233: One From the Heart: 4 Women Leading Community Change
The Found Podcast with Molly Knuth
Release Date: 12/23/2025
The Found Podcast with Molly Knuth
If you’ve been here for years or you’re only a handful of episodes in... this one is for you. After recently stepping back into the guest seat on another podcast, I realized it had been a while since I reintroduced herself here on The Found Podcast. So today, I'm doing just that. But not with a résumé. Not with a tidy bio. With the real story. In this episode, I walk through the winding, nonlinear path from waitress to teacher, stay-at-home mom to accidental entrepreneur, agency owner to Managing Director of The Restoration Project. I share the inflection points, the burnout, the public...
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Some people build businesses. Some people follow a calling. And sometimes… those two things become the very same path. This week on The Found Podcast with Molly Knuth, I sit down with fellow Iowan and “Molly Squared” guest Molly Schreiber, founder of and the nonprofit . What started as a young teacher’s love of education became something much deeper after unimaginable loss. After losing her first husband in a car accident at age 30 while raising three children under three, Molly found herself returning to one unexpected anchor: yoga. That quiet hour at the YMCA became the lifeline...
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This one is a little raw. A little unpolished. And very real. After batch-recording months of episodes and stepping into a new season of leadership, I sat down at the mic for the first time this year and realized something: The most helpful thing I could share right now isn’t a strategy or framework. It’s the truth. Because even 10 years into business… even 200+ podcast episodes later… even as Managing Director of The Restoration Project… I’m still relearning lessons I swore I already knew. In this solo episode, I’m walking you through five things I’m honestly a little...
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In this final episode of The Found Podcast’s Ages & Stages Series, I sit down with Nancy Lynk — Senior Vice President of Commercial Banking at US Bank, community leader, mentor, and lifelong learner — for a conversation that spans generations of leadership, resilience, and self-discovery. From growing up on a Century Farm in rural Iowa to navigating the 1980s farm crisis as a young ag lender to leading complex commercial banking portfolios to now guiding others through career and life transitions, Nancy’s story is a masterclass in listening deeply, honoring your values, and...
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Liz Garcia is the kind of woman who makes you want to sit up straighter, open a new notes app, and finally do the thing you’ve been talking yourself out of. In this second guest interview of the Ages & Stages series, I sit down with Liz — owner of Storage Theory, founder of GW Spice Co., mom of two, serial entrepreneur, and host of The Liz Garcia Show — to talk about what it really looks like to pivot from corporate life into entrepreneurship… and keep going even when it’s scary. Liz shares the “before and after” moment that propelled her family into business...
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In the very first guest interview of the Ages & Stages series, Molly sits down in person with Carley Kintzle a senior at Iowa State University studying agricultural communications and public relations, a cattle exhibitor, the founder of Wild Orchid Co., and a photographer who picked up a camera… and ran with it. Carley’s story is a reminder that you don’t have to pick just one lane. From starting a jewelry business in high school (despite never having made leather earrings before) to landing a dream role with Corteva while still in college, Carley shares what it looks like to...
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As we step into a brand new year, this episode opens the Ages & Stages series with a personal reflection from me, Molly. In this solo episode, I looks back across my own life — from childhood curiosity and creativity, to achievement-driven adolescence, to motherhood, entrepreneurship, burnout, and a more grounded, intentional season of leadership. Rather than rushing toward what’s next, this episode invites listeners to slow down, reflect on what each age and stage has already taught them, and consider how those lessons shape who you are becoming. This conversation sets the tone for...
info_outlineThe Found Podcast with Molly Knuth
This episode is a little different — and honestly, it might be one of the most important ones I’ve ever shared. Instead of one long-form interview, you’re getting four mini-interviews with women who are quietly (and powerfully) making their communities better — through nonprofit work, community organizing, and the kind of “someone has to do something… so I will” leadership that changes everything. These women were listener-nominated, and every story proves the same thing: You don’t need a massive following or a fancy title to make a difference. You just need the willingness to...
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Whitney Sanger isn’t just a nonprofit founder — she’s a mother of seven, a Dubuque native, a communications and storytelling pro, and the kind of woman who sees a gap and refuses to accept “that’s just how it is” as an answer. In this conversation, Whitney shares the very personal journey that shaped her relationship with food, and how that journey eventually turned into — a nonprofit built on the belief that nutrition isn’t only about what’s on the plate… it’s also about connection, dignity, community, and hope. We talk about the moment that sparked her curiosity (a...
info_outlineThe Found Podcast with Molly Knuth
This week’s episode of The Found Podcast isn’t about a flashy brand or a viral business story. It’s about a woman you’ll probably never see on a billboard, but whose work is changing lives quietly, consistently, and deeply in rural Eastern Iowa. In this episode, Molly sits down with Sarah Palmer, an English Language Learning (ELL) teacher in the Western Dubuque Community School District. For the past 18 years, Sarah has been teaching language, yes—but also welcoming refugee and immigrant families, connecting them to food, furniture, transportation, and community support, and modeling...
info_outlineThis episode is a little different — and honestly, it might be one of the most important ones I’ve ever shared.
Instead of one long-form interview, you’re getting four mini-interviews with women who are quietly (and powerfully) making their communities better — through nonprofit work, community organizing, and the kind of “someone has to do something… so I will” leadership that changes everything.
These women were listener-nominated, and every story proves the same thing:
You don’t need a massive following or a fancy title to make a difference. You just need the willingness to notice a need… and participate in the solution.
In this compilation, you’ll meet:
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Callie FitzGerald — founder of Centrally Rooted Mission + Mindful Musicians (building confidence and brain-health skills through music)
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Molly Schreiber — founder of Mindful Minutes (bringing yoga + mindfulness practices into schools, healthcare, shelters, and more)
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Dee McKenna — community leader and organizer of the Woodbury County Fair Bonus Sale (investing in youth through 4-H & FFA premium support)
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Nicole O’Dell — board member for the Bernard Playground Project (building an accessible community space and rallying a small town to do the “impossible”)
And at the end, I’ll give you a 14-day challenge to help you turn inspiration into action.
What You’ll Hear in This Episode
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Why community impact rarely starts with a “grand plan” — it starts with noticing
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How Centrally Rooted + Mindful Musicians teach resilience and confidence through music
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The “five parts of practice” behind Mindful Minutes and how mindfulness becomes a life skill
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How the Woodbury County Bonus Sale works — and why it matters for the future of agriculture and youth development
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The story behind the Bernard Playground Project and the power of phased momentum
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Practical ways to support these missions (donate, volunteer, subscribe, spread the word)
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Molly’s 14-day challenge: support, thank a helper, or nominate a community leader
Resources & Links
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Nominate a future community helper: molly@mollyknuthmedia.com
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Instagram: @mollyknuth