The Bluegrass Schmooze

About The Bluegrass Schmooze

When Shani Abramowitz and Ben Freed took their first jobs as rabbis in Lexington and Louisville, they got one question from their classmates and friends: There are Jews in Kentucky? The short answer is yes! The long answer is right here, in your podcast feed. Every month, you'll hear a deep dive into upcoming holidays and their meanings, and kibitz with a Jewish Kentuckian who has a great story. And each episode wraps up with a L'Chaim of the Month — a toast to a person or group making our world a better place (bourbon in a kosher dill jar optional... but strongly encouraged). Zei gezunt, y'all!

Publisher

Louisville Public Media

Category

religion & spirituality · society & culture

Language

en

Explicit

No

First episode

22 Aug 2023

Latest episode

3 Apr 2025

Latest episodes

22 episodes in the feed.

1. 

   3 Apr 2025

   Nisan: Jewish Athletes in Kentucky and Beyond

   March Madness is at a fever pitch, and baseball season has just begun. We couldn't think of a better time to talk about the many contributions of Jewish folks to all levels of sports. Crack open your peanuts and Cracker Jacks and join us for this conversation with the legendary Alan Stein, founder of the Lexington Legends Minor League baseball team.

2. 

   7 Mar 2025

   Adar: A Jewish history of Louisville, Kentucky

   A couple episodes ago we explored Lexington's Jewish history, and now it's Louisville's turn! Join us for a deep dive with historian and museum consultant Carol Ely, author of "Jewish Louisville: Portrait of a Community." And later in the episode, the delightful Bob and Margie Kohn reminisce about growing up here, and Margie shares her family's multi-generational story of being Jewish in Kentucky... guaranteed to feel like a warm hug from your grandparents.

3. 

   30 Jan 2025

   Sh'vat: Let's schmooze about the linguistic heritage of Jews

   This month we're kibitzing with Dr. Raphael Finkel, a Yiddish scholar and educator who taught for almost 40 years at the University of Kentucky. We talk about the links between identity and language — Hebrew, Yiddish, English, and more — and the many fascinating ways they overlap for Jews in the United States.

Reach and audience

Public platform figures. Ratings count people who left a rating, not total listeners.

Apple Podcasts (US)

5.0 / 5

24 ratings

Spotify

5.0 / 5

9 ratings

Podcast Authority Score: 34 / 100

A composite of feed quality, social presence, YouTube performance and engagement. Read the methodology.

Quality

37

Social presence

0

YouTube

0

Engagement

77

Contact The Bluegrass Schmooze

Guest appearances

Books guests

Based on episode analysis; this does not confirm that the show is currently accepting guests.