Just As Special

Hope felt like she had way more help than she could use as one foster parent which led her to start thinking about how she could help other families who could benefit from even just one more friend.  The Neighbor Program has since grown to serve families across the Colorado and even the nation.  Learn more about how you can become a Neighbor.     

A youth who was labeled “a danger to others” by the foster care system shares what that meant for her and what that means for the system as a whole. Learn more at JustAsSpecial.com.

Former pro basketball player, Nick Thompson, became a child welfare revolutionary when he opened up a non-traditional group home for boys aged 10-15 years old with his wife.  Unlike other residential care facilities, Brad's House never utilizes restraining or seclusion tactics to handle big behaviors, relies on strong community involvement, and is a normal house in a suburban neighborhood. The result is that boys who are used to being stuck in the system are finally empowered to heal themselves by discovering their unique passions and identities.  Learn more at JustAsSpecial.com.

A 12-year-old LGBTQ+ tween shares what it's like to be in foster care and go through the adoption process from their perspective — and dispenses much sage advice for foster and adoptive parents along the way.

Charell Star is a former youth in care and current foster care advocate, NYC television personality, and so much more. She draws on her personal experiences in the system to give us practical ways we can support youth in building a successful future for themselves — and how to cultivate a deep sense of joy no matter the struggles we are facing.

This episode delves into how to set healthy boundaries — with the foster care system, with the kids in our care, and with ourselves.  Just like in Part 1, Dave and Lottie use examples of their work with horses to bring their lessons to life. See photos and more at JustAsSpecial.com.

It turns out horses and kids in foster care have a lot in common. Lottie Grimes and Dave Wyner are both longtime trauma counselors and co-founders of Groundwork Ranch which provides free equine-assisted learning programs for foster and adoptive parents. Just As Special host Natasha attended this training before sitting down with Dave and Lottie to delve deep into how horses can teach us to better care for kids in foster care. This episode is made possible with support from Cobbled Streets.

This is the third episode of our This Foster Care Life miniseries where we bring you multiple perspectives around the same topic. In this episode, you will hear from: Ashley Schuster Downend: a foster parent and public policy professional who grapples with tough questions we should all be asking ourselves.  Aubree: a white foster mom raising black foster kids in the New York City area.  Nikki Brown: a foster mom who shares the challenges of moving states while fostering. This episode was made possible by generous support from Cobbled Streets. Learn more at JustAsSpecial.com.

Nichole shares what she enjoys about being a single foster mom and how she creatively tackles foster care challenges.  Learn more at www.JustAsSpecial.com.

Join foster mom, Natasha and foster care volunteer, Rachel as they reflect on lessons learned in 2021 to carry into the new year.  Learn more at JustAsSpecial.com.

Instead of interviewing someone else, Just As Special host Natasha is actually in the hot seat this time thanks to House of Pod's From the Margins to the Center podcast. They generously gave us permission to run this interview on our show and we hope you enjoy going behind the scenes of the Just As Special podcast! Natasha also talks about how Just As Special moves beyond the microphone to build resources and community for foster families.  Learn more at JustAsSpecial.com.

Longtime foster care volunteer Denise Lombard shares about her experience being a consistent support for kids in care as a CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocate).  Denise's approach to supporting kids in foster care gives us takeaways we can all learn from, no matter what our role is. See photos of Denise with her kiddos and learn more about becoming a CASA at JustAsSpecial.com.

Diamond Kobylinski describes how he literally had to unpack his survival mechanisms from growing up in the foster care system after being adopted.  Diamond also shares about how his relationships developed over time with his adoptive moms, Amy and Jessica. And how an unexpected medical event impacted those relationships.  Learn more at JustAsSpecial.com. 

Diamond describes how growing up gay in the foster care system made his life extra-intense.  As a teenager, Diamond was faced with an important decision when he learned a family of two moms was interested in adopting him.  Since this recording, Diamond has closed Hope for Colorado.  Fact Check: Currently there are more than 400,000 kids in foster care in the United States. Every year, 23,000 kids age out without any family to call home.  Learn more at JustAsSpecial.com.

Longtime foster parent and foster parent trainer, Kaleo George, discusses how each of her 3 kids are impacted by their family's foster care journey.   

Longtime foster parent and foster parent trainer, Kaleo George, opens up about the messiness of foster care. In opening up about her personal experiences as a foster mom, Kaleo also paints a picture of how to navigate foster parenting in a way that honors both the complexities and families involved — and the beauty that arises when you show up to stand alongside someone in the messiness of life. Topics covered include: Placement disruptions Attachment difficulties Grief after placements end Savior complex Tensions inherent to the foster care system Relationships with bio parents We loved our time with Kaleo (she had so many mic drop moments we lost track) and hope you do too! To see photos of Kaleo and her family, visit JustAsSpecial.com.

This is the second episode of our This Foster Care Life miniseries where we bring you multiple perspectives around the same topic. Today's topic is how past trauma affects today's brain.  In this episode, you will hear from: Diamond Kobylinski, a self-described former gay foster youth, who describes how coming out while in the system affected his emotional state. Kaleo George, a longtime foster parent and foster parent trainer, about how her past trauma impacts her foster parenting. Patti Swope, a therapist, former foster parent, and mom to former kid in care Mattie, about how to manage your own trauma as a foster parent. Mattie Baker, Patti's daughter, a former kid in care and current social worker, about the intensity of trauma.  This episode was created in partnership with Urban Leaders Fellowship and made possible by generous support from Cobbled Streets and the Colorado Association of Family and Children's Agencies.

Bruce LeClaire, a member of the Rosebud Sioux tribe, has spent more than 20 years being an advocate for native youth in the foster care system.  He joins us to discuss how culture is a guiding star for native youth. We also discuss culture clashes with mainstream America, the Indian Child Welfare Act, and much more. 

Cultural Ties is the first episode of our This Foster Care Life miniseries where we bring you multiple perspectives around the same topic. Our fellow Emmy Tither personally relates to the idea of cultural ties as they are half-Peruvian and half-British, making them the perfect host for this episode. In this episode, you will also hear from: Bruce LeClaire: A member of the Rosebud Sioux Tribe who has been a youth advocate for more than 30 years and spent most of those years working within the foster care system and with native families. (Full Podcast Interview Coming August 17th) Brittany: A foster mom in a multi-racial Muslim family raising three kids in care who are of different ethnicities than her and her husband. Brittany has faced many challenges when it comes to foster care including culture clashes and getting extended family to accept her and her husband's kids in care. Kenisha E. Anthony: A former kid in care who kept falling through the cracks of the foster care system to the point that she felt like a burden to everyone and experienced suicidal thoughts. She later returned to the foster care system as a caseworker which opened her eyes up even more.

In-demand therapist Patti Swope describes how she became mom to one of her former patients, Mattie Baker (a former foster youth and one of our fan-favorite podcast guests). Patti specializes in the power of secure attachments and she walks us through how she and Mattie overcame trigger cycles and skepticism from the foster care system to become family for each other. Learn more at JustAsSpecial.com. 

Decolonize Everything invited us to talk about decolonizing family — especially as it relates to foster care. In this episode, we push the boundaries of family; reframe foster care; and confront the power dynamics and savior complex in foster families. Learn more at www.JustAsSpecial.com.

We talk foster care parenting and volunteering, radical honesty and transparency, pets we’ve had to return, mind reading, and tons more with the Discussion Combustion podcast. Big thanks to Kevin and Arthur for inviting us on their podcast to help spread foster care awareness and to let our listeners get the chance to know a different side of Just As Special podcast hosts, Natasha and Rachel. View the video version of this podcast at https://www.justasspecial.com/discussion-combustion. 

Kenisha E. Anthony kept falling through the cracks of the foster care system to the point that she felt like a burden to everyone and wanted to die. She later returned as a caseworker to the same system that failed her, which opened her eyes up even more to all that needs to change. Learn more at JustAsSpecial.com. This episode is brought to you by Fabulous Homes Colorado.

Natasha went from having no kids to being a foster mom of a teenage girl in 2020. Natasha talks with her sister and foster care volunteer, Rachel, about what she wish she knew before becoming a foster parent and what she has learned along the way.  Natasha and Rachel also talk about what's to come for the Just As Special podcast in 2021. Learn more at JustAsSpecial.com.

Ali and Brittany are a multi-racial Muslim couple raising three foster kids. They've faced many challenges when it comes to foster care including culture clashes; parenting a drug-addicted newborn; and getting their families to accept their foster kids. Bonus: Aubree and her wife Laura are white women raising black foster kids in the New York City area. Aubree shares really poetically about what that's like. See photos and more at JustAsSpecial.com.

Former foster kid and current social worker, Mattie Baker, gets raw with us about her time growing up in the system.  We learn how to truly welcome a foster kid into our lives by hearing from Mattie's story of what went wrong and what went right — coupled with her professional experience in mental health work and counseling.  Bonus: Former foster kid turned adoptive and foster mom, Brittaney Kate, tells her story about finding family. See more at JustAsSpecial.com. Correction: Mattie Baker spent time in 16-28 foster and group homes as she was growing up.

There are so many stories around foster care that are begging to be told. Join Natasha (a foster mom) and Rachel (a foster care and women's prison volunteer) as they talk with foster youth; former foster kids; non-traditional foster families; youth psychologists; and much more. Foster care is a journey and Just As Special is here to help you find your way. Join us to learn how we can all play a role (large or small!) in giving foster kids a better tomorrow. Learn more at JustAsSpecial.com. Correction: Mattie Baker spent time in 16-28 foster and group homes as she was growing up.