Little Local Conversations

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Little Local Conversations

Matt Hanna

103 episodes

6 hours ago

Listen to the latest conversation with Tyler Cote, the Community Engagement Specialist for the City of Watertown, and Victoria Weichel from WCA-TV to discuss things that have happened during the past month in Watertown through key moments, success stories, and important numbers. Links mentioned in the episode: Special City Council - Nov. 18th City Council - Nov. 25th Everbridge Emergency Alerts Winter Parking Info Free Public Skating Support the show Head on over to www.littlelocalconversatio...

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Society & Culture

All content for Little Local Conversations is the property of Matt Hanna and is served directly from their servers with no modification, redirects, or rehosting. The podcast is not affiliated with or endorsed by Podjoint in any way.

Listen to the latest conversation with Tyler Cote, the Community Engagement Specialist for the City of Watertown, and Victoria Weichel from WCA-TV to discuss things that have happened during the past month in Watertown through key moments, success stories, and important numbers. Links mentioned in the episode: Special City Council - Nov. 18th City Council - Nov. 25th Everbridge Emergency Alerts Winter Parking Info Free Public Skating Support the show Head on over to www.littlelocalconversatio...

Show more...

Society & Culture

Episodes (20/103)

Little Local Conversations

Local Government Update, December 2025

Listen to the latest conversation with Tyler Cote, the Community Engagement Specialist for the City of Watertown, and Victoria Weichel from WCA-TV to discuss things that have happened during the past month in Watertown through key moments, success stories, and important numbers. Links mentioned in the episode: Special City Council - Nov. 18th City Council - Nov. 25th Everbridge Emergency Alerts Winter Parking Info Free Public Skating Support the show Head on over to www.littlelocalconversatio...

1 week ago

27 minutes

Little Local Conversations

Episode 70: Jenna Bancroft (Director of Human Services, City of Watertown)

Meet Jenna Bancroft! She's the Director of Human Services for the City of Watertown, a new department in the city. In this conversation we talk about how when she was a teenager her family helped foster young kids and how that experience led her to want to get into a career to improve social services. We talk about her early work in Watertown at Wayside Youth & Family Support Network and how that direct work with people led her to want to step up in scope to try and affect things higher u...

1 week ago

39 minutes

Little Local Conversations

Watertown Arts & Culture Roundtable, December 2025

This is an arts and culture roundtable episode where we talk about things that have been going on in Watertown arts and culture recently, what's coming up, hidden gems, and more. The discussion was with Liz Helfer (City of Watertown, Public Arts and Culture Planner), Jamie Kallestad (Communications and Design Specialist for the Watertown Free Public Library), Kristen Kenny (Chair of the Watertown Cultural District), Gavin Kleespies (Executive Director of Gore Place), Lydia McCoy (Watertown Se...

2 weeks ago

36 minutes

Little Local Conversations

Event Highlight - SOLSTICE: Reflections on Winter Light

This episode is a sponsored event highlight for SOLSTICE, a reflective light and sound experience happening at Mount Auburn Cemetery this December. I sit down for a conversation with Matthew Stephens, the President and CEO of Mount Auburn Cemetery, and Sam Okerstrom-Lang, the co-founder of Masary Studios and the Creative Director of SOLSTICE. Give a listen to hear about how the non‑denominational winter tradition came to be, what to expect as a visitor, how they craft the mood and tone for a ...

3 weeks ago

26 minutes

Little Local Conversations

Creative Chats With Guest Margo Guernsey (Capturing and Sharing Unheard Stories Through Film)

This is a recording from a series for the podcast at the Mosesian Center for the Arts called Creative Chats. This conversation was with Margo Guernsey, documentary director/producer, impact strategist, and founder of Time Travel Productions LLC. The conversation digs into Margo’s approach to outreach and impact through discussing some of her recent projects, including THE OFFICIALS, a documentary about the work of US election officials. Find out more about Margo and her films at: timetravelpr...

3 weeks ago

30 minutes

Little Local Conversations

Episode 69: Aliana de la Guardia (Mosesian Center for the Arts)

Meet Aliana de la Guardia! She's the Executive Director at the Mosesian Center for the Arts and a working artist herself. In this conversation we dig into her path into opera, what it's like to be a professional singer in the avant-garde world (from Cheerios to puppets and more), the behind-the-scenes of running Guerilla Opera for many years, and what led her to a sabbatical and rethinking of her direction. Then we talk about her joining the Mosesian Center for the Arts, the relationships she...

1 month ago

47 minutes

Little Local Conversations

Local Government Update, November 2025

Listen to the latest conversation with Tyler Cote, the Community Engagement Specialist for the City of Watertown, and Victoria Weichel from WCA-TV to discuss things that have happened during the past month in Watertown through key moments, success stories, and important numbers. Links mentioned in the episode: Mobility Study Economic Development and Planning - Oct. 21st Commission on Disabilities - Oct. 22nd School Committee - Oct. 27th City Council - October 28th Mid-Year Budget Presentation...

1 month ago

39 minutes

Little Local Conversations

Episode 68: Jon Hecht (Political Activist / Former Town Councilor and State Representative)

Meet Jon Hecht! He's a longtime contributor to the Watertown community from being a town councilor, a state representative for the area, the first president of the Watertown Community Foundation and many other involvements. In this conversation we get into his early work with human rights in China, his first steps into local politics and joining the town council, helping create and being the first chair of the council's budget and fiscal oversight committee, working on open space and park pro...

1 month ago

47 minutes

Little Local Conversations

Episode 67: Max Ritcey (Ritcey East, Owner and Chef)

Meet Max Ritcey! He's the Owner and Chef at Ritcey East here in Watertown. In this conversation we talk about growing up in a four-generation family-run restaurant in Waltham, his journey through bartending and restaurant management jobs (and some of the funny stories from that era), and then finally landing his own spot here in Watertown. We dig into how it was important for his restaurant to be a welcoming space that helps people in small and big ways, from driving groceries to his employee...

1 month ago

46 minutes

Little Local Conversations

Episode 66: Jon Bockian (Community Volunteer / Author)

Meet Jon Bockian! He's a longtime Watertown resident with a history of community involvement and an author. In this conversation we talk about being part of the PTA, Zoning Board, the group that started the arts center at the Arsenal property, a group that pushed for a Watertown Transportation Management Association, and being one of the first members of the Community Preservation Committee. Then we change topics to his new book What Was Forbidden, and the process of researching and writing a...

1 month ago

46 minutes

Little Local Conversations

Episode 65: Jim Henderson (Attorney/Singer)

Meet Jim Henderson! He's an attorney and singer here in Watertown. In this wide-ranging conversation we talk about his early years in law (including winning a state supreme court case as a junior associate), the importance of different parts of his life beyond his law work such as his musical practice, how he homeschooled his kids and why the arts played a big part in that, and running for Massachusetts Secretary for State as an independent (and getting almost 3% of the vote). We do a d...

2 months ago

53 minutes

Little Local Conversations

Creative Chats With Guest Megan Ramette (The How and Why of Zines and Watertown Zine Fest)

This is a recording from a series for the podcast at the Mosesian Center for the Arts called Creative Chats. This conversation was with Megan Ramette of the Watertown Zine Fest team and we dug into everything zines and Watertown Zine Fest. Hear about: - What is a zine and why it matters - The culture and ethos of zines - Reasons to create and how to start - The origins and impact of the Watertown Zine Fest - Insights on tools, printing and the history of zines Come out to Watertown Zine Fest,...

2 months ago

32 minutes

Little Local Conversations

Local Government Update, October 2025

Listen to the latest conversation with Tyler Cote, the Community Engagement Specialist for the City of Watertown, and Victoria Weichel from WCA-TV to discuss things that have happened during the past month in Watertown through key moments, success stories, and important numbers. Links: City Council - Sept 9th School Building Committee - Sept 17th Trash and Recycling Info and Calendar State of the City 2025 Video State of the City Slides Election Voting Locations 2025 Election Dates and Deadli...

2 months ago

35 minutes

Little Local Conversations

Watertown's Open: Small Business Support Group

This is a recording from the Watertown's Open live podcast series panel discussion recorded at Get Lively Health and Fitness Studio in Watertown in September 2025. The theme was Small Business Support Group and dived into the numerous ways small business owners in Watertown are collaborating and supporting each other. Take a listen to hear stories and tips for established business and ones just starting out. The panel included (left to right, top to bottom in episode image): Liz Padula, owner...

2 months ago

1 hour 22 minutes

Little Local Conversations

Episode 64: Michael Bobbitt (Mass Cultural Council)

Meet Michael Bobbitt! He's a Watertown resident and the Executive Director of the Mass Cultural Council along with being a distinguished theater artist in many ways himself (see long bio here). In this conversation we talk about how art saved him in his early years, his early successes from being the "best Hansel" to touring nationally to perform, his time in children's theater and building Adventure Theatre in the DC area from 15,000 patrons to 100,000 patrons, co-writing musicals with Bob M...

2 months ago

50 minutes

Little Local Conversations

Creative Chats With Guests Tim Merton and Jennifer Morsches of the Sarasa Chamber Music Ensemble (Building Local History Into Programming & Doing Outreach With Incarcerated Teens)

This is a recording from a series for the podcast at the Mosesian Center for the Arts called Creative Chats. This conversation was with Tim Merton and Jennifer Morsches, cellists and Artistic Directors of the Sarasa Chamber Music Ensemble. The topic revolved around building local history into programming and doing outreach with incarcerated teens. Find out more about Tim, Jennifer, and Sarasa at sarasamusic.org Support the show Head on over to www.littlelocalconversations.com to check out all...

2 months ago

45 minutes

Little Local Conversations

Watertown Arts & Culture Roundtable, September 2025

This is an arts and culture roundtable episode where we talk about things that have been going on in Watertown arts and culture recently, what's coming up, hidden gems, and more. The discussion was with Liz Helfer (City of Watertown, Public Arts and Culture Planner), Kristen Kenny (Chair of the Watertown Cultural District), and Jamie Kallestad (Communications and Design Specialist for the Watertown Free Public Library). Too many links to fit here! See all links here at littlelocalconversation...

2 months ago

26 minutes

Little Local Conversations

Episode 63: Barbara Callahan (Browne House/Historic New England)

Meet Barbara Callahan! She's the Metro Boston Regional Site Administrator for Historic New England which includes overseeing the oldest house in Watertown, the Browne House on Main Street. In this conversation we talk about Barbara's own journey in managing historical houses in the area, then we dive into some of the history of the Browne family and its earliest history, and the reconstruction of the house in the early 1900s as the first well-documented restoration project in America. Barbara...

3 months ago

38 minutes

Little Local Conversations

Local Government Update, September 2025

Listen to the latest conversation with Tyler Cote, the Community Engagement Specialist for the City of Watertown, and Victoria Weichel from WCA-TV to discuss things that have happened during the past month in Watertown through key moments, success stories, and important numbers. Links mentioned in episode: Walker Pond August 18th School Committee Meeting ADA Self Evaluation & Transition Plan August 12th City Council Meeting What's Up Watertown Newsletter Trash and Recycling Strike Updates...

3 months ago

32 minutes

Little Local Conversations

Episode 62: Fangxue Zheng (Energy Advocate for City of Watertown)

Meet Fangxue Zheng! She's the Energy Advocate for the City of Watertown. In this conversation we talk about her backpacking across China for research, her transition to sustainability work in the US, and then we get into some of the programs and outreach work she's done in Massachusetts to help people learn about energy efficiency programs and resources, and we talk about the events and programs that have started recently in Watertown and ones to look forward to in the future. Visit the city'...

3 months ago

27 minutes