Powerful Ladies® Podcast

Renee Colvert is a writer, a runner, a podcast panelist, and has one of the best jobs in LA. She’s the co-creator and one of the hosts on the Can I Pet Your Dog Podcast, a podcast dedicated to all things dogs. Awarded “Podcasts that Make you Happy” by Oprah Magazine as well as Pop Culture Happy Hour from NPR, Can I Pet Your Dog started in 2015 with Lin Manuel Miranda of Hamilton fame as their first guest. Originally from Colorado Springs, Colorado, Renee traveled between LA and NYC to pursue her passion in Musical Theater.  On this episode she shares her story of chasing what brings her joy, including being mom to dog Tugboat, and how pursuing what she’s interested in has brought her through many career phases. We discuss how to know what your passion is, how to find your circle in the competitive landscapes of Broadway and Hollywood, and the unpredictability of where life will take you.

Ryann Gaspara is the badass entrepreneur owner of Gaspara Flora, what started as custom wedding gifting company and transformed into a custom corporate gifting company and has expanded again to include bespoke hotel luxury amenities.  She’s a fierce supporter of women entrepreneurs and that creating something that matters for you, your customers and the end consumer is what really matters.  Ryann and I met through our great friend Ally Winn, when we all ran the Southern California Ragnar race together. Since then thanks to social media and running the race again the next year, we’ve become part of each others boss lady cheer team.  She’s super inspiring, a loyal friend, and really authentic on both this episode and on social media about the great and the ugly of being an entrepreneur and running a small business. She’s a living, breathing Powerful Lady.On this episode she shares her story from starting on the safe path to making the leap to living big & boldly as her own boss. We discuss how to know when it’s the right time to start, how to take care of yourself along the way, what to do when you’re not feeling so powerful and how the universe helps you along the way.  

Bry Zaragoza is a mobility and movement specialist, certified yoga teacher, personal trainer and dancer from Long Beach, California. She began dancing at age two, teaching dance classes at 16, danced internationally on tour with the Celtic Tiger by Michael Flatley show, and found her dance home in the RhetOracle Dance Company. After years of sacrificing her body for her love of dance and searching for a way to repair herself, Bry went down the path of personal training to discover her new passion for guiding people to find balance in their bodies and their life.  On this episode she talks about what it was like to be a professional dancer, how she found her way into personal training, and how her views of what you can do with your body and how to take care of it have evolved.

Amber Amos is the owner and chef of Westside Taco. Her carnitas tacos took 2nd place at the LA Weekly’s Tacolandia and was voted 3rd best restaurant in Bend just months after opening up shop Oregon and not even being located in Bend! When not creating ridiculously delicious tacos such as the Blueberry Brisket Tacos, she’s a great mom of two boys and spending as much time outside in Central Oregon’s nature as possible.  On this episode she share the journey that took her from working at a ski lift in June Mountain to working at the Oscars with Wolfgang Puck to opening up West Side Taco Co. She also shares how she makes it through the tough times in life and why showing her sons what bravery looks like is what matters most.

Amber Amos is the owner and chef of Westside Taco. Her carnitas tacos took 2nd place at the LA Weekly’s Tacolandia and was voted 3rd best restaurant in Bend just months after opening up shop Oregon and not even being located in Bend! When not creating ridiculously delicious tacos such as the Blueberry Brisket Tacos, she’s a great mom of two boys and spending as much time outside in Central Oregon’s nature as possible.  On this episode she share the journey that took her from working at a ski lift in June Mountain to working at the Oscars with Wolfgang Puck to opening up West Side Taco Co. She also shares how she makes it through the tough times in life and why showing her sons what bravery looks like is what matters most.

Ali Owens is a girl you want in your corner. She’s a motivational speaker, she’s a writer and she’s the author of Bad Fat Person: A reflection on plus size bodies in a cookie-cutter culture.  On top of all of that she’s an empowerment strategist, on a mission to transform women’s lives.  And she knows what what she’s talking about, she’s gone through it as a survivor of domestic abuse and borderline eating disorder. On this episode she shares how she left the abusive relationship, how she found her voice, and why it’s so important for her to be showing other women that the life they dream of is possible.

Production, Audio Engineering, & Editing by Jordan Duffy

Music by Joakim Karud @joakimkarudmusic

Ali Owens is a girl you want in your corner. She’s a motivational speaker, she’s a writer and she’s the author of Bad Fat Person: A reflection on plus size bodies in a cookie-cutter culture.  On top of all of that she’s an empowerment strategist, on a mission to transform women’s lives.  And she knows what what she’s talking about, she’s gone through it as a survivor of domestic abuse and borderline eating disorder. On this episode she shares how she left the abusive relationship, how she found her voice, and why it’s so important for her to be showing other women that the life they dream of is possible.

Production, Audio Engineering, & Editing by Jordan Duffy

Music by Joakim Karud @joakimkarudmusic

Elizabeth McGarry is the Creative Director for York Athletics Mfg. Her career has been built in the high fashion and sportswear world where she’s been a designer & creative for brands such as Veronique Branquinho, Jansen Sports, Nike, Reebok, New Balance, Supra, and many more. She was featured as a panelist on the first ever Her By Bodega co-hosted by Nike this past December, a night of hearing the perspectives of women in streetwear.  She launched her own Creative Agency, McGarry & Sons when she became pregnant with her second son and it’s been the go-to agency for reinventing your brand or taking it to the next level ever since. York Athletics has been a client of McGarry and Sons since its inception. Elizabeth decided at the end of last year to at least temporarily close up shop at McGarry & Sons to join her husband who’s the CEO and work at York, full time. The idea being that with the two of them 100% focusing on York they can better balance life and being game changes in the footwear world. I have no doubts about that knowing the two of them. In this episode she shares about her journey from suburban Oregon to high fashion in Europe to queen of Sportswear Design. She also shares about her brave decision to become a mother in her early twenties, what it’s like to close her first company to become a partner with her husband, the importance of raising two boys in a Girl-Power world, and what’s it like to now be a mentor in the industry calls home.

Production, Audio Engineering, & Editing by Jordan Duffy

Music by Joakim Karud @joakimkarudmusic

Elizabeth McGarry is the Creative Director for York Athletics Mfg. Her career has been built in the high fashion and sportswear world where she’s been a designer & creative for brands such as Veronique Branquinho, Jansen Sports, Nike, Reebok, New Balance, Supra, and many more. She was featured as a panelist on the first ever Her By Bodega co-hosted by Nike this past December, a night of hearing the perspectives of women in streetwear.  She launched her own Creative Agency, McGarry & Sons when she became pregnant with her second son and it’s been the go-to agency for reinventing your brand or taking it to the next level ever since. York Athletics has been a client of McGarry and Sons since its inception. Elizabeth decided at the end of last year to at least temporarily close up shop at McGarry & Sons to join her husband who’s the CEO and work at York, full time. The idea being that with the two of them 100% focusing on York they can better balance life and being game changes in the footwear world. I have no doubts about that knowing the two of them. In this episode she shares about her journey from suburban Oregon to high fashion in Europe to queen of Sportswear Design. She also shares about her brave decision to become a mother in her early twenties, what it’s like to close her first company to become a partner with her husband, the importance of raising two boys in a Girl-Power world, and what’s it like to now be a mentor in the industry calls home.

Production, Audio Engineering, & Editing by Jordan Duffy

Music by Joakim Karud @joakimkarudmusic

Coming soon! Powerful Ladies founder and podcast host, Kara Duffy, sits down with the awesome and the up-to-something - entrepreneurs, creatives, athletes, chefs, authors, scientists, adventurers, and more - to share their story.  You’re goal is to live your best life. Reality is it's hard to figure out what that even means, how to start and once you do start what's next?  This podcast is here to help you figure that out by sharing with you the stories of people, mostly women, who have been there and are in action right now on making & living their awesome life.  Inspirational stories.  The good, the bad and the ugly of real life and how to keep rising. Practical tips & motivation for you to be in action creating your dream life. Be entertained. Be inspired. Be awesome & up-to-something you love. 

Production, Audio Engineering, & Editing by Jordan Duffy

Music by Joakim Karud @joakimkarudmusic