Right Moves: A LiiNK Center for Healthy Play Podcast

The LiiNK intervention is about more than just giving kids extra recess. While multiple unstructured play breaks throughout the school day is vital for students and teachers to thrive, it’s the daily character curriculum that truly provides the foundation for success in the LiiNK intervention. Dr. Rhea discusses the importance of empathy, intrinsic motivation, and character building for our youth to grow into resilient, independent, and empathetic adults.

Human trafficking is a significant problem in the U.S. and can happen to anyone, anywhere. While women and girls are more frequently trafficked, men and boys account for about 40% of human trafficking victims and are unfortunately often overlooked and underserved. Bob’s House of Hope, established in 2021, became the first safe house for male sex trafficking survivors in the country, providing therapy, medical care, mentorship, case management, and life skills training to young men ages 18 and up. They are also the only residential facility to include Equine and Animal Assisted Counseling Intervention through a partnership with Ranch Hands Rescue. Dr. Rhea brings back Founder and CEO of Bob’s House of Hope and Ranch Hands Rescue, Bob Williams, to follow up on his incredible story of resilience through his own trauma, and to highlight the amazing work his facilities do to provide trauma resolution and sex trafficking awareness for young men.

Trigger warning: This episode contains themes of sexual violence and coercion, human trafficking, and drug addiction.

Bob Williams is the Founder and CEO of ⁠Ranch Hands Rescue and Bob’s House of Hope⁠, a non-profit human and animal sanctuary. Being a survivor of rape himself, Bob knew firsthand that there weren’t any programs for male sexual abuse survivors, and he endeavored to create a place for others like him.

After suffering a brutal beating and rape as a young man, Bob struggled to process his trauma and turned to drugs and alcohol to mask his pain. He was homeless at 20 and active in his addiction for 12 years. After years of treatment and counseling, Bob had a very successful career at Motorola where he went from an entry level salesperson to part of the management team. Today Bob has been clean and sober for 33 years. When Bob suffered a stroke in 2007, he decided to retire from Motorola. After a year of rehabilitation, Bob felt called to start a not-for-profit organization that would rescue and rehabilitate animals and help people. In 2008 Bob founded Ranch Hands Rescue, a non-profit farm animal sanctuary for animals with special needs.After discovering the healing power, the animals had on him, Bob and a team of clinicians founded the Ranch Hands Rescue Counseling Program, and the Equine and Animal Assisted Counseling was born. Bob's vision was to partner abused and neglected animals with individuals who do not respond to traditional therapy. His counseling program is the only program in the country that partners abused and neglected animals in mental health therapy. Bob's passion is helping innocent victims, especially children, who require a non-traditional approach to uncovering severe trauma. He assembled a team of counseling experts who are highly trained and certified in trauma and PTSD to be another resource in our community to help individuals who are suffering and see no hope. RHR fills a special niche in mental health counseling services in that they specialize in treating the more complex trauma cases, such as victims of sexual abuse, human trafficking, and Veterans with severe PTSD who are not making progress in their current treatment programs.

Bob serves on several State and local task forces, and it was on these taskforces that Bob learned that there was not a single treatment facility in the world for male victims of sex trafficking even though they make up nearly half of the victims. This galvanized Bob to remedy that issue and Bob’s House of Hope, the first safe house in the country for male victims of sex trafficking 18 years old and up, was opened in June of 2021, with an expansion in 2024, the new facility housed on 40 acres includes additional housing, offices recreation center, soccer field and house over 50 special needs animals. This innovative, wrap-around care program is unlike any other program that exists.

Children learn how to learn on the playground – it’s really that simple! Dr. Rhea brings back long-time friend and colleague, Dr. Jim Chadwell, to share how he fought to get the LiiNK Project in his district. Dr. Chadwell witnessed firsthand the positive changes the LiiNK intervention of multiple outdoor play breaks and character lessons daily brought to EMS-ISD.

Dr. Jim Chadwell was born in Fort Worth, Texas and earned his bachelor’s, master’s, and doctorate degrees all from Texas Christian University. During his 31-year career in public education, he served in various teaching and administrative roles including teacher, coach, high school principal, executive director for elementary and secondary instruction, and superintendent. He served the last 14 years as superintendent of Eagle Mountain-Saginaw ISD, where he had several accomplishments, including overseeing two bond programs bringing in new schools, a career and technology center, a new district administration building with a Discovery Lab Learning Center and renovations to every facility in the district. He also led the implementation of the EMS ISD Police Department district-wide, and the LiiNK Project in all EMS ISD elementary schools.

Retiring from the district in January of this year, Dr. Chadwell will begin his next chapter as an Educational Planner and Senior Associate for VLK Edge architecture team, bringing to the firm substantial experience as a leader in Texas public school districts.

S.B. 2, also known as the School Choice or School Voucher bill, has passed the Texas Senate and was referred to the House Public Education Committee. In the last two years, twelve U.S. states have enacted or expanded school voucher programs in their state. So what exactly does this mean for students and parents? Dr. Rhea sits down with long-time friend and colleague, Dr. Jim Chadwell, to discuss different types of schools, how school vouchers only benefit certain groups of children/adolescents and most importantly the dangers of turning our backs on public education.

Dr. Jim Chadwell was born in Fort Worth, Texas and earned his bachelor’s, master’s, and doctorate degrees all from Texas Christian University. During his 31-year career in public education, he served in various teaching and administrative roles including teacher, coach, high school principal, executive director for elementary and secondary instruction, and superintendent. He served the last 14 years as superintendent of Eagle Mountain-Saginaw ISD, where he had several accomplishments, including overseeing two bond programs bringing in new schools, a career and technology center, a new district administration building with a Discovery Lab Learning Center and renovations to every facility in the district. He also led the implementation of the EMS ISD Police Department district-wide, and the LiiNK Project in all EMS ISD elementary schools.

Retiring from the district in January of this year, Dr. Chadwell will begin his next chapter as an Educational Planner and Senior Associate for VLK Edge architecture team, bringing to the firm substantial experience as a leader in Texas public school districts.

Resources mentioned in this episode:

"Vouchers: A 21st Century Titanic" Essay by Dr. Jim Chadwell

Do you struggle to maintain healthy and active lifestyle routines? Behavior modification programs, particularly employee wellness programs such as Wondr Health, may be the answer. Dr. Rhea brings back Dr. Tim Church, preventative health researcher and Chief Medical Officer of Wondr Health, to share the impact of Wondr Health's programs, the importance of leadership buy-in behavior modification for program success, and the powerhouse combination of exercise and the GLP-1 medication.

Dr. Church, M.D., M.P.H, P.h.D, is one of the country’s leading clinical thought leaders in exercise and obesity research. As the author of more than 300 published clinical articles, Dr. Church has received numerous awards for his research in preventive health. He helps lead the development of the ⁠Wondr Health⁠ curriculum, which is inspired by his medical expertise. Specializing in business-to-business strategies, Dr. Church is an advocate for the employer and has a proven track record of empowering organizations through disease prevention to decrease health-care costs and inspire employees to be their best selves.  

The less we move and exercise our bodies, the less we will be able to move and exercise them as we age. It's that simple! Dr. Rhea sits down with preventative health researcher, Dr. Tim Church, to share his incredible research findings and exercise tips. Dr. Church reminds us that our bodies are meant to move and that exercise is truly the key to unlocking optimal health and aging. 

Dr. Church, M.D., M.P.H, P.h.D, is one of the country’s leading clinical thought leaders in exercise and obesity research. As the author of more than 300 published clinical articles, Dr. Church has received numerous awards for his research in preventive health. He helps lead the development of the Wondr Health curriculum, which is inspired by his medical expertise. Specializing in business-to-business strategies, Dr. Church is an advocate for the employer and has a proven track record of empowering organizations through disease prevention to decrease health-care costs and inspire employees to be their best selves.  

“Keep showing up in your pink shirts until they’re tired of seeing pink shirts” - this is the advice Rachel, Morgan, and Kathryn, a.k.a the Recess Moms, live by while advocating for increased recess for children in schools. Seeing the negative effects of decreased recess minutes on their children’s mental and physical health, the Recess Moms banded together and decided to fight. They donned pink shirts and marched the Tennessee Capitol to fight for a recess bill promising increased recess in schools, and they didn’t stop there. Dr. Rhea brings back the Recess Moms to share their inspirational fight at the state level toward increased recess for all Tennessee children.

What began as three moms advocating for change at their children’s school grew into a county-wide grassroots movement and, by May 2024, evolved into the statewide initiative for recess reform: Say Yes to Recess. Known as the “Recess Moms,” founders Rachel Bush, Morgan Garner, and Kathryn Truman lead the charge for change. With ten children between them—six of whom attend the same elementary school—they have seen firsthand the impact of recess on kids’ well-being. Say Yes to Recess is a passionate group of parents, grandparents, teachers, and community members committed to restoring and protecting recess. Together, we work to ensure every child has access to the physical, social, and cognitive benefits of play while also supporting and empowering educators.

How much recess is your child getting in school? Chances are, it’s not enough! Dr. Rhea brings on Rachel Bush, Morgan Garner, and Kathryn Truman, a.k.a. the Recess Moms from Tennessee, to share how they’ve banded together for a cause. With 10 children between them, they realized that their children were suffering in school because of very little recess. This session discusses how they began the journey and the struggles they have had to realize their goal – more recess in schools!

What began as three moms advocating for change at their children’s school grew into a county-wide grassroots movement and, by May 2024, evolved into the statewide initiative for recess reform: Say Yes to Recess.

Known as the “Recess Moms,” founders Rachel Bush, Morgan Garner, and Kathryn Truman lead the charge for change. With ten children between the —six of whom attend the same elementary school—they have seen firsthand the impact of recess on kids’ well-being.

Say Yes to Recess is a passionate group of parents, grandparents, teachers, and community members committed to restoring and protecting recess. Together, we work to ensure every child has access to the physical, social, and cognitive benefits of play while also supporting and empowering educators.

Dr. Rhea brings back Matt Sandoval to discuss his role as Executive Director ofFree Arts for Abused Children of Arizona, and share the history of the organization. Free Arts is a nonprofit which provides trauma-informed art activities through trained adult mentors for children and teens who have experienced the trauma of abuse, neglect, and homelessness.

Matt Sandoval is an Arizona native who has served as an executive leader in human services and non-profit organizations for over 15 years. He is the Executive Director at Free Arts for Abused Children of Arizona, which provides trauma informed art activities through trained adult mentors for children and teens who have experienced the trauma of abuse, neglect, and homelessness. Matt is a public speaker and trainer on mental health and youth-related topics. He is also the host ofCanvas of the Heart, the Free Arts podcast.  

Matt leads the Free Arts' strategic vision to offer programs in Arizona and the effort to establish Free Arts as a sector thought leader in child well-being and mentoring through expressive art programming. Formerly, Matt served as the VP of Community Initiatives at the YMCA, focusing on workforce development, alternative education, juvenile justice, and mentoring for teens and young adults. Additionally, Matt has served as the Executive Director of an independent living community for adults with developmental disabilities and as a Clinical Therapist.  

Matt has served on several non-profit and charter school boards for groups that support youth and community development in the greater Phoenix area. Matt holds a Master of Educational Leadership from Northern Arizona University and a Master of Social Work from Arizona State University. He is a Licensed Master Social Worker with the Arizona Behavioral Health Board of Examiners.  

Resources mentioned in this episode:

Canvas of the Heart Podcast by Free Arts

Dr. Rhea sits down with Matt Sandoval, Executive Director ofFree Arts for Abused Children of Arizona which provides trauma-informed art activities through trained adult mentors for children and teens who have experienced the trauma of abuse, neglect, and homelessness. Matt shares his personal and professional journey that led him to social work, and discusses the therapeutic nature of expressive arts and the importance of meeting individual needs creatively.

Matt Sandoval is an Arizona native who has served as an executive leader in human services and non-profit organizations for over 15 years. In addition to being the Executive Director at Free Arts for Abused Children of Arizona, Matt is a public speaker and trainer on mental health and youth-related topics. He is also the host ofCanvas of the Heart, the Free Arts podcast.  

Matt leads the Free Arts' strategic vision to offer programs in Arizona and the effort to establish Free Arts as a sector thought leader in child well-being and mentoring through expressive art programming. Formerly, Matt served as the VP of Community Initiatives at the YMCA, focusing on workforce development, alternative education, juvenile justice, and mentoring for teens and young adults. Additionally, Matt has served as the Executive Director of an independent living community for adults with developmental disabilities and as a Clinical Therapist.   Matt has served on several non-profit and charter school boards for groups that support youth and community development in the greater Phoenix area. Matt holds a Master of Educational Leadership from Northern Arizona University and a Master of Social Work from Arizona State University. He is a Licensed Master Social Worker with Arizona Behavioral Health Board of Examiners.