<![CDATA[Town Talks Live!]]>Joan VonDras is a retired educator with 30 years of experience in public education and a former Democratic candidate for Congress in Missouri’s 2nd Congressional District. In the 2026 Democratic primary, she received nearly 37,000 votes and finished just 1,211 votes short of the nomination.


Throughout her career in education, Joan secured and implemented more than $250,000 in grants, led professional development in two local school districts, and taught at the university level, including courses in children’s literature, language arts curriculum, and qualitative and quantitative research.


Her professional work has long centered on how people learn, communicate, and participate in their communities. She has led workshops on democracy in education, democratic classrooms, student-led discussion, philosophy, and literature-based curriculum.

Her experience in the classroom, higher education, and on the campaign trail now comes together in Town Talks Live. With a particular interest in the founding of the United States, the Constitution, and American democracy, Joan brings together people and ideas for thoughtful conversations about the issues shaping our communities and our country.


Through conversations about people, policy, and publications, Town Talks Live creates a place to listen, learn, ask questions, and engage with the ideas shaping the conversation. RSSVERIFY

]]>https://towntalks.live/Riverside.fm (https://riverside.com)Thu, 15 Oct 2026 20:34:16 GMTThu, 10 Sep 2026 14:22:15 GMT60Town Talks Live!<p>Joan VonDras is a retired educator with 30 years of experience in public education and a former Democratic candidate for Congress in Missouri’s 2nd Congressional District. In the 2026 Democratic primary, she received nearly 37,000 votes and finished just 1,211 votes short of the nomination.</p><p><br /></p><p>Throughout her career in education, Joan secured and implemented more than $250,000 in grants, led professional development in two local school districts, and taught at the university level, including courses in children’s literature, language arts curriculum, and qualitative and quantitative research.</p><p><br /></p><p>Her professional work has long centered on how people learn, communicate, and participate in their communities. She has led workshops on democracy in education, democratic classrooms, student-led discussion, philosophy, and literature-based curriculum.</p><p>Her experience in the classroom, higher education, and on the campaign trail now comes together in <b><strong>Town Talks Live</strong></b>. With a particular interest in the founding of the United States, the Constitution, and American democracy, Joan brings together people and ideas for thoughtful conversations about the issues shaping our communities and our country.</p><p><br /></p><p>Through conversations about <b><strong>people, policy, and publications</strong></b>, Town Talks Live creates a place to listen, learn, ask questions, and engage with the ideas shaping the conversation. <b><strong>RSSVERIFY</strong></b></p>episodicTown Talks Live!mapidgeon@gmail.comno<![CDATA[Jennifer Trickey on Her Campaign for House District 88 and Protecting the Citizen Initiative]]>Joan sits down with Jennifer Trickey, candidate for Missouri House District 88, which includes parts of Fenton, Ellisville, and Eureka.

Jennifer shares what motivated her to run for office, including her concerns about efforts to restrict Missouri’s citizen initiative process and what those changes could mean for voters’ ability to have a direct voice in state government. She also discusses her background, her decision to become a candidate, and the issues she is hearing about from people across the district.

It’s a conversation about representation, citizen participation, and why Jennifer believes this is the right time to step forward and serve.

]]>c4eeb702-cda3-4460-bf58-a8f4261eeadeThu, 17 Sep 2026 19:00:00 GMT<p>Joan sits down with Jennifer Trickey, candidate for Missouri House District 88, which includes parts of Fenton, Ellisville, and Eureka.</p><p>Jennifer shares what motivated her to run for office, including her concerns about efforts to restrict Missouri’s citizen initiative process and what those changes could mean for voters’ ability to have a direct voice in state government. She also discusses her background, her decision to become a candidate, and the issues she is hearing about from people across the district.</p><p></p><p>It’s a conversation about representation, citizen participation, and why Jennifer believes this is the right time to step forward and serve.</p>no00:16:1313Jennifer Trickey on Her Campaign for House District 88 and Protecting the Citizen Initiativefull<![CDATA[Socialism, Capitalism & the Democratic Party: A Conversation with Blake Ashby]]>Joan VonDras sits down with author Blake Ashby to discuss his new book, Socialism and the Democratic Party: The Case for a Return to Moderated Capitalism. They explore the Democratic Party’s relationship with capitalism, the rise of democratic socialism, and Ashby’s argument for a more balanced economic approach that promotes opportunity while addressing inequality.

It’s a timely conversation about economics, political identity, and the direction of the Democratic Party.

]]>d23a2cf2-6c67-4db5-a3e5-b3e5e80c349fTue, 15 Sep 2026 21:15:00 GMT<p>Joan VonDras sits down with author Blake Ashby to discuss his new book, <i>Socialism and the Democratic Party: The Case for a Return to Moderated Capitalism</i>. They explore the Democratic Party’s relationship with capitalism, the rise of democratic socialism, and Ashby’s argument for a more balanced economic approach that promotes opportunity while addressing inequality.</p><p></p><p>It’s a timely conversation about economics, political identity, and the direction of the Democratic Party.</p>no00:30:0912Socialism, Capitalism & the Democratic Party: A Conversation with Blake Ashbyfull<![CDATA[Meet Meredith Sumenek Candidate for State Representative in District 95]]>Today, I’m talking with someone who has taken her concerns about her community and turned them into action.

Meredith Sumenek is a small-business owner, longtime community advocate, and president of the Tesson Ferry Democratic Organization. She spent more than 20 years working in finance, and she credits her family, particularly her grandfather, a Pennsylvania coal miner, with teaching her early on about standing up for working people and speaking out when something isn’t right.

Now, Meredith is taking that experience to the campaign trail as the Democratic candidate for Missouri’s 95th House District in South St. Louis County.

We’re going to talk about what brought her into politics, why she decided to run, the issues she’s hearing about from voters, and what she believes needs to change in Jefferson City.

Meredith, welcome to Town Talks Live.

]]>fcf31544-2e70-425c-839c-6d6b03bd2d4dThu, 10 Sep 2026 20:57:31 GMT<p>Today, I’m talking with someone who has taken her concerns about her community and turned them into action.</p><p></p><p>Meredith Sumenek is a small-business owner, longtime community advocate, and president of the Tesson Ferry Democratic Organization. She spent more than 20 years working in finance, and she credits her family, particularly her grandfather, a Pennsylvania coal miner, with teaching her early on about standing up for working people and speaking out when something isn’t right.</p><p></p><p>Now, Meredith is taking that experience to the campaign trail as the Democratic candidate for Missouri’s 95th House District in South St. Louis County.</p><p></p><p>We’re going to talk about what brought her into politics, why she decided to run, the issues she’s hearing about from voters, and what she believes needs to change in Jefferson City.</p><p></p><p>Meredith, welcome to Town Talks Live.</p>no00:23:53Meet Meredith Sumenek Candidate for State Representative in District 95full