The Culture Connect

In 1995, Jerry Blassingame was sentenced to prison for 20 years. Upon release 3 ½ years later, Blassingame founded “Soteria” (a Greek word meaning salvation) to serve those re-entering society after incarceration. In recognition of #SecondChanceMonth, #TheCultureConnect meets Pastor Jerry Blassingame of Greenville, South Carolina, founder and CEO of Soteria Community Development Corporation, a non-profit organization addressing the needs of formerly incarcerated people. The Soteria CDC re-entry program provides transitional housing, both men and women’s facilities, financial literacy, job training, multiple social enterprises, entrepreneurial opportunities, and discipleship. In 2023, Jerry was honored for his economic development work alongside former SC Governor Richard Riley by the United Way. Serving as pastor of Soteria Christian Fellowship, author of "Reclaimed", and family man, listen in to this episode as we go on a journey through Jerry’s early childhood in the urban Upstate, his rise as a drug kingpin, his conversion, and how his life was reclaimed.

#TheCultureConnect meets Mike Gibson! A topiarist and property artist, listen in as Mike talks about what a topiary is and what he does from day-to-day in beautifying landscapes across South Carolina.

#BlackHistoryMonth will bring us a burst of creativity! Tune in as we talk with poet and USC professor, Nikky Finney, about her upbringing in the South, and her journey as director of the Ernest A. Finney, Jr. Cultural Arts Center, named after her father, the South Carolina Supreme Court’s first African-American justice.

On the next episode of The Culture Connect Podcast, host Daniel James II talks to professor, civil rights historian, and African American scholar, Dr. Bobby Donaldson. Get ready for a discussion about Columbia SC 63: Our Story Matters, and his work in highlighting South Carolina’s role in the Civil Rights Movement.

Join us in celebrating Native American Heritage Month! The Culture Connect meets Chief Lamar Nelson, CEO of the Eastern Cherokee, Southern Iroquois and United Tribes of South Carolina. Appointed to serve in 2020, Chief Nelson succeeded Dr. William Goings, bringing over 40 years of archaeological experience and multigenerational indigenous heritage to the Eastern Cherokee, Southern Iroquois and United Tribes of South Carolina. Tune in as Chief Nelson and Host Daniel James II discuss the Chief’s Native American ancestry, his grandparents, his career as a tribal archaeologist, his election to Chief, and the prospect of a Native American Research Museum coming to South Carolina.

Let’s CELEBRATE Filipino Heritage in America! Meet Mrs. Elen Callahan, vice president of the Filipino American Association of Greater Columbia (FAAGC), South Carolina. Serving the Midlands for over 30 years, FAAGC has been a source of support, community, culture, and hope for Filipinos coming to South Carolina. Listen to this episode with Mrs. Elen as we discuss Filipino dance, traditions, her mother Priscilla’s food, hardships, opportunities, and the enormous contributions of Filipino people to South Carolina’s history & culture! Learn more about how you can celebrate #FilipinoAmericanHistoryMonth during October! #togetherwearesc #SouthCarolina This video is being provided as a convenience and for informational purposes only; it does not constitute an endorsement or an approval by the South Carolina Commission for Minority Affairs of any of the products, services or opinions of the corporation or organization or individual. The South Carolina Commission for Minority Affairs is not responsible for the accuracy or legality of the content nor of any referenced materials, sites, or links.

In part two of the first episode of The Culture Connect, host Daniel James II continues the discussion on the Commission's 30th Anniversary theme, "Building Bridges and Closing Gaps” with Hispanic Latino Affairs Program Manager Alex Tovar and African American Affairs Program Coordinator Ashley Owens. The Culture Connect podcast highlights South Carolina’s minority communities with the aim to improve their quality of life, highlight opportunities, and provide resources. Be sure to subscribe or follow us so that you can stay aware of new episodes. The Culture Connect is available on Facebook, YouTube, and Spotify. #thecultureconnectsc #BuildingBridges #closinggaps

A new season of The Culture Connect podcast with host Daniel James II will be released in August! The Culture Connect podcast, brought to you by the South Carolina Commission for Minority Affairs (CMA), highlights South Carolina’s minority communities with the aim of improving their quality of life, highlighting opportunities, and providing resources. Be sure to subscribe so that you can stay aware of new episodes. The Culture Connect is available on Facebook, YouTube, and Spotify.

On our next episode of The Culture Connect, we talk to Path2Redemption founder Lester Young. Young discusses his "path to redemption" and holistic approaches to assisting formerly incarcerated individuals. The Culture Connect podcast, brought to you by the South Carolina Commission for Minority Affairs (CMA), highlights South Carolina’s minority communities with the aim of improving their quality of life, highlighting opportunities, and providing resources. Be sure to subscribe so that you can stay aware of new episodes. The Culture Connect is available on Facebook, YouTube, and Spotify.

In recognition of #womenshistorymonth, we talked to Benedict College President Dr. Roslyn Clark Artis, the first woman to serve as president at Benedict College, about the impact and importance of Historically Black Colleges and Universities, academic advancements on campus, preparing students to get and create jobs, and more.

Dr. Artis has received more than 300 awards and recognitions, including being named Female HBCU President of the Year by HBCU Digest (2018), being named to Diverse Issues in Higher Education’s "Top 35 Leading Women in Higher Education" (2019), and being named "President of the Year" by Higher Ed Dive (2020).

Dr. Artis is a graduate of Vanderbilt University, where she earned a Doctorate in Higher Education Leadership and Policy. She also holds a Juris Doctorate from West Virginia University College of Law and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from West Virginia State University.

The Culture Connect podcast, brought to you by the South Carolina Commission for Minority Affairs (CMA), highlights South Carolina’s minority communities with the aim to improve their quality of life, highlight opportunities, and provide resources. Be sure to subscribe so that you can stay aware of new episodes. The Culture Connect is available on Facebook, YouTube, Anchor, and Spotify (https://anchor.fm/thecultureconnectsc).

Before 12 years of age, Cecil Williams’ camera had captured the petitioners in Clarendon County as they lit the torch of freedom. In 10th grade, he photographed Thurgood Marshall coming to Charleston for the Briggs case, and again one year later, speaking at Claflin. In 1955, he became the youngest-ever JET Magazine photographer. In 1960, upon being thrown out of a New York press conference, he became JFK’s favorite lensman.

In this episode of The Culture Connect, Daniel James II visits the Cecil Williams South Carolina Civil Rights Museum to talk to the founder and Civil Rights photographer about his life, his impact on the Civil Rights movement, the museum located in Orangeburg, SC, and more.

In our next episode of The Culture Connect podcast, we speak with Dr. Willie L. Todd Jr., President of Denmark Technical College. Dr. Todd discusses his career experience, his passion for young people, his legacy, and more with host Daniel James II.   Dr. Todd serves as Denmark Technical College’s 9th president, having assumed the helm of the institution on January 13, 2020. Dr. Todd's extensive record in higher education includes Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs at Wiley College (Marshall, Tx); Vice Provost  and Associate Vice Provost at Norfolk State University (Norfolk, Va.); and adjunct instructor at Georgia State University at Perimeter College (Decatur, Ga.). During his tenure at Clark Atlanta University (Atlanta, Ga.), he served as Executive Director of Student Affairs, Director of Leadership and Student Development, Undergraduate Program Coordinator, and faculty member.  Dr. Todd was named the 2021 recipient of the “Shining Star Award” from the South Carolina Commission for Minority Affairs and the 2022 CEO of the Year by the South Carolina Association of Technical College Commissioners.  The Culture Connect podcast, brought to you by the South Carolina Commission for Minority Affairs (CMA), highlights South Carolina’s minority communities with the aim to improve their quality of life, highlight opportunities, and provide resources. Be sure to subscribe so that you can stay aware of new episodes. The Culture Connect is available on Facebook, YouTube, Anchor and Spotify (https://anchor.fm/thecultureconnectsc).

In this episode of The Culture Connect podcast, we speak with Dr. Wenonah Haire, Tribal Historic Preservation Officer and Executive Director of the Catawba Cultural Preservation Project with the Catawba Nation. Haire received the 2022 Governor's Award for Historic Preservation.  The Culture Connect podcast, brought to you by the South Carolina Commission for Minority Affairs (CMA), highlights South Carolina’s minority communities with the aim to improve their quality of life, highlight opportunities, and provide resources. Be sure to subscribe so that you can stay aware of new episodes. The Culture Connect is available on Facebook, YouTube, Anchor and Spotify (https://anchor.fm/thecultureconnectsc).

In our next episode of The Culture Connect podcast, we speak with Dr. Louis Whitesides, Vice President and Executive Director of SC State 1890 Research & Extension. Dr. Whitesides discusses the impact of the 1890 Research & Extension program on the community, the program's new facility opening in Charleston and technological advancements in agriculture.  

The Culture Connect podcast, brought to you by the South Carolina Commission for Minority Affairs (CMA), highlights South Carolina’s minority communities with the aim to improve their quality of life, highlight opportunities, and provide resources. Be sure to subscribe so that you can stay aware of new episodes. The Culture Connect is available on Facebook, YouTube, Anchor and Spotify (https://anchor.fm/thecultureconnectsc).

In this episode, we speak with Mrs. Evelyn Lugo, President and Founder of the South Carolina Hispanic Chamber of Commerce. Lugo came from Puerto Rico along with her husband, that Greenville, South Carolina would be the perfect place to continue raising their two sons, college and high school students at that time.  It was shortly after she started working for a local credit card processing company that she found many Hispanic business owners experiencing problems interacting and doing business with the rest of the business community. Looking for ways to help the business community, Mrs. Lugo found that there was no Hispanic Chamber in South Carolina and worked to create the first Hispanic chamber in the state. The Culture Connect podcast, brought to you by the South Carolina Commission for Minority Affairs (CMA), highlights South Carolina’s minority communities with the aim to improve their quality of life, highlight opportunities, and provide resources. 

The Culture Connect Podcast highlights South Carolina’s minority communities, opportunities and resources. From the Blue Ridge mountains to the foothills, the Piedmont to the Sandhills, the swamps of the Pee Dee to the coastal shores of the Lowcountry “The Culture Connect” brings forward the voices of the forgotten, stories of the unheard, and the realities of the often-marginalized residents of the Palmetto State.

Over a million South Carolinians live in food deserts, which are defined as places that lack access to fresh, healthy foods. In this episode, we speak with Mr. Tim Waters' about his journey to build his store in a food desert in downtown Florence to give underserved families a place to shop for healthy food.  The Culture Connect podcast, brought to you by the South Carolina Commission for Minority Affairs (CMA), highlights South Carolina’s minority communities with the aim to improve their quality of life, highlight opportunities, and provide resources.

Our first guest on The Culture Connect podcast is Executive Director Dr. Delores Dacosta. Dacosta is a native of Awendaw, SC. She has more than 35 years in public service which includes 20 years of experience in federal policies and regulations. Dacosta was Chief of Staff to former Congressman Henry Brown, Jr. and Regional Director to U.S. Senator Tim Scott. The Culture Connect podcast, brought to you by the South Carolina Commission for Minority Affairs (CMA), highlights South Carolina’s minority communities with the aim to improve their quality of life, highlight opportunities, and provide resources.