WAMU: Metro Connection

This Thanksgiving week, we're digging into the Metro Connection archives, and presenting some of our favorite stories about food, family, and traditions. Enjoy!

We'll meet a lifelong Montgomery County resident who grew up in segregated and unequal county schools, and went on to become a top-notch athlete and beloved coach to generations of students. We'll dive in to the debate over the ethics of an elite private school displacing low-income seniors. Plus, we'll hear about the building, once at the center of the Walter Reed scandal in 2007, and now slated for demolition.

We'll find out why a tiny sliver of land honoring a pop star-turned politico is getting a new lease on life. We'll go inside FreshPAC's decision to shut down the controversial political action committee supporting D.C. Mayor Muriel Bowser. And we'll hear why a proposed bike lane is sparking heated debates about race, economics, and displacement.

We'll visit a Capitol Hill rowhouse that once was home to an influential lesbian separatist collective, The Furies. And we'll meet the woman behind the effort to grant 16-year-olds the right to vote in the nation's capital. Plus, we'll stop in at the Sunday afternoon drum circle that's been a tradition in Washington since the 1960s to hear why some say the beat just isn't what it used to be.

We'll hear from Willard Scott, who co-hosted the wildly popular show, "The Joy Boys," with the late Ed Walker. We'll visit an unusual senior community where retired Foreign Service officers keep up with current events by inviting their ambassador friends to speak. Plus, we'll meet gun enthusiasts in Virginia who buck the stereotype that gun owners are all conservative white men.

This week we're bringing you a compilation of some of our best stories from 2015, plus a story about The Big Broadcast host Ed Walker, who recently announced his retirement.

We'll find out why D.C. is selling off some of its public housing -- in the midst of an affordable housing crisis. We'll hear from commuters who are so fed up with service disruptions and delays, they say they're quitting Metro. Plus, we'll talk with people who say they've been victims of predatory car-title lending in Virginia.

With the oldest of the baby boomers turning 70 next year, we'll hear from Washingtonians launching new careers in their 50s and 60s... with their 20- and 30-something sons or daughters. Plus, with Pope Francis' Washington visit less than two weeks away, we'll hear how the "Francis effect" is playing out on D.C.'s Catholic campuses. And we'll travel to Russia, and find out why LGBT activists are fleeing homophobia and landing in D.C.

With Labor Day weekend here, we'll hear about a new program dedicated to helping returning citizens get jobs: by teaching them to launch their own startups after coming home from prison. We'll explore what it takes to make it as a tour guide in the nation's capital. And we'll talk with residents across the city about the recent spike in violent crime.

Ten years after Hurricane Katrina, we'll hear from a couple who packed up and left D.C. in 2006 to start a new life in New Orleans, helping flood victims rebuild their homes. Plus, we'll ask whether replacing Pepco with a publicly-owned utility might better serve D.C. ratepayers. And we'll hear how one woman became so frustrated by Washington's dating scene, she found a way to crowdsource love.

We're paying homage to the earth with a show about reducing, reusing, and recycling in the D.C. region.

We'll meet Washingtonians with a singular devotion to work, and a passionate dedication to play, as we bring you tales of duty and dedication.

We'll examine the past, present and future or one of D.C.'s most scenic spots, Hains Point, as well as other stories from around the region.

How should we remember Maryland's Confederate history? What would you pay to get from D.C. to Baltimore in 15 minutes? What secrets lie beneath an empty Georgetown lot? We'll seek answers to these questions and many more.

We'll dive in to a new summer series on the history and changing demographics of D.C.'s free public pools. Plus, we'll find out how a local food bank is using technology to find hidden pockets of food insecurity. And we'll hear from a Virginia couple giving away their 35-acre farm for 1,000 words.

Three months before the Baltimore police trial in the death of Freddie Gray, we'll take a walking tour of the city and see how it's faring after the riots. Plus, we'll check in on efforts to curb a critter eating away at our region's ash trees, and visit Virginia's newest charter school.

We'll bring you stories of the moments that define and change our lives, with a show we're calling "Milestones."

We'll explore the nation's capital as an international crossroads of cultures and people.

We'll tour the D.C. region's music scene this week in a special collaboration with WAMU's music site, Bandwidth.fm.

We'll take an audio tour of Virginia's most heavily-populated county, and meet some of the 1.1 million people who call it home.

From astronomers to female barbers to a dominatrix in D.C., we'll step aside from our usual thematic approach to bring you one of our Wild Cards show.

Now that you can use small amounts of marijuana in the nation's capital, we'll explore how it's affecting the city, the region, and the national debate over the legalization of pot.

We'll get ready for Earth Day with a show about reducing, reusing, and recycling in the D.C. region.

From the D.C. Jail to the tiniest town in Maryland, we'll trek across our region in pursuit of "Perseverence."

We'll celebrate the official arrival of spring with stories of the young'ns among us.

Route 1 is one of the D.C. region's oldest highways, cutting through Maryland, D.C. and Virginia. This week we meet the folks living and working along the route, and talking about how they're making it better.

With homelessness on the rise in D.C., we'll hear how city officials are tackling the issue, and how homeless residents are coping with the struggle.

We'll tip our hats to Valentine's Day with tales of both romantic love and the fervor Washingtonians feel for their jobs and hobbies.

We'll look at everyday life in the place where people work and play just steps from the center of American political power.

Block by block and neighborhood by neighborhood, D.C. is in the midst of major redevelopment. What are we gaining and what are we losing in the process?

We'll bring you stories about "Second Chances" this week — from choosing a new path after you lose a job to recovering from a serious injury, to rebuilding your life after war.

We'll go theme-free this week, as we bring you stories that run the gamut — from a look inside one of the District's last large-scale public housing projects, to the tale of a local guitar maker who made it big.

Metro Connection marks the 40th anniversary of home rule in D.C. What's next in the push for voting rights and statehood?

From how deaf people learn language to how skiing helps injured individuals heal, here are some favorites from 2014.

Wonder what's become of some of the people and places we've featured in shows past? This week we'll bring you the latest update.

As we celebrate this Most Wonderful Time of the Year, it's our annual look at customs and rituals across the D.C. region, from Jewish ritual baths to Senatorial soup.

From condos to communes, we'll explore the meaning of home, sweet home in the Washington region.

We'll delve into our region's sharp increase in heroin abuse, as we talk with dealers, doctors, parents and recovering addicts.

From old maps and vintage postcards to dilapidated buildings and piles of cash, we'll look at all kinds of collecting.

As election day approaches, we'll delve in to some perennial questions about politics in the National Capital Region.

From the workplace to the home to the stage, we explore Washingtonians' dedication and commitment, often in the face of some daunting odds.

We'll go theme-free with stories that run the gamut, from a look at a local birth photographer to the latest twists in the debate over guns in D.C.

From Colonial Dames to members of the Patawomeck Tribe, we meet families whose roots run deep in the D.C. region.

From the famous to the unsung, we'll present stories of people who pushed for what they believed in -- and left a legacy for others to follow.

Block by block and neighborhood by neighborhood, D.C. is in the midst of major redevelopment. What are we gaining and what are we losing in the process?

With Labor Day behind us, we're celebrating Washington's workaday world and the people who keep our city going.

As kids head back to school, we'll look at the lessons we learn in the classroom — and beyond — with a show we're calling "Learning the Ropes."

More than a decade ago, the District began sheltering homeless families in the city's abandoned public hospital, D.C. General. This week, we visit some of those families, talk to the kids, and get some updates on the future of the hospital.

We'll sweat it out with "Feeling the Heat," our annual show dedicated to summertime in the city.

From Korean bagels to vegan donuts to mambo/mumbo sauce, we'll dig in to food, glorious food in the National Capital Region.

We'll bring you stories of the secret and surreptitious, from underground vaults to off-the-record dinner parties to what happens behind the scenes at the White House.

We'll celebrate Independence Day with stories of adventurers and iconoclasts of all kinds.

This week we'll look at the moments in life that can lead to big changes, from the home front to the workplace.

We'll press the rewind button on our time machine as we bring you stories about our region's bygone days.

We'll celebrate the unofficial start of sultry summer this Memorial Day weekend by "Breaking a Sweat."

We'll bring you stories of older Washingtonians who've spent their lives pursuing their passions and leaving a lasting legacy.

We're paying tribute to those who shake things up, go against the grain and otherwise march to their own beat.

We're going back to square one, turning back the hands of time, and getting at the root of the matter with a show we're calling "Origins."

Join us for an audio tour of Silver Spring, as we explore the community's past, present and future.

We'll go ward by ward through the city as we take a pre-election look at where the District is now, and where it's headed.

We're tossing our usual theme aside and going wild, with stories about everything from unearthing streams to brewing beer to maneuvering the military out of Afghanistan.

From the Appalachian Trail to the Chesapeake Bay, we'll beat this winter's cabin fever by revisiting favorite Metro Connection stories from the great outdoors.

We'll meet people defying the improbable and breaking new ground across the D.C. region.

We'll tip our hat to Saint Valentine, as we bring you a show all about love.

We'll bring you tales of life in wintry Washington as we present our annual "Out in the Cold" show.

We'll meet folks blowing away the cobwebs, shaking things up, and seizing the day as we bring you a show all about "Fresh Starts."

From the folks who build horse-drawn carriages to old-time radio geeks, we'll press rewind and whiz back in time with a show we're calling "Throwbacks."

We'll look at the changing ways we make and think about money in the Washington region.

As we mark that time of year when we all vow to be the best we can be, we'll bring you a show about "Resolutions."

With 2014 around the corner, we'll pause to toast some of the great characters we met and places we visited in 2013.

We'll bring you the second act of some of our most memorable stories, from the struggling monks of Holy Cross Abbey to the rapidly disappearing Dyke Marsh.

We'll dream a little dream this week, as we revisit some favorite stories about Washingtonians' wishes and aspirations.

We'll talk with Washingtonians young and old about lessons learned and knowledge gleaned from life's daily challenges.

We'll look at the places that shelter us and the symbolism behind our humble abodes as we bring you a show about "House and Home."