Plain Values Podcast

In this remarkable conversation, we sit down with Dr. Roberto Matthew — born in Cuba, shaped by revolution, exile, poverty, and perseverance to trace a life marked by danger, resilience, and deep conviction. 

As a child, he fled Castro’s regime with his mother, sister, grandmother, and aunt, while his father stayed behind to support counter-revolution efforts. What followed was a journey through Colombia, Puerto Rico, and finally the United States … years marked by scarcity, trauma, relentless work, and the kindness of unlikely mentors.

Dr. Matthew describes memories of dictatorship, refugee...

In this episode, we sit down with Buck Alford, an Atlanta native who traded suburban life for the wide-open fields and beauty of upstate New York. Buck shares the unexpected path that pulled his family north: a growing conviction about food, place, hospitality, and living closer to the land. 

What began as a simple desire to cook with better ingredients evolved into ripping out suburban landscaping, experimenting with edible gardens, and ultimately moving onto his father-in-law’s sixth-generation farm.

Buck talks candidly about raising five kids through the transition, lea...

In this week’s conversation, we sit down with therapist Kent Ernsting, a man shaped by a lifetime of caring for wounded hearts. 

Trained in Marriage and Family Therapy and Theology at Fuller Seminary, Kent has spent 35 years walking with people through trauma, addiction, attachment wounds, and the long road toward healing. His story begins with adoption, loss, and a defining question, “What will I do with this one wild and precious life?” and unfolds into a calling to invest deeply in people.

Kent shares how early family experiences, a radic...

Today’s episode is with our friend Dave Sims. Learn more about Plain Values at https://plainvalues.com.

Dave Sims is a man whose life was split cleanly in two by a single moment. 

In 1998, a slow family bike ride turned into a catastrophic accident, leaving him a C5/6 quadriplegic. The years that followed carried every dark instinct a person can have: despair, anger, bargaining, and the hollow silence of wishing life would simply end.

But Dave’s story does not stop in the valle...

Today’s episode is with our friends Curt Yoder, Brian Yoder, and Mark Schlabach. Learn more about Plain Values at https://plainvalues.com.

In the rolling hills of Amish country, a small youth deer hunt that started with just four kids in 2012 has exploded into something extraordinary... A thriving 501(c)(3) that gives disabled, special-needs, and first-time hunters a life-changing day in the woods.

Today, their flagship event draws 700+ spectators to watch 36 hunters—ages 9 to 80, many in wheelchairs or with profound challenges—head out across 32 private farms and a 580-acre lease...

Today’s episode is with our friend Julie Kerby. Learn more about Plain Values at https://plainvalues.com.

Julie is the founder of Hope’s House Foster Closet and a woman who has spent nearly two decades on the front lines of foster care. Julie and her husband fostered for over 18 years and opened their home to more than 100 children through emergency placements, respite care, and long-term fostering. 

Along the way, they adopted a sibling group of five, each carrying their own complex story shaped by trauma, instability, and loss...

Today’s episode is with our friends Chad and Kyla Kethcart. Learn more about Plain Values at https://plainvalues.com.

Chad and Kyla Kethcart’s journey began in the creative pulse of Chicago … he a musician, she an artist … bound by both love and struggle. 

When life’s storms hit in 2020, they were forced to confront what truly mattered. Out of hardship came a radical shift: rebuilding not just their marriage, but their foundation as a family.

Over the past five years, they’ve chosen a quieter, richer path … homesteading in Northeast Oh...

Today’s episode is with our friend Pam McCue. Learn more about Plain Values at https://plainvalues.com.

After a distinguished 30-year career as a senior executive in the U.S. Department of Defense, Pam McCue could have easily settled into a quiet retirement. Instead, she turned her lifelong curiosity toward one of the most studied (and most mysterious) artifacts in human history: the Shroud of Turin.

With both Bachelor’s and Master’s degrees in electrical engineering and decades of experience in defense science, Pam brings a deeply analytical mind to a subj...

Today’s episode is with our friend Griffin Long. Learn more about Plain Values at https://plainvalues.com.

Griffin and his wife Rachel live in Canton, OH with their three children Isaiah, Thomas, and Ely. 

Griffin is a founder and Executive Director of Sacred Ground, a faith based nonprofit whose mission is to cultivate an environment of belonging and purpose for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) and their families. 

Welcome to the Plain Values Podcast, please meet our friend, Griffin Long ... 

Duration: 00:57:20

Today’s episode is with our dear friend Josh Thomas. Learn more about Plain Values at https://plainvalues.com.

As Co-Founder of The Homesteading Family and School of Traditional Skills, Josh partners with experts in the homesteading world to help people learn the skills they need to create a healthy, free, and secure life.

Welcome to the Plain Values Podcast, please meet our friend, Josh Thomas ... 

This conversation encapsulates what we hope to do here with the Plain Values Podcast … telling stories that matter and b...

Today’s episode is with our dear friends Gabe and Mandy. Learn more about Plain Values at https://plainvalues.com.

Gabe McCauley is an actor and film director as well as the founder of the production companies, Soul Feather Studios and lilDRAGON. 

He has directed over eight seasons of television, feature films, commercials, and music videos. Gabe lives in Columbia, TN with his wife Mandy, the music supervisor of Reconnecting Roots, and is a proud daddy to Scout and Ash. 

As the host of Reco...

Today’s episode is with our dear friends Ryan and Sara. Learn more about Plain Values at https://plainvalues.com.

Ryan Heckert is first and foremost a Jesus follower, husband, and father. He’s also CEO at TWi and lover of photography, bigfoot lore, baseball, golf and fantasy football. 

Welcome to the Plain Values Podcast, please meet our friends, Ryan and Sara ... 

This conversation encapsulates what we hope to do here with the Plain Values Podcast … telling stories that matter and bringing us closer to the table.

Today’s episode is with our dear friend Sam Burchfield. Learn more about Plain Values at https://plainvalues.com.

Sam Burchfield is a musician. But wait, that’s an understatement …

Rooted in South Carolina and tempered by years of chasing and then rejecting “sparkly” offers from TV and major labels, Sam has learned the value of community, autonomy, and slow growth.

His latest album Nature Speaks is the culmination of that journey … a luminous record about real commitment, the quiet power of home, and the kind of love that steadies you through...

Today’s episode is with our dear friend Dave Stauffer. Learn more about Plain Values at https://plainvalues.com.

Dave is the Executive Director of SpringHaven Counseling Center with more than 30 years’ experience in community mental health, residential care, and private practice. 

A licensed professional clinical counselor and supervisor, he works with adults, couples, families, and individuals of all ages — integrating faith into the counseling process when requested.

When he’s not in the office, Dave enjoys life on his small farm with his wife and five grown children, spending his free...

Today’s episode is with our dear friend Steve Axtell. Learn more about Plain Values at https://plainvalues.com.

Steve Axtell is the founder of Axtell Expressions, a world-renowned puppet and animatronics company whose creations are used by performers in more than 80 countries. 

From Disney and Universal to Broadway, Ripley’s, schools, and churches, his characters have delighted audiences everywhere.

Growing up the son of a Nazarene pastor, Steve’s love of puppetry began in childhood and eventually came full circle when Sesame Street reached...

Today’s episode is with our dear friend David Stelzer. Learn more about Plain Values at https://www.plainvalues.com.

David Stelzer is the founder and CEO of the now legendary Azure Standard.

He started farming as a teenager in the 1970s (!) and that passion for real food has never stopped since. He’s a man on a mission, and his story is fascinating.

Welcome to the Plain Values Podcast, please meet our friend, David Stelzer ...

This conversation encapsulates what...

Today’s episode is with our dear friend Joel Salatin. Learn more about Plain Values at www.plainvalues.com.

How do you describe a man like Joel Salatin? He’s been an absolute force of nature on the public scene for more than 45 years. 

Farmer, innovator, thinker, speaker, frontline leader, Christian, humble, father, friend, debater, writer, all around amazing man.

It has been an honor and a joy to work with him and be a friend for years.

Welcome to th...

Today’s episode is with our dear friend Tristan Griffin. Learn more about Plain Values at www.plainvalues.com.

Tristan began a beautiful project with his daughter's future in mind. 

He and his wife moved the family from Texas (leaving his career in law) and started up Farming with Friends. 

Farming with Friends provides meaningful work for a small team of young men with special needs, not to mention wonderful produce at their local farmer’s market. 

We are pleased...

Today’s episode is with our dear friends from just down the road, Dale Cramer and John Schmid. Learn more about Plain Values at www.plainvalues.com.

I was introduced to Dale Cramer through an old family friend, John, and the tale he told was one I couldn't let lie.

A young Amish man running away from home, joining the Army and lying about his name, age… nearly everything, and the marvelous reconciliation after 50 years. 

Welcome to the Plain Values Podcast, please meet our frien...

Today’s episode is with our dear friends from just down the road, Shawn and Beth Dougherty. Learn more about Plain Values at www.plainvalues.com.

Shawn and Beth bring light everywhere they go.  Today, they join us in an incredible conversation about homesteading, family, tragedy, and living a life on terms dictated by our heavenly Father.

This conversation encapsulates what we hope to do here with the Plain Values Podcast — telling stories that matter and bringing us closer to the table.

If this conve...