In addition to being the mother of 3 daughters, 1 through adoption, ⁠Katerina Canyon⁠ is an award-winning poet and author. 

During our conversation, we revisit stories from past guests, including ⁠Ben & Emily⁠, who faced the unexpected challenge of their paperwork getting lost during the licensing process, and ⁠Thea & Amy⁠, who discuss how their ⁠Family-Match⁠ technology is changing the way waiting children are matched with adoptive families.

Rene by day works in tech. As a single woman, she cares for her sister's children. In the foster care space we call this a 'kinship placement'. Kin refers to being a family member or someone related by blood.
I think you'll find her story remarkable and also empathize with the challenges she faces.

Brian Murphy is both the Chief Financial Officer and Chief Operating Officer and Shaneetra Gross serves as Chief Administrative Officer for Gift of Adoption Fund. Gift of Adoption provides adoption assistance grants to complete the adoptions of children in vulnerable circumstances. 

Michael, who resided in California, had a successful career as a technology manager within the banking industry. His dedication and insights continue to inspire those who knew him.

In this episode, you'll hear about the realities of foster care and human trafficking overlapping.

Janet Craig wrote and directed Wake Up. She has experience as a foster mom and has a degree in theatre, was a professional tennis player, and is a veteran actress. What we can now stream and find on DVD and Blu-Ray is a result of over 7 years of work including filming during COVID. 

Allison Davis Maxon is a nationally recognized expert in the fields of child welfare and children’s mental health. She specializes in attachment, developmental trauma and permanency/adoption. 

Allison co-authored "Seven Core Issues in Adoption and Permanency: A Guide to Promoting Understanding and Healing in Adoption, Foster Care, Kinship Families and Third Party Reproduction". She is the Executive Director of the National Center on Adoption and Permanency and she was the foster care consultant for the Paramount Pictures movie Instant Family. 

In 2013 Davion Only-Going warmed hearts around the world after standing before a Florida church congregation and asking for a family to adopt him. A few years later he was adopted. Today, he is a chef in the Tampa area.

Courtney is the host of FosterCon and she is the foster care recruitment manager for America's Kids Belong. She and her husband have fostered more than 60 children. She is the mother of 9 children - 6 through adoption.