The Forgotten Podcast

TW: While Joan does not go into specific details, this episode does contain mentions of her experiences of abuse, and we wanted you to be aware of that before listening. Our guests often share the traumatic memories their experiences in life have left them with. But today’s guest shares what it’s like for there to be pieces missing when she tries to recall her past. Joan Ulsher is a writer, philanthropist, retired U.S. Army Major, and an award-winning child advocate. During her own childhood, Joan survived abuse and experienced the foster care system firsthand. Today, she says many of her formative years feel like “Swiss cheese” because of all the holes in her memory. Joan tells her story in a memoir entitled Misplaced Childhood: A True Story of Resiliency and Child Advocacy. In this conversation, you’ll hear how Joan has navigated her mind blocking out childhood memories, how her advocacy efforts have changed her inner narrative from that of a victim to that of a survivor, how finding Christ has given her life new purpose, and so much more. Show Notes: https://theforgotteninitiative.org/joan-ulsher-227/ Free Video Resource: Foster Care & the Church -- www.fostercare.church

Many agency workers who serve the foster care community choose this path out of a passion for helping others. But transitioning into this challenging career can often be a very overwhelming experience. Even when workers are doing their best, they can start to feel like they’re not doing enough and that they don’t have a support system to fall back on in their times of need. Brian Gazdziak is a Licensed Clinical Social Worker as well as a foster and adoptive dad. He has spent years providing specialized mental health therapy to help people, such as those in the foster care community, cope with life challenges. As someone who has experienced foster care from the perspective of both an agency worker and a foster parent, Brian has unique insights and empathy surrounding the topic of these complex relationships. In this episode, Brian shares what it’s like to work with children and families in a hands-on capacity, how churches can provide much-needed support to foster care workers, how to build a better relationship with case workers, and so much more. Show Notes: https://theforgotteninitiative.org/brian-gazdziak-226/ Join Team 3:10: https://theforgotteninitiative.org/team310  

No matter the season of parenting you’re in, there’s one thing every parent needs to prioritize—mental health. Not just your child’s, but your own, too. It’s easy to look at the behavioral or emotional struggles our children are exhibiting and start thinking of ways to “fix” them. What’s harder is looking inward and asking ourselves what steps we can take to nurture our mental health so we can show up for our kids in the best way.  Joining me today is Michelle Nietert, an author, a speaker, and the Clinical Director/Founder of Community Counseling Associates. She’s also a follower of Christ, a wife, and a mother to two school-aged children who puts her mental health knowledge to use every day as she seeks to nurture a happy and healthy household. In this episode, Michelle teaches us how to support our children through life’s challenges, how to help children who’ve experienced trauma find hope, joy, and light in life, how to work prayer into your children’s lives as they grow up, and so much more. Show Notes: https://theforgotteninitiative.org/michelle-nietert-225/ Get 10% off your first month of BetterHelp: https://betterhelp.com/tfi

Cami Haussler’s childhood was marked by turbulence. By the time she was 10, both of her parents had passed away. Her formative years were filled with a long string of life changes, and it seemed like every time she got close to a caregiver, they would leave her. Eventually, Cami was adopted by her grandparents, but despite the love they showed her, Cami often struggled to let them in, fearing that they too would pass away and leave her alone again. Today, Cami’s experiences have come full circle—she’s now an adoptive parent who has fostered 12 children and taken on a core role at a private child placement agency. In this episode, Cami openly shares how the emotional struggles of her childhood molded her into the woman she is today, how her mindset as a foster and adoptive parent had to expand into one of grace and selflessness, the biggest challenges from her experience as an adoptee, how to avoid developing a “savior complex” as a foster parent, and so much more. Show Notes: https://theforgotteninitiative.org/cami-haussler-224/ Get 10% off the Who Loves series with code "forgottenpod": https://www.wholovesseries.org/

Katie Faris knew that motherhood wasn’t always going to be smooth sailing, but she was more than ready to deal with temper tantrums and dirty diapers. What she wasn’t prepared for was receiving the news that three of her children had been diagnosed with a serious medical condition.  Katie’s story is deeply touching to me. She’s a pastor’s wife and a writer who has shared her journey with others through books like God is Still Good: Gospel Hope and Comfort for the Unexpected Sorrows of Motherhood and He Will Be Enough: How God Takes You by the Hand Through Your Hardest Days.  Woven through both books is her own family’s story as well as stories of others who found God to be trustworthy in the midst of their perplexities. In this episode, you’ll hear how Katie has walked hand in hand with God through all the ups and downs of her journey, her advice for relying on your community, the power of prayer when hope is hard to find, and so much more. Show Notes: https://theforgotteninitiative.org/katie-faris-223/ Get 10% off your first month of BetterHelp: https://betterhelp.com/tfi

Has God ever led you somewhere that you were previously scared to go? Are you currently facing a situation where God is inviting you to entrust your fear and concerns to Him? That’s what happened for Randall Nichols, co-founder of ECHO Family Care Partners and an adoptive parent. Through his work at ECHO, Randall is working to resource churches and businesses to meet the needs of orphaned and vulnerable children and families through foster care, adoption, and wrap-around support. In this episode, Randall shares the powerful story of connection that introduced their family to special needs adoptions, how to involve your children in the decision to care for others, why community often is the biggest concern for those considering adoption or foster care, the importance of being able to give and receive care, and so much more! Apply to Become a TFI Advocate: www.tfiadvocate.org Show Notes: https://theforgotteninitiative.org/randall-nichols-222/

When Lisa Qualls found out she was pregnant as a teen, it led to an unexpected journey through foster care. After giving birth to her son, she felt conflicting pressure to give him up to be adopted, and it would be 16 years until she would reconnect with him again. Lisa has a unique perspective as she has experienced the adoption and foster care community as a former foster youth, birth mom, foster mom, and adoptive mom. Lisa is a TBRI® Practitioner, co-founder of Adoption Wise, and co-author of The Connected Parent with Karyn Purvis. She lives in North Idaho with her husband, Russ, with whom she has parented twelve children by birth and adoption. In this episode, you’ll hear Lisa’s deeply challenging experience in foster care and becoming a mother, her passion for staying connected to a child’s first family whenever possible, how she strives to encourage foster and adoptive families today, and so much more! Apply to Become a TFI Advocate: www.tfiadvocate.org Show Notes: https://theforgotteninitiative.org/lisa-qualls-221/

We’re exploring some deep questions on the podcast this week and I would love to hear how you’re processing them. How do we navigate painful circumstances in life? How do we walk with others who are experiencing something deeply challenging? How do we respond when life doesn’t turn out the way we expected it to? I was so deeply touched during my conversation with my guest today, Katherine Wolf. She is my beautiful sister in Christ who is also a stroke survivor, disability advocate, and author. She and her husband, Jay, have authored two best-selling books Hope Heals and Suffer Strong. In our conversation, you’ll hear Katherine reveal treasures found in dark times, share practical insights on how to encourage and support those who are struggling, and more! Listen in! Apply to Become a TFI Advocate: www.tfiadvocate.org Show Notes: https://theforgotteninitiative.org/katherine-wolf-220/

DREION is a husband, father, electrifying singer-songwriter, musician, producer, and performing artist originally from Omaha, Nebraska. He experienced the foster care system as a child at the age of seven, and his story is one of trauma, tragedy, and triumph that the world needs to hear. Today, DREION uses his music to inspire and shed light on this underserved community through powerful storytelling and intentional experiences. In this episode, you’ll hear DREION openly share his painful experience of entering foster care, why he holds a passion to advocate for foster care reform, the hope he holds for the future, why music holds such a meaningful place in his soul, and his message for other current or former foster youth. Listen in! Apply to Become a TFI Advocate: www.tfiadvocate.org Show Notes: https://theforgotteninitiative.org/dreion-219/

I am so excited to bring you something a little bit different today. Grace Church of San Diego is letting us feature an episode of their podcast, Deeper Than Sunday, which featured one of our TFI Advocates, Desiree Jacobs. In this episode, you’ll hear about secondary trauma, being inconvenienced vs. overextended, and what it looks like to bridge the gap between a foster care agency and a church. I am grateful to Grace Church of San Diego for sharing this episode with us and allowing us to learn from their conversation! Get notified when TFI Advocate applications go live: https://www.tfiadvocate.org/ Show Notes: https://theforgotteninitiative.org/desiree-jacobs-218/