by Maggie CeaseZohreh moved to Michigan from Iran at the age of eighteen, and since then, has gone on to found the Pars Center, a Persian language and culture school dedicated to teaching the history, literature, and culture, of Iran. She has been running it for over 25 years in Ann Arbor.
In this interview, we talk about challenges she faced when she first came to the US, what motivated her to found the Pars Center and to continue running it over all these years, other events she hosts, and we even get to hear a favorite poem of hers by 20th century Iranian poet Ahmad Shamloo, which she reads in both Farsi, the official language of Iran, and English. The poem is called In this Cul-de-Sac. The other poets she mentions in the interview are Forough Farrokhzad and Rumi. To find out more about The Pars Center, or to contact Zohreh, you can send her an email at [email protected].
0 Comments
by Maggie CeaseWelcome to episode number 6 of the Aapricity Podcast! Today, I talk with Mark Hodesh. Mark is an Ann Arborite through and through. He started the Fleetwood Diner in 1972, and owned it nearly three years before selling it and purchasing Hertler Brothers Hardware (which is now Downtown Home and Garden) in 1975. After moving to Maine in 1981 and operating a historic inn there in the the 80s and 90s, he moved back to Ann Arbor, began operating Downtown Home and Garden again, and then went on to open Mark’s Carts in 2011 and Bill’s Beer Garden in 2012.
Here are the businesses we mention in this interview, with links to their websites: The Fleetwood Diner, Downtown Home & Garden (formerly known as Hertler Brothers Hardware), Mark's Carts, and Bill's Beer Garden. Mark and I met for the interview at Downtown Home and Garden, and we talked about the history of Ann Arbor, and how his businesses fit into the changing demographics of the city, where he gets inspiration for new business ideas and how he repurposes spaces to make them happen, what he does to create and run the best businesses he can, and much more. Oh, and if you enjoyed this episode, go ahead and leave a review in the iTunes Store or Google Play Music. The more reviews a podcast has, the easier it is to find it when it’s searched for. Thanks for listening! |
Archives |
RSS Feed