Grow Forward Interviews
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Making Waves In Sustainable Seafood – An Interview With Daphne Mazarakis
LocalCoho brings sustainable salmon to the masses and tackles a protein frontier.
Embracing Change – A Speech by Will Stevens
One young Chicagoan describes the lessons he has learned from being a Murphy Scholar and a caddie at Sankaty Golf Club in Nantucket, MA.
An Interview with Elizabeth Shaw
Elizabeth Shaw sits down with Jim Murphy to discuss her experiences working with CICS and discusses her history working in the education field.
An Interview with Phyllis Lockett
Phyllis Lockett sits down with Jim Murphy to discuss how her background in business helped her gain knowledge in education and how to better the Chicago Public School system.
A Speech from Edgar Morales, DMSF Scholar
During the 30th annual Daniel Murphy Scholarship banquet, the attendees heard a powerful speech from scholar Edgar Morales. He discusses the difficulties of growing up in Cicero, discovering the DMSF scholarship, and how it has made an incredible impact on his life.
An Interview with Ellen Yiadom Hoover
Today we are meeting with Ellen Yiadom, a local Chicago Lawyer, who describes her educational path that lead her to her success. She touches on her transition to America, her educational endeavors, and her career goals beyond practicing law.
An Interview with Frank Holmes
This interview between Jim Murphy, President and Chairman of Grow Forward, and Frank Holmes, Warehouse Manager at Local Foods in Chicago, is an inspiring story of how one man succeeded in turning his life around – against the brutal odds of gang influences, the lure of illegal drugs and fast money, and repeated incarceration. With […]
An Interview with Rob Levitt
Rob Levitt has worked in the food industry for his whole career. While attending college at the University of Illinois and later at the Culinary Institute of America, he worked at top restaurants in Urbana and New York City. Once back in Chicago, he worked at a number of top restaurants and even opened his […]
Local Foods CEO Terry Olson
Terry Olson, CEO of Local Foods, speaks with Jim Murphy to learn more about the history of how he created a successful business. Terry touches on many of his previous work experiences that influenced his idea to open a farm-to-table food company. He goes on to discuss his upbringing and discusses the inspiration he found […]
Kevin Corsello of Pork and Mindy’s
Kevin Corsello, the founder of Pork and Mindy’s, meets with Jim Murphy to discuss the history of Kevin’s upbringing in Chicago and how he became an entrepreneur. They discuss the successes and failures Kevin faced along the way to where Pork and Mindy’s is today.
An Interview with Daphne Mazarakis
The Importance of Mindfulness, Confidence and Passion Daphne Mazarakis speaks with Jim Murphy at Local Foods to talk about mindfulness, women entrepreneurs, and growing sustainable fish. Now with Finger Lakes Fish (now LocalCoho), Daphne has accomplished much in what is still a very young career. Having worked as the Brand Director for Kraft Foods, and […]
An Interview with Father Stephen Katsourous
A Passion for Education This week I had the pleasure of sitting down with Loyola University’s very own Father Stephen Katsouros. Chicago has a rich history of multicultural and religious backgrounds, with one of the largest Catholic populations of any American city. With a third of Chicagoans self-identifying as Catholic even as religious affiliation has […]
Q&A with Loyola University Students
This week we chat with Environmental Science majors from Loyola University. We discuss about pollution, ethanol use, and sustainability.
An Interview with Nate Laurell
A Hunger for Sustainability In 2014, Nate Laurell was on Crain’s Chicago Business 40 Under 40 list, which recognizes the best of Chicago’s young businessmen and women. After college, Nate began his own software company. He soon moved into residential real estate, in which he found wild success. Nate’s interests eventually moved to environmental issues, […]
An Interview with Hersch Klaff
From Real Estate to Retail Hersch Klaff, founder of Klaff Realty, offers a wealth of real estate knowledge in this expansive interview. He tells us all about his life story, how he began buying and selling retail buildings, and the fascinating tale of how he almost changed Wrigley Field and the Chicago Cubs forever.
MightyVine CEO Gary Lazarski
Gary Lazarski of MightVine Tomatoes drops by Local Foods to talk about sustainability, the importance of nutrition, and growing hydroponic tomatoes.
An Interview with Mike Keiser
Setting a Course for Success Mike Keiser isn’t one to brag, so I’ll do it for him. With eleven golf courses under his belt, Fortune says he’s a main contender in the golf business. In fact, he never intended to become a career golf mogul, nor to end up in Chicago. His golfing ambitions pretty […]
Rob Baan – Looking at Health and Nutrition in a Different Way
Baan’s business has been leading the charge in the microgreen revolution, creating greenhouses for his vegetables in the Netherlands and within the US. Year round, they quickly and constantly ship out fresh veggies for chefs across the world.