(lively music) - Here's what's coming up next on "You Oughta Know."

Class is in session at the Philly Cheese School, and the exams are delicious.

Empowering women to get active and keep moving is how Latinas in Motion became a movement beyond Philly.

And Ukrainian dancers find a temporary home in The First State.

Hi everyone, I'm Shirley Min.

I'm so glad that you could join us.

We are starting off our show in Wilmington.

Married Ukrainian ballroom dancers who were able to flee their home country as Russia invaded are now calling Delaware home.

They're here as part of President Biden's Uniting for Ukraine program.

(elegant music) - [Tania] We love to dance with each other.

- [Denis] I think it's more like a way to feel young.

- [Tania] When you dance, you can concentrate about other worlds.

- [Shirley] Worlds far from Denis Parfyonov's and Tania Sopit's home country of Ukraine, where the war is dragging on into a second year with no end in sight.

- In modern world, nobody expected it.

It can happen in this volume, in this power.

That's very sad.

- [Shirley] So the five-time Ukrainian National Ballroom champions left everything behind to start over in Delaware with help from Ken Richards, who owns the Blue Ballroom Dance Studio in Wilmington with wife Roseanna.

- So the war in Ukraine happened, and there was an upswell of support.

We did the normal things that a lot of people were doing, the bumper stickers, the signs in your yard, and my wife and I knew that we wanted to do more.

- [Shirley] So last spring, when the Biden administration rolled out Uniting for Ukraine, a pathway for Ukrainian citizens to come to the US, the couple jumped at the chance to sponsor someone.

- And we saw this as an opportunity to provide a better life maybe for someone.

In addition, what we thought we would do is look for some professional dancers who we could also potentially provide a career to.

- [Shirley] Through friends of friends in the dance community, Ken and Roseanna connected with Denis and Tania.

- I sincerely call them our American family because they support us a lot.

- Yes, American parents.

- American parents, right.

- They became our friends, and it's very nice to live with them and... - We're having fun.

(tender upbeat music) - [Shirley] And the ballroom dancers are earning income as instructors at the dance studio.

- We're teaching different group classes.

We're doing private lessons, and we're doing our performances all around the area.

And we're competing with our students, and it's a great kind of job because you're never bored of it.

- We are happy that people need us here, and they appreciate our level, our skills, our experience.

- [Shirley] While Denis and Tania wanna stay, the Uniting for Ukraine program is set up like a visa with a two-year time limit, which for them runs out this September.

(tender upbeat music) - Nobody wants to see them go.

They don't wanna go, and there's nowhere to go to.

- [Shirley] Denis and Tania wanna settle in Delaware but can't because their future is in limbo.

- [Denis] It helps a lot to see happy people around you.

And you also became more happy when you see people, and they have now less worries about like a global worries, like a big something.

- We need to live.

We need to build our lives, and we need to help our families who are in Ukraine still.

So that's why we're trying to stay here and to do what we love.

- I reached out to Delaware's congressional delegation, and it looks like Senator Tom Carper's office is looking into Denis and Tania's case.

Hopefully their stay can be extended, but we'll be sure to follow up with them and keep you updated.

Well, many set out to improve their health in the new year.

A local woman has set her sights even higher, creating Latinas in Motion, an organization with 5,000 members and 17 chapters in eight states.

(gentle upbeat music) - In 2012, I was already walking, jogging, running when a colleague of mine said, "If you enjoy jogging, you should really sign up for this popular race in Philadelphia called the Broad Street Run."

I committed before I had any of the details.

And so when I googled Broad Street Run, it said 10 miles.

I had already told her I was gonna do it, so you know what I did?

I did the race.

When I get to the Broad Street Run, this was May 2012, there were 40,000 runners there.

- Runners, set!

(horn blowing) - After I ran these 10 miles, I felt like I could fly.

I felt like I could run through a brick wall.

I'm like, "Who's gonna stop me?

I done ran 10 miles," wife, mother, career person and now 10-miler, right?

And so after feeling this feeling, I'm like, "Do other women have this feeling?"

At the time in 2012, there wasn't a space for me, for women who look like me, where we can talk about our songs, where we could talk about our culture, where we can, you know, speak the same language.

And so when you find a deficit, I believe it is your job to fill it.

And so when I googled Latina running club, when I Googled Latina wellness group and found nothing in 2012, I decided to create something beautiful.

and that's when Latinas in Motion was born.

Three, two, one.

Other side.

The purpose of Latinas in Motion is to encourage, inspire, and empower women of color, specifically Latinas, to get active and get healthy.

We are not called Latinas Run.

That was never even a question in my mind when I started Latinas in Motion.

I enjoyed running and jogging and walking because it's easy, and that's what I like for me.

But there are some women who enjoy to cycle.

There are some women who enjoy to swim.

There are some women who enjoy to Zumba.

And I wanted to empower women to find not only themselves but to find their fitness journey and their wellness journey on what they would fall in love with.

Five, four.

- I've never been athletic or active really prior to Latinas in Motion and joining.

Looking at my family and having children, I wanted to be there longer.

I want to be there for them in the future and not a burden to them with health.

I don't think I'd be in motion to the level that I'm at now if it wasn't for Latinas in Motion.

They hold me accountable in continuing to improve and grow.

We fall off, and we come back, and they're always there.

- When Elaine first started Latinas in Motion, I always thought that it was gonna be local.

I didn't expect it to expand, and I didn't expect her to think that it was gonna be bigger than anything local.

She wanted to be bigger than Philadelphia, bigger than Pennsylvania.

She wanted women all over the country to have this experience to understand that there were women that were being empowered to take care of themselves and be in motion.

- [Elaine] We have chapters in Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York, Connecticut, in the DMV area, in Florida, in Dallas.

- [All] Latinas in Motion.

- My dream for Latinas in Motion is for us to continue to expand into different chapters.

And in the long run, I would love to create a program for girls where we can teach these young women how to encourage, inspire, and empower themselves to get active and get healthy.

- I think she has a good soul.

I think what she's created with Latinos in Motion and the sisterhood, the bonds and just kind of that empowerment that you feel is definitely Good Soul material.

(gentle upbeat music) - Latinas in Motion was among last year's Good Souls nominees.

If you know a good soul, someone who gives of themselves to help others, log on to Good Souls and nominate them there for 2024.

Making time for yourself is something women are often encouraged to do, but what does that mean exactly?

Life and career coach Gail O'Halloran is here to answer that.

Gail coaches professional working women to not only get ahead in their careers but also to love their lives in the process.

Gail, so great to have you here.

- Thank you so much for having me.

I appreciate it.

- Studies are showing that women are leaving the workplace in record numbers.

What's going on here?

- A lot of women are feeling just spread too thin and really burned out from all the work, too much work and too much having to take the lead at home as well.

- And this is something that you can speak to personally and also something that you've been seeing among your friends.

- Yes, I had so many women who had said to me, "I can make time for myself.

I can figure that out.

I just don't know what I'm gonna do during that time."

So there was a gap in really understanding what their interests were and how to make the most of the free time that they may be able to find.

- And your Prioritizing You masterclass, it really fills in that gap for a lot of women.

There's three steps to the class.

What are the three steps?

- So the first thing and step we take is to really explore what women are interested in, where their passions are.

And that takes some time, and it takes some energy.

So it's a lot of self-exploration and really coming to understand what lights you up inside.

- And I guess it seems like so obvious, you know.

You should know what you're interested in, but that's almost something we have to kind of unlearn in our brains to be able to put ourselves first.

- Yeah, women have spent so much time taking care of other people, whether it's in their job, their family, their partners, caretaking for their parents, that they lose sight of, "Who am I?

What am I interested in?"

- And so you help them figure out their interests.

The second step is setting boundaries.

- Yeah, so it's so important.

Honestly, it's not about work-life balance.

Work and life are one in the same.

We're all living through work every day in our lives, so it's about setting boundaries and being crystal clear with your loved ones, with your partner, with your family to say, "I'm going to take this time to do whatever that is, and I'm gonna need that space," and having a plan with your partner and being consistent in setting that boundary so that everyone's expectations are on the same page.

- Yeah, Mommy's not available during this time and this time.

Go ask Dad.

(laughs) - Dad will be making dinner tonight.

I'm out.

- And being consistent, you kind of alluded to that.

Being consistent is so key to the success of this.

- Yeah, it's really more than just setting goals, and it's committing to yourself and being consistent in taking that time in these activities that you find fun in doing.

- We were talking off camera about some of the things that you're pursuing.

Can you share some of that with us?

- Yeah, I having gone through this exercise myself, really discovered that things that I love doing, I have learned how to do pickleball.

I am also a complete geek in technology, and I'm learning all about AI.

It's been super fun.

And then I started taking an improv class 'cause it's something I've always wanted to do but never had the courage to do before.

And I thought, "Well, I've taken myself through the process, and I'm feeling confident and, you know, courageous now.

I'm gonna do this."

- I love this.

- It's been amazing.

- And the Prioritizing You masterclass is really just sort of the tip of the iceberg.

It's part of a larger program.

- Yeah, I wanted to start with Prioritizing You in the beginning of the year since everyone's setting goals and priorities and everything, and I felt like this is something you can start here and go on through the year.

But it's part of my Thrive framework, which supports women throughout their careers and growing and being over a longer term just more confident and clear on how they can love their lives.

- I love it, Gail.

Gail, how can people find you online and sign up for the class?

- They can really find me on Facebook and on Instagram under my name, Gail O'Halloran.

- Okay, and the class is free?

- Yes, it's a free masterclass.

- Okay, Gail O'Halloran, thank you so much for being here.

It was great to see you.

- Thank you for having me.

- Well, American composer Andrea Clearfield is sharing the gift of music.

Her Szalons, you'll get that reference soon, introduces music lovers to various artists and genres of music.

(gentle wondrous music) - I started playing music very young.

I was about five years old when I started playing my mother's piano, and my parents and I played music in the home.

And I think that was a really influential thing for me, both as a composer and pianist but also in starting the salon years later.

I found myself interested pretty young in the salons of Paris in the 19th century, this tradition of music in the home, and also the idea of collaboration, that there were different instruments and different art forms even.

And carrying on a tradition that is ages old was something that really inspired me.

Inner connection, bringing people together, making bridges, and the healing aspect of music that can connect us all.

At the salon, you can hear classical chamber music, jazz.

♪ I need to feel ♪ ♪ I need to ♪ - [Andrea] World music.

Opera.

♪ My father taught me ♪ - [Andrea] Electronic music.

Contemporary music with living composers, spoken word and dance.

- I lighten the ebb and flow of energy, the gathering of melodies and rhythmic passages.

- [Andrea] It's really a diverse mix.

(unsettling music) (lively violin music) In March 2020, I had to cancel the salon for the first time in 33 years, and I was heartbroken.

(lively violin music) Very soon after the COVID lockdown, the salon went completely online, and I changed the name to Szalon for Zoom salon.

In 2021, the hybrid salon started.

♪ All that she's done, oh ♪ - Salon is really about bringing people together through the power of music to move us deeply and to experience that in community.

It's also about bringing people together globally now that the hybrid salon has been formed, and there's an international audience, and I'm also streaming in international performers.

The salon is a celebration of the human spirit.

I find my performers through the Philadelphia music scene, which I've been a part of as a composer and pianist.

And I travel widely for my work, and I meet now artists from other countries.

And with the new hybrid, we can invite them to stream in and perform for us live.

I think the audience appreciates several things, the intimacy, sitting so close to the performers, which is different from the big concert halls.

I think they appreciate the diversity.

They get to hear things they might not normally hear all in one night.

(lively music) It gives me so much joy to bring people into my home and with an incredible team and such amazing musicians now from all over the world that we come together.

We celebrate the human spirit, and we believe in the global power of music and arts to heal us, to create connection, and to create more peace in the world.

(performer chanting) (audience applauds) - Today our teacher talks about a place called Africa.

She say our mamas come from queens over there.

That means that we royalty.

(ladies laugh) - [Patrick] The new film "The Color Purple" is a musical drama, very unusual, and it's won award noms.

Colman Domingo plays Mister and I hear was a leader on the set.

I wanted to talk to the cast about that, but first I surprised them with the fact that I did the interviews for the first "Color Purple" in 1985.

- Wow.

- I interviewed Oprah and Whoopi when they weren't Oprah and Whoopi.

- [Colman] (laughs) Yeah.

- To what extent do you look to his experience as a guideline for your earlier, your younger career?

- Hm.

- I adore this brother.

- [Patrick] Do you now?

- I do.

He was a, not was, is, in my eyes is just like a Julliard student eyes open wide to the world, a beacon, sort of like the paragon of like, oh, that's what it means to create a career.

Colman led on this set, not just with his work ethic, but his generosity of spirit.

- [Patrick] How does it make you feel to hear that you are now that for a younger generation?

- Well, it feels really beautiful if I could be any inspiration to someone like Corey, my fellow artists.

You know, I know that I've created a path for myself, and I want it to be filled with nurturing and love and kindness.

And I do know that like younger people are looking to me to see how to do it, how to move through with grace, how to lead sets.

- Colman was the one that, first of all, we prayed before everything.

- [Patrick] Is that right?

- Oh yes, we wasn't just stepping on that set saying, "Okay, let's play."

We knew we were about to step into their shoes, and we wanted to honor them, but we knew that there were gonna be heavy days and hard days.

So between Colman bringing the prayers and the music- - Wow.

- And for me, he would check on me after every scene, every hard scene that I had.

- And you're both nodding.

- This is true.

- That's Colman.

- [Taraji] It's very true.

It's very true.

- That's Colman.

- He brings a lot of joy too.

I was like, "Man, what are you... Can I have what you have?"

'cause he is just always up, you know, and when someone is like that, they lift you up, you know?

- Also he's paid his dues.

- Absolutely.

- You know, that matters.

- Yes, he has.

- Yeah, he's filled with wisdom.

- And he's having an amazing year, and I'm so grateful for him.

- You know, thank you very much.

- [All] Thank you.

- Thank you very much.

- It's an honor.

- Good to see you too.

Thank you for your questions.

- I'm Patrick Stoner.

- Cheese, I love it and so do many others.

And the Philly Cheese School is helping us enjoy it even more.

- Cheese is the best.

Cheese makes everything better.

The year is 2014.

I've just graduated college.

I'm living in Manhattan and working as an intern for a magazine.

Ends are not super meeting, and I notice that there's a cheese counter near my office.

I need a part-time job.

I ended up getting hired, and lightning struck.

I said, "I need to dedicate my life to this."

So I worked for a number of years, and then I was ready for kind of a step up, and I took a leadership role on a really big cheese counter in Philly, learned so much.

And then the pandemic hit.

I've always had this dream of having my own operation, and I didn't know if it was gonna be a cheese bar or a cheese shop, but I really just kind of noticed that my favorite parts of cheese are telling these stories and letting people know, you know, the magic of these products.

And so I leaned into it, and I started offering cheese classes virtually, really wanting to expand here in Philly.

And this is my home.

I love this city so much.

And so I started teaching some classes in parks.

People started asking, "When are you gonna get a spot?

When are you gonna get a location?"

And I said, "I guess I'm getting a location."

(laughs) And so then I totally lucked out, found this amazing spot here on 9th and Bainbridge, and the rest is history.

I'm just above the Italian market, an area where people are thinking about food, not just that, but an area where a lot of people are like living and walking around, which I love.

You know, it's been so fun to get to know my neighbors and the community here.

People just walking by, popping in, and being like, "What is this?"

And then I get to talk to 'em about cheese, which is my favorite thing to do.

The Italian market is known for this kind of old-school style of cheese shop.

And so I felt inspired to do something really different with this space, have more of a feminine energy and to really speak to these communities of people that I identify with that maybe feel alienated by those really male-run old-school spaces.

We are having some seriously delicious cheeses but in a space that feels kind of fun.

(bright music) These products are accessible to everybody.

You don't need to have a perfectly trained, refined palate to have a great piece of cheese and say yum.

And so something that we're about here is, you know, really letting people know that any question is okay.

No comment is like wrong or incorrect.

Everything is welcome.

And we also, one of the things I like to do is mix cheeses with things that people are a little more accustomed to.

We pair cheese with potato chips, cheese with cookies, cheese with cereal.

We take these products seriously.

We really respect these artisan, these makers and these animals that had to do with creating these products, but it's just too hard to exist.

Let's take the rules away.

Let's just enjoy and pick up a delicious piece of cheese 'cause cheese is for the people.

Flavor, texture, characteristics of our cheese.

- I had such an amazing time.

Cheese school taught me more than I expected, and I'm gonna be coming back.

- I learned about what kind of animals can make cheese, different areas where cheese comes from and how it impacts how things taste.

We had a great time.

- It's a fun experience.

Live in the neighborhood, love supporting local business, fun to learn something and to get together with friends and eat delicious cheese.

- I am going to continue spreading the good word of the curd to my community here in Philly.

This is my dream.

This is what I've always wanted to do, so I'm just grateful to be doing it.

Cheese is magic.

- [All] Cheese.

(camera shutter clicks) - Well, there was no way I was gonna watch a story about cheese and not get to enjoy some.

Julia Birnbaum is here now with some samples.

Julia, welcome.

- Thank you for having me, and don't worry, I would never put you in that position.

Of course I'm gonna bring you some cheese.

- Of course.

Thank you.

First I wanna introduce your assistant.

- This is Brianna.

- She's so cute.

- She's a very important part of the operation.

I really couldn't do it without her.

- I did wanna give her her credit.

But you've brought some interesting pairings here.

Tell me what we have here on the table.

- Yeah, so at Philly Cheese School, we like to get a little playful.

We like to get a little goofy with our cheese.

So I just have a couple of my favorite examples of some non-traditional cheese pairings.

Upfront here we have a cheese called Midnight Moon, which is a goat's milk Gouda, super tasty, and then we have paired it with some Fruity Pebbles in maybe one of my most visually exciting pairings.

And then in the back here we have a classic, very old-world style English cheddar called Montgomery's.

And then we've paired it with some sour cream and onion chips.

- Okay, so I'm gonna go in for the Midnight Moon and the Fruity Pebbles.

Just break it off?

- Go for it.

Yeah, just try.

So at Philly Cheese School, we're all about the cheese, so we always try the cheese on its own.

And then yeah, just pop it with a little Pebble.

- Now I don't really like goat cheese, so we'll see how this goes.

Mm.

- Is it working?

- Yeah, it's working.

I can do this.

- Yeah, so it's a Gouda, and one of the great things about Goudas is they have a little bit of a sweet characteristic.

You're noticing like a little caramel thing.

- [Shirley] Yeah.

- And that totally is what converts this cheese, can convert non-goat-cheese lovers.

And then the Pebbles also have a sweetness that kind of brings out that fun even more.

- Yeah, I haven't had this cereal in ages.

Okay, and I'll try the other one.

While I'm trying this one, tell me about some of the other pairings that you have that are kind of unusual.

- So, we like to, I mean, we like to have fun with a theme.

Halloween is always great.

We do candy and cheese.

We've done gummies and cheese.

Cookies and cheese is another really good one.

- Like chocolate chip cookies?

- Yeah, yeah, chocolate chip cookies with a blue cheese.

(lips smooching) You gotta try it.

- Really?

- Yeah.

And then of course we do a little bit more classic ones, wine and cheese, cider and cheese, beer and cheese.

I'm now working with a woman doing tea and cheese classes, which is awesome for NA folks.

- This is really good.

- You like it?

- I like it because, you know, it makes cheese sort of fun and playful.

- Totally.

- 'Cause it can kind of creep into like a little bit of a snooty territory.

- Totally, and I've worked in cheese for a long time, and it just breaks my heart how often I've heard people say, you know, "Oh, I can't talk about flavor.

I don't have a palate."

Yeah, you do.

Just have fun with it.

- Yeah, and it's good.

- Good.

- You know, people know what's good, right?

- Yeah.

(laughs) - This is good.

- So I do really like this pairing.

- Okay, sweet.

I'm glad.

- Julia, thank you so much for stopping by- - Thank you.

- And bringing snacks and showing us these creative and tasty ways to pair cheese.

Now you can check out Philly Cheese School at the address below.

And thank you all for watching tonight.

Please join us again next week for new stories that you ought to know about.

Goodnight, everyone.

(Shirley and Julia chuckle) (lively music)