
Mike Turner: Giving Voice to Truth
Politics, to me, has nothing to do with Republicans and Democrats, and the left and the right --all these labels that we want to apply to people we don't agree with us. I wanna focus on what we DO agree about; I want to build off that consensus about what we can do about this particular social issue. https://media.blubrry.com/firstonlinewithfran/content.blubrry.com/firstonlinewithfran/Mike_Turner.mp3 Take one part blues, one part folk, one part country. Add a dash of Southern gospel, rock and jazz. Season with world-weary experience. You'll have a taste of Mike Turner's eclectic original music. Raised outside Detroit in a family steeped in the traditional mountain music of West Virginia, Mike grew up listening to the diverse sounds of gospel quartets, classic country and Motown. A 30-year career in law enforcement gave him a perspective few encounter - a world populated with smugglers, gun runners and folks on the wrong side of the tracks, and the law. In retirement, Mike picked up the ukulele and tenor guitar, wrote his first song and hasn't looked back. He was named 2016 Traditional Gospel Entertainer of the Year by the Alabama Music Association, and 2017 New Gospel Entertainer of the Year by the North American Country Music Associations International (NACMAI). His recordings have played on Internet and terrestrial radio in the US, the UK, Europe, New Zealand and on the US Armed Forces Radio Network. Mike directed and was a featured performer in the … [Read More...]
Featured News
Jeannie Moon: Isn’t It Romantic
I write about relationships and I write about the ability of love to heal…We call the genre the literature of hope because we’d like to see it’s not just about that happily-ever-after; it’s about giving a hopeful optimistic view of how things can go. It doesn’t always mean it’s perfect, but it means like that […]
Joan Kane & Gary Morgenstein: Taking a Bite of a Sweet Divide
I believe we’re broken. Everybody is broken in some way. Everybody has a story to tell. There are cracks in us…Kintsugi is the Japanese art of repairing broken objects by highlighting their cracks with golden powder. . . the original object is even more beautiful than before it was broken…America is going to be even […]

Jennifer Katona, Ph.D. Open a New Window Weaving Arts Education in Today’s Classrooms
How do I make sure every kid gets that kind of emotional connection to their education? The Arts are how you do that. I am passionate about working with schools and spreading the word on how powerful and impactful learning through the arts can be. I have seen schools transform time and time again, and […]

Gianmarco Soresi, Stand-Up Comedian: Healing Through Humor
Gianmarco Soresi is a stand-up comedian and actor who just released his first comedy special “Shelf Life“ on Amazon Prime, documenting the experience of writing and performing new material in the middle of a global pandemic. I enjoy kind of dark, twisted humor. I focus on making this joke great, a great set, and […]

Iman Aoun: Breaking Down Walls &Cultivating Hope Through Theatre
For over thirty-five years, Iman Aoun, a theatre-maker from Palestine has dedicated herself to advancing her mission of “breaking down walls” that exist as both physical and psychological phenomena by “cultivating hope [and creating] beauty and change” through her art. Refusing to compromise her commitment to stripping both visible and invisible walls, Iman’s work has […]
The First 100 Stories Campaign

First Online With Fran: The First 100 Stories Campaign National Arts in Education Week, September 8 -14. In July 2010, Congress designated the second week of September as National Arts In Education Week to promote and showcase the immense role arts education has in producing engaged, successful, and college and career-ready students. To that end, First Online with Fran is launching The First 100 Stories Campaign. The Arts continue to be cut from school curriculums across the nation. Despite arts advocacy groups’ efforts to prevent the decline of arts inclusion, the budgetary solution remains to be that the arts are perceived as extra-curricular and disposable. In Chris Cleave’s novel Little Bee, the central character decided to right a wrong by collecting stories: “One story makes you weak. But as soon as we have one-hundred stories, you will be strong.” Similarly, we can do the same for the Arts. Here’s how: Let’s hear it from you: Teachers! Students! Graduates! Parents! … Submit Your Testimonial...
Latest Testimonial
There’s No Place Like Art!
First Online With Fran’s First Podcast There’s No Place Like Art… The Arts are imperative — a life journey, a life experience that is like no other. The Arts brings people together all in one space. The plays I’ve written have touched lives — they’ve changed lives and that’s what Art does. ~Dan McCormick, Playwright […]
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