Moving Forward - The Official Podcast of Dream Team Des Moines Dream Team Des Moines

Featuring Corbin, Savannaha and Jeremiah   Episode Description: On a very special Inspiration Episode, we feature Corbin, Savannaha and Jeremiah.  You are going to enjoy getting to know each of them and understand why we asked them to join us for our special Inspiration Episode.  

Corbin is 15 and is days away from doing his second RAGBRAI with the Dream Team. Corbin is incredibly passionate about cycling and Dream Team.  Even though he is just 15, he’s emerged as one of the leaders of this year’s team.  He leads by example and he’s one of the kindest members of the team.

And then we talk with Savannaha. She’s 16, a student at Ankeny High School and this is her third year on Dream Team.  Savannaha has a big personality, and she is strong.  She powers through every challenge that life throws at her.  Savannaha talks about how after struggling at the beginning of the year, she rapidly improved over the past several weeks and excited about completing her second RAGBRAI.  Savannaha personifies the word inspiration.  

And then we’ll be joined by Jeremiah.  He’s 14 and will be a freshman next year at Bondurant High School.  Jeremiah’s start to the season was a little rocky.  He’ll tell us that he was prone to riding off the trail and crashing during his first month on the team.  But every time he took a spill, he picked himself up, dusted himself off and then has a big smile on his face.    He's got a great sense of humor and is just a lot of fun to be around.  And he’s also become a pretty skilled cyclist over the past five months.  You’re going to enjoy meeting Jeremiah and understand why we selected him to join us on “the inspiration episode.”

Episode 13 of Moving Forward we feature 13-year-old Issa, who prefers to go by Blue.    We met Blue two years ago at the Des Moines Police Department’s week-long bike camp when Blue had an opportunity to be inspired by some leaders from the 2022 Dream Team.  After five months of challenging training, Blue tells us, “I feel like I’m somebody who belongs on this team.”    And with RAGBRAI just days away, Blue tells us, “I’m ready and I feel confident.”    We also speak with mentor James Hart, who has been volunteering with Dream Team for 20 years.  James talks with us about how the team has evolved over those years.  He also talks about some of the bedrock principles that have enabled the organization to be so successful in make a positive impact in the lives of so many central Iowa teens.

On this episode of Moving Forward, we speak with Nicholas and mentor Rachel Stephenson.   Nicholas will be a senior this fall at Roosevelt High School here in Des Moines and has been on the team for four years.   Things were not easy for Nicholas when he joined the team back in 2021, but he battled through multiple challenges in that first year.   Today, Nicholas is one of the team’s top riders.  And he tells us that being a member of the Dream Team “makes me feel powerful.  It makes me feel strong.  It makes me feel like I can do hard things.”      Nicholas is an inspiration and is living proof that you can accomplish big things if you have a plan, work hard and persevere.    And we speak with Rachel Stephenson, who joined the Dream Team as a mentor in 2023.  This year, Rachel has become an integral part of the Dream Team’s support team.  She’s great with our youth and we’re going to speak with her about why she mentors with Dream Team.

On this episode of Moving Forward, we speak with Jacob, a junior at ADM High School in Adel.   Jacob is driven.  At 15, his days start at 5 am with lifting for football, he’s working two summer jobs in addition to Dream Team and daily football practices.  Now in his second year with the team, Jacob has established himself as a Dream Team lleader and one of our top riders.   And we speak with Chelsea Abrahamson.  Chelsea is one of the leaders of the team’s amazing support crew.  Chelsea talks with us about what that entails and how the support crew keeps the team rolling during our training season and RAGBRAI.

On this episode of the Moving Forward podcast we talk with Marcus, who will be starting his junior year this fall at Ankeny High School.   Marcus has been a member of the Dream Team for three years.  He has this special ability to make everyone around him feel comfortable and at ease.  He can hold his own with any member of the team when it comes to speed, but he’s also one of the best members of the team at encouraging and helping members of the team who are struggling.   And we speak with mentor Mark Amann.  Mark, aka Gunny, is a former Marine and EMT who just recently retired from the Ankeny Fire Department.  Mark served as a mentor several years ago and then returned in 2023 and is part of our leadership group.  We’ll talk with Mark about how Dream Team has changed over the years and get an update on the 2024 season.

On this episode of Moving Forward, we speak with Inez who just completed eighth grade and will be a freshman in August at Des Moines Dowling High School.  Inez joined the team a year ago when she was just 12 years old.  She takes a lot of pride in that she has never walked a hill in her two years on the team.   We also talk with Darla Schaben who joined the team with her husband Jon as mentors in March.  Darla talks with us about how her first year as a Dream Team mentor is going and provides an update on the team’s season.