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Jayne Amelia talks with Jordan Bartlett who was adopted at birth by a loving family. As a young college student, Jordan met his biological sister (for the very first time) who'd been placed in foster care, bounced from home to home, and had a very rough time. As a young businessman, he committed myself to helping kids in care as they age out, and he's a CASA too! 

Jordan is the Co-Founder and Director of Good at Doing Good Works, a certified B-Corporation that provides resources and opportunities for young people aging out of foster care. It is a business built on being kind, loving more, and doing good, proving that you can be profitable for shareholders and stakeholders at the same time. Jordan is an example for those that have been willing to give up traditional executive payouts to dedicate their lives to building businesses that support all levels of employees and the community around them.

Jordan is dedicated to supporting the world around him while leading a brand that supports the lives and livelihoods of its employees, just the same. When you do more good, love more, and guide with kindness as your compass, your business can truly be a force for meaningful, intentional transformation across communities.

Jordan Bartlett holds a Bachelors of Arts in Economics from Rollins College.

DGW motto: "Be Kind. Love More. Do Good."

Twitter: jb_DGW
IG: jb_dgw
Website: dgwbranded.com

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Jayne Amelia speaks with foster parent, Mary Rathbone. Mary, her husband Alan and their daughter Chloe started their foster care journey in 2017. Their very first placement was a sibling group of four, aged 6, 4, 3 and 1.  Mary admits that after a month she nearly had a nervous breakdown with the adjustments in lifestyle and mindset fostering requires. Having worked at top hotels in NYC and Chicago before spending ten years in technology in Seattle and seven years working overseas, she believes she could do all her previous jobs blindfolded easier than it has been to take on one, much less four, foster siblings. 

In the past five years Mary and Alan have been foster parents to ten different children, the sibling group of four being back with them now for the second time. Mary sees a deep need for changes to the foster care system to prevent good foster parents and case managers from throwing in the towel and, more importantly, sweeping changes in the biological family unit to stop kids from entering care in the first place.

And to find out more about fostering, adopting or supporting families
who want to adopt please check out:
Fostering Families Today
Raise A Child
ChildNet
All4Kids
AdoptTogether.org
AdoptUskids.org
KidSave.org

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Jayne Amelia Larson speaks with former foster youth and survivor, Lisa Marie Arnett. Lisa Marie endured 36 placements and horrific abuse from the age of 2 on until she aged out of foster care at 18. She was then homeless for 3 years but even so, she managed to put herself through college and then joined the Army. She's now a helicopter mechanic, and raising a beautiful young daughter and practicing 'gentle parenting' which she never had but has learned to practice to raise a happy healthy daughter. She has a background contributing to and collaborating with the work of non-profits, schools and philanthropies around foster care advocacy and awareness raising. Her experience includes technical inputs to programming and advocacy efforts; public speaking on topics of foster-care, homelessness and sexual violence: as well as implementation of social media awareness campaigns from design to execution. Lisa currently serves in the National Guard as a Non Commissioned Officer. She was recently highlighted in a video produced by the Army recognizing her for her foster care advocacy. She/her siblings experienced foster care and homelessness as a child and young person; she/her siblings are survivors of abuse and childhood sexual abuse and her sister is a survivor of sex trafficking. Lisa has critical insights into the experiences of children facing the risks of sexual exploitation, abuse and trafficking, understanding of processes and protocols within government systems that serve youth and youth victims, as well as identification of key limitations and opportunities from a crucial lens for this issue.

IG@misslispisa
TikTok@misslisapisa
linktr.ee/Misslisapisa

NEST Foundation
TogetherWeRise
DoGudCollective
Kids to Love
Atlantic Counter Trafficking (ACT)

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Jayne Amelia talks with Raquel Wilson,  a former foster youth and now advocate from Compton. Raquel is the the program manager for the Fostering Media Connections Youth Voice program, and has been an advocate for youth affected by the foster care system, juvenile justice system, homelessness, or coined “at-risk” and has dedicated over 10 years to empowering youth and helping them develop both personally and professionally. She holds a master’s degree in Grant Writing, Management, & Evaluations and recently earned an MBA in Nonprofit Management from Concordia University of Chicago. 

Raquel is in her 3rd year as the program manager for Fostering Media Connections Youth Voice program. She provides Youth Voice program participants the platform to empower themselves through written opportunities, where they share their experiences while in foster care. “My proudest accomplishment has been the ability to garner support so that with every opportunity that we offer any foster youth, it is now paid (i.e., written submissions, internships, program contributors, webinar panelist opportunities).” 

Raquel plans to use her experiences from being in the system to help connect and build relationships with other systems-experienced youth to encourage storytelling through journalism training, empowerment, and creative expression. Raquel also enjoys writing and performing spoken word, she loves to read, listen to music, and helping others grow their network.

IG@youthvoicefmc
https://m.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100071009246096
https://linktr.ee/youthvoicefmc
imprintnews.org

The first few lines of Raquel's poem "The Skin I'm In": 

I remember I use to think my mama didnt love me 
Cause I was ugly
This a true story 
I use to think I wasnt good enough 
Like maybe I was too dark
Maybe I was too black ass fuck 
Like maybe I was pretty but not good enough to date
This a true story I remember I use think my momma use to hate 
Hate me cause I was ugly
I remember I cried in the 7th grade to her 
Like is it cause im dark skin I was almost sure
She loved me so much she lefted me in foster care 
No wonder why I grew up so insecure
The boys use to like me but they was not sure
They was embarrassed to date a dark skinned girl 
Youre pretty for a black girl 
What the hell does that mean?

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Jayne Amelia speaks with CASA Cathy Horan Walker. CASA Cathy Horan Walker is from Monterey, California. She promised herself she would become a CASA after her two sons graduated highschool and that’s what she did. Cathy believes it was her calling to become a CASA and her CASA kiddo Ryan Moses says she saved his life many times over. 

“I was a middle school math teacher for 26 years before I moved on to become a Financial Advisor 25 years ago. I have been married to my husband for 45 years and have three boys including Ryan. I met Ryan just after my first Casa child graduated from High School. We believe that a good education is a path that opens doors. All children deserve love and support and that is why I became a CASA.”

CASA of Monterey

@casamonterey 
@fiscalmoses 
@thedugudcollective 
@casamonterey

#CASA #fostercare #adopt #fostertoadopt #volunteersmatter

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Jayne Amelia speaks with former foster youth Ryan Moses. Ryan went into foster care when he was a small child and had 12 placements in 8 different school districts. At 10 he advocated for himself, called the Monterey CASA office and got himself a CASA who changed his life. But he still had to overcome massive challenges including substance abuse that almost took his life; he continues to advocate for himself, and now he does so for other foster youth as well. He’s the Founder and CEO of DoGud Clothing, a streetwear clothing brand that gives back to foster children. “We do this by giving back 10% of the proceeds to foster children through partnering with the organizations that had a huge impact on my life.”

Instagram: @fiscalmoses / @thedogudcollective

www.thedogudcollective.com

National CASA/GAL Association

#BecomeACASAVolunteer
#CourtAppointedSpecialAdvocates
#HelpFosterChildren
#HelpAFosterChild

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Jayne Amelia speaks with Allison Lieberman. Allison is a licensed marriage and family therapist, postpartum anxiety expert, mom of 2, and 2x postpartum anxiety survivor. Part of Allison's early training including treating foster kids at emergency shelters and crisis centers where many of the young women and men are very vulnerable to being sex trafficked, and she describes how that happens in this episode. Allison is the co-founder of Rooted in Harmony Counseling, a California-based group therapy practice dedicated to helping moms with anxiety, relationships, and parenting. She is the host of The New Mama Mentor® Podcast and creator of The New Mama Mentor® Signature Program. She is passionate about helping new moms overcome anxiety by developing confidence, shedding the mom guilt, and building a community. 

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-new-mama-mentor/id1615305496

www.instagram.com/thenewmamamentor 

www.instagram.com/rootedinharmonycounseling 

www.rihcounseling.com

www.rihcounseling.com/signature-program 

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Jayne Amelia speaks with CASA volunteer and book publisher, Rachel Malley. Rachel  started volunteering as a Court Appointed Special Advocate in 2019 when she learned about the power of best-interest advocacy for children who have experienced abuse or neglect. During that time she has worked with three wonderful children, and witnessed the ups and downs of Care and Protection cases. At the time of this writing, all the of the three children are in loving and supportive homes. In addition to her role as a CASA, for the last five years Rachel has worked with children’s book author Ty Allan Jackson to promote literacy and financial literacy around the country. Now a co-owner of the small but very impactful publishing company, Rachel is passionate about getting kids excited about reading through Ty’s fun, contemporary books featuring characters of color. Together, they collaborate with educators, non-profits, and cities to reach the children most impacted by illiteracy, and through this work are trying to end the associated cycles of poverty, poor health, and crime. Rachel lives in Western Massachusetts with her wonderful partner and their adorable four-year-old son. 

tyallanjackson.com
IG@ty_allan_jackson
TW@TyAllanJackson

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Jayne Amelia talks with adoptee Maria Harding.  Maria was adopted at birth but always considered a problem child by her mother. Her parents split when she was little and when her mother remarried, she was adopted by her mom's new husband but things only got worse for Maria with her adoptive mother.  Her mother put her in foster care when she was 11 , and she was in and out of foster homes, group homes, and her mother's home for the next seven years. When Maria aged out at 18, she searched for her first father and his wife who she says "took in a troubled and traumatized kid and put her back together." 

From Maria : “Four score and seven years ago…. STOP!  WAIT… Nope, that’s not my story!  
I was born in ‘71 in Vermont.  Adopted at 3 days old… and that’s when it starts - my beginnings. 
Adopted by my parents… I moved to NY City, Governors Island  on day three of my life.  Quickly many things happened or became real issues 
One, born with a click hip… I had to wear a saddle to let my hips continue to develop. Who new, but I’ve been told this made for a very unhappy baby… I cried a lot due to thisTwo, as the story goes, my mother prophesied that I was nothing but a problem, and would be from that day forward
My parents divorced around kindergarten for me and that is when I started moving houses like many kids did due to divorce.  That’s not what was the difference.  
The difference was I was throne out of my mothers house for the first time around 5 years old because ‘I was a bad kid’.  Off to stay with my dad, that became the punishment for not meeting my mothers expectation. 
I grew up a little different that most from here forward.  11 came among and I then moved onto foster home because ‘I was a bad child’ per mothers opinion.  I bounced around homes and more homes until I aged out.  
The state realized that I was not a bad child and that the issue was my mother but by then I was almost 16/17.  
Graduation came and … the state was done overseeing my care!  No plans, tools, no nothing … Luckily I had additional family that helped and stepped in to help me become the adult that I am today.
Today I work for a National Builder, on the senior management team in the division, leading  a  department. … not bad for a ‘Bad Kid’.  
BAD by my mother was; dyslexic, can’t spell, didn’t make expected grades and apparently don’t know how to load a dishwasher.  All of these things I am ok with.

SO, if you see a punctuation error in this or spelling issues that are not quite right. I’m 100% ok with it … cause it’s me.”

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Jayne Amelia talks with Hank Fortener, the founder of AdoptTogether,  "who understands the burdensome blessing that is the adoption process". His family fostered 36 children and adopted 6 from 5 different countries while he was growing up. He knows firsthand how painful & euphoric adopting a child can be, and it is this experienced heart for adoption that drives AdoptTogether. In the past 10 years they've helped over 5,000 families raise over 30 million dollars to adopt children from 67 countries. 

And to find out more about adopting or supporting families
who want to adopt please check out:
AdoptTogether.org
AdoptUskids.org
KidSave.org

Baby Ball is October 15, 2022
World Adoption Day is November 9

"Adoption provides children a loving and supportive home, equipping them with the resources needed to overcome the challenges faced with foster care. Adopting at birth puts in place the support system that many children otherwise lack." - AdoptTogether.org

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