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These Are Your Neighbors

These Are Your Neighbors

By: Bismarck Human Relations Committee
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About this listen

 These Are Your Neighbors is a podcast hosted by Thea Jorgensen and Sargianna Wutzke who are members of the City of Bismarck’s Human Relations Committee. Through conversations with diverse change-makers in the community, the podcast hopes to strengthen inclusivity amongst the Bismarck community, by encouraging others to get to know their neighbor.Copyright Dakota Media Access Politics & Government Social Sciences
Episodes
  • TAYN Ep. 68 - Kate Herzog

    TAYN Ep. 68 - Kate Herzog
    Nov 4 2025
    Our guest today is Kate Herzog. Kate grew up in Mandan, ND and graduated high school there. She then graduated from the University of North Dakota with honors, earning a BA in Communications while working at the Grand Forks Herald and living in Downtown Grand Forks. She moved back to the Bismarck area and worked for the Bismarck Tribune before volunteering and then working for the Downtown Business Association starting in 2010.
    From there she became the Chief Operating Officer, as well as the Founder and President of the Downtown Bismarck Community Foundation 501c3 development arm, and President and Founder of the North Dakota Downtown Coalition. She currently sits on numerous public and private committees and boards throughout the Bismarck and North Dakota region. She coaches high school girls golf and teaches junior golf lessons through her work on the DJGA board.Her passion is creating and supporting great communities. Over her time working in Downtown Development, Bismarck has seen a turnaround in Downtown property values (up 150M), jobs, businesses, walkability, livability and housing. In her spare time, she loves to golf, coach, drink too much coffee and spend time with her family and friends. She is revitalizing her small 1930s cottage home and enjoys bringing it to life.
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    35 mins
  • TAYN Ep. 66 - Cassie Staiger

    TAYN Ep. 66 - Cassie Staiger
    Oct 7 2025
    Cassie Steiger is the owner of Curated Travel Co., a travel agency she launched in 2014 to offer a more personalized, concierge-style approach to travel planning. What began with destination weddings and honeymoons has grown into custom European getaways, African adventures, cruises, and warm-weather escapes—always with the same high-touch service at its core.Born and raised in North Dakota, Cassie values the small-town pace of life but has always felt the pull to explore the world—and help others do the same.

    In 2021, she was named North Dakota Women’s Entrepreneur of the Year for her innovative response to the pandemic, launching a training program to empower other travel advisors. Today, she continues mentoring advisors while planning unforgettable trips for her clients.Now entering a new season of motherhood with one daughter off to college, Cassie is embracing the change with gratitude, intention, and a few more stamps in her passport. When she’s not working or traveling with her partner Brad, she’s cheering on her youngest daughter Avery in sports, catching up over coffee, visiting her granddaughter or practicing yoga—next stop: Mexico!
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    30 mins
  • TAYN Ep. 65 - Jason Grueneich

    TAYN Ep. 65 - Jason Grueneich
    Sep 25 2025
    Jason Grueneich is fighting for HIV advocacy and recovery support in North Dakota. Drawing on his experience as an HIV-positive man who has experienced homelessness and addiction, he has helped launch and lead transformative initiatives: North Dakota’s HIV Peer Navigation Program, Bismarck’s first LGBTQ+ recovery group and the state’s first nonprofit dedicated to people living with HIV—Shine Bright & Live.

    Jason leads with vulnerability, wisdom and a strong belief in people’s capacity to heal. He is known for his magnetic presence, charismatic communication and ability to bring people together, even in tense situations. He chairs the North Dakota HIV Advisory Board, has shaped public policy around LGBTQ+ inclusion and HIV awareness and built coalitions that include doctors, police departments, libraries and faith leaders. He knows what it’s like to feel hopeless—and what it takes to walk through fire and emerge as a force for others.

    With his Bush Fellowship grant, Jason will focus on personal healing as a foundation for his growth as a leader, deepen his nonprofit leadership skills and develop a long-term vision for destigmatizing HIV in rural America.
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    33 mins
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