio online now:  https://www.eastcountymagazine.org/sites/eastcountymagazine.org/files/au...

October 9, 2014 (San Diego's East County) Jerry Fazio, executive director of the Boys & Girls Clubs of San Diego, sat down for an interview with East County Magazine Show host Miriam Raftery.  In the interview, which originally aired on KNSJ 89.1 FM on Wednesday, he shared stories and  insights from his 35 years with the nonprofit organization, as well as tips for successful nonprofit fundraising before his retirement on October 24.

For links to more of our recent coverage of Jerry Fazio and the East County Boys & Girls Clubs, click "read more" and scroll down."

September 20, 2014 (San Diego’s East County)—During the August heat, we covered some of the hottest topics in town including  a fire chief’s meeting with county officials, whistleblowers speaking out on the Grossmont Union High School District’s Citizens’ Bond Oversight Committee,  an interview with Mark Arabo on the Iraq humanitarian crisis, a Kurdish-American woman on how ISIS attacks are impacting her own family,  and coverage of a Border Children forum at a La Mesa church.

On the lighter side, we chatted with the maker of the mbira—a unique musical instrument invented locally, and with a firefighter/historian who recalls the infamous El Cajon jail break, owners of a Ramona winery, and the founder of St. Madeleine Sophie’s Center on amazing successes  help developmentally disabled children, plus much, much more.

For a full list of show topics and interviews for each August show, plus links to hear the shows, click here, or click “read more” and scroll down.  You can also hear our show live Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m. on KNSJ 89.1 FM or online at www.knsj.org.

Our June podcasts of the East County Magazine Show on KNSJ radio are now online, including many candidates who will be on your November ballot, as well as interviews on issues ranging from firefighting job opportunities to legal tips for surviving disasters.

To listen to our June radio shows online now, plus see a complete list of interviewees and other content on each show in June, click here or click "read more" and scroll down. (Please be patient, sound files may take a minute to load)

The East County Magazine Radio Show airs Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 5 p.m. to 6 p.m. on KNSJ 89.1 FM.

Update: Our interview is now online. Listen here:  https://www.eastcountymagazine.org/sites/eastcountymagazine.org/files/au...

Tune in Monday at 5 p.m. to hear our interview with East County’s Amnesty International organizer Renee Altson on KNSJ 89.1 FM or streamed live at www.KNSJ.org .

By Miriam Raftery

August 29, 2014 (Santee) – At the Summit Unitarian Universalist Church in Santee, a dedicated group of Amnesty International members meet each week.  They write letters to leaders around the world on causes such as seeking freedom for jailed journalists, stopping barbaric practices such as torture and stoning women to death, and ending conflict in regions such as Gaza. The group has celebrated several recent successes, which organizer Renee Altson discusses in a radio interview with East County Magazine airing Monday, September 1st.

Sometimes, those causes hit closer to home, such as a “Hands Up, Don’t Shoot!” protest planned September 2^nd at 5:30 p.m. at the Metzli student union center on San Diego State University’s campus.  The protest focuses on police brutality in the wake of the Ferguson, Missouri shooting of an unarmed black teenager.