Unbelievably Resilient

On this episode, the FosterStrong team shares their mission, vision, and how it all got started. You’ll also get to hear from the Director and Screenwriter of Instant Family, Sean Anders, and how he helped connect the FosterStrong team.

On this episode, the FosterStrong team discuss the huge accomplishment that graduation is for youth coming from the foster care system. Listen in to hear from two of our team members, Maraide and Slam, as they talk about their own academic journeys and we examine the intersection between foster care and pursuing higher education.

With demonstrations happening worldwide and in the wake of continued racial injustices, the FosterStrong team provide their perspectives on the intersection of race, foster care and civil unrest. Listen until the end for a special word from Slam, the poet.

“Instant Family” director and writer Sean Anders talks resiliency and highlighting foster families in film. This episode kicks off FosterStrong’s invitation to highlight unbelievably resilient youth in foster care.

Former Miss District of Columbia and foster care system advocate Cordelia Cranshaw talks about how her organization Acts of Random Kindness (ARK) fuels her drive to strengthen child and family well-being and how helping others increase their net worth through building strong networks.

A licensed social worker and alumna of care, Ixchel Martinez shares her story on hurdling adversity and the importance of passing the mic to youth in foster care. Tune in for insights on how making people the bottom line helps everyone in the child welfare system.

In episode one of season three we dive into the art of storytelling and the vulnerability that comes with it. Acknowledging the pain and gently moving beyond it into the realm of power. How do we know we are ready to share? Listen in as our teammates kick us off with tips, tricks, and things to prepare for when you decide to share your life of resilience with others.

In episode two of season three our team discusses the difficulties with obtaining your case files. The hang ups, managing your own expectations, and rewriting the stories you read about your past. If you find yourself wanting to obtain your records or even you are just beginning to consider making the request…we are right there with you. Privacy and protection standards vary across the country and as you will hear, it’s not always a straight forward process; and sometimes it leads to disappointment. How do we keep building our story if there are many gaps in the history? Tune in to find out.