Luis Grijalva

Podcast: Episode 217 | Best of 2022

This final episode of the year is a “best of” compilation of highlights from 12 of the most meaningful and impactful conversations that I’ve had over the past 12 months. As I’ve written in years past, putting together this episode is equal parts exciting and impossible. It’s a real treat to revisit all of the amazing exchanges I’ve had over the past year but it’s a tough task to pull out twelve that stood out above the rest. The honest-to-God truth is that they’re all pretty special otherwise I wouldn’t have had them in the first place. Each and every person that has been gracious enough to give me an hour or two of their time for this podcast has taught me, inspired me, entertained me, moved me, or changed me in some way—and it’s my hope that they’ve done the same for anyone who has taken the time out of their day to listen in on our conversations. They are, in order of episode release date: Bolota Asmerom, Luis Grijalva, Amy Leedham, Phil Shin, Nell Rojas, Tommy Rivs, Jinghuan Liu Tervalon, Tommie Runz, Peter Gilmore, Alison Mariella Désir, Chris Mosier, and Marielle Hall.

Podcast: Episode 191 with Luis Grijalva

Luis Grijalva tells his story of coming to the U.S. as a baby, growing up in Fairfield, California, and how getting into running at the age of 14 changed the course of his life. He told me about his experience qualifying for the Tokyo Olympics, navigating the challenges of traveling outside the country as a DACA beneficiary, and what it meant for him to represent not only his home country, but over half a million other Dreamers on the world’s biggest stage. We also discussed his relationship with coach Mike Smith, where he he draws his confidence from, and a lot more.