Our American Stories
Our American Stories
Our American Stories tells stories that aren’t being told. Positive stories about generosity and courage, resilience and redemption, faith and love. Stories about the past and present. And stories about ordinary Americans who do extraordinary things each and every day. Stories from our listeners about their lives. And their history. In that pursuit, we hope we’ll be a place where listeners can ref…Follow the podcast:
Are Pro Wrestlers Really Athletes?
On this episode of Our American Stories, from the days of Hulk Hogan to modern WWE, wrestlers travel constantly, train relentlessly, and perform feats that demand strength, timing, and endurance. The spectacle may be designed for drama, but the toll on the body is no joke. Riley Evans, sportswriter…
10:48
The Friendship That Helped Me Leave the Sex Industry
On this episode of Our American Stories, as a young woman, Harmony Dust Grillo found herself pulled into the commercial sex industry, a world that promised independence but delivered something far more complicated. One friendship, however, changed everything. Here’s Harmony with the story. Support…
19:28
A 12-Year-Old’s Race to Meet the King of Rock and Roll
On this episode of Our American Stories, in the 1970s, spotting Elvis Presley on tour meant crowds, security, and long odds. For one twelve-year-old girl from Colorado, it meant something else entirely: an eight-hour car chase fueled by determination and the hope of catching a glimpse of the King o…
07:59
Why John Adams Defended the British Soldiers After the Boston Massacre
On this episode of Our American Stories, on March 5, 1770, tensions in colonial Boston erupted when British soldiers fired into a crowd, killing five men in what would soon be known as the Boston Massacre. The event became one of the most significant moments in the timeline of early American histor…
30:16
The Iowa Sailor Who Survived the Sinking of the USS Yorktown
On this episode of Our American Stories, listener and regular contributor Joy Neal Kidney, from Des Moines, Iowa, shares the story of her uncle, Donald Wilson, a man she knew simply as “Uncle Don,” the quiet fisherman from Washington State who sent home pictures of himself holding salmon. But behi…
07:59
The Richest Woman of the Klondike Gold Rush
On this episode of Our American Stories, The Klondike Gold Rush reshaped the Yukon and Alaskan frontiers almost overnight, drawing prospectors from around the world into one of the most unforgiving landscapes in North America. Among them was Belinda Mulrooney, a businesswoman who understood that th…
20:17
Caring for My Dying Husband Made Life Worth Living
On this episode of Our American Stories, when Tracy Grant’s husband became terminally ill, their lives shifted from planning for the future to paying close attention to the present. Over the next seven months, Tracy became her husband’s caregiver in every sense of the word. She managed medications …
09:58
Letting Your Daughter Grow Up
On this episode of Our American Stories, there is a moment when you realize the toys are still in the room, but they are no longer being played with. Our regular contributor, Stephen Rusiniak, remembers the years when his daughter’s world revolved around stuffed animals, bedtime stories, and the sm…
07:58
The Story of America: The Constitution Was Built for Disagreement [Ep. 10]
On this episode of Our American Stories, in the summer of 1787, delegates gathered in Philadelphia to draft what would become the Constitution of the United States. The Articles of Confederation had proven too weak, and the young nation faced a basic question: How should power be divided in a repub…
10:49
The Dentist in the Wheelchair, and the Road That Led There
On this episode of Our American Stories, on November 9, 1991, fifteen-year-old Hayden Perkins was driving home through the Mississippi Delta when a strong gust of wind pushed his SUV off the highway. The vehicle rolled, and he was thrown through the windshield, eventually leaving him paralyzed from…
27:27