Happy Birthday to Phil McKenzie!

Mr. McKenzie has been a great help for me as an aspiring musician, including helping me to play with the Greater Grand Forks Symphony Orchestra at times.  His advice has always been helpful and has helped me to grow musically.  I found out that today was Mr. McKenzie's birthday and my brothers and I decided to arrange a special birthday musical treat!  We have arranged a version of Happy Tchaikovsky Birthday!  Enjoy!

An Interview with Robin Roberts, Good Morning America Co-Host

As an aspiring journalist, I look for every opportunity to interview news makers.  While at the 52nd Annual Girl Scout National Convention I had the opportunity to visit with Good Morning America co-host Robin Roberts.  We discussed her books, her personal battle with cancer and how she overcame it.  She is truly a genuine person with a story we can all relate to.  Enjoy!

An Interview with Girl Scouts from around the World!

 The Girl Scout National Convention is a melting pot full of the flavors of the World.  The attendees represent Girl Scouts from around the globe and during this year's convention, I was able to interview many of them to find their stories about what Girl Scouts means to them. 

An Interview with Julie Marie Carrier, Miss Virginia USA 2002, Author, and Motivational Speaker

I found the opportunity to interview Julie Marie Carrier during the 52nd Annual Girl Scout National Convention.  She has quite an impressive resume.  She is an award winning national speaker and author, an Emmy-nominated television show host, Miss Virginia US 2002, a semi-finalist on Donald Trump and NBC's "The Apprentice," and a senior leadership consultant at the Pentagon.  Today we discussed the importance of CONFIDENCE and her new book, "Be-YOU-Tiful."

An interview with Monique Coleman, High School Musical star and web developer of GimmeMo.com

I interviewed Monique Coleman at the 52nd Annual Girl Scout National Convention in Houston, TX the week of November 8-13, 2011.  Ms. Coleman played "Taylor McKessie" in Disney's "High School Musical" series.  Since playing the role of an intelligent young female role model in High School Musical, Monique has gone on to start an on-line talk show called "GimmeMo."  The show is executive produced by Coleman and is dedicated to impowering today's youth by discussing current topics such as teen homelessness, obesity, body image, sex, drugs, and much more.  The goal is to creat an environment where teens can feel safe talking about real issues while inspiring them with resources and postive information.  Check it out!

An Interview with Joy Saxton, Producer, Director, and Actress

I met up with Joy Saxton at the Girl Scouts National Convention in Houston, TX the week of November 8-13, 2011.  Among other things, Joy operates a performing arts school, "Joy Kids Downtown."  We visited about how her involvement in acting has shaped her life. 

Here is a bit more about her:   Joy anchored a kids television show called Kids TV Express beginning at eight years old for over ten years. Joy's mother Gray Hawn, world re-nowned photographer, created and produced the show. The program was written, directed and filmed by kids for kids. The show won two national awards with ACTV and was aired Nationally, ran specials on the classroom channel, Channel 1, aired on PBS Austin and KVC-13 Austin. They did specials on Just Say No to Drugs Campaign, Aids Awareness, Sunshine Kids with Cancer, NASA space missions and more. Joy grew up in local community theater and toured with Peace Child in Russia at age fourteen.  At age seventeen, she started her own performing arts troop called A Little Laughter Productions and recruited forty young people to produce and perform in a play that toured nursing homes, children’s homes, homes for the mentally handicapped, and hospitals. She attended the O’Neill National Theater Institute, which worked with world-renowned theatrical directors. 

In her early twenties she started a program called J.O.Y. International, a non-profit organization, and developed and implemented an educational curriculum for elementary schools in Texas. The curriculum taught children to give back by doing penny drives through out the school to help kids in India and Mexico get school supplies. Joy produced a television pilot, called J.O.Y. Agents that addressed issues regarding children around the world. The TV shows received rave reviews, and celebrity child actors from the Disney Channel helped to promote the program.

Joy teaches at Page Parkes Modeling and Talent Agency, the largest agency in the Southwest.

She has served on several boards and raised over a million dollars for charities including an orphange in India and Africa, Dell Children's Hospital, United Way and J.O.Y. International.

An Interview with Eileen Bartholomew, Senior Director, X Prize Foundation

I interviewed X PRIZE Foundation's Senior Director, Eileen Bartholomew, during the 52nd Annual Girl Scout National Convention on November 10, 2011 in Houston, TX.  The X PRIZE Foundation is an  nonprofit organization working to bring about advancement for the benefit of humanity.  Doing this, they are inspiring the formation of new industries and the revitalization of markets that are currently stagnant due to existing failures or beliefs that success and growth are not possible. The Foundation addresses the world’s Grand Challenges by creating and managing large-scale, high-profile, incentivized prize competitions that stimulate investment in research and development worth far more than the prize itself. It motivates and inspires brilliant innovators from all disciplines to leverage their intellectual and financial capital.

The X PRIZE Foundation conducts competitions in four prize groups:  Education and Global Development, Energy and Environment, Life Sciences, and Exploration (Ocean and Deep Space).  Today the X PRIZE Foundation is widely recongnized as the leader in fostering innovation through incentivized competition.

Recently, a group of Girl Scouts from Ames, IA won an X PRIZE contest.  The group, known as "The Flying Monkeys" won their prize by obtaining a patent on a new type of prosthetic hand helping a three year old to write.

An Interview with Harlem Globetrotters TNT and Buckets

While I was at the Girl Scouts National Leadership Convention in Houston, TX, and had the opportunity to "score" an interview with two members of the legendary basketball team, The Harlem Globetrotters.  I met with "TNT" and Buckets" to discuss the impact that practice has on their game.  It was no surprise that they work hard to sharpen their skills.  They practice two hours before every game, which is no little task.  They play about 270 games per year!  Further, they urge all young people to believe in themselves.  Confidence.  They are an equal opportunity sports powerhouse, too, as TNT is the 9th woman to wear the team's trademark red, white, and blue uniform.  Although she is the first woman in 19 years to make the team, the first woman to ever play for a professional men's basketball team was also a globetrotter (Hall of Famer Lynette Woodard).  So to all the aspiring athletes out there-  take it from Buckets and TNT-  have confidence and work hard!  It reminds me of a quote from Hollywood mogul Samuel Goldwyn, "The harder I work, the luckier I get!"

An Interview with Christine Coburn Whack, Lyric Soprano

 While at the Girl Scout National Convention in Houston, TX, I was able to pursue my dream of being a journalist.  I am a special correspondent with Thief River Falls Radio News and had the opportunity to interview Lyric Soprano, Christine Coburn Whack.  Ms. Whack is an opera singer and has performed around the world.  She visited with me about the importance of hard work and practice.  Enjoy the interview!

An Interview with Soledad O'Brien, CNN News Correspondent

Many of you know that I am an aspiring journalist and have done some work with Thief River Falls Radio (KTRF AM 1230). Recently I met with one of my role models, Soledad O'Brien of CNN, to discuss her documentary work with "Black in America" and how her experiences have changed her life.  The interview was done at the 52nd Annual Girl Scout National Convention in Houston, TX, November 11, 2011. Watch the video above to listen to the interview. More interviews will be posted shortly, so keep following my blog!  A special thank you to Mrs. O'Brien for doing this interview with me!

An Interview with Anna Maria Chavez, CEO of Girl Scouts USA

Many of you know that I am an aspiring journalist and have done some work with Thief River Falls Radio (KTRF AM 1230).  I had the opportunity to put my journalistic skills to the test at the 52nd Annual Girl Scout National Convention in Houston, TX, November 10-13, 2011.  Watch the video above to listen to my interview with the new CEO of Girl Scouts USA, Anna Maria Chavez.  More interviews will be posted shortly, so keep following my blog!

TRF Radio News Story including interviews done at GSUSA convention, Houston, TX

Thief River Falls Radio News Director, Key Teeters, did a story on KTRF/ KKAQ/ KKDQ radio summarizing my inerviews with several speakers at the Girl Scout National Convention in Houston, TX last week.  Key's audio can be found on the KTRF web site here.  The story about my interviews begins a bit over a minute into the news report for the day. 

Be sure to come back over the next few days as I will be posting full audio clips of my eleven interviews.  I'll also provide text of the interviews plus pictures!

Thief River Falls Radio Special Correspondent to the Girl Scouts USA National Convention

I'll soon be posting audio from my interviews! 

From a news story at TRF Radio, by Key Teeters, News Director

We sent her off with a mike and a word of advice.

Brianna Drevlow, of Thief River Falls, is representing Minnesota, North and South Dakota as a delegate to the 2 thousand 11 National Session of the International Girl Scouts and – when we saw the list of celebrity speakers scheduled for the event – we decided to give her a mike and a title; Special Correspondent: Thief River Falls Radio News – as well as some advice; be persistent and ask the questions your listeners would ask.

Brianna says it is fun, but stressful – working with media reps or just aggressively approaching celebrity speakers – a number of Journalists among them – including; former CBS Anchor Katie Couric and ABC Good Morning America Co-Host, Robin Roberts.

In addition to her Thief River Falls Radio “side-line” Brianna – a Girl Scout Gold Award Winner – is also representing the Dakota Horizons Girl Scout Council at the 52nd Annual Convention in Houston, Texas.