Episodes

  • Christmas Around the World: Africa

    Christmas Around the World: Africa
    Nov 18 2025
    Christmas Around the World: Africa

    Show Notes:

    Volunteerencounter.com

    NPR Dancing Devils

    Is Christmas Christian

    Colonialfamilies.wordpress.com

    From Holiday to Everyday
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    28 mins
  • Massachusetts: The Strange Case of Justina Pelletier

    Massachusetts: The Strange Case of Justina Pelletier
    Nov 17 2025
    Justina Pelletier was born very premature with a slew of health problems. She mostly kept them at bay throughout her formative years, until the summer of 2010 when she was 12. That summer she complained of stomaches so bad she needed a number of surgeries. By February 2013, when Justina was 15, she was ordered to go to Boston Children's Hospital because something was very wrong. Justina was admitted to the hospital and was there for a few days until her parents wanted to take her home. But, they couldn't. Boston Children's Hospital had filed a 51A report to the Department of Children and Family Services, saying that they suspected a case of Medical Abuse by her parents and that now Justina should be a ward of the state. A judge agreed and Justina would remain in the hospital and, ultimately, in a psych ward for the coming years.
    Legal battles ensued, but that wasn't all. A hacking group called Anonymous led by a man named Marty Gottesfeld began a campaign that insisted Justina be returned to her family or BCH would "suffer retaliation the likes of which they had never seen." They did hack their system for a week to the tune of $300 million in damages. What came next was a battle for legal and parental guardianship, a hacker who fled to Cuba and all in all general mayhem. In the middle of which was a young girl whose very life was slipping away before everyone's eyes.

    Show Notes:

    https://www.imdb.com/title/tt24072584/
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    32 mins
  • Christmas Around the World: The Nordic Countries

    Christmas Around the World: The Nordic Countries
    Nov 11 2025
    Christmas Around the World: The Nordic Countries

    Show Notes:

    The Fright Before Christmas: Surviving Krampus and Other Yuletide Monsters by Jeff Belanger

    NordicVisitor.com
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    25 mins
  • Christmas Around the World: Western Europe

    Christmas Around the World: Western Europe
    Nov 5 2025
    24 mins
  • Maryland: What Happened to Sarah and Jacob Hoggle?

    Maryland: What Happened to Sarah and Jacob Hoggle?
    Nov 3 2025
    Just before 2020, Troy Hoggle, 36, was working at a bar as a bouncer in Rockville, Maryland, and met Catherine, a pretty waitress who was only 22. The two started dating, and within four or five months, Catherine was pregnant. They had a son, and then had a girl, Sarah, and another son, Jacob, in quick succession. The five moved into an apartment outside of Rockville but money was tight.

    And there was another issue: Catherine was extremely mentally ill and had been since middle school. She had been diagnosed with schizoaffective disorder. Her mental issues were only exacerbated by having children so close together. By Christmas of 2013, she was committed involuntarily to a psych ward.

    But she checked herself out, and, over the next few months, was in and out of mental facilities. Her family decided that she was not allowed to be with her children alone. Until September 8, 2014, when Sarah Hoggle was three years old and Jacob Hoggle was only two, did the unthinkable happen. Catherine was able to be with them alone, and to this day, no one has seen or heard from the children ever since.

    Show Notes:

    https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/unrestorable/id1709321174
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    29 mins
  • Trailer: Christmas Around the World

    Trailer: Christmas Around the World
    Oct 27 2025
    Hey there Holiday fans:

    Have you ever wondered what Christmas was like, not just in your neck of the
    woods, but in Western Europe, the Nordic countries, Africa, the Middle East,
    even India? Introducing Christmas Around the World, a new podcast coming
    this holiday season. With Christmas Around the World, I take a look at not just
    how Christmas is celebrated everywhere, but other holidays like Kwanza,
    Hannukah, Navaratri, Diwali and many more.

    Did you know that the movie Krampus from 2015 was based on a real Austro-Bavarian devil monster character from the 1500s? He came to collect all the naughty children to take
    back to his mountain lair to kill and eat. A kind of anti-Santa Claus that the
    modern day character of the Grinch was based off of? Or that during Diwali,
    the Hindu harvest festival of lights that is celebrated around the globe, more
    than $300 million dollars per year is spent on fireworks alone? Imagine
    celebrating Christmas on the sand with a barbeque and a picnic playing
    beach volleyball like they do in South Africa. Did you know while most Biblical
    scholars agree that at least one of the Three Wise Men came from the Middle
    East to worship Jesus, that one or more of them could have been from China
    or India ? There also is no consensus that they were three in number, some
    debate there could have been 2, 4, 8 or even 12 Kings who made the journey.
    And Did you know that instead of a jolly, Santa Claus type being the figure
    representative of the season, both Italy and Iceland revere a good and an evil
    witch, respectively ?

    Learn about all of this and so much more like decor, food, religions and the holiday traditions that make the world go round during the very best time of the year. I will also be featuring interviews with special guests from around the globe who can tell us, in their own words, what
    special Christmas, religious, solstice and harvest festival holidays are like for
    them. Christmas Around the World premieres Tuesday, November 4th with a
    new episode every Tuesday. Available wherever you get your podcasts. And
    for more holiday mystery fun don’t forget to check out all three seasons of The
    Evergreen Murders with The Evergreen Murders: A Mackenzie Monroe
    Christmas Mystery, Murder at Mistletoe Manor and Return to Evergreen.
    Trilogy available wherever you get your podcasts.
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    4 mins
  • Maine: The Suspicious Death of Krystal Lee Higgins

    Maine: The Suspicious Death of Krystal Lee Higgins
    Oct 20 2025
    By the age of 17, Krystal Lee Higgins of Harrington, Maine, had been through more than most kids. She and her brother and sister were put into foster care when they were young and Krystal had been emancipated from her parents at only 16 years old. In August of 2004, right before she was due to start her senior year of High School, was living with a friend and was holding down two jobs. But on August 7, 2004, when she was supposed to have a fun night out with friends, her life was cut tragically short.
    Krystal's car was found submerged by a boat dock 5 days later and Krystal was found floating facedown in the same river one week after she disappeared. While the coroner pronounced her death an accidental drowning, others weren't so sure. Years later, two mysterious letters would turn up in the town, asking its residents to re-think everything they knew about the case.

    Show Notes:

    https://darkdowneast.com/krystalleehiggins-pt1/

    https://darkdowneast.com/krystalleehiggins-pt2/
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    26 mins
  • Louisiana: The Death of Danny Schneider

    Louisiana: The Death of Danny Schneider
    Oct 6 2025
    On April 13, 1999 at around 9 pm, Danny Schneider Jr., 20, told his parents and sister he was going to study at a friend's house in Chalmette, Louisiana, about a 20 minute drive from New Orleans. In reality, Danny was actually going to buy drugs in the seedy 9th Ward. On April 14, at around 2 am, Dan and Annie Schneider were awakened by a knock at their door telling them their son was dead. He had been shot in the head.
    Dan Schneider would take on his son's case, relentlessly seeking justice for him. His quest would lead him down a long, dark and winding road full of drug dealers, drug addicts, a false informant, a real eyewitness, illegal pill mills and a pediatrician-turned narcotics dealer doctor who was almost single-handedly helping along the country's opioid crisis.

    Show Notes:

    https://www.imdb.com/title/tt11600174/
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    25 mins