- Hi, and welcome to Pressing Matters here on WCMU.

Here's a look at what's coming up.

People in Michigan are struggling to put food on the table, how volunteers and organizations across the state are coming together to help those who need it most.

Then for years, women have struggled in silence while in perimenopause, but new research and FDA changes are putting the spotlight on a topic once considered taboo.

We explore some symptoms and treatment options of menopause, plus clearing up public media funding, confusion, and what it needs for the future of WCMU.

(upbeat music) - [Ken] We're serving people at record numbers today and have been for the last year or more.

- More than a million and a half people in Michigan are not sure where their next meal will come from or whether it will be enough.

Hi, and welcome back to Pressing Matters.

Food Insecurity is a crisis across the state affecting one in six adults and one in five children.

Rising food prices, the end of pandemic air assistance, and changes to federal food benefits are pushing more families to seek help.

Jimmy Minkowitz takes a closer look.

- It looks like a lot when we go through the warehouse, you'll see racks of pallets of different products.

You'll see a huge freezer and cooler, and when you look at that food that's in our warehouse, it's roughly about a month worth of food.

We turn our warehouse inventory roughly 12 times a year, so it looks like a huge amount, but that's how much we basically distribute every month.

- [Stefanie] Food insecurity is not just about the feeling of hunger.

It means not having reliable access to enough affordable and nutritious food.

Ken Estelle is the CEO of Feeding America West Michigan.

He says, it doesn't always mean someone goes without eating, and it often means making tough decisions.

- I get a chance to talk to folks that are coming and you get to know some of them and they make choices, and some of them are really hard choices, and that's what really hits you is like, okay, they're choosing between, "do I get groceries?"

or "do I pay my rent, or house payment, or utilities, "or medical bills, prescriptions," things like that.

- [Stefanie] Feeding America West Michigan is part of a network of food banks serving 40 of Michigan's 83 counties and the entire Upper Peninsula.

Food banks like this move massive amounts of food, which comes from a mix of sources, donations from grocery stores, food companies, farmers, and federal programs that purchase food directly from producers and when needed, they can also buy items at a reduced cost.

- We have a fleet of trucks that make sure that food is picked up and delivered to where it needs to go.

We have about 35 trucks.

Half of them are tractor trailer rigs.

Last year, overall, we distributed 32 million pounds of food.

We're on track for about the same this year.

It looks like we're coming in right around that same amount, so that's around 26 million to 27 million meals worth of food throughout the year to those, you know, four to 600,000 households - [Stefanie] In nearly every community, it's become increasingly difficult for people to find equitable access to food while needs spike during the pandemic, today's demand is even greater.

- What we've seen over the past several years is that a continual step in need based on reduction in elimination of some of those pandemic related benefits.

- [Stefanie] For many families, food assistance through snap, the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program, formally known as food stamps, has been a critical lifeline, but pandemic era benefit increases have ended, and federal rules have changed, which now require many adults to work, train, or volunteer a certain number of hours each month in order to qualify.

At the same time, food prices remain high, meaning many families are getting less help, even as they need more of it.

- In most cases, I just hear, you know, I have the same amount of money I had two years ago, but everything costs more.

- [Stefanie] In communities across the state.

Organizations of all sizes are making it their mission to help keep people fed.

Traverse City based Project Feed the Kids began during the pandemic when founder Tiffany McQueer realized while children were getting meals during the school week, weekends were a different story.

- The buses were running and the schools were putting food on porches of all the families, and I said, wow, that's fantastic that the school is stepping up and still feeding children during COVID.

I said, but I wonder who's feeding the kids on the weekends?

And my husband looked at me and he goes, well, we are.

- [Stefanie] The couple owns J&S Hamburg South Airport, which serves as home base for the nonprofit.

Tiffany says her motivation to help came from watching her mother struggle to put food on the table when she was a child, and also challenges of her own as a young adult.

- I know what it's like to be judged and questioned through all the different chapters of my life, and I wanted to be able to be the person that helped people with no questions.

I just wanted to be the person that I needed when I was a kid.

- [Stefanie] In their first week Project Feed the Kids, packed 81 meals the next 500.

Today through donations, fundraising, and the help of an army of volunteers, they distribute around 4,000 free meals each week, which are placed in easily accessible coolers at eight locations throughout the region.

- And it's just great to know that, in at least a small way, we're making sure some of these kids get some meals.

- Often people think of Traverse City as this tourist rich, all this stuff, and that is the case for some, but definitely not the majority.

There's so many families fighting food insecurity.

There's no way we would go through 4,000 meals if there wasn't a hunger crisis in our communities here.

It is always busy.

There's never any meals left over.

I would say as a whole, there's always going to be food insecurity.

We're always going to need to fight hunger.

We pack on Thursdays, we're typically outta meals by about Saturday night.

Probably the hardest part for me is knowing that there's so many kids that are in need, that there's so many families fighting the same fight that I fought when I was a kid and being in the shoes of those families knowing what it's like, that is the hardest part.

- [Stefanie] Food Hugs is a West Michigan-based nonprofit that delivers surprise home-cooked meals and groceries to help people going through difficult moments, including food insecurity, illness, grief, or financial hardship.

The organization was founded by chef and restaurant owner, Jenna Arcidiacono, is built around the idea that food can provide both nutrition and emotional relief.

- One less thing you have to think about when you're struggling.

- [Stefanie] And Jenna says the need and the response has continued to grow.

- Once they announced that SNAP benefits were maybe not going to get given or completely cut, I couldn't bear to think of people not being able to eat.

So, I just made this food pantry right in the front door of the restaurant.

You don't have to fill out paperwork, you can just come in and grab what you need and leave.

There was a couple that came in and said, we saw your video and we haven't eaten for two days, so our kids could eat.

Sometimes people put food at their back burner, but we all need nutrition and food to survive.

I think food should just this general human right.

No one should have to worry about that.

- [Stefanie] From bigger cities like Grand Rapids to this small but mighty operation in Isabella County.

Cathy Fourtier, owner of The Barn Door, bar and restaurant, knew she had to take action.

- With the SNAP benefits being cut, I put word out on my business page on my personal page and just let everybody know, bring non-perishables, here's my Venmo, I'll do the shopping for you.

This is what needs to happen so that we can at least give out some meals for people until, and that's all I had to do.

- [Stefanie] Cathy and her crew have been making a difference in their community in many ways by offering free community dinners, food drives and more.

- We've been filling the little pantries around town also, and then we've given out over 1300 meals since the 1st of November.

We're planning on 100 bags for Thanksgiving, it'll probably be more than 100, but I wanna say 100 to be safe.

- [Stefanie] While many associate food insecurity with families or the elderly, it's a growing reality on college campuses.

Here at Central Michigan University, officials say as many as one in three students may be experiencing hunger, which is where the student food pantry offers a little extra help.

- The only algebra requirement is that you're a student.

We don't check income, we don't check financial aid status.

We don't check Pell Grant status.

We quite literally just check if you're registered for classes.

It's the only thing that really matters to us to use the pantry, and then we also will encourage people to bring their friends.

- [Stefanie] The pantry is open five days a week.

Along with food, it also has hygiene products and other supplies.

Students can sign up online at cmich.edu or they can simply just show up during pantry hours with their valid student ID.

Donations come in from local organizations and community partnerships.

The pantry helps feed students of all backgrounds and education levels.

- People tend to do things better when they're fed well, both just like cognitively and emotionally, and so not only the fact that we can provide food to students who are food insecure and help them in that moment.

We also believe, and I especially, believe just the very fact that we exist on campus is very helpful because students don't necessarily have to worry about, even if they're not currently experiencing financial needs or food insecurity, they know that if those things do happen, like, we are here and we're here for them, if they have that moment of need.

- [Stefanie] It is clear that hunger is no longer confined to any one type of community.

For many, it doesn't take much for that need to become personal.

- Food insecurity is in every neighborhood.

I could be here getting food with just one or two major life events.

- [Stefanie] For the people responding on the ground, the goal is simple and urgent.

- Getting people fed.

That's all.

That's it.

That's it.

Just making sure that nobody goes hungry like food is a necessity.

- [Stefanie] And for those working directly with people who are facing food insecurity, how that help is offered matters.

- We just want to take care of families.

We want families to come here, feel comfortable, no questions asked.

- If you or someone you know is struggling with food insecurity, there are resources available across the state.

You can connect by calling 211 or visiting mi-211.org for referrals to local food banks, pantries, mobile sites and programs like SNAP and WIC or connect with the Food Bank Council of Michigan.

That's available at fbcmi.org.

Menopause, every woman goes through it since, well, the beginning of time.

So why is there still so much we don't know about perimenopause and menopause?

There are cardiologists, neurologists, gynecologists, but never before a single dedicated specialist.

Understanding it is very complex.

Anxiety, weight gain, low libido, vaginal dryness.

Those are just a few symptoms that come with this transition, and they're different for every woman going through it.

It's a topic that's been whispered about in the dark and behind, closed doors for generations, but not anymore.

Online platforms and social media are shining a light on menopause and empowering women to listen to their gut and take more control of their wellbeing.

- I feel like I should be generally happier than what I am.

I feel like my mood should be better.

I, you know, all of those things, so I did start, I think this whole thing kind of probably started with me listening to my clients, me going to my provider, and then me, kind of in my own tuition, going I need more information.

- [Stefanie] In her late 30s nurse practitioner and small business owner, Chelsea House, found herself not feeling like herself anymore.

- They're telling me they have new anxiety or their skin's dry, or they just don't feel like themselves, and I'm like gathering this information thinking like, wow, these are all these really common themes in these women showing up, and then that kinda like led me into my own personal symptoms, being 38 years-old and thinking, wow, I don't really feel like myself either, and I have this new anxiety I never had.

My sleep kind of stinks, you know?

So kind of connecting with my clients in that way and then realizing that like maybe this is menopause, perimenopause, maybe my hormones are changing.

- [Stefanie] Chelsea was also experiencing a range of symptoms and went from brushing them off to taking action.

- I did go to my primary care doctor, and I wouldn't say that I was unhappy by any means because it was kind of new to me as well, I should eat better.

And I said, should sleep more and I should work out more.

So I was like, maybe I'll just like do those things and I'll feel better.

I'll feel more like myself.

And so I did those things, had a great conversation with my provider, but then it was kind of my own internal like intuition to dig deeper, to go okay, yeah, I'm doing these things, but I feel like I should feel better than I feel.

I feel like I should be sleeping better than I sleep.

- [Stefanie] While she followed her doctor's advice, Chelsea still wasn't finding the kind of relief or answers that she was hoping for.

Her search led her to the symptoms of perimenopause, something often considered for older women, but she quickly learned that age is irrelevant.

- We usually talk about like reproductive age and then perimenopause, and there's some overlap between things too, perimenopause and then menopause and honestly, I don't even really give ages because people go through it at different times, different symptoms for different people.

- [Stefanie] The National Institutes of Health categorizes menopause into three separate stages.

First stage perimenopause, which can begin an estimated eight to 10 years before menopause.

This is a time when ovaries produce less and less estrogen.

Second stage menopause, the day you've gone an entire year without a menstrual period.

Third stage, post menopause, the day after you've missed your period for a full calendar year.

Women remain in this stage for the remainder of life.

- Most of the time when I'm talking with a patient, we're talking about that individual's experience, whether we call it perimenopause or we call it age-related changes.

For me, it doesn't make a whole big difference what we name it, but we're addressing it.

- Perimenopause and menopause symptoms are not just hot flashes, night sweats, like it's not just that.

It can be ringing in your ears, changing in taste, anxiety, dry skin, like it's a wealth of symptoms.

- Symptoms are not the same for every woman during this aging transition.

For years, starter conversations about menopause often began with missed periods, but there's so much more to it.

Take a look at this list of symptoms, which includes things like weight gain, frequent UTIs, mood swings among many other issues.

For the generations of women, now, postmenopausal, the list of symptoms isn't a surprise, but what might be surprising is how more women are now talking about it and finding support and relief.

Another major milestone, the FDA's recent decision to remove the black box safety warning from hormone treatment options.

It had been in place since 2002 due to a study that might have overstated some risks.

- When WHI trial came out and everybody kind of said, whoa, we're not gonna use estrogen or progesterone anymore.

Women suffered.

Menopause Society recommends these low dose estrogen therapies, and I say estrogen, but if people have a uterus, then you have to also balance that with progesterone.

- We do need to know more.

We do need to talk more.

This is an issue.

We are doing harm by not providing or giving this as an option.

I think a lot of people don't realize that with every single thing that we put in or on our body, there's a risk, but there's also a risk of not.

Estrogen affects everything.

We know as women that our ovaries peter out as we age and they stop producing hormones and you go through menopause, that's usually stop having menstrual periods.

You have being able to carry a baby, and that's all due to the decrease in estrogens or lack thereof, and so it can affect, I mean, our brains brain fog, memory issues, they're relating it to some dementia in women.

And so just being aware and having that open conversation with a provider who is really aware of the risk and the understanding of how it works.

- [Stefanie] It can't be stressed enough.

The symptoms and treatment of menopause are different for every single woman, but at the heart of it all is the impact that hormones like estrogen, testosterone, and progesterone have on mental, physical, and sexual health.

As more women and doctors are talking about menopause, online platforms are also a huge part in the conversation.

- I think we're definitely talking about menopause and hormones and women's health in general, way more than we have because the minute you say one of those things, just like you said, we all start talking.

- I think it has more to do with quality of life, living healthier longer, but we as doctors also need to be better about that.

I think in my training years ago, it was more on, like, if somebody's sick, how do they make them better?

Specifically, in perimenopause and menopause, I think that the shift needs to be more on quality of life.

- It's really important to note, according to the Cleveland Clinic, postmenopausal women are at an increased risk of osteoporosis and heart disease due to those low estrogen levels.

If you have questions, talk with your primary care doctor.

Dr.

Mello tells us there is so much interest and new research in the area of menopause.

She's considering adding a class for students about it at CMU.

Well, the landscape of public media once again changed this month following massive federal funding cuts last fall.

After 58 years of service, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting has officially voted to end operations.

There's still a lot of confusion over what that means.

So to clear that up, joining us once again as WCMU, General Manager, Rick Westover.

- Hello.

- Rick, thank you for being here.

- Of course.

- Can you give us an update on what all that specifically what happened with the CPB and also what it means for WCMU?

- Sure, I appreciate the opportunity because there's a lot of confusion out there about all these different monikers, CPB, NPR, PBS, what do they all mean?

So the Corporation for Public Broadcasting was formed, as you mentioned, 58 years ago, to distribute federal funding that was set aside for public broadcasting, and they've done that faithfully for years, generations.

However, with the elimination of federal funding through the rescission last year, they didn't really have a purpose anymore.

They've worked in the last several months to release what funding they still had available.

In fact, we benefited from being awarded a grant to hire a rural life and agriculture reporter.

We're in the process of hiring that position right now.

Very thankful for that.

And also very thankful for the folks at CPB who have worked under incredible pressure knowing that they've essentially been pushed out of their positions and yet faithfully working for our communities, the country, to disperse what dollars they have left and then making the difficult decision to dissolve themselves as an organization simply because they had nothing left to do once that funding is gone.

So that's part of it.

I wanna make clear that CPB is not responsible for creating programming.

They provided funding to stations so that people like WCMU can step forward and create local programs like Pressing Matters or Quiz Central, Destination Michigan, things like that.

So we are responsible for producing our local content, and then we get national programming from PBS.

They work to bring us programs that are shared across the country.

We pay dues to PBS, we have access to those programs to share with our audience.

Same thing works for NPR on the radio side of everything.

- Yeah.

- So wanna be clear, CPB, yes.

Going away because they don't have a function anymore in dispersing funds.

They don't exist.

For WCMU, that was $1.6 million lost for this fiscal year, 20% of our operating budget.

So we have work ahead of us to fill that gap, but the fact that CPB is going away does not mean that we're going anywhere.

- Thank you.

That's great to hear, and I definitely hope that it brings you some answers too.

So if the funding then doesn't come from CPB.

- [Rick] Sure.

- How are those gaps being filled?

- So we are working very hard to identify savings where we can.

We've saved over a quarter million dollars in some of those national programming costs.

Negotiating with PBS, NPR.

We have the Create channel that's actually being made available in FY26, fiscal year 26 for free to the station.

You might have heard in the news about Bob Ross estate providing some paintings that were then auctioned off.

That auction made it possible for every station that carries Create across the country to do so for free.

So it's thinking outside the box, doing creative things on the national level and here locally to make up some of that gap, but, you know, who's most important, as always, viewers like you doing your part in stepping forward and giving what you can.

We made our way halfway through our fiscal year, which started July one at the end of December, and I am so happy to say we are year over year about 50% ahead of where we were last year.

Last year, donors provided us $3.2 million.

$1.6 million was lost.

That's half of what we raised last year from our donors.

So to run at 50% ahead right now, we're on track just in donor support alone to erase that gap.

Now I realize fundraising's gonna slow down a little bit in January and February.

This is not guaranteed, but we're on a good trajectory to make up that lost funding from our donors, and so it's very important when folks step forward and give a gift, we are so thankful.

It means more than ever before.

Thank you.

- It's wild, and you're right, we are so grateful how for the fact of how our viewers, how our listeners, and our supporters have stepped up during this really, really kind of a chaotic time for public media.

- We're all figuring it out.

Yeah.

- Yeah, we are.

So what are some goals that here at WCMU that we are kind of focusing on here for 2026?

- So, one major goal, and I talked about fundraising, it's so important to us right now.

We set a goal early in July to identify 3000 new monthly sustaining members to WCMU.

What does that mean?

If you've never given to the station before, but you have the means to give $5, $10, $25, $50 a month, whatever you can fit into your budget, it certainly works for us.

Consider joining us at that monthly giving level.

If you've given $100 this year and $100 that year, if you can convert your giving to monthly consistent support, it means a lot to us because in a time when we've lost 20% of our operating budget, consistent monthly support provides something for us to plan against.

It provides us some stability in uncertain times.

So that's our goal.

3000 new monthly sustaining members.

Think about joining us in that way.

If you are a sustaining member now, we appreciate you so much.

Thank you for what you're doing and literally any donation we're appreciative of, of course, but a goal, 3000 new monthly donors.

- Well, can you tell us about the impact that we've seen from the viewers like you at home who are watching us right now?

- You're making everything that you're seeing possible.

You know, 20% gap in funding is a huge obstacle to overcome.

And we are doing it day-by-day, donation by donation.

You have such an impact.

And now more than ever, you know, it's become cliche to say now more than ever, we've said it before rescission happened, but rescission is here now, and it just makes us bold and underline and highlight those words.

Viewer support means more than ever before.

- Definitely, and for someone at home sitting watching our conversation right now and they're like, I wanna help.

I wanna do- what can I do?

What can I do?

- You can reach out through our website, wcmu.org and click on the donate button, offer your support.

We have our spring campaigns coming up.

If you wanna offer your support, then make a little plan for it in about a month.

Join us monthly.

You can give us a call toll free to offer up that support.

And you can also, if you're interested on the front regarding federal funding, Protect My Public Media is an important site.

You can find more information there about what you can do.

I will tell you, there is a window of opportunity for some federal funding.

Both a committee on the US House side, US Senate side have included NGWS funds in their appropriations bills.

That's next generation warning system, the EAS alerts, and so on that we provide when there's a tornado or flood or whatever that might be.

This is important support that can help public media stations, so there is a window of opportunity for some federal funding to possibly come back in the FY26 appropriation bills.

- So that's a really good point.

There are still efforts continue help provide some type of funding relief for public media stations.

- Correct, so protect my public media is a great place to learn more about that effort and what you can do to play a part.

- Absolutely.

Okay.

- Yeah.

- Thank you.

Thank you again.

- Thank you.

- Thank you for joining us and keeping us all up to date on what is happening because you're right, it's confusing and people still have a lot of questions.

- Yeah, they do.

They do.

CPB, yes is going away, but we are not going anywhere because of viewers like you.

- Thank you, Rick, and that wraps up our edition tonight of Pressing Matters here on WCMU.

Thank you again for watching and for continuing to support us here and now.

Now and in the future.

Good night.

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