Listen to Your Mother – Indy

Laura Steele’s raspy voice hits airwaves across the country on Rock Radio stations, in commercials, and in voiceovers, but her heart has always been in her home state of Indiana. Laura is a voice for the Indianapolis Motor Speedway Radio Network and is the emcee for Colts pre game events. Paving the way as the first female voice on the public address team at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, she’s now well-known for her work with WTHR during the month of May as an Indy 500 correspondent. She is a proud Pike High School grad and has become an Indianapolis celebrity who works tirelessly to help countless local charities promote their missions. She remains true to her roots. In 2010, Laura was honored as Alumni of the Year at Columbia College Chicago, and in 2018 was inducted into the Pike High School Hall of Fame. Laura shares her journey daily, connecting with her listeners on all social media platforms.

Tracey was born and raised in Indianapolis. Studied Speech and Theatre at Tennessee State University. After college, she went to Brooklyn, NY, where she met Andre, her husband of 39 years. Tracey has 4 children, three of whom were raised in Brooklyn, Joshua, Shaun, and Monique, all successful adults, and her youngest, Briana a great H.S. student. Tracey has a background in acting and historical interpretation. She co-developed a theatrical team portraying historical women of color. While living in Brooklyn, Tracey Produced and Directed a weekly television show for the Brooklyn Community Access Station (BCAT). The show “Around Our Way” focused on the happenings in Brooklyn’s Historical Fort Greene section. Her love of telling stories started with her children, inspired by her joy of reading and dedication to sharing family history. Storytelling has become her passion. “It’s a pure joy to see and hear the audience’s reaction when you have captured their attention”. She looks forward to every opportunity to share stories with others.

Born and raised in Indianapolis and Carmel, as well as a few teenage years in the suburbs of Chicago, Tom grew up playing and watching sports, His grandfather was a former professional baseball player and coach, and his father had gained some semi-professional status after playing multiple sports under the great Tony Hinkle. Tom enjoyed baseball, basketball, football, and wrestling with some occasional swings of the golf clubs. After performing in a few plays during high school and college, Tom returned to the stage in 2016 with the Mud Creek Players, portraying a Policeman in The Sensuous Senator. With a variety of roles in several local community theatres, Tom now serves on the board of directors at Mud Creek. The love of sports has not diminished, though currently, it is strictly as a spectator. A local Real Estate Broker, Tom, and Barb, now married 32 years, live in Broad Ripple. They have 3 grown sons, 2 cats, 1 chicken, and 2 granddogs. Listen To Your Mother is an opportunity to tell a story about motherhood. I am humbled to participate and tell you what motherhood means to me.

Lisa is a suburban Mom who uses poetry to express her frustrations with the world. With topics ranging from politics to parenting, no one is spared her ire. Luckily for the listener, the madder she gets, the funnier it is. Dr. Seuss heavily influences her work, with wordplay sandwiched between rhythm and rhyme. Her unexpected voice and impassioned performance offer a fun and fresh perspective on the issues we all face. This is her second appearance at Listen to Your Mother. Lately, at the urging of Haley Lawrence, Lisa Devon has been branching out into storytelling, using her poems and jokes to weave a good yarn. Her harrowing journey through motherhood is littered with complicated stories and cautionary tales. Now that the kids are almost all out of the house, Lisa Devon can focus on finding her storytelling voice. Look for Lisa, performing her original poetry or telling stories you won’t believe are true, at a venue nearby. You will understand why she is called a “Spoken Word Artist” and a “Motivational Poet.”

After nearly 9 years in the classroom, Samantha decided to step back from teaching to focus on herself and her family. She’s happily married to her college sweetheart (Boiler up!) and is a stay-at-home mother to her daughter Joanna. Together, they have two lovably chaotic dogs, Thor and Jane.

Currently, she is working towards her master’s degree in Curriculum and Instruction. She also works part-time for Storytelling Arts of Indiana, to which she attributes this newfound hobby. While she now enjoys storytelling, writing has always been her niche, so writing for Indianapolis Moms Blog has been a great outlet since entering motherhood. In her spare time, she enjoys thrifting, running, and napping.

While this is her first live performance since she single-handedly ruined a production of Stuart Little in 7th grade, Samantha is excited to get back on stage and share her thoughts with an audience!

Leondra is elated to join this year’s cast of Indy’s Listen To Your Mother production. She is an educator, published researcher, activist for student rights, storyteller, and a dabbler in most things creative. She currently serves on the board of Storytelling Arts of Indiana. She was raised in Indianapolis but is an avid globetrotter. Her love of travel has taken her across six of the seven continents. As soon as she can conquer her disdain for cold weather, she will round out the seventh and make it to Antarctica. Leondra holds a BA in Broadcast Mass Communication from Bennett College for Women, a MA in Educational Leadership from Ball State University, an ABD in Adult, Community, and Higher Education from Ball State University, and a Ph.D. in Theology from NC Metropolitan College of Theology. As an educational researcher, she has been invited to present her work at international conferences at Harvard School of Medicine, Hawaii, and Jamaica. She was both a presenter and Keynote Speak in Balikesir, Turkey. One of the most important lessons her mother taught her is “the time to live out your dreams is every second you are awake“. She tries to live up to that daily.

Manny is a highly experienced and accomplished hospitality professional with over 10 years of experience at Nordstrom. She is currently the General Manager of the Bistro Restaurant and Coffee division in Indianapolis, Indiana. He was born in Mexico and raised in South Texas. She is passionate about traveling and has visited many European and Latin American countries. He also enjoys great food and excellent red wine and loves to spend time with friends and family. Manny is a fitness and nutrition enthusiast and makes sure to stay active in her free time. He also enjoys watching movies and is always up for a good laugh.

Barb grew up in Ann Arbor, Michigan, and graduated from the University of Michigan with a degree in music. She has taught private violin and piano lessons for almost fifty years. Barb and her husband have seven adult children. The oldest was educated in the public schools and Barb homeschooled the younger six for twenty-five years. Last summer, Barb drove more than 8,000 miles and completed going to all fifty states. She slept in her car in Walmart parking lots and side streets and enjoyed the freedom of deciding each day where to go next. The highlight of her trip was seeing the ever-changing beauty and diversity of the USA. Barb’s favorite things to do include taking grandchildren to the car wash, buying the grandchildren candy, riding her recumbent bicycle, and hiking. She also loves the challenge of flipping the caber as a competitor at the Scottish Highland Games. Barb’s Scottish heritage comes from her mother.

An educator, storyteller, and self-proclaimed “aspiring alchemist.” She believes in the magical power of words used to heal, love, and build community. The teacher by trade, and an inquisitive storyteller by nature, draws inspiration from her village of family, friends, and sisters of all kinds to capture the beauty of black life and womanist principles. The Indianapolis native is a proud alumna of DePauw University, where she studied Political Science and Africana Studies and received a Master of Arts in Teaching from Marian University. Her work can be found on her website peacelovendnika.wordpress.com.

Scott sold his first story when he was just 16 years old. That’s when he got hooked on storytelling. Right out of college, he got a job teaching engineers and scientists how to tell stories about the cool stuff they were doing. For the last 25 years, he’s been teaching at Purdue University as a Technology Leadership and Innovation professor. He’s still helping engineers and scientists how to tell stories about the really cool stuff. He is co-founder and Chief Social Scientist of Hutcheson Associates, where he works with organizations like NASA, research hospitals, and tech companies. Scott has worked with over 4,000 organizational and community leaders from 143 different countries. He continues to tell stories in books, magazines, on TV, and to live audiences. One of his books became a best seller. Two stories he produced for WFYI Public Television garnered Emmy nominations. His TED Talk on the Science of Prospection has been viewed by over 1.3 million people on YouTube. Life has taken Scott to all 50 states and most parts of the world. Scott is married to Lisa Hutcheson, and they have two young-adult sons, Henry and Oliver. They live in a 1932 Tudor Revival home in Ulen, Indiana.

Yalonda Brown is committed to empowering others through her mission of fully embracing her divine purpose by improving the lives of others. She is a seasoned professional whose drive and self-determination have resulted in a myriad of accomplishments in both the private and public sectors. Yalonda currently serves as the President of Diversity Initiatives for Engage Mentoring, where she leads the national expansion of diversity-focused mentoring and leadership programs for companies, universities, and nonprofits. She believes fervently that access to meaningful connections is a key component to driving inclusive cultures.

Jen is delighted to be joining the 2023 cast of Listen to Your Mother. Jen received her BA from St. Mary’s College, where she was awarded the Laurie A. Lesniewski Award for Creative Writing, and her MFA in Creative Writing from Chatham University, where she received Honorable Recognition for her thesis, Surviving Wells, and Other Stories Revised for Children by God’s Editorial Staff. She has been published in The Dos Passos Review and as a columnist for IN Touch with The Indianapolis Star. Her short story “Anatomy of a Visitation” won the University of Arizona’s Astrobiology and the Sacred Fiction contest. Jen’s previous professional experience includes working as an editor, and before her oldest was born, Jen taught Theology and English at Bishop Chatard High School. Prior storytelling experience includes monthly story slams with Storytelling Arts of Indiana. Jen is the proud mama of two rambunctious boys and saints in the making and the wife of the best husband in the world (Danny). Most days, she loves her role as a stay-at-home mom.

We are so grateful to Physique 57, A Piece of Cake, Crossroads Imprints, Cretia Cakes, DeBrand Fine Chocolates Indianapolis, The Dirt Bar, Where Pigs Fly and Such, Storytelling Arts of Indiana, Peace Water Winery, Mary Kay, Monterey Coastal Cuisine, Studio 49, TantalEyes Lash & Brow Studio, Carmel Nail Bar, and Rave Family Yoga for their generous sponsorship of Listen To Your Mother – Indy.

We would also like to thank Barry Roberts (Videographer), Geneva Taylor – Tellis Executive Search, Lisa Smith – Jo Malone Nordstrom, Alicia Hiller – Mary Kay Cosmetics, Stephen Horton, and Ginger Clarmohr.

We are pleased to announce that the proceeds from this event went to Soroptimist International of Indianapolis Metro. Soroptimist is an organization that is dedicated to empowering women and girls, and we believe that their work is essential.