First Lady & Friends

Latest Episodes:

Liz Owens on how YWCA Utah is helping heal and empower Utahns Mar 24, 2022

Show notes

Utah's First Lady, Abby Cox, is joined by Liz Owens (CEO of YWCA Utah) to talk about her childhood growing up in Provo, UT as a young girl of color, how she's used many of the lessons she learned in her childhood to help guide the work she's doing today, and the events that led her to pursue an education and career that emphasized human rights.

Liz also opens up about promoting awareness surrounding women's issues and equality in Essex, England, the differences within the criminal justice systems between the UK and the US, and what brought her back to Utah.

Then we dive into her work with the YWCA Utah, the importance of taking a trauma-informed approach to many of the day-to-day situations we engage in everyday situations, and how compassion fatigue can begin to affect our own lives if we don't have our own methods of support.

You can learn more about Liz and YWCA Utah at their website here: https://www.ywcautah.org/

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Irina Pierpont and Owen Fuller talk about the Russian invasion of Ukraine and how Utahns can help Mar 17, 2022

Show notes

Utah's First Lady, Abby Cox, is joined by Irina Pierpont to talk about what her childhood looked like growing up in Ukraine, the events that led her family to migrate out of Donbas, Ukraine, and the devastating reality of the Ukrainian people fighting the Russian army.

Then we are joined by Owen Fuller (CEO - Lucidpress) to talk about his history with the Czech Republic region, various ways that Utahns are showing up to help raise awareness and support for the Ukrainian people, and the need to continue showing support for Ukrainian refugees.

Irina also opens up about her experience working with refugees, all of the ways that Utahns can come together to help ease the trauma that many refugees experience, and the need for empathy towards both the Ukrainian and Russian people.

To learn more about donating to Ukrainian refugees, you can visit: https://www.lhm.com/driven-to-assist/ or https://www.showuputah.org/

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Rebecca Ford on the impact of the Mr. and Miss Super Amazing Pageant in Toole Mar 10, 2022

Show notes

In this week's episode of First Lady and Friends, Utah's First Lady, Abby Cox, is joined by Rebecca Ford (Severe Special Education Teacher & Department Head at Tooele High School) to talk about her passion for teaching and her inspiration to become a special education teacher.

Then we dive into where the idea for the Mr. and Miss Super Amazing Pageant originated, the impact that it has had on the Tooele community, and how we can learn from the pageant to bring Utah closer together.

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Bettina Smith Edmondson on becoming the first black person to sit on the Layton City Council Feb 24, 2022

Show notes

In this week's episode of First Lady and Friends, Utah's First Lady, Abby Cox, is joined by Bettina Smith Edmondson (Layton City Councilwoman) to talk about growing up in Layton, UT, how faith and education helped her create a bond with other children in the area, and her parents' experience moving to Layton from Mississippi during the 1960s.

Then we dive into the need to recognize and celebrate black history outside of Black History Month, how Bettina's experience going to school in the Davis school district is different compared to students' experiences today, and what ultimately inspired her to run for office.

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Michelle Suzuki and Melinda Lewis on some of the struggles that teachers are going through right now Feb 17, 2022

Show notes

In this week's episode of First Lady and Friends, Utah's First Lady, Abby Cox, is joined by Michelle Suzuki (SVP Marketing of Instructure) to talk about some of the hardships that many teachers in Utah have had to overcome during the pandemic, how we can help ease some of the stress for our teachers, and some of the ways that Instructure is honoring teachers throughout the state.

We are also joined by Melinda Lewis (6th-grade Teacher with Sand Springs Elementary) who shares her path to becoming a teacher, what her first year of teaching was like, and why it's so important to empower our students to help them achieve success.

Then we talk about what an average day looks like for a teacher, how chemo treatments have impacted Melinda's day-to-day activities, and why teacher compensation and funding need to be addressed.

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Amanda Millerberg and Sarah Allred unveil the 123 Challenge and #ShowUpForService Feb 10, 2022

Show notes

In this week's episode of First Lady and Friends, Utah's First Lady, Abby Cox, is joined by Amanda Millerberg and Sarah Allred to talk about the launch of the Show Up service committee, how it has highlighted and pushed forward various acts of service within the state, and Utah's passion for charitable giving and volunteerism.

Then we dive into the goal of accomplishing one million acts of service in 2022, the importance of communities banding together through hardship, and how the 123 Challenge can help bring us together as Utahns.

We also share simple steps you can take to start getting involved in service, ways to bridge neighborhood and family, and focusing on finding ways to connect to one another through empathy and service.

You can find more information at ShowUpUtah.org or on Instagram @ShowUpUtah. Tag us in all of your service posts with #ShowUpForService and make sure to spread the word!

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Rich Christiansen opens up about uncovering a family secret Feb 03, 2022

Show notes

In this week's episode of First Lady and Friends, Utah's First Lady, Abby Cox, is joined by Rich Christiansen (Owner & Founder of Hoodoo Holdings, Author of The Zig Zag Principle, and Founder of Legado Family) to talk about his childhood growing up in Beaver, UT, his amazing father John Christiansen, and how his father's approval guided many decisions in his life.

Rich also dives into the moment he and his brothers uncovered a family secret, his parent's journey with artificial insemination during its early stages of development, and his journey of navigating the truth that he was a donor-conceived child.

Then we talk about Rich's work as an entrepreneur, the importance of building family legacies, and the need to cement traditions that can help bring unity into the family dynamic.

To learn more about Rich and the Legado Family, you can visit their website here: Legadofamily.com/communicate-connect.

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Surprise birthday pod featuring Governor Cox! Jan 27, 2022

Show notes

In this week's episode of First Lady and Friends, Utah's First Lady, Abby Cox, is joined by Utah Governor, Spencer Cox,to celebrate the First Lady's birthday! We dive into some of Abby's favorite things to do for her birthday, what birthdays used to look like when she was growing up, and what her ideal birthday present is.

Then Abby and Spencer talk about their first date, falling in love, and where Abby would like to live if they didn't live in Utah.

They also dive into what they love about the city and what they miss about living in Fairview full-time.

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Pat Jones talks about the need to elevate women in all aspects of life Jan 13, 2022

Show notes

In this week's episode of First Lady and Friends, Utah's First Lady, Abby Cox, is joined by Pat Jones (CEO of Women's Leadership Institute, Co-founder and owner of Dan Jones & Associates, and former Utah senator) to talk about understanding the need for equality at a very young age, the impact that sports can have on business, and how her entrepreneurship helped her succeed during college.

Pat also opens up about her experience with market research, how it led her to run for office, and why it's so necessary to have more women at the table in politics.

Lastly, we talk about some of the initiatives that Pat is currently working on with WLI including the ElevateHER Challenge and a political development series, as well as some of the barriers that still exist that limit growth for women in the state.

To learn more about WLI and some of the amazing initiatives that the institute is working on, you can visit their website here: https://wliut.com/

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Reunion show with all of the old friends to talk about crypto, new favorite restaurants, and the Utah Jazz! Dec 16, 2021

Show notes

In this week's episode, we've got a reunion episode with all of the old "Cox and Friends" friends! Utah's First Lady, Abby Cox is joined by Utah Gov. Spencer Cox, Jon Cox, Owen Fuller, Kirsten Rappleye, and Spencer Ryan Hall to talk about what everyone has been up to since the pandemic started, NFTs and crypto, our latest favorite restaurant spots, and former Boston Celtics' president of basketball operations, Danny Ainge, joining the Utah Jazz as alternate governor and CEO.

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