Host Sandra Flach is a mom of 8 children, 5 through adoption—one kinship and 4 international. Her youngest 2 are teens diagnosed with a Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD). With over 30 years of parenting experience and 20 plus years as an adoptive and kinship parent, she’s made mountains of mistakes and learned loads of lessons. She understands the difficult road of parenting children with trauma histories—and she is still in the trenches! The Adoption & Foster Care Journey is a podcast to encourage, educate, and equip you to care for children in crisis through adoption, foster care, and kinship care. We aim to support adoptive and foster families by sharing encouraging real-life stories and equipping them with modern-day research and parenting techniques.
Episodes
Monday Aug 10, 2020
Monday Aug 10, 2020
Limbo is not an easy place to live, especially for a child with a trauma history. But limbo is exactly where we find ourselves during this season of Covid-19. For foster and adoptive families—limbo is a stressful road to navigate.
We find ourselves in a world where nothing seems predictable or stable. For children who’ve experienced trauma, these insecurities can cause them to become anxious and hyper-vigilant. Stress increases cortisol levels in the brain which puts our kids on high alert and triggers their fight-flight-freeze responses.
How can stressed-out parents help their stressed-out children?
Host, Sandra Flach, discusses practical parenting strategies and shares inspirational stories to encourage and equip our listeners through the stressors brought on by Covid-19.
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Monday Aug 03, 2020
Monday Aug 03, 2020
Adoptive and foster parents must navigate several challenges along their family’s journey. Trauma, mental, emotional, and physical health, and racism are sensitive topics parents tackle on a daily basis. These families need the support of safe people, community members, and professionals.
Tennessee adoptive mom, Tona Ottinger is co-founder of Memphis Family Connection Center—offering holistic care and therapy based on Trust Based Relational Intervention (TBRI) principles. She and her husband, Mark, are also the new directors of Empowered to Connect. Tona understands the unique challenges foster and adoptive parents face, especially in today’s climate of Covid-19 and racial tensions.
Listen in as host, Sandra Flach, talks with Tona Ottinger about parenting through these trying times.
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Monday Jul 27, 2020
Monday Jul 27, 2020
Covid-19 and its resulting shutdown and social isolation are causing developmental trauma in America’s children. This is especially the case with foster and adopted children who have already experienced childhood trauma. Overwhelmed and exhausted parents not only have to deal with Covid-19 triggered stress themselves, but are also caring for children who, in many cases, are reverting back to behaviors they’d seemingly already overcome.
Ruby Johnston, professional trauma informed trainer says, “Wounded people cannot help wounded people.” Johnston, co-founder of LaMB International and Global Capacity Building Network, also serves on the World Without Orphans executive team as the Capacity Building Coordinator. Ruby travels the world training caregivers, ministry leaders, and orphanage staff in best practices to bring healing to children who have suffered trauma and loss.
Sandra Flach, host of the Orphans No More Podcast, recently interviewed Ruby Johnston to discuss how anxious parents can help anxious children navigate through the new reality brought on by Covid-19. Flach and Johnston covers topics such as trauma-informed parenting strategies and self-care.
Stress Buster Video Series HERE.
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Monday Jul 20, 2020
Monday Jul 20, 2020
Strengthening the Child Welfare System for America’s Children
On June 24, 2020, President Trump issued an Executive Order on Strengthening the Child Welfare System for America’s Children. His administration believes every child deserves a family and the best foster care system is one that is not needed in the first place. Health and Human Services has been focused on prevention strategies that keep children safe while strengthening families so that children do not enter foster care unnecessarily.
The Executive Order sights challenges that still remain such as too many young people who are in our foster care system wait years before finding the permanency of family. More than 400,000 children are currently in foster care. Of those 124,000 are waiting for adoption.
In recent history, approximately 20,000 young people have aged out of foster care each year. Research has shown that youth who age out are likely to experience significant life challenges such as homelessness, unemployment, PTSD, and pregnancy by age 21. These are unacceptable outcomes for our nation’s young people.
Sandra Flach, host of the Orphans No More Podcast, recently sat down to discuss the President’s Executive Order with Dr. Sharen Ford, the Program Director for Foster Care & Adoption for Focus on the Family. Flach and Ford discussed the Executive Order and the President’s call to action.
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Monday Jul 13, 2020
Monday Jul 13, 2020
The uncertain times we’re living in have delivered unique challenges to the doorstep of every family. On this week’s episode of our Orphans No More podcast, host Sandra Flach, offers inspiration, encouragement, and hope for parents—especially parents of foster and adopted children.
An adoptive mom with two teenage sons at home, both with trauma histories, Sandra understands the difficulties many families are facing. In this episode, she shares some of her family’s struggles as well as her own challenges with working from home and running a nonprofit in the uncharted territory of Covid-19. Sandra closes the show with prayer for parents and children who find themselves on the same precarious journey.
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Monday Jul 06, 2020
Monday Jul 06, 2020
"I smirked. That doesn’t happen anymore." This was the reaction, then prospective foster parent, Deana Zoeller, had when her mentor warned about racism. She didn’t believe the veteran adoptive mom of bi-racial children. But now, ten years and 3 adoptions later—Deana and her family have experienced racism first-hand.
Today, Deana and Doug Zoeller lovingly refer to themselves as white chocolate parents of three—dark chocolate, caramel, and coffee ice cream sons. All adopted from foster care. Deana shares, “A diverse family is the most beautiful way to show God’s workmanship and share the Gospel. Instead of being divided by our differences, we must be united in His beauty.”
Deana Zoeller joins host, Sandra Flach, to discuss her family’s experience with racism. Listen to their conversation as they talk about how white parents can help their black children navigate racism, embrace their identity, and celebrate their differences.
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Monday Jun 29, 2020
Monday Jun 29, 2020
Jason Weber, National Director of Foster Care Initiatives at Christian Alliance For Orphans (CAFO), states that two of the most common words associated with foster care in the U.S. are “not enough.”
- Not enough resources to meet all of the needs
- Not enough support for struggling biological, kinship, foster, and adoptive families
- Not enough families for kids who need them.
According to Weber, it doesn’t have to be this way. There are easily more than enough resources, support, and families in every community to solve the national foster care crisis.
Over the past two decades a foster care movement has emerged from faith communities across the country. Local foster care movement is made up of families (foster, kinship, adoptive, and biological) cared for by churches working collaboratively with each other and other community partners (government, placement agencies, bridge and service organizations, and local businesses).
Jason sites that if 10% of the churches in every county actively engage in foster care ministry by the end of 2025, there will be more than enough resources, support, and families—in fact we could see more families waiting for children than there are children waiting for families.
Host, Sandra Flach, recently sat down with Jason Weber to discuss his new book, Until There’s More Than Enough—Working Together to Transform Foster Care Where You Live. The book is an excellent resource for those who care about children in foster care and want to engage their church in the movement.
Links to resources discussed in this episode:
www.morethanenoughtogether.org
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Monday Jun 22, 2020
Monday Jun 22, 2020
In recent months, because of Covid-19 and the resulting shut-down, two topics have organically risen to the surface of our Orphans No More podcast: the impact the national crisis is having on children (especially those with trauma histories) and the importance of self-care for parents and caregivers.
In addition to the trauma caused by the pandemic, information overload, the myth of multi-tasking, and the blurred lines between work and home responsibilities have many of us experiencing toxic levels of stress. As wounded healers, parents and caregivers must pay attention to our own mental, emotional, physical, and spiritual health. If we are going to help our children navigate through this season, we must rejuvenate and nourish our own souls.
Sandra Flach, host of our Orphans No More podcast, sat down with Amy Willmann, Director of Whole Hearted Soul Care to discuss why soul-care is vital and how we can enter into the shalom presence of God to find rest for our souls.
Links to resources discussed in this episode:
Email Amy at Amy_Willmann@yahoo.com
On FaceBook @Whole Hearted Soul Care
Book: Every Breath We Take by Terry Wardle
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Monday Jun 15, 2020
Monday Jun 15, 2020
Karen Springs spent more than fourteen years living in Kyiv, Ukraine, advocating for orphaned and at-risk children. She hosted hundreds of families as they traveled to Ukraine to adopt. Through years of ministry and connecting with adoptive families, Karen had a front seat view of adoption at the beginning of a family’s journey. Down the road, as she began hearing from parents, months and even years after their adoptions, she discovered that adoption isn’t always a happily-ever-after adventure.
In an effort to gain a more thoughtful and educated approach to adoption advocacy, Karen embarked on a 14,200-mile road trip across the United States. She visited 63 families whom she had hosted in Ukraine to get their perspective on adoption—after their children came home. She asked questions and parents transparently shared their stories. The result is Karen’s book, Adoption Through the Rearview Mirror—Learning from Stories of Heartache and Hope.
Links to resources discussed in this episode:
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Monday Jun 08, 2020
Monday Jun 08, 2020
Adults and children are experiencing higher levels of stress as a result of the Coronavirus pandemic. Loss of routine, separation from friends and extended family, and increased anxiety are having a devastating impact on all children, especially those with trauma histories.
This week, Sandra Flach, host of our Orphans No More podcast, sat down with Jayne Schooler—child development specialist, trainer, speaker, and author of Wounded Children, Healing Homes and Telling the Truth to Your Adopted Child. In Episode #224, Jayne shares how social distancing and extended distance learning can be more damaging to our children than the virus itself.
Jayne and Sandra also discuss how toxic stress in parents can spill over onto their children. It’s imperative for caregivers, especially in this high-stress season, to care for their own emotional health. Jayne references the book The Sacred Rest, by Saundra Dalton-Smith. While this book does not specifically focus on foster or adoptive parents, it details the seven areas of rest for recovery, renewal, and restoration every one of us needs at this time.
Links to resources discussed in this episode:
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