Foster Tales

David Ambroz is a child advocate, former foster youth, and the amazing author behind "A Place Called Home". In today's episode, we unpack many of themes in his memoir, and David provides us some simple solutions on how to impact change and bring awareness to Foster Care, by simply donating your small talk. You can learn more about David and "A Place Called Home" at https://www.davidambroz.com 

David is also the co-founder of Foster More. Foster More is one of the largest foster care advocacy groups in the country. To learn more about this amazing organization you can head to https://fostermore.org

Under Florida law, a guardian ad litem is a court-appointed representative, who is tasked with acting as the "next friend of the child." Today, I am joined by Dario, who is an active Guardian ad litem in the state of Florida. He gives us insight into why he joined this organization, and how his small investment, is yielding big results for the foster youth where he presides. To learn more about the GAL (Guardian Ad Litem) program head over to https://guardianadlitem.org and also Voices for Children at beavoice.org.

Dario would like to give a special shout to Melissa for connecting the dots and I’d be remised if I didn’t give a shoutout to my girlfriend Vicky for begging me to make this interview happen. Also large thank you to Old Navy for their back to school giveaway.

On the season 3 premiere, I am joined by actor and fitness coach, Teagen Rose. Teagen grew up in an adoptive transracial home. He tells us more about his upbringing, what foster care taught him, and how those experiences molded him into the role model that he is today. To learn more about Teagen, you can follow him on social media @TeagenRose or visit his website, http://www.teagenrose.com

When I started Foster Tales, I wanted to make sure I was able to highlight some amazing success stories of those who lived through foster care. Charity Chandler-Cole is not only a former-foster youth, but also a mother, a community leader, and the CEO of CASA LA CASA stands for Court Appointed Special Advocate. Charity and I discuss what her upbringing was like and how she was able to find solace in some of her darkest moments. We also speak to how she got to become a CEO and what she views as the future of foster care. To learn more about CASA LA you can visit https://www.casala.org or on Instagram @CASA.LA

Randal Wells hosts the Foster Tales podcast. Foster Tales is ranked in the top 10 of all Foster Care and Adoption podcasts throughout the world. Please like and subscribe. Make sure to leave a rating wherever you are listening to this podcast. If you have a guest in mind, please e-mail [email protected]

On today's episode, I am joined by singer/songwriter D.R. Bridges. D.R.'s adoptive parent, housed a number of foster children through his upbringing. We discuss how his experience of interracial adoption shaped his world views and how he is looking to pay it forward in the future. To find out more about D.R., you can follow him on Instagram @D.R.Bridges

Ángela Quijada-Banks is an NAACP Image awards nominated, best-selling Author, Spoken word Artist and Holistic Purpose coach. Our discussion, ventures into what inspired her book, 'The Black Foster Youth Handbook". To learn more about Ángela and her work, head over to www.originalsoulflower.com or on Instagram @originalsoulflower 

Today, I am joined by Franco Vega of the RightWay Foundation. The RightWay foundation is non-profit in Los Angeles, CA that provides former foster youth resources to succeed. Through his own personal experiences in foster care, Franco is able to articulate how his career path became his life's purpose. To find out more information about The RightWay foundation head over to http://www.therightwayfoundation.org or on Instagram @therightwayfoundation

Today, I am joined by Julia, who recently completed the Half Ironman Triathlon and raised money for Foster Nation. Julia was placed into the foster care system at 15. She was separated from her 6 siblings. We discuss the impact these events had on her life, and how she's able to process what she lived through today. You can connect with Julia on IG @Juju_rose7