🔥 In this episode of Lex Lumina, Sam Castor sits down with Katie Bindrup, a leading voice in IEP advocacy, special needs education help, and education law for families navigating the public school system.

If you are a parent trying to understand an IEP meeting, special education rights, or how to get better support for your child through IDEA and FAPE, this conversation gives you clarity, confidence, and a real-world framework for what to do next.

Katie also brings the perspective of a special needs attorney, special needs lawyer, special needs education attorney, and special needs education lawyer, helping parents understand what they can do on their own and when it’s time to bring in legal support.

Katie is also a highly respected trust and estates attorney, but what makes this episode powerful is how personal the story begins. Her daughter’s diagnosis with apraxia forced her family into the world of special education services, evaluations, and school district bureaucracy. Even as an attorney, she found the process confusing, emotionally exhausting, and far more difficult than it should be. That experience became the catalyst to help other parents stop walking into IEP meetings blind and start advocating from a position of knowledge and strength.

🎯 Episode Summary Katie breaks down why special education often fails the families who need it most, and why knowing the rules is still one of the strongest forms of protection a parent can have. She explains how parents can take meaningful steps on their own, when it makes sense to bring in an attorney, and how clarity can replace chaos when the law is understood and applied correctly. Sam and Katie explore:

• What it feels like to advocate for your own child when the system pushes back

• Why early intervention matters and how to access it without getting buried in paperwork

• How Katie created step-by-step resources so families can navigate IEPs with confidence

• The overlooked importance of extracurriculars for students with IEPs like dances, sports, theater, belonging

• Why retaliation and intimidation tactics can silence families who are already overwhelmed

• How AI may shift education advocacy by making information easier to access and understand

• The connection between special needs planning and estate planning especially for families navigating lifelong care The conversation also expands into Katie’s work in Nevada’s trust and estates landscape including why Nevada has become a powerhouse for asset protection and long-term planning, and how thoughtful estate planning can provide stability not just for retirement, but for future generations.

At the center of it all is a theme that keeps returning: empowerment. Whether it’s a parent fighting for services, a family preparing for the future, or a child learning they still belong, peace often comes when people gain clarity and take ownership of what they can control.

👤 Katie Bindrup is an attorney focused on special education advocacy and trust and estates planning. Her work helps families understand the law, protect their children’s rights, and create long-term stability through practical, step-by-step tools and strategic planning.

💡 About Lex Lumina Lex Lumina is a space for honest conversations about how people heal, lead, and grow when they slow down and look beneath the surface. No performance. No hype. Just light.

🔖 Hashtags & Keywords #IEP #SpecialEducation #SpecialNeeds #SpecialNeedsEducationHelp #SpecialNeedsAttorney #SpecialNeedsLawyer #SpecialNeedsEducationAttorney #SpecialNeedsEducationLawyer #EducationLaw #IEPMeeting #IDEA #FAPE #IEPAdvocacy #ParentAdvocacy #Apraxia #DisabilityRights #LearningDifferences #SchoolDistrict #ExtracurricularInclusion #TrustAndEstates #EstatePlanning #NevadaTrust #AssetProtection #LexLumina #SamCastor #KatieBindrup

🔥 In this episode of Lex Lumina, Sam Castor sits down with Missy Young, a former tech executive known as the “Tech Tigress,” and now the founder of Grit & Mercy, a nonprofit built to bring healing, restoration, and real second chances into the prison system.

This conversation is raw, powerful, and deeply human. Missy shares what most people never see: behind the mugshots, the charges, and the labels are often traumatized people who were never given a real starting line.

After surviving cancer and walking through an unimaginable family tragedy, Missy’s heart was reshaped, and she felt called into the darkest places to help others rediscover dignity, identity, and hope. What follows is not a political debate. It’s a story about faith, trauma, truth, and what it actually takes for someone to heal from the inside out.

🎯 Episode Summary Missy explains why the prison system often produces more brokenness instead of transformation, and how healing begins when someone finally hears the words: you are more than the worst thing you’ve ever done.

Together, Sam and Missy explore:

• Why trauma so often becomes addiction, violence, and self-destruction

• The difference between guilt (“I did something wrong”) and shame (“I am wrong”) • What it looks like to rebuild the nervous system after chaos

• Why people need community, therapy, and purpose: not just punishment

• How faith becomes an anchor when life collapses

• The real reason Missy believes the Church can’t ignore prison ministry Missy also breaks down the vision behind Grit & Mercy; a model that combines education, weekly therapy, neurofeedback, accountability, and job placement so inmates can reenter society stronger, healthier, and truly equipped to stay free.

This episode is about hope that doesn’t pretend life is easy. It’s about hope that walks straight into suffering, and brings light anyway.

👤 About Missy Young Missy Young is a former C-suite leader in the tech world and the founder of Grit & Mercy, a 501(c)(3) nonprofit dedicated to helping incarcerated men and women heal through therapy, education, mentorship, and spiritual restoration.

💼 About Sam Castor Sam Castor is an attorney, entrepreneur, and host of Lex Lumina: a space for long-form conversations on healing, leadership, faith, and responsibility.

💡 About Lex Lumina Lex Lumina is where real conversations live, stories of transformation, hard truths, and the deeper work of becoming whole. No performance. No hype. Just light.

🔖 Hashtags & Keywords #Faith #PrisonMinistry #ChristianPodcast #Hope #Redemption #Healing #TraumaHealing #Shame #Guilt #SecondChances #Mercy #GritAndMercy #Restoration #AddictionRecovery #MentalHealth #Therapy #Justice #Jesus #LexLumina #SamCastor #MissyYoung

In this episode of Lex Lumina, Sam Castor sits down with Dr. Ian Yamane, founder of Valhalla Wellness in Las Vegas, for a grounded conversation about how healing actually begins. Not with a prescription. Not with a quick fix. But with understanding what is quietly driving inflammation, fatigue, and chronic pain long before symptoms become unavoidable.

The conversation opens with a personal experience. After Sam’s wife undergoes an appendectomy, a question surfaces too late. What caused the inflammation in the first place? That moment becomes the doorway into a much larger discussion about modern medicine, why it excels at emergency care, and why it often stops short of helping people heal at the root.

🎯 Episode Summary Dr. Yamane walks through how gut health influences nearly every system in the body, from immune response to mental clarity. He explains how the Standard American Diet, chronic stress, poor sleep, and hidden chemicals in food slowly disrupt the microbiome. Over time, this imbalance can weaken the gut lining, allowing inflammation to spread and creating symptoms that never quite show up on standard lab work.

From there, the conversation turns practical. How to start healing now instead of waiting for a diagnosis. Reading ingredient labels differently. Questioning “natural flavors.” Paying attention to water quality, cookware, and daily exposure to toxins. Small changes, when made consistently, can remove the interference that prevents the body from doing what it was designed to do.

The discussion expands beyond food and physiology into mindset and spirit. Sam and Dr. Yamane talk about meditation, prayer, cold exposure, and intentional discomfort as tools for restoring balance. Healing, they suggest, happens fastest when the body, mind, and spirit are addressed together rather than treated as separate systems. This episode is not about perfection. It is about awareness. And about giving your body the conditions it needs to recover, repair, and move forward now.

👤 About Dr. Ian Yamane Dr. Ian Yamane is the founder of Valhalla Wellness in Las Vegas. His work focuses on uncovering root causes behind chronic inflammation, gut dysfunction, fatigue, and metabolic imbalance. His approach emphasizes practical changes across body, mind, and spirit to support long-term healing.

💼 About Sam Castor Sam Castor is an attorney and entrepreneur who hosts long-form conversations on healing, leadership, faith, and responsibility. Lex Lumina is where those conversations live.

💡 About Lex Lumina Lex Lumina is a space for honest conversations about how people heal, lead, and grow when they slow down and look beneath the surface. No scripts. No hype. Watch the episode here: https://youtu.be/hrJilwaMGhM

🔥 In this episode of Lex Lumina, host Sam Castor sits down with Laura McSwain — a grassroots activist and community leader who dared to ask the questions no one else would. As President of the Water Fairness Coalition and longtime Las Vegas resident, Laura explains how “big water” policies are quietly stripping homeowners of their rights, watering down neighborhoods, and hiking bills under the guise of conservation. She walks us through her transformation: from frustrated resident hearing excuses at water-authority board meetings, to founding a movement that demands transparency, fairness, and accountability — even registering to lobby lawmakers in 2025.

🎯 Episode Summary This is more than a “rates gone up” story. It’s a playbook in how big utilities exploit fear — drought, climate change, resource scarcity — to justify sweeping, one-size-fits-all policies that punish ordinary homeowners. Laura pulls back the curtain on how water authorities use massive ad budgets to set the narrative, while pushing charges and rules that disproportionately burden people trying to maintain their homes, trees, and quality of life. Her story is a wake-up call: when your water bill spikes, you’re not just paying for supply — you may be paying for someone else’s growth ambitions. By empowering citizens, demanding transparency, and pushing for legislation, Laura and the Water Fairness Coalition offer a different vision — one where water isn’t just about scarcity, but justice, fairness, and community resilience.

👤 About Laura McSwain Laura is the President and founder of Water Fairness Coalition, an organization advocating for fair water pricing, transparency and independent oversight of water authorities in Southern Nevada. She lives in the McNeil Estates neighborhood of Las Vegas, and has become a leading voice against punitive “excessive use” charges, mandatory turf removal, and sweeping landscaping policies that don’t account for lot size, mature trees, or community equity.

🌐 Website – https://waterfairnesscoalition.com/

📘 Facebook – https://www.facebook.com/WaterFairnessCoalition

📸 Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/waterfairnesscoalition

💼 About Sam Castor Sam Castor is an attorney, entrepreneur, and strategist who believes in justice, clarity, and systems that serve people — not the other way around. In Lex Lumina, he brings critical conversations about power, policy, and human impact to light, and champions voices fighting for fairness and integrity.

💡 About Lex Lumina Lex Lumina is a long-form conversation series exploring power, justice, and human potential — from the boardroom to the backyard. Hosted by Sam Castor, the show goes beyond headlines to show how real people are pushing for change, reclaiming dignity, and demanding accountability.

🔥 This conversation with Brian Hartshorn stayed with me longer than I thought it would.

Brian spent 20 years in law enforcement starting in patrol, moving into detective work, and later working SWAT related operations and Homeland Security task force assignments. Basically dealing with every type of monster you can image. But this episode isn’t about tactics, adrenaline, or highlight reel moments. It’s about what repeated exposure to suffering does to a person over time and how some people manage not to lose their humanity along the way.

Brian talks openly about moments from his career that never really left him. Time spent around Special Victims work. The quiet weight of seeing people on their worst days. And the internal discipline required to keep doing the job without hardening into someone you don’t recognize. He also reflects on what SWAT level responsibility actually puts a person through. Not in a dramatic way, but in the slow, internal way it changes how you think, how you plan, and how you move through everyday life. This isn’t a story about heroics. It’s a conversation about endurance.

🎯 Episode Summary Over the course of this conversation, Brian and Sam talk through questions most people don’t ask unless they’ve lived close to them. What does long term exposure to violence and trauma do to your mind How do you stay human when you’re trained to expect the worst Why do some people harden while others don’t Brian shares a story about someone he arrested more than once. It isn’t a clean redemption arc. It’s messy and frustrating, and it says a lot about how fragile change can be especially when addiction and environment collide. That story alone reshapes how you think about judgment, responsibility, and compassion. This episode doesn’t offer simple answers. It’s an honest look at restraint, faith, family, and the boundaries people have to build just to survive difficult work without losing themselves.

👤 About Brian Hartshorn Brian Hartshorn served 20 years with the Henderson Police Department, beginning in patrol and later working as a field trainer, detective (property, auto theft, robbery), and on a Homeland Security task force focused on criminal hazmat and CBRN investigations. He also held leadership roles within police training and academy development. Today, Brian focuses on mentoring, service, and community leadership rooted in integrity, faith, and genuine care for people.

💼 About Sam Castor Sam Castor is a father, world-builder, attorney, entrepreneur, and strategist focused on clarity, justice, and building systems that serve people rather than harm them. Through Lex Lumina, Sam hosts long-form conversations that explore power, responsibility, faith, and the choices that shape who we become.

💡 About Lex Lumina Lex Lumina is a long-form conversation series exploring the forces that shape power, character, and human potential. Hosted by Sam Castor, the show features leaders, thinkers, and practitioners who are working to bring accountability, clarity, and light into complex systems and difficult spaces.

In this episode of Lex Lumina, Sam Castor sits down with entrepreneur and author Calvin Bagley to unpack what he calls the real “millionaire secret.” Long before Calvin built multi–million-dollar businesses, he was a hidden child in the Utah desert—kept out of school, cut off from the world, and taught that silence was safety. In this conversation, he expores how he went from no formal education and deep religious trauma to building companies, connecting with others, creating wealth, and—most importantly—finding real inner peace.

Calvin doesn’t talk about resilience as a buzzword. He walks through what it feels like to start life miles behind everyone else, to carry shame that isn’t yours, and to slowly reclaim your voice. He talks about therapy, faith, identity, and why chasing money almost cost him the happiness he’d fought so hard to find. If you’ve ever felt behind, broken, or unseen, this story will hit home.

About Calvin Bagley

Calvin Bagley is an author, speaker, entrepreneur, and survivor of an intensely isolated childhood. Growing up far from town with no consistent schooling, he learned to read and write late, eventually earned a college degree, and went on to build multiple 8-figure companies in the Medicare and healthcare space. His memoir, Hiding from the School Bus, tells the story of a boy hidden from the bus—and a man determined to make sure no one else has to hide who they are. Through his writing, talks, and content, Calvin helps people heal from trauma, let go of inherited shame, and build lives rooted in purpose instead of fear.

🌐 Website – https://calvinbagley.com/

🎥 YouTube – https://www.youtube.com/calvinbagley

📸 Instagram – https://www.instagram.com/calvinbagley/

About Sam Castor Sam Castor is an attorney, entrepreneur, and strategist who has helped structure billion-dollar technology and infrastructure deals across the globe. Over the past fifteen years, he’s worked where law, policy, innovation, and humanity intersect—on the ground with founders, in the boardroom with executives, and in the classroom with future leaders. His work focuses on building systems and companies that serve people, not the other way around.

About Lex Lumina

Lex Lumina is a long-form conversation series exploring leadership, law, faith, trauma recovery, entrepreneurship, and the human side of progress. Hosted by Sam Castor, the show dives deep into how people rebuild after loss, find integrity in power, and turn painful experiences into light for others.

#resilience #healing #trauma #childhoodtrauma #religioustrauma #CalvinBagley #lexlumina #podcast #interview #mindset #entrepreneurship #leadership #selfhealing #selflove #mentalhealth #faith #purpose #wealthmindset #innerpeace

In this episode of Lex Lumina, Vandana Bhalla reveals the simple AI-era secret that reshaped how she thinks, leads, and builds her world. She and Sam Castor dive into the balance between technology and humanity—exploring how AI changes the way we work, connect, and create meaning. It’s a raw look at leadership, mindset, and the human edge that AI can’t replace.

#LexLumina #VandanaBhalla #AI #ArtificialIntelligence #Mindset #SuccessMindset #WorldBuilding #Leadership #PersonalGrowth #SamCastor #Motivation #Entrepreneurship #futureofwork

🔥 In this episode, Dr. Valeria Gurr, PhD — education policy expert and national advocate for students and parents — cuts through the noise to confront a hard question: who does the education system really serve?

Drawing from years inside classrooms, policy rooms, and research labs, Valeria breaks open the hidden incentives shaping America’s teachers unions and public school systems. She explains how bureaucracy, politics and power often overshadow student outcomes — and why parents are rarely given the full picture. Valeria believes education reform is not about attacking teachers; it’s about understanding the machinery around them. She brings clarity, data and lived experience to a debate dominated by narratives instead of truth.

🎙️ About Dr. Valeria Gurr Dr. Gurr is an education researcher and policy specialist focused on K–12 systems, teacher labor structures and parent empowerment. She has contributed to national education organizations, published research on school accountability and student outcomes, and advised advocates working to modernize public education. Her work centers on one mission: ensuring that every child — regardless of income or zip code — has access to a school system that serves their potential rather than a political structure.

💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/valeriagurr/

📘 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/valgurr/?hl=en

X - https://x.com/ValeriaGurr

🌐 Website: https://www.federationforchildren.org/staff/valeria-gurr/

✨ Sam Castor is a seasoned attorney, entrepreneur and strategist who has spent his career helping people turn complex systems into clarity. Over the past fifteen years, he has worked at the intersection of law, policy and innovation — whether in the boardroom guiding billion-dollar technology and infrastructure deals, in the classroom mentoring future lawyers, or on the road connecting with leaders shaping the next generation of change.

As the founder and managing partner of Lex Tecnica, Sam leads a firm built around one mission: to bring justice and clarity to every engagement it touches. He’s helped entrepreneurs navigate high-stakes negotiations, advised founders on how to grow with integrity, and championed technology that serves people — not the other way around. A faculty member at UNLV’s Boyd School of Law and a TEDx speaker, Sam believes progress is ultimately human. His talk, “It’s People, Not Technology That Will Save Us,” captures that message clearly: connection, compassion and light move the world forward.

💡 About Lex Lumina Lex Lumina explores the intersections of leadership, law and human potential — real conversations with thinkers, founders, educators and reformers shaping the next era. Hosted by Sam Castor, each episode cuts through noise and narrative, focusing on truth, clarity and the forces that move the world forward.

🔥 In this episode, TaChelle Lawson — author of _Black Is Not a Credential — cuts through the noise to ask the hard question: should identity stand in for credibility? She talks about how real leadership must be earned, not handed out. With two decades in hospitality, luxury retail and global brand strategy, TaChelle has helped companies like Louis Vuitton, Mercedes-Benz, and Coca-Cola rethink how culture, revenue and inclusion work together. She believes DEI is not a trend — it’s a business lever that demands accountability, results and integrity.

TaChelle leads FIG Strategy & Consulting, a certified woman- and minority-owned consultancy based in Las Vegas. She’s certified in Diversity & Inclusion from Cornell University, holds a Diverse Business certification from the Tuck School at Dartmouth, and serves as President of the NAWBO Southern Nevada chapter. Her speaking engagements and advisory roles span brands, boards and C-suite teams across national and international markets. Her book, Black Is Not a Credential, forces a reset: stop seeing identity as qualification—and start leading with merit, integrity and measurable impact.

🎙️ About TaChelle Lawson

📘 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tachellelawson/

💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tachellelawson/

🌐 Website: https://www.blackisnotacredential.com/

🌍 FIG Strategy & Consulting: https://www.figfirm.com/

✨ Sam Castor is a seasoned attorney, entrepreneur, and strategist who’s spent his career helping people turn big ideas into lasting impact. Over the past fifteen years, he’s worked at the intersection of law, policy, and innovation—whether in the boardroom guiding billion-dollar technology and infrastructure deals, in the classroom mentoring future lawyers, or on the road connecting with leaders building the next generation of change. As the founder and managing partner of Lex Tecnica,

Sam leads a firm built around one simple mission: to bring justice and clarity to every engagement it touches. He’s helped entrepreneurs navigate high-stakes negotiations, advised founders on how to grow with integrity, and championed technology that serves people—not the other way around. A faculty member at UNLV’s Boyd School of Law and a TEDx speaker, Sam is known for his belief that progress is ultimately human. His talk, “It’s People, Not Technology That Will Save Us,” captures that message clearly: connection, compassion, and light are what move the world forward.

💡 About Lex Lumina Lex Lumina explores the intersections of leadership, law and human potential—featuring real conversations with founders, thinkers and changemakers who turn ideas into impact. Hosted by Sam Castor, each episode digs into the frameworks behind power, purpose and progress.

🔖 Hashtags #TaChelleLawson #BlackIsNotACredential #Leadership #BusinessStrategy #DEI #Authenticity #Entrepreneurship #LexLumina #SamCastor

In this conversation, we dive into resilience, leadership, and how to rebuild your life after loss. Super Bowl champion Setema Gali opens up about what it really takes to build from nothing. He talks about losing everything after the NFL, starting over with nothing but faith, family, and force. He shares the lessons that came from rebuilding his life piece by piece. This isn’t just another success story—it’s a raw look at failure, grit, and the mindset behind turning rock bottom into the foundation for something greater.

About Setema:

Setema Gali is a former NFL player, Super Bowl champion, entrepreneur, and performance coach. He hit the peak early—winning a ring with the New England Patriots—and then watched everything shift almost overnight. When football ended, the spotlight disappeared. Bills piled up. Life got real. He had to rebuild from the ground up, piece by piece. That’s where his drive was forged: in failure, faith, and the fight to rise again.

Now, through The Prosperity Revolution, Setema works with entrepreneurs and leaders who want more than numbers—they want meaning. His message cuts through the noise: live with purpose, keep your word, serve people. He’s raw, funny, and brutally honest about what it takes to rebuild your life. And he’ll tell you straight up—greatness isn’t the trophy or the title. It’s who you become when the crowd stops cheering.

Setema's IG - https://www.instagram.com/setemagali/

Semema's FB - https://www.facebook.com/setemag/

About Sam:

Sam Castor is a seasoned attorney, entrepreneur, and strategist who’s had a hand in shaping billion-dollar technology and infrastructure deals around the world. Over the last fifteen years, he’s built a path that crosses law, policy, and innovation—sometimes in a courtroom, sometimes in a classroom, sometimes on an airplane connecting with other thought leaders. He’s guided tough negotiations, helped founders find their footing, and pushed for technology that actually serves people instead of the other way around.

Sam is the founder and managing partner of Lex Tecnica, a Law Firm designed specifically to bring justice to all aspects in which it engages. Sam works with entrepreneurs and rainmakers who care about building things that last. He also teaches at UNLV’s Boyd School of Law, and often speaks about the human side of progress—his TEDx talk, “It’s People, Not Technology That Will Save Us,” captures that belief perfectly. Ask him what matters most, and he’ll tell you: connection and treating others with the Light inherently in them, will save humanity.

Lex Lumina IG - https://www.instagram.com/lexluminapodcast/

#setemaGali #motivation #entrepreneurship #leadership #mindset #samcastor