‘I get to meet cool people in town.’ LS man aims to link neighbors through podcast

Nick Parker is not the name of an elusive Lee’s City octopus. Parker is a human with a short, mostly gray hair and a well-kept beard. But on a recent day, his arms were swinging so wildly and quickly — a blur taking up his office and recording space — the metaphor of that eight-tentacled mollusk was hard to ignore.

Parker, who often flashes a broad smile, has a curious mind and the ability to listen deeply. And he seems to have the energy and enthusiasm to devote to all he’s passionate about. The longtime Lee’s Summit resident and fervent supporter of all things involving the city created Link 2 Lee’s Summit in 2016, and became producer of its Lee’s Summit Town Hall podcast in 2017.

The 47-year-old works out of an old vault in the former post office building at 210 S.W. Market St. in the downtown area. Now called Bridge Space, it exists to foster entrepreneurs’ success.

Parker’s background is in print journalism. He wrote for community newspapers, including the Lee’s Summit Journal, from 1995 to 2005, before moving to the corporate world of news publishing, then marketing for a commercial real estate firm. Then he took on the challenge in Lee’s Summit of creating a forum for telling local stories, promoting local businesses and supporting the community. And if more than 600 episodes and downloads by more than 50,000 people is the measure, he’s been successful on all fronts.

“I originally started writing about local businesses and economic development because there really wasn’t anyone doing that,” he said. “As a complement to that, I built an app with a directory to every local business I could find. When I started to realize people were reading what I put on the site and in the weekly newsletter, I expanded to local elections and features.”

The value of analyzing and reporting on local election issues was never in doubt.

“The great thing about it is getting information to voters and affecting change,” he said. But it eventually became too frustrating. “I enjoyed local politics until things got ugly at the national and local level.”

Jason Norbury, Town Hall’s original podcast co-host, sees value in trying to shift the Link 2 Lee’s Summit audience to a different approach. People can make a bigger change at a local level than dealing with a state legislature or higher, he said. City Council members, for example, are much more accessible.

“You can make quite a difference.”

He met Parker through Downtown Lee’s Main Street activities when he had a law office downtown. He is a past board member of DLSMS. Parker is a current board member. As a podcast co-host, Norbury watched Parker crafting stories and developing his interviewing style.

“He has a natural gift, and he’s really worked on his gift,” Norbury said. “And over time he just got really good at it.”

Parker said life became more fun after he refocused his energies from political conflict to telling stories.

“I get to meet cool people in town,” he said. “We just get to sit in here and talk to people. Lee’s Summit is a cool little town and we need to capture that story.”

New co-host Liesl Hays joins him now to deliver segments that may be as lighthearted as an interview with a family of musicians or as intense as a piece on youth suicide.

One of his first podcast interviews was about One Good Meal, a nonprofit that delivers meals to local shut-ins and the elderly. The organization was at a crossroads, with no money to pay their bills. People showed up to support them through that crisis, he said, and it was extremely impressive.

The third aim of Link 2 Lee’s Summit is community service. Parker says like many cities, Lee’s Summit has around 50 to 100 people who carry the load of getting stuff done. “The question is, ‘How do we grow that group?’ I felt an obligation to start preaching that.”

It’s easy enough to get involved, he said. “Get off your pockets and donate.” Write a check, pass the word about an opportunity, volunteer time and energy. “Great things happen in a community when people get involved.”

When COVID-19 changed the nature of service and upended workplace norms, Parker was already there and loving it. He had a head start on weaving work responsibilities with family commitments to his sister, Katy; his wife, Stephanie; and his son Charlie. He continues to focus on the three aspects of Link 2 Lee’s Summit: local stories, local business and community service.

One could do worse than being compared to a sea creature. After all, the octopus with eight limbs also has three hearts. Parker has at least that many.