On this week’s episode presented by Busey Bank, Josh has chance to sit down with Meredith Knopp, President and CEO of the St. Louis Area Foodbank. The Foodbank is responding to hunger in communities across 26 counties in Eastern Missouri and Southwestern Illinois by donating food to more than 500,000 people in the form of 40-50 million meals annually. Josh and Meredith talk about the logistics in serving such a broad audience with a relatively small team, the creation of and the ongoing use of core values in her leadership, and the upcoming 9/11 National Day of Service during which the Foodbank is hoping to pack 375,000 meals in a single day. Lots of for-profit and non-profit advice in this one. Let’s roll…

For more information, to donate or to volunteer, check out www.stlfoodbank.org.

On this week’s episode presented by Busey Bank, Josh gets the chance to sit with David Drier, the executive director of Pedal the Cause. Pedal provides critical funding for cancer research at Siteman Cancer Center and Siteman Kids at St. Louis Children’s Hospital through their annual cycling challenge. Since 2010, over $45 million has been raised – with 100% of those funds directly supporting 223 cancer research projects. This is an organization that is hugely important to Josh and his team at Companion. They’ve participated since the beginning – in a handful of events throughout the year and feeding 3,000-4,000 riders breakfast the morning of the event each September.

David and Josh talk about his long-term involvement in Pedal in honor of his daughter Victoria who passed away from brain cancer in 2018, staying relevant as a maturing organization and the process of strategic planning for the next 15 years. Lessons applicable to all kinds of companies. Let’s roll…

Please note: if you’d like to get involved with Pedal the Cause this September as a donor, rider or volunteer, please visit - https://pedalthecause.org/

On this week’s episode presented by Busey Bank, I have the chance to catch up with Trip Straub from Straub’s Fine Grocers, the 123-year-old specialty market here in St. Louis. Trip and I share very similar family upbringings and it’s nice to talk legacy with someone carrying the torch for the fourth generation of his family’s business. We talk about the changing landscape of the grocery industry, the lessons learned from his big expansion mistake in 2008 and bringing in the next generation of leadership. Good one today. Let’s roll…