Bonus Babies

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia speaks with former foster youth, advocate and attorney Glenda Wright. Glenda recently graduated from the Salmon P. Chase College of Law, where she received her Juris Doctorate in May 2022. Glenda has also earned her Bachelor of Science in Business with a minor in legal studies from Murray State University. While attending law school, Glenda participated in several extracurricular activities, including serving as senior editor of the Northern Kentucky Law Re...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia speaks with therapist Dr. Bruce Sogolow. Dr. Bruce has been a psychotherapist for nearly 40 years. He relates that “There was a kind of inevitability that led to my practice of specializing in ‘walking along side’ of families with children who suffered from attachment challenges.” His most valuable teachers along the way were children and parents whose trust in others was deeply wounded in their early lives: through a deep dive into non-violent c...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia speaks with her friend and (very loving and proud) adoptive parent, Warren Press. Warren lives in Los Angeles with his wife Elizabeth Mestnik and their 14-year-old son and 18-year-old daughter. Their journey to parenthood was a tad unconventional and each child took longer to reach their home than the typical gestation period. Warren and Elizabeth traveled to China to adopt their daughter while their 14-year-old son was born and adopted a little close...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia speaks with guardian ad litem and child advocate/attorney, Rachel Aliza Elovitz. Rachel has worked as a family law attorney for more than 27 years. In that capacity, she has represented fathers seeking to legitimate children (who were born out of wedlock), grandparents seeking visitation rights with grandchildren, third party relatives seeking custody of children who are being abused or neglected by their parents, parents hoping to protect their...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia speaks with the powerhouse founder of Kids in The Spotlight, Tige Charity. In Tige's words: As a visionary with a strong faith & a passion for serving others, I have devoted my career to empowering young people in foster care to address and overcome trauma through the power of storytelling. In 2009, I founded Kids in the Spotlight, Inc. (KITS), a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that provides year-round 10-week script-to-screen workshops to...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia speaks with Romi Lassally and Patrick McCabe, co-founders of Ready To Succeed which has supported college bound students impacted by foster care or “scholars” (as they call them which is fantastic!) by helping them get into school, stay in school, and flourish after school with resources, relationships with passionate professionals, career coaching, and more.From the Ready To Succeed website:“In January 2016, two non-profit veterans, Romi Lassally and...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia speaks with artist and animator, and former foster youth Chrisie Morris. Chrisie is a junior at Cal State University Long Beach pursuing a Bachelor of Fine Art in Illustration for Pre-Production. She’s currently working as a Visual Development Artist at Mr. Clown’s Productions through the prestigious Television Academy Foundation Fall 2023 Internship Program. Additionally, Chrisie has completed two internships at DreamWorks Animation this year w...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia speaks with single foster dad and entertainment producer Gavin Glynn. Gavin and his then partner fostered to adopt a young boy, then Gavin went on to foster a foursome sibling set when he was a single dad. In order to keep all the kids in the house, Gavin gave up his lucrative but very demanding career as a producer in the entertainment business and became an educator. He says raising his family, in spite of the many challenges, is the mos...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia speaks with foster alum Elizabeth Garcia Herrera. Liz and her sisters (America's story is Episode 16 of Season 3) were placed in foster care when their mother could no longer look after them. Liz was 17 and spent several confusing years struggling to get on her feet but she put herself through college and now works as a supervisor in child welfare. She's married with two small children and her mom helps to care for them. Elizabeth is a Prog...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia speaks with foster care alum America Gutierrez. America is a passionate advocate for mental health, firmly guided by the belief that our voices are our most potent tools. With unwavering determination, she fearlessly shares her personal journey, notably her harrowing experiences within the foster care system. Through her advocacy efforts, she aims to illuminate critical conversations surrounding the welfare of youth who, like her, have faced pro...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia speaks with former foster youth and now child advocate Georgette Todd. Georgette is a speaker, author, and a foster care and child abuse prevention advocate. Georgette spent her teenage years bouncing around from home to home in the broken foster care system before she emancipated at age 18, with no safety net or anyone to depend on. Through sheer determination, Georgette went all the way with her education and graduated at the top of her class, servi...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia speaks with child advocate and mentor Ron Jenkins. Ron is a former foster youth who along with his siblings was placed in foster care after his mother died of cancer when he was two years old. He bounced around in foster care for several years until he was adopted by a friend of his mom, but that didn't turn out well for any of the kids in that home. His foster mother was a cruel and abusive drug dealer, and Ron was sexually abused but two women befor...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia speaks with Dr. Lorry Leigh Belhumeur, a renowned leader in the field of mental health and wellness, with over 30 years of experience serving children and their families. Dr. Lorry’s unwavering commitment to empowering young individuals and the adults who care for them, along with her exceptional leadership skills, has positioned her as a highly respected figure in the field. She's a licensed psychologist with a Ph.D. from UCLA, author, speaker, train...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia speaks with advocate Paul L. Freese, Jr. Paul has worked as a public interest attorney for more than 25 years and provides consulting on holistic innovations and solutions to poverty, with special focus upon traumatized populations. He specializes in strategic project development to achieve upstream early intervention impact. He has devoted his career to humanizing our child welfare, health and corrections systems by applying emerging insights ...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia speaks with creative and foster care alumni Jeremy Buchanan. Jeremy was raised in Illinois, Georgia, and California. He moved around a lot as a kid and attended more elementary schools than he can even count. He was first placed in foster care as a young boy and then again as a teenager when he became a "runner" as he says. Not one of his many foster homes were good to him… or for him…but by sheer will and determination, and with good mentors he event...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia speaks with Reverand Barbara Lane. Rev. Lane is the author of "Broken Water: An Extraordinary True Story." Barbara is the ninth of eleven sisters, abandoned by their birth parents, who were all placed in St. Dominic’s Orphanage in St. Louis, then eventually separated into different homes and finally reunited 43 years later. Her book tells the powerful true story of her journey through the many years she spent trying to reconnect with her long-l...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia speaks with Charity Chandler-Cole. Charity is an author, scholar and activist and "... the CEO of CASA of Los Angeles, Court Appointed Special Advocates for youth impacted by the Foster Care and Juvenile Justice Systems. Born and raised in Los Angeles and having harshly endured its child welfare and juvenile justice systems, she has spent over a decade helping to influence and impact social structures, policies and systems that have negatively and dispropor...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia speaks with award-winning musician and adoptee Mike Wiskar. Mike is a Leo-nominated composer, songwriter, independent music producer, vocalist, and multi-instrumentalist. He was also adopted as a baby and raised in a caring home by a family who loved him very much. Even so, he longed to know his birth family and finally met his bio mom and his extended family only recently.A graduate of the Music Program at MacEwan University as well as Langara's Digital Mu...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia speaks with adoptive dad to one and foster dad to many Peter Mutabazi. "As a child I ran away from an abusive home and was helped by the kindness of strangers. As an adult I found myself in a position of being able to help foster children, so I began taking children into my home years ago to give back what was so freely given to me. It's my mission to give back as much as I can to the vulnerable among us. That's what drives his foundation Now I Am Known: to...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia speaks with foster care alumnus Steve Pemberton. Steve is a best selling author, philanthropist, businessman and acclaimed speaker. Steve's "story is about defying seemingly insurmountable odds to become a trail-blazing corporate executive, enlightened diversity leader, visionary youth advocate, and acclaimed speaker. His best-selling memoir, A Chance in the World: An Orphan Boy, A Mysterious Past, and How He Found a Place Called Home , recounts his triumph...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia speaks with Dr. Noah Nash. Noah is a foster care alumnus from very early childhood, as well as an educator and creative web designer-developer who is amplifying stories, products and projects with people, for people — as he says. His portfolio includes work in international children's rights, emerging technologies, social impact and philanthropy. Noah's ethos is empowering more people to mindfully leverage technology en route to materializing the world we a...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia speaks with Jacqueline Robles, a former foster youth, and a relentless determined powerhouse of a young woman who aged out of the system and made her own way... jumping through hoop after hoop with the hoops always changing and ever higher.Identifying as both Indigenous and Latina, Jacqueline is set on a career to “level the playing field” for communities of color. Jacqueline’s expertise lies in community engagement, policy, and working with historically di...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia speaks with foster care alumnus and abolitionist, Regina Louise. Regina is a sought-after speaker, teacher, coach, and author. Recently she was the recipient of the prestigious Christopher Award, given to producers for stories that “affirm the human spirit.” In 2019 she received the Jordan Award for service in transforming foster care through advocacy and the arts; the Community Service Award for Children and Families from the Seneca Foundation; and the NAI...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia speaks with artist and foster sibling, Elle Fox. Elle, a high school student, has been sketching for as long as she can remember. Growing up in a family that fostered children, Elle draws on her experience of life, love, and loss while sharing her heart and home for a period of time with numerous babies and children. As an author, illustrator, and entrepreneur, Elle launched Elle Fox Art to showcase her illustrations and share the aspects of life that Inspi...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia speaks with former foster youth, Adisa. Adisa compares himself to a lion cub who had to fight for survival all his young life against the bigger badder lions all so hungry and looking to feed. Born in Long Beach to a single mom who was declared unfit to raise her children, he grew up on the streets of Los Angeles. Adisa and his siblings were removed from her and placed in foster care. Adisa was only nine at the time (but already considered himself a "...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia talks with therapist Dr. Mimi Savage. In this episode Mimi describes her upbringing: "My parents are not who I am. My mother's a white woman, my father's a black man. I am born of the two of them, a melange, a mixture. But I had to find my way. And it's not just about race. As I say this to your listeners, everyone needs to find their way. And it's foster care, it's psychiatric units, it's the world, it's the women on skid row whom I've become very close to...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia speaks with former foster youth Jeremiah McWright. Jeremiah is from Sacramento, California. At 15, his four siblings and he were removed from their family and put into the system. After two years and 15 placements, Jeremiah was shipped to a low-level group home in San Francisco. He started his career at 17 in San Francisco as a cinematographer for the Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy. He's since spent over 2000 hours behind the camera in situati...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia speaks with foster and adoptive mom, Jennifer Stern. Jennifer and her husband decided to become a foster family after realizing their dinner table was too quiet and knowing they had space in their home and hearts to welcome more children. They wanted to foster after learning how great the need is for foster families who can provide a safe and loving home for children in the system. They are grateful every day for their non-traditional path toward expanding&...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia speaks with Kendra Lukens. In her words: “My name is Kendra, I spent my entire life going in and out of the foster system after the death of my father in 2012. This started a spiral of abusive homes, and losing hope in a lot of people. After recently aging out at 18, I started a podcast of my own, HEAR US YELL, where I’m able to bring more people together through a common factor of the foster system. I will also be going to college to study criminal j...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia speaks with Emi Nietfeld. Emi is the author of the memoir Acceptance, published by Penguin Press. A former foster youth, she graduated from Harvard in 2015 and worked as a software engineer at Google and Facebook. Her work has appeared in The New York Times, Vice, and Slate, been nominated for the Pushcart Prize, and noted in The Best American Essays. She lives in New York City with her family. Emi is now a full-time writer and speaker. https://linktr....

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia speaks with Breyon Johnson. Breyon is a former foster youth and now a student at Santa Monica college studying to be a storyboard artist and writer. She’s currently working as an intern at Better Youth, a nonprofit that helps youth who face adversity get their foot in the door in entertainment to work in film, video games and animation; and she's also working at Skydance. Breyon worked at other internships making films and creating content that can he...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia talks with activist David Ambroz. David is a national poverty and child welfare expert and advocate, and author of a new memoir “A Place Called Home.” He was recognized by President Obama as an American Champion of Change. Currently serving as the Head of Community Engagement (West) for Amazon, Ambroz previously led Corporate Social Responsibility for Walt Disney Television, and has served as president of the Los Angeles City Planning Commission as we...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia talks with Syd Stewart. Syd is a poet, actor and filmmaker, and the author of two books of poetry, A Rock and A Hard Place (iUniverse, 2010) and Babylon Graffiti (Zeitgeist Press, 2019). Syd was featured in films Hughes’ Dream Harlem and Everyday People, and has appeared in The New York Times, Variety, and People Magazine. Most recently, Stewart’s work was selected by the National Endowment For The Arts’ 50th Anniversary. Just recently, she was a staffed te...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia speaks with Ångela Quijada Banks. Ångela is a former foster youth and an NAACP Image Awards Nominee and American Award-winning author of the Black Foster Youth Handbook. As a certified holistic health coach she supports women impact leaders to get re-energized for life and reconnected to their purpose, passions and personal relationships. She is the founder of Soulful Liberation, a movement to liberate oneself and also the community. As a ...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia speaks with filmmaker Akhim Dev. Dev has over 20 years of experience in broadcast television and digital content. His credits include writing and directing on "The 3G of US" for SBS, "Storm Surfers" for Firelight Productions, and "The Final Sacrifice" for Discovery and National Geographic. His new film "The Children In The Pictures" takes us inside Task Force Argos, a renowned Australian-based police investigative team, as they go undercover to rescue child...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia Larson speaks with adoptee and survivor Kimberly Bell. Kimberly is an inspirational speaker, minister, mentor, and the author of "The Epitome of Kimmy: Accept & Embrace It All” an eye-opening memoir depicting her true story of a life of abandonment, sexual and physical abuse from a very young age, and her healing journey that followed. She’s originally from Salisbury, Maryland, and holds two degrees; one in Human Growth & Development/Psycholog...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia talks with Jeffrey Jamerson. Jeffrey has over 25 years of experience in the public sector serving at-risk youth and families in various capacities, most recently as the Vice President of Programs and Services at Aviva Family & Children’s Services in Los Angeles, CA. Over the past few years Jeff has created a shift in how therapy is conducted with foster children, he has integrated Narrative and Expressive Arts modalities with Digital Media Art, which he...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia talks with Sana Latrease Cotten, who was trafficked by her mother and grandmother as a young child, put in foster care and was then adopted but even so never really felt she belonged with her new family. Later, when she learned of her own mother's traumatic past, Sana learned how to forgive her and also to advocate for others in need. "Sana is the Founder of Unashamed, Inc., a 501(c)3 non-profit organization which fosters emotional health in disadvanta...

Send us a Text Message.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 prov...

Send us a Text Message.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 ...

Send us a Text Message.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 ra...

Send us a Text Message.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 Writi...

Send us a Text Message.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...

Send us a Text Message.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 F...

Send us a Text Message.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 Cal...

Send us a Text Message.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 s...

Send us a Text Message.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...

Send us a Text Message.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...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia talks with Megan Elizabeth Ward. Megan and her wife, Amanda McMillan, started fostering in the Fall of 2017 as a kinship family via ICPC. Following a successful reunification, Amanda and Megan transitioned to a DFCS partnership home and haven’t looked back since. Fast forward almost 5 years and 40+ placements, Amanda and Megan have provided a loving home to kiddos of all ages, backgrounds, and needs – sometimes for just a few hours and sometimes...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia talks with Peace4kids.org Co-Founder and Executive Director Zaid Gayle.During his tenure at Peace4Kids, Zaid has had the opportunity to blend his experience in the film industry as a Coordinator and Assistant Director to ensure that media is an integral part of improving the lives of foster youth. Most specifically, Zaid was the lead in designing and launching the Peapod Music & Arts Academy in 2008 at the Watts/Willowbrook Boys & Girls Club. The Pe...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia Larson talks with Dave Hudson who was born in Watts and adopted at birth. Later as an adult, with the help pf Pam Slaton, he met his biological father and siblings but unfortunately his mother had passed before he could find her.David is an Emmy® Award-winning creative executive with more than two decades of experience in creating content for both television and digital platforms. Hudson is Head of Original Programming for the new Scripps N...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia talks with amazing, astounding and ever persistent Gay Courter.Gay Courter is the author of 7 bestselling novels with over three million copies in print worldwide including The Midwife, The Midwife’s Advice, Code Ezra, River of Dreams, Flowers in the Blood, and The Girl in the Box. Her non-fiction works include The Beansprout Book and How To Survive Your Husband’s Midlife Crisis, and I Speak for this Child: True Stories of a Child Advocate, which was ...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia talks with Nia Garcia. The smart and lovely Nia Garcia is a former foster youth who was abused by her drug addicted mother and stepfather who then threw out of her family home when she was only 13… she ended up living in shelters after several foster homes, then on the streets. She self-harmed for many years and then got addicted to meth to try to numb her pain, but with a lot of hard work and determination she’s now recovered and has made herself a n...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia speaks with CASA Debbie Dullabaun who has been of service to her community for close to 30 years.In 1998 after the death of her six year old son, Dale Lee Dullabaun III, Debbie began to work in his memory with several non-profit organizations. Along with volunteering for many years with the American Red Cross and the San Fernando Valley Domestic Abuse Response Team (DART), in 2020 Debbie became a Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA) volunteer representin...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia talks with the lovely and gracious Kanesha Allison.Kanesha and her five siblings were taken into kinship care with her grandmother when she was a little girl until eventually reunited with her mom five years later, but she was able to see her mom everyday and that made all the difference. Now as an adult and single mom, she has taken in her young nephew who needs special care — so it’s come full circle; and she says he's helping her as much as s...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia speaks with powerhouse foster care alumnus, performance artist, and founder of Reel to Reel Global Youth Film Festival, Johna Rivers.Johna Rivers is a 28 year old trailblazer. They are a foster care alumnus from WATTS who was abused, starved, neglected as a child and teenager but turned trauma into triumph. They are the co-founder for Real To Reel Global Youth Film Festival, a platform for young film makers to highlight issues plaguing their local or ...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia speaks with Dennis Rosenbaum who was a school psychologist for 38 years and then became a CASA."I was born and raised in Cincinnati, Ohio. I grew up in a middle-class Jewish household where the importance of education was emphasized. Yet, as a young person who came of age in the 50’s and 60’s, the racial disparity in opportunity available to some people and not others became uncomfortably apparent to me. The inclination for me to do something construc...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia speaks with former foster youth and LGBTQIA+ advocate Rob Rodriguez.Rob Rodriguez is a proud gay, nonbinary, Latino, born and raised in New York City. Currently residing in Los Angeles, they are now making social impact in the LGBTQIA+ community one movement at a time. They are a survivor of abuse and an inspiring success story of what it takes to survive the foster care system for seven years. They are the creative force behind and Director of Market...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia speaks with the powerhouse Leslie Nolan who was trafficked at a young age after fleeing an abusive family; she eventually put her father in jail for his sexual abuse to prevent him from abusing others. "Leslie Nolan is the Design and Wellness Labs Associate Lab Leader at Karana Rising. She assists the Design and Wellness team in the execution of workshops, programs, and launches. She is a survivor of childhood, verbal, and emotional abuse, as well as s...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia talks with Melanie Velasquez. Melanie is a former foster youth from the San Fernando Valley who was abused by her own family at a very young age, and then as a young adult had the courage to put her father in prison. She’s a brave young lady with a terrible but ultimately triumphant story to tell. She's 24 years old now and living happily on her own. She says: “I love helping out others. My goal is to work with youth and help them become the per...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia speaks with foster mom and adoptive mom Deena Murray. Deena serves as a consultant to Million Kids for Development, Events and assisting with Operations. She is the Director and Producer of VIP Events for RCDL Enterprises and is a Certified Meeting Professional. Deena has provided foster parent services for four Southern California counties and has been a foster parent to over 25 youth. She, and her husband, ended up adopting twelve of the children th...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia talks with crypto kid Daron Bennett. In this episode we discuss his journey from generational poverty to inspiring others. Daron is a foster care alumnus who grew up on the hard rough and tumble streets of Los Angeles. Violence, abuse, and neglect were ever present in his young life but he was determined to break free from the devastating cycle of trauma. At age 11, he taught himself how to read by going to the library and copying down words in the dictiona...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia speaks with foster care alumnus Cody Renegar who is a hairstylist and fine artist, and author of the memoir "Changing the Stars" (2021). We thank him for his frankness, courage, and generous spirit!Here's what Jayne Amelia covers with Cody Renegar in this episode:1. How did Cody overcome a horrific cycle of abuse and neglect to become a healed, caring, and strong man?2. How did Cody's early experiences of compassion and resilience shape his present-da...

Send us a Text Message.BONUS BABIES producer Jake Eberle introduces this between seasons bonus episode which includes special moments from Season 1 with Teena Festa (#17), Howie Cohen (#21), and Venus Manuel with Lori Nelson (#5), as well as upcoming excerpts from Season 2 with Daron Bennett and Cody Renegar. Thanks for listening and we will be dropping new episodes soon. Please visit our website bonusbabies.com if you'd like to make a tax-deductible charitable donation to support our work.Se...

Send us a Text Message.This is the trailer for the BONUS BABIES podcast. Jayne Amelia Larson interview kids, attorneys, social workers, caregivers and more, and tracks her experience learning about and navigating through the foster care system…not as someone who has a lived foster care experience… but through the unique lens of a Court Appointed Special Advocate (or CASA) volunteer––the eyes and ears of the court––whose job it is to seek out as much information as possible about the chi...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia talks with former foster youth Angelo Melendez. When Angelo was orphaned at the age of 2, he was sent to live in foster care in an all boys group home. Luckily he soon went into the care of loving foster parents, Howie and Carol Cohen, who call him "the one" and wanted to adopt him. Angelo spent several happy years with them in Beverly Hills until the court decided that he should be sent to live with his biological relatives, whom he didn't know...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia talks with former foster youth and advocate Alexis Obinna. Alexis is one of the founders and a current member of the Los Angeles Reproductive Health Equity Project Youth Advisory Board.During Alexis's time in California’s foster care system, volunteering at church was fun and better than staying at home. During college, Alexis was able to grow and learn more about support groups and organizations that are available to youth in foster care. Each year, Alexis...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia talks with former foster parent, Howie Cohen. The LA Times dubbed him “A Real-Life Don Draper.” In an advertising career that spanned five decades, Howie Cohen wrote the immortal words for Alka Seltzer, “I can’t believe I ate the whole thing” and “Try it, you’ll like it” both in the Clio Hall of Fame. Howie got his start as the youngest copy trainee at Doyle Dane Bernbach where he literally learned to write copy on the famous VW Bug campaign. He then moved ...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia talks with a devoted and talented child therapist, Kylie. Kylie is a School Therapist working for a non-profit organization providing therapy to students ages 5-22 who live in the residences on campus, or come from homes in the nearby community. These are children who need additional support and aren't able to thrive in a general school environment due to many different reasons such as involvement in CPS, past trauma, violent behaviors, learning disabilitie...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia talks with producer, entrepreneur, and serial philanthropist, Peter Samuelson. Peter Samuelson is the Co-Founder and President of First Star, and CEO of PhilmCo Media llc. Mr. Samuelson is a serial pro-social entrepreneur. In 1982 he co-founded the Starlight Children’s Foundation; by 1990 the positive psychological impact of Starlight seeded his next pro-social endeavor, Starbright World, co-founded with Steven Spielberg. 1999 saw the formation of Fir...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia Larson talks with foster parent and adoptive mother, Anita, who when she was single and only 22-years-old welcomed an 11-year-old girl, Ashleigh, into her home thinking it was for short respite care, maybe a week or a month... and ended up caring for her for years and then adopting her. Anita says: "I would not have been able to do this if I didn't have the support system that I had with my family and friends, I've always been determined, I've always ...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia talks with Teena Festa who is a new CASA volunteer and also a former foster youth. After having a very difficult time in foster care, as well as struggling with mental health and addiction as a young adult, Teena persevered and decided to try and help people like her. On top of being a CASA, she is working on her psychology degree with a concentration on child and adolescent development, and plans to work with children in the system. Teena's experience and&...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia talks with former foster youth Tamar, who is also a proud and happy young mother. "I’m Tamar and a sophomore student at Orange Coast College. I am in the process of achieving an Associates degree for transfer in Political Science, Communications, Psychology, as well as Liberal Arts. I am an active member on my campus and am involved in programs such as Guardian Scholars, EOPS, CARE, the speech and debate team, and two honor societies. I am passionate about ...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia talks with Sid Gardner who co-parented four biological, step, and adoptive children during the past 50 years. Mr. Gardner is a Southern California native and serves as President of Children and Family Futures which he co-founded with his wife, Dr. Nancy Young. He served as Director of the Center for Collaboration for Children at California State University, Fullerton from 1991-2001. He is the author of Beyond Collaboration to Results, published by Arizona S...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia talks with the gracious and always growing, Megan Green, Founder/CEO of Motivate Vibe Grow and Crownworkshops all over the world. "Service isn’t one act of kindness," she says. "It has been a lifestyle for me. I have been a leader and advocate for marginalized groups and people of color throughout my whole career. I have dedicated my life to serving others since my college days advocating for people suffering from homelessness in Philadelphia to now v...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia talks with foster care alumnus Diane Martell who has talent and grit too. She's an experienced learning & organizational development consultant, is known for supporting clients in reimagining current processes, procedures and team talent, and maximizing performance as they develop plans for the future. With 30+ years working in both the profit and nonprofit sectors, Diane is a catalyst for well-organized change. She has led as a collaborative exec...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia Larson talks with the powerhouse Wendelyn Julien who served as CEO of CASA of Los Angeles from 2016-2021, and is now the Executive Director of the new Probation Oversight Commission at Los Angeles County. She is an attorney with over 20 years of experience in social justice work with a focus on improving our community for young people. Wende is a biological parent of three, adoptive parent of one, and has been a foster parent twice. She serves as a Court Ap...

Send us a Text Message.Ashleigh Nichols is a creative New York-based artist, web designer, developer, and illustrator living in Brooklyn with a penchant for all things creative. Ashleigh grew up in a suburban town just outside of D.C. and now calls Brooklyn home. She graduated from The New School with concentrations in Visual Arts and Writing and began coding in 2016. She has worked for large non-profits doing development, special events, and marketing.She enjoys reading, volleyball, making t...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia talks with former foster youth Jaronna Yates. Jaronna has worked in the entertainment industry for the past 22 years, spanning across three major studios, and is currently the Sr. Project Director with Illumination Entertainment heading up the Global Project Management Team for their Marketing Division. From ages five to 13, Jaronna was raised in a Catholic orphanage and lived in several foster homes in Louisville, KY. She was officially placed for ad...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia talks with former foster youth Toni Cunningham. Anthony Cunningham, better known as Toni, is currently in his fourth year in the Recreation Tourism Management program at Cal State Northridge. Born and raised in South Central Los Angeles in the foster care system, Toni has overcome the many obstacles that have been placed is his path. Toni can be described as resilient, hard-working, and a ray of light. He's currently holding a Student Programs Assistant pos...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia talks with former foster youth Vaughn Laws. "My name is Vaughn and I wish I knew where I was headed, but this adventure that has been life left me a husk of who I used to be. I've come through a lot and managed to keep my wits about me and pretty much out of trouble. I am currently aspiring to be a graphic designer. I had more ambition when I was a teen since I thought I wasn’t going to be doing everything on my own. However, I learned life deals out ...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia talks with children's attorney Juan Valles. Juan was born in Downey, California, and grew up in Southeast Los Angeles County. After graduating from the University of California, Berkeley, with a B.A. in linguistics, Juan spent several years working in higher education administration. In particular, he worked with undergraduates in advising, career planning, and student discipline. He later completed a Master's in Business Administration from Loyola Marymoun...

Send us a Text Message.Today's guest is LaTanya Hill. "LT" is a writer with a background in law, education, government, and most recently became a Reiki Master and started her own energy healing business in Los Angeles – IMREIKINOW. She has been a CASA for over 4 years and is still assisting her very first child in the program. Please see imreikinow.com for more information about LT's healing work.Go to NationalCASAGAL.org to find out more about becoming a CASA anywhere in t...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia Larson talks with former foster youth Venus Manuel and her case worker Lori Nelson, a former social worker working in the LA County foster care system. Venus spent her adolescence and teen years bouncing from foster home to home, and credits one great social worker, Lori Nelson, with saving her life. And Lori says they saved each other. Venus is now an Independent Living Coordinator with the Los Angeles County Probation Department working with foster ...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia talks with Lori Nelson, former social worker working in the foster care system and now with the LA County Probation Department. "Lori was born a crusader with a heart for lost pets, the kid bullies made fun of and the person to run to and run away with when things were scary and unsafe. Lori’s childhood experiences led her to work in the helping profession in various human services organizations bringing value to clients fostering lasting and positive relat...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia interviews former foster youth, Venus Manuel, a shining example of how nurture does not always triumph over nature. From an early childhood rampant with sexual and physical abuse followed by a string of nine foster care homes, the development of another disillusioned dysfunctional youth seemed tragically imminent. However, the strength, passion and individuality inherent in Venus provided her with the abilities to not only rise above her beginni...

Send us a Text Message.Jayne Amelia introduces the BONUS BABIES podcast and talks with her first guest, foster parent and Peace4kids.org volunteer, Mrs. Dorrie Woods. After a rewarding career in education, Dorrie retired to a life of family and volunteering with Center of Hope Youth Ministries, Miracle Workers, Carson Foster Parent Association, and Peace4Kids which offers a peaceful respite to children in the system and their families. She’s a Fun Ambassador at the Compton Adult School ...