Holler: Voices of West Virginia Women Holler Podcast

After taking a few months to assemble a small (but mighty!) production crew, #HollerPodcast is back with a special for the West Virginia Primary Election.

Kendra Fershee is a working mom running for Congress in West Virginia's 1st Congressional District. In this episode, you'll hear her take on why we need more women in elected office, the challenges women (and particularly, moms) face when deciding to run for office, and what made her decide to run for Congress.

We'd also like to highlight the following women for attending out first #HollerPodcast event last weekend. We hosted a women candidates mixer and these incredible women participated in a panel discussion (which we are unfortunately unable to share with you due to technical difficulties with our audio device). Please check out these candidates' websites and remember them when you decide who to vote for on May 8th!

Del. Barbara Evans Fleischauer - http://www.friendsofbarbara.com/

Stephanie Zucker (running to represent the 14th Senate District in the WV Senate) - https://www.zuckerforwv.com/

Danielle Walker (running to represent the 51st District in the WV House of Delegates) - https://www.daniforwv.com/

Sara Anderson (Monongalia County School Board) - http://www.saraforwv.com/

In 2016, Sammi Brown ran for the WV House of Delegates, hoping for the chance to represent her hometown, Charles Town, WV, in the state legislature.

Sammi didn't win, but she is back and more ready than ever for the 2018 elections.

In this week's episode, Sammi shares with listeners her journey into politics (the daughter of a labor advocate, she became involved at a young age!). In addition, she shares some of the valuable lessons she learned on the campaign trail the first time around, and some of her visions for the state of West Virginia in the future.

Dominique Villaseñor, of Summersville, WV, recently wrote a letter to President Donald Trump regarding her view on immigration policy in the United States. Dominique's parents, both Mexican, moved to West Virginia to start a business before she was born. In this week's episode, Dominique reads her letter and weighs in on what it was like to grow up in West Virginia, how the current political climate has made her feel and become active in politics, and her definition of the American dream.

To read Dominique's letter, visit https://www.wvgazettemail.com/opinion/gazette_opinion/op_ed_commentaries/dominique-villasenor-i-m-from-summersville-wv-i-am-mexican/article_803d365a-0ab6-597c-8fe5-d2ad82564dc4.html.

Special thanks to Forever Strong for providing intro music for the show.

Jackie Lozano was born in Mexico, but only remembers her childhood in the United States. Brought to the U.S. by her mother when she was a sick baby, Jackie is a Dreamer and benefits from DACA (Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals), an act that provides her a permit to live and work in the United States, although she is not a citizen. Jackie didn't know she was not a citizen of the U.S. until high school, when she began planning to attend college. In this week's episode, Jackie talks about how it felt to find out that her opportunities were so limited in the United States, even though it is her home, in addition to what she hopes for her son, and for humanity.

Jamela North Starr Brown was born and raised in Rand, WV (home of Randy Moss!) and currently lives in Charleston, WV. She is a counselor for Job Corps and a spoken word artist.

Jamela was a background vocalist for the Delfonics in Brooklyn, NY and has performed at the World Famous Apollo Theatre in Harlem, NY.

Her first poetry CD was called "Tailor Made" and you can find a clip from the CD release party here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4fb-vOort9g&feature=youtu.be.

The following is a link to one of her performances at Bluegrass Kitchen in Charleston, WV: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o_SZn_4DvkU&feature=youtu.be

One of her songs, "Worship Me" by Jamela North Starr Brown, is available for purchase on Amazon, iTunes, and YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Y2tnvitehA&feature=youtu.be

To get in touch with or follow Jamela North Starr Brown, you can follow her on Twitter @POETIKSTARR75, friend her on FB (Jamela North Starr Brown)or www.facebook.com/2Poetik, or on Instagram @J.Tanae.

For more information about Job Corps visit www.charleston.jobcorps.gov or www.jobcorps.gov.