Dene Liott Knows 'What's Happening'

"You'll never make it happen."

That pessimistic remark, posed by friends as a fun dare, was about all it took to set Dene Liott on a path to prove she can accomplish anything she sets her mind to.

Liott was at the local senior citizen center where she joked with others about transforming her personal experience as a caregiver into an educational television program that could help others.

The more she considered the idea, coupled with some ribbing from her cronies, the more she wanted to make it happen.

Nobody took her seriously.

"I didn't know a thing," Liott said of creating a television show. But after caring for her terminally ill mother and husband at home, she knew others could benefit from her experience. More importantly, she wanted to connect caregivers with valuable community resources she had discovered. 

To learn more about the talk show industry, Liott did what comes naturally to her.

"I just asked questions," she said.

"They say when you mature, you're supposed to reach back to the spark you enjoyed as a youngster and turn it into a flame," she said and smiled. "I've always liked to entertain."

She started with one show about eight years ago.

"Now, I have five shows," she said.

Liott records some of her shows at Pottstown's station. She's also known to grab a video crew and shoot on location. Liott is not an employee of the station, however, she rents PCTV's services.

Many of Liott's productions are tailored to help caregivers and the elderly. On her shows, she interviews medical professionals on subjects including Alzheimer's disease, diabetes and dementia.

She also covers current events and interviews politicians.

The "Cookin’ With Dene" show is videotaped at different places where Liott interviews a chef who demonstrates how to create a culinary favorite. 

And then there's her "Dance Party" show that's taped live at various spots.

"It's fun," Liott said, adding her goal is to be "informative and entertaining."

No matter where she records a show, even on her live broadcast every Thursday at noon, Liott never uses a script or prompter.

"I forget I'm on TV," she said of talking to a guest during an interview. "I open a show with a question and then from the answer I go from there."

That relaxed style rubbed off on Jodie Daniels, assistant executive director at Chestnut Knoll Residential Care And Memory Care, which is located in Boyertown and Phoenixville. Daniels, a guest on "What's Happening Live With Dene" last week, said she was nervous before the broadcast started. Minutes into the show, Daniels was deep in conversation with Liott and seemed to forget there were cameras in the room.

As if Liott doesn't have enough on her plate, she serves on several county and state committees and boards that focus on the aging population.

Last month, Gov. Tom Corbett announced confirmations of his nominees by the Pennsylvania Senate including Liott to the state's Council on Aging.

Additionally, Liott is a public speaker and award winning volunteer.

Liott said she hopes to inspire other senior citizens to pursue their dreams.

"You can start a new vocation any time you want ... Have fun, do what you want to do," she said. "That's what keeps me young."