When Kay Hazen sought her undergrad degree in broadcasting, the Central Illinois native never imagined she was destined to make the kind of impact she has in the Desert Southwest. On this episode of Big Conversations, Little Bar, we learn about how a healthcare professional from Peoria would come to be a crisis communications and strategic planning expert first at Desert Hospital in Palm Springs before transitioning to build public confidence in numerous other controversial and pivotal operations across the region.

Beyond her work as a strategic communicator working with a multitude of agencies and organizations, Kay has been involved with the founding of organizations like Friends of the Desert Mountains and the Coachella Valley Economic Partnership, and served in board and leadership roles with the Palm Springs International Film Festival and the local chapter of the American Heart Association. She shares many stories that paint an incredible picture of the past several decades of Greater Palm Springs history recalling colorful and important figures including late-Mayor and Congressman Sonny Bono and recounts a story about his commitment to healing a grieving community after a tragedy that involved an accident with a busload of children going to the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway.

This is a Must-Hear episode as Kay Hazen braves the infamous corner booth at Skip Paige’s Little Bar in The Center of the Coachella Valley Universe with co-hosts Patrick Evans and Randy Florence.