The Journey of My Mother's Son: Recent Episodes

Dan Clouser

My name is Dan Clouser. I am an author and a speaker. I founded and ran a nonprofit youth sports organization for 30 years called the Berkshire Baseball & Softball Club, which later became the BIG Vision Foundation. We ran teams, tournaments and a 130 acre sports complex. I loved every second of what I did. I loved working with kids and teaching them leadership skills and life lessons through sports and community service. I thought that I would have died doing what I loved.

In this episode of the Journey of My Mother's Son podcast, I talk with Kyle and Brent Pease.

The Pease brothers are a world-renowned push-assist duo, disability advocates, and co-founders of The Kyle Pease Foundation, a nonprofit that champions inclusivity in sports and the workforce for individuals with disabilities. Their inspiring journey has captivated audiences worldwide, especially after they made history as the first brother team to complete the grueling IRONMAN World Championship in Kona, Hawaii, as a push-assist duo.

Born with cerebral palsy, Kyle has defied expectations, completing over 150 races alongside Brent and empowering individuals with disabilities through his personal journey. As a tireless advocate, Kyle inspires others to pursue their dreams, regardless of the barriers they face. Kyle is actively involved with The Kyle Pease Foundation, focusing on initiatives like adaptive sports equipment, inclusive employment, and scholarship programs. A graduate of Kennesaw State University with a degree in Sports Management, he also works part-time as a greeter at Publix and at Atlanta Braves games, where he spreads his message of inclusion and resilience.

As the Executive Director of The Kyle Pease Foundation, Brent brings both passion and expertise to the cause. A seasoned endurance coach and multi-sport athlete, Brent has completed over 125 races, including 6 IRONMAN events with Kyle. His journey in sports began in 2007 and has since evolved into a career advocating for greater inclusivity in sports and employment for individuals with disabilities. Brent's leadership has fueled the Foundation's mission to break down barriers and promote inclusive employment through programs like the Inclusive Employment Program. He is a Florida State University alumnus and resides in Atlanta with his wife and two children.

Together, Brent and Kyle continue to pave the way for inclusion in both sports and society. Through The Kyle Pease Foundation, they have championed 100's of athletes and raised over $10 million, providing adaptive equipment and opportunities that empower individuals with disabilities to realize their full potential.

For more information on Kyle, Brent, and The Kyle Pease Foundation, visit www.kylepeasefoundation.org.

In this episode of the Journey of My Mother's Son podcast, we return from a one month hiatus with a monologue. Today marks five years that we have been traveling full-time in our RV. It also marks the first time in the history of the Journey of My Mother's Son podcast that an entire month passed without an episode being released. Why the break? Well, many of you know that Sandy had been in the hospital for eight days back in July. I you missed that, you can read the details about us looking forward to Brighter Days by clicking this link.

One of the things that I talk about in this return episode is our need as humans to be able to make adjustments when life throws us a curve ball. That's what Sandy and I had to do last month. We planning on kicking off the presale campaign for my newest book, A Good Boy's Journey on my birthday and the book was initially slated to be released today. Obviously, that didn't happen. Instead, we spent my birthday with Sandy getting a kidney biopsy, so we made some adjustments. The presale campaign kicked off later than expected and the publication date will be later this month, but that's ok, we made the adjustment. Sandy's health was the priority and still is.

Just remember in your own life, when life throws you those curve balls, you just have to bear down and make the adjustment.

If you're interested in purchasing a copy of my newest book in the the presale campaign, be sure to do so now by clicking on the link below: A Good Boy's Journey Presale Campaign

In this episode of the Journey of My Mother’s Son podcast, I talk with Ken Miller. From an Ivy League graduate to homeless addict, and ultimately a respected keynote speaker and mentor, Ken Miller has lived every side of the human experience. Now, he shares his journey to inspire others to rise above their past, embrace their true identity, and build lives of purpose. Ken believes it’s never too late to rise, rebuild, and thrive.

Ken Miller’s journey is a testament to the power of resilience, redemption, and choice. Born into challenging circumstances, Ken rose to become a National Merit Scholar and an Ivy League graduate, but a spiral of addiction and poor decisions led him to the streets, homelessness, and incarceration.

After years in a cycle of regret and hardship, Ken faced a turning point: he made the decision to rebuild his life.

Released from prison with nothing but a small box of belongings and $28, Ken committed to a path of positive choices, resilience, and authenticity. Today, he is a successful consultant, speaker, and mentor, dedicated to inspiring others to embrace their true identity and make choices that lead to a fulfilling life.

Through his story, Ken empowers audiences to rise above their past and create lives of purpose, proving that no matter how far one has fallen, it is always possible to rise, rebuild, and thrive.

To find out more about Ken, check out his website at https://kenmillerspeaks.com.

In this episode of the Journey of My Mother’s Son podcast, I talk with Terri M. Brown. Born in Athens, Greece as an Air Force brat, Teri M Brown came into this world with an imagination full of stories to tell. She now calls the North Carolina coast home, and the peaceful nature of the sea has been a great source of inspiration for her creativity.

Not letting 2020 get the best of her, Teri chose to go on an adventure that changed her outlook on life. She and her husband, Bruce, rode a tandem bicycle across the United States from Astoria, Oregon to Washington DC, successfully raising money for Toys for Tots. She learned she is stronger than she realized and capable of anything she sets her mind to.

Teri graduated from UNC Greensboro with a multitude of degrees – majors in Elementary Education and Psychology and minors in Math and Sociology – she just couldn’t settle on one thing! While homeschooling her four children, she began her writing career by focusing on small businesses, writing articles, blog posts, and website content.

During this time, Teri published five nonfiction self-help books dealing with real estate and finance, receiving "First Runner Up" in the Eric Hoffman Book Awards for 301 Simple Things You Can Do To Sell Your Home Now, finalist in the USA Best Books Awards for How To Open and Operate a Financially Successful Redesign, Redecorate, and Real Estate Staging Business and for 301 Simple Things You Can Do To Sell Your Home Now, and Honorable Mention in Foreword Magazine’s Book of the Year Award for Private Mortgage Investing.

In 2017, after finally getting out of an emotionally abusive 14-year marriage, Teri began dabbling in fiction, a lifelong dream. Upon winning the First Annual Anita Bloom Ornoff Award for Inspirational Short Story for a piece about her grandfather, she began writing in earnest, and published her debut novel in 2022, Sunflowers Beneath the Snow, a historical fiction set in Ukraine. Her second novel published in 2023, An Enemy Like Me, takes place during WWII. Her latest novel, Daughters of Green Mountain Gap, a generational story about Appalachian healers came out in January 2024. In June 2024, her short story, The Youngest Lighthouse Keeper, came out in the anthology Feisty Deeds: Historical Fictions of Daring Women. Her latest book, 10 Little Rules for a Double-Butted Adventure (Feb 2025), is an inspirational look at the life lessons she learned riding across the United States on a tandem bicycle. In April, her first children's book, Little Lola and Her Big Dream launched.

Teri is a wife, mother, grandmother, and author who loves word games, reading, bumming on the beach, taking photos, singing in the shower, hunting for bargains, ballroom dancing, playing bridge, and mentoring others – especially youth and women who are having trouble discovering their worth.

To find out more about Teri, you can check out her website at https://terimbrown.com/.

In this episode of the Journey of My Mother’s Son podcast, I talk with Greg Berg. Sandy and I met Greg and his wife, Deb at their Harvest Host location, TCB Ranch in Phoenix, Arizona.

While we were there, we tried BEMER Therapy. It’s an amazing technology that increases blood flow. As soon as we had completed the therapy, I wanted to have Greg on the show to talk about this amazing technology.

To find out more about Bemer Therapy, check out this link: https://umustsee.net/UZM6BH

In this episode of the Journey of My Mother’s Son podcast, I talk with Christian Ray Flores. Christian was born in Moscow, Russia to a Chilean father and a Russian mother. The family moved to Chile when Christian was nine months old.

During the 1973 military coup of Augusto Pinochet, Christian's father, Americo Flores, was arrested along with thousands of others and spent time in one of the infamous concentration camps. His mother Larisa and two children went into hiding under an assumed name and with a fake Argentinian passport. After Americo's release, the family spent some time in a UN refugee camp and was granted asylum in Germany, moving to Munich. After living in Germany and Russia, Americo and Larisa moved to Mozambique, at the government's invitation, which was recruiting international professionals after a mass exodus of Portuguese upon the nation's independence. Christian learned four languages by age nine: Russian, Spanish, English, and Portuguese. After his parents' divorce, Christian returned to Russia with his mother and sister in 1983. Christian got a master's degree in economics in 1991 from the RUDN University in Moscow.

In 1993, Christian released his first single in Russia and became an instant success, winning awards like Generation ‘93 and Ovation in 1996 and playing nationwide. Back-to-back top ten hits culminated in his number one single, "Our Generation" – an anthem of freedom and change. It became a song widely used as the anthem of Boris Yeltsin's election campaign. Christian campaigned for Yeltsin as part of the Russian version of Rock the Vote, credited to giving Yeltsin the youth vote and victory in the campaign.

After moving to the US in 2004, Christian worked for the international charity HOPE Worldwide, serving as a country director for Latin America, focusing on health care and education in nine different countries. He also developed and directed the Positive Choice education program, implemented around the US and internationally in Mexico, Jamaica, Indonesia.

Christian co-founded a production company, Hollywood World, in Los Angeles with his wife, Deb de Flores. Hollywood World allowed international artists to work with top Hollywood producers and directors. Among other projects, Christian did voice acting for the English and Spanish versions of Masha and the Bear, a popular animated TV series.

After moving to Austin, Texas, Christian and Deb co-founded (with Brandon Knicely) Third Drive, raising millions of dollars for startups and creating digital media projects for emerging businesses, public personalities and non-profit organizations.

Christian speaks to audiences in the US and internationally, hosts the Headspace with Christian Ray Flores podcast and YouTube Channel dedicated to success in career and calling Headapace newsletter. His short film Dance With Me was selected to several international film festivals, and its title song was released on all major music platforms.

In the first days of the war in Ukraine, the Ascend Mission Fund launched the Ukraine Relief Network, serving refugees in Ukraine. Christian and Deb personally visited Ukraine in September 2022.

In 2022, Christian and Deb launched the Xponential career coaching program for high achievers.

Christian and Deb have been active in Christian ministry in the US, Eastern Europe, and Latin America for two decades. They lead The Tribe, a community of faith in Austin, Texas. Ray frequently speaks to different audiences in the US and overseas. They are also active in philanthropy through their charity Ascend Mission Fund and projects like the Ascend Academy in Mozambique that lifts children out of poverty through developing character, communication, and computer skills.

To find out more about Christian, you can check out his website at https://www.christianrayflores.com/.

In this episode of the Journey of My Mother’s Son podcast, I talk with Santo Marabella. I was honored to have the opportunity to have my old friend from Berks County, Santo, on my show. We have been friends for over fifteen years now. We first got to know each other when we both served on the board of the Berks County Visitors Bureau and through volunteering with the Reading Filmfest. However, I never really knew Santo’s story of how he arrived in the United States until recently. It is an incredible story, and again, I feel honored to be able to give Santo a place at my table, and help tell a little bit of his story on my show.

Santo D. Marabella, MBA, DSW, The Practical Prof® is an author, playwright, filmmaker, speaker and educator with writing, directing and producing credits for books, television pilots, a musical, short films and plays. He is the co-founder ReadingFilmFEST and the ReadingFilm Office, for which he served as ReadingFilm Commissioner (2006-2018). Recent projects include writer/director of the play Rocky Road Ain’t Always Sweet, (2024). producer, AVA (2023); producer, FLASHLIGHT (2023); director/co-producer, workshop for Love Is Afoot!, an original musical (2023); writer/producer/director, THE CAREGIVER (2022). Marabella, Professor Emeritus of Management, Moravian University, is a member of The Lambs®, The Dramatists Guild of America and Theatre Communications Group.

His newest film, Il Mio Posto a Tavola (My Place at the Table) is a first-person documentary which examines our universal need to belong, as seen through the heart of the filmmaker. Born in a Catholic orphanage in Aosta, Italy, and flown to the United States just one week shy of his first birthday, Santo D. Marabella was one of over 3700 Italian born children adopted by Italian American parents between 1951 and 1969. Known as the “Baby Scoop” era, tens of thousands of Italian unwed mothers were forced to give their children up for adoption, leaving behind generations of children devastated by their perceived abandonment.

Though he was the treasured only child of his adoptive parents, Santo was bullied by his peers and struggled from an early age to fit in and connect with others. Growing up, the realization that he was gay further deepened this isolation, straining his relationship with the Church to which he was so dedicated and the parents he so loved. Despite self-doubt and fear, he refused to be stopped. He tried harder and achieved more, carving out a life as a caregiver, educator, writer and artist. But he was still on the outside. In this journey to belonging, Santo returns to Italy to find his place at the table (posto a tavola)

To find out more about the film, check out its website at https://ilmiopostofilm.com/.

In this episode of the Journey of My Mother’s Son podcast, I talk with another fellow full-time RVer and good friend, Vince Padilla. Vince is a full time RVer, leather worker, photographer, and retired soccer coach. He and his wife Amy have been on the road for six years.

We first met Vince and Amy on volunteer project through A Year to Volunteer at Sam Houston Jones State Park in Lake Charles, Louisiana. Vince has long been an advocate for mental health care and discussion and has been very public about his own struggles with depression and anxiety disorders. His photo series "Dreams" exploring aspects of his mental health journey, has been exhibited in several cities across the country.

To find out more about Vince, you can follow We Could Be Lost on Facebook or Mr Vincepad on YouTube.

In this episode of the Journey of My Mother’s Son podcast, I talk with Eric McHugh.

Eric is a 31-year-old entrepreneur whose philosophy emphasizes the importance of simplicity, adaptability, and a clear mind, which has translated well into the world of web3 entrepreneurship. Eric specializes in leveraging his strategic thinking and adaptability to create innovative and effective solutions to the challenges facing this cutting industry.

Eric’s fierce independence and commitment to self-mastery made him a natural leader and role model for those seeking to live a life of purpose and freedom in the digital age. As a staunch individualist, Eric is a vocal advocate for the decentralization of power and control, promoting the democratization of access and opportunity in the digital world.

Eric has an IQ of over 140, enjoys playing chess and fine cuisine, and main hobbies include fighting, chess, and reading.

To connect with Eric, follow him on Instagram at @ericdmchugh.

In this episode of the Journey of My Mother’s Son podcast, I talk with Brian Hite, Ph.D.

Brian is "The High-Stakes Performance Whisperer," an expert in transforming how individuals and organizations perceive and navigate high-stakes environments. With over 30 years of experience as a professional stuntman and a decade coaching elite military personnel, Brian has dedicated his life to helping people see through the illusions of stress and pressure, unlocking clarity and achieving extraordinary results.

Blending real-world expertise with academic rigor—including a Ph.D. in Organizational Psychology and a Master’s in Sport Psychology—Brian empowers leaders, athletes, first responders, educators, and creatives to break free from the constraints of outdated thinking about high-stakes situations. Through his groundbreaking FACTs, he equips clients with the tools to master their mindset and act decisively in the moments that matter most.

Brian’s career spans Hollywood and beyond, with over 100 film and television credits and a Screen Actors Guild Award for his work on 24. As a Master Resilience Trainer for the U.S. Army, he spent a decade teaching soldiers how to reframe their perceptions of challenges, enabling them to perform with focus and confidence.

Today, Brian continues to share his expertise through programs like PressureX, PhaseX, and FACTs; his podcast Flow Under Fire; and dynamic keynotes that inspire audiences to rethink their potential and embrace transformative growth. As a faculty member at Grand Canyon University, he mentors future leaders in performance and organizational psychology, ensuring his methods have a lasting impact.

Whether speaking, writing, or coaching, Brian’s mission is to guide others in shifting their perspective, harnessing their strengths, and realizing their full potential in even the most demanding circumstances.

To find out more about Brian, you can check out his website at https://www.brianhiteglobal.com/.

In this episode of the Journey of My Mother’s Son podcast, I talk with Dr. Fred Moss.

A college dropout who found a job at a state mental health facility for adolescent boys. However, he didn't like how these kids were treated and decided to do something about it. So, he returned to college, and the rest is history.

Dr. Fred Moss, MD, is a pioneering psychiatrist and the founder of Welcome to Humanity. With nearly four decades of experience in the field, Dr. Moss has dedicated his career to transforming the conversation around mental health and well-being. Educated at Northwestern University Medical School and board-certified in psychiatry, he has treated over 30,000 patients across various settings, including telepsychiatry, private practice, and correctional healthcare.

Dr. Moss is best known for his unconventional approach to psychiatry, which emphasizes holistic healing through communication, connection, creativity, and self-expression. He challenges the traditional reliance on psychiatric diagnoses and medications, advocating instead for more human-centered and empathetic methods. This philosophy is encapsulated in his Creative 8™ methodology, which encourages activities like music, art, writing, and gardening as therapeutic practices and in his True Voice Methodology which assists people in finding their authentic voice through unconventional means and becoming comfortable speaking it authentically as a form of self-expression. .

Throughout his career, Dr. Moss has been a vocal critic of the overprescription of psychiatric medications and the profit-driven nature of the mental health industry. He believes that true healing comes from understanding and embracing one's authentic self and fostering genuine human connections. His work has led him to develop a range of services, including mental health coaching, public speaking, telepsychiatry training, podcasting, teaching, and consulting.

In addition to his clinical practice, Dr. Moss is an accomplished author and podcaster. His books, "Creative 8: Healing Through Creativity & Self-Expression" and "Find Your True Voice," explore the foundational principles of his approach and offer practical guidance for personal growth and healing. He also hosts the Welcome to Humanity Podcast and the Healthy Healer Podcast, where he helps individuals find and express their true selves. He has also been a guest on over 200 podcasts, speaking about his practice and the importance of transforming the narrative of mental health on a global scale.

His career highlights include serving as a psychiatric consultant to over 40 nursing homes, working as an expert witness in court, and founding Mastering TeleHealth, a training service dedicated to enhancing virtual care in healthcare organizations. Dr. Moss's diverse experience and innovative approach make him a leading voice in the field of mental health, advocating for a compassionate, authentic, and holistic approach to well-being. He firmly believes that at the center of all healing is a human connection.

Dr. Fred Moss continues to inspire and guide individuals worldwide through his various platforms, helping them to reclaim their lives and embrace their full potential. His life's work is a testament to the power of communication, creativity, and authentic self-expression in achieving holistic health and well-being.

To find out more about Dr. Moss and the amazing work that he is doing, check out his website at https://www.drfred360.com/.

In this episode of the Journey of My Mother’s Son podcast, I talk with Dr. Sharnael Wolverton Sehon.

Better known as just Dr. Sharnael, she is a captivating multidisciplinary expert who seamlessly blends naturopathic medicine, spirituality, and quantum science to empower individuals on their journey to wholeness. As the founder of True TV and author of five groundbreaking books, including her international best seller "The Science of Miracles: RE-Membering the Frequency of Love," Dr. Sharnael offers a unique perspective on achieving optimal health and unlocking human potential. Her global influence spans over 51 countries, where she shares her transformative insights through speaking engagements, online classes, and social media platforms. She also has over 15,000 clients online, remote with her technology with long distance biofeedback.

Dr. Sharnael has experienced paranormal phenomena and spiritual encounters, seeing these as linked to the awakening of human consciousness and spiritual ascension. Today, she helps people tap into their powerful intuition, deepen their connection to Source, and use practical tools to elevate their lives with ease and joy.

She focuses on aromatherapy and crystal healing, endorsing their powerful frequencies. She also advocates for EMF protection devices and biohacking technologies to maintain balance. Her approach combines spiritual practices with modern science.

To find out more about Dr. Sharnael, you can check out her website at https://www.drsharnael.com/.

In this episode of the Journey of My Mother’s Son podcast, I talk with Jeff Patterson.

What sets Jeff Patterson apart from other meditation practitioners is his unique approach known as "The Yielding Warrior Method." Jeff teaches the five basic regulations that are fundamental to any meditative practice. He goes beyond traditional methods by incorporating ritual, active, and philosophical techniques to help individuals build a personalized, evolving meditation program that seamlessly fits their lifestyle.

Jeff's expertise is reflected in his three published books, including his latest, "The Yielding Warrior," and hundreds of instructional videos. With over 36 years of experience and having worked with thousands of students globally through The Yielding Warrior online program, Jeff brings a wealth of knowledge and insights to the table.

To find out more about Jeff and his meditation methods, you can check out his website at https://www.theyieldingwarrior.com/.

In this episode of the Journey of My Mother’s Son podcast, I talk with Kim Giarraputo.

Kim is a trusted real estate agent in Larchmont, NY. With over 20 years of experience in the area, Kim's roots run deep in the vibrant community. Having made Larchmont her home more than two decades ago, she understands the unique charm and allure that draws people to its beautiful location. Passionate about real estate, Kim's client-focused approach and innate kindness set her apart. She finds great joy in helping people navigate the intricate world of real estate, ensuring their dreams become a reality. Whether it's finding the perfect home for a growing family or assisting empty nesters in downsizing, Kim's dedication shines through in every transaction. What Kim loves most about the industry is the opportunity to connect people with their ideal homes. She believes in the power of finding the perfect space that resonates with her clients' lifestyles and aspirations. Moreover, Kim is enamored by Larchmont's proximity to the city and the abundance of outdoor activities it offers. From hiking to exploring the nearby river towns and parks, she appreciates the harmonious blend of urban convenience and natural beauty that this area provides. As a top-ranked agent in Westchester, Kim's achievements speak for themselves. Prior to her successful real estate career, she was a leading sales executive in the dental industry. Her business acumen and market knowledge make her a trusted advisor in the real estate realm. Kim's expertise extends beyond numbers and contracts; she possesses an innate understanding of the local market and trends, ensuring her clients make informed decisions. Outside of real estate, Kim treasures her role as a mother and the time spent with her family. She finds solace in cooking, walking/hiking, and biking, embracing the simple pleasures of life. An avid traveler and wine enthusiast, Kim values the importance of cultivating meaningful relationships with friends and loved ones. With a professional yet friendly demeanor, Kim is committed to serving the real estate needs of the community. Whether you're a first-time homebuyer, a seasoned investor, or looking to sell your property, Kim's expertise and genuine care will guide you every step of the way. Trust in Kim's knowledge, experience, and unwavering dedication to make your real estate journey a resounding success.

To find out more about Kim, you can check out her website at https://www.kimgiarraputo.com/.

In this episode of the Journey of My Mother’s Son podcast, I talk with Bryan Driscoll.

Bryan is a first-time author with a passion for inspiring kindness and creating positive change in the world. Twenty years ago, a stranger literally picked him up off the street and gave him a plate of spaghetti and a bedroom he had to share with an oversized cat. This small act of kindness sparked an unending desire to pay it forward, ultimately leading to the goodness game.

That one small act of kindness left an indelible mark on Bryan’s life and set off a ripple effect that lasted over twenty years now, with most recently leading him to write his first book, The Goodness Game.

Bryan states, “It all started with a single act of kindness. About 20 years ago, I found myself at a crossroads in life-lost and unsure of where I was heading. That's when a kind stranger, a woman I'll never forget, picked me up off the street and gave me a helping hand when I needed it most. This small act changed the entire course of my life, reminding me of the power one person can have on another's future.”

“Years later, I decided to pay it forward. Inspired by that experience, I made a simple Craigslist post offering free help to anyone in need. The response was overwhelming, and that small gesture quickly caught the attention of local media. The story spread across the country, making national headlines as a shining example of how small acts of kindness can create a ripple effect far larger than you ever imagined.”

He lives in Pittsburgh with an amazing wife who puts up with his insanity—and probably encourages it more than she should. He has three sons, all different and awesome in their own way. They say they get their awesomeness from their father, and he won’t argue, even if everyone knows the truth.

He runs a successful digital marketing agency and is an active real estate investor, though he’d tell you his biggest strength is getting back up when life punches him in the face. And it’s punched him quite a few times, though a few of those punches might have been deserved.

When he’s not working, Bryan enjoys mountain biking, skiing with his sons, and spending time with his family. He focuses on living in the moment, avoiding the distractions of social media, and helping others achieve personal and professional growth through public speaking and teaching.

To find out more about Bryan, you can check out his website at https://www.goodnessgame.com/.

In this episode of the Journey of My Mother’s Son podcast, I talk with Dr. Michael Hutchison.

Dr. Hutchison is a cosmetic and Neuromuscular Dentist who lives in Traverse City, Mi and has researched, developed and patented a new technology that uses your body's physiology to increase your strength and lower the chance of concussion.

While treating TMJ, Head and neck patients Dr. Hutchison discovered that there is a body mechanism that is found in the position of your jaw that either blocks or releases motor nerve communication to all the muscles in your body. When it is working correctly you can increase your strength and performance by 16.8% on average. While testing this mechanism, none of the subjects had a concussion for the 6 years of the study. These two factors led to the development of a new jaw positioning mouth appliance that immediately increases strength and lowers the chance of concussion down to 0.2%.

This new technology is called NeuroGuard+. Its mission is to help prevent concussions in youth athletes. We want to teach everyone to embrace the discovery of Physiologic Jaw alignment when participating in sports because you will reduce the risk of concussive forces reaching your brain, and you will increase your strength and performance.

All mouth guards keep you from breaking your teeth. But only the NeuroGuard+ can lower the G-Force impact to your brain.

The NeuroGuard+ is a medically patented do it yourself home device that is designed to customize around an athlete’s bite to maintain enforcement of a physiologically aligned jaw.

The NeuroGuard+ establishes correct “Physiologic Jaw Position.” It fits on the LOWER TEETH and is designed to reduce and dissipate the G-Force upon impact and reduce injury.

The precise jaw alignment that the NeuroGuard+ maintains will help an athlete:

∙ Increase strength and balance ∙ Increase performance and agility ∙ Decrease occurrences of headaches ∙ Reduce the G-Force produced in a collision ∙ Increase oxygen intake and ability to speak normally through lower arch placement

Scientific studies consistently demonstrate that maintaining physiological jaw alignment reduces risk of concussion.

Everyone has a unique anatomy. The NeuroGuard+ is the solution to improving safety and performance.

To find out more about this incredible game changing technology, check out the NeuroGuard+ website at https://www.neuroguardplus.com/.

In this episode of the Journey of My Mother’s Son podcast, I talk with Natalie Jurado.

Natalie Jurado is the founder of Rooted In, a line of therapeutic magnesium infused moisturizers that actively calm and relax your mood. She is a sought after thought leader, educator and speaker and has worked at the forefront of the wellness industry for over 8 years. She’s considered an expert in all things magnesium and her mission is to spread awareness of this powerful mineral to all who struggle to live their most vibrant lives.

Natalie is a Magnesium Expert on a mission to spread awareness about this often-overlooked mineral. Not long ago she spent most of her days constantly anxious, stressed and overwhelmed. Despite living a healthy lifestyle: eating organic foods, exercising and using healthy products; she was still dealing with health issues.

Her doctors kept encouraging her to use prescription medication, but she was concerned about all the side effects. Instead, she started a journey to heal herself naturally. She literally spent thousands of dollars and years of her life looking for a solution to the crippling anxiety, chronic pain and devastating insomnia that was stopping her from living the life she craved.

She started using magnesium daily on her skin and her life changed! She began feeling calm and centered, had tons of energy, slept restfully through the night and felt years younger.

She reclaimed her life and now she wants others to have the same freedom and vitality that she does. Her mission is to share this miracle mineral with the world so they can be their most vibrant, healthy and energetic selves.

Magnesium is responsible for over 300 biochemical reactions in the body including muscle recovery. Deficiency is strongly correlated with symptoms including anxiety and depression, insomnia, chronic headaches and more.

Restoring magnesium levels can be a confusing process which can leave people overwhelmed and misinformed. Natalie hopes to demystify this mineral and help people make better health choices as a result.

To find out more about Natalie and the amazing line of magnesium products that Rooted In carries, check out their website at https://www.berootedin.com/.

In this episode of the Journey of My Mother’s Son podcast, I talk with Katharine Giovanni.

Katharine Giovanni is a three-time award-winning best-selling author, dynamic speaker, advisor, and forgiveness coach. She is recognized as one of the original founders of the independent concierge industry.

With over a dozen published books to her name, including her popular title 'The Ultimate Path to Forgiveness: Unlocking Your Power,' Katharine delves deep into the transformative art of forgiveness. Unlike conventional wisdom that simply urges you to forgive, Katharine provides a groundbreaking step-by-step process in her latest work. She explores the intricacies of forgiving the unforgivable and guides readers on how to truly let go of past hurts and move forward with authenticity.

Katharine’s journey is as inspiring as it is enlightening. From surviving stage 3 breast cancer to overcoming a turbulent childhood marked by a suicide attempt, she has emerged with profound insights into resilience and forgiveness. Her personal experiences have shaped her understanding of human dynamics, and she openly shares these invaluable lessons with compassion and clarity.

Beyond forgiveness, Katharine is passionate about unleashing the power of intuition in everyday life. Having kept her own intuitive gifts hidden for years, she now empowers others to embrace and harness their innate sixth sense. She believes that recognizing and cultivating intuitive abilities can revolutionize workplace dynamics, fostering deeper insights and innovation among colleagues.

Whether through her books, speaking engagements, or consulting sessions, Katharine Giovanni is dedicated to helping individuals and organizations tap into their full potential. Her approach is refreshingly practical and deeply transformative, making her a sought-after voice in the fields of forgiveness, intuition, personal empowerment, and the concierge and hospitality industries.

Visit her website at www.KatharineGiovanni.com and tune in to her engaging podcast appearances where she dives into these compelling topics. Get ready to embark on a journey of forgiveness, intuition, and personal growth like never before.

To find out more about Christy, you can check out her website at https://www.katharinegiovanni.com/.

In this episode of the Journey of My Mother’s Son podcast, I talk with fellow author, Mark Connor.

Mark Connor is a Boxing Trainer and a Writer from Saint Paul, Minnesota. His first book, It’s About Time (Millions of Copies Sold for Dad), is a saga wrapped around a package of poems, guarded by angels. Through an autobiography reading like a novel, he weaves together a story of love, family, and life with twenty poems running through it, sharing his growth in the Catholic faith, the influence of Irish heritage in his hometown’s American identity, his exploration of Lakota tradition within the urban American Indian community, and his understanding of how truth found in different spiritual approaches can lead others—as it led himself back—to its fullness in the revelation of Christ.

Mark Connor grew up in Saint Paul, calling himself the product of a “mixed marriage,” because his father—a combat wounded Vietnam veteran—grew up across the street from St. Columba parish in the Midway district, while his mother—a school teacher who later became a lawyer—came from the Holy Rosary parish “across the border, in South Minneapolis.” Born in Minneapolis and raised in Saint Paul, he began boxing at age 10, at the Mexican American Boxing Club on the city’s East Side, the area of the city from which he formed his understanding of the world, anchoring his perception of direction to the family house and the rising of the sun outside his bedroom window. He had 102 amateur fights, made it to three national tournaments, and competed against some of the nation’s top world class boxers. He became the Upper Midwest Golden Gloves lightweight champion at 17 and traveled to the Olympic Training Center in Colorado Springs, CO, two days after graduating high school, competing in the 1987 trials for the Pan American Games. Raised in the East Side parish of St. Pascal Baylon, where he attended first through sixth grade, Mark’s father, a graduate of [Bishop] Cretin High School in Saint Paul, insisted Mark and his brother, David (13 days less than one year older than Mark), each attend its rival, St. Thomas Academy, in suburban Mendota Heights, from 7th through 12th grade, an all-boys Catholic Military high school. Having begun writing seriously at 16 and starting college at 18, Mark began an internal struggle between the academic path and boxing, spending one and a half years, respectively, at three schools—Regis University in Denver, Co., the University of St. Thomas in Saint Paul, and the University of Minnesota in Minneapolis—earning his BA in English from the University of Minnesota. He was inactive as a boxer for only one and a half of those years, but never felt he was able to reach his potential while emersed in study, so upon graduation, he continued Boxing.

Mark boxed competitively for two and half more years, then, deciding not to follow his gym mates—two of whom became world champions—in a professional boxing career, and believing it was already late in life to join the military, he went on an adventure, driving to Seattle, WA, securing a job on a salmon fishing boat headed to Southeast Alaska. A Year later, instead of returning to the commercial fisherman’s life, he traveled with a friend to a Lakota Sundance ceremony on the Rosebud reservation, leading eventually to a job at Aín Dah Yung (Our Home) Center, a Native American Indian temporary emergency homeless shelter for youth aged 5 to 17, in Saint Paul. Within this setting, continuing to write freelance articles and periodically working on fiction and poetry, he eventually began a personal training service and worked with both competitive and recreational boxers, as well professionals and amateurs, wrote about boxing, and contemplated his faith. While recognizing that truth, goodness, and beauty are indeed present in the faith traditions of the indigenous community of friends welcoming him, as both a guest and a relative, he eventually reembraced the beauty, goodness, and truth of his Catholic faith and has since attempted to responsibly discern God’s will for him, according to his legitimate talents and desires. Within that sincere effort, at the end of September, 2019, his father, who’d been patiently guiding him, died from a heat attack, just before America—and the world—appeared to enter a new era of chaos within which we are attempting to stabilize ourselves.

Mark wrote the first lines of his book, It’s About Time (Millions of Copies Sold for Dad) the day his father died, Monday, September 30, 2019. However, over the next year, as his country went through the impeachment and acquittal of a president, endured the trauma of an economic shutdown over a mysterious virus coming from a lab leak in China, and his beloved Twin Cities blew up in fiery riots, Mark worked when he could (the Boxing gyms and churches were closed due to Governor’s orders), helped his mother who was diagnosed with a fatal heart disease, and daily mourned his father. He helped protect American Indian buildings with American Indian Movement (AIM) Patrol, and he eventually got part-time work as a bouncer, working bar security when restaurants were allowed to reopen. But he didn’t do much until, as Christmas 2020 approached, he resolved that in the coming year he would do something with which his father would be happy. Organizing himself and setting his goal, he began writing the book his father—who’d nagged Mark about always insisting he was a writer yet never publishing a book—was never to see published in his earthly lifetime. Beginning the daily process of writing on February 9, 2021, Mark completed the first draft of It’s About Time (Millions of Copies Sold for Dad) just before Easter on the Monday of Holy Week, March 29, 2021. In this book he tells the tale of his search for a meaningful life, appreciating the gift of God’s love that life actually is, and how he sees now that the guardian angels were always guiding him and his family through it all. A contract with a humble little local publisher was severed over editorial differences on Christmas Eve, 2022, so Mark relied on his father’s gift, his high school education, accepting help from his St. Thomas Academy contacts, specifically his literary advisor, Dan Flynn (Author of Famous Minnesotans: Past and Present) and legal advisor Kelly Rowe, and Mark’s classmate, Tony Zirnhelt, and the book won the 2024 Irish Network Minnesota Bloomsday Literary Award and was published, through Connemara Patch Press, on Father’s Day, June 16. Unfortunately, Mark’s mother, who’d read the manuscript, never saw it in print, having collapsed in his arms and died October 22, 2023. Yet Mark continues on in hopeful and confident prayer that she—Mrs. Nanette Jane Connor—is watching over him, as she promised she would, next to his father—Robert J. Connor—while gazing perpetually into the Beatific Vision of the face of God.

To find out more about Mark, you can check out his website at https://boxersandwritersmagazine.com/.

In this episode of the Journey of My Mother’s Son podcast, I talk with Mike Brennan.

I first met Mike back in 2019 at the Growth Now Movement Live Summit hosted by my friend, Justin Schenck in our old hometown of Reading, Pennsyvania. We reconnected in November of 2024 when we were both speaking at The Thing in Orlando, Florida, which was hosted by Terry Weaver.

Mike Brennan, author of Make Fun a Habit: The Creative PLAYbook for Making Life and Work Fun Again, is not just a Creative Consultant and Communicator; he's a passionate advocate for reigniting the lost art of fun and creativity in our lives. In his book, Make Fun a Habit, Mike takes readers on a captivating journey, drawing from personal experiences of resilience and moments of light in the darkest times. Through this journey, he uncovers the secrets to rediscovering fun, infusing every day with play, and unlocking our innate creative potential.

Mike's expertise extends beyond the pages of his book, as he has been instrumental in helping renowned clients such as Heineken and Chase Bank infuse creativity, innovation, and yes, fun, into their work. His artwork has graced prestigious spaces like the Ronald McDonald House and the I.D.E.A. Museum in Mesa, Arizona. His educational journey includes studying in New York City and graduating from the Fashion Institute of Technology and The School of Visual Arts.

What sets Mike apart is his commitment to helping individuals and organizations harness the transformative power of creativity in their daily lives and businesses. He offers a unique Daily Creative Habit process, honed over a decade of personal practice, to empower individuals and businesses to integrate innovation into their routines. His methods encompass time management, goal-driven creativity, and a sustainable approach to making innovation a seamless part of daily life and work.

In a world where the daily grind often overshadows the pursuit of happiness, Mike stands as a beacon of hope. His message is clear: embrace the adventure that life offers, and discover how incorporating creativity and fun into your routine can lead to a more vibrant, fulfilling existence. Through his words, art, actions, and unwavering dedication to the cause, Mike inspires us all to make fun not just a habit but a way of life.

To find out more about Mike, you can check out his website at https://mikebrennan.me/.

In this episode of the Journey of My Mother’s Son podcast, I talk with Joe Engler.

Joe played for our organization back in 2003. He was on our Atlantic Collegiate Baseball League (ACBL) team between his sophomore and junior seasons at Minot State University in North Dakota. I refer to him as one of my old players, but he never actually played a game for me, he just played in our organization. He was one of the players who I really connected with while he was with us.

Joe and I talk about the life lessons that the game of baseball taught him and how he is using them today in both his work and personal life.

Joe is now an Associate Professor and Director of School Psychology at Gonzaga University. Dr. Engler received his BA in psychology at Minot State University in Minot, ND and his Ph.D. in school psychology at The University of South Dakota in Vermillion, SD. Dr. Engler began his professional career as a school psychologist in Tooele, UT and remains active in the profession through advocacy and leadership at the local, state, and national level. Dr. Engler holds the Nationally Certified School Psychologist credential through the National Association of School Psychologists and is a diplomate in school neuropsychology through the American Board of School Neuropsychology. His research interests include preschool assessment, critical evaluation of psychometric tests, and parental involvement.

Joe recently co-authored his second book titled, “Essentials of Addressing Infants, Toddlers, and Pre-schoolers.” It will be released in early April of 2025.

We wrap the conversation up by talking about Joe’s recent love for playing music. He, his wife, and a group of friends recently started the cover band, Close Enough, in which Joe plays lead guitar.

Joe was also inducted into the Minot State University Hall of Fame in September of 2024.

If you’re ever in the Spokane area and want to see the band play somewhere, check them out on social media on either Instagram or Facebook.

In this episode of the Journey of My Mother’s Son podcast, I talk with Paul Zolman.

Paul has created a new way to demonstrate the principles of the love languages. It's a profound way to learn all five love languages to give them away. By giving them away, your vision will improve to the point that you can see them coming your way and respond appropriately. The system is so easy that even young children can be trained in this love giving system. Spoiler alert: it's a game where everyone wins.

Paul is also the international bestselling author of the Role of Love, but the true author of love is God. In His wisdom, He placed us in a variety of circumstances that require us to find our way back to His pure love. So, what qualifies Paul to speak about love? His childhood experience was the opposite of love. From that austere beginning, and the distaste it formed inside him, He searched for and eventually created a method that transformed his life from anger to loving everyone. Growing up in a family of abuse, physical touch became his preferred love style, only because of the regularity. He could almost count on it. It was consistent. He came to think that was the way to express love. But deep inside, he knew that was a twisted belief. He wanted a better life for himself, which is why he created a paradigm shift that works. In the book, you’ll find what helped him move from a childhood boot camp of abuse to being a person who loves everyone and can find good about anyone in any circumstance. This is truly the role of love.

To find out more about Paul, you can check out his website at https://roleoflove.com/.

In this episode of the Journey of My Mother’s Son podcast, I talk with Matthew Lesko.

Matthew is an energetic, passionate advocate with over 40 years of experience helping Americans access billions in government funding. Known for his colorful suits and infectious enthusiasm, he has made it his mission to reveal hidden pathways to financial support for everyday people. With a background that includes over 100 television appearances on Oprah, Larry King Live, and Good Morning America, as well as more than 4 million books sold, Matthew is a captivating storyteller who connects with audiences from all walks of life.

Today, at 81, Matthew is not slowing down. His community, Lesko Help, has grown to over 15,000 members, where he empowers individuals to cut through red tape and access funds they may not know exist. In a time of economic uncertainty, he’s dedicated to teaching people how to get the support they need from resources they already pay for with their tax dollars.

Matthew’s story is compelling, timely, and actionable. He’s ready to share insights, demystify government programs, and inspire your audience to take advantage of resources designed to uplift them. With a lifetime of proven success and a mission to help everyone access free government support.

To find out more about Matthew and some of the resources that are available, you can check out his website at https://www.free.lesko.com/leskohelp.

Here are links to some of the resources that Matthew spoke about during the show:

www.findhelp.org

www.needymeds.org

www.careeronestop.org

If you’re senior, contact the Office of Aging at 1-800-677-1116 to get information on what resources may be available to you.

In this episode of the Journey of My Mother’s Son podcast, I talk with Matt Taylor.

Matt is the owner and founder of StrongerYou Personal Training as well as a powerlifting competitor at the world level. He has been competing since 2012 and has taken best lifter at AAU Worlds as a Sub-Junior athlete as well as being nationally qualified as a Men’s Open Athlete in the CPU.

He holds competition PRs of 212.5kg in the squat, 145kg in the bench press, and 250kg in the deadlift.

Matt has been training professionally since 2014 and has extensive continuing education in strength training, rehab, and sports performance.

To find out more about Matt, you can check out his website at https://stongeryoupt.com/.

In this episode of the Journey of My Mother’s Son podcast, I talk with Larry Schechter. Larry is the author of the 2014 Amazon bestseller “Winning Fantasy Baseball.” He has been called one of the best fantasy baseball players in the world. Larry was a two-time winner of the CDM Sports national salary cap contest, defeating 7,500 teams in 2002 and 6,000 teams in 2005. He has competed in the two most prestigious expert’s leagues, winning the USA Today-sponsored LABR league three times and the Tout Wars experts league six times. One of his keys to success in fantasy baseball is attention to detail. He used that ability in researching, conducting interviews, and writing his most recent book, “The History of Fantasy Sports.”

It’s not written as a boring research paper, but rather tells the stories of the entrepreneurs who created an industry that has gone worldwide. More than 50 million men and women in the USA play fantasy sports. 200 million play fantasy Cricket in India. There’s never been a book like this and it’s getting rave reviews.

Fantasy sports have become a cultural phenomenon, where five nuns in a convent co-manage a football team, where a plumber and the CEO of a major company sit next to each other at a draft table talking like they’re best buddies. It brings together co-workers, parents and their children, and keeps college friends in touch for years after graduation.

Fantasy sports have become as ingrained in American culture as baseball and apple pie. And they have spread worldwide. There are versions of these games for football, baseball, basketball, hockey, soccer, cricket, bull riding, bass fishing, Iditarod and many more. It is one of the most popular forms of entertainment today.

But the millions who play mostly have no idea about the people and events that created this phenomenon. The History of Fantasy Sports provides the first complete telling of how we got from the spontaneous ideas for games years ago, to the multi-billion-dollar industry of today.

Larry spent 18 months researching and interviewing dozens of key players, pioneers, and entrepreneurs to uncover their stories. This reader-friendly book is ready to take its place alongside some of the best in sports history. You will be entertained and inspired by these stories of humble beginnings turned into multi-million-dollar enterprises. Schechter does a great job of capturing the passion, obsession, and love of the game behind these businesses.

Larry is now retired and lives in Florida. You can follow him on X @LarrySchechter.

To pick up a copy of Larry’s newest book, check it out on Amazon.

In this episode of the Journey of My Mother’s Son podcast, I talk with Christy Forsyth.

Christy is a Soul Therapist, Spiritual Guide, and Energy Queen.

She uses her intuitive abilities to help people shine brighter, live with intention, discover their inner magic, and reach their highest potential.

On the other side of her own spiritual awakening and reconnecting with her intuitive gifts, she let it guide her to get out of her head and into living the life her soul was calling for! Now she uses the same powerful techniques to help others find their magical life.

Christy brings over 20 years of experience in the helping field, blending her skills as an Intuitive, Licensed Mental Health Counselor, Certified Life Coach, Energy Healing Practitioner, and Clinical Hypnotherapist into her unique Soul Therapy coaching. Creator of the Clarity by Christy Membership, she uses her gifts to connect with energy and Angels, guiding others toward their most aligned, joyful life. With a passion for spiritual growth, intuitive understanding, and a magical, purpose-filled existence, she has empowered countless individuals through spiritual awakening and energy mastery, transforming lives for the better.

Her method for living a more magical life is simple and easy to follow. It combines understanding how your energy field interacts with the world around you, tuning in to your intuitive guidance system, and tapping into your manifestation powers to create your very own heaven on earth.

To find out more about Christy, you can check out her website at https://www.claritybychristy.com/.

In this episode of the Journey of My Mother’s Son podcast, I talk with two more of our full-time friends, Jan and Gary Crosby.

Jan and Gary were another one of the couples that we traveled throughout Canada and Alaska with this past summer. It was great to have them on the show and reminisce about what an incredible trip we had. The people, the places, but most of all, the company we shared was such a blessing.

We originally met Jennie and Eric on a volunteer project through A Year to Volunteer back in February of 2022 at Sam Houston Jones State Park in Lake Charles, Louisiana. We are so grateful for Y2V. Not only for the opportunity to make a difference throughout the country, but for the amazing community that we have become a part of. If it wasn’t for Y2V, this epic Alaskan group adventure would have never taken place. Sure, we probably would have all made it to Alaska at some point during our individual full-time journeys, but to be able to experience the last frontier with this small group of friends is truly what put the trip over the top for all of us.

As I’ve spoken to each of our friends that we traveled with, we have all said that we’ll most definitely get to Alaska again at some point, but this trip will always be the trip of a lifetime, only because of who we were able to go through it with.

In this episode of the Journey of My Mother’s Son podcast, I talk with Kelli Stewart.

Kelli Stewart was born in Atlanta and raised most of her life in Oglethorpe County, a rural community just outside of Athens, Georgia. Although both parents were not a consistent fixture in her life, Kelli’s Grandmother, Ms. Amy Lou Faust, provided a stable and nurturing home environment where she raised Kelli to have an old soul that has served her well in life. Kelli is a graduate from Cedar Shoals High School in Athens, GA and credits her participation in ROTC as keeping her on the mostly straight and mostly narrow. Through the watchful care and guidance of her ROTC Instructor, Sgt. Fincher along with Ms. Sue Lee (English Teacher) and Shirley Daniel (Guidance Counselor) Kelli graduated from Cedar Shoals in 1996 and went on to study at Georgia State University.

She completed her undergraduate studies at Kennesaw State University in 2011 where she earned a bachelor’s degree from the Coles College of Business with honors. In addition to her degree, Kelli holds a wealth of knowledge regarding sports-based youth development as a resource for racial, social and economic justice and the impact sports have on the social-emotional development of youth.

Today, Kelli, and her husband, C.J. Stewart, oversee two business ventures that they started together. Through Diamond Directors, they train and develop some of the country’s top amateur and professional baseball athletes; Jason Heyward (Los Angeles Dodgers), Dexter Fowler (Chicago Cubs, World Series Champion), Andruw Jones (former Atlanta Brave), Peter Alonso (NY Mets), Kyle Lewis (Arizona Diamondbacks), and Andrew McCutchen (Pittsburgh Pirates) are a few notable professional clients. Through L.E.A.D., they train and develop some of Atlanta’s hidden treasures in Atlanta Public Schools. L.E.A.D. provides inner city boys with the same opportunities to excel in life through baseball as the Stewarts’ Diamond Directors clients with the focus being accessing higher education and community leadership. To date, L.E.A.D. Ambassadors have achieved a 100% high school graduation rate and a 91% college enrollment and scholarship rate (academic and athletic).

Kelli and CJ have two beautiful daughters, Mackenzi (Southern University) and Mackenna (The Lovett School).

To find out more about Kelli and the work that is being done at the L.E.A.D. Center for Youth, you can check out their website at https://leadcenterforyouth.org/.

In this episode of the Journey of My Mother’s Son podcast, I talk with Alan Lazaros.

Alan lost his father at age 2, when he passed away in a car accident. At age 26, after getting into a nearly fatal car accident himself, he questioned everything he was doing in life. He questioned who he was and the choices he was making. He was at an all-time low, and he learned the hard way that external success is empty when it's not aligned with who you really are and who you really aspire to be.

Filled with pain, regret, and confusion, he searched for answers and finally found what he had been missing all this time, Holistic Self-Improvement. After that, he dug DEEP into every podcast, course, Ted Talk, and book he could get his hands on.

This process not only transformed his entire life, but it also helped him muster the courage to trade in an unfulfilling career for a deeply meaningful calling he was proud to go ALL IN on.

Today he is grateful to lead a global team of 17 individuals as the Founder and CEO of Next Level University, a Global Top 100 Self-Improvement Podcast that helps people reach their own unique potential in more than 175 countries.

As a Coach, Trainer, and Podcaster, he believes in a heart-driven but NO BS approach to achieving both external success AND internal fulfillment.

To find out more about Alan, you can check out his website at https://www.nextleveluniverse.com/.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, Sandy and I reflect a little bit on 2024, look forward to some of the big things that we are working on in 2025, but most of want to thank everyone for their love and support to us over the years.

On this Christmas eve, we would truly like to wish all our friends and family a Merry Christmas, happy new year, and a blessed holiday season.

We are grateful to you all.

Peace.

In this episode of the Journey of My Mother’s Son podcast, I talk with Arlene Cohen Miller.

Arlene is a Work-Life Balance Coach and a Professional Certified Coach with the International Coaching Federation. Arlene is also a Colorado attorney, a Certified Meditation Facilitator, and has a Diploma in Transformational Holistic Counseling from Australia.

She brings a wealth of training and experience to help you compassionately and wholeheartedly lead yourself and create the life that works and feels right for you, a life where you experience less stress and more patience, kindness, and peace; a life where you experience more contentment and joy.

To find out more about Arlene, you can check out her website at https://www.jewelconsultancy.com/.

In this episode of the Journey of My Mother’s Son podcast, I talk with Heather Christie.

Heather is a fellow Berks County native and author. She is the author of three books, so far. Additionally, she is the producer of the storytelling show, LoveNotes!, which is True stories of first love, last love, & all the love in between.

LoveNotes! is a storytelling show, a book, and a podcast in which real people share real stories about romantic love in all its incarnations. So, tell the poets, lovers, dreamers and anybody else who’s ever been in love that I’m looking for TRUE LOVE stories–from heartbreaking to heartwarming. Any story about romantic love in any of its incarnations fits the bill. A LoveNotes! story is the kind of yarn in which Cupid has shot someone in the heart and that person has lived to tell the tale.

To find out more about Heather, you can check out her website at https://heatherchristiebooks.com/.

Some other important notes from the conversation are listed below:

· Links for tickets to the live LoveNotes! Show or livestream:

· 3 PM In-Person SHOW: https://tinyurl.com/3PMLoveNotes

· 8PM In-Person SHOW: https://tinyurl.com/8PMLoveNotes

· 8 PM LIVESTREAM: https://tinyurl.com/LoveNotesLivestream

LoveNotes! Bus 2/15 - $40 Round Trip (departs 10 AM Joanne Fabrics' Parking Lot, Wyomissing PA to NYC, Leaves NYC 8 PM), Show ticket must be purchased separately. Email Sandy Barber at sbarber@epexinc.com to reserve a seat.
Submit your love story (1000 words or fewer) at 71StreetBooks.com
Instagram, Facebook, & TikTok are @heatherchristiebooks
LoveNotes! Real Stories. Real People. Real Love. THE BOOK: https://amzn.to/40VIiUv

In this episode of the Journey of My Mother’s Son podcast, I talk with Mary Beth Schrudder.

After decades spent in the corporate world, juggling being a single mom while secretly battling addictions to alcohol, food, and toxic relationships, today's guest is now an expert in Spiritual Recovery, and she is passionate about empowering others to live their best life. Mary Beth Schrudder is a Spiritual and Transformational Life Coach and founder of Day One Life Coaching.

Mary Beth is the creator of Addiction Recovery with the Law of Attraction, a unique deck of cards used to help people recover from addictions and destructive habits. Mary Beth is also an International Best-Selling Author in multiple categories including Healthy Relationships and Leadership Training (Life Coach's Tool Kit, Vol 3). As the host of the “Spiritual Transformation Podcast with Mary Beth” she does interviews with healers and the spiritually gifted, along with solo episodes on Spiritual Upliftment for her audience.

Mary Beth will help you heal addictions and transform relationships, including the relationship with yourself! Her approach is holistic, and her areas of expertise include relationships, marriage, divorce, mindset, happiness, freedom from addictions, optimal fitness, life purpose, and career.

As a professional Life Coach with years of experience, Mary Beth’s life-changing coaching will help you step outside of your comfort zone, and together you will create extraordinary results using innovative techniques.

You may e-mail Mary Beth to schedule a complimentary discovery call at marybeth@dayonelifecoaching.com

Mary Beth’s website and social media links may be found here: https://linktr.ee/DayOneLifeCoaching

In this episode of the Journey of My Mother’s Son podcast, I talk with Andy Paige.

Andy is a soap actress, podcast host, QVC guest host, beauty/image/lifestyle expert for national TV & radio.

With her current role as Pearl, on ABC's General Hospital, Andy Paige mimics her actual QVC guest host expertise, captivating and selling products to both TV audiences through innovative consumer advertising.

You can find Andy's podcast, The Dating Lab with the Hillbilly Yenta on both YouTube and podcast platforms and listen or watch her explore modern dating, its frustrations, realities and solutions with interesting and funny guests from all walks of life.

Andy's international best-selling book, STYLE ON A SHOESTRING now available in three languages and hundreds of "fabulously frugal' makeovers on over 200 episodes of television airing in 14 countries, earned her the TV Guide appointed title "Budget Bombshell*; and with good reason. Andy's extensive work on NBC's Emmy winning, Starting Over, TLC's Ten Years Younger, STYLE Network's How Do I Look, SOAP NET's Soap Talk and countless local network style segments have all made Andy the charming and sassy go-to gal for red-carpet style and courageous image help. Andy worked her budget fashion magic on the ultimate high roller stage as she transformed cast members with hair/makeup & wardrobe on NBC's Celebrity Apprentice proving her theory, "You don't have to spend a fortune to look like a million!"

Andy inspires hundreds of thousands of radio listeners all over the country each week with playful and entertaining beauty and style tips on KJOY 98.3 in New York, JQ99 in Michigan and previously on the Nationally syndicated Kim Iverson Show.

In 2013, Andy added to her successful line of products, including ANDY PAIGE COSMETIC BRUSHES and CENTS OF STYLE® ACCESSORY SUITES™, and launched her internationally patented GirlyGoGarter® - The smart, sexy garter with pockets that safely holds your phone, money, credit cards, I.D., insulin pump, mic-pac and much more, with adhering GentleFlex™ Grippers that stay put even when you don't". You have probably seen Andy's GirlyGoGarter® as well as two additional line extensions, UnderWraps® and the GlitzyGoGarter® in over 6500 stores worldwide, including 4500 CVS stores in the US

To find out more about Andy, you can check out her website at https://andypaige.com/.

If you’d like to check out some of the products that Pearl is showcasing on General Hospital, check out, https://shophomeandheart.com/.

In this episode of the Journey of My Mother’s Son podcast, I talk with Ken Cox.

Ken Cox, author of 'Reclaim Sobriety: 12 Rounds of Sobriety', is a former addict turned Sobriety Gladiator. As President of Hostirian and host of the award-winning Clicks and Bricks podcast, Ken combines his business acumen with raw recovery experience. He empowers men to conquer addiction through gritty, no-nonsense strategies, transforming lives one round at a time.

"Reclaim Sobriety: 12 Rounds of Sobriety" is not just a memoir; it’s a guide for anyone looking to take control of their life, whether they’re battling addiction, struggling in their career, or seeking to understand the dynamics of mental toughness. It’s about finding strength in the struggle and emerging victorious, not just in business but in life.

To find out more about Ken, you can check out his website at https://kencox.com/.

For special gift, go to https://reclaimsobriety.com/gift/.

In this episode of the Journey of My Mother’s Son podcast, I talk with Anne Riley.

Anne Riley is an MBA with experience in multiple industries. She has been on a lifelong quest to understand how humans logically fit into life's panorama.

Studying the works of Charles Darwin, Stephen Jay Gould, and Michael Rothschild among many others, set her on the course of discovery.

Immersing herself in the basic knowledge of physics, chemistry, biology, economics, and government, gave her the foundation for a new way of thinking about humans.

And COVID gave her the time to hammer out the structure and details of a brand-new theory of human ideas.

She is the author of The Human Idea which will be published in November of 2024, as well as three other books available on Amazon: DINA: Nature's Case for Democracy, Aerie, and Elusive.

She lives in the Midwest, is married to her high school sweetheart, and has three children and two lovely granddaughters.

To find out more about Anne, you can check out her website at https://www.thehumanidea.com/.

In this episode of the Journey of My Mother’s Son podcast, I talk with Bintou Kaba.

Bintou is a fellow author, who just released her first book, "Tragedy In The Tides.” She is also an independent artist, spoken word performer, and author passionate about self-love and personal development.

We had a great conversation about the creative process and the vulnerability involved in publishing your work.

To find out more about Bintou, you can follow her on Instagram at bin2_writes1. Her new book is available at Amazon.

In this episode of the Journey of My Mother’s Son podcast, I talk with two of our full-time friends, Jennie and Eric Hultquist.

We originally met Jennie and Eric on a volunteer project through A Year to Volunteer back in February of 2022 at Sam Houston Jones State Park in Lake Charles, Louisiana.

Who would have guessed when we met them, that we’d be traveling with them throughout Canada and Alaska a few years later? But low and behold, Jennie and Eric were the fearless leaders of our Alaskan Gang this summer. We traveled over 7,000 miles with them from the end of May through the beginning of August and had a fantastic time. It was the trip of a lifetime, even though we hope to return to America’s Last Frontier at some point in the future, this trip has given all of us memories that will last a lifetime.

The trip was the culmination of almost two years of planning by Jennie and Eric. They took us to places that we never knew existed, like Yellowknife in the Northwest Territories. As the trip came together, each of us had input on places to stay and things to do, so it truly did turn into a team effort once we hit the road.

We had a marvelous time and can’t thank Jennie and Eric enough for the work that they put into planning this trip for the group.

In this episode of the Journey of My Mother’s Son podcast, I talk with Marcus Higgs.

Marcus is a communication coach for parents of preteens (ages 10-14). He helps them show up and maintain a meaningful relationship with their child through communication during these crucial formative years.

The clients he works with know the value of doing hard things and want to connect with their tween before it's too late to bridge the gap.

With a multicultural background himself—born to a Filipino mother and a Bahamian father—Marcus finds particular joy in supporting families to communicate across generational and cultural divides.

His own diverse upbringing, coupled with over a decade and a half of international experience across East Asia, Europe, Southeast Asia, the Middle East, and South America, has given him unique insights into cross-cultural communication.

Now he's on a mission to globally mend parent-child relationships through effective communication and shared storytelling using “The SHOW UP Framework.”

"The SHOW UP Framework" stands for:

🆂 — Start with a Strong Identity (All Action Starts from Identity)

🅷 — Hold Space for Collaboration (For Critical Thinking and Collaborative Problem Solving)

🅾 — Open Up Communication (Pass on Values w/o Being Preachy)

🆆 — Wonder and Explore this World Together (Choose a Self-Directed Challenge)

🆄🅿 — Unveil Potential Together (Celebrate Progress in Development)

To find out more about Marcus, check out his website at https://marcushiggs.com/.

In this episode of the Journey of My Mother’s Son podcast, I talk with Andrew Ronchetto.

Andrew is the Co-Founder, CEO, and CTO of Be On®.

Be On® is a holistic wellness platform. However, it’s much more than just a wellness platform. It’s a productivity-focused platform that seamlessly integrates wellness, coaching, and organizational tools into one solution.

Andrew and I talk about the importance of proactive holistic wellness solutions as opposed to reactive sickness treatments. We also talk about the challenges of building a new business and developing a positive culture amongst team members.

To find out more about Andrew and what his team at Be On® is doing, check out their website at https://beonplatform.com/.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, Sandy and I talk about our trip across the country to Pennsylvania to see our family.

I completed my book signing in Cheyenne, Wyoming and we started our trip across the country to Pennsylvania!

We had a couple of stops along the way, though. Our first stop was an unplanned stop at the Archway in Kearney, Nebraska.

The Archway is a unique museum that literally extends over Interstate 80 to pay homage to all those who have traveled across its path throughout history.

Since ancient times, the route along the Platte River in Nebraska, once called the Great Platte River Road, has served as a migratory pathway across the continent. From the era of the Oregon Trail to the present day, the Archway brings the history of the Great Platte River Road to life.

Central to the Archway experience is its historical exhibit, which honors the American spirit of exploration. Utilizing life-sized figures and personal audio guides, the Archway recounts the tale of America’s development. Visitors can walk alongside pioneers on the Oregon Trail, observe a Pony Express Station horse exchange, listen to Mark Twain’s story of a cross-country stagecoach journey, witness the driving of the “Golden Spike” connecting the nation’s railways, and learn about life on the Lincoln Highway at a traveler’s campground.

Located at Exit 275 on I-80, a key coast-to-coast travel route today, the Archway commemorates the journeys of all adventurers who have traveled the river’s route – from those who contributed to our nation’s development in the past to those who are shaping our future today.

It was an awesome experience, and we’re glad that we did it.

After The Archway, we made our way to visit our friends, Jason and Sara Brelsfoard in Maroa, Illinois. We met Jason and Sara back in February when we stayed at the Galveston Island KOA. We immediately connected and became friends. We spent two nights with them, and even got to ride in a combine.

After our visit with Jason and Sara, we were off to my final book signing and to visit with more friends that we had met in Galveston, Jeff and Jackie Powell, in Centerville, Ohio.

We had told our family that we’d be getting back into Pennsylvania on October 8th, but we knew all along that September 26th would be our arrival date. We spent our first two days back popping in on our family and surprising them. It was quite fun, but also a little exhausting.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, Sandy and I talk the final leg of our Canadian and Alaskan adventure as we entered back into the Lower-48 after a 3-month adventure north of the border.

We talk about our incredible experience in Haines, Alaska when we saw the Northern Lights. Our trip from Haines to Skagway on the Ferry. We experienced the Yukon Suspension Bridge and the Carcross Desert as we made our way down to Vancouver before crossing back into the United States.

Once we got into Washington, we still had a few more adventures with Alex and Cooper before they split off to make their way back to Pennsylvania. We explored both Olympic and Mount Rainier National Parks before splitting off on separate routes back east.

We made stops for book signings and to visit friends and family in Richland, Washington, Garden City (Boise), Idaho, and Cheyenne, Wyoming.

In this episode of the Journey of My Mother’s Son podcast, I talk with, Jon Sexton.

This is the first interview that I’ve recorded with a guest that wasn’t Sandy or Alex since late May of this year. I have to tell you – Alaska and Canada were incredible, but it sure is good to be back sharing the stories of the many little people in many little places that are doing all of those many little things that make the whole world change!

Jon and I talk about his entrepreneurial journey. It started on the tennis and basketball courts and other athletic venues of Visalia, California and has now landed him as the host of the TV show, Selling Nashville. Jon’s journey, like so many other entrepreneurs took a few twists and turns along the way. He originally relocated to Nashville to pursue a career in music. In order to not fall into the “starving artist” category, he used some of the leadership skills and life lessons that he learned from sports to get into the health club and gym industry. What initially started as a way to simply help make ends meet while he pursued his music career, eventually turned into another passion and eventually ownership of his own health club and gym business. While running his business, he started investing in real estate, which eventually led to him securing his real estate license and heading up his own team of agents.

Now, in the realm of Greater Nashville's real estate market, Jon stands as a distinguished figure, acclaimed for his exemplary achievements and unwavering commitment to excellence. As mentioned previously, Jon is the host for the television show, Selling Nashville, which can be seen on HGTV, Apple TV, Travel Channel and more. Renowned as an award-winning Realtor, Jon has garnered accolades such as the title of "Best Real Estate Agent" in Williamson County and the distinction of being named a "Top Real Estate Agent" by both the Nashville Scene and his team, NASHVILLE HOME, which shares the recognition of "Best Real Estate Team" in Williamson County.

With an impressive national ranking of #55 and a prominent position as #1 in Tennessee, Jon holds the coveted title of Top Agent in Davidson County, Nashville Metro, and Williamson County, underscored by his steadfast dedication to ensuring customer satisfaction.

Elevating his status further, Jon is an exclusive member of REALM, a prestigious global organization comprised solely of the top 1% of luxury agents worldwide, a testament to his unparalleled expertise and distinguished service.

Endorsed by financial guru Dave Ramsey as a Trusted Local Provider, Jon's reputation for integrity and excellence is further solidified. In Jon's own words, "It is an honor to be one of the select few Realtors trusted by Dave Ramsey and Ramsey Solutions. I am excited to continue to guide and serve those in need in being assisted and educated in the home buying and selling process."

Beyond his remarkable achievements in real estate, Jon has also established himself as one of Nashville's foremost entrepreneurs over the past decade. Recognized as a standout figure in the entrepreneurial landscape, Jon was bestowed with the title of "Top 50 Entrepreneurs in Tennessee" by Business Leader's magazine and was identified as one of the "Top 10 Entrepreneurs to Look Out For" by Disruptors Magazine.

Jon's attitude revolves around the belief that success is not merely measured by accomplishments but by the satisfaction and results of his clients. He attributes his greatest strength to having "the heart of a teacher" and a genuine concern for the well-being of those he serves, ensuring that their needs and desires are met with utmost dedication and care.

To find out more about Jon, check out his website at https://www.nashvillehomeagents.com/agents/jon-sexton/.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I talk about our Soul Family. There’s a chapter in my book, The Journey of My Mother’s Son titled, “Connection.” It’s about the need for human connection. If you’d like to read it, you can check it out here.

Sandy and I are very blessed to have a wonderful blood family. We are doubly blessed to have an incredible soul family throughout the country. I say it all the time that sightseeing and exploring national parks is an awesome component of this journey, but by far, the greatest blessing that we get from the road is the ability to meet and connect with strangers who end up becoming family.

As I’m sure you know by now, from my recent emails and social media posts, I’m honored to be an associate producer on a project by my friend and a member of our soul family, Aliza Hava. I’ve had Aliza on my podcast twice, and we just immediately connected. We became part of each other’s soul family instantly. Her and her husband, Avi drove over two hours to meet Sandy and I for dinner after one of my book signings in Brookings, Oregon. Like Aliza, we connected immediately with Avi as well. There are just some people in the world who you know are part of your tribe the minute you meet them. It seems like you’ve known them for years.

One of the songs on her new album is titled, “Soul Family.” The moment I heard the song, I had goosebumps and the hair on my arms and neck stood up. It resonated with me in a special way. Mainly because we have blessed with such a large soul family.

I wasn’t planning on releasing another monologue this week, but the song was so powerful that I wanted to talk about it to my listeners and Aliza is such an amazing human, that she gave me permission to play the song at the end of the show. This is only the second time that this song has been heard by the masses. The world premiere of the song was played on KZUM FM 89.3 out of Omaha, Nebraska on September 15, 2024 at the end of an interview with Aliza.

I’ve also included Aliza’s story behind the song that she shared during the KZUM interview. That too, is a pretty powerful set-up for the song.

I hope that all of my listeners enjoy the song and the story behind, but most of all, I hope that you all find magic in your own soul families just as Sandy and I have.

Additional show notes:

The rights to the song, Soul Family are fully owned by Aliza Hava. The song was used by permission in the show.

To hear the full interview from September 15, 2024 with Aliza on KZUM FM, Click Here.

To find out more about the Into the Light Album project, go to: www.intothelightmusic.com

To listen to the previous podcasts that I did with Aliza, please click the appropriate links below:

ALIZA HAVA – MUSIC IS HEALING – JANUARY 30, 2024

ALIZA HAVA – INTO THE LIGHT – MAY 17, 2024

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I talk about the need to be able to adjust throughout life.

When I was coaching baseball, one of the things that I stressed to my players all of the time is that it was a game of adjustments. You always want to have a plan, but you also need to be able to make an adjustment to that plan if need be.

The game of baseball is a reflection of life, and the lessons tat the game can teach will often carry over into life as well.

This is one of those perfect examples where we can use those lessons from the game in life.

Episode #300 – What a milestone!

It’s crazy to think that I have released 300 episodes of this podcast. The people I’ve met, the places and things that we’ve spoken about have been amazing. It’s truly been an honor to share the stories of so many incredible people as well as taking you all along for the ride as Sandy and I continue this incredible journey.

I wanted this to be a special episode, so I got both Sandy and our grandson, Alex to sit down and have a casual conversation about some of the highlights of our amazing Canadian and Alaskan adventure over the past three months.

When this episode is released, Alex will be about 12 hours into his solo journey back east to Pennsylvania. We will also be headed back to Pennsylvania, but due to some book signings along the way, our trek will take a little bit longer than his.

It has been incredible being able to share this past summer with Alex and seeing him experience this travel lifestyle at such a young age. We’ve been able to watch him grow and mature as a young man over just three short months.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, Sandy and I talk more about our amazing summer long northern adventure through Canada and Alaska.

Another month in Alaska was spectacular, but also bittersweet, as our Alaskan adventure was starting to come to a close. We have had such a great time exploring America’s Last Frontier with such a great group of friends. It was sad to to say good-bye to everyone as we all started our own routes south.

From July 15th through August 15th, we explored Homer, Steward, Anchorage, Palmer, Talkeetna, Denali National Park, Fairbanks, Chena Hot Springs, and Delta Junction in Alaska before crossing back into Canada to start our trek back into the Lower-48.

It’s been such an amazing summer. I was able to work in three book signings throughout Alaska and we were completely overwhelmed by the outpouring of support.

Sandy and I have loved sharing this journey with our friends and family.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I read another chapter from my book, The Journey of My Mother’s Son, Volume I, Many Random Thoughts from the Road.

This is Chapter 30, titled, Sometimes We Walk Alone.

This is the shortest chapter in my book, however, I thin that it still carries a very powerful message.

I hope you feel the same way, as well.

Sometimes you have to walk alone.

This morning I got up before the sun and set out on a little hike through the petrified dunes of Snow Canyon State Park.

Sandy and Youk stayed back in the RV.

I rarely, if ever, walk or hike by myself, but this morning I chose to do so.

It was still dark when I started. I had to use my phone flashlight to navigate the trail.

The hike was serene and breathtaking.

I climbed to the top of two different petrified dunes. The second one was higher than the first.

As I got to the top, the sun was just cresting over the top of a distant mountain.

I just sat there and took it all in for a moment. I closed my eyes and sat in silence.

Listening. Just listening to the nature that was waking up around me and listening to God's voice speaking to me through that nature.

It's not in my comfort zone to walk or hike alone like this. Usually it's either me and Youk, Sandy and me, the three of us, or I’m in the company of other friends.

Today, it was just me. Just me and the Lord.

Sometimes you just have to walk alone so that you can hear His still small voice more clearly.

This morning was one of those times and it was precious.

Take time for yourself when you need to. It's important. Have the courage to walk alone sometimes.

You won't be disappointed.

Peace.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I read Chapter 19 from The Journey of My Mother’s Son, Volume I, Many Random Thoughts from the Road.

I stopped recording interviews back in May because of our Canada and Alaska trip. Knowing that we would be in areas with little to internet, I had created a backlog of episodes to be released through the end of July.

Until I start interviews again, I will be releasing several monologues as well as episodes of just Sandy and I.

This episode is unique in the fact that it is the first episode in which I rad a chapter from one of my books. I hope you enjoy it.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down and talk to my grandson, Alex Croft.

This is the second time that I have had Alex on my podcast. The first was two years ago between his Junior and Senior year of high school. The first episode, we recorded in his backyard in Pennsylvania. This episode, we recorded in our RV while we were staying in Homer, Alaska.

Back in May, Alex, with just his 7-month-old Jack Russell mix puppy, Cooper, by his side, embarked on a journey of independence. They drove from Myerstown, Pennsylvania to Great Falls, Montana to meet our group that was traveling throughout Alaska and Canada this summer.

Alex, even though he never met my mother because she passed away just a few months before he was born, travels much more like her than we do. He converted his Jeep Cherokee into a car camper. He has 30-amp electric service, a cook top, and a cooler for food. He truly is following in that old Plymouth Valient, Polly’s footsteps.

We talk about what he has learned and how he has grown on this journey.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, Sandy and I talk more about our amazing summer long northern adventure through Canada and Alaska.

We spent a little over a month traveling throughout Canada. We made it north of the 60th Parallel and all the way up to Yellowknife, the capital of the Northwest Territories.

We traveled over 300 miles of dirt and gravel roads and saw some of the most amazing waterfalls you could ever imagine.

We celebrated Canada Day in the little village of Haines Junction in the Yukon. We crossed back into the United States at the Alaskan boarder on July 2. We celebrated July 4th in Tok, Alaska.

The scenery and wildlife that we have seen throughout the trip, so far, has been absolutely stunning.

In this episode of the Journey of My Mother’s Son podcast, I talk with, Dr. Leland Stillman.

Dr. Leland Stillman studied Biology and Environmental Health at Connecticut College and received his medical doctorate from the University of Virginia. He then trained in Internal Medicine at Maine Medical Center. He practiced as a Hospitalist for three years following his residency training. He went on to found his own practice just before COVID. He has a longstanding interest in alternative medicine, and now focuses on functional and integrative medicine in his practice.

To find out more about Dr. Stillman, check out his website at https://stillmanmd.com/.

In this episode of the Journey of My Mother’s Son podcast, I talk with, Michaela S. Cox.

Michaela S. Cox is a multi-published author and speaker who writes and speaks about diverse topics ranging from faith and spirituality, to motherhood, parenting, and family, to grief and loss.

She is an author who writes about her heartfelt meditations related to her passions about her journey as a mother, her journey of faith and the American journey of We the People.

Michaela S. Cox takes the inspiration for her writings to form her own life’s journey. Walking and traveling a journey that has taken her from tribulation to learning how to thrive in all things including a lifelong disability of legal blindness, divorce at age 26, and then at age 38 the loss of her beloved husband. Therefore, she has journeyed through widowhood, solo/single parenting while managing her disability. These experiences very much influence her work, as an author, on her journey through motherhood, her journey of faith for over 35 years.

Aside from being a mama to her two precious babies and enjoying her author journey, Michaela S. Cox is a native Texan who now resides in Louisiana with her children. Michaela enjoys time with her tribe of fabulous friends who she travels and does life with on this journey. Michaela is striving to find her own way as she is following her path, traveling the journey before her and striving to thrive in all things no matter where her journey may lead and takes her in life.

To find out more about Michaela, check out her website at https://www.myheartfeltmeditations.com/.

In this episode of the Journey of My Mother’s Son podcast, I talk with, Ben Oofana.

From a very early age, Ben was drawn to indigenous cultures and their spiritual practices. He was particularly fascinated by the paranormal. Native Americans, like peoples of other indigenous cultures lived with a foot in two worlds, relying on the assistance of supernatural forces to assist them in their everyday lives.

By the age of 12 Ben was reading everything he could find about tribal cultures. Around the age of 14 Ben began to learn of the traditional medical, psychological and spiritual practices of a number of different tribes of North America. It was then that Ben decided that if he ever found the opportunity, he would train under a traditional American Indian doctor.

While still in high school, at the age of 17, Ben decided to live among the people he loved and admired and moved to a community of predominantly Kiowa and Kiowa-Apache Indians. During this time, Ben immersed himself completely in the culture and participated in the tribal dances and spiritual and healing ceremonies. It was there that Ben met his mentor, Horace Daukei, the last surviving traditional Kiowa doctor (Medicine Man). He immediately recognized Ben’s capacity to become a healer. Ben felt very fortunate because very few apprentices are chosen during a doctor’s lifetime.

Ben formally began his apprenticeship under Horace at the age of 20 and continued for the next three years. As his assistant, Ben was able to see firsthand the phenomenal results of these traditional medical practices.

After a succession of destructive relationships in his mid-twenties, Ben realized that he was reenacting the traumas of his childhood and adolescence. Being very intuitive, he began to develop an entire series of intensive meditation practices to facilitate the awakening of the innate healing intelligence residing within the body and mind.

Ben began to explore a wide range of therapeutic interventions and soon thereafter returned to the ancient practices he had learned while training with his mentor Horace.

Ben later went on to train with Chinese Master Sifu Li Tai Liang. He has since incorporated these practices that have their roots in the ancient Taoist lineages.

As Ben continued to progress in his own healing journey, he could see these changes being reflected back to him in the people he attracted into his life and in his relationships. Ben began to facilitate this healing process for others, enabling them to let go of unhealthy attachments. By releasing what no longer served them, they were able to attract healthier companions with whom they could create more meaningful and deeply fulfilling relationships.

Ben has over the years combined the elements of all these practices and interventions into a comprehensive system to facilitate the healing of the body and mind, heartbreak and other deep emotional wounds.

To find out more about Ben, check out his website at https://benoofana.com/.

In this episode of the Journey of My Mother’s Son podcast, I talk with Lois Letchford.

Lois is the author of the book, "Reversed: A Memoir," which chronicles an extraordinary journey of overcoming daunting odds, offering inspiration and hope to parents and educators navigating desperate situations. At the age of 39, while teaching her second son how to read, she stumbled upon her own "learning difference," an unexpected revelation that ignited an unwavering pursuit for answers.

With sheer determination and unyielding resilience, she confronted challenges and battled self-doubt head-on, proving that no obstacle is insurmountable. Through relentless effort, she witnessed the transformative power of perseverance, achieving significant milestones and experiencing profound personal growth.

She discovered the immense value of trusting her instincts. This experience led to her appreciating literacy learning as being more than a “set of skills to acquire.” Embracing foundational knowledge of “how children and adults learn,” and adopting a growth mindset, she unlocked true potential, shattering self-limiting beliefs.

Guided by the philosophy of living in the present moment, she learned to appreciate the inherent beauty of the journey itself. As the founder of Lois Letchford, Language, Literacy, and Learning tutoring, She is dedicated to assisting others facing similar challenges. Her memoir serves as a beacon of hope, sharing the mission and vision of empowering individuals with dyslexia.

"Reversed: A Memoir" stands as a testament to triumph over adversity, offering not only inspiration and motivation but also a profound sense of hope for all who read it.

To find out more about Lois, check out her website at https://www.loisletchford.com/.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, Sandy and I talk about our trip up the Oregon Coast, into Washington, and eventually across the border into Canada.

After almost two years in the making, we were excited to meet our friends and grandson, Alex in Great Falls, Montana to start our 3-1/2-month journey throughout Canada and Alaska. Even though we had only been in Canada for a little over two weeks when we recorded this episode, we have already seen so many amazing things and made incredible memories.

Traveling with this group of friends has been absolutely awesome so far.

We can’t wait to see what the rest of the summer has in store for us.

In this episode of the Journey of My Mother’s Son podcast, I sit down and talk with Greg Peterson.

Greg is the host of the Urban Farm Podcast and the founder of The Urban Farm.

“What if there was a garden and fruit tree in every yard?” This is a question that Greg ponders every day. For over 32 years he created on of one of Phoenix's first environmental showcase homes for urban farming. The 1/4-acre yard featured a primarily edible landscape with over 80 fruit trees, rainwater and greywater harvesting, solar applications, and extensive use of reclaimed and recycled building materials.

In 2003 UrbanFarm.org was created as an online portal for urban farming education then in 2015 Greg created the UrbanFarmPodcast.com. The podcast is designed to help fulfill Greg’s passion of spreading the word about growing your own food and sharing new and seasoned gardener’s epic stories.

To find out more about Greg and what he is doing in sustainable farming, check out his website at https://www.urbanfarm.org/.

In this episode of the Journey of My Mother’s Son podcast, I sit down and talk with Morgan McCarver.

Morgan was born and raised in Spartanburg, South Carolina. Her work is inspired by her female mentors of past and present, as well as her connection to Victorian corsetry through her scoliosis journey. She received an art degree with a ceramic’s concentration and a double minor in art history and business in 2019 from Anderson University in Anderson, SC.

McCarver had the honor of receiving the 2019 Outstanding Art Major Ceramics Award her senior year. As a 2020 701 Center for Contemporary Art prize finalist, she had the honor of being the youngest artist to ever make it that far. She is a multi-award-winning artist who recently received an Artist Support Grant to attend a national ceramics conference. She has had the honor of displaying her work in 2 solo exhibitions, “FemininiTEA” 2020 and “The Strength of a Wildflower” 2022. She recently completed a residency at Edgewood Cottage in Blowing Rock Summer 2023 and participated 2022 as well. McCarver has studios in Asheville, NC and Spartanburg, SC. Her art can be found in various galleries around the Carolinas and Tennessee.

Her first book, “God the Artist: Revealing God’s Creative Side Through Pottery,” was just recently released with Morgan James Publishing on January 9, 2024.

To find out more about Morgan, check out her website at https://www.morganmcccarver.com/.

In this episode of the Journey of My Mother’s Son podcast, I sit down and talk with Catherine Gairard.

Born in Peru into a low-middle-class family, Catherine faced financial barriers that hindered formal music education. Undeterred, she dedicated herself to self-study, cultivating a passion for music that eventually became a driving force in her life. Early on, she showcased her artistic flair by participating in school events, be it through dance, reciting poems, acting, or singing.

Guided by her father, an artist himself, she delved into the world of drawing. This early exposure laid the foundation for her artistic journey. The pursuit of theater studies followed, shaping her understanding of the performing arts.

In 2014, she ventured to Europe, aspiring to forge a career in acting. However, the cultural transition proved challenging, and she found solace and direction during travels to the Netherlands and Spain. There, she embarked on a serious exploration of music, initially through free online courses and later under the guidance of private tutors in singing, harp, piano, composition, and music production.

By 2023, she embraced a new chapter as a digital nomad, exploring Mexico and Greece. Currently, she is constructing her own campervan, a mobile haven for creating music while immersing herself in inspiring locales worldwide. Looking ahead, her sights are set on a program that began in April 2024, steering her toward a career as a soundtrack composer for movies and video games.

To foster a closer connection with her audience, she curates an exclusive online community, sharing more intimate aspects of her life. Through this, she aims to build a supportive space for fellow enthusiasts and those intrigued by her artistic journey.

To find out more about Catherine, check out her website at https://www.catherinegairardmusic.com/.

In this episode of the Journey of My Mother’s Son podcast, I sit down and talk with Walt Morgan.

Walt is a professional Integral Coach who partners with clients from all walks of life to achieve the personal and professional developmental goals that are most important to them.

He served in the U.S. Navy for 23 years as a helicopter pilot and retired at the rank of Commander. He has also been an associate professor, teaching leadership and management and an in-house leadership consultant, coach and facilitator for a Fortune 200 healthcare company.

Walt lives in Boulder, Colorado with his wife Dana, their two teenage children and Hank, the dog. He loves exploring the backcountry with dear friends and a fly-fishing rod.

To find out more about Walt, check out his website at https://www.tliftcoaching.com/.

This was probably the most difficult podcast that I ever had to record. In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, Sandy and I talk about our travels through California and the loss of our best travel companion, Youk.

The end of April was very difficult for us and we’re still working through the grief process. Youk crossed the Rainbow Bridge on April 24, 2024. It was certainly the most difficult thing that we’ve had to deal with since we’ve been traveling. Youk brought joy to such a large part of lives. We literally planned our life around his schedule and well-being. In return, he gave us unconditional love and countless memories that will last the rest of lives.

He was a larger-than-life personality who impacted the world in ways we never could have imagined. Countless people from all over the world have reached out to us since his passing to let us know how much they loved our best-selling author pup.

In addition to Youk, we talk about our travels through several national parks in California (Joshua Tree, Sequoia, Kings Canyon, Yosemite, and The Redwoods), our project at the Southern California Railway Museum, our night under the Golden Gate Bridge, our Pacific Coast Highway Adventure, and of course, reconnecting with friends.

We’re still loving our nomad life, but it certainly has been an adjustment as our pack shrank from three to two.

To read my full blog about Youk’s last ride, click here.

In this episode of the Journey of My Mother’s Son podcast, I sit down and talk with Antwaun Thompson.

Antwaun Thompson or Coach T, has coached and mentored young men and women, helping to improve their athletic skills, confidence, resiliency, life skills experiences and focus for over 30 years. Nothing brings him more satisfaction than seeing the heart, determination and commitment from young people.

Coach T is the founder and executive Director of JLT Fieldhouse, a 501c3 nonprofit youth coaching and mentoring organization, dedicated to “Coaching and Mentoring the Leaders of Tomorrow”. This organization is named in honor of his late father, Sgt. Maj. Joe Lewis Thompson, USMC, who adopted Antwaun and his older brother after their mom and Joe were married.

He is also the CEO of Coach T’s Corner, an online mentoring academy that is designed to “Educate, Motivate and Support” our future leaders of tomorrow through personal growth and development and personal relationship development programs.

I always love having the opportunity to sit down and chat with coaches who share the same teaching philosophy as what I did when I coached. It was truly an honor to have Antwaun on the show and I’m sure that this is an episode that you’re all going to love.

To find out more about Antwaun, check out his website at https://www.coachtscorner.com/.

In this episode of the Journey of My Mother’s Son podcast, I sit down and talk with Noah Asher.

Noah Asher is an author, Chaos-survivor, business owner, and communicator. Noah helps people find purpose within their pain and their past. His new book, CHAOS: Overcoming the Overwhelming, is a guide on how to navigate through difficult times and come out stronger on the other side. Noah believes that everyone has a purpose, and he is dedicated to helping people find it.

His website is dedicated to providing resources, inspiration, and hope to anyone who is looking to overcome their own Chaos and find their path in life. Where the enemy comes to steal, kill, and destroy, Jesus comes to bring life and restoration!

To find out more about Noah, check out his website at https://www.thenoahasher.com/.

In this episode of the Journey of My Mother’s Son podcast, I sit down again and talk with my friend, Aliza Hava.

Aliza is making her second appearance on the show. We first spoke back in January and talked about the healing power that music has. Feel free to listen to that conversation by clicking here.

In this episode, we really focus on talking about her new album that is scheduled to be released in the coming months. “Into the Light.”

This album is deeply personal for Aliza. She has used music to help her overcome the trauma of an abusive childhood. It was a healing journey for her, and she hopes that it can be used by others in their own healing journeys. The album was produced by multi-platinum Grammy-winner Mikal Blue, who is best known for his work with Colbie Caillat, Jason Mraz, and OneRepublic. The album is a body of work, which features ten songs that take the listener on a soulful journey from darkness, "Into the Light."

We also talk about the benefits and challenges of being an independent artist, the ever-changing technology of streaming and how it affects the music industry as a whole.

Follow Aliza's crowdfunding campaign by clicking here so you'll be notified when it goes LIVE!

To find out more about Aliza and her music, check out her website at https://www.alizahava.com/.

In this episode of the Journey of My Mother’s Son podcast, I sit down and talk with Roy Coughlan.

Roy is a podcast coach and hosts six different podcasts. I was honored to be a guest on his show back in March of 2023 and love that I am able to have him as a guest on my show now.

More importantly, Roy approaches life with a mission driven philosophy. He understands that it’s more important to make the world a better place as opposed to just trying to acquire and material things in his lifetime. Focusing on gratitude, he understands the benefit of always being present in the current moment.

Roy helps people create a podcast and get into the top 10% of Podcasts.

He helps clients get on the Top-Rated Podcasts to promote their business or book.

He has produced and edited over 1,200 Episodes including over 100 live with top guests like Miki Willis, David Icke, Thomas Renz, Sherry Tenpenny and more.

He is always happy to share some tips with the podcasters that have had him on their shows.

To find out more about Noah, check out his website at https://www.thenoahasher.com/.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, Sandy and I talk about our travels from Grapevine, Texas to Lake Havasu City, Arizona.

We were able to reconnect to so many friends and had a great final leg of the book tour.

In this episode of the Journey of My Mother’s Son podcast, I sit down and talk with Brittany and Cody Holifield.

I had Cody and Brittany on the show after we first met at A Year to Volunteer project at Sam Houston Jones State Park back in March of 2022. At that time, they were a full-time RV family of four traveling throughout the United States under the name Hitch to Hitch.

A lot has changed for them over the past couple of years, and they are about to start a new chapter.

Hitch to Hitch is changing to Halls Top Hangout. What is Halls Top Hangout, you ask? It’s a brand new off-grid adventure camp in the beautiful East Tennessee Mountain town of Hartford.

Hartford, Tennessee is located about an hour from Knoxville, Ashville, and Gatlinburg, on the edge of the Cherokee National Forest.

Cody and Brittany want to create a space where people can come to, unplug, and reconnect with nature.

To find out more about what’s going on at the new Halls Top Hangout Adventure Camp, check out their website at https://www.hallstophangout.com/.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Billy Lahr.

As I always say, I love when I have the opportunity to connect with fellow nomads. However, although, Billy and I share that same nomadic wanderlust, we’re going about it in two completely different ways. Sandy and I in an RV in the United States, Canada, and Mexico while Billy is literally traveling the globe.

In 2021, Billy was one of 47 million Americans who quit their jobs due to burnout and priority re-evaluation. Following the challenges our nation’s educators faced during the pandemic, he no longer had the passion needed to work with high school students. For the next two years, he traveled all over the world in search of meaningful experiences to reignite his passion for helping others. Throughout his journey, he met many incredible people along the way, and he shared with them how his mindfulness practice not only changed his life but most likely saved it as well. When he opened up about his own mental health struggles, he found that people all over the world were also re-evaluating their priorities in life but just needed guidance to do so more intentionally and mindfully.

To find out more about Billy, check out his website at https://billylahr.com/.

In this episode of the Journey of My Mother’s Son podcast, I sit down and talk with Tracy Tanguay.

Tracy is a mobility expert also known as “MobilityChick” and has worked with players and coaches from 27 of the 30 MLB organizations, from A-ball to All-Star as well as high school and college teams.

Tracy is also passionate about changing the current culture that has developed throughout youth sports. This is something that really resonates with me because I saw firsthand how the approach to youth sports has changed over the 30 years that I had been involved. Sadly, that culture shift has not been for the better. We have shifted from a team mentality to an individual focus. Sport specialization at a young age is becoming more and more prevalent, which is leading to more injuries at younger ages. The increase in injuries early the current MLB season could arguably be attributed to early sport specialization, too many pitches on too little rest at a younger age, and max-effort performance.

Tracy is an expert in her field, so she is speaking from a professional perspective as well as a concerned mom. Our shared opinion is that we need to focus more on teaching the fundamentals, letting the kids have fun playing the game, and falling in love the sport as opposed to chasing weekend trophies, and a win at all cost approach. We also agree on the fact that kids should multiple sports for as long as they possibly can.

Sports have a wonderful way of teaching us life lessons, the key is that we have let the game teach those lessons.

Tracy regularly consults with big league coaches for her expertise in training quality movement patterns, the space and transitions between positions, and mobility specifically as it relates to athletic performance and staying healthy.

Tracy’s Offseason Mobility program helped to keep every single Angelo State University player injury-free all season long contributing to their clinching the D2 National Championship this year. That same program has resulted in lower ERAs, increased velo, reduced injury, doubled Home Run rates, over a dozen big league call ups and benefits multi-sport athletes, too.

Tracy has been featured on MLB.com for her movement and mobility work with the Orioles and she’s got a book coming out in 2024 called “Shit About Movement You Should Know”.

Tracy has a degree in neuroscience + cognitive science from Northwestern University, previously had a corporate career in research at McKinsey & Company and now has over 1,000 hours in Yoga training, is a published Master Pilates Instructor, has a boatload of education, certifications and experience.

All this while raising 4 young kiddos, a dog, and a bearded dragon that regularly goes missing in her house.

To find out more about Tracy, check out her website at https://www.mobilitychick.com/.

In this episode of The Journey of My Mother's Son podcast, I sit down and talk with Emma Rowena. Emma Rowena is a musician, performer, intuitive reader, healer, meditation guide, and emerging social entrepreneur, helping people find peace, purpose, and healing in their lives.

Emma was born in the UK, grew up in Norway, and has lived in Cuba and the USA. With her bilingual and bicultural heritage, Emma never felt quite at home in one place – she always felt more part of the greater world, and the years abroad helped her connect to her energy and colours. Inspired by her music-loving, piano-playing father, Emma studied to be a classical pianist. For nearly two decades she made her living teaching children to play the piano, and performing with some of Norway’s most renowned singers and soloists.

Motherhood became a transformative journey for Emma, leading her to embrace her healing and personal growth. She is now a certified intuitive reader, healer, and Theta healing© practitioner. Combining her love for music with a passion for the well-being of the younger generation, Emma envisions a healing center for children and youth, enabling them to discover their unique expression and developing solutions for a better, more sustainable and compassionate world.

Her insights are shared in her book, You. Me. And All That We Are: Unveiling Your Life's Beauty and Magic. A Mother's Heartfelt Letter to Her Son. Emma engages with her audience both online and in person, meditates, cooks, and finds solace in nature with her dog, always seeking the next step in her journey of helping, healing, and creating a better life.

To find out more about Emma, check out her website at https://emmarowena.no/.

In this episode of The Journey of my Mother’s Son podcast, I sit down with Shane Anderson.

Shane is the husband half of the indie/folk husband and wife duo, Arbour Season.

They draw inspiration from the incredible adventures they experience all across North America in their converted school bus/home. Their unique journey inspires the ambient folk sound that captures the serenity of the Western vistas, the rhythms of the Eastern coastlines, and the brilliance of the national forests. They express their passion for life through music and invite listeners to travel along with them by listening to the intricate instrumentation, layered harmonies and lyrics that tell their stories.

I discovered Arbour Season on Instagram. Their song, Roam is certainly an anthem for nomads everywhere. It’s a beautiful song and I encourage everyone to check it out, by clicking here.

To find out more about Shane, Arbour Season, their music and their travel adventures, check out their website at https://www.arbourseason.com/.

In this episode of the Journey of My Mother’s Son podcast, I sit down and talk with Matt and Grace Grooms of The Golden Road.

Sandy and I met Matt and Grace back in December at Sebastian Inlet State Park in Florida as they were on the home stretch of their second walk across America. I had found them and started following them on Instagram back in February or March of 2023, just as they were getting ready to embark on their walk from Maine to Key West.

Their first walk across the country, back in 2020, took them from California to South Carolina.

In between the two cross-country walks, they took a short little stroll, only 486 miles through the Rocky Mountains on the Colorado Trail.

One of the things about Matt and Grace that drew me to them, wasn’t just about the long-distance walks, but that each of the walks had a philanthropic component to it. As a person who loves to walk and hike, and also came from the nonprofit sector, this was all very intriguing to me.

They choose a nonprofit organization to raise money for during each of their walks. Time in a Bottle, Luvin Arms Animal Sanctuary, and Elevate Youth have been the beneficiaries of their walks so far.

To find out more about Matt and Grace and what they’re doing with upcoming walks and other adventures, check out their website at https://theggoldenroad.com/.

To find out more about each of the nonprofit organizations that The Golden Road has supported during their walking adventures, please check out the links below:

https://timeinabottle.org/

https://luvinarms.org/

https://www.elevateyouth.org/

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, Sandy and I talk about our last couple of weeks in Galveston, as well as our travels on our way to Grapevine, Texas.

We met so many amazing people in our 37 days in Galveston.

After Galveston, we made our way to Katy, Texas for a weekend of book signings, Waller to get some work done on our generator, Athens to see some friends, Midlothian for another book signing, and then Grapevine for our final week in Texas.

We always love getting together with friends and meeting new people as we go about our travels.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Terry Weaver.

Terry is an author, speaker, podcast host, coach, and brain child behind the live event called, “The Thing.”

The title of this podcast is spot on – Terry and I cover a broad range of topics, with a few squirrel moments mixed in among the rabbit holes that we go down, but ultimately, we land the opportunity of making elephants fly.

Professionally, Terry is a business coach and idea strategist who specializes in helping remarkable leaders navigate the galaxy of entrepreneurship. His biggest goal is to help his clients discover what they really want and help discover the map to head in the direction and arrive at the destination they desire.

To find out more about Terry, his coaching or The Thing live event, check out his website at https://terryweaver.com/.

To take his free course, go to, https://www.discoveryourthing.com/.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with John Kimble.

John is a fitness trainer and development coach.

He has learned how to turn adversity into opportunity. He has overcome addiction and self-sabotage and now dedicates his life to others in order to help them turn their own adversity into opportunity.

To find out more about John, check out his website at https://iamreverseaging.com/.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Tobi Whitney.

Tobi and her husband, Jeff are fellow nomads. Her and I first connected back in 2016 when the organization that I was running at the time was establishing a girl’s baseball event.

Fast forward to 2022 and Jeff and Tobi begin their own nomadic adventure.

Tobi and Jeff met as freshmen at UMASS Amherst and married soon after graduating. After they decided not to have children, thoughts went to retiring early and exploring the world. When Tobi retired as a flight attendant in 2022, free travel across the globe is now an opportunity. At the time, Jeff was mostly retired, working 10 hours a week remotely. So, they sold their condo and hit the open road in a camper with their cat Milo to see the US and Canada.

After 16 months of living full-time on the road, they’re ready to embark on another new adventure. This is one that will take them across the globe to Italy. There Jeff will apply for his citizenship by descent and they plan on securing short-term leases while exploring different cultures throughout the country.

To find out more about Tobi and Jeff or to follow them on this next adventure, check out their website at https://theretirednomads.com/

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Freddy X. Vásquez.

Freddy is the owner of FXV Digital Design, host of the Fred Talks podcast, but most importantly a great friend.

He has had me as a guest on his show twice and getting him onto my show has been a ling time coming, but we finally got it done.

Our conversation covers a broad range of topics from building out a team in business, changing and growing as a human, our mutual love of the game of baseball, and just about everything in between.

I always love having friends on my show. The connection always shines through the conversation and this one was certainly no different.

Freddy is an amazing guy who loves giving back and making a difference in his community.

To find out more about Freddy and his business, check out his website at https://fxvdigital.com/.

To learn more about some the amazing philanthropic work that he and his team are doing back in Berks County, check out, https://www.awesometoydrive.com/.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, Sandy and I talk about our 2024 winter/spring book signing tour as we finished up in Louisiana and began our one month stay in Galveston, Texas.

We had two great book signing events in Lake Charles and Sulphur. We always love getting back to that area because we have some great friends there. It also seems as though every time we come back; we add even more friends to that list.

We spent our last night in Louisiana at an animal sanctuary and our first night in Texas just a few hundred yards from the beach.

We’ll be in Galveston for just over a month, staying at the Galveston Island KOA as well as Galveston Island State Park. During the month, I have a total of nine book signing and speaking events between Kroger and the KOA.

Between the activities at the campground and Mardi Gars, Sandy and I have been really active since we have arrived at the KOA. It’s a great campground with an amazing staff, and tons of activities for all ages.

We love coming to Galveston. It’s is such a cool little city. It’s an island town with a charming little downtown area. Sandy has even mentioned that this may be the spot that we settle down at after if we decide to trade in the nomad lifestyle for something less mobile.

This is the third year in a row that we’ve stopped here. It’s also spot where we love being able to reconnect with our friends, Pat and Dawn Latona.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Fred Ghilino.

Fred is one of my former interns, as well as a former player in our organization.

Fred is now a full-time dad, husband, avid Miami Dolphins fan, semi-pro cornhole player (just kidding) and Account Director at Turchette Brand Marketing & Public Relations. Fred has been with Turchette, a leading marketing and public relations firm, for nearly a decade. Fred previously held various marketing, account management, and sales roles for Coca-Cola and Advantage Business Media.

Fred resides in Morris County, New Jersey, with his wonderful wife Krista, and two beautiful daughters Ellie and Lulu, and their 11-year-old border terrier puppy Bella (who could 100% be Youk’s chew toy). In Fred’s free time, he plays a wicked third base for the Expo’s softball team, and enjoys weightlifting, golf, as well as coaching and volunteering for the local recreational soccer organization. He has recently added long-distance running to his list of activities.

I have known Fred for over 15 years. It has been very special to watch Fred grow as a man over the years. As mentioned before, he first started working for me as an intern. He later played for us and then helped as a field manager for our tournaments.

We have stayed in touch all these years, and I loved taking this trip down memory lane with him to share, relive, and discuss all the great memories. We talk about the life, and business lessons that he learned through the organization.

Fred is one of those people who came into my life as a stranger, we became friends and I now consider him family. He truly is like another son to Sandy and I.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Jenn Drummond.

Jenn is a mom of 7, successful business owner, and World Record holder. As the first woman to climb the second highest summits on each of the 7 continents, she now spends her time inspiring others to create a thriving business and lasting legacy of their own. She shares her story and strategies for success through her book, BREAKPROOF: 7 Strategies to Build Resilience and Achieve Your Life Goals, and her Seek Your Summit podcast, programs, and signature talks. Learn more about how she elevates devoted and determined entrepreneurs to go beyond a life of success to a life of significance.

Jenn has one major key focus in her life. It is empowering and inspiring others to seize the full potential of life.

A car accident in 2018 left Jenn awestruck and emboldened. Rescue workers couldn’t imagine any scenario where she came out of it alive, but she did. That’s when she realized you don’t get to choose when you leave this life…but you sure can choose how you live it. Strengthened by this awareness, she set out to live in a more authentic and adventurous way. Inspired to climb a mountain for her birthday, her son raised the stakes by suggesting Mount Everest. Not one to back down from a challenge, she accepted the pursuit. During her training, her coach upped the ante and proposed that she go for a Guinness World Record and become the first woman to climb the 7 second summits. The pursuit matched her desire to live a life of significance, not just success.

To find out more about Jenn, check out her website at https://jenndrummond.com/.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Aaron Solomon.

Aaron is a comic, podcaster, and DnD and Esports enthusiast. He grew up in Orlando Florida where he played soccer through the end of high school and graduated from UCF with a Bachelor's in Integrated Business. Then, around 2020, he and his then-fiance took a leap of faith out to Salt Lake, Utah to have a season of growth. Now, after 3 years in the deserts, snow, and mountains of Utah, he's returned to Florida to continue his pursuits in comedy, content creation, and make the most of his home state. You can find him online as Aaron "Church" Solomon and you can check out his improv show 3 DMs and a Tale, his DnD show A Wrathful Rhapsody, & his interview series The Jailhouse Parlor Podcast all on YouTube and wherever you listen to your podcasts.

The Jailhouse Parlor podcast is a long format (Joe Rogan style) show. One of the things that Aaron and I speak about during the show is how much we have both benefitted from having genuine conversations with our guests.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with fellow nomad, Robyn Robleto.

Robyn is an author, mindset coach, and lifelong questioner, she lives life by the motto of “wake up to start every day” and it’s what led her to leap into the RV lifestyle so many years ago.

Robyn is a lot of things but boring and normal are not one of them. We tend to joke around that Robyn doesn’t fit into any category because she is all them- climber, surfer, runner, entrepreneur, RVer, health nut, yogi, coffee addict, and mother of five. Yes, she is a little crazy. But if that’s what it takes to live a life like hers, then bring it on.

She is persistent and ambitious which has led her to create this nomadic life. In fact, she is so ambitious that you should be careful about mentioning new travel destinations in front of her. When she gets something in her head, it’s going to happen. She has always been an athlete and sports are what push her to lead a healthy, empowered, and A Playful Life.

To find out more about Robyn and her family, check out their website at https://www.nomadswithapurpose.com/.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, Sandy and I talk about our trek from Florida into Louisiana to start my 2024 winter/spring book signing tour.

We left Melbourne on January 2nd to start my first book signing tour of 2024. We drove to Ormond Beach and had dinner with our nephew Daniel and my cousin Debi and her husband, Kenny.

After dinner, we drove to Tallahassee for the night.

We made our way to Lafayette, Louisiana and had dinner with our friends Toni and Junior Arnold.

I had book signings in Alexandria and Bossier City before we headed south again to Lake Charles.

It’s been cold, but we’re still having a great time.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Alexander Inchbald.

Alexander, a Climate Artist and the visionary behind the #Masterpiece Movement is on a profound journey to inspire creation in sync with Mother Nature. His experiences, painting in some of the world's most breathtaking locales, have led him to a revelation: we're not mere spectators in an uncontrollable universe but active architects of our destinies.

Alexander's retreats, spanning from the ethereal landscapes of Wadi Rum, Jordan to the serene beauty of Kyoto, Japan, are more than just events. They're transformative experiences where pioneers, misfits, and visionaries converge to explore the flow of money, health, creativity, and love.

His work with leadership teams, aiding them in articulating and breathing life into their Purpose, has transformed countless corporate landscapes. Having guided over 2,000 leaders to discover their Purpose, Alexander's impact is undeniable. His art, a reflection of his soul, has graced the walls of giants like Tesla and Google.

To find out more about Alexander, check out his website at https://alexander-inchbald.com/.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Aliza Hava.

I was honored to have the incredibly talented singer songwriter, Aliza Hava (“aLEEza Hah-vuh”) on my show. We talk about music, trauma, healing, life, and the state of our world today. Most importantly, we talk about the role in which music can play in our lives to help heal past trauma and help us connect with each other and God.

Ethereal. Enlightening. Medicine for the soul. Aliza Hava interlaces the elements; earth and sky, fire and water. Her transcendent voice is reminiscent of the mystical tone of Stevie Nicks, the raw soul of Janis Joplin, and the gritty wisdom of Brandi Carlile. With her award-winning infusion of folk, rock, pop, and soul, Aliza heals the tiny forgotten bits of ourselves while rekindling our memories, setting our feet on the path back home, and calling us to rise into our best versions of ourselves.

Featured on the soundtrack of Sharon Stone’s award-winning documentary, Femme: Women Healing the World, which also features performances by Annie Lennox, Yoko Ono, and Rickie Lee Jones, Hava is a recipient of the Human Spirit Award presented by the international organization Talent for Humanity. Her story is featured in their book along with seven other internationally acclaimed artist/activists. The original recording of her song RISE can be heard on Occupy this Album: 99 Songs for the 99% alongside artists such as Ani DiFranco, Jackson Browne, and Warren Haynes.

Hava has always sought to relay a message of healing and hope in her music. Seeking solace from a difficult childhood, she turned to music at an early age. Self-taught on a twenty-dollar used guitar, she found inspiration in an old songbook she discovered in her parent’s basement, 'Great Songs of the 60s.' Fire-lit, Hava immersed herself in the history of the 60s and early 70s. The music, culture, and activism helped her discover her calling for healing and ignited a drive to write songs that could change the world.

While in university studying Music Therapy, Aliza developed a strong inclination towards student activism and discovered a natural gift for concert production and community organizing. She began producing charity concerts featuring local bands for campus organizations like Students for a Free Tibet, and led drum circles in the infamous “Tripping Fields” behind the college where some of the greatest names in music once played, including the Grateful Dead, Frank Zappa, and Stevie Ray Vaughan. With her college located just thirty miles from the town of Woodstock, Hava soaked up the culture and spirit that continued to permeate the region many decades later. She collaborated with local musicians, pulled all-nighters with her guitar around campfires, and earned herself the nickname, FireMusicFaerie.

After college, Aliza began performing at and co-producing concerts at the United Nations headquarters in NYC. She earned a position as Chair of the UN International Day of Peace NGO Music Committee and went on to produce live concerts on six continents in partnership with over forty civic society, governmental, and environmental organizations. While living part-time in the Middle East, Hava represented UN-related peacebuilding initiatives and worked with Israeli and Palestinian musicians promoting peace and dialogue through music. She went on to produce the internationally live-streamed concert, Harmony in the Holy Land. This extraordinary event united Muslim, Christian, and Jewish musicians in a universal, musical prayer for peace from the heart of Jerusalem. Watching Palestinians and Israelis meet as strangers and part ways as friends, Aliza felt the reaffirmation of her calling to build bridges through the healing power of music.

Hava has recently finished recording a new album at the iconic Revolver Recording Studios in Thousand Oaks, CA, produced by multi-platinum, Grammy winner Mikal Blue, who is best known for his work with Colbie Callait, Jason Mraz, and OneRepublic. The album is expected in Spring 2024 and features bassist Dean Dinning of Toad the Wet Sprocket as musical arranger and on bass/keys, and Gregg Bissonette (Ringo Starr, Santana) on drums.

Her latest single, When the Children Cry, is a cover of White Lion's soulful ballad, and its message of peace is even more poignant today than it was when originally released in the late 80s. This song resonates through the generations with a message of healing and hope for the children of the world.

In addition to writing her own music, Aliza collaborates with artists and songwriters and is a co-writer on Grammy-Award-winning artist Macy Gray's upcoming EP, produced by Mikal Blue.

Throughout her journeys, Aliza has shared bills with world-class artists such as Dr. John, Michael Franti, Zac Brown Band, Rising Appalachia, and more. She has performed in the U.S., Canada, India, Morocco, Egypt, Italy, Australia, Jordan, Israel, and South Korea.

With an inherent message of peace and universal love, Aliza considers her music and work a form of sacred activism. Her songs embody the power of music to uplift the mind, body, and soul while staying true to the ongoing practice of reclaiming our natural state.

To find out more about Aliza, her story, and her music, check out her website at https://alizahava.com/.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with George Hutton.

George is a certified hypnotist, author and scientist. He received a B.S. in Physics in 1990. He managed a Research and Development Laboratory for a biomedical company for ten years. He has been involved in sales, persuasion, and hypnosis. He has been teaching, coaching and creating hypnosis and NLP based products for over a decade. His Mind Persuasion philosophy is dedicated to NLP, hypnosis and influence. There’s not any aspect of life that can’t be improved with NLP and hypnosis. No matter what you’d like to accomplish in life, NLP can help.

It will help you not only to improve your communication skills, goal setting skills, and skills of influence, but will also help you to conquer any internal blocks, such as fear, anxiety, and indecision.

Once you’ve got some solid “inner game” as well as some solid “outer game” there’s literally nothing in life that you can’t accomplish.

To find out more about George, check out his website at https://mindpersuasion.com/.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Jerry Moyer.

Jerry is one of my friends from back in our old hometown of Berks County, Pennsylvania. He is an author, former professional soccer player, college soccer coach, and current performance coach to top level athletes.

Jerry graduated from Penn State University where he majored in Business and later continued his studies in Sports Management at the University of Maryland. He was a Starter on the PSU Men's Soccer Team and was a Regional All-American, Captain, and MVP during his senior season.

For over 4 decades, Jerry has developed his craft working with athletes of all levels. He's assisted the efforts of a World Champion, Professional Athletes, Collegiate Stars, State Champions and Ambitious Younger Players in a variety of sports.

While assisting Former IBF World Champion Boxer Kermit Cintron, Jerry Wrote and Co-Produced the film 'FIGHT-The Movie', which shared 11 inspirational stories about facing and overcoming adversity. Centered around the life of Kermit Cintron, the film also shared the inspirational stories of Chris Kaag, Kristy Kowal, Adam Taliaferro, Jim Jarrett, Candice Millard and others.

Jerry's debut book TIME TO FLY is an inspiring tale about finding the courage to take flight - shared by 8 unexpected storytellers.

To find out more about Jerry, check out his website at https://jerrymoyer.com/.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Ron Rapaport.

Ron is a two-time Male Breast Cancer survivor, current Lymphedema thriver and Lead Advocate for malebreastcancerhappens.org

Ron also hosts his own podcast titled ITS A WRAP WITH RAP, which is available on all major podcast platforms worldwide. His podcast is ranked by FeedSpot as one of the top 35 "Overcoming Adversity" podcasts in its category from thousands of podcasts on the web ranked by traffic, social media followers and content freshness.

To find out more about Ron and the work he is doing, check out his website at https://www.itsawrapwithrap.com/ or https://malebreastcancerhappens.org/.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I do a monologue that will preview our travels for 2024.

For the first time since we’ve been traveling full-time, we actually know where we’ll be for the entire year.

We departed Melbourne, Florida on January 2nd to embark on a book tour for the first quarter of the year. In January, we’ll be signing throughout Louisiana. February, I have several signings in the Galveston, Texas area. After we leave Galveston, we’ll head north and do book signings in Katy, Midlothian, and Grapevine, Texas during the month of March.

After Texas, we’ll head west to Arizona for the final leg of the book tour with stops in Scottsdale, Tempe, and Buckeye.

To check out our full book signing tour schedule, click here.

From Arizona, we’ll continue to head west to make our first stop in California, where we will doing a volunteer project at the Southern California Railway Museum in Ferris, California from April 21 through May 4.

Once we complete our project, we will tale a tour up the Pacific Coast Highway and Oregon Coast Highway before heading northwest into Great Falls, Montana.

We will meet a small group of our other full-time RV friends in Great Falls on May 30th and begin a 3-1/2-month caravan throughout Alberta, the Northwest Territory, the Yukon, BC, and Alaska.

Once we return the continental United States, we’ll slowing make our may back east to Pennsylvania with stops in Rocky Mountain National Park, Pikes Peak, Chicago, Illinois, and Monroe, Michigan.

We’ll only be in Pennsylvania for about 10 days from November 1-10, and then we’ll head south to spend the remainder of 2024 back in Florida.

Alaska has been on our bucket list since we started traveling, and we’re really looking forward to taking that adventure with some friends.

Cheers to a wonderful and adventurous 2024!

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Brian Anderson.

Brian is a one of a kind and the only fulltime Tick and Lyme disease prevention specialist in the Country. He works as a consultant, a conference speaker, and helps supply outdoor workers and outdoor enthusiasts with unique and cost-effective tick and insect repellants. He has been on numerous podcasts and many outdoor shows over the years. Most people he meets know very little about ticks and are quite fascinated with the things he shares with them. On that note he always has fun because being called "The Tick Terminator" is enough to make anyone smile.

To find out more about Brian, check out his website at https://www.lymetickbughub.com/.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, Sandy and I talk about our trek from Pennsylvania to Florida.

We decided to avoid I-95 this time, so we made our first stop just south of Rehoboth Beach, Delaware at Delaware Seashore State Park. After that, we stopped again at First Landing State Park in Virginia Beach, Virginia.

The rest of the way to Florida, we stopped at a string of awesome Harvest Hosts locations throughout North Carolina, South Carolina, and Georgia.

We were able to grab dinner with my cousin Patty in Orlando before heading to my Aunt Sally’s house in Melbourne.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Darlene Greene.

Darlene is a Health and GHK-CU and Stem Cell Activation Technology Consultant and retired US Navy Commander.

Darlene Greene wants to help you take charge of your own health, get out of pain, improve your energy, increase the quality of your sleep, reduce systemic inflammation, increase mental clarity, improve your nervous system, lower your anxiety, enhance brain functioning, improve cardiovascular functioning, and elevate your GHK-Cu for a host of additional benefits to include increasing your own stem cells, producing growth factors, protect lungs, reset genes to their younger healthier state, repair damaged DNA, inhibit cancer, increase hair growth, improve skin, increase healing, accelerate wound healing, reduce Fibrinogen (top predictor of cardiovascular disease) and more...

Having exhausted IV stem cells, hyperbaric chamber, ozone therapies and more to help her husband with his Early Alzheimer’s, she FINALLY discovered an affordable technology that dramatically improved his symptoms within the first week, without drugs, without a prescription, and without any contra-indications to other treatments or therapeutic modalities.

After experiencing the amazing results for herself, and watching family and friends have their own miracles, Darlene is passionate about sharing this technology with the world. A driving force for her remains, “Why didn’t I know about this two years ago… where would my husband be if we had started using this technology two years ago…and who out there needs to know about this right now?”

When an anesthesiologist says, “This is the most significant medical breakthrough in my lifetime…” and when over 300 Olympic Athletes use the technology in the 2008 Olympics, aren’t you curious as to what it could do for you in addition to making you look and feel younger?

Darlene Greene has over 26 years of experience in executive leadership and senior management positions across diverse industries, including positions such as: Vice President of Strategic Technology Partner at McAfee (Intel), Dean of Culver Girls Academy, Director of Client Services for HyeTech Networks and Security, and Senior Director LifeWave Foundational Cell Activation Technology. During her 20 years of military experience, she earned her MBA and held three Commanding Officer positions, including serving as base commander and overseeing over 1200 personnel. Darlene created the Returning Warrior Weekend Workshop in 2006 to help military members and their spouses reintegrate successfully – a program still supporting military across the country today.

Darlene’s passion today is helping people elevate their GHK-CU peptide to activate their stem cells, repair their DNA, reverse age, and get out of pain through the latest photo biomodulation technology.

To find out more about Darlene and this life-altering patch, check out her website at https://iamreverseaging.com/.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, Sandy and I talk about the last leg of our travels heading back east to Pennsylvania.

All in all, this is a wrap-up of what turned out to be an over 6,000-mile trip that covered 16 states. We had a great time and were able to see old friends and meet new ones, too.

We were able to stay a few days in Rock Cut State Park again before we made our way into Monroe, Michigan for my last book signing of my summer and fall book tour.

We drove from Michigan all the way to DuBois, Pennsylvania so that we could make up to the Elk Country Visitors Center at sunrise to see the Pennsylvania elk herd. It was one of the most amazing things that we have ever witnessed.

We worked in seeing Grace Potter in concert at Penns Peak in Jim Thorpe, Pennsylvania and then made our way to Tobyhanna State Park in the Poconos.

I did another MammothMarch event in Hackettstown, New Jersey before we circled back to Berks County for almost the entire month of October.

We hope you enjoyed traveling along with us virtually.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Alex Sanfilippo.

Alex Sanfilippo is the founder of PodMatch.com, a software that automatically matches podcast guests and hosts for interviews. Alex is also the host of the top-rated podcast, Podcasting Made Simple, and a lead educator in the podcasting industry. Alex's sole focus is to serve independent podcast guests and hosts so they can grow their influence and revenue so they can better serve their listeners!

More importantly, Alex is a man of faith who truly puts service to others, specifically his customers before his bottom line. A view that is very uncommon in today’s version of “me first” capitalism. His model of success is one that other companies should follow. When you truly put customers and reliability of your product, the profit will follow.

Alex is one of those rare genuine humans who cares about his customer’s success more than his own.

I was honored to have him on the show and grateful for the platform that he has developed.

To find out more about Alex, check out his website at https://podpros.com/.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Nikki LaCroce.

Every once in a while, I have the opportunity to have a guest on my show who I seem to have an instant connection with. Nikki was certainly one of those guests. A fellow podcast host, we found common ground immediately and the conversation just flowed.

Raised in the suburbs of Philadelphia, Nikki made a long-awaited move to the west coast in 2017.

It wasn’t long after that Nikki realized relocating was only one of the big changes she needed to make in her life. After spending a decade working in tech, Nikki found herself lacking a sense of fulfillment and made the decision to start therapy in an effort to unearth her purpose.

In early 2021, Nikki experienced what she now refers to as her “personal Armageddon”, as she left a decade long abusive relationship and simultaneously was faced with the unexpected loss of her mother amidst the peak of the pandemic.

Navigating these events and being forced to cope with two very different types of grief at once, Nikki’s perspective on mental health, personal growth, and healing through trauma shifted drastically. Nikki has always felt strongly about the importance of human connection and thanks to a tremendous amount of support from her family, friends and therapist, she made the decision to return to the mic to share her own story in May 2022.

With a year of therapy under her belt and the much-needed introspection that came with it, Nikki became certain that her purpose is to connect with people and decided to create her podcast, Who The F*ck?

To find out more about Nikki LaCroce, check out her website at https://whothefck.com/.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Mindy Aisling.

Mindy Aisling is a professionally trained and board-certified life, authenticity, and entrepreneur coach. is a passionate and dedicated authenticity coach who has made it their mission to empower individuals and inspire transformative change. With a wealth of experience and a deep understanding of human potential, Mindy brings a unique blend of expertise, compassion, and unwavering support to guide clients on their journey toward personal and professional fulfillment.

With over 13 years of experience in the field of personal development, Mindy has honed her skills in helping clients overcome obstacles and unlock their full potential. She have successfully supported individuals from diverse backgrounds in areas such as career transitions, relationship building, self-confidence, mindset transformation, and goal achievement.

Mindy believes in a holistic approach to coaching, recognizing that true transformation encompasses all aspects of life. By combining evidence-based techniques, insightful guidance, and personalized strategies, she creates a safe, non-judgmental, and collaborative environment for clients to explore their desires, challenge self-limiting beliefs, and embrace their true potential.

Known for her empathetic nature and compassionate approach, Mindy deeply understands the challenges and fears individuals face when embarking on a journey of self-discovery and growth. Mindy is committed to providing unwavering support, fostering a sense of trust, and guiding clients through even the most difficult transitions with grace and resilience.

Mindy is the founder of How to Be Human: Vital Skills for an Authentic Life and Entreprenerd: A Leadership & Small Business Community for Nerds Around the World. These programs have enabled her to share her wisdom and knowledge with a broader audience in service of her vision of helping others live authentic lives

To find out more about Mindy, check out her website at https://mindyaisling.com/.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Cory Rosenke.

As an author, pastor, presenter, and tenacious pursuer of truth, Cory Rosenke is both the concept pioneer and the foremost authority on the cravings of the soul. Through session, song, workshop and manuscript, he is dedicated to the pivotal work of connecting hungry souls to the joy of their Maker.

In a world where truth and reality have become shrouded in deceptive ambiguity, Cory Rosenke specializes in reasserting the clarity of Divine definition and design.

To give a better understanding of Cory, I’d like to share an interview that he did with Raymond Reed that I’d like to share here as well…

From a tattered canvas tent staked on the grass beside a remote lake in British Columbia, Canada, to a log cabin perched high above the clouds in the majestic Rocky Mountains, Cory Rosenke spent much of his childhood in the debilitating grip of poverty, isolation, and even homelessness.

“I found my reprieve in exploration,” Cory explained during an interview in January 2023. “As a kid, I would wander the lonely mountain slopes with a walking stick, a book, and my faithful dog. When I found a vantage point that suited my tastes, I would lean against a tree, open my book, and experience the magic of being whisked away into faraway lands and varied perspectives.”

Many of the books that captivated his curious mind were not your typical young readers. At the ages of eleven and twelve, Cory was eagerly exploring Laws and Republic by Plato, Ethics by Aristotle, and Meditations by Marcus Aurelius. “I especially loved, Where I Lived, and What I Lived for, by Henry David Thoreau,” says Cory, “as it seemed to meet me where I was at.” His early teen years found him exploring a new province (Alberta) and embarking on new literary adventures: the diverse works of Sigmund Freud, Edmund Burke, Plutarch, and C. S. Lewis, just to name a few.

“I’m not exactly sure what sparked it all,” Cory said in response to my inquiry, “but from a very early age I wanted to understand why people did the things they did. I especially longed to understand myself. For as long as I can remember, I’ve yearned to identify the deeper why lurking beneath the surface why. Eventually, I found Jesus, and the puzzle pieces finally began to fit together.”

Cory Rosenke’s insatiable curiosity has remained a constant force throughout the ups and downs of living. From a cowboy to a carpenter, a business owner to a small-town pastor; a seminary graduate to a dynamic multi-national teacher, Cory Rosenke’s varied and eclectic life has graced him with a unique and insightful perspective—an innovative voice that pierces the fog of false religion and philosophic dogma.

Now an accomplished author, theologian, and pastor, Cory remains as inquisitive as ever. He currently resides in the San Francisco Bay Area of California (as of 2023), and he spends his days as he always has—reading, writing, exploring, shepherding, and forever watching and wondering.

In closing, I’d like to share a short excerpt from Cory’s book, “The Magnetic Heart of God.”

“It would be a mistake to believe that your soul is mute or passive, that it is merely a fragile passenger, tethered to the flesh and along for the ride. Nothing could be farther from the truth. Frankly, the opposite is our reality. Our souls are bold, insistent, and alive with desire.”

To find out more about Cory, check out his website at https://coryrosenke.com/.

A few weeks ago, I re-released one of my old Stepping Up to the Plate episodes as a tribute to Ali Kreiger and her recent retirement from professional soccer.

In this week’s episode, I will again reach into the archives of the old Stepping Up to the Plate podcast series and re-release two episodes that I did with a dear friend and mentor, Russ Herbein.

Russ lost his battle with cancer on Thanksgiving Day.

He and I were the co-founders of the Spring-Lawn Optimist Baseball League, which served as the spring board to the formation of the Berkshire Baseball & Softball Club.

These episodes were originally recorded in January of 2014, just before Berkshire Baseball & Softball Club rebranded into the BIG Vision Foundation. The episodes were hosted by my old producer, Toni Reece. We talk about how some conversations at work led to an organization that at that time had made an amazing impact on its community for over 25 years.

I wanted to re-release these episodes in order to emphasize Russ’s legacy and selfishly as a way for me and others who loved him, to hear his voice again.

Russ was the type of person who always saw potential in people that they didn’t see in themselves.

For me personally, he convinced me to speak publicly for the first time and encouraged me to enter into leadership positions as a very young man. Something that I really didn’t think that I was qualified for, yet he believed in me and encouraged me to take the leap. Before I was 25 years old, I served as both a club president and Lieutenant Governor within Optimist International. I never would have entered into those roles if it wasn’t for Russ believing in me and seeing potential that I didn’t know existed within myself.

I hope my listeners enjoy this episode and get an understanding of the amazing human that Russ was.

To Russ, Rest in Peace, my friend, we’ll see you on the other side.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Ingo Schulmeyer.

Ingo is a free spirit as well as a transformational health & life coach.

He left his corporate career as a director in semiconductor industry in order to find his own inner peace and help others find theirs. That leap led him to start a new life with his family in Mexico.

Through his coaching program, he helps people make fundamental changes in order to develop a healthy, happy and energetic life.

Additionally, he is a six-time Ironman finisher, including the World Championships in Hawaii.

He is an adventurer, and a happy family father of two.

To find out more about Ingo, check out his website at https://thesmallreset.org/.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Daniel Packard.

Daniel is a U.C. Berkeley Mechanical Engineer and Anxiety Solution Pioneer whose research company engineered world's only permanent anxiety solution program where you only pay at the end of the program, once you have clear, measurable results.

Daniel's passion for inventing and results came from his father. As a child growing up in Berkeley, CA, Daniel's father (who was a scientist and inventor) told 10-year-old Daniel two things that stuck with him for the rest of his life. His dad told him 'If something isn't working, invent something better.' And 'If you want to really make people's lives better...results matter.'

After, staying in an abusive relationship too long, Daniel ended up with severe anxiety and PSTD. After spending 10 years and $100,000 trying solve his anxiety he learned that a trillion dollars is spent globally on mental health, but not getting people in pain permanent results. Remembering what his dad told him, that 'results matter' and because he was trained in engineering school to know how to engineer solutions to complex problems, Daniel took a stand against the mental health industry and started his own research company with the goal to see if it was possible to reverse engineer a process from scratch that could solve anxiety permanently in a short period of time.

Daniel and his team were not therapists or doctors or psychologists. They were not traditional experts, they were outsiders. Because they were outsiders, they were open to discovering what the experts had missed. Daniel and his team made the huge breakthrough discovery that even though the experts say anxiety is a problem of the mind, the research revealed anxiety is actually a problem of the body.

Based on this discovery Daniel and his team spent a total of 8 years, working with over 3000 people (from 5 continents) to develop, test and perfect an innovative 6-week program that in just 6 weeks solves all forms of anxiety permanently with an industry leading 90% success rate.

This 6-week program called Nervous System Reset has helped hundreds of individual clients but also over 3000 people at over 300 companies and universities all over the world.

Including the South African government which asked to make Nervous System Reset a part of the national mental health curriculum.

Based in his mission to take a stand against the mental health industry which takes people’s money and doesn’t deliver permanent results, people who join Nervous System Reset only pay at the end of the process once they have clear, measurable permanent results.

Daniel’s company is the only one in the world to offer a permanent anxiety solution with backed up results. This is because Daniel passionately believes what his dad told him years ago, which is that if you really want to make people's lives better...results matter.

To find out more about Daniel, check out his website at https://danielpackard.com/.

I decided to take a little different approach in this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast.

As many of my listeners know, I started my podcasting journey in 2012, with my very first episode officially being released on January 28, 2013. The show was called, “Stepping Up to the Plate.” It told the stories of Berkshire Baseball and BIG Vision Foundation, the nonprofit youth sports organization that I founded and ran for 30 years of my life before Sandy and I started this new chapter of traveling full-time in our RV.

The show ran for 267 episodes, with the final farewell episode airing on January 28, 2020. About a month later, on February 25, 2020, I released the premier episode of the “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast.

During my Stepping Up to the Plate days, I was blessed with the opportunity to interview some amazing people. Some of our amazing alumni, staff and sponsors, but also some former MLB players, MVP’s, World Series champions, All-Stars as well as former Olympic softball gold medalists and a women’s world cup champion in soccer.

Today I want to focus on that one women’s world cup champion in soccer, who I was not only blessed to interview twice, but also work by her side organizing and running soccer camps for a short time. Ali Krieger recently retired from a long and storied career in women’s soccer. At the International level, she was an Olympian and two-time Women’s World Cup Champion, who earned 108 caps on USWNT. At the club level, she played in Germany and Sweden as well a in the United States in both the W-League and the NWSL. She played for the Washington Spirit, Orlando Pride and NJ/NY Gotham FC in the NWSL.

However, the Ali Krieger that I came to know was so much more than just an incredibly talented soccer player. She was one of the most humble and genuine human beings that I ever met. She has a strong desire to use her platform to be a positive role model and give back to the next generation.

So, with that being said, I wanted to share with the listeners of the Journey of My Mother’s Son, the two interviews that I had conducted with Ali during my Stepping Up to the Plate days with BIG Vision Foundation.

Whether you’re a soccer fan or not, I am sure that you are going to find great value and inspiration in my conversations with Ali.

I hope to have her as a true guest on this show someday soon now that her playing career has come to an end.

I wish Ali nothing but the best in her future endeavors.

To find out more about Ali, check out her website at https://www.alikrieger.com/.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Chris Miles.

Chris Miles started down the financial advisor path, but soon realized that his clients had NO hope of financial freedom investing in 401k's and other mutual funds.

Chris left the industry to become a passive real estate investor and was able to retire when he was only 28 years old. Since then, he has diligently taught hundreds to do the same thing he's done - become "work optional" where you have enough passive income to work by choice.

Chris, who is a Cash Flow Expert and Anti-Financial Advisor, is a leading authority teaching entrepreneurs and professionals how to get their money working for them TODAY!

He’s an author, podcast host of the Money Ripples Podcast, has been featured in US News, CNN Money, Entrepreneurs on Fire, BiggerPockets, and has a proven reputation with his company, Money Ripples for getting his clients outstanding financial results.

In fact, his personal clients have increased their cash flow by $300+ million in the last 13 years!

To find out more about Chris, check out his website at https://moneyripples.com/.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, Sandy and I talk about our travels heading back east.

On our way headed east we spent some time in Cheyenne and Fort Laramie, Wyoming as well as Hill City and Hot Springs, South Dakota before heading into Nebraska for the first time.

We were only in Nebraska for a few days, but we were able to visit Carhenge, Scotts Bluff, and Pioneer Village. All of those spots were very cool.

We wrap up this episode talking about my book signing at the Field of Dreams movie site in Iowa.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with April Moss.

April is the Chief Operating officer of DigiBuild.

She is a market and retail strategy expert with more than 20 years of experience developing sales teams with some of the largest global companies, including Procter & Gamble and Starbucks. It was at Procter & Gamble where April met Rob Salvador. April and Rob went on to start DigiBuild.

Prior to starting her career with P&G, she worked for the Construction Specification Institute in Washington D.C., fueling her interest in real estate development.

One of April’s passions is to make sure that as DigiBuild works to improve the construction process that it helps to relieve the burden on construction people and their families along the way.

April’s expertise and success in building teams comes from a philosophy of servant leadership, which we talk about in detail throughout the episode.

To find out more about April and what she is doing today, check out the DigiBuild website at https://digibuild.com/.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, Sandy and I talk about the last leg of our Colorado tour.

I had book signings in Aurora, Boulder, and Fort Collins.

We slept at a drive-in movie theatre, a grocery store parking lot, a fairgrounds campground, and of course, a couple of KOA campgrounds.

We stayed in Central City for a week in between Aurora and Boulder.

We finished up our Colorado tour in Fort Collins where we met some new friends and were able to reconnect with one of my old players, Chad Whitmoyer.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with John Noltner.

John has spent his career learning how to ask better questions, connect deeply across difference and share stories to bridge divides and build community. He and his wife sold their house in October of 2020, bought an RV and are traveling the country interviewing people who are finding creative solutions to our most challenging issues.

A Peace of My Mind is a multimedia arts project that uses portraits and personal stories to bridge divides and encourage dialogue around important issues. Through exhibits, workshops, lectures, on-site studios, and distance learning, A Peace of My Mind leads transformative experiences that help a polarized world rediscover the common humanity that connects us.

A gifted storyteller, Noltner has worked on four continents, gathering stories of human courage, grace, and resilience. He has produced projects for national magazines, Fortune 500 companies, and non-profit organizations. A Peace of My Mind reflects his belief that art and storytelling can help individuals, organizations and communities articulate their deepest values and encourage action toward building social capital and community connections.

To find out more about John, check out his website at https://apomm.net/.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, Sandy and I talk about our travels throughout the beautiful state of Colorado.

We spent a little over a week in Durango at my cousin, Becky, and her husband Bill’s house. While in Durango, we took a tour on the Durango to Silverton train, spent time on the lake, and took in a chuck wagon dinner.

After Durango, we took the Million Dollar Highway into Montrose. We spent a couple of days in Montrose. We stayed with our friends Trina and Tara O’Brien and then explored the Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park.

Following Montrose, we continued north to Grand Junction. Working around my book signing schedule, we were able to check out the Colorado National Monument Park.

We wrap up the episode talking about our time at Rifle Gap and Rifle Falls State Parks before spending a day relaxing in the hot springs at Iron Mountain Hot Springs in Glenwood Springs.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Rebecca Whitman.

Rebecca is a Life Coach, Podcaster and Author. She was recently selected as Top Life Coach of the Year for 2022 by the International Association of Top Professionals (IAOTP).

Rebecca transforms women from burned out to balanced, beautiful, and abundant through her 7 Pillars of Abundance. She mentors burned out women to leave toxic relationships and magnetize their soul mate at any stage of life.

She is the creator of the 6 Figure Side Hustle program helping women to exit from unfulfilling jobs to a profitable purpose.

She is a bestselling author of three books on business mindset & award-winning Host of the Balanced, Beautiful & Abundant podcast.

Rebecca considers herself the Magnetic Abundance Mentor, a graduate with honors from Princeton University.

She helps people achieve balance within these seven areas so they can experience more fun and freedom in life!

She is a newlywed who manifested her soulmate, living happily ever after in Venice, California with their black lab-Indigo.

To find out more about Rebecca, check out her LinkTree at https://linktr.ee/rebeccaewhitman.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Karen Rudolf.

Karen was a career woman with great passion and enthusiasm for her job. This had led her to not only solve the problems she encountered during her job but also research on the lead cause of these problems.

‌Her zeal in researching the root cause of different symptoms she came across exposed her to a great burnout, while she also went through a divorce.

‌Having gone through something as huge as a divorce, which has re-shaped her to a state of self-evaluation, Karen decided to take a step back and reevaluate her life.

‌During this time, Karen studied world religion and discovered that compassion was a common thread among different religions. She also realized the significance of self-worth with the aid of courses in communication and coaching, as she navigated her divorce and fought for herself and her children in court.

‌Karen shares the importance of being bold and courageous with particular reference to her past life when she lacked self-confidence and battled low self-esteem.

‌Karen also talks about overcoming challenges, where she shared the story of her 72-year-old Mom, whose painting work lacked attention until it got its best audience from her doctor and nurses as she took them along for her medical checkups. Karen further shares personal experience of facing challenges and choosing not to give up.

‌Karen exposes how our bodies communicate with us and how listening is essential for self-ease. She also exposes the culture of taking a step at a time and shifting perceptions in overcoming challenges.

‌Effective communication, self-reflection and giving up ego-driven stories are key to Karen’s work, as she aims is to empower individuals to live peaceful and fulfilled lives.

‌She shares her belief in positive affirmation and harnessing the power of the mind as ways of healing oneself. She further shares the inter-relatedness of intuition, empathy, and effective communication.

She emphasizes the wholistic approach of considering mental, emotional, physical, and spiritual aspects in their work.

This journey was not just about self-re-evaluation, but about sharing her personal experience, spiritual growth, and need for effective communication. This led her to write the book - “Lead Magnet” while she also been featured in other books

And now she's on a Mission to empowering other people to live a peaceful and fulfilled life.

Karen is a 3X Best-selling Author - Her works include

1. Ignite the Entrepreneur

2. Wickedly Smart Women

3. 5 Ways to Create a Ripple

She has a unique technique called the Reengineering of Human Perception.

To find out more about Karen, check out her website at https://tranquilsoulutions.com/.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with fellow author, Nicole Brown.

Nicole is an author of 15 books and counting. She is a certified K-12 teacher in Louisiana, Tennessee, Missouri, and Mississippi. She holds certifications in the following subject areas: Chemistry, Physics, General Science, Early Childhood (PK-3), Vocal Music, and Reading. She is also a member of Zeta Phi Beta, Sorority Inc. She holds a B.S., in Chemistry Education from the University of Louisiana-Monroe, a MEd in Reading Education from Alcorn State University and an EdS in Educational Leadership from Delta State University. Nicole recently served an elementary music teacher for 9 years in Baton Rouge, Louisiana (2 years) and in Vicksburg, Mississippi (7 years).

Nicole currently resides in her hometown, Monroe, Louisiana.

To find out more about Nicole, check out her website at https://authornicolesbrown.yolasite.com/.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with June K. Collins.

June K. Collins is a Master NLP Practitioner and Coach. In 2012, she lost her son, Kaleb, and found herself hitting rock bottom and not understanding how to rebuild her life without Kaleb in it. During this time, she found a passion with the mind and how individuals react to trauma. Through her own experience and education, she now helps other women rebuild and find purpose in their life.

June K. Collins wrote a book detailing her experiences with child loss and the demons she faced. She wrote Momma, You Don't Heal to help other women to realize they are not alone and to help them begin the initial steps to rebuild their own life with purpose.

Momma, You Don't Heal was released on June 16, 2023, her 12th birthday after the loss of her son, Kaleb.

To find out more about June, check out her website at https://theserenitydreamer.com/.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Liam Brown.

Liam Brown is a seasoned esports executive who brings a wealth of knowledge and expertise to any podcast. With a background in player recruitment, management, sponsorships, and brand building, Liam has a deep understanding of the competitive esports landscape. His insights and strategies are invaluable to both fans and commercial professionals looking to break into the rapidly growing esports market. As a podcast guest, Liam is engaging and insightful, and is sure to take your show to the next level.

As a Corporate Partnerships Manager for Knights Esports Group, Liam is a leading authority on competitive gaming, event management, league organization, and technology development. Unlike many in the gaming industry, Liam chose the traditional path of pursuing higher education, attending the University of Pittsburgh straight out of high school. During his senior year, he discovered his passion for leveraging gaming as a means of bringing people together, particularly during the pandemic. Liam joined the Knights immediately after graduation, bringing a unique perspective on the future of gaming, including its potential impact on education, health, and artificial intelligence. He excels at building bridges between brands, gamers, fans, and influencers, and is available to share his expert insights on the ways in which gaming and esports will shape the future of industry and society.

To find out more about Liam, The Knights, or what they do, check out his website at https://knights.gg/.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Jason Curtis.

Jason left the British army in 2015 after serving 6-years as an army physical training instructor. He had no savings but was extremely driven to succeed within the civilian fitness industry.

The initial 6-months after leaving the armed forces were financially the hardest, he had ever experienced. Yet, the thought of failing was terrifying to him.

Things were really slow to start. However, he realized early on that many seemingly average individuals were part-time Weightlifters, Powerlifters and Ultra-Athletes, and these people wanted expertise. So, he took the approach of “Bringing Strength and Conditioning to the Masses.”

He applied this approach to the sessions he ran and the content he created, and within 18 months, he opened his own strength and conditioning gym and gained a publishing deal for his first book, which became a bestseller on Amazon.

He still spends over 50 hours in the gym each week and has an ever-growing publishing schedule. However, he also dedicates time to his online academy and other ventures, such as delivering workshops internationally and mentoring fitness professionals and athletes online.

To find out more about Jason, check out his website at www.jasoncurtis.org.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, Sandy and I talk about our first experience with the Rocky Mountains.

We entered Colorado from the east taking US Route 40 out of Kansas. As we traveled across the Eastern Plains of Colorado and could slowly see the Rocky Mountains growing larger on the horizon, we were all left in awe of the beauty.

We spent five days in Colorado Springs, where I had my first book signing for the tour that would have us in Colorado for over a month. We had a great time in Colorado Springs, but left with a very large list of things that we need to go back to see.

After Colorado Springs, we explored the Great Sand Dunes and spent three days in Alamosa before heading to Durango for a little over a week.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Stacie Shifflett.

Stacie is the founder of Modern Consciousness® & Modern Consciousness Coach™

She is also:

· Three-time International Bestselling Author

· Certified ThetaHealer®

· Certified Free-mE Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT) Practitioner™

· Master Practitioner of Neuro-linguistic Programming

· Professional Neuro-Shine Technology Coach™

· Certified High Performance Coach™

She is an entrepreneur, writer and proficient student of life blessed with the gifts of insight, grit and optimism.

She is also a ‘practicalist.’ It’s in her nature. Always has been.

What is that? A practicalist is a person who is devoted to, or advocates for what is practical as opposed to what is theoretical. In other words, a pragmatist. This means that she deals with problems and situations – in a way that focuses on sensible approaches and meaningful solutions.

How did Stacie’s life evolve to create Modern Consciousness?

In 2012, a life-changing event propelled her forward on a personal journey of deep healing and self-discovery. Her goals? To gain a better understanding of the human condition in general and, even more importantly, to determine how her mindset and beliefs, two things that profoundly affect every aspect of our lives, were influencing her life. The life that she had known for the previous 28 years had been upended and she had two choices: remain on auto-pilot and leave her future to chance or deliberately create a future that she desired. She chose the latter.

Since that time, Stacie has studied with many people on a wide range of topics, from traditional coaching to energetic healing, from neuroscience to spirituality. This journey ignited a desire within her to create a better world one person at a time and, through a series of what she can only call Divine guidance and synchronicities, Modern Consciousness™ was born.

To find out more about Stacie, check out her website at https://modernconsciousness.com/.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Dave Letterfly.

As a traveling artist, Dave Letterfly is the top producer of old school pinstriping, hand-painted lettering, gold leaf inscriptions and airbrushed imagery on motorcycles, hot rods, guitars, cake mixers and even top-shelf motorhomes. Writing fills every available moment.

Dave is quick to point out that everyone’s mixture of life’s challenges is divinely choreographed to help us discover our true purpose. Read on to find inspiration to overcome the obstacles of your life that really are the gifts that bring about one's greatest transformation.

“The smartest thing I ever did was run away and join the circus”

The artist/author Dave Letterfly Knoderer is not only the guru of living an interesting life but is also an inspirational speaker ready to take you behind the scenes of the fascinating places discovered along the road of his life.

Today “Have brush will travel” is the top producer of old school pinstriping, traditional brush-painted pin-up girls, pictorials, hand-painted lettering, gold leaf inscriptions, pet portrayals, portraits and custom images of all kinds on motorcycles, hot rods, guitars, cake mixers, and other modes of moving fast at customer-dedicated Harley-Davidson motorcycle dealerships between Philadelphia and Chicago each summer. The Letterfly Pinstriping route is posted on a blog; Travelog.Letterfly.com so you can find out when the artist is going to be near you.

Perhaps the most amazing feature of this artist is his uncanny ability to visualize, develop and create images that have never been done before, along with the wide variety of styles of pinline designs, his oneness with eagles, wolves, horses, feathers, flames, military logos and countless other icons that make up the mainstay of his work.

The delicate nature of the hand painted pinline design is the result of years of practice and developing finesse with the ungainly, specialized brush. The creation of each motif is an exercise in good-natured meditation where the process becomes like play and the artist opens himself up to possibilities as each stroke occurs, only to discover the visual destination as the last connecting stroke is made.

During the winter months, extensive paint jobs and the fabrication of an endless variety of interesting things takes place at his home/studio/workshop called ArtPark, in Florida. Lush garden pathways connect the shop, studio, RV parking and gallery situated in a quiet oak hammock that is a haven for creativity and a destination for RVers and bikers alike.

To find out more about Dave, check out his website at https://letterfly.com/.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, Sandy and I talk about our trip through Missouri and Kansas as we slowly make our way to the Rocky Mountains.

As slowly made our way across the country toward the Rocky Mountains, we made the most out of our trip.

We made stops in St. Louis, Branson, Kansas City, Topeka, Ellis, Oakley, Goodland, and made sure to hit the highest point in Kansas with a short visit to Mount Sunflower.

The road trip was filled with BBQ, baseball, showboats, sunflowers, and featured a Van Gogh on the World’s Largest Easel.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with my old friend, Anne Desjardins.

Anne’s story is one that has taken her from a place of hopelessness and despair to one of hope, healing, and the strong desire to help others.

Anne’s dream is to provide a place of healing and hope for those recovering from Lyme, and tick-born illnesses. She struggled to find out what was going wrong with her body for seven years, before she got a true diagnosis. She has healed herself from Lyme disease, bartonella, anaplasmosis, cytomegalovrius, elevated levels of Epstein Barr virus, HPV and cervical dysplasia that was nearly cancerous. She did her best to utilize Western medicine, but found greater success when combining it, or completely going outside of it with Eastern medicine, Herbs, and energy work.

As a result of this, she has invested herself in studying to become an Ayurvedic practitioner, a Reiki practitioner, Theta, energy healer, chirologist, and a connector of many healing ideas for people that need them. She has tried many different things to help heal her own body over the last decade. She is very happy to be healthy and whole, and to be able to share these concepts with you. Finding our way back into health is certainly possible, it just takes finding the right combination for yourself. Let Anne help guide you on this journey.

To find out more about Anne, check out her website at https://www.thesilverlyming.com/.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with JJ Barrows.

JJ is comedian, author, artist, and storyteller.

Being the middle child of a preacher's family in the South, she always felt a little different, a little left out, and a little confused as to who she was "supposed" to be.

She would find out that she is a little funny, a little deep, and a lot more loved than she knew. Now, that's what she wants for other people...to know themselves, love themselves and in turn extend that love to others.

She has found that using laughter is the best way to connect us all...no matter how different, we're all awkwardly human just trying to do life.

She is a comedian and storyteller in many forms...through the written and spoken word, visual art, and video editing - all intertwined with the realities of life and the humor to get through it.

To find out more about JJ, check out her website at https://jjbarrows.com/.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Tara & Trina O’Brien.

Trina and Tara O’Brien are partners in life and business. Moms of boy/girl twins, together they’ve created Power Mom. They are educators, coaches, speakers, health and wellness enthusiasts, and “all things” sports lovers. Using the Power Mom 4 Power Components, they empower moms to be strong and confident . . . all without mom guilt.

Trina grew up in Southern California while, Tara was born and raised in Long Island, NY. From the fields of AYSO in Southern California and her team, Orange Crush, to the Shooting Stars of Plainview, Old Bethpage Soccer Club, at young ages, both Trina and Tara fell in love with soccer. West coast met East coast in South Florida, where both played collegiate soccer and, years later, became a couple. In soccer terms, they joke Tara is the power while Trina is the finesse, the perfect combination for success.

Tara played Division 1 Soccer in Boca Raton, Florida, at Florida Atlantic University. Over the course of her four years, she proved her skills as a strong forward by being her team’s leading scorer. She received a Master’s in Leadership, utilizing these strengths while working with Fortune 500 companies.

She is also a nationally certified massage therapist and wellness coach.

Trina played Division 2 soccer in Boca Raton, Florida, at Lynn University. Over her three years there, she and her team won a national championship and made two Final Four appearances. She received her Master’s in Sports Management, is a nationally certified massage therapist, and is a wellness coach.

Her experience working within the natural health industry and the events industry fuels Trina’s love for healthy living, growing relationships, and entrepreneurial spirit.

They now reside in Montrose, Colorado, their little piece of heaven. Together with the twins, they enjoy outdoor adventures, Jeep rides, RVing, Mexican food, and spending time with their dogs. While they both love mowing the lawn, Tara dislikes surprises, while Trina thinks surprises are fun. And as for superpowers? Well, Tara would like to be invisible, while Trina would like to transform Tara from invisible to visible.

Power and Finesse at its best.

Trina and Tara have just published a new book and are offering a free eBook version to my listeners. To take advantage of this generous offer, click on the link below:
https://www.crushmomguilt.com/ebook

To find out more about what Trina and Tara do with their Power Mom coaching, check out their website at https://www.powermom.co/.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Juliet Rose.

By the time she was ten years old Juliet Rose knew she wanted to be a writer. She entertained neighborhood kids with her stories after school and with the support of her mother got her first typewriter. Life had other plans and after the death of her mother when Juliet was eleven, she put those dreams on hold. Over the decades she has picked up the proverbial pen time and again, writing about her life experiences including the cancer diagnosis and subsequent passing of her four-year-old daughter.

Focusing on fiction currently, she is driven to bring to life characters from many walks of life and the struggles faced in modern society. Her writing style is open and fluid, giving the characters the ability to shine as the truth of their own story. Her works are honest and sometimes brutally painful but in the end her characters are given the voice which needs to be heard.

Juliet is a New York native living in the mountains of Georgia. She has lived all over the United States and Mexico and doesn’t plan to stop seeing the world beyond her front door step. She spends her time rescuing animals, painting and writing. Her dream is to get an RV to explore hidden gems and find the best vegan restaurants.

To find out more about Juliet, check out her website at https://www.authorjulietrose.com/.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, Sandy and I sit down and talk about our time in Virginia and West Virginia.

As we slowly make our trek west to Colorado, we’re making the most out of our journey.

We spent four days in Chincoteague Island in Virginia with our daughter, Stephanie and granddaughter, Lillian. We spent time on the beach, in the pool, and saw some wild horses.

After Chincoteague, we went to Harpers Ferry, West Virginia to start a week-long stay in West Virginia. We were in Harpers Ferry for five days. We then spent three days at Coopers Rock State Forest, before capping off our stay in West Virginia with two days at the New River Gorge National Preserve.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Erin Gray.

Erin was the classic overachiever and over-worker up until four years ago when she determined it was to generate a life well lived for herself and others.

Empowering others with their money while helping them live a life that is in alignment with who they truly are (using Human Design and focusing on Generators, play and travel), not who they think they should be.

Money is a passion of Erin’s. She is a former CFP® and had 10 years of running her family’s construction business. Even though she had accomplished all the things and checked all of the boxes that society told should be checked, she was still left feeling unfulfilled and frustrated. She decided she wanted to live a life that was in the moment and not wait until retirement life. Her and her family sold their two houses, moved to Maui and now travel while she is building the global community of Generate a Life Well Lived.

Generate A Life Well Lived is for people (Generators) that are ready to say yes to themselves while living the life they truly want, empower themselves with their money, play and travel more and stop compromising themselves.

To find out more about Erin, check out her website at https://generatealifewelllived.com/.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Vince Burruano.

Vince Burruano is an independent consultant who focuses on training sales professionals. He believes learning and growth are the key to success at both the individual and team levels.

He is also the author of “A Daily Dose of Sales Wisdom” and “The New Sales Professional’s Playbook” and is a member of the Forbes Business Development Council.

He has an MBA from The George Washington University and a Bachelor of Philosophy from the Catholic University of America.

Vince is an avid reader and enjoys volunteering his time to his community. He has served as a first responder and firefighter, a football and baseball coach, and as a board member for various professional associations and charitable organizations. He relishes his role as a father and grandfather, and lives in Mount Pleasant, South Carolina with wife, Elizabeth.

To find out more about Vince, check out his website at https://www.practical-sales-wisdom.com/.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with my beautiful wife, Sandy and do a more in-depth recap of our trip to Niagara Falls.

It was a great experience for all of us. Youk enjoyed exploring the falls and meeting so many new people. Everyday Sandy and I thank God that we made the decision to get off the hamster wheel and out of the rat race and really start living a life of freedom.

We hope that those who follow us will understand the importance of truly living life as opposed to simply existing.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with my beautiful wife, Sandy and do a quick recap of our trip to Niagara Falls.

This is really just a quick teaser for next weeks episode, where we will go into much more detail about all of the amazing things that we experienced.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Emanuel Rose.

Emanuel is the author of the new children’s book series, Wenaha Henry.

Wenaha Henry Seeds to a Tree is a truly lyrical and spirited tale that takes children on a beautiful tour of nature, coupled with vibrant illustrations and impactful storytelling that shows the unbreakable bond between nature and the creatures who live within its glory.

Wenaha Henry guides children through the Wenaha mountains and rivers, teaching them about:

Compassion
The ecosystem
The importance of family
The value of generational storytelling

How our actions, both good and bad, intentional or unintentional, can have an impact on those around us.

Wenaha Henry Seeds to a Tree is a must-read, making it the perfect gift for parents, grandparents, and family members of children who are called to the beauty of nature, and for teachers and librarians looking to engage all of their preschool and kindergarten nature-lovers and potential nature-lovers.

Each book comes packaged with the gift of Douglas fir tree seeds and planting instructions; a list of organizations that readers can explore supporting in their efforts to leave the world a better place than they found it.

Emanuel Rose was born and raised on the West Coast of the United States. He has spent over three decades earning a reputation in cutting edge marketing. A renowned expert in the field, Emanuel specializes in branding, advertising, and day to day operations at his digital agency, Strategic eMarketing. His passion lies in helping companies achieve business success from the bottom to the top. Emanuel's unique approach to marketing strategies has resulted in countless clients reaching their goals.

Emanuel enjoys learning his craft and implementing new techniques and theories for his clients, not only in his home state of Oregon, but around the world. Together with his hand selected staff, Emanuel creates opportunities while solving challenges in the ever-changing digital landscape. He is a firm believer in using his personal experiences to help others and this dedication continues to impress.

Not to be outdone on the digital battlefields, Emanuel is an avid outdoorsman. He feels connected to the planet wandering the towering forests or absorbing the energy pouring in from the ocean. His childhood fantasy of discovering those special wild places translates to his writings.

The freedom and joy in exploring the natural world is a welcome addition to his life.

To find out more about Emanuel, check out his website at https://strategicadventuremarketing.com/.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Jeff Butorac.

Jeff grew up playing tennis and basketball. He went on to play collegiate tennis at Saint John's University. He coached multiple years of high school tennis and was a club teaching professional for over a decade.

Jeff is also a former NCAA men's and women's basketball coach, along with coaching six years of boy's high school basketball. While coaching basketball in Arkansas, he received his Master of Science in Kinesiology and Coaching.

After anxiety forced him to step away from coaching basketball, Jeff dedicated his time to helping athletes, performers, coaches, and organization to Silence their Inner Rivals.

Do you deal with negative self-talk?

Does that voice hold you back from trying something new or going after your goals?

Do you experience fear or anxiety when preparing for your game or event?

Do you feel unable to perform at your peak because you can’t stop the mindless loop of negative chatter in your head?

That’s your Inner Rival at work, and it's the one thing keeping you from everything you want to achieve.

Jeff absolutely loved coaching basketball. He spent over a decade coaching high school and NCAA basketball…until the anxiety he had developed while coaching had turned into panic attacks that he couldn’t control and forced him to step away from the profession he loved and built his life around. Jeff knew that he couldn’t be the only athlete or coach that had this happen to him, so out of a desperate need for inner calm and direction, he started committing his time to learning everything he could about strengthening the mindset, resilience, fear of failure, confidence, willpower, and so much more.

Through his studies, Jeff learned that he, along with everyone else, has the ability to control the voice in their head (their Inner Rival) that so often is negative and holding them back from reaching their potential.

In his recently published book, Inner-Rival: Silence the Negativity Within, Jeff Butorac details the mindset solutions and emotional regulation necessary to mute the enemy within. It shows you how to take control and Silence your Inner Rival. You'll find new ways to perform to your potential and enjoy peace of mind no matter the stakes. Jeff has put together numerous resources to prepare you for whatever battles are ahead. These simple yet actionable tools can be used daily by anyone looking for more inner calm and outer strength.

To find out more about Jeff, check out his website at https://www.inner-rival.com/.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Rachel King.

Rachel is a serial entrepreneur starting at the age of 12. This work ethic and drive at an early age led to 7 years of military service. Utilizing the disciplined skills, she moved forward owning multiple businesses and acquired the desire to continue expanding her talents. The passion for Law was instilled in her from birth from her father’s law career, so she followed in his footsteps opening her law firm in 2014. The combination of entrepreneurship, discipline training and the understanding of law allows her to be the rising leader for California, Arizona, Texas, and Kentucky with her firm specializing in business law, family law, estate law, real estate law and growing. Alongside her impressive career she is a proud wife and mother and loved by her community for her continued service in.

To find out more about Rachel, check out her website at www.thelawyerking.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Bridget Norris.

Bridgit is a game-changing Leadership Coach who uses a conscious and ethical approach to help her clients achieve success in both their businesses and personal lives. She is known for her straight-talking, no-nonsense approach and her weekly community "THE REVOLT WEEKLY" which serves as a support group for rule-breaking individuals looking for inspiration, guidance, and real talk. Bridgit is a leader of a revolution and her community is filled with like-minded individuals ready to break free and create something extraordinary.

To find out more about Bridget, check out her website at www.BridgetNorris.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Erin Whalen.

Erin Whalen is the Founder of Compassionate Coaching, which guides teams in the helping profession, especially bereavement professionals, to get through their days with more ease.

The impact Compassionate Coaching wants to have on the world is the following:

· To restore dignity to the grieving and the dying,

· and to help them feel seen and heard,

· by filling the cups of, and providing communication tools to, those who serve them.

Erin firmly believes that her life, so far, has led her to this place and this business. She has her own stories of grief, as we all do. For Erin, coming to terms with her life-long anticipatory grief has been quite a journey. The youngest of 4 children, she was born into a family where her older sister had a very severe disability. Erin knew that she would outlive her sister.

In 2016, her sister died, and in 2020, Erin founded Compassionate Coaching, though it still took over a year to find her focus.

Now, she uses her background as an Actor, Trainer, Facilitator, Role Player, and Playback Theatre Practitioner to design and implement Compassionate Coaching's offerings. She specializes in providing safe spaces for teams and individuals to learn and grow through highly interactive modalities.

To find out more about Erin, check out her website at https://www.compassionatecoaching.org/.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Steve Gamlin.

Now in his 18th year as The Motivational Firewood™ Guy, Steve Gamlin shares his back-to-basics blend of positivity and humor with corporate and conference audiences around the country. Drawing from a decade in the radio industry, 7 years of stand-up comedy and a 30+ year personal development journey, Steve teaches his clients to ‘SEE’ their desired outcomes, understand their ‘WHY’...then build Action Plans to achieve them, utilizing his Vision Board Mastery program as well as live (and virtual) events.

What qualifies Steve to speak on Visualization, Vision Boards, Positivity, Motivation, Humor and 'Life Comebacks'?

Simple: HE LIVED IT.

After blowing up his life (radio career, 1st marriage and financial stability) at age 35, Steve rose from the ashes (although he swears 'his' phoenix rides a pogo stick) to become a motivational speaker, stand-up comedian, author and more...inspired by 2 simple questions from a coach...after Steve spent an afternoon hitting golf balls in a thunderstorm, daring the lightning to hit him.

It didn't, by the way...

To find out more about Steve, check out his website at https://stevegamlin.com/.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Pam Sherman.

Pam has been in the fitness and wellness world for over 24 years as a group exercise instructor and trainer, running coach and food coach.

She wants to help women feel amazing in their own skin, learn how to eat for their health and weight loss and move for lifelong wellness.

Her tagline is Your Health is Your Wealth!

She's a 7X author, international speaker and coach on the FitRadio app.

To find out more about Pam, check out her website at https://www.theperfectbalance.guru/.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Krystal Hille.

Krystal is another one of the amazing humans that I met through the Your Words Have Power event sponsored by Wendy Corner back in October of 2022.

Krystal is the founder of Hill House Publishing and Inspired Relations. She is an international speaker, bestselling author, and soul leadership mentor.

Krystal is enthusiastic about empowering individuals to fulfill their highest potential and she has always been curious about people’s motivations and why they do what they do.

The common thread through all has been to help the community as well as her clients – purpose-driven entrepreneurs especially in the personal development field, change-makers, and conscious creatives – to step into their zone of flow and claim the essence of soul leadership, so their passion can ignite global change.

Krystal is a serial entrepreneur who has a thriving coaching, speaking, and now publishing business since 2008.

In her own words, Krystal says:

I grew up in Germany as the eldest daughter of a church minister and I was the editor of the school magazine amongst many other things. After school, I moved to England to explore my freedom and traveled the world extensively in my teens and twenties.

I graduated from University with a BA Hons (with distinction) in English Literature and Theatre Studies, became a theatre director, drama teacher, and spent some time in Education Outreach Programs for the Royal Shakespeare Company. This satisfied my desire to share stories and understand human motivations through literature and theatre.

After a divorce in my early 30s, the universe guided me (in a literal dream and many other synchronicities) to move to Australia. So, I did.

After some soul-searching about what to do next, I wrote myself into clarity that it was time to stop putting stories on stage and instead help people improve the stories of their lives. I studied coaching, NLP, Timeline Therapy, Reiki etc. and started helping women to step into their feminine flow.

I had studied with spiritual teachers since my mid-twenties, and my spiritual side started to influence my work, especially the retreats I began running. I facilitated past-life regressions, ancestral clearings and soul reconnections.

When I realized that many women were disembodied and scared to be fully present in their lives, I added Tantra to my toolkit, to assist with this phenomenon and help cultivate life-force energy for manifestation purposes and more.

When Covid hit, I was running big events in Melbourne, Brisbane and Sydney and was speaking at many Tantra Festivals in Australia.

With lockdowns, it was time to re-invent myself again, especially since I didn’t feel like staying in ‘my lane’. I wasn’t speaking about authentic relating, embodiment, or conscious communication anymore. Instead, I spoke about the importance of conscious entrepreneurs and change makers stepping up and speaking up. I wanted to help create a countermovement to the fear mongering propagated by the mainstream media and share inspiration and hope with the world.

But many light workers and change-makers were still not stepping into their full potential, and I felt called to help them (and myself, if I am totally honest).

After becoming a bestselling author in 2020, the opportunity to become a publisher presented. It resonated and I said yes in early 2021 when I founded Hille House Publishing.

Multi-author books, also known as collaborative books, became a vehicle for clients to get permission to claim a future personality of pure potential, certainty, and confidence.

Since then (now June 2022), I have enrolled over 90 thought leaders from 5 continents and 20 countries, and every book has become an international #1 bestseller in numerous categories on Amazon.

In June of 2022, my desire to give back to the community propelled me to create Inspired Relations, a not-for-profit organization dedicated to provide education around co-dependency, coercion and more.

Krystal lives in the country Victoria, Australia, with her two gorgeous children.

If you are interested in finding out what your unique Author Archetype is, take the quiz by clicking here: https://www.krystalhille.org/author-archetype-quiz

To find out more about Krystal, check out her website at https://www.krystalhille.org/.

In this episode of The Journey of My Mother's Son Podcast, I do another monologue. I talk about why I haven't released a podcast in three weeks. It was an unexpected pause that was the result of my laptop taking a fall, which ultimately corrupted its hard drive.

Even though it was a material item and a small setback to my work load, it also gave me an opportunity to reflect on how we take so many things for granted in our lives. Whether a material item or even more importantly, an another human, we shouldn't ever take anything for granted.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Bill Heinrich.

Success is not always what it seems from the outside. Bill found success at a very young age. He was living in one of the most beautiful places on earth and from the outside everything looked perfect, but something was always missing. Surrounded by material success, with everything in place by normal standards, he found himself dissatisfied and nothing seemed to fill the emptiness inside.

No matter how much money he made or how successful he was he never felt whole. Painfully aware that something was lacking, he continued to try to fill the empty space he felt inside. Over the course of time, this feeling got worse, never better, no matter what he did.

Almost 30 years ago Bill got to a point where he was so miserable that he walked out the door to change his life and I never looked back.

To find out more about Bill, check out his website at https://www.truelifepurposenow.com.

In this episode of The Journey of My Mother's Son, I again step out of my comfort zone and do another monologue.

I talk about the importance of getting involved in a community. The term Community can take on several definitions for each person. However, what I stress in this episode is the importance of getting yourself involved in a community, regardless of what that may mean to you.

Check it out!

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with fellow traveling nomad, Dave Houser.

Dave and I were connected through a mutual friend, Lori Saitz. We have both been guests on her “Fine is a Four-Letter Word” podcast. She immediately felt that we would connect with each other because we had so much in common. We were both coaches for long periods of time and are now traveling throughout the country in our own unique ways. She was right, Dave and I immediately hit it off, so I wanted to get him on the show as soon as I could and share his story.

Dave grew up with great parents and a loving home right outside of DC on the Maryland side.

From a child though he never wanted to fit in or be like everyone else.

He spent twenty years as a college coach helping people achieve things that were once thought to be impossible.

However, he neglected facing his financial situation and became overwhelmed with everything so he began learning as much as he could how to take back control over where his money was going.

Fast forward ten years and the Financial Nomad was created to help people understand their finances. Be in charge of their financial futures and building the flexibility to experience more life has to offer then get a good job with benefits and defer enjoying themselves until retirement.

His purpose to help bold individuals become financially free when passive income exceeds monthly expenses and build the lifestyle they want to live.

To find out more about Dave, check out their website at https://fnfreedom.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Pratiti Pathek.

Pratiti is a life coach and creator of Results by Design Coaching. She works primarily with women who have gone through the ups and downs of life. The challenges, obstacles, through career, relationships, health, money, divorce, and loss. Pretty much anything that comes up in life that can be difficult.

She has gone through many challenges from being picked on and bullied as a young girl trying to fit with two different cultures. She was a single mom and lost her 17-year-old son, Devan, 13 years ago. She knows what it takes to not only go through tough times, but she also learned what it takes to be resilient and draw on her inner strengths.

She hosts a podcast called, Unpacking Brain Drama, and that is exactly what she talks about. Her belief is that we think that obstacles are the thing that's blocking our path, but obstacles are the path, we have to grow through what we go through.

Pratiti is very well versed both professionally and personally. She went to school for criminal justice & psychology. She was in the aerospace industry for many years. She owned her own construction company and painting business. Currently, in addition to her coaching business, she is a successful real estate agent.

Through all of it Pratiti always loved helping others and it's my passion.

To find out more about Pratiti, check out their website at https://www.resultsbydesigncoaching.com/.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Allie Lacey.

Allie is the founder of The Ball Girl Baseball Corporation, a nonprofit 501(c)3 organization.

The Ball Girl Baseball Corporation is an organization that is looking to help grow the game of girl’s and women’s baseball. This organization was formed after a group of girls decided that they wanted to play competitive baseball year-round but felt like they didn’t have a home. The Ball Girls are glad to be their home.

Allie grew up in La Crescenta, California where she started her ball career at the age of 3. Following that passion to Crescenta Valley High playing 4 seasons of Varsity softball to Pasadena City College finishing off at Cal State Northridge where she capped off her playing career with a 2015 Big West Championship. She was also able to earn a bachelors in Physical Education. She later returned to PCC to coach fastpitch for 3 seasons before pursuing and completing her Master’s Degree in Sports Management from Louisiana State University.

In addition to her work with the Ball Girl Corporation, she also currently works as a Dodgers Ball Girl.

To find out more about Allie and The Ball Girl Baseball Corporation, check out their website at www.ballgirlsbaseball.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with singer/songwriter, Vanessa Rae.

Vanessa loves writing songs that share her true-life stories with her listeners. Inspired by many artists in the genres of country, gospel, and pop, Vanessa has a unique style all her own. Though Vanessa grew up loving musical theater and singing, it was not until recent years that she was ready to hop on stage and share her voice and songs. Being a native of the California Central Valley, Vanessa has played at several venues and events locally, including opening for Josh Turner earlier this year at the Visalia Fox Theater.

Her first album, recently released on December 9th, 2022 shares some of Vanessa's true-life stories with her listeners. She is happy to be sharing her artistry and heart through her new music. Her album shares a title with the first song on the album titled “I’ll Go First”. The moral of the story in this song is, “We’re all a mess, let’s own it, and be a little easier on each other too.”

Allowing God to be the guide in her music journey, she is excited and ready for whatever her future holds musically. She hopes that in any opportunity she is blessed with that her live audience will leave feeling good after they see her perform, or her listener will feel at ease, and related to in some capacity. Vanessa cannot wait to share more as the cards unfold for her, and she hopes you will come alongside her in this music journey!

To find out more about Vanessa and her music, check out her website at www.vanessaraemusic.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Marc and Tammy Hollander.

Marc and Tammy are the husband-and-wife crew that run the beautiful Galveston Island KOA in Galveston, Texas. Tammy is the General Manager, and Marc is the Director of Guest Services.

Sandy and I have stayed at the campground on two different occasions now and have already made plans to go back in 2024.

This past January, I did a book signing at the campground, which allowed me to get to know Marc a little bit. I loved their story and I loved their passion to make everyone’s stay at the Galveston Island KOA truly an experience that they’ll never forget.

Marc and Tammy’s story is inspirational. Their initial charity work is what connected them to the KOA brand many years ago. Their desire to want to help and give back landed them in a KOA in Central Florida helping to clean-up from hurricane damage, which eventually led them to being hired by KOA and now running a beautiful location in Galveston.

To find out more about the Galveston Island KOA, check out their website at www.koa.com/campgrounds/galveston.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Nick Chroscinski.

Nick is another one of my former players who Sandy and I were blessed to be able to get together with on our travels. Now living and working in Dallas, we were able to get together with Nick in late January. We had to reschedule our initial time to get together due to a freak ice storm in the Dallas area, but fortunately, we were able to get together with him to grab lunch a few days later.

In the past, I had made it a habit to do a podcast with the players that we got together with during our visit. Recently, I rethought that philosophy because I felt that it took away from our time together. As I have mentioned so many times in the past, I have really started to understand the importance of being in the moment and felt that carving out time to do a podcast during our visits was taking time away from that moment of just being present and catching up.

Nick is wise beyond his years. At only 25 years old, he has used the experience that he gained on the diamond as well as that of attending a boarding school to help get him to where he is today.

The life lessons that he learned on the baseball field have helped him to be successful in his young corporate career.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Anthony Amunategui.

Anthony is the Founder of CDO Group, a National Commercial Construction firm. His company built over 1 million square feet of retail space and worked with some of the world’s largest brands. He has a true passion for finding out what makes people successful in business and in life. He loves diving into conversations about what the future holds for all of us personally and professionally, and the adventures that shape the journey.

To find out more about Anthony, check out his website at www.cdogroup.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with John Mendez.

To find out more about John, check out his website at www.podpage.com/walk2wealth.

The Journey of My Mother’s Son – Episode #200 – A Monologue

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Liz Wilcox.

I first met Liz back in May of 2022 at Justin Schenck’s Growth Now Movement Live event in Lititz, Pennsylvania. We hit if off because Liz had been a full-time RVer for several years and obviously, Sandy and I are still full-time RVing.

Liz had starting blogging when she was full-timing and went onto write a book, titled, “Tales from the Black Tank.” Anyone who has been RVing whether full-time or just a weekend warrior knows that there can be some fascinating tales from black tank, to say the least.

After a while though, Liz wanted to be known as more than just the “Poop Lady.” She sold the blog and the business and that catapulted her into what she id doing today in the email marketing space. An expert in her field, Liz helps clients get the most out of their email lists by showing them her proven methodology.

This was a fun conversation for me all around. Liz is the type of person who you can feel comfortable talking to as soon as you meet her.

To find out more about Liz, check out her website at www.lizwilcox.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Helen Müller.

Helen's total focus is helping Top Entrepreneurs and Leaders fulfil their Greatest Potential. The You, Me and Happiness Program focuses heavily on Heightened Awareness and her unique ability to communicate remotely with human DNA is giving her clients high performance output and an accelerated growth incomparable.

Helen is also author of You, Me & Happiness and Four Keys to Happiness, has been featured in Yahoo Lifestyle, Medium, Rich Woman Magazine and various podcasts for her breakthrough technique to remove mental blocks in 15 minutes. Her journey into Entrepreneurship started by selling biscuits on their family farm in South Africa and took off after being introduced to LURN Inc. and coach, Willie Laney. She enjoys a lifestyle of wildly intuitive traveling and is currently working on research whilst remaining passionately involved in coaching Entrepreneurs and spreading Happiness all around.

To connect with Helen, check out her website at https://youmeandhappiness.kyvio.net/global/home.

Click on either of the links below to listen to the conversation:

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Jenny Vaz.

Jenny is another one of the amazing people that I was able to connect with through the Your Words Have Power event that I spoke at back in October of 2022.

Jenny often says, “Find out what you’re good at and turn that into your Zone of Genius (ZoG).”

Jenny Vaz helps entrepreneurs across the world clean up bottlenecks, broken processes, and strategies to direct more of their energy, time & resources, in their business & teams towards their zones of genius.

She attributes all her success in her professional career to focusing on the things that she is really good at and adding value to any opportunity that’s been presented to her. This mindset, coupled with drive and relentlessness, has taken her across the world to live and work from 7 different countries in 4 continents.

For over 20 years, as a technology consultant & strategist, she is worked with government and billion-dollar businesses right down to solo operators. She zooms in on the ZoG - back to heart of the person in front of her and has a unique way of helping them realize how truly powerful they are and the business they have created.

Jenny lives this consistently. Her 10-person team at SparkBizOps has the same directive: Keep ZoG-ing and get help quickly to fill the gap.

At the moment, you’ll find her either in Sydney & Singapore or between!

You can connect with Jenny at any of the links listed below:

linktr.ee/jennyvaz

www.sparkbizops.io

linkedin.com/in/jennyvaz

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Wendy Corner.

Wendy is the founder and creator of Your Words Have Power, a platform for speakers to share their messages and stories to inspire people to live their lives fully.

I met her when she invited me to be a part of one of her “Your Words Have Power” virtual events back in October of 2022. We immediately connected and I wanted to share her positive energy with my listeners.

Wendy’s on a mission to help countless speakers to step onto stages across the world and share their messages and stories to change lives.

Why?

Because an unconscious decision made as a two-year-old shaped her life choices. She felt abandoned in hospital and when no one came when she called, she decided that no one else should feel that their voice did not matter. She developed a passion for communication, even making up her own language as a child.

Wendy worked as a Speech Pathologist for almost thirty years in the UK and Australia to enable her clients to have a “voice.”

Now based in Perth, Australia, she works with international clients who have a burning desire to be speakers from the stage to inspire, motivate, or sell a product/service; who harbor a goal to do a TEDx or wider stage and experience the visibility and credibility being on the red circle brings; who are seeking to launch their career as a prolific professional speaker both in-person and virtually.

Wendy has worked with TEDx UWA as a Speaker Coach for five years.

She works holistically using her proprietary framework to support speakers to communicate using body, mind, and spirit to connect at a deep level with their audience.

Fell free to connect with Wendy through any of the links below:

https://www.facebook.com/corner.net.au/

Email address: wendy@ywhp.events

https://linktr.ee/CommCoach

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Connie Ellefson.

Connie Ellefson is an engineer, author and professional organizer working in the Denver metro area, helping people release the incredible amount of creativity and energy tied up in unnecessary clutter. Whether physical, mental, or possessional, clutter takes up space in our psyches and calendars that could be put to more productive, creative, and fun use.

Realizing the rush of delicious energy we get from decluttering and organizing a space is the same rush we get from exercising or releasing emotional burdens, "Clear the Space Feel the Rush" is all about how you can start anywhere on your decluttering journey.

To find out more about Connie and the work that she is doing, visit her website at www.clearthespace.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Maria Mayes.

Maria Mayes is a Well-Being Coach and teacher who helps her clients find the freedom that only inner peace can offer. As founder of Take 5 she is on a mission to help others take their power back from anxiety. She specializes in simplifying techniques and ancient wisdom teachings into small digestible bites that are easy to apply. With decades of leading teams in the technology space, she is passionate about well-being in the workplace which inspired her to create her signature Take 5 Stretch & Breath Breaks and Wine & Well-Being Workshops. Maria is Certified through Chopra Global in Coaching, Meditation and Ayurveda and is an RYT200 Yoga Teacher with speciality training in mental health, neuroscience and applied poly-vagal theory. She has a BS in Business and more than 20 years experience leading small teams in the technology industry. As a working mom who understands the juggle of career demands while caring for children and aging parents simultaneously, much of her work is geared towards helping business owners, leaders and others with high stress occupations achieve a baseline of inner peace.

To find out more about Maria, check out her website at www.Take5.health.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Ben Albert.

When Covid hit, Ben was furloughed from work. He found himself down and out, staring at an empty handle of Jim Bean Whiskey. He was unemployed, depressed, and felt unworthy.

Hesitantly, he opened his Macbook and started reaching out to strangers on Linkedin. This spearheaded his entrepreneurial journey.

The rest is history.

Now Ben hosts a network of 5 podcasts called “Real Business Connections,” runs a massively successful marketing firm, Balbert Marketing, and has replaced his established sales income in just over a year. Ben found his way.

You can do all this too!

It lights Ben up to help people, just like you, find YOUR way. Ben loves to help businesspeople find the essence of who THEY are and empower them and their companies to make their mark in this world. None of us deserve to feel small, unworthy, or invisible.

This is why Ben chose a career in marketing. Ben has found in marketing. He has a unique opportunity to empower business people to reach the RIGHT community, the RIGHT clients, and the RIGHT partners, who share the same beliefs and values as YOU. So you can scale above your highest potential, in turn, filling up your pockets AND your soul.

Once an underdog, now a successful entrepreneur, Ben is passionate about helping other underdogs achieve their dreams.

Ben is on a mission to actually move the needle on one million lives, one conversation at a time.

To find out more about Ben, check out his website at http://balbertmarketing.com/alllinks.

Other links to connect with Ben:

About Ben + Press Appearances: https://realbusinessconnections.com/host/

Balbert Marketing LLC: http://balbertmarketing.com/alllinks

Real Business Connections Podcast: https://realbusinessconnections.com/

Email:

ben@balbertmarketing.com

Free Consultation/ Meet and Greet:

https://calendly.com/balbertmarketing/zoom30

Social Links:

Linkedin:

https://www.linkedin.com/in/balbertmarketing/

Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/balbertmarketing

https://www.facebook.com/realbusinessconnections

Instagram:

https://www.instagram.com/realbenalbert/

Youtube:

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCatiqMEYvn1CO_isUcb6pAQ/videos

Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/real-business-connections-network/id1537115928

Spotify:

https://open.spotify.com/show/6GIUXbsHXx0OSgPFED1sg8?si=5294f3445d964e25

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Victoria Wolf.

Victoria and Rich sold everything in early 2022 to live and work full-time in an RV. Running three businesses from their fifth-wheel RV, they have the freedom to live life on their own terms. Every destination is a new experience and presents both adventures and challenges. You can join along on the journey via their YouTube channel where they create weekly videos about their RV journey, as well as how-to cooking videos.

Victoria and Rich met later in life and have been making up for lost time for the last ten years. The one love they both shared, food, brought them together and still takes them on great adventures today. From creating a line of gluten-free baked goods to their how-to cooking videos, food is at the center of their lives. Taking the leap to full-time RV living was both exhilarating and terrifying, but they knew in their hearts it would be a great decision. They both work from the road, running their three businesses: book publishing, content creation, and art. There is never a day without an adventure in their RV life and if you think they miss home, well, home is where you park it.

To find out more about Victoria and the adventures of her and her husband, Rich, check out their website at www.gfexplorers.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with three of the members of the band, The Naked Sun.

During this conversation, Drew Harris, Tim Campbell, and Tom Tusler talk with me about the magic of music and the role that it has played in each of the lives as well as the release of their upcoming album, “Modern Life.”

This is another one of the amazing groups that we connected with at the Philadelphia Folk Festival. Ironically, we didn’t actually get to see them perform at the festival, but they were our neighbors in the campground. We got to know them before we even realized that they were performing at the festival. I’ve since been able to listen to quite a bit of their music and was honored to have them on the show.

The Naked Sun is fronted by singer-songwriter, Drew Harris and guitarist Tim Campbell, the band has been a staple of the Philadelphia music scene since forming in 2011. After spending the mid-aughts in the Baltimore, MD, eclectic and robust music scene, Harris moved home to his native Philadelphia to start a rock band with a little more edge than the folky “streetgrass” stylings of his previous bands. Harris and Campbell met in Campbell’s South Jersey home, exchanged tunes, and started making music together. Soon after, the Naked Sun would go on to win the WXPN Beta Hi-Fi Festival, the band recorded their first EP, “Space, Place, and Time,” and started playing shows. Flash forward to today, Harris and Campbell are joined by Dylan Mulcahy on drums, Tom Tusler on bass, Alan Sheltzer on keys, and Bradley Moser on lead guitar. The Naked Sun is set to follow up their debut LP, War With Shadows, with a brand new 6-song record entitled, Modern Life, set for release on January 27th, 2023. The Naked Sun mixes sounds familiar to bands like Wilco, the War on Drugs, My Morning Jacket, Drive-by Truckers and the Jayhawks in an indie-rock stew they have coined “honest-rock.” Harris explains, “We make music for people who like to really dig-in to their music.”

To find out more about the band and their music, check out their website at www.wearethenakedsun.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Chris Carr.

Chris Carr holds a PhD in Slavic Studies from Brown University and has worked in higher education for the past 15 years helping young people grow. After consistently observing that students were often unprepared and unsupported in key areas, he founded One Point Mentorship to guide students through the crucial transition into college and to help them set up lives that truly light them up. One Point helps students to develop their own personal visions, identify limiting beliefs that hold them back, and craft a plan for execution and accountability in all areas of their lives, emphasizing the importance of academic writing and leadership skills.

To find out more about Chris and the work that he is doing through One Point Mentorship, check out his website at www.onepointmentorship.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Mike McKenna, Jr.

Singer-songwriter Mike McKenna Jr. has become a rising star on the Canadian music scene; with a raspy, soulful voice, his warm indie folk and Americana tones, and songs laden with captivating storytelling. Born in Glace Bay and raised along the Mira River, Mike's songwriting aesthetic points heavily to his roots growing up in small-town industrial Cape Breton. Over the course of 3 studio albums, he's brought us the nostalgia of his home through carefully chosen narrative, poetry, protest, and true stories about life and death in Nova Scotia’s coastal, working-class communities.

Mike’s newest record At the Edge of the World (2020) continues to be met with incredible support both in Canada and internationally. In just over a year since its release, Mike's sophomore album has received a long list of awards and nominations; WINNER of the Rising Star Recording of the Year by the 2021 East Coast Music Awards (along with nominations for Contemporary Roots Recording of the Year and Fan's Choice Video of the Year), nominee for Contemporary Album of the Year by the 2021 Canadian Folk Music Awards, nominee for Americana/Bluegrass Recording of the Year by the Music Nova Scotia Awards, and nominee for 2020 Album of the Year by Blues and Roots Radio. It was also listed on the Bluegrass Situation's 'Class of 2020 Playlist, Absolute Best of this Year's Roots Music Releases'.

Several songs from the record have received high-profile features and recognition, including Spotify Editorial playlists Renegade Folk and Contemporary Folk, Mahogany Sessions' Acoustic Coffeehouse and Chilled Folk Vol. 3, The Bluegrass Situation's 'Mixtape', Americana UK, Exclaim!, Canadian Beats, Roots Music Canada, The East and many more. Two songs from ATEOTW finished as semi-finalists in the world's largest songwriting contest, ISC (International Songwriting Competition); the opening song and title track At the Edge of the World in 2019 and the 7th song of the album, High Ground in 2020!

Produced by Victoria’s Quinn Bachand (Rosier, Kittel & Co, Brishen), At the Edge of the World delivers a bigger sound than Mike's previous records, lead by his incredibly raw, confident vocals and surrounded by a beautiful mix of electric and pedal-steel guitar, electric bass, vocal harmonies, strings, piano and drums. During post-production it would then pass through the talented hands of Canada's top analog specialists; mixing engineer Jon Anderson (Andy Shauf, Rosier, Foxwarren) and Grammy-nominated mastering engineer, Juno/Polaris winner Philip Shaw Bova (Father John Misty, Feist, Bahamas).

To find out more about Mike and his music, check out his website at www.mikemckennajr.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Gary Gradley.

Gary is a Purpose Coach and Author. His experience in corporate training, include being a business coach and trusted advisor for 23 years, working with over 20,000 leaders, employees & individuals throughout Canada, USA & Australia. He became a Trusted Advisor for many corporations. During the 2009 recession, he shifted his Mission & founded ‘On-Purpose People Perform’ to help people discover and act upon their Purpose to make a positive difference in the world.

His vision is to create a global movement of Purpose-Driven Leaders equipping 100,000+ inspired people to have a meaningful impact, by acting upon their Purpose & addressing the world's problems.

To find out more about Gary, or to register for his upcoming webinar, check out some of the links below:

Gary’s Website:

https://onpurposepeopleperform.com/

Gary’s Book:

THE KINGDOM PROMISE: How Leading Canadians Choose Faith to Conquer the Storms of Life

https://trustingthroughthetransition.com/books-articles/

Use the link below to register to his upcoming complimentary “Create more Clarity & CERTAINTY in an uncertain World” Challenge Webinar January 10th-12th 6:30 – 7:30pm EST:

https://onpurposepeopleperform.com/create-clarity/

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Amy Siegfried.

Amy is the co-founder of Last Night’s Game.

After seeing how the ability to talk sports gave her the upper hand as a woman in business, Amy and her brother Scott created Last Night’s Game to give their friends the same advantage. Last Night’s Game empowers its readers to join the sports conversation, even if they do not know the first thing about sports.

Her career has included working for a Major League Baseball team and in other male-dominated industries. A third-generation entrepreneur, Amy once flew around the world in 58 hours and 37 minutes, has lived internationally and is a master of small talk, bringing people together and the handwritten note. You can often find this married lady working with the entrepreneurship community nationwide and teaching her toddler about sports, food, and other things he’ll have to use to make small talk one day.

They say those who can’t do, teach, and while Amy’s childhood athletic participation may have been short lived, she fell in love with the world of sports. That learned love for sports came in handy as her career has included working for a Major League Baseball team and other male-dominated industries.

To find out more about Amy and Last Night’s Game, check out the website at www.lastnightsgame.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Beth Dana.

Beth brings a feminine, holistic approach to the, sometimes, masculine financial environment by creating a space of financial wellness and wholeness.

During her career in the financial industry, she recognized it being a very masculine, action-oriented profession, and the feminine, heart-centered approach was missing.

With her direct experience being in the financial industry, along with her own journey in healing her relationship with money, she wrote her first book ‘Make Money Your Partner: Your 30-Day Guide To Financial Wellness and Healing’ in 2019.

She makes financial education and planning for the future empowering and exciting, creating positive, tangible results through wealthy and healthy money habits, to begin living a financially conscious life.

She intertwines her business interests with a passion for philanthropy. She studied energy healing with Healing in America in Ojai, CA, coached hundreds of students participating in leadership trainings, raised thousands of dollars for charitable organizations, and studied Entrepreneurship, Innovation, and Social Change with University for Peace in Costa Rica.

She traveled to India to volunteer at the Mother Teresa House, served at orphanages in Tijuana, Mexico and underserved areas in Costa Rica, and she is the founder of Wellth Living; a charity organization focusing on creating leaders through healing and learning new ways of living.

The mission is to support people to achieve financial consciousness and abundance, and in 2020 ‘Make Money Your Partner: Your 30-Day Guide to Financial Wellness and Healing' was translated in the Persian language and published in Iran.

In 2021, the Make Money Your Partner® series flourished and 'Your 30-Day Guide to Financial Consciousness and Abundance', 'Your 30-Day Guide to Financial Alchemy and Freedom', and a 'Quarterly Financial Goal Tracker, Planner & Journal' were all published.

As of today, the book series is being translated into the Spanish language and her work and teachings have reached the country of Costa Rica.

Her organization continues to grow and expand to reach its global mission, and will be launching its 'Make Money Your Partner Masterclass' digital course soon!

To find out more about Beth and the work that she is doing, check out her website at www.bethldana.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Nico Lagan.

Nico Lagan is a men's coach, an entrepreneur, a Muay Thai instructor, podcaster and sales professional. He strives to helps men achieve their personal legends by becoming strong men.

Nico grew up without the guidance of a strong masculine figure. It sent him on the search of a mentor. Not knowing what he was looking, he associated with and idolized the wrong men. His decisions has a teen to quit school and sale drugs lead him on the wrong path.

Today Nico uses what he’s learned from past mistakes and his skills as a communicator to help men become, good men, strong men. His life experiences and knowledge has allowed him to develop the becoming a strong man program.

To find out more about Nico and the work that he is doing, check out www.nicolagan.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, we are going to turn the tables a little bit.

Back in July, I sat down with Michael Mitreuter, co-founder and managing partner of MammothMarch to talk about his long-distance endurance hiking series. At that time, I had just signed up to participate in the MammothMarch – New Jersey event. I was fascinated by the entire concept of a long-distance hiking event, so I wanted to learn more about the inspiration behind starting the series.

The staff of MammothMarch got in me in touch with the man at the top and we scheduled the show.

I felt an immediate connection with Michael and was very comfortable talking to him.

We were able to meet at the event in Jersey and talk a little bit at the end as things were starting to wind down. Since I had now participated in the event, we decided that we would schedule another podcast that would be able to give a different perspective following the experience. We decided that another cool angle of this episode would be for Michael to ask me some questions about my experience hiking in the event.

We were both game, so we flipped roles for this episode and Michael is the guest host, asking me about my experience participating in my first long-distance endurance hiking event.

I really enjoyed this conversation and look forward to hiking in many more MammothMarch events in the future. My niece, son-in-law, and I have already registered for the 2023 MammothMarch – New Jersey event.

To find out more about the MammothMarch hiking series or register for an event, check out their website at www.MammothMarch.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Danielle Matthews.

At the age of 23 Danielle was hit by a drunk driver and sustained a life-altering injury to her brain. The medical world said there was no hope of recovery & told her to accept this life as her “new normal.”

Although her body was physically impaired, her spirit was strong & she refused to believe their diagnoses. Her mind was determined to recover…and she did! Through the power of what she refers to as “Mind Control,” she attracted the mindset, techniques, and exact quantum healing technologies needed to fully recover. She has since built an international business, authored an e-book called 'Mind Control' and shares her life-altering experience with countless people around the globe.

After getting a new lease on life, Danielle now understands the importance of every moment that we have on this earth.

To find out more about Danielle and the work that she is doing, check out her website at www.brainbodyself.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Rich Kozak.

Rich Kozak is rocket fuel for people who want their Brand to impact others’ lives; Rich is the sage voice of IMPACT DRIVEN BRANDING.

Today, Rich’s companies, RichBrands and IMPACT DRIVEN Publishing, guide and activate individuals and businesses who are determined to make significant impacts on other people, to make their brand uniquely come alive, to build a strong platform for their business or personal brand, and to help them step into living their purpose.

Rich co-authored the best-selling book: ELEVATE: Raise Your Life and Business to a Higher Level, the 2020 release: IMPACT: Where Passion and Purpose Makes A Difference and the best-selling book just released in March 2021: VISIBILITY: Success Stories from Elite Leaders Making an Impact From the Stage.

Rich’s new book: IMPACT DRIVEN BRANDING: 7 Steps to Ensure YOUR Brand Impacts People’s Lives, and The World insightfully shares the process of Making Your Brand Come Alive and Attract, and it does it in step-wise, “How-To” content, just like Rich shares in his workshop intensives and his powerful online events.

Founder & CEO of RichBrands and IMPACT DRIVEN Publishing, Rich brings 44 years of experience Defining & Launching Brands, then Marketing them.

As a Certified Global Branding Consultant with partners worldwide, Rich defined brands and their language for companies impacting hundreds of industries.

He took a “radical sabbatical” from his high-intensity career to reshape his life and to cook for his wife of 44 years at his “Brand Ranch,” during which Rich worked and studied to become a Certified Trainer of Neuro-Linguistics Programming and TimeLine, as well as a Certified Master of Training.

Today Rich chooses to share with you the possibilities he sees in YOUR Brand and how to achieve them. He multiplies your insight about how your Brand creates Impact, and you will feel it first- hand as he accelerates people toward their desired Brand and toward their true purpose.

To find out more about Rich and the work that he is doing at RichBrands, check out his website at www.richbrands.org.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Debby Kruszewski.

After being Dream Crushed by Corporate America, Debby listened to the voice within that said "Leave this place and start writing!" She is a published Author of Soul Meets Body, Precious and Fragile Things and Live to Tell. Her fourth novel, Date with Kate, is in process. All of her novels are about following your heart. In addition to her novels, she writes an Inspirational Blog.

She is a Certified Dream Manager Coach and Business Consultant.

She is a survivor of crushed Dreams and an expert in Dream rescue. If your Dream is a long-buried seed or a squashed bud, Debby is here to help you replant it, nurture it, and bring it to full bloom!

Her program is ideal for employers who want to make an investment in their employees by making them the most successful version of themselves. Your employee morale will rise, productivity will increase, and turnover will decrease as a result of this dream pollination. Her program is a great fit for businesses of any size.

She is building her business and brand, helping others listen to their heart and pursue their dreams.

To find out more about Debby and the work that she is doing, check out her website at www.debbykrusz.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Andy Frye.

Andy Frye has written for Rolling Stone, ESPN, Chicago Tribune, and other publications. Currently, he writes about sports business for Forbes.

Over his career, Andy has interviewed hundreds of professional athletes, rock stars and other celebrities.

Among the bands and solo artists he has interviewed are Smashing Pumpkins, Oasis, Morrissey, Jimmy Eat World, Rage Against The Machine, and Alice In Chains.

Check out Andy’s sports writing for Forbes by going to www.SportyFrye.com.

To find out more about his book and to order copies, check out www.90daysinthe90s.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Dai Manuel.

Dai Manuel is a super dad, dating his wife, with a lead by example way of living and a contagious personality, who is on a mission to positively impact one million role models around the globe to lead a FUN-ctionally fit life through education, encouragement, and community.

He is an award-winning digital thought leader and author, Distinguished Toastmaster & keynote speaker, former partner and Chief Operating Officer of a multi-million-dollar retail company, and a sought after lifestyle mentor and executive performance coach.

Dai knows the struggle of the juggle and keeping his health and happiness a priority. He models his work based on 5 F’s: Fitness, Family, Faith, and Finances with an overarching roof of FUN, built on a rock-solid foundation of Health. Nuggets of wisdom and inspiration to take action to be your best self are guaranteed when you connect with Dai!

To find out more about Dai, check out his website at www.DaiManuel.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Dr. Daphne Erhart.

Dr. Daphne Erhart, is an international life coach, psychologist, master NLP practitioner, bestselling author, speaker, world traveler, self-care expert, and founder of spa4thesoul.

With over 25 years of experience in the field of psychology, Dr. Daphne knows how crucial it is to nurture your inner self first. She leads clients through this process of mental, physical, and emotional wellness.

Join Dr. Daphne’s Soul Spa to nurture and transform your inner self and live the life of your dreams via self-care experiences. You can live a deeply satisfying and healthy lifestyle by experiencing new ways of thinking, living, being, and relating.

She is inspired by witnessing the deep happiness, health, and fulfillment of those who take care of themselves and have changed their lives as well as the preventable suffering from unresolved problems and diseases.

Her passions of world travels, making your daydreams your reality, and helping others enjoy full and healthy lives are close to her heart.

Transform your inner emotional patterns to naturally have a healthy lifestyle, satisfying relationships, feel good about what you contribute to the world, and long-term health with Dr. Daphne at Spa4thesoul.com.

Change your heart. Change your mind. Change your life!

To find out more about Daphne, check out her website at www.spa4thesoul.com or her YouTube channel at www.youtube.com/SOULSPATRAVEL.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Rachel Awes.

Rachel Awes is a psychologist, illustrated self-help author, art playgroundist, and clothing ambassador, who loves listening to the beauty in people. Rachel has her newest book releasing in early November, 2022, and is excited to talk about it.

In her own words, Rachel says:

“I work as a psychologist, author, and art playgroundist, who loves listening to and highlighting the beauty in people. I do all of this colorfully, with how I dress (I'm a clothing influencer/ambassador too) and how I illustrate my books (I have another colorful personal growth book releasing early November 2022 called "The Relationship Book: A Soulful, Transformational, and Artistic Inventory of Your Connective Life") and how I LIVE.”

To find out more about Rachel or order her books, check out her website at www.rachelawes.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Vanessa Rae.

Vanessa and I connected when we both spoke at a virtual event called, “Your Words have Power.” The event was sponsored by Wendy Corner and each of our messages really resonated with one another, so we connected after the event and I knew that she would be a great guest for the listeners of my show.

Vanessa Rae is a modern renaissance woman who serves through various creative and healing arts capacities including sacred sound, holistic healing, transformational coaching, being a death doula, and a devoted mom. After healing her eating disorder, depression, and self-sabotaging patterns, she developed The Divine Body Align- a spiritual and wholistic program for women to liberate themselves from excess weight, dysfunctional eating, body/self-image issues, sabotaging patterns and negative loops- so others can be free, light and right at home in their own bodies too. Vanessa hosts The Divine Body Align podcast and YouTube show and will be releasing her book of the same name in Spring of 2023. She also performs and offers healing activations through her musical project Veruse.

However, Vanessa is so much deeper and more complex than her “bio.” During our conversation, we talk about how society loves using labels and wants to put us all in a tidy little box, but that is not how humans work. We are all very complex, mostly messy creatures with so many different interests and passions. We are ever evolving and ever growing

To find out more about Vanessa, check out her website at www.divinebodyalign.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Rosa Lokaisingh.

Rosa is the founder of Connecting YOU, an Entrepreneur, Coach, Speaker, and co-author of a book called Thought Leaders, Visionaries, and Influencers.

Her mission is to see the world connected by heart and spirit. Why? She believes that we are all already connected spiritually, but somehow along the way, have forgotten that, and run around becoming self-sufficient and independent, in becoming a success. Now we must un-do that and become a more integrated society.

For the last 20 years, Rosa has been known as a Connector, teaching networking & connection skills, and bringing people together with synergies for collaboration, which is what led her to become the Matchmaker, and most recently an Alignment Coach. Most of that time has been about building networks for professionals, entrepreneurs, and communities so that everyone wins.

Being a Business Matchmaker is not much different from being a Relationship Matchmaker. Success is all about relationships. Who you know, who you need to know, and who you don’t know yet, but will need to know soon will all show up when you learn how to make the right connections at the right time and you leverage your network, as if you’re mining for gold.

Regarding alignment, she believes that when an entrepreneur has aligned his/her services with their values and vision, it makes it much easier and less stressful to attract and connect with the right people, be it clients, partners, or friends.

Her speaking engagements are currently about “What are you thinking?” as thoughts become things, and we manifest through our thoughts and words. Change your thoughts, change your Life!

To find out more about Rosa, check out her website at www.connectingyou.ca.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Maggie Mae.

Maggie is one of the singer/songwriters that we saw perform at the Philadelphia Folk Festival back in August.

She is a soulful singer-songwriter based in Philadelphia who fronts an exciting and energetic Folk/Funk group under the same name. She pulls inspiration from the music she grew up on and the strong musical foundation her family built, along with the ever-evolving world of music around her to carve out a sound all her own. Combining genuine, heartfelt lyrics with catchy, cutting guitar riffs, her songs can either touch your soul or make you want to get up and dance. She has been described as “poppy, polished, talented, & promising,” by XPN’s The Key’s John Vettese.

Originally hailing from Northern New Jersey, Maggie has always had music in her life. Her parents met in college and formed a bluegrass band called 'The Wild Oats,' and later performed throughout New Jersey with various traditional Irish bands. Her father instilled a love for 'all things string' from a very young age, and her mother always encouraged her to write and sing. With a Steinway Grand piano in her living room, and fiddles, penny whistles, hand drums, dulcimers, harps, mandolins, banjos, and guitars littered throughout her childhood home, Maggie has managed to pick up and write with just about any stringed instrument she can find. Growing up, she was always attending folk & bluegrass festivals, making sure she was up front for favorites like Martin Sexton, Dar Williams, Vance Gilbert, and Railroad Earth. Rock and Blues legends including Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd, The Allman Brothers, and Bonnie Raitt were always on heavy rotation in her house. During her time attaining an Associate's Degree in Music Performance, Maggie cultivated a love and appreciation for classical, jazz, funk, world, and jam music, and deepened her knowledge of jazz and bluegrass standards. She also fell deeply in love with one-man-band greats Michael Hedges and Keller Williams, leading her to discover and navigate the world of percussive guitar and loop pedals and effects. She puts all of this together to inspire, and continuously develop, the sound she creates today.

Maggie has managed to round up a talented, ever-rotating cast of characters to support her over the years, featuring some of Philly's most talented musicians. No matter which lineup is sharing the stage with her, the band always brings an impressively varied set of skills and an undeniable energy to the stage. Maggie Mae has shared bills with both local and national acts including Soulive, The Heavy Pets, Dawg Yawp, Lohai, Lee Rocker of the Stray Cats, the Ladles, and more at many of Philly and New Jersey’s premiere music venues.

Maggie Mae released her debut single "Can You Hear Me Now?" featuring Jake Leschinsky of Philadelphia's favorite funk band, Swift Technique, on bass in November of 2018. The band made their debut appearance at World Cafe Live on December 20th, 2018 with friends Taylor Kelly & Erik Kramer filling the bill in celebration. You can listen to "CYHMN" on Spotify and iTunes.

At the end of 2019, Maggie won a contest to open for Soulive at the Ardmore Music Hall, where they made their debut as a 10-piece band. December marked the beginning of creating their debut album, recording the first single off the album, 'Hometown,' at Rittenhouse Soundworks with Michael Cumming engineering and Robby Webb producing. 'Hometown' is available everywhere.

Maggie is currently in the studio recording her next LP, which is scheduled to release in early 2023.

To find out more about Maggie and listen to some of her music, check out her website at www.maggiemaemusic.com.

Click on either of the links below to listen to the conversation.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Vinnie Potestivo.

Vinnie Potestivo is an Emmy® Award-winning Media Advisor who helps clients leverage their media exposure, find fame, and make impact.

Vinnie is the Editor-in-chief of I Have a Podcast® and is responsible for discovering and amplifying the voice of independent podcasters worldwide.

As a network executive at MTV Networks (98-07) he discovered talent and developed new ways to support their goals, pioneering the way brands and business owners could contribute to their public narrative by making them stars and producers of their own television series. Early hits include Punk’d, The Osbournes, TRL, 8th & Ocean, Wild 'N Out, & The Challenge. Since then, he and his team at VPE.tv have continued to be well-trusted connectors who develop and distribute original content across all media platforms. Especially podcasts!

You can listen to Vinnie dissect the creative process with some of the stars and creatives who helped launch his career such as Mandy Moore, Danielle Fishel, TJ Lavin and Ananda Lewis (to name a few) on the award-winning “I Have a Podcast” audio experience which is available everywhere you watch and listen to podcasts.

Vinnie and I connected through PodMatch, which is an amazing platform that helps podcast hosts connect with podcast guests.

To find out more about Vinnie, check out his website at www.vpe.tv.

Click on either of the links below to listen to the conversation

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Melissa Reilly.

Melissa Reilly is a mom of two boys, clinical psychologist and parent coach who is passionate about helping moms separated from their mother by physical distance, estrangement, or death, move from feelings of insecurity, isolation and overwhelm to a place of resilience.

In her own words, Melissa says:

“Alone in the hospital room six hours after giving birth I felt an unbelievable emotional pain that felt like part of me was breaking. I lost my mother 15 years previously and yet in that moment the pain I felt over her absence was as if she had just died again. I couldn’t believe that instead of being consumed with joy I was overwhelmed with grief. What was wrong with me?

Moms separated from their own mother by physical distance, emotional estrangement or death experience a grief process that is rarely identified, let alone talked about. As a clinical psychologist and mom coach I love to help moms without a mom heal through grief, build community, feel joy in motherhood and move from feelings of isolation, insecurity and overwhelm to a place of confidence and resilience.”

To find out more about Melissa, check out her website at www.momswithoutamom.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Melissa Reilly.

Melissa Reilly is a mom of two boys, clinical psychologist and parent coach who is passionate about helping moms separated from their mother by physical distance, estrangement, or death, move from feelings of insecurity, isolation and overwhelm to a place of resilience.

In her own words, Melissa says:

“Alone in the hospital room six hours after giving birth I felt an unbelievable emotional pain that felt like part of me was breaking. I lost my mother 15 years previously and yet in that moment the pain I felt over her absence was as if she had just died again. I couldn’t believe that instead of being consumed with joy I was overwhelmed with grief. What was wrong with me?

Moms separated from their own mother by physical distance, emotional estrangement or death experience a grief process that is rarely identified, let alone talked about. As a clinical psychologist and mom coach I love to help moms without a mom heal through grief, build community, feel joy in motherhood and move from feelings of isolation, insecurity and overwhelm to a place of confidence and resilience.”

To find out more about Melissa, check out her website at www.momswithoutamom.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Tracey Escobar.

Tracey Escobar is an advanced certified Psychic Medium with Lisa Williams International School of Spiritual Development. She has completed several rigorous programs with 3rd party testing as to the accuracy of her connections. She has attended the world-renowned Arthur Findley College in England several times to develop her gifts, and privately mentored with Colby Rebel. Tracey works with clients internationally from her home base in Dallas Texas. Tracey does private sessions, group events, and helps others develop their own spiritual gifts. Tracey is the author and creator of Messages from Above, a spirit guided oracle deck that helps you connect to your loved ones in spirit.

Her new book, YOU CAN BE A MEDIUM, how a red couch led me to mediumship and turned my pain into purpose! Tracey has been featured in Voyage Dallas and is a host of the popular podcast Metaphysical Happy Hour.

From childhood abuse, the untimely passing of her father, the years of unhealed trauma and absence of self-love, to choosing to heal and finding a purpose for her pain.

Through her healing journey, Tracey is being led by the spirit of her father through countless dreams, premonitions, synchronicities, and undeniable experiences to become a Medium and to live a purposeful and happy life. Tracey’s journey to the Red Couch is a riveting story of triumph and a testament to us all that it is never too late to heal and find joy.

Her book is filled with raw emotion, hard truths, and will be an inspiration for anyone looking to heal from past trauma and to find purpose in their life. Intertwined with her story is practical advice, teachings, and exercises to help you develop your own mediumistic gifts.

To find out more about Tracey or get a copy of her book, check out her website at www.theredcouchmedium.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Kathy White.

Kathy White developed her Joint Renewal System™ when she turned 50, and despite teaching yoga for over 20 years, her joints were aching, her menopausal symptoms were raging, and she was not gaining any benefit from her practice any more. She retrained in the Kaiut method and has now refined it into a jointful yoga for active men and women over 50 who want to keep on doing the sports and activities they love. It's kind of like adding WD40 to your joints! Kathy offers a unique and mindful approach to body and mind that rejuvenates the body, calms the nervous system, and builds strength and vitality as people age.

Most people think that "wear and tear" of the joints is normal and inevitable and eventually means pain and reduced flexibility.

The Joint Renewal System™ will allow you to discover a unique way to move joints that will rejuvenate and restore.

Increase flexibility and strength in the whole body and keep doing the sports and activities you love.

Move well, live well and age well with healthy joints.

To find out more about Kathy, check out his website at www.kathywhiteyoga.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Laura DeSisto.

Laura DeSisto has been writing professionally her whole life and has just written her first book, Resurfacing: Sisterhood, Sharks and Storms, a memoir, which details her journey from depressed empty nester to badass, middle-aged scuba diver who frequently dives with man-eating sharks – on purpose. Laura fervently believes that when we grow the guts to pursue our wildest dreams, we can move others to do the same, which will make the world a better place.

One morning Laura DeSisto woke up and realized motherhood had swallowed her whole – she had lost her sense of self apart from her children. A scuba diving trip to the Bahamas was the catalyst for transformation and growth in her life. With biting humor and vivid detail, she recalls hair-raising encounters with man eating sharks, the death of a friend who had become more like a sister, and the aftermath of the most powerful hurricane in Bahamian history. A fast-paced memoir, hilarious and heartbreaking. This story will stay with you long after the final page.

To find out more about Laura, check out her website at www.lauradesisto.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Dr. Victor Manzo.

Dr. Vic is a Business Mindset Coach, Certified Pediatric Chiropractor, 3x Author, Podcaster and Speaker.

He is the author of 3 books, the most recent, "Decoding the Matrix," which came out in May 2022.

Dr. Vic has helped 100’s of entrepreneurs learn how to create their dream life effortlessly through sharing principles of living in the Quantum world.

He shares many concepts that relate to spiritual truths, Universal Laws, Quantum Physics, Neuroscience, Limiting Beliefs, Leveraging One’s Mindset, Reconditioning of the Subconscious Mind, and much more to achieve these concepts.

To find out more about Vic, check out his website at www.empoweryourreality.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Don Colliver.

Don Colliver teaches popular public speaking courses internally at Google and around the world; leads improv, clown, and sketch comedy classes for the Berkeley Rep School of Theatre; and speaks professionally for Fortune 500 companies including Adobe, Cisco, and Medtronic.

Don has performed with the Blue Man Group, toured internationally as a theatrical Clown for contemporary circus Spiegelworld, and is listed in the Cirque du Soleil performer database.

Don’s mission is to help every communicator profoundly impact their audience through the power of authenticity, listening, and play: the Secrets of Clown!

He recently released a #1 Bestselling Amazon book entitled "Wink: Transforming Public Speaking with Clown Presence" to help anxious speakers and organizational teams everywhere connect more deeply when they communicate.

To find out more about Don, check out his website at www.doncolliver.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Kattie Lail.

Kattie was exposed to meth at a very young age. Both her parents struggled with meth addiction, which resulted in a very dysfunctional home. When she was arrested at 19, Kattie realized she didn’t want to continue going down the same path. She went on to be a counselor of high-risk populations and remained sober for several years. After a relapse – or recurrence of symptoms – she was arrested on federal charges and spent three years in prison. That is when Kattie finally started to accept help from the people around her. She found a loving, supportive community to help her maintain wellness.

Today, Kattie is married with a young son and two Great Danes. Through her work as a peer coach and supervisor at We Face it TOGETHER, she can give back and help others. She loves being there for her members and sees the best in them, even when they cannot.

We Face it TOGETHER is a nonprofit addiction and wellness program which provides confidential, evidence-based peer coaching for those impacted by addiction, including loved ones. They don’t require sobriety or follow a one-size-fits-all program.

The story of We Face it Together starts with co-founder Kevin Kirby, a seasoned business executive. Despite being well connected in the community, having a loving family and the ability to draw upon significant financial resources, Kirby struggled to get well from his alcohol addiction. Once he did, after multiple treatment stays across a few years, he wanted to learn all he could about his disease and the addiction treatment landscape.

Kirby recognized there were flaws in the system and wondered how people with fewer or no resources ever managed to get well. He was called to do something. First, he was connected with Charlie Day, a lawyer, CPA and health care finance expert, who would ultimately become Face It TOGETHER's other co-founder. Day had recently served as a senior finance officer in one of the nation’s largest regional integrated health care systems. He was an experienced start-up strategist and business innovator and ready to give back to the community.

Kirby and Day began crafting a vision for a community-wide transformation around the disease of addiction, along with some of the nation’s leading experts. Very soon they could see that those with the most “skin in the game” – employers, health care organizations and others – needed to play a leading role. Their work led to a seven-month community town hall process that enlisted the private, public and social service sectors to identify shared solutions to addiction in the community.

Face It TOGETHER was the outcome of those town halls. The organization's model was unique, innovative and designed to bring social transformation around addiction. In 2009, the nonprofit opened its doors and began coaching in the Sioux Falls community.

Face It TOGETHER has been recognized by Ashoka, a leading network of social entrepreneurs, and has received the Bush Foundation’s Prize for Community Innovation. The nonprofit has also partnered with the Daniels Fund, to expand programming into Colorado, and Stand Together, as part of its prestigious catalyst program.

Since its start, Face It TOGETHER has coached members in more than 40 states, one U.S. territory and two other countries. The team's dedication to the mission and vision has remained unwavering. And although Face It TOGETHER's primary service, peer coaching, fundamentally has not changed, the organization has refined its processes and continued to learn from the communities in which it operates.

To find out more about Kattie and the work that she is doing at We Face it Together, check out their website at www.wefaceittogether.org.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Mitch Hankins.

Mitch Hankins is a cloud-certified full-stack developer who speaks to professionals who struggle to find meaning in life. He has developed his expertise by working with some of the largest organizations in the US, including Nasdaq and the US Military. With over a decade of professional experience, Mitch noticed he and his colleagues often struggled with feelings of isolation. This often led to an unfulfilled life where complacency and loneliness were the norms. Mitch can help any engineer with feelings of loneliness to experience a fuller and more connected life.

In his words, Mitch says:

“What I'm good at is inspiring people. From the outside, I have always seemed to live a successful life. But I've had to defeat trauma and mental health issues in the process.

My message is that the way we define success in modern day society is akin to eating the menu rather than the meal. Instead of valuing relationships and contribution, we are taught to value things that are superficial and flashy. We always want the bigger house, the new phone, or the next pay-raise. The truth is that we're starving for more meaningful lives but most of us don't know how to get started.”

To find out more about Mitch, check out his website at www.thedebuglife.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Kim Sorrelle.

Kim Sorrelle is the director of a humanitarian organization, popular speaker, and the author of two books. Her first book, Cry Until You Laugh, is about her and her husband's battle with cancer after being diagnosed just four months a part. Her second book, Love Is, chronicles her year long quest to figure out the true meaning of love, a sometimes funny, sometimes scary, always enlightening journey that led to life-changing discoveries found mostly on the streets of Haiti.

Kim began journaling real-life feelings and happenings after receiving a breast cancer diagnosis.

Just four months later, Steve, her husband and love of her life received a diagnosis of his own: pancreatic cancer.

Six weeks later, Kim held her love as he took his last breath.

Kim continued writing through all of it and beyond.

Finding the good while enduring the bad, Kim has you laughing out loud while adding your tears to hers.

This hilarious, authentic book is great for anyone facing a tough time in their own life or in the life of someone they love.

To find out more about Kim, check out his website at www.kimsorrelle.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Chancellor Jackson.

Chancellor K Jackson was born in Fulton County, Georgia, to Native American parents, grew up in Smyrna, Georgia, and attended Stetson University. For nine years he played football at the high school and collegiate level. After graduating with a Bachelor’s Degree in Communication and Media Studies, Chancellor lived abroad in China from 2018-2019. Chancellor fell into writing after his traumatic experience of being arrested, and detained in Beijing for 14 days. His first book, "14 Days in Beijing" has ranked #1 over fifteen times on Amazon in multiple genres. Chancellor has also released a romance saga about a man’s first step towards gaining emotional intelligence titled 'You Love and You Learn' & 'Real Love Never Dies' now available on Amazon.

To find out more about Chancellor, check out his website at www.linktr.ee/korleh

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Bre Brown.

Bre Brown is a manifestation and mindset coach for aspiring women entrepreneurs. As a manifestation expert, she helps women gain complete autonomy and feel empowered to manifest a career that aligns with their core values on an ambitious and spiritual level.

In her own words:

“Modern Manifestation is a resource for women to utilize in an effort to grow. No topic will be off the table, and the focus of this brand will be personal development, and wherever that takes us! I’ve spent thousands of dollars over the past decade working to become that “best version of myself”. Searching for that version, I spent years seeking the answers everywhere else until I realized that it had to come from within. I still have thousands of lessons to learn, but I’ve found over the years that there are women out there who could also benefit from the investments I’ve made and the tips learned along the way as you strive to achieve your own version of success.

I am here to learn and grow with you as we dive into coaching topics like perfectionism, law of attraction, manifestation, anxiety, abundance, growth mindset vs. fixed mindset, vulnerability, confrontation skills, spirituality, plant medicine, reiki, and so much more. I can’t wait to explore what this blog, podcast, and brand could become along the way and I promise to show up as my authentic self as this develops.”

To find out more about Bre, check out his website at www.themodernmanifestation.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Shannon Petrovich.

Therapist, Author, YouTube creator, Shannon earned her Bachelor’s degree from Bowdoin College, and her Master’s in Social Work from the University of Connecticut. She earned her clinical licenses in Social Work and Substance Abuse Counseling, and is a Board-Certified Diplomate in Clinical Social Work.

Her new book, Out of the FOG Into the CLEAR, Journaling to Help You Heal from Toxic Relationships has attained Amazon Bestseller status in Self Help for Abuse, Codependency, and Personal Transformation.

On her YouTube channel Therapist Talks, she shares insights, information, perspectives, and strategies on a wide range of relationship and mental health topics.

In her own words:

“I am a therapist, author, and YouTube creator specializing in helping people deal with and heal from narcissistic, abusive, and other toxic relationships. My new book, Out of the Fog into the Clear, Journaling to Help You Heal from Toxic Relationships, has earned a #1 Amazon Bestseller status in Codependency, Self-Help from Abuse, and Personal Transformation. My YouTube channel Therapist Talks offers information, insights, and strategies on a wide range of mental health issues, and has over 23,600 subscribers and 1.5 million views.

In my trauma-informed, strengths-based approach, I seek to help people identify their self-limiting old stories and negative internal self-talk that create poor self-care and self-destructive relationship patterns. This healing clears the way for a person to become all they were created to be.”

To find out more about Shannon, check out her website at www.therapisttalks.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Dr. James Perdue.

At age sixteen, James Perdue had to grow up fast after his father died. Concerned about his mother and brothers, he hoped his athletic talent would lead to a financially successful professional baseball career. He attended Martin Methodist College in Pulaski, Tennessee on a baseball scholarship. With the attitude of being invincible, he was in college for two weeks and played one college game in the fall. Then unexpected tragedy came a-calling.

On September 11, 1983, James became a quadriplegic, dislocating three vertebrae in his neck, from playing a casual football game. The doctor said, "James, I'm sorry. You'll never walk again and you might be paralyzed from your neck down." Later, the doctor advised his family to place him in a nursing home; he would be too much of a burden for them to care for.

Thankfully, God placed James in a family that did not accept such advice. After years of hard work, fortitude, and perseverance, he was able to return to college. After completing his bachelor’s degree, it took him three years to land a teaching contract. Prospective employers saw the wheelchair, not the applicant.

Dr. James Perdue, Professor of Perseverance, worked hard to achieve success as an award-winning educator and coaching a state championship basketball team. As a motivational/inspirational speaker, best-selling author, and life coach, James helps people get out of their past, step into their future, and persevere to their destiny.

To find out more about James, check out his website at www.professorofperseverance.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Victoria Rader.

Through thousands of client sessions and seminars, Victoria has witnessed that the cap to one's fulfillment is defined by their subconscious programming. As a result, she created products and services with a unique success formula of healing one’s heart, freeing one’s mind, and expanding one’s skills to see, create and live a life of limitless possibilities.

She is an internationally best-selling author of Until You Win, Until You Shine, Manifest mE journal, Ignite Your Wisdom, creator of Empower-mE and Maser-mE apps, founder of the Quantum Freedom movement, and creator of Free-mE™ EFT, Victoria is excited to share her newest book Prosper mE™: the 35 Universal Laws to Make Money Work for You. Her mission is to both awaken and empower you to your life of limitless possibilities and prosperity.

Victoria is a Possibility Coach™, transformational speaker, founder of YU2SHINE, internationally best-selling author of Prosper mE: the 35 Universal Laws to Make Money Work for You (and three other books), creator of Empower-mE and Master-mE apps, founder of Free mE EFT and Quantum Freedom.

2009 during the recession, she become a successful top 1% of real estate agents while homeschooling her kids;
Started training and seeing the limitations imposed by the subconscious mind;
Received PhD in Metaphysics to understand better how we create our daily reality;
Got certified in many energy healing modalities and traditional success coaching approaches and have founded Free mE EFT and Quantum Freedom techniques as a way to free one's mind;
Has witness physical healings for her clients, including a miraculous heart healing for my nephew; as well as practical powerful shifts in finances, career, and relationships;
Love teaching on the universal/God's laws and their practical daily application for people of faith and spiritual seekers - bridging the gap of judgement through LOVE (Life-Originating Vibrant Emotion).

To find out more about Victoria, check out her website at www.yu2shine.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Teri Patterson.

Teri Patterson is a Functional Nutritional Therapy Practitioner and a This Naked Mind Senior Coach. Teri is the founder of The Sober Nutritionist, a wellness business that blends nutrition and alcohol-free living to create the Ultimate Wellness Journey! Enjoying the amazing benefits of sober living since 2015, Teri is passionate about helping others make alcohol small and irrelevant through nutrition, science, mindfulness, and habit change. Since 2019, Teri has helped thousands of people explore and change their relationship with alcohol and discover true wellness.

The 'sober curious' movement is growing and people are looking for information, support, and connection. As a sober coach and functional nutritionist, Teri shares a unique approach to helping individuals understand the impact of alcohol and how to move into taking a healthy break to create true wellness. She also offers tips on how to support the body as one reduces or removes alcohol as well as offering guidance about how to reduce sugar cravings after alcohol.

To find out more about Teri, check out her website at www.thesobernutritionist.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Elizabeth Louis.

Elizabeth Louis helps high-achievers transform their psychology and business to generate impact and income in less than six Weeks.

She works as an Executive Performance Coach and has two graduate degrees in psychology. She is a professional coach and therapist specializing in performance/sports psychology, positive psychology, CBT, and Neuropsychotherapy.

She is an executive performance coach for corporate powerhouses and innovation-driven entrepreneurs across the globe. She has spent the last seven years studying and working with high-performers to help them make the impossible possible.

To find out more about Elizabeth, check out her website at www.elizabethlouis.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Bobbi Kahler.

An entrepreneur for more than 20 years, Bobbi has coached upwards of 3,000 people and has delivered presentations for tens of thousands of people. She helps people to see new possibilities for themselves and for their lives.

Her undergrad degree was in human performance improvement and her graduate degree was based on the science of human flourishing.

She has appeared in articles for Forbes, The Today Show, Yahoo News, Thrive Global, Authority Magazine and Influencive. She is the author of Travels of the Heart: Developing Your Inner Leader, she was a contributing author to the Amazon and NY Times best-selling book, Masters of Success, and she is the host of her podcast: UnYielded: Thriving No Matter What.

In her own words, Bobbi says:

“On a cold New Year’s Eve when I was 23 years old, my life was at a dead end.

I worked 2 jobs and ate tuna and macaroni salad for dinner almost every night.

I had had to fight with my mom to stay in high school. College was a distant dream – but only if I could find a way to pay for it.

That night, after working my two jobs, I went home to my lonely, dark apartment and thought:

“How did my life turn out this way?”

The answer that came back to me was that my life was simply a reflection of the choices that I had made so far.

Truthfully, that wasn’t the answer I wanted. I’m not proud of it, but my 23-year-old self wanted something or someone to blame.

In that moment, I knew that no one was coming to rescue me. No one was going to come and knock on my door and save me from my default future. That was a little scary.

But, then I realized how powerfully hopeful that was because if it were true that my life was a reflection of the choices that I’d made so far then that meant that if I learned to make better choices then I could change my results – and my future.

I didn’t need anyone to rescue me.

That was empowering.

That experience led me to devote myself to studying self-leadership, Emotional Intelligence, and Positive Intelligence (Mental Fitness) and ultimately to Bachelor’s Degree in Human Performance Improvement and a graduate degree based on the science of positive psychology (human flourishing).

It also led me to my 3 fundamental truths:

The future can be changed. It is not set in stone.
YOU – and only you – can change your future.
You don’t have to wait. Anything that you need to learn, you can learn along the way.

I am passionate about helping people learn how to lead their own life – not just live the default life. I want people to not tolerate their life, but to truly love it.”

To find out more about Bobbi, check out her website at www.bobbikahler.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Jerry Fu.

This was one of my most enjoyable conversations that I’ve had on the show. Jerry and I talked about just about everything from Salsa Dancing, music, food, culture, conflict resolution, and coaching.

Jerry is a conflict resolution coach for Asian-American leaders. He started coaching in 2017 to help other Asian-American professionals deal with the challenges they encounter at work, with their families, and within themselves.

Prior to starting his coaching business, Jerry worked as a pharmacist and began facilitating leadership workshops in 2012. Today, Jerry offers a range of coaching services, which includes individual coaching, group workshops, and keynote presentations.

In his free time, Jerry enjoys travel, trying new restaurants, and lots and lots of salsa dancing.

To contact him, visit his coaching website at www.adaptingleaders.com.

Click on either of the links below to listen to the conversation.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Timmy Gallagher.

Timmy has been described as executive coach that is a combination of Jocko Willink, Wim Hof, the Dalai Lama, and Robert F. Kennedy.

His experience, knowledge, and wisdom has evolved from his various roles as a government servant, corporate leader, not for profit volunteer, college level educator, endurance athlete, spiritual elder, caring father and loving husband. The totality of his roles and experiences revealed his calling to share his desires and talents as a coach.

Certified as a professional leadership and performance coach from the Brown University - School of Professional Studies and a Mental Fitness Coach with Positive Intelligence.

This unique patina of positions and purpose has empowered him to show up as the singular most positive and transformative coaches on the vast coaching scene.

In his own words, Timmy says:

“I am Timmy Gallagher and coaching has evolved for me as a calling to be of service to others in their evolution of performance and leadership.

My wisdom and experience, of over 30 years, in law enforcement, corporate, government, education, not for profit, spirituality, endurance athletics, and coaching certification allow me to be agile and present in our coaching conversations. Coaching will be a thought-provoking and creative process that inspires you to maximize your personal and professional potential.”

To find out more about Timmy, check out his website at www.evoluteperformance.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Amy Sargent-Kossoff.

Amy has managed operations, marketing, and client services for various organizations in the Denver area. She currently serves as Executive Director of the Institute for Social and Emotional Intelligence (ISEI). Her background in teaching and ministry has given her a unique ability to authentically connect with others while providing the organizational and structural support vital to a company’s success. Amy earned a Bachelor of Arts in Theology from Ambassador University in Pasadena, California, then completed her Master of Arts in Curriculum and Instruction with an emphasis in Aesthetic Arts at the University of Denver. She has completed the ISEI’s Coach Certification Course as well as ISEI coaching certification in Positive Psychology, Leader as Coach, and the Resilient Leader courses. Amy is passionate about adventure travel, camping, gardening, music, and writing personal narrative.

However, in this conversation, her and I connect as like-minded nomads living the RV Life. We talk about the process of downsizing and how we’ve embraced the understanding that for this season of our lives, less is more.

We’ve both come to appreciate that experiences are more important than things.

However, we’re also mindful of the fact that God has created each of us as individuals and we all have to come to grip with what is best for us in each stage of our lives.

To find out more about Amy, check out the work she does at the Institute for Social and Emotional Intelligence at www.isei.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Sarah King.

Sandy and I attended the Philadelphia Folk Festival back in August and one of the incredibly talented artists that we saw perform was Sarah King.

After some exchanges through social media and email, I knew that she would be a great guest for the show. Our timing was great as she has two brand new songs releasing on the same day as this podcast.

Sarah received the 2021 Songwriter of the Year award from the New England Music Awards (NEMA).

According to the Burlington Free Press, “Sarah King inhabits the dark side of Americana, creating ‘high-powered blues-Americana-rock’ anchored by her atmospheric voice and rhythmic blues guitar.”

Her 2021 debut EP The Hour, produced by Simone Felice and David Baron (The Lumineers, Jade Bird), marks her stunning arrival with "Nightstand" named 2020's #1 Best Song in Vermont by County Tracks.

King's live show crackles with energy and devil-may-care attitude, earning her support slots for Blues Traveler in 2022, The Steel Woods in 2021, an official showcase at Folk Alliance International in 2022, performances at the 2020, 2021, and 2022 Philadelphia Folk Festival, a performance at the 2022 CT Folk Festival, a night at legendary Caffe Lena in 2022, and a main stage slot at Black Bear Americana Fest 2021.

To find out more about Sarah and her music, check out her website at www.SarahKingSings.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Alice Graves.

Alice is a coach who helps successful women crush their self-doubt.

She feels that inspiration and motivation are all good and well, but when it comes to personal development they're just not enough.

In her opinion, if you really want to create life lasting change you need tools, techniques and someone who can hold you accountable, push you and also support you.

So many women, despite their successes in life, still doubt themselves. They doubt themselves at work, at home and also their own internal thoughts.

Her clients are tired of worrying about what everyone else thinks of them, they're tired of constantly doubting themselves and they're especially tired of constantly seeking external validation in order to feel 'good enough'. They want to change and that's where Alice comes in.

She is a coach that takes her clients from a place of doubt to a place of confidence and balance.

To find out more about Alice, check out her website at www.AliceGraves.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Gael Wood.

Gael is a massage and spa professional with over 25 years of experience in the industry. She graduated from massage school at the age of 19 and then went on to open her very own day spa and therapeutic massage center in 2003, which she ran for 6 years.

In 2013, Gael launched her first online business, which she managed along with her career as a Massage Therapist. As the online businesses began to take off, she made the decision to retire from the hands-on massage work in 2016 and concentrate on using her extensive knowledge and experience to create tailored training and coaching materials and courses for estheticians, massage and spa professionals.

Gael is the co-host and co-founder of the Global Wellness Professionals Marketing Summits and The Work Freedom Summit. She was honored to be inducted into the World Massage Hall of Fame and featured as a Massage Magazine All-Star in 2019.

Since giving up hands-on massage work and concentrating on her online businesses, Gael has been prolific with her creativity. To date, she has created over 60 successful online courses, launched popular Massage and Spa Marketing Content Clubs, written and self-published more than 15 eBooks and created a library of invaluable resources for massage, beauty and spa professionals such as the popular Massage and Spa Resource Bundles.

Gael has always been fascinated by Feng Shui and this led her to study with the International Feng Shui School. In 2019 she gained certification in Feng Shui, enabling her to carry out consultations as another part of her business.

She has since trained in Life and Business Coaching through The Rebel Millionaire Coach Certification Program and successfully completed her training in 2021.

Most recently, Gael has created the ELEVATE Mastermind, which is a program for people who want to learn about adding an online business to their income streams or segue into online business. She currently runs a low-cost subscription program alongside this called The Monthly Challenge Club for Entrepreneurs and she teaches online business strategy through The Elevate Mastermind.

Gael is happiest when she is in creator mode, finding new ideas for courses, marketing content, and books. She is constantly inspired to create more courses and materials - and continues to launch new ideas. She loves to educate herself and discover new ideas, learning as much as she can through reading books, online research, and studying online classes, and programs to boost her knowledge.

Her number one wish is that what she does can inspire other people, and she aims to help as many people as she can to thrive with her courses, books and programs.

Gael lives in Boone, North Carolina with her husband Dave and son Santino who she has been homeschooling since March 2020. She also has an older daughter, Grace.

To find out more about Gael or to purchase her book, check out her website at www.elevatewithgael.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Tabatha Perry.

Tabatha Perry is the ultimate go-to for women that are the non 9-5ers. She encourages and equips women that are wanting less chaos and to get their daily life on track! With over 15 years of experience in the Criminal Justice System, 20+ moves under her belt, has a Masters in Social Worker, girl-mom, wifey and Life Coach, she's got advice that will make any day less stressful for the woman juggling many balls in the air! As a professional over-thinker, she's learned how to simplify her day and loves helping women create simple & small edits in their daily life so they step into their fullest God-given potential!

In her own words, Tabatha says…

“I’m Tabatha Perry, MSW (a fancy acronym for Master’s of Social Work), and I believe you’re capable of achieving anything you want.

I also believe that you are busy, brilliant, and bombarded by a million little choices every day. My goal as your Life Coach is to help you strategize, organize, optimize your life that you may step into your fullest glory.

A little background about me: I was born and raised in Alaska, have lived in 4 different states and have moved 22+ times while I was either working, going to school, pregnant, or being a stay-at-home mom. Although I LOVE structure and order, God has gifted me many life opportunities to grow my flexibility and patience.

I have had quite the journey through my years of empowering others to show up as their truest self. I’ve helped dreamers from all walks of life: successful business owners, teen moms, those experiencing homelessness, prisoners, and my neighbors down the street. I love to be kept on my toes and I continue to appreciate people for who they are and the unique experiences they each have. I believe everyone has a story and has value. Everyone. And I want THEM to see that, too. That’s right, that means you too. You have a lot to offer the world, sometimes we just get caught up in life and forget that.

I’m just like you! I’ve thrived and also gotten caught up in life and just lived on autopilot. I’ve set goals, achieved many, and didn’t get close to many more. I’ve worked hard for what I believe in, and sometimes didn’t see the results I expected. I’ve made sacrifices I never thought possible to make my wildest visions come true. And those accomplishments came from my faith and me realizing every great goal starts at a gateway; every purpose needs a path; and every overachiever must strategize, organize, and optimize!”

To find out more about Tabatha, check out her website at www.tabathaperry.coach.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Brandon Leibowitz.

Brandon Leibowitz founded and operates SEO Optimizers since 2007. SEO Optimizers is a digital marketing company that focuses on helping small and medium-sized businesses get more online traffic, which in turn converts into clients, sales, leads, and more.

To find out more about Brandon, check out his website at www.seooptimizers.com.

Other ways to connect with Brandon through social media are listed below:

https://www.youtube.com/c/BrandonLeibowitz/videos

https://www.linkedin.com/in/brandonleibowitz/

https://www.instagram.com/leibowitzbrandon/

https://www.facebook.com/BrandonLeibs

https://twitter.com/brandonleibs

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Kathleen Flanagan.

Kathleen Flanagan has been on a spiritual journey for most of her life, but she hasn’t always gone willingly! Like a lot of us, when she felt a call from Spirit that sounded crazy, she said “No way!” And then she gave in and followed that call, always to the benefit of others and with gratitude for the guidance.

Since the mid 1990’s, Kathleen has been a certified aromatherapist and licensed esthetician. She was inspired to develop an all-natural method of stress reduction and mood enhancement based upon her personal experiences with sinus infections, migraine headaches and a host of complications to medications prescribed to address these conditions. The debilitating side effects of medications almost robbed her of a productive life. This inspired her to create Awakening Spirit, Inc. which produces a line of products that offer an all-natural approach to improve disposition, relieve stress, increase self-confidence and create the conditions to enjoy life through the simple art of effective relaxation.

In 2001 she began training in Sound Therapy as a way to deepen the healing experience and provide the mind and body with frequencies that promote relaxation and health. This also helps her clients release traumas, improve physical and mental health and become better attuned with their core essence or true self.

In 2015 Kathleen published the National and International multi-award-winning book “Dancing Souls: Merging Heaven and Earth – Book One: The Call.” Book One is the first in a trilogy about the journey of an awakening spirit.

Kathleen is committed to serving the people and the Earth through the ascension process. She believes that spiritual growth is needed to become self-realized and is passionate about helping others toward the next step in their evolution. Walking through the steps of her own magnificent advancement, Kathleen is honored to support and love those on their spiritual journey.

Kathleen is an inspiring speaker, passionate educator, and a highly sought-after transformational coach. She is helping clients achieve extraordinary results in accelerated time. Joy and gratitude fills Kathleen as she works with people to transform their lives and close the gap between the life they were living and the life they LOVE living.

To find out more about Kathleen, check out her website at www.kathleenmflanagan.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Kilani Daane.

Kilani is a former NCAA Division I beach volleyball athlete who has found her calling in the coaching industry. Everyone has goals and dreams in both their lives and businesses. Seeing the goal is exciting, but the question is always "how do we get there?" As a coach, Kilani is the conduit between goals as visions and goals as reality.

Kilani helps clients find the strategy they need in life and business to help get them to the goal they want to achieve. She specializes and working WITH your energy rather than AGAINST it to optimize results and has a goal to bridge the gap in corporate/family culture between generations.

In her own words, Kilani says:

“I am a young entrepreneur with the drive to succeed in what I do. I am a confident speaker and absolutely love to share what I know! I found myself at a young age and have discovered the power of working WITH my energy and following my passion even when it goes against societal norms. I provide knowledge on the power of energy in getting transformative results in your life, career, and business. I also am passionate about sharing how self-love and self-care play a role in seeing positive change in your life.”

To find out more about Kilani, check out her website at www.levelvpartners.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Brandon Puffer.

Brandon’s story explains how he went from reaching great heights as an MLB World Series winner to falling to the very bottom, serving 3-1/2 years in prison. He has humbly watched as everything has gotten restored in his life, and he know feels as though he is here to help others learn from his expensive lessons and show that we don't have to let our worst mistakes define us.

After a 15-year professional baseball career, four of which were spent in the Major Leagues, Brandon had fallen to great depths and has come out on the other side with important lessons to share with those who might find themselves facing tough obstacles or set-backs in their own lives.

For him, recovering from his addiction and hardships meant filling a God-shaped hole in his heart, and he now lives his life with purpose and gratitude for all that has been restored. One of his proudest roles in the life he leads today is being the coach for a non-profit baseball organization that helps young people develop their baseball talent. This is one of the many ways he plans to lead others in living lives they, too, can be proud of. He has been through many ups and downs, but what has been most important has been overcoming these low points and not allowing them to define who he is; his faith has guided him through these dark times with grace, courage, and the utmost determination.

To find out more about Brandon or to purchase his book, check out his website at www.BrandonPuffer.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Christine Patton.

Christine is a retired lawyer and Judge, who learned early on, the devastating effects of stress on the body, mind, and spirit.

Over 20 years ago, she realized that her health was a (w)holistic affair, and she began to use her body as a laboratory for modalities, knowledge, thought processes, and systems that healed as well as built resilience and performance.

After years of speaking, mentoring students, and coaching athletes, she wrote her first book called SHOWING UP – BECOMING THE ME I WANT TO BE – Aligning Your Life and Work for True Success.

She also became a Certified Trainer with The HeartMath Institute, where concepts of resilience, coherence, and heart-based living abide.

She founded her company Power Within in 2017 to embody her messages of Empowerment, Resilience, and Passion through impassioned keynotes, business training, and coaching.

She had a radio show with VoiceAmerica.com called UNSTOPPABLE YOU! and hosts a podcast called WunderWisdom.

She is an Executive Contributor to Brainz Magazine and is truly excited to continue to operationalize love, from the inner self to the outer world.

She will take you home – to your Power Within.

To find out more about Christine or to purchase her book, check out her website at www.powerwithin.ca.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Marsha Vanwynsberghe.

Marsha is a Storytelling Business Coach, Speaker, Author & Podcaster

She is the 6-time Bestselling Author of “When She Stopped Asking Why.” She shares her lessons as a parent who dealt with teen substance abuse that tore her family unit apart. Marsha has been published 7 times in collaborative books including “Owning Your Choices,” sharing inspiring stories of courage from women around the world.

Through her tools, NLP certifications, programs, coaching and two podcasts, Marsha teaches the power of Radical Responsibility and Owning Your Choices in your own life. She empowers women how to own and stand on their stories, be conscious leaders and build profitable platform businesses that create massive impact.

To find out more about Marsha or to purchase her book, check out her website at www.marshavanw.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Amanda Kate.

Amanda is the author of Divine. Messy. Human. A Spiritual Guide to Prioritizing Internal Truth over External Influence, Kinesiologist, Mentor, Archetypal Life Coach, Mother and more.

A recovering people-pleaser and self-flagellator, she walks the path straddling the Divine and Messy daily. Always growing, developing and learning new ways of being to hopefully, one day leave the Earth better than she found it.

She lives in Melbourne, Australia with her twin flame, her children, his children and a dog named Zeus.

To find out more about Amanda or to purchase her book, check out her website at www.amandakate.com.au.

Click on either of the links below to listen to the conversation.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Kathy Robinson.

Prior to becoming a certified wellness coach and author of The Athena Principles – Simple Wellness Practices for Overworked Professionals, Kathy Robinson spent more than 25 years assessing the wellness of Fortune 250 companies.

She was a Chief Audit Executive and Chief Risk Officer before turning the lens from professional assessments to personal ones and began helping her clients optimize their well-being, especially in times of transition or when striving toward new wellness goals.

She also teaches and facilitates online offerings based on her wellness methodology that include practices such as writing and meditation.

Kathy takes a holistic approach to optimal well-being that addresses mind, body and spirit. One of her “superpowers” is the ability to make these topics relatable and meaningful for Type-A executives and entrepreneurs, especially those who have maxed out or become burnt out and disconnected.

Clients trust Kathy’s ability to hold the space they need to listen to their inner wisdom. With her expert guidance, they drop deep into exploring their own value, impact and influence – and move forward into a life that is a full expression of themselves.

In addition to one-on-one coaching, writing and speaking, Kathy teaches and facilitates online courses based on her wellness methodology and focused on personal transformation. Her latest offering is “From Type A to Type Be, How to Mindfully Descend the Corporate Ladder and Invite What’s Next.”

Kathy practices what she preaches and is passionate about a holistic approach to wellness. She believes that a positive attitude is the accelerator that propels us through transformation. You can find her running the trails in northern New Jersey, where she completed her first marathon and ultramarathon at age 54.

To find out more about Kathy, check out her website at www.AthenaWellness.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Margaret Agard.

Margaret Agard is an award-winning writer whose latest book ‘In His Footsteps: How I Gave My Todo List to God and Got More Done, More Sleep and Less Stress’ is an 18-month slice of the life of a woman committed to giving her life to God by giving today to God: or how to be happy driving in rush hour traffic, dealing with frauds and facing a mountain of manure.

Margaret lives on four forested acres on a lake in Florida – viewing lake not swimming lake because, well, alligators. She and her husband Parker have 15 children between them, 38 grandchildren and 22 great-grandchildren. The birthday cards alone take up a lot of time.

Parker loves being outside even on rainy days. He puts on a wide-brimmed hat and walks around in the rain looking like a walking waterfall. Margaret, on the other hand, likes curling up in a comfy chair looking out the window at the results of Parker’s work.

Margaret writes from a small office with a view of oaks draped in Spanish moss, wildflowers and the lake that may or may not have alligators in it. Describing herself as “basically a hermit”, Margaret loves the social side of the Internet and contributes extensively to her local community.

To find out more about Margaret or to purchase one of her books, check out her website at www.margaretagard.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Adrianne Hart.

Adrianne is a wellness advocate, hypnotist, and the host of the Get Well with Me podcast. She has helped thousands of people reduce stress, dissolve anxiety and upgrade their health and wellness by introducing them to the healing powers of their unconscious minds.

Adrianne and I first met at Justin Schenck’s Growth Now Movement Live event back in May. She is one of the most positive people I’ve ever encountered. We’ve been fortunate to stay connected through the Growth Now Community.

Adrianne is doing amazing work and I wanted to help share her story on the podcast. She is definitely one of those many little people in many little places doing many little things to make the whole world change.

To find out more about Adrianne and the amazing work that she is doing, check out her website at www.adriannehart.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Joe Martin.

Joe Martin is the owner and founder of the Huntsville Adventure Bootcamp. He is a fitness professional, best-selling author, host of the Relentless Positivity Podcast, dad, husband, keynote speaker, football coach, and lover of dad jokes. Known for his positivity, sense of humor, and commitment to serving others, he has helped thousands of people look, feel, and perform their best.

In his own words, Joe says:

“At the lowest point in my life, I was overweight, depressed, on probation, broken, and depressed. After losing 50 pounds, working through some personal demons, and getting back on track I dedicated my life to helping others look, feel, and perform their best. I have helped thousands of women through Huntsville Adventure Boot Camp for Women, an outdoor fitness class for women only.

After learning how my negative thoughts only led me down a darker path, I have developed what I call Relentless Positivity. This is not putting on rose colored glasses and acting like everything is ok. But rather choosing to look for the positive aspects in life.

I've learned a ton from being in the fitness world for over 20 years, training exclusively women for over 13 years, being a two-time Amazon Best Selling Author, and multiple keynote speeches and TV appearances.”

To find out more about Joe or to purchase his book, check out his website at www.huntsvillebootcamp.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with James Gardiner.

James is a champion for conscious leadership and walking each day of adult life with our younger selves. Being a leader for momentum and growth is something that has come natural to him. With over two decades of hands-on experience in personal and business growth, he is motivated to help people face their challenges, uncover their truth, and reconnect to the wonder of youth so they can truly live the life of their dreams, by design.

With a background formed in the arena of rowing, James competed for nearly twenty years as a high-performance rower and coach in both the USA and Canada. At a young age he entered the US National Development System and won a highly coveted Gold Medal at the 1991 US Olympic Festival. Resurfacing years later as a master athlete and coach, James has put the cap on a career that accumulated over 100 top three finishes throughout North America.

His highly developed motivational and leadership skills forged in his early rowing days accompanied his creative side as he took to the acting stages of New York City and Los Angeles while in the entertainment industry. It is here in this arena that James was privileged enough to bring many characters to life on stage and screen and learn how to command an audience. During his fourteen year tenure, James immersed himself into various aspects of production and post-production, helming many of his own scripted and directed offerings.

The business stage called as well and James soon found himself helping to orchestrate the development of exclusive hospitality properties on both coasts as well as in Vancouver, Canada. His strength lay in his ability to foster an environment that promoted team unity for growth, whether overseeing a team of twelve or two hundred and fifty, that never changed for James. Understanding the power that lies in a “team dynamic” and consciously leading others towards a common objective was a key part to his success.

His deeply enriched life tapestry furthered him to speak, motivate, and inspire those before him via the stage, podcasts and as the host of “The Inspirational 30”; a television show where he had the privilege of sitting down with inspirational guests from all walks of life to share their unique and inspiring roads to authenticity. The show and its 23 episodes played in re-run style fashion all over Vancouver and even into other large markets of Canada on Shaw TV.

Most recently James has embarked on traveling and speaking about his powerful new memoir, ALL IN WITH LOVE: my journey to the hero within. This book chronicles his amazing life experiences and accomplishments as well as showcases how he turned poor choices and failure into a recipe for personal growth. But above all it is a story of reconnection. Of getting back to the wonder and curiosity of the inner child and living life to its glorious potential. Beautifully and compellingly written, his story telling is not only entertaining its readers but also providing them with deep introspective questions and thoughts about life and their younger selves.

To find out more about James or purchase the book, check out his website at www.theherowithin.ca.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Kristin Chadwick.

Kristin Chadwick has been in the podcasting industry since 2016 helping coaches, authors, and influencers launch and grow their podcast and expand their business. She brings a unique, personalized approach through utilizing coaching tools to help bring alignment, purpose, and intention to their podcast. She also hosts two of her own podcasts- Wholistic Podcasting for Podcasters and Wholistic Hearts- a podcast to help people encounter the heart of Jesus through the art of using our imagination.

In her own words, Kristin says…

“In 2016, I was thrown into the deep end of podcast production after a good friend of mine asked me to be his Podcast Producer. My background was in psychology and personal training so when he asked me to take on this new unfamiliar role, I was intrigued and excited. After successfully launching their podcast and creating a culture of legacy and family, I realized helping people to create their heart's passion was my own desire. Soon after, I began to create not only show content but started to use my own voice behind the mic, as well. I launched my own podcast, Wholistic Hearts, in January 2020 and began to see how coaching was the common thread of both helping other people with podcasting, as well as, with other's journey to connect their hearts in their faith. I became a Transformational Life Coach and began to help more and more future and current podcasters launch their podcasts. Creating a small business, boutique style podcast management company is one of the most fulfilling things I do. I love championing others to use their voice and bring their story out into the world.”

To find out more about Kristin, check out her website at www.kristinfieldschadwick.com.

Kristin is one of those genuine people, who is really easy to talk to. I truly enjoyed the conversation and think that you will too.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Brigitta Hoeferle.

With Brigitta, precision meets charisma. She is the Master Trainer & CEO of the Center of NLP.

As a powerfully engaging and professional international speaker, Brigitta is also known as the fast-tracked female trainer and retired lead coach of one of the largest self-development companies in the world.

As leading mentor, executive coach and author she has been invited to speak on stages around the world and train executives in the leading methodologies of powerful communication, in form of Neuro Patterns of Communication for their personal and business life.

Her degrees in marketing, communication, social pedagogy and education science validate her expertise, logic and knowledge, but it is her creativity, humanity and passion which really makes her stand out and lead other credible high-quality leaders.

As executive leader, award winning founder and board member of her successful organizations she gives full credit for her success to her unique communication and listening skills, her tenacity and her never-ending desire to take something from good to outrageously great.

Brigitta and her team have created Coaching Programs for large Corporations and conduct extensive trainings for businesses: small, medium and large.

Be prepared to learn from Brigitta so sit back, take notes and let's have some fun.

To find out more about Brigitta, check out her website at www.centerofnlp.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Branch Isole.

Author, poet and storyteller Branch Isole writes and speaks about the power of choice and consequence.

Known worldwide, his contemporary short stories reveal issues and emotions often experienced, but not always voiced.

As a Founder and Thought Leader of Spiritual Christianity, Branch Isole is the author of twenty-two books. Writing and speaking on the power of personal responsibility or its avoidance, his influential self-discovery themes span a wide range of reflective identity situations or scenarios every adult recognizes. His stories explore motives and actions in relationship dynamics across a broad spectrum. Branch shares issues and emotions often experienced, but not always voiced.

Forty-two short story poems from Branch's books have been reprinted by magazines, newspapers and e-zine publications. Branch has appeared on 'Talk Radio' and Podcast programs nationwide. He is also a speaker.

Branch participates in book festivals and writer’s conferences where he shares a 'pathway to self-publishing success' with aspiring authors. He also teaches sessions using his "3-R" poetry model with new poets. Branch is available to talk 'writing' with interested groups, high school or college classes.

Branch's active Internet presence provides readers and followers with short story selections and empowering 'Thoughts' posted on this site and YouTube (Branch Isole).

Born in Osaka, Japan Branch traveled extensively growing up calling many places home. Finishing high school at Rolling Hills, California, he went on to graduate from Texas State University, did post-graduate work at the University of Houston, and received his Oxford MA Theology degree from Trinity Bible College & Seminary.

To find out more about Branch, check out his website at www.manaopublishing.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Tony Rambles.

Tony is the host of the The Living Numbers Podcast.

Tony’s story starts in Detroit, Michigan but it has taken him to Connecticut because of divorced parents, to Houston, Texas because of the oil & gas industry (which he worked in for a few years). From Houston to China (with his wonderful wife of almost 10 years) to teach English to Chinese toddlers then back to Houston to teach Public Speaking to high school students along with running his own podcast.

Throughout this time, he worked in oil & gas, customer service, banking, food & beverage and now education. He has gone from newly married with nothing to still married with a little something.

Everywhere he goes, he’s a teacher. He tries to add value to people in whatever way he can.

He has a Bachelors in Business Administration from Devry University and has been an educator for five years. He was awarded the Rookie Teacher of the Year on his campus 2019 and CTE Rookie of the Year in his district in 2020.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Michael Huber.

Michael Huber is a Certified Mental Performance Consultant® accredited by the Association of Applied Sport Psychology. He is also a father, experienced business advisor, athlete, and mentor.

The primary focus of Michael’s practice is serving young athletes and their families. All of his work is motivated by the desire for others to get the best out of the abilities and resources at their disposal. Michael believes that mental performance coaching is about becoming aware of mental emotional challenges, removing those roadblocks, and taking intentional action to improve as a person and performer.

Michael returned to school for a master’s degree in sport psychology in his early 40s based upon his desire to help others, but also his recognition that youth sports can be improved with an increased understanding of what makes young people tick.

Prior to entering the sport psychology field, Michael spent almost 20 years as a successful business consultant working for globally-recognized professional firms, such as Ernst & Young, KPMG, and Cushman & Wakefield.

Of course, the most important job that Michael holds is father to his two children: Patrick, 13 and Lucy, 11.

To find out more about Michael, check out her website at www.michaelvhuber.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Herbert “Flight Time” Lang.

Following an eighteen-year career as a member of the Harlem Globetrotters as a player and coach, Herbert decided it was time for him to inspire others by sharing his worldly experiences with others.

His message is simple – Kindness is Free.

There are several ways in which he inspires others, including speaking, publishing, community outreach programs, as well as television just to name a few.

Herbert feels that as a loving, fair, passionate, and trustworthy leader, he has so much to give back to people. He truly views himself as just a small-town Arkansas kid who has been blessed to have so many amazing life changing opportunities.

He feels that it’s important to treat others even better than you expect to be treated by people. Every major accomplishment in his life has been the direct result of others speaking up for him, trusting, and believing that he would not fail them in doing so.

He was forwarded opportunities he only dreamed of growing up in Brinkley, Arkansas. A little boy who would grow up from the projects of his small town to interacting with governors, presidents, popes, and many other powerful dignitaries around the world.

He never imagined he would have traveled to nearly ninety countries around the world and have the opportunity to be a part of the most well-traveled sports franchise in the world.

He has appeared in many nationwide television commercials as well as reality TV shows, most notably CBS’s The Amazing Race.

As a Harlem Globetrotter, his nickname was “Flight Time.” he now invites us all to take flight with him on a journey through life and around the world and help spread the message that Kindness is Free.

For more information on Herb and his Kindness is Free mission, check out his website at www.HerbLang.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Manas Itene again.

Manas is the drummer for Michael Franti and Spearhead. I had him on my show back in March following the release of his single, “Be Yourself.”

Since that time, we have stayed in touch and have become friends. When I told Manas that Sandy and I would be coming to see him and the band play at the Philadelphia Folk Festival, he wanted to see the RV and do another podcast with me.

We had a great time together and as always, the band rocked and lit up the crowd on Saturday night.

The main topic of our conversation this time around though was talking about the story behind his new single, “Show Your Love.” The song is really an anthem for people to get out and be brave enough to share their talents with the world.

In addition to music, we talk about how we all long for deep human connection. Manas has started doing some retreats and we talked about how those events have really fed his soul as much as those who came to the event.

I feel blessed to have Manas as a friend and look forward to getting together with him again, hanging out, and having him on the show many more times in the future.

Click here to check out the new song today.

For more information on Manas, his music, and his mission, check out his website at www.ManasItene.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with G Wright.

His real name is Gregory, but everyone calls him G. He is a Producer & Media Trainer at All Things Relax Studios.

Along with Sandi D, Queen of Podcast Zen, he shows coaches, creative entrepreneurs, and authors how to create a crystal-clear message and connect with their audience in their signature ROCK STAR Media Training program.

He has worked with many well-known artists and bands as a Tour Manager and Sound Engineer for over 25 years. He has traveled all over the planet and worked with national and global TV, radio, and other media companies with his clients.

As a Tour Manager, he has worked with many publicity departments, publicists, and record labels to prepare the artist (lead singer) for media interviews.

Now he is sharing proven tips and techniques that performers use before they go on stage so his coaching clients can use these same ROCK STAR ‘moves’ to promote their business, book, or product.

Throughout his career, he has learned what makes or breaks a great interview. He is now sharing this information with his new “Band Members,” his clients in the Rock Star Media Training program.

To find out more about G and the work that he and Sandi do at Rock Star Media Training, check out their website at www.allthingsrelaxstudios.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Dr. Debi Silber.

Dr. Debi Silber is the founder of the Post Betrayal Transformation Institute and is a holistic psychologist, a health, mindset and personal development expert, the author of the #1 bestselling book: The Unshakable Woman: 4 Steps to Rebuilding Your Body, Mind and Life After a Life Crisis and her newest book: Trust Again: Overcoming Betrayal and Regaining Health, Confidence and Happiness. Her recent PhD study on how we experience betrayal made 3 groundbreaking discoveries that changes how long it takes to heal. In addition to being on FOX, CBS, The Dr. Oz Show, TEDx (twice) and more, she’s an award-winning speaker, coach and author dedicated to helping people move past their betrayals as well as any other blocks preventing them from the health, work, relationships, confidence and happiness they want most.

In her own words, Dr. Silber explains…

“I can speak to how an unhealed betrayal impacts your health, relationships, work and life.

I have 2 audiences: one who is struggling to heal from a painful betrayal. The other has figured out how to survive their experience and they've resigned themselves to believing that the physical, mental and emotional place they're currently in is as good as it gets. They've settled for a body, level of health, work, relationships and lifestyle that keep them "safe", stuck and small.”

To find out more about Dr. Silber, check out her website at www.thepbtinstitute.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Chris Donaldson.

At 21 yeasr old, Chris didn’t look like an Aboriginal adolescent as he set off from Belfast on his café racing Moto Guzzi. but it was the same motivation that drove him to set off on a journey of self-discovery.

But when the Iranian revolution stopped the planned 10,000-mile motorcycle road trip to Australia, he ends high in the Andes, 50-odd thousand miles later, before returning to Belfast.

His book, Going the Wrong Way is a story of a ‘coming of age’ road trip like no other.

Chris is now riding to Australia, on the same Moto Guzzi Le Mans, 42 years after his first attempt.

To find out more about Chris, check out his website at www.chrisdonaldson.world.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Tammy Goen.

Tammy uses her Masters in Counseling Psychology and her previous experience as a Licensed Professional counselor, her EFT/Tapping and HeartMath Certifications, and years of experience and education in energy healing, stress management and mindfulness to offer a holistic approach to coaching Highly Sensitive People toward realization of their sensitivities as their Super Power.

She helps them be themselves, be understood and be at peace, and develop confidence in the ability to handle life from a place of mindfulness and personal power.

Tammy takes a unique approach to coaching. She is passionate about life and living it to its fullest, and about helping others do the same.

Her eclectic background has provided her with a broad scope through which to offer a unique, holistic approach that crosses many lines of thought and focus. Previous to coaching, as a Licensed Professional Counselor she worked with clients primarily from a Cognitive-Behavioral perspective, helping them become aware of limiting thoughts then learning to make shifts that ultimately created changes in behavior and increased success in daily living and relationships.

After counseling for over 13 years, she learned therapeutic massage and energy work and enjoyed helping others achieve physical and energetic balance. Although she no longer offers massage, her training does allow her to help clients with postural, sleep and functional adjustments for specific physical complaints, and energy healing helps as well. Many years post-counseling, she began to miss working with clients to create emotional changes, and began her coaching direction.

Her coaching is focused toward helping Highly Sensitive Persons (HSPs) decrease stress, anxiety and overwhelm, develop healthy coping strategies and identify and reframe limiting beliefs. This incorporates developing self-compassion and self-love.

To find out more about Tammy, check out her website at www.coachtammygoen.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Michael Harris.

Michael is an author, coach, trainer, yoga teacher, entrepreneur and co-founder of Endless Stages. His first entrepreneurial gig was selling blackberry pies door to door when he was six. Over the years, he has dabbled (more like dived) into photography, real estate, option trading, coaching and yoga.

One of his specialties is helping anyone move from fear of speaking in front of others to powerfully sharing their message in front of any size group or audience. He has been able to take his personal challenges and help others find what inspires them.

For years he struggled with health issues, addictions and low self-esteem. Then one day he had had enough and became willing to make a change. It wasn’t easy. He had to stop dreaming about what he wanted - and begin to take massive action by applying the Law of GOYA. Many of his friends and colleagues urged him to use his metamorphosis to inspire others.

At one point, Jack Canfield (Chicken Soup for the Soul) reminded him that “your mess is your message.” He went on to join my Michael’s launch of his #1 bestselling book, "Falling Down Getting UP.”

He has owned (or partnered) in several successful yoga studios - and coached other studio owners around the world on attracting and enrolling new students - while increasing revenue and profits (over $40 million in sales). In addition, he has helped train and certify about 7,000 yoga teachers to get untwisted and speak in small and large groups.

Previously, he hosted his own successful podcast "Falling Up Secrets", which featured guests such as the World Renowned Les Brown, the Legendary Composer & Producer Thomas Bähler, sought after Pain Specialist Dr. David Clark and many others.

As a result of coaching, podcasting, speaking and teaching yoga, he has realized how important (especially in today’s world) it is to encourage, nudge and prod others to dive deep within and open up to talk about their experiences to anyone that is willing to listen.

He has a saying,

“One more open heart in the world, is one more open heart in the world.”

To contact with Michael, check out his website at www.michaelbharris.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Kay Hall.

Kay is a 25-year-old pilot, author, and social media influencer who is embarking on new adventures daily.

Accidents happen all the time, but accidents that lead to almost 2 million followers on Tik Tok and over a 100,000 on Instagram are pretty rare. Kay’s story of going from working dead end jobs to a pilot and social media influencer is pretty special and very inspiring.

I was fascinated hearing the differences in how Kay plans her flight trips compared to how we plan trips in the RV with six wheels remaining firmly on the ground. We’re both living our best lives and seeing this beautiful country that God has given us. Our views are certainly from very different perspectives, but our wandering hearts are being filled just the same.

Kay was able to turn an unfortunate situation of being laid off during the pandemic into a social media sensation who loves connecting with her fans and inspiring them.

She recently released her first book, titled, “Becoming FlyWithKay: Plain to Social Media Fame.”

To find out more about Kay’s adventures and where to get her book, check out her website at www.flywithkay.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Amy Scruggs.

Amy is a Nashville recording artist with a new EP, titled, “Love Another Day.” Her newest single from the EP, “What if it all goes Right” is shooting up the charts and closed out at #66 for the week ending, August 5, 2022. Additionally, the songs official video has topped 105,000 views on YouTube and counting. The song is truly an anthem of hope in those times in our lives when we’re questioning whether or not to take a chance and bet on ourselves and our grit.

Prior to recording this new EP, she has been known in the country music industry for more than 15 years and has opened for many artists including Clint Black, Trace Adkins, Charlie Daniels, Phil Vassar, Little Texas, and many more. Although we talk a lot about the song and her music career, Amy so much more than just a chart climbing country recording artist with an incredible voice.

Outside of her music career, Amy uses her twenty years as a Media Executive, TV host, Public Speaker, Corporate Spokesperson, and Business Professional, to help others present and communicate a concise and professional message. Whether you're on-camera with network TV, interviewed by a major news or entertainment outlet, filming a corporate video, ZOOM call, podcast, social media marketing or in person public speaking appearance, Amy’s coaching can help streamline your message.

Amy's career also includes more than 20 years in sales team coaching and received a "Bestseller" with her book "Lights Camera Action" in the fall of 2021. The past 5 years she has enjoyed her position as the Host for the show "The American Dream" on CNBC as well as being the former Producer & Host of “Veterans One" and "The Retiring Right" TV shows.

To find out more about Amy’s music, go to www.amyscruggsmusic.com.

To find out more about Amy’s media coaching, training, and consulting, go to www.amyscruggsmedia.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Marjorie Turner Hollman.

Marjorie Turner Hollman has completed four Easy Walking guide books, and the backstory behind Easy Walks--her memoir of learning to find joy in the face of difficult life circumstances. Partially paralyzed, she gets outdoors using hiking poles for support. A native Floridian, she came north for college and snow! A freelance writer, she has appeared on Boston’s WCVB Channel 5 TV news magazine show, Chronicle, the Boston Globe, local radio and cable TV shows, and been published in local, regional, and national publications.

Easy Walks has become a shorthand, Marjorie's "brand," for finding ways to open up the outdoors for those with mobility issues. Searching for healing in the face of unexpected life changes is her focus, derived from personal experience of sudden paralysis and partial recovery. Learning to make peace with life changes has become a theme of Marjorie's books and presentations. Lending a helping hand to others who struggle with life's challenges is an important part of Marjorie's work.

As someone who really enjoys hiking and being outdoors, I really enjoyed the conversation with Marjorie. She proves that just being outside and connecting with God and nature is a great way to stay balanced and grounded.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Cindy Van Arnam.

Having deeply immersed herself into the shadow of her own soul and healing old wounds of drug addiction, emotional abuse, and trauma, Cindy now sees her own limitless power and is here to lead other entrepreneurs to discover the same. Cindy is a certified Universal Laws Coach, Facilitator of Mastering The BrainGAME, Quantum Numerologist, Wealth Activator, and Chief Operations Officer for MindSHIFT LLC.

Tired of the old and archaic systems that no longer support us, Cindy is passionate about helping emerging entrepreneurs fully discover their own limitless power so they can create sustainable wealth through their passion and service to their higher purpose. Combining her strategic business savvy with Quantum Numerology and Universal Laws, Cindy teaches healers and changemakers the tools they need to first and foremost, master themselves. This gives them the ability to create a solid foundation for their business that will stand the test of time, even in a rapidly changing world.

In the midst of a paradigm shift, it is up to us to take responsibility for ourselves and stand unshakeable in the storm. There is an easier way if we are willing to do things differently. It is time to take the reins of your business and stop allowing your business to run you.

To find out more about Cindy, check out her website at www.cindyvanarnam.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Andrea Lukac.

When Andrea entered the working world after studying economics, she noticed very quickly how unhappy she and other people around her were in their day to day lives. This awareness led to her having the courage to follow her passion of inspiring people to live life to the fullest.

Utilizing her knowledge in human behavior, especially what has been triggered from past traumas, Andrea is able to assist people in overcoming overwhelm, fear, shame and judgement by communicating their needs and wants powerfully.

Andrea deeply wants people to own their life, learn to set healthy boundaries based upon their needs and wants and offers tools to overcome several troubles on the way of letting go the past to start living in peace, acceptance and love. She learned how subconscious patterns run human lives and how they can be changed for the better so that they are more serving to life. She would love to see everyone in its true potential, happy and satisfied.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Kevin Palmieri.

Kevin is the CFO, Founder & Co-Host of Next Level University, a Global Top 100 Self-Improvement podcast with more than 1,000 episodes reaching over half a million people in more than 125 countries.

He has studied personal development every single day since he had a moment where he thought about taking his life.

Some people find rock bottom...he found out that rock bottom has a basement.

In his mid-20's, he had it all. A beautiful girlfriend, a high paying job, a sports car, his dream body...but he still ended up sitting on the edge of a bed debating suicide...several times.

After his rock bottom moment, he went all in on self-improvement, he was determined to overcome his anxiety, to overcome his depression. he was determined to live his dream life.

Years later, he hosts a podcast with hundreds of thousands of downloads in over a hundred countries, he and his partner have grown the podcast into a multi six-figure business and have recorded over 1,000 episodes. He has given nearly 150 speeches and had the opportunity to do hundreds of coaching calls.

He realized that the main thing that changed was himself. He focused on learning what he didn't know (and unlearning a lot too) and his life started to shift.

He believes in a heart driven, but no BS approach to holistic self-improvement and teaching others how to get to the next level of their lives!

To find out more about Kevin and the amazing work that he and Alan are doing at Next Level University, check out his website at www.nextleveluniverse.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Renee Schyjer.

Renee fell in love and married the rocker Freddy Moore who was an incredible songwriter, lyricist and musician and recently published his memoir “It’s Not a Rumour”

His memoir is a sad and raucously funny story with so many facets. Freddy and Renee’s story is a love story of true soul mates. It speaks of his rock n roll career and his marriage to someone famous who still uses his name.

The saddest part of the story is that he has Alzheimer’s. The book preserves his memories and all that Renee did to try and save his beautiful brain from this horrible disease.

Frederick Moore rocked and rolled his way through life as “Rick,” “Skogie,” and “Freddy,” almost becoming famous. In the 1960’s his bands Skogie and the Flaming Pachucos reached local stardom. After, they put everything they had into their cars and caravanned to Los Angeles. From a garage in suburban Arleta, they evolved Skogie into a new band called The Kats. In the 1980s, The Kats sold out every major club in Los Angeles—from Madame Wong’s to the Whisky a Go-Go, the Starwood to the Troubadour.

The Kats were offered dozens of record contracts while headlining alongside The Police, The Knack, Flash Cadillac and the Continental Kids, and The Motels. They turned down every single one. The 1990’s and early 2000’s led Moore to the computer-programming world. Coding and music seemed to go hand in hand for him, and he found himself rising through the programming ranks quickly until developing early-onset Alzheimer’s. It’s Not a Rumour is an unorthodox, hysterical story of survival, and of making it big in music and life without ever making a dime. With the help of his wife Renee and writer Shannon Guyton, Freddy could hold on to these memories long enough to share them with the world.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Danielle Bernock.

Danielle founded 4F Media (Faith, Family, Friends, Freedom) in 2014 to promote inner healing and personal freedom through the power of ‘The LOVE that heals’, using all forms of media, beginning with her first book.

The following quote from the book has gone viral:

“Trauma is personal. It does not disappear if it is not validated. When it is ignored or invalidated the silent screams continue internally heard only by the one held captive. When someone enters the pain and hears the screams healing can begin.”

― Danielle Bernock, Emerging With Wings: A True Story of Lies, Pain, And The LOVE that Heals.

Danielle is an international, award-winning author, speaker, podcast host, and trauma-informed self-love coach who helps men, women, and organizations EMERGE with clear vision of their value, TAKE ownership of their choices, and CHART a path to their purpose, becoming Victorious Souls who Embrace The Change from survive to thrive through the power of the love of God.

She has authored 4 books, written for numerous online publications, and her stories have been published in two book anthologies. Her mantra is “love yourself from survive to thrive”, and she's known as “that lady on the internet who loves you.” A long-time follower of Christ, Danielle lives with her husband in Michigan near her adult children and grandchildren.

For more information or to connect with Danielle, check out her website at www.daniellebernock.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Amy and Joe Rogan.

Amy and Joe are fellow full-time nomads, traveling in a van, rolling with the punches that life throws at them, and making wonderful memories.

They are currently working on their first book, Happy Medium, which is scheduled to be released in the Spring of 2023.

Amy has had extensive personal and professional experiences. All of these experiences combine into a powerful perspective of technical expertise with consideration for creative and emotional wellbeing.

Professionally, Amy had an extensive career in the fashion industry as a technical fashion designer before transitioning into an entrepreneur. She has worked for companies such as QVC and Disney in product development. She then partnered up with Joe in their entrepreneurial adventures with their granola bar business, elite coffee catering business, network marketing businesses, and more. She keeps them organized with the back-office details and planning events.

Personally, Amy has triumphed over multiple serious health issues including Fibromyalgia, Manic Depression, Anxiety, Insomnia, as well as having multiple surgeries: Appendectomy, Cholecystectomy (Gallbladder), Hemithyroidectomy (removal of half the Thyroid), Supracervical Hysterectomy with Unilateral ⁠Oophorectomy (removal of the uterus, fallopian tubes, and left ovary with large endometrial cyst as well as endometriosis adhesions.) The chronic and severe pains have given Amy a different view of life and what's most important to her. Gratitude is the foundation of happiness.

After Joe was labeled as "learning disabled" he discovered self-reliance and determination to experience the world as he sees it, from a different point of view. That label drives him to prove they did not understand how to teach a creative mind.

After getting a Bachelor's degree in computer art and traditional animation, Joe has always kept drawing even though he gave up pursuing his career to take care of Amy. He worked various jobs, each leading to new and exciting experiences building to the next one. As a UPS driver, Graphic Artist for a T-shirt printing company, Bartender, Catering Floor Captain, PR for his own YoYo Business, Published Illustrator, and Gig Economy worker, he has learned valuable life skills and built lasting relationships. His entrepreneurial heart and persistence have created multiple businesses and explored high-risk/high-reward opportunities. His ability to see the bigger picture takes us to places we never thought possible.

You can find out more about the Rolling Rogans at www.rollingrogans.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Sean Tyler Foley.

Tyler is an accomplished film and stage performer and has been acting in film and television since he was 6 years old after his father passed away suddenly in a motor vehicle accident. He has appeared in productions including Freddy Vs Jason, Door to Door, Carrie, and the musical Ragtime. Tyler is passionate about helping others confidently take the stage and impact an audience with their stories. He is currently the Managing Director of Total Buy In and author of the #1 best-selling book, The Power to Speak Naked.

Tyler is a father, husband, son, and performer, in that order. Some days he feels like he has dabbled in every industry on the planet, from oil and gas, to aviation, to film and television, but that diverse experience is what has made him so versatile!

Regardless of the industry or the titles he has held, what they all had in common was promoting and encouraging people to be heard and understood. The skills and resources he has garnered along the way have enabled him to become an entertaining professional speaker and a knowledgeable trainer, who inspires others to reach for their dreams.

Today, Tyler works with executives and CEOs, helping them show up powerfully behind the mic to gain the exposure they need. Tyler is also a veteran podcast guest with over 300 appearances on episodes with topics ranging from leadership, safety, to overcoming adversity.

With his distinct and direct style, Tyler is emerging as one of North America's sought-after leaders in the field of public speaking for personal and professional development.

To find out more about Tyler, check out his websites at www.seantylerfoley.com or www.endlessstages.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Michael Mitreuter.

A native of Germany, Michael is the co-founder of the long-distance hiking series, MammothMarch.

Here are some quick bullet points on Michael’s career and personal life:

Since AUG ’20: Managing Partner of MammothMarch: Hosting of long-distance hiking events across the US
SEP ’16 – FEB ’20: Manager & Associate Director at Infront B2Run GmbH(Germany): Internationalization of (now) Europe’s biggest corporate running series
JAN ’12 – AUG ’16: Venue Manager at Infront B2Run GmbH(Germany): Sales, expansion of Germany’s biggest corporate running series
JAN ’10 – DEC ’11: Sponsoring Manager at German consulting firm actori
Bachelor’s degree in sports, media & event management (’10)
Personal life: Married to Ruth Olivia; active hockey player, sports enthusiast

The MammothMarch story as taken from the its website, goes like this:

In today’s hectic world full of (digital) distraction, information overload and daily routine, we are looking for ways to slow down and recharge – our bodies, minds and souls.

At the same time, we must get out of our comfort zone and push our boundaries to become a better version of ourselves as well as to help reverse the decline in the environmental health of our planet.

MammothMarch is a one-of-a-kind adventure that gives you the opportunity to do all of the above.

Unplug. Recharge.

Reach your limits. Push them.

Are you ready for the challenge of a lifetime? Let’s get there together. Step by step.

Find out more about the MammothMarch hiking series at www.MammothMarch.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Ashton Martin.

Florida musical artist, Ashton Martin, grew up around music. His grandmother, father, and aunt were all amazing singers in choirs. He began writing poetry at the young age of 11 that soon developed into rap. In 2018, Ashton Martin moved to Atlanta, Georgia with $965 in his pockets and the dream to grow his music career. He showed up and he is still successfully conquering. Since, he has toured 4 countries and is an HMMA award nominated artist. Ashton and his wife created Ashton Martin Entertainment in 2019 and stands out by having music relatable for everyone at all stages in life. He does not swear in his music and believes that his mission is to inspire others through quality music.

His lyricism, deft arrangements, and pristine songwriting abilities—Ashton Martin puts a brand-new shine on Hip-Hop. Hailed as "One of Florida's most versatile artists on the rise”, Ashton Martin, grew up around a variety of genres of music with a close family tie to Hip Hop, Gospel, and R&B-greatly influencing his sound today. Ashton Martin has made many impacts in the music industry while garnering critical acclaim from outlets such as Voyage Magazine, Hip Hop Xclusives, WWE TV Network, and Rap Fiesta.

You can find out more about Ashton and his motivating music, by checking out his LinkTree page at https://linktr.ee/thereal_ashtonmartin. This link is the best way to keep up with his latest content. It includes links to recent videos, songs, his website, etc.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Dave Combs.

A native of Erwin, Tennessee, Dave grew up in a family that enjoyed making music. Both of his parents and his grandmother Combs played the piano, which began his musical journey that included being a church choir director and pianist.

After college, Dave moved to Winston-Salem, North Carolina where he served as Minister of Music at a church while working as a computer programmer at a Fortune 500 company.

Dave is a songwriter, photographer, entrepreneur and author with four decades of experience writing over 120 songs and creating fourteen albums of soothing, relaxing instrumental piano music. His songwriting began with the now popular standard, Rachel’s Song. His soothing, relaxing music has been played millions of times worldwide on radio, satellite, and all internet streaming media and it continues to touch the lives of millions of people all over the world. He is also the author of the bestselling new book, Touched By The Music: How the Story and Music of Rachel’s Song Can Change Your Life.

I always love talking to musicians, regardless of their genre. I love all types of music and I believe that genres are just another unnecessary label that society uses to make us think that we’re different. Dave’s music is incredibly beautiful and I really enjoyed talking to him about how music truly can touch us and change our lives.

His story of how he used a grass-roots marketing campaign in the 1980’s to get his music into gift shops in tourist towns all across the United States is truly an amazing tale of grit and determination. It shows you just what can happen when you put the work into following your passion.

You can find out more about Dave and his beautiful music, by checking out his website at www.combsmusic.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Taralyn Michelle.

A native of the southern Chicagoland area Taralyn is the CEO of Divine Designed Media LLC, a published author, Spiritual Mindset and Wellness Coach, and host of "The Grind Defined" podcast.

Taralyn is passionate about sharing her message of cleansing the mind (resetting the negative reel), body (purging your temple) and spirit (relinquishing control).

As a certified Spiritual Mindset Coach and Habit Change expert, Taralyn has led individuals and groups in customized trainings designed to create life changing shifts.

Her book, entitled The Ultimate Release is at the core of Taralyn’s mission to guide others through identifying the beginning of core beliefs that skew perceptions and fuel negative decisions and experiences.

In addition to sharing her impactful talent to awaken and inspire, Taralyn is proud to lend her support to community organizations and corporations as well as being an active contributor to various platforms created to uplift and educate viewers and listeners.

In her own words…

“One of the most valuable lessons I have learned throughout my journey is much of what proves to be challenging in life has little to do with what we don't know.

Yes, there is always knowledge and information that can help get us closer to where we want to be. Still, without having a method to not only apply the information/knowledge that is repeatable, flexible for growth, and makes accountability natural, many won't succeed.

My style of teaching is all about seeing the lighter side of challenges. Audiences leave with valuable tools and a fresh outlook on difficult issues. Adversity, failure, embarrassment, self- doubt/hate, etc. serve a valuable purpose in attaining greatness!

I believe much of what we all need we have inside us. My mission is to teach audiences how to create environments within their mind and body that attract what will strengthen and not weaken.

With a solid foundation for life, the tools to maintain the environment of mind and body, and a dose of humor scaling your life becomes as natural as breathing.”

I really felt an immediate connection to Taralyn during the conversation. Always strange to me how you can get vibes from someone immediately and know right then that they are part of your “tribe.”

You can find out more about Taralyn, by checking out her website at www.taralynmichelle.com.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Alex Croft.

Alex is the third grandchild of mine that I have had on the show so far.

He’ll be entering his senior year at Conrad Weiser High School in Berks County, Pennsylvania this coming fall of 2022. We talk about how he adjusted to remote learning during the covid lockdowns. How he’s looking forward to his senior year and life after high school.

Alex plays soccer and runs track and field.

Wise beyond his years, Alex has a special connection to nature and understands how healing it can be.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Tony Gentile, Jr.

Tony, along with my nephew Donnie wrote and performed the theme song to my podcast many years ago. He is also a former employee of mine and a longtime friend. He comes from an amazing family who instilled an ethic of hard work and dedication in him at a very young age.

Tony is an incredibly talented guitarist who has decided that the time is right to leave his comfort zone, move to Nashville, and pursue a career in country music. He and a group of other musicians are betting on themselves and going “all in” on their musical talents.

We talk about how his love and passion for music has helped to shape who he is as a person today. What artists influenced him as a young player and the role that music has played on his entire life. Tony has played in multiple bands and multiple genres. He feels that all of those threads wound together are what has contributed to his playing style today. The connection that he feels to the audience during a live performance is one of the things that he loves most about music.

Most importantly, we talk about how he decided that now was the time to take the leap and chase his dream. He’s at a point in his life now where he needed to have the question of whether he’d be able to make it or not, answered. Regardless of if he makes it or not, he’ll find that answer and be able to move on with no regrets.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Katelyn Reece and Matt Abbott of the indie folk duo, RustedMelody. As with Quinn Leach, who I interviewed a few weeks ago, we saw RustedMelody perform at Talona Ridge RV Resort in East Ellijay, Georgia.

I always love talking to musicians and other creative people and learning about what inspires them to do what they do. Music truly is the universal language and can be used to heal our souls.

Matt and Katelyn talk about how they form a connection with the audience while performing and how they feed off of the crowd’s energy during a show.

During the pandemic, they made the gutsy decision to quit their jobs and start performing music as a livelihood as opposed to just a hobby. They’re performing at least four gigs a week throughout the North Georgia region.

During the podcast, they perform their original song, “Butterfly.” It’s a song about life, love and the journey to find yourself. All rights to the song belong to RustedMelody and it is used in the podcast with their permission.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Keith Shenk. Keith is co-owner of Petrucci’s Ice Cream in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania and we’ve been friends for 38 years.

We talk friendship and entrepreneurship. Keith reflects on his early days in business and the struggles to keep moving forward under the stress of making ends meet financially. He talks about how that resilience and tenacity early on has allowed him to now share his success by giving back to the community.

He reflects on how having the support of his wife, Patty and his business partner, Russ contributed to the success and longevity of the business.

I’m proud to call him my friend and be able to witness first-hand how hard work and dedication have paid off for him and his family.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Quinn Leach.

Back in April, Sandy and I were staying at the Talona Ridge RV Resort in East Elijay, Georgia. As part of the customer experience, Talona Ridge offers live music every Friday and Saturday night. On the Saturday that we were there, we were to enjoy the talents of solo guitarist, Quinn Leach.

Quinn specializes in hammering and tapping. He plays Flamenco, classical, Spanish styles, just to name a few. Using loops and peddles he creates unique arrangements on some popular covers. His original material is truly amazing and his newest album, Dreamcatchers Shadow is available on Spotify and all other streaming services.

Quinn and I talk about his journey in music and the creative process.

Be sure to stay tuned at the end of the interview to listen to some of Quinn’s music that he played when we saw him perform at Talona Ridge.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Mike Latona.

Another one of my former players, Mike Latona is now a Quality Engineer.

Just like last week’s guest, Collin Fesi, we were able to reconnect with Mike in Maryland. What a blessing that night was to not just see one of my former players, but two in the same night. Mike and Collin played for our organization a few years apart, but it was neat to see how they connected immediately knowing that they had that Berkshire Baseball experience in common. I hope that they stay in contact now that they know each other.

I always say that when we reconnect with my former players on this journey, it truly does fill my heart with joy. To see these kids now and witness how they’ve grown into productive members of our society and just quality humans overall is incredibly special for me.

Mike reflects on his playing days within the Berkshire organization and how it impacted him socially to meet and play with players from outside of his school district.

We also talk about how those life lessons on the field continue to help him today in his career and beyond.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Collin Fesi.

Collin is another one of my former players who we were able to reconnect with on our journey.

He now lives in Maryland and works as a sales representative for the Pepsi-Cola Company.

We talk about baseball, business, and life experiences.

Collin talks about how the game of baseball taught him to be a good teammate with both his clients and co-workers in corporate America. He also reflects on the fact that some of his best life lessons from the baseball field were taught to him most during the seasons in which he was part of a team that struggled. Similar to life, our greatest growth moments come more so in the valleys as opposed to the mountains.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Wes Henderson. A few weeks ago, Sandy and I had the pleasure of staying at the Talona Ridge RV Resort in East Ellijay, Georgia. It’s a family-owned business and I was able to talk to third generation owner, Wes Henderson.

A development company that spent years in the apartment business, the opportunity arose to purchase a parcel of mountain top land in East Ellijay, Georgia to build an RV resort.

With no knowledge of the industry, they used humility to explore what the RV community would want to see in a new RV resort. The resort is just the tip of the iceberg of the greater vision of what they want for the destination.

They’ll be constructing a retail shopping area along with cabins, hiking trails, and additional rustic RV spots across the street from the current location in order to create a one-stop destination that would be walkable for all.

The resort has beautiful mountain views 360 degrees at the top of the resort. They feature live music and serve local wines every Friday and Saturday night in the event center.

The resort has a heated pool, hot tub, fitness center, dog park, dog wash, outdoor grills, gathering pavilions, clean bathhouses, showers, and laundry facilities to name a few of the amenities.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Nan Arkwright and Joe Bauman. Nan Arkwright is the author and Joe Bauman is the illustrator of the new super hero children’s book series, Badges of Power.

Nan remembers the moment she decided in third grade that she wanted to work with children. As a pediatric occupational therapist, she gets to do just that. She teaches children emotional regulation and social skills in order to transform challenging behavior and facilitate healthy connections with adults. She wrote this book so kids and parents could share a story about the big feelings to which they can both relate. Through her writing and occupational therapy practice, she helps children understand how to become agents of positive change for themselves. Learn more about her private practice at www.ahopskipandajumpahead.com.

Illustrator Joe Bauman has an imagination so big he’s able to bring levity to a deep topic through his colorful, engaging illustrations in Mission: CONTROL! A Big Feelings Adventure! A multimedia artist and illustrator with more than 25 years of experience, Joe has built his computer graphics expertise on both the artistic and production side. With deep roots in production at PDI/Dreamworks, he is as well-versed in his talent as he is in his ability to collaborate with creatives in all fields. You can check out his work at www.jbaumanart.com.

In the book, Joseph doesn’t want to go to bed. When his mom demands he turn off the TV, the imaginative boy’s meltdown launches him on an intergalactic adventure. But as Joseph escapes to Planet Kelvin 273, he must battle the Green HypnoZoids to save himself from their hypnotizing powers.

Joined by his beloved dog Gretchen, Joseph has to gather the self-control to defeat the aliens. But if he can’t master his overwhelming emotions, he fears his pesky enemies will always have command over his life.

As we kick off the second 100 episodes of The Journey of My Mother’s Son podcast, I thought that it would be interesting to put together a compilation of some of the answers to my final question from the first 100 episodes.

As you all know, the subtitle of the podcast is, “Many little people in many little places.” It is inspired by the opening lyrics of the Michael Franti song, “Gloria.”

Those lyrics state, “When many little people in many little places, do many little things, then the whole world changes.”

With those lyrics in mind, I ask all of my guests the same final question, which is, “What is one of the little things that you do on a daily basis to help make the world a little better place?”

There has never been a bad answer to that question on the show. Most of the answers have helped restore my hope in humanity. Obviously, I couldn’t put together all 100 answers, but I was able to put together a few. These are not necessarily the best answers, they’re just some of the answers, in no particular order.

I hope that they will help restore your hope in humanity as well as inspire you to go out and do something little each day in order to help make the world a better place.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Toni Reece. When I saw that I was approaching my 100th episode of the Journey of My Mother’s Son podcast, I wanted to make sure that I had a very special guest on the show to commemorate the milestone occasion. With that thought in mind, it only made sense for me to have my former producer, Toni Reece as my guest on the show.

Toni has been a colleague, dear friend, and mentor of mine for ten years. She was the one who initially got me into podcasting in the first place. She was behind the scenes and at the control panel for 267 episodes of the original podcast that I had hosted from 2012 through early 2020, Stepping Up to the Plate. She was on the microphone and the guest host of episode number one of this podcast when we launched it on February 25, 2020.

Even though our full-time RV journey has separated us physically, we stay in contact quite a bit. She continues to be an inspiration to both Sandy and I and we always look forward to her “Sunday Night Reflections” post on Facebook.

During the podcast we talk about some of the health challenges Toni has faced recently and how it has allowed her to take a new perspective on how she spends her time and the importance of being present with those around you.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, Sandy and take a few minutes to reflect on our journey thus far.

This is the 99th episode of The Journey of My Mother’s Son podcast, so I wanted to sit down and have a conversation with my wife to talk about some of the highlights of being on the road full-time for over 19 months now.

We recorded this episode on Easter Sunday while staying at the beautiful Talona Ridge RV Resort in East Ellijay, Georgia. We were blessed to be able to spend the holiday with a view of the gorgeous mountain ranges that surrounded us in North Georgia.

We talk about the people, places, and things that we’ve encountered along the way.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Mike and Ginny Walsh.

Mike and Ginny are another amazing couple that we’ve been blessed to meet through A Year to Volunteer. We first met them when we dropped in for a day at the Vancleave, Mississippi project. We then worked with them at the Y2V2 project in Roan Mountain, Tennessee.

Mike is a retired San Antonio Fire Fighter and Ginny is a retired teacher and librarian. After two successful careers in service, they decided that they wanted to continue giving back in their retirement as well.

Initially looking into volunteering with the National Park Service, the time commitment wasn’t feasible as they were still the caregivers for their aging parents.

A YouTube video about A Year to Volunteer led them to reach out to Phil and Shar Roos and the rest is history. Four projects under their belt and no end in sight.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with John and Karen Gailey.

Natives of Utah, John and Karen are fellow full-time RVers as well as fellow Y2V volunteers.

We first met them at the A Year to Volunteer project in Picacho Peak State Park in Arizona.

They love hiking, checking out the National Parks, but more than anything, they love giving back through volunteerism. They understand the importance of giving back and the value of the life-long relationships they have gained through their service with A Year to Volunteer.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Orien Fadler.

Orien is a retired general contractor who we first met back in October during our project at Picacho Peak State Park in Arizona with A Year to Volunteer.

At 79 years old, Orien is one of the hardest workers I’ve ever met. He was raised with the philosophy to give back and has no plans on slowing down any time soon.

He loves sharing and passing on his wealth of knowledge from 47 years as a general contractor to others.

He is currently in the midst of a three-month cross-country journey with his beloved golden retriever, Lucy, which will include helping on a total of four projects with A Year to Volunteer.

He has two children and four grandchildren.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, Sandy joins me to co-host our conversation as we sit down to talk with Cody and Brittany Holifield.

Cody and Brittany have been full-time RVing with their two sons, 14-year-old, Barrett, who was the guest on my last episode, and 7-year-old, Corbin for three years.

Cody and Brittany are young parents who understand the importance of teaching their children the importance of giving back. We met them on our Y2V project at Sam Houston Jones State Park in Lake Charles, Louisiana. The boys aren’t just along for the ride, they’re here to roll up their sleeves, get dirty and pitch-in and help with the project.

You can follow their travels through their blog, on Facebook, Instagram, Tik-Tok, and YouTube at Hitch to Hitch (@hitchtohitch).

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Barrett Holifield. Barrett is a 14-year-old full-time RVer. He started three years ago when his family decided to embark on this amazing journey.

Barrett is an old soul who is wise beyond his years. We met during the Y2V project at Sam Houston Jones State Park.

Barrett talks about his desire to give back and why he enjoys volunteering.

We also talk about both the challenges and benefits of living life on the road.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Manas Itene, drummer for Michael Franti and Spearhead.

A native of Nigeria, Manas Itene started playing the drums when he was only eight years old. His hard work and dedication to his craft allowed his dream of being a musician, which few in his village could understand, come to fruition many years ago.

He is a world-class drummer and singer for Michael Franti & Spearhead. He has been part of the band for over 22 years.

In addition to his work with Michael Franti & Spearhead, he is a very talented solo artist as well. He just released his second solo album, titled, One Accord, which features the single, Be Yourself.

Manas has spent his life on tour, traveling the world sharing his incredible talent and passion for music. His love of music is matched only by his love of connecting with people.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, Sandy joins me to co-host our conversation as we sit down to talk with Mike and Terri McIlraith.

Mike and Terri are fellow full-time RVers who have an incredible passion to give back. We first met them in Antigo, Wisconsin during our first A Year to Volunteer project at the Raptor Education Group. Sandy and I arrived at the project midway through. We were working on different parts of the project, so we really didn’t have much of an opportunity to get to know them.

As fate would have it, we met up with them and A Year to Volunteer co-founders, Shar and Phil Roos at the Strawberry Fields RV Resort in Florida. We were able to get to know them better after spending some time and sharing a few meals together.

After a short visit at the Vancleave, Mississippi project, we are now together in Lake Charles, Louisiana working on helping to get Sam Houston Jones State Park rebuilt for the local community.

During the conversation we share stories of what inspired us to start this RV lifestyle and why we feel it is important to give back.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with New York Times Best Selling Author, Laura Duksta.

Laura is an Ambassador of Love, inspirational speaker and New York Times bestselling children's author. Her first book, l Love You More, has sold nearly a million copies in seven languages.

Laura's works also include You are a Gift to the World/The World is a Gift to You and I'll Hug You More. Her newest title, No Matter What, I Love You - You Are My Sister, You Are My Brother, will be released in 2021.

Through her work, Laura aims to reach as many hearts, homes and classrooms as possible with the power, magic and message of love, appreciation and connection.

She believes that when people know they are loved, anything is possible. Laura lost all her hair to a condition called Alopecia Areata at the age of eleven. It took her many years to learn to love herself and allow others to love her. Laura felt from a young age that she was meant to travel the world, meet her brothers and sisters and share the message of love.

Laura is now fulfilling her mission of generating the conversation of love around the world through her books, school programs and inspirational talks. She has delivered her well-received presentation "Empowering YOU to Shine!" to 100,000+ students and educators across the country. Laura has also delivered keynotes for a diverse array of groups and organizations, including Women of Energy in Jamaica and Delta Airlines.

Laura and her work have been featured in dozens of blogs, magazines, newspapers, radio programs and TV shows, including USA Today, the Miami Herald, the Sun-Sentinel and Boca Magazine, Whoopi Goldberg, Sally Jesse Rafael, News 4 Nashville, South Florida Today and more.

Some of the biggest hearts in the publishing and human potential worlds endorse Laura’s books and programs, including Jack Canfield and Mark Victor Hansen (co-authors of the Chicken Soup for the Soul series) and Wayne Dyer.

An active member of her community, Laura is a part of the Wise Mind Project, a South Florida-based non-profit bringing mindfulness, resiliency and inner wisdom training to educators, middle school students and their families. She has served on the board for the Boys and Girls Club of Broward County, and has volunteered at alternative schools, juvenile detention facilities and rehab centers for infants born to addicts.

Laura holds a bachelor’s degree in sociology from the University of Maryland. She is an avid student and teacher of human potential and transformational work, participating extensively at Landmark Worldwide, and an original co-founder of CoCreating Our Reality.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Annie Leiding and Stephanie Yuen.

Annie and Stephanie are two amazing young women that I was blessed to meet at the CAP Kid Camp in Florida that Sandy and I were able to volunteer at.

They both have alopecia, which is an autoimmune disorder that causes the loss of hair. They were two of the guest speakers at the camp.

Stephanie, who recently published the book, Stronger Together was diagnosed at 13 years old.

Annie was diagnosed during her sophomore year of college at the age of 19.

They have both had their share of ups and downs dealing with their hair loss, but they are determined to turn their tests into their testimonies for younger kids who are facing the same challenges as they did.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Rachel Folden.

Rachel Folden is a minor league Hitting Coach in professional baseball, the first female to hold such a position in her organization. Folden also launched EliteFastpitch.tv, the most comprehensive hitting drill library available for softball players. Now players from around the world can train with Rachel Folden and her team at Folden Fastpitch. Folden Fastpitch also partners with Elite Baseball Training to provide hitting consultation for baseball and softball teams at the professional, college, high school and travel ball level. Folden and her team put on numerous camps and clinics across the country, primarily in the skills of hitting and catching.

A former professional softball player in the NPF (National Pro Fastpitch), Folden retired after the 2012 season, after 5 years in the NPF. Folden played for two professional teams, the Carolina Diamonds in 2012, and the Chicago Bandits from 2008-2012. She finished her career with 41 home runs, 122 RBI, 101 walks, and 28 doubles, which are all-time top 10 marks. She was the Rookie of the Year in 2008, a 4-time All-NPF Catcher, and the 2011 Offensive Player of the Year. She won two NPF Championships with the Bandits in 2008 and 2011.

Folden was drafted out of Marshall University in Huntington, WV. At Marshall, Folden was a 4-time NFCA Division I All-American. Folden currently holds Marshall career records in batting average (.405), hits (266), home runs (58), RBI (196), total bases (505), and walks (143). She is also 2nd all-time at MU in runs scored (169), and doubles (63). She is the career leader in C-USA in batting average (.405) and slugging percentage (.811).

Folden was an Assistant Coach at Valparaiso University in Valparaiso, IN in 2009-2010. Prior to coaching at Valparaiso, Folden was a graduate assistant coach at Holy Names University in Oakland, CA. In her one year at HNU, Folden helped the team to a Cal-Pac championship in only its second year of existence. HNU also had the Cal-Pac Pitcher of the Year, Player of the Year, Rookie of the Year, and Coaching Staff of the Year during Folden's tenure.

Folden was also the head coach at Encinal High School in Alameda, CA in 2009. She guided an Encinal team that finished fourth in the Bay Shore League with 15 wins, 9 of those coming during league play, when they had won 4 total games the year before.

Rachel Folden is originally from Azusa, CA and graduated from Diamond Bar High School in Diamond Bar, CA where she had a standout career and had her jersey retired. Folden graduated from Marshall University with a bachelor's degree in History, and was inducted into the Marshall Athletic Hall of Fame in 2019. Folden lives with her two dogs, Hank and Jack.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Ann Zaprazny. Ann and I talk about the importance of good mental health for elite sports performance. Ann helps athletes and professionals transform their mindset so that they can take action for better results in sport, business and life.

When clients transform their thinking, they improve their beliefs and achieve more.

Ann is passionate about helping others succeed. After a successful career in the insurance industry, Ann formed Great Sports Minds and built a business that allows her to coach others to their fullest potential.

As I Continue my series of sharing the stories of some of the disciples of the Dream Center of Southeast Texas, I sit down and talk with Greg Sury in this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast.

An incredibly talented musician, Greg is using his musical talents to help him conquer his addiction.

Greg started drinking with his bandmates at 19 years old and was almost immediately addicted. Over forty years of alcoholism led him to losing just about everything. He moved from just alcohol to using inhalants.

Since surrendering himself to the Lord and serving Him, God is opening doors in the music world again.

For the first time in years, Greg is excited about his future.

As I Continue my series of sharing the stories of some of the disciples of the Dream Center of Southeast Texas, I sit down and talk with Edward Medlin in this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast.

Edward was the youngest member of the discipleship program at the Dream Center of Southeast Texas while Sandy and I were there to volunteer. At only 18 years old, he originally thought that he’d be entering into his freshman year of college, but God had other plans for him.

He had to get his life right and his addiction under control before God could use him as He had planned.

First exposed to pornography at only ten years old, it led to an addiction that had him gripped so tightly that he couldn’t even hold down a job.

Recognizing that he needed to get help, and having been exposed to the Dream Center in the past through his mother volunteering at the facility, he checked in during December of 2021.

He has faith that with the help of God and a strong support system, he can overcome his addiction and become the servant that the Lord intended him to be.

As I Continue my series of sharing the stories of some of the disciples of the Dream Center of Southeast Texas, I sit down and talk with Jeff Macapinlac in this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast.

After a lifetime of addiction and criminal activity, Jeff has changed his life and his focus to serving others by feeding their bodies and feeding their souls.

During our visit at the Dream Center, Jeff was in charge of the kitchen. He fed his fellow disciples in the program as well as staff, interns, volunteers, and guests.

His passion for feeding others has turned into a dream of one day purchasing a food truck that would also minister to the homeless.

Jeff’s story is one of restoration and hope. He has faith that the Lord is guiding his steps and giving him a calling of feeding bodies and feeding souls.

As I Continue my series of sharing the stories of the disciples of the Dream Center of Southeast Texas, I sit down and talk with Bob Daniels in this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast.

Bob is a house supervisor at the Dream Center of Southeast Texas as well as a product of the program in LA.

Bob’s story is one of many highs and lows throughout his battle with addiction. However, after years of drug and alcohol abuse, several failed marriages, thoughts of suicide and despair, God is restoring Bob’s life and his relationships with his children.

Bob is living proof that no matter where life takes you, you can always make a change for the better. Through his faith and devotion, he truly is a changed man.

As the bible says, “And he will restore the hearts of the fathers to their children, and the hearts of the children to their fathers, lest I come and smite the land with a curse.” (Malachi 4:6)

Continuing my series of sharing the stories of the disciples of the Dream Center of Southeast Texas, I sit down and talk with Caleb Boaz in this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast.

Like many of the guys that I’ve spoken to while we were at the Dream Center, Caleb was brought up in a Christian household by two parents who were leaders in their community. A middle child, he began to rebel against his parents. His use of drugs started at 16 years old by smoking weed and quickly expanding to much harder drugs.

He quickly found himself living on his own after getting kicked out of his parents’ house.

The drug use led to a series of criminal activities that ultimately led to several pending felony charges. Currently out on bond and in the program at the Dream Center, there is still the very real possibility that he could be going to prison for quite some time.

Incredibly, he has accepted the fact that even though he is now clean and sober and has a strong relationship with God that his past actions have consequences. With that being said, he has accepted that God will use him in the future whether in prison or as a free man.

Caleb’s story is one of faith, hope, resilience and trusting whatever God’s outcome for his future is.

I kick off my first podcast of 2022 by continuing my series of sharing the stories of the disciples of the Dream Center of Southeast Texas. In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down and talk with with Kyle Denton.

Kyle is 30 years old now and has been battling addiction since he was 16 years old. He has been in and out of rehabs on several occasions, but is trusting God that this time he will stay sober.

A native of California, he ended up at the Dream Center of Southeast Texas in order to get out of a familiar, yet potentially destructive environment.

He recently moved from heading up the warehouse at the Dream Center and overseeing the food panty to a case worker in the office. Through my person interaction with Kyle, I can see that he has a heart for helping others. I feel that his recipe for a successful and life-long recovery is to dive headfirst into the ministry of helping others. Focusing on making other peoples lives better will allow him to move forward successfully in his own journey of recovery.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I conduct my first ever monologue podcast.

As Sandy and I near an end to our volunteer experience at the Dream Center of Southeast Texas, I wanted to take a moment to reflect back on our experience as well as wish everyone a prosperous and healthy 2022.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down with Jimmy Obregon.

Jimmy is in the discipleship program at the Dream Center of Southeast Texas.

He is one of the incredible humans that Sandy and I have been blessed to meet while we’ve been volunteering at the Dream Center.

The people here are all living examples of God’s grace and redemption. Each of them is at a different stage of their recovery journey. They are all strengthening their faith in God and understanding that their recovery is only possible with God and surrounding themselves with a strong support system.

At 13 years old, Jimmy started smoking pot and as he got older began experimenting with other types of drugs. Eventually his addiction landed him in prison. After serving two years in prison, he got out and while having difficulty dealing with the feelings that he was experiencing from the passing of his father, he relapsed after only two weeks.

After an ultimatum from his family, he reluctantly entered the program at the Dream Center in January of 2021.

After accepting responsibility for his actions, Jimmy is determined to become the father and husband that God intended him to be.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I bring back Sandy to help me co-host as we sit down to chat with our friends, Juan and Mary Montalvo.

We met Juan and Mary while working on the A Year to Volunteer project at Picacho Peak State Park. They are fellow full-time RVers who also have a spirit of giving back and helping others. We had an immediate connection with them and wanted to help tell the story of what led them to their full-time journey.

In 2015, Mary had a fight with breast cancer and after winning that battle, her and Juan decided that they weren’t getting any younger and felt that it was time for them to start their Hungry Cuban Adventure.

Mary, a retired nurse, felt that it was time to start a new chapter, so after months of prayer, research, and conversation, they started this chapter in 2017.

Juan, a retired firefighter and paramedic turned chef loves to feed people, so that has been at the heart of their service to others on their journey.

They document their adventures through their YouTube channel, called “The Hungry Cuban Adventures.”

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Alex Smith.

Alex is the son of my good friend, and fellow full-time RVer, April Crossley. We met back in September at Henrys Lake State Park in Idaho. We were able to stay a few days in the same campground as April and her husband, Justin, and Alex and his girlfriend came out to visit them during that same timeframe as well.

During the podcast, Alex and I exchange stories of what it was like when our mothers told us that they were going to be embarking on these crazy journeys. I was much younger when my mom decided to travel around the country in an old 1967 Plymouth Valiant, but it was interesting to get the perspective of what someone else’s reaction was like when they received the news as well.

Alex is wise beyond his years. He has been fortunate to travel and gain life experiences at a very young age which has allowed him to view life from different perspectives.

Unlike me, who never envisioned myself following in my mother’s footsteps and traveling the way we do now, Alex has a plan in place in which he is working on following in his mom’s footsteps and traveling in the not-too-distant future.

Kudos to all of those people out there who have had the courage to throw caution to the wind and live a life that isn’t what society has carved out for us. And for those out there thinking about it – just take the leap, there are no guarantees in life except for this very moment that we are living in, so just do it.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down and talk with authors, Dave Clark and Doug Cornfield.

Pulling Each Other Along is more than just a feel-good book, it is a movement where not only our own personal achievements are recognized, but also take the opportunity to pay it forward and to recognize the person, people, or beliefs that pulled each of us along to our own relative greatness. Without this driving energy during our moments of trepidation, we would have been unlikely to achieve success.

It is too easy to let a sense of self-doubt, fear, and lack of confidence take over, and having the person or team in your corner to pull, push, get out of the way, or even drag you through those moments is absolutely invaluable.

HOW IT STARTED:

Todd Civin reached out to Doug Cornfield to highlight the story of Dave Clark and the Disability Dream & Do sports camps that Dave & Doug organized in a compilation book. During this time Doug proposed to Todd the compilation book go a different direction. Todd agreed and the two (Doug and Todd) formed a team to write the “Pulling Each Other Along” book together. This all took place during the initial phase of the Covid-19 shutdown. After formulating a plan, Doug & Todd started to reach out to people in their network about being a part of this book. The response was incredible and the chapters were overfilled quickly. The interviews and the writing began and now the fun begins as they launch this new venture.

This book and mission were born from the kindness of a first-grade classmate that was never forgotten. Todd Civin and Doug Cornfield partnered together to share stories that focus on incredible people helping and being helped by others. The mission is to bring people together by emphasizing the good in human nature and divide because of differences we all have.

Todd Civin and Doug Cornfield are both authors and have highlighted the work with many different people of all walks of life, and especially those in the disability communities. The two have different skill sets and have worked together to bring these incredible stories to the world.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I bring back Phil and Shar Roos from A Year to Volunteer for the second time.

Phil and Shar are our dear friends and the founders of A Year to Volunteer. Sandy joins me as my co-host on this episode as we talk about the benefits of connecting with like-minded people and RVing with a purpose, or as Phil and Shar put it, R-Volunteering.

I first spoke with Phil and Shar back in April and was able to introduce Y2V to my listeners. Since then, Sandy and I have now volunteered on two Y2V projects. The first at The Raptor Education Group (REGI) in Antigo, Wisconsin and the second at Picacho Peak State Park in Picacho, Arizona.

Each project was very rewarding and fulfilling and certainly allowed Sandy and I to give back, which is something that we’ve done our entire lives.

Phil and Shar have become very good friends of ours and we’re grateful for them as well as all of the other amazing humans that we’ve been blessed to meet on Y2V projects.

For anyone who has a desire to travel and give back, this is the organization for you.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Joe Barth.

Joe is the founder of the Hit Doctor Academy and Arsenal USA Baseball.

Joe and I have known each other since the early 2000’s. For over twenty years, we were competitors on the field and friends off of the field. Joe and I share the same coaching philosophy of teaching life lessons through the game of baseball.

Joe coached MLB All-Star, Mike Trout from the time that he was 13 years old throughout his high school career. He not only remembers the quality of player that Mike was and his incredible work ethic, but more importantly, he remembers the quality human beings that he and his family were.

We talk about our experience in the game, the connection with our former players and where the game is today. Joe has overcome some health issues, but has no plans on slowing down.

He has made an incredible impact on the players whose lives he has touched though out his coaching career.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with two-time MLB All-Star, Shea Hillenbrand.

After seven successful years in the big leagues and earning over $20 million in his career, Shea was still lost and unfulfilled with his life.

Finally, after hitting rock bottom and laying on the floor of his van after a near fatal drug and alcohol overdose, he knew that he had to make changes in his life. With nothing left, he met his wife and began a huge spiritual transformation in his life.

Now he is determined to crush his ego on a daily basis and keep God first in everything that he does.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with another one of my former players, Dustin Ford.

Dustin played for me when he was 14, 15, and 16 years old and played a total of five years in the Berkshire Baseball organization.

We were able to reconnect in Prescott Valley, Arizona, where he now resides with his fiancée, Jess.

We shared a lot of great memories about his time on the field. More importantly, Dustin talked about how the life lessons that he learned on the baseball field as a teenager have continued to help him throughout his life and professional career.

I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again, reconnecting with my old players has been the most fulfilling part of this journey for me. So, to be able to see two of them in less than a week while we were out in Arizona, completely filled my heart with joy.

I am so proud of what these guys have accomplished in their lives and feel blessed to be able to share their stories through this podcasting platform that I now have.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Isaac Wenrich.

This is the second time that Isaac has been on my show, but his first time on by himself. A little over a year ago, he was on with his former teammate, Stacy Piagno. Stacy and Isaac were battery mates for the Sonoma Stompers and made history on July 15, 2017 when Stacy became the first women since the 1950’s to record a win in a professional baseball game.

Isaac played for me in the Berkshire Baseball organization when he was 15 and 16 years old. He spent a total of five years in the Berkshire organization and came back as a guest speaker at the Berkshire Baseball and Softball Awards banquet in 2017.

We talk about his experience in the Berkshire organization and the impact that the organization had on his life both on and off of the baseball field.

One of the best things that Sandy and I have been able to do on this journey is reconnect to old friends and family. However, when those connections are with my former players, I must admit, they are extremely special for me.

It shows me how the ripple effect of a lifetime of service is still going strong after so many years.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Jeff and Susan Spencer.

Sandy and I met Jeff and Susan while working on our second project for A Year to Volunteer in Picacho Peak State Park in Picacho, Arizona. It was the second project that Sandy and I had volunteered on with Y2V and it was Jeff and Susan’s eleventh project with the organization.

During the conversation, we talk about the importance of giving back and the freedom of living full-time in an RV.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with my cousin, Jim Wade.

Sandy and I were able to get into Boise, Idaho and visit with my cousin Jim, his wife Patti, their daughter Jen and her husband Anthony. It was short visit, but we had a great time catching up and trading stories of our travel adventures.

Jim, like most of us on the Wade side of our family have that wandering travel bug in us. The root of the word “Wade” meant “to go,” and many of us have taken that to heart.

Jim has logged many miles on his motorcycle riding across this beautiful country of ours.

We talk about the places, but more importantly, the people that he’s met along his journey.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with my friend, Erin Pappas.

Erin and I first connected through social media back in 2016 during the time that I was building my network of female baseball players and advocates of women and girls playing baseball. We immediately connected because she was also an avid Red Sox fan. Like many of the women that I was connecting with at that time, she had participated in the first ever Boston Red Sox Women’s Fantasy Camp.

We met in person back in 2018, when she stopped by our complex on her way to another baseball camp in Pittsburgh. When she heard that Sandy and I were selling everything to travel full-time in an RV, she reached out and told us to look her up if we ever got through Bend, Oregon. The stars aligned and we were able to connect and spend a couple really awesome days in Bend. We went on two beautiful hikes and were able to spend a lot of time together and get to know each other even better.

Erin is much more than just a ballplayer though. An avid hiker and lover of nature, she just completed hiking Mount Kilimanjaro. She is also a fiercely independent woman and single mother as well as a hero working in the healthcare field.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with my dear old friend, Ray Schell.

Ray and I have known each other since high school. He graduated a year before me. After graduation, he was a part of a small group of friends that all became very close for a few years. Our little tribe did just about everything together.

Ray went off to work in Alaska in 1990 and never returned to Pennsylvania. Thankfully we have been able to stay connected through social media.

Sandy and I were able to visit with Ray and his wife, Judy Rae in Decker, Montana at the state park in which he runs, Tongue River Reservoir State Park. After not seeing each other for almost 30 years, we had a lot of catching up to do, but it seemed as though we were able to pick up right where we left off.

He has had some incredible life experiences which include hiking over 700 miles of the Appalachian Trail when he was only 10 years old. Then, in his early twenties, he hiked through Mexico and into South America.

His passion for nature and the outdoors has never been tamed and he has been able to turn that passion into his life’s vocation by working in multiple parks systems.

It’s the experiences like these that Sandy and I have cherished the most throughout our journey. We thank God every day that He has allowed us to reconnect with so many people who are truly near and dear to our hearts.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Alex and Pat from RV Party of 3.

I initially connected with Pat and Alex when they were first getting ready to start their RV journey. I always love connecting with like-minded people and those who are going against the grain of society.

Only in their mid-20’s, Pat and Alex are still working remotely while living full-time in their RV. They have proved to all of those people who say that they can’t travel full-time because they’re still working, that it is definitely something that can be done.

It was a great conversation, and I can’t wait to be able to have our paths cross and meet these two amazing young people in person down the road.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Rick Stratton.

Rick in a member of the Brandywine Base Ball Club of West Chester. The club is one of over 150 clubs nationwide that take part of the historical competitive reenactments of the infancy of our American pastime.

The modern-day Brandywine Base Ball Club was established in 2013 and modeled after its 19th century namesake, which formed in 1865 in West Chester, PA and is now 501(c)3 non-profit organization. In keeping with the spirit of the original ball club and its rival contemporaries, it strives to field the most competitive team possible. However, within the competitive context, it also aims to:

Provide our members with an outlet for physical fitness through the sport of vintage base ball
Educate the public about baseball history, particularly within the context of Pennsylvania state history
Serve as a point of community pride and entertainment

Rick and I first met back in 2015 when his Brandywine Base Ball Club participated in the George Bradley Vintage Base Ball Festival, which was sponsored by the BIG Vision Foundation.

For anyone who loves baseball history, you’ll love this podcast.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Jenna Nimtz.

Jenna is the manager of the Baseballism store at the Field of Dreams Movie Site in Dyersville, Iowa. She is better known as Jenna from Baseballism for her Instagram posts about the events and activities that take place at the site on a daily basis.

Her love of the game of baseball is in her blood as she grew up in a baseball family.

We talk about how fortunate she is to be able to work at such a magical place like the Field of Dreams Movie Site and witness the magic of the place on an everyday basis.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Dr. Toni Palermo.

Toni was one of the youngest players to play in the AAGPBL. After her playing days, she entered the convent and became Sister Toni.

After Toni became a Nun, she went on to earn her Bachelor of Science Degree in English, History and Math from Alverno College. She then earned three Master Degrees and a Doctor of Philosophy Degree from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. She taught in the Physical Education Department and the School of Social Work at the University.

We were connected by our mutual friend and fellow supporter of women in baseball, Sandy Kimbrell. Sandy saw that we were in Wisconsin and reached out to me with Toni’s contact information.

We conducted the podcast on Toni’s front porch and unfortunately, we had some cicadas in the background, so the sound quality is not the greatest, but nonetheless, Toni has a great story to tell.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Ryan Woodward.

Ryan is a board member of the International Women’s Baseball Center (IWBC). We first connected back in 2016 when my old organization, the BIG Vision Foundation, in partnership with the IWBC sponsored the Ruth Hartman Memorial Girl’s Baseball Festival.

At the time, Ryan was living in Wilmington, Delaware and wasn’t a member of the IWBC board yet. He wasn’t sure if he really should to drive up to check out the event. After some convincing from his friend, Debbie Pierson, he did go, and it turned out to literally be a life changing event for him.

A few weeks later, he received a call from IWBC president, Kat Williams asking him to serve on the organizations board. He accepted, and the rest is history. Ryan was the brainchild of the IWBC’s Women in Baseball Week and has been an active member of the board since he joined the organization.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Jack Graham.

Jack is now the General Manager of the Aberdeen Ironbirds minor league baseball team.

The Ironbirds are a division of Ripken Baseball. Jack and I first met back in 2015 when he was fresh out of his professional baseball career and working in sales on the amateur side of Ripken Baseball. His hard work and dedication moved him up through the ranks and he was promoted to General Manager of the Ironbirds in September of 2019.

Jack and I have stayed connected through social media.

I reached out to Jack when I knew that we’d be at the Ripken Experience in Aberdeen to attend the BFA Nationals.

I wanted to talk to him about something that he does on LinkedIn called Grati-Tuesday. Every Tuesday, Jack creates a post where he gives a shout out of gratitude to one of his team members. I personally look forward to reading it each week.

Jack and I talk about the importance of having an attitude of gratitude and what it means to him to be a part of the Ripken Baseball family.

Jack is an exceptional leader who takes the responsibility of upholding the culture of Ripken Baseball very seriously.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Marge Gibson.

Marge is the founder and executive director of the Raptor Education Group, Inc. in Antigo, Wisconsin.

Sandy and spent one week volunteering at REGI through the A Year to Volunteer project. It was one of the most impactful experiences of our lives. I wrote extensively about it in my blog last week.

The day after our group completed the project, Sandy and I were able to go back over to REGI and spend some time with her and record this podcast.

She is truly one of the most kind, genuine and compassionate humans that we’ve ever met.

The work that she and her staff are doing at REGI is exceptional.

A little about REGI:

Raptor Education Group, Inc is a 501(C)(3) non-profit organization dedicated to the care and rehabilitation of injured or orphaned native bird species and public education of wildlife issues.

It has three goals.

To create a safe haven for injured wildlife while they heal and until they are ready to be released back into the wild.
To develop nutritional protocol, rehabilitation methods and husbandry based on the natural history of the bird to assure a successful release.
To create a broader understanding of native birds, their behavior and habitat needs among the public and the scientific community.

REGI holds permits from both the State of Wisconsin and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife service to possess threatened and endangered indigenous species for rehabilitation and educational purposes. We are members of both the International Wildlife Rehabilitation Council and National Wildlife Rehabilitators Association, Raptor Research Foundation and American Society of Ornithology.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Rachelle “Rocky” McCann-Henley.

This was the last podcast that I was able to do while Sandy and I were at the BFA Nationals in Aberdeen, Maryland. She puts the explanation point on the ten amazing women that I was able to sit down with and talk to at that event.

Rocky is the third former Colorado Silver Bullet as well as the third member of Evolution Girl’s Baseball that I was able to sit down and talk with.

Rocky played on the Colorado Silver Bullets women’s professional baseball team back in 1994. Since that time, she has stayed involved in the game that she loves and has a true passion for helping the players that she coaches both on and off of the field. For Rocky, what she does is so much bigger than the game of baseball. She understands the importance of teaching her players life lessons.

It was truly a pleasure to connect with her and see the passion in her eyes and hear it in her voice was something special.

Her team went on to defeat the DC Force 7-6 in 9-innings to take home the BFA Nationals 19-U championship.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Beth Greenwood.

Beth and I first met back in 2018 when she was on a road trip from New England to Pittsburgh with mutual friends of ours, Erin Pappas and Jacque Reynolds to participate in a women’s baseball event that the Pirates were sponsoring. On the way through, they stopped by the sports complex that I was managing at the time just outside of Reading, Pennsylvania.

It was a great visit, and Beth and I, who would have been 18 at the time and just out of high school, connected on Facebook. Since then, I have been able to follow her journey as she became one of only seven young women to be rostered on an NCAA baseball team this past spring.

I’ve had a ton of respect for her, but when we sat down to talk about her journey, she absolutely blew me away! I tell her on a few occasions during the podcast that she is “wise beyond her years,” and as you listen, you will understand why.

Her journey to play college baseball is one of grit, resilience and never-ending hard work.

Even more importantly, similar to Denae Benitez, Beth, who is now only 21, has an incredible comprehension of the importance of what she is doing, not just for herself, but for those young girls who come behind her.

Still in college, she also finds the time to serve on the Baseball for All Advisory Board and was helping with the BFA Nationals when we were able to reconnect.

She is a product of the work that BFA is doing and a poster child for the incredible young women that that work is producing for our society.

The ripple effect goes far beyond the baseball field.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Jennifer Hammond.

Jennifer and I connected a few years ago on social media when my old organization, the BIG Vision Foundation first started to organize the Ruth Hartman Memorial Girl’s Baseball Festival.

Jennifer literally eats, sleeps, and breathes baseball. I’m pretty sure that if you took an X-Ray of her chest, you would see a baseball beating as her heart. At one point in her life, she said that if she could live on a baseball field, she would. Her dream was very close to coming true when we were able to connect and talk at the Baseball for All Nationals as she was juggling her coaching duties between both the DC Force Girl’s Baseball team and the Alexandria Aces of the Cal Ripken Collegiate Summer League.

She is an amazing human and was recently featured in the Alexandria Gazette Packet for her trailblazing efforts in the game. Still a young adult, she cherishes the time that she gets with her mentors like Jeneane Lesko and understands the importance of passing the torch to the younger generation.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Denae Benites.

Denae is a member of the Evolution Girl’s Baseball 19-U program as well as a member of the US Women’s National Baseball team that won the gold medal in Mexico in 2019.

Still on location at the Baseball for All Nationals, Denae has been participating in the BFA National tournament since 2016 when she played in the 2nd annual event in San Francisco. Even at a young age, Denae understands the importance of paving the way and helping to create more opportunities for the young girl’s that will be following behind her.

Denae was a leader on the Evolution team that defeated the DC Force 7-6 in 9-innings to bring home the BFA 19-U National title.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Alex Oglesby.

Alex is a former member of the United States Women’s National Baseball team, as well a current member of national team coaching staff and the founder and president of the San Francisco based, Evolution Girls Baseball program.

This was another one of the podcasts that I was able to do on location at the Baseball for All Nationals in Aberdeen, MD.

We talk about her journey from baseball player to baseball coach. She played in a women’s professional baseball league and then onto the US Women’s National team. She was named to the national team coaching staff in 2019.

In Aberdeen, she was coaching Evolution Girl’s Baseball in the 19-U Division. Her team went on to defeat the DC Force 7-6 in 9-innings to take home the championship.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with a fellow author and storyteller, Anika Orrock.

This podcast was truly an honor and surprise for me, I’ve followed Anika and her work on social media for quite some time. I had no idea that she would be attending the Baseball for All Nationals until our mutual friend, Donna Eden Cohen had let me know. Knowing that she was on a tight schedule, I still didn’t know if we’d be able to do an interview. As it turned out, the Lord had everything align for us and she was willing to squeeze in a quick chat.

Anika is an award-winning illustrator, writer, designer, cartoonist, storyteller & author of The Incredible Women of the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League (March 10, 2020; Chronicle Books) and the illustrator of “Birdie Can, Too!” by Malaika Underwood (Feb. 2, 2021).

Anika’s work is included in the Society of Illustrators 62nd Annual exhibition & book and has been featured in national publications, including The New York Times, The San Francisco Chronicle, Washington Post and on NPR.

Her illustration work has been commissioned by The Worcester Art Museum, National Pastime Museum, ABC News & FiveThirtyEight, Merrill Lynch, Resy & American Express, The International Women's Baseball Center, All-American Girls Professional Baseball League Players Association, Major League Baseball organizations and international sports publications, as well as by a variety of musicians and record labels.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with another one of the living legends of the AAGPBL, Jeneane Lesko.

Another one of the amazing trailblazers that I was able to meet and chat with at the Baseball for All Nationals, Jeneane Lesko is truly an amazing individual. After her playing days in the AAGPBL, she went on to play in the LPGA as well.

Her biography, is best described in her own words, on the AAGPBL website, is as follows:

I went to Spring Training in Battle Creek, Michigan and was picked up by the Chicks as a left-handed pitcher. I actually had no pitching experience and had never played organized baseball. In my home town of Lakeview, Ohio, I had practiced baseball with our school team all through high school, but of course, they would not let me play in the games. I was also the batgirl for our town team of men and practiced with them and went to all the games. I loved the game and had a strong arm.

In Grand Rapids, my manager, Woody English, let me pitch batting practice, but most of the time he had me running in the outfield. My coach and friend was “Beansie” Risinger. She taught me to slow down and believe in myself--two things I really needed to do. I practiced until about mid-season when I was put in to relieve a pitcher and got my first chance on the mound. I didn’t last too long. I walked the bases full and Woody pulled me out of the game. For the rest of the year, I only pitched when we were losing. Our team won the championship, and I was the “rooting section” on the bench. I practiced and practiced and finally got some control.

The following year, I got my big chance in a close game early in the season against Kalamazoo, Michigan. I pitched great relief and earned myself a starting position on the team. I had a wonderful year that season highlighted by a two-hit shutout. I was really looking forward to 1955.

I was in school, a junior at Ohio Northern University, when I received a call early in the spring of '55 from Bill Allington. He informed me the league was disbanded, but said he was taking a traveling team across the US to play exhibition games against the men and asked if I would like to be on the team. I was ecstatic. For two wonderful years I had the honor to play with some of the best players in the league from other teams, and I had a blast.

At the end of 1957, I graduated from ONU and signed up to teach Math and Science to dependent children at Ramey Air Force Base, Puerto Rico. I stayed there for four years and learned to play golf, fly a piper cub airplane, swim and enjoy the beauty of the Islands.

In 1962, I felt I had to leave “Paradise." I felt I needed to see more of the world. I tried to get a transfer to Europe, but couldn’t, so I decided to pay my own way and look for a job when I got to Europe.

At the end of the school year, I flew to London, took a boat to France, and a train to Germany to the Dependent Schools headquarters there. They signed me to teach girls' physical Ed and math in Leon, in northern France. I was very happy, as my ancestry was partially French. I spent the rest of the summer riding a motor scooter through Switzerland, Italy, and France before the start of school in September. In my second year in Europe, I transferred to Chateroux, France, south of Paris. While in France, I took golf lessons from an English pro who played during Bobby Jones’ era. I also took up skiing and spent most of the winter months on weekends in the Alps. I managed to break my leg my first year, but recovered and loved it.

I had an opportunity to transfer in 1965 to Clark Air Force Base in the Philippine Islands. I was excited about that because I could play golf all year round. I played golf every day after school until dark, even during the monsoons.

I returned to the US in 1967 and decided I wanted to become a professional golfer. I spent the summer of 1968 playing golf at a newly opened Club in Grass Valley, California, staying with an aunt who lived there. I established a four handicap and joined the LPGA. My first tournament was in Eugene, Oregon where I finished dead last. I had to go back to teaching that fall, so I took a teaching position in the Bay area, and worked hard on my golf game.

I decided if I was going to make it in golf, I needed to spend all my time practicing, so I left California in the fall of 1968 and went to Scottsdale, Arizona. I found a club that honored my somewhat shakey professional status and allowed me to play and practice at the club.

That year I played in the US Open in Minnesota, and an Open in San Diego. There was another tournament, but I can’t recall where we played. At any rate, I didn’t win any tournaments, but I got a lot of good rounds in and was improving.

One of the Women money winners suggested I to go to the Los Angeles area and take lessons from a pro she had used and made arrangements for me to work with him. That is where I met my husband who was also taking golf lessons from this pro. He was an accountant but wanted to play on the men’s tour.

After a brief courtship, we were married and off to the women’s tour opening in Tampa, Florida. I played in 10 tournaments that year, but my husband injured his hand and had to return to California and our money was gone, so I returned and went back to teaching in San Bernardino, California for a year. I won a pro-Am event and was leading after the second round in the Las Crusas, NM tournament. However, I felt it was my husband’s turn to try to become a pro. He got a job as a teaching pro at a golf course and we started a family.

After the birth of our third child, we decided we wanted to move out of the smog in the LA area. That is how we ended up in Seattle, Washington. I have now lived in Seattle since 1974. I have been in Real Estate here since 1976. I have been involved in sports all my life and encouraged all my children to get involved in sports. I have done a lot of basketball, volleyball, and softball officiating. In 2003, I started the Washington Women’s Baseball Association in my state and coached and served on the board for three years. Now I play on a co-ed senior softball team just to keep the old bones moving.

I went to my first AAGPBL Players' Association reunion in 1992 in South Bend, Indiana with my middle son Mike who is now a die-hard fan of all the wonderful All-American gals and attends with me whenever he can. I volunteered to be the editor of the AAGPBL Player’s Association Newsletter in November 2001 and served in that capacity for seven years. The newsletter, TOUCHING BASES is published three times a year to help keep everyone informed as to what is happening in the Association.

I served on the Board of Directors for the AAGPBL Players Assoc. from 2002 through 2010. I am thankful for all the years we have all had together since my involvement in 1992. Thanks for all the memories I have of all the players with whom I played or played against and for all the good times shared with all our Association members, loyal fans, and supporters.

I spend much of my time supporting women in sports. I met a young women's baseball enthusiast while attending an AAGPBL-PA Reunion in 2004 and through a set of unique circumstances became close friends with him and his family. He was from the Chicago area and grew up in Kenosha, WI, home of one of our original four professional teams. He had not been born when the League began, but as a young boy, he had met one of the players who lived in the area and who watched him grow up and play ball. As a result, he had a fondness and love for women's baseball and promoted its growth in the US and Australia, where he currently lives. It was because of that relationship with Rob that he invited me to participate in 2005 and 2006 in the Women’s World Series at the Disney World Tournament in Orlando, FL. I was an Honorary Coach for the Australian Women and Girls, U11-15, Baseball Teams, which were known as the Aussie Hearts.

In 2007, The Aussie Hearts invited me to go to Australia where I conducted many clinics and showed my power point presentation about the AAGPBL to hundreds of Aussie women ball players. I also was able to visit two schools, one elementary school in Melbourne, and a Junior High in Sydney. I visited the drama class in Sydney to congratulate them on a 2006 presentation they performed on the movie "A League of Their Own." They won 1st in their state and 3rd in the National Australian competition. They were delighted that I visited them and they performed some of the scenes for me. They gave me a copy on DVD, but, unfortunately, the DVD does not play in the US.

I was deeply touched by the enthusiasm and vitality of the people in Australia and especially those involved in baseball, which is a minor sport there. Women's baseball has taken off in Australia since the movie, "A League of their Own," and there are hundreds of women playing "for the love of the game." I spent two weeks there and fell in love with the country and the people.

Since then, I was privileged to guest coach for the Aussie Hearts in 2008 at the re-dedication ceremonies of Kenosha, Wisconsin's Simmons Baseball Field where the AAGPBL's Kenosha Comets played. The Aussie Hearts came to the US-sponsored Women’s Baseball Tournament organized by the city of Kenosha to honor the AAGPBL by having a women's Baseball tournament in conjunction with the re-dedication ceremonies at Simmons Field. Over 40 former players of the AAGPBL attended that event.

In February, 2009, I was again invited to travel abroad with the Aussies who played in the International Women’s Baseball Tournament, the Phoenix Cup, in Hong Kong, China. There were 10 teams at the event including teams from the US, Australia, Taiwan, Mainland China, and Korea.

In 2010, the Aussie Hearts tour returned to Kenosha, WI and played on Simmons Field, home of the Kenosha Comets and in Racine, at Horlick Field, home of the Racine Belles. We made the circuit of MLB parks and were invited to tour Miller Stadium, and enjoyed games at Wrigley Field and a training camp at the Chicago Cubs' training facility. Later they were able to watch a Cubs game as well. The tour crossed the border into Canada and played several women’s' teams in Toronto and visited Niagara Falls for a day from the Canadian side. Later in the fall, the Aussie Sparks, the Softball equivalent to the Aussie Hearts, returned to San Francisco and experienced an intensive two-day training session with the coaching staff at San Jose State College and participated in a three-day women’s fast pitch softball tournament in the Bay area. These events were attended by myself, Joyce Westerman Hill, former Racine Belle, and Jackie Baumgart (Mattson), former player for the Kenosha Comets, in support of girls playing baseball and softball all over the world.

I am the mother of 3 boys. My youngest son, Matthew, is our website technician. He took over the maintenance and development of our website in 2002. I am the coordinator for the AAGPBL website and work closely with Matt to keep our site updated, interesting, and informative. Mike, the middle son, is also in computer gaming. My oldest son Greg, is in the construction business.

It has been a great ride!

~Jeanie Lesko (DesCombes)

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with the secretary and official historian of the AAGPBL Players Association, Merrie Fidler.

Merrie is also a published author. She published the book, The Origins and History of the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League in 2006. The book was originally her master’s thesis, and as she became more involved with the players association, several of the former players were so impressed with her work, that they convinced her to get it published. Merrie donates a large portion of the proceeds from her book to the players association.

Her biography, as taken from her author website, merriefidler.com is as follows:

Born at the end of October 1943, a month and a half after the All-American Girls Baseball League’s first season of play, Merrie Fidler grew up near Redding, California. She was raised in a sports-minded family and participated in interscholastic and intercollegiate volleyball, basketball and softball from junior high through her college under-graduate years.

At age 15 she joined the Redding Comets, the city women’s softball team. For four summers she played left field, catcher, or third base for the Comets. After completing an undergraduate major in physical education and obtaining a teaching credential from Sacramento State University in Sacramento, California, Merrie was hired, in the fall of 1971, as an Assistant Intramural Sports Director at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst. It was in UMass’s Sports Studies master’s degree program where Merrie discovered, researched, and completed her master’s thesis entitled The Development and Decline of the All-American Girls Baseball League, 1943-1954. The thesis was largely based on documents obtained from league owner Arthur E. Meyerhoff and South Bend team president Harold T. Dailey.

Before completing her thesis in 1976, Merrie worked as an Assistant Intramural Sports Director at the University of Minnesota, St. Paul, and attended Penn State University as a doctoral candidate in Sport History. After a year at Penn State, Merrie returned to the Redding, California area where she embarked on a 27-year teaching and coaching career for the Anderson Union High School District.

Following her retirement at the end of the 2003 school year, Merrie attended her first AAGPBL reunion since the opening of the “Women in Baseball” exhibit at the Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown, NY in November 1988. It was there that she was encouraged by former players to publish her master’s thesis. During 2003-2005, Merrie obtained additional information about the league from numerous player interviews and Players’ Association Newsletters and Board Meeting Minutes.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with another former player of the AAGPBL, Gloria Rogers. As I continue with the series of podcasts that I conducted during our week in Aberdeen, MD attending the Baseball for All Nationals, I met a little firestick of a women in Gloria Rogers. She was a treasure to hang out with and she made Sandy and I smile every time that we were around her.

As with every podcast that I do, I’m honored to help tell her story.

As stated from the AAGPBL website:

As a 17-year-old high school student, Gloria saw a story in the newspaper about the AAGPBL holding a tryout. She wrote a letter to Carl Gaines, a scout, asking about the tryouts and received a letter inviting her to one of their tryouts in Rockford. Illinois. Her mother and sister drove the 150 miles for the chance of a lifetime.

During the tryout Rogers threw the ball 179 feet which made her an excellent candidate for the outfield. She also had the best time for running from the batter’s box to first base. The scouts were impressed and Rogers was one of 6 players out of about 30 players chosen to be a Peach!

Her stent as a Peach was short lived. She got a uniform and her name was in the program for one game. Her father decided Rockford was too far from home and she had been accepted at Christian College. Rogers was disappointed but she went on to have a great college career.

Gloria played for Goetz Country Club, a softball team in St. Joseph, Mo., that played in the nationals. While at Christian College (now Columbia College in Columbia, MO), she participated in the horsemanship program, tennis, field hockey, and the synchronized swimming team. At that time the college did not have a softball team. Gloria was voted Christian College’s Athletic Queen in 1955. She later attended Northeast Missouri State University, earning a degree in physical education and dramatics. She attended the 2003 induction of the AAGPBL into the Baseball Hall of Fame. In 2005 she became a member of the Columbia College Sports Hall of Fame.

Her story is so much bigger than just one game in the league. She loves interacting with and sharing her story with the next generation.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Maybelle Blair and Shirley Burkovich.

Maybelle and Shirley were former players in the All-American Girls Professional Baseball League (AAGPBL), the league in which the movie, A League of Their Own was based on.

I originally met them back in 2016, when I was still with the BIG Vision Foundation. We partnered with the International Women’s Baseball Center (IWBC), in which Maybelle and Shirley serve as board members, to conduct the Ruth Hartman Memorial Girl’s Baseball Festival.

I was able to reconnect with Maybelle and Shirley because we were fortunate to be able get to the Ripken Experience in Aberdeen, MD for the 6th Annual Baseball for All National Tournament. The tournament, which took place from July 18-22, 2021, featured 42 girl’s baseball teams from all across the United States and Canada.

Maybelle and Shirley love getting out to watch some baseball, but even more importantly, they love interacting and inspiring the next generation of young female ballplayers.

This podcast is the first in a series of podcasts that I was able to do on location at the Baseball for All Nationals in Aberdeen. I was fortunate to interview other former AAGPBL players, current coaches and some young players who had attended the event. All of their stories are inspiring and I’m sure that you will enjoy hearing them in the coming weeks.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Ebony McNeil, founder of The Forge.

The Forge is an organization that was formed at the beginning of 2021 to help men become the version of themselves that our culture needs. It stresses focus on positive imagery, service and fellowship!

In this episode of The Journey of my Mother’s Son podcast, I sit down and talk with another one of my grand-daughter’s, Lillian Lingle.

One of the locations that we stay at when we come back to visit in Pennsylvania is at Lillian’s parents’ house in Duncannon.

At 14 years old, Lillian is wise beyond her years. She is an athlete who currently plays field hockey and softball, and like her grandfather, enjoys writing.

She just came off two great seasons in both field hockey and softball.

Her junior high field hockey team went 12-2-2 this spring, one of the best seasons in recent school history. Lillian talks about overcoming her anxiety regarding playing a new position this season and how important it was that her team had great chemistry both on and off of the field.

Following a great field hockey season, she jumped right into softball and her team went 10-0 in the regular season. They lost one game in the double-elimination play-off tournament, but quickly overcame that set-back by defeating that same opponent in the championship game. The team didn’t have high expectations when the season started, but they adopted an attitude of going out and just relaxing and having fun playing as opposed to trying to put unnecessary pressure on themselves.

We also talk about how writing can be very therapeutic. Lillian generally writes fiction short stories and she talks about how her stories allow her to create another reality in which readers can join her in her creativity and imagination.

Sandy and I love spending time with our grandchildren and watching them grow up into fine young adults. I’m sure that you’ll enjoy listening to the conversation between Lillian and I.

In this episode of The Journey of my Mother’s Son podcast, I’m honored to sit down and talk with my good friend, Justin Schenck.

I’ve known Justin for several years now and we’ve really become close over the past three years. We originally had a few “chance encounters” before being connected by a mutual friend who had recommended that he would be a great asset to the board of the BIG Vision Foundation, which was the nonprofit organization that I had founded and served as its president for just over 30 years before starting this new journey. Justin still serves on the organizations board today.

During our first meeting, we spent over two hours talking and immediately knew that we had unique connection. Over the past few years, we have really become close.

Justin had been named a Top 8 Podcaster to watch in 2018 by INC.com and chosen as an ‘Icon of Influence’ in the new media space.

What started out as a way to connect with top people and inspire others has become a way of life. Now getting played in over 100 countries every single week he is able to make a greater impact than he could ever imagine.

He not only speaks to organizations on how to overcome adversity and utilize podcasting to grow your business but he helps others.

In addition to podcasting, Justin hosts retreats and live summits. The events are opportunities to connect with like-minded people and achieve personal growth beyond your wildest dreams.

His next Four Pillars Retreat will take place in New Orleans, Louisiana from October 21-24, 2021.

His next Growth Now Live Summit will be on May 13-15, 2022 at the Hotel Rock Lititz in Lititz, Pennsylvania.

In this episode of The Journey of my Mother’s Son podcast, I sit down and talk with my good friend, Jeff Potter.

This is the second podcast that I’ve done with Jeff. We’ve known each other for over 12 years now and our common love for baseball, teaching kids life lessons through the game and giving back is what makes us such great friends.

One of the most iconic lines in movie history goes like this, “Hey…Dad, you want to have a catch?”

Jeff Potter is the founder of the Potter Baseball Summer Tour and he is looking to join thousands of people together on Wednesday, June 30, 2021 at 7:00 PM EDT to do just that, have a catch. He’s hoping to have the World’s Largest Game of Catch at many different locations throughout the country that night while also raising money for a great cause. The Potter Summer Baseball Tour has partnered with CureSearch over the pat several years in an effort to help raise money for pediatric cancer research. This year, The World’s Largest Game Catch will help to raise money for CureSearch. Participants pay a registration of only $5 for kids under 12 years old and $10 for participants 13 years old and above. The goal is to raise between $5,000 and $10,000 for the organization.

Participants at all of the virtual locations are asked to take a video of their game of catch and forward it to Jeff after the event so that a longer video can be compiled and the event can be shared with the world.

In this episode of The Journey of my Mother’s Son podcast, I sit down and talk with my aunt, Sally King.

When Sandy and I first decided to live in an RV full-time, my Aunt Sally reached out to us and told me that she had full hook-ups for us and we were welcome to stay with her whenever we wanted to. That eventually turned into us using her address as our official domicile address in the state of Florida.

Now for a few weeks or sometimes even months, we park our RV in her and my Uncle Randy’s yard, plug in and get caught up on things that we need to get taken care of. While we’re there we spend time with their network of friends, take walks, have dinners together, and play games.

We talk a little bit about my mom and her adventures as well as the importance of giving back that seems to be something that has been handed down from generation to generation in our family. The ability to help out others is certainly a family tradition. Doing what we can with what we have to help others often times ends up feeding our own souls as well.

In addition to her fond memories of her sister, my mother, my aunt and I talk about the importance of life-long friendships, family and her work as an interpreter for the deaf and hearing impaired.

In this episode of The Journey of my Mother’s Son podcast, I sit down and talk with Jeff Woytovich, founder of the Children’s Alopecia Project.

Jeff and I have known each other for a little over ten years now. He is one of my best friends and we share a passion for helping others, especially kids.

Jeff started the Children’s Alopecia Project (CAP) in 2003 when his daughter, Maddie started to lose her hair. After going through a rollercoaster of emotions, Jeff felt that it was important to create a support group for other kids and families who were also dealing with alopecia.

What started out as a few families in the Philadelphia region has now grown to an international nonprofit organization that has helped countless children, and their families understand that it’s ok to be different.

CAP’s mission is simple:

Children’s Alopecia Project Our Mission:

To help any child in need who is living with hair loss due to all forms of Alopecia.

We do so by:

Changing the emphasis from growing hair to growing confidence.
Building self-esteem in children living with alopecia.
Providing support for them and their families.
Raising awareness about the life-altering disease.

The organization currently holds several CAP Camps throughout the country where families can get together and share their experiences.

The organization also sponsors the CAP2U School Library Program, which is a program through which the Children’s Alopecia Project purchases library books about alopecia and being different and donates the books to school libraries when Jeff speaks at your child’s school. According to parents, librarians, principals, and CAP Kids, our CAP2U Library Program benefited children in the following ways:

By teaching children within the school about alopecia areata, thus answering questions, eliminating uncertainty about the nature and unpredictability of the hair loss disease, and ultimately reducing the potential for bullying.
By raising awareness about alopecia areata, particularly when children within the school check the books out of the library and take them home to share with their families and friends.
By building self-esteem in children living with alopecia areata because the donation of books is coming from them, thus bringing them positive attention.

Additionally, Jeff travels the country speaking at schools and to other organizations to help raise awareness of alopecia through the organization’s CAP2U Tours. He again brings a simple message that helps kids to understand that it’s ok to be different and that it’s our differences that make us perfect.

In this episode of The Journey of my Mother’s Son podcast, I sit down and talk with Anna Kimbrell, a member of U.S. Women’s National Baseball team.

As we were mapping out our route on this leg of our journey, I realized that we’d be going through Anna Kimbrell’s neck of the woods. I had seen on Facebook that she had just started conducting some baseball clinics for girls at K3 Sports Academy in Rock Hill, South Carolina.

I reached out to her to see if she’d be ok with us stopping by the clinic and then doing a podcast together. She quickly agreed to the podcast and I was excited to finally get a chance to meet her in person and hear her story.

Kimbrell, a catcher for Team USA Women’s baseball has been affiliated with the organization since she was only 15 years old.

Growing up, she played baseball throughout Little League. She played for Nation Ford High, where she was the first girl to play high school baseball in South Carolina, and later went on to be the first girl to play American Legion baseball in the state. She began playing at age 8 with Rock Hill Little League baseball. She was the only girl to play in a 64-team tournament in Cooperstown with the Piedmont Patriots in 2003.

On July 23, 2015, Anna was the catcher for Stacy Piagno, who threw the first no-hitter in women’s international baseball history at the Pan American Games, in Toronto, Canada. Team USA defeated the Team Puerto Rico 9-0 while Piagno and Kimbrell made history. The United States also went on to win the gold medal of the Pan Am games that same year.

On July 14, 2016, Kimbrell became the third female player to join the Sonoma Stompers where she joined USWNT teammates Stacy Piagno and Kelsie Whitmore. On July 22, 2016, Kimbrell and Whitmore combined to make history as the first all-female professional baseball battery in nearly 70 years.

In this episode of The Journey of my Mother’s Son podcast, I sit down and talk with another one of my former players, Stephen Sauer.

Stephen was part of the pioneering Berkshire Red Sox teams. He joined the organization in its second year of existence, just after he graduated high school and while he was attending Kutztown University.

He now resides in Winston-Salem, North Carolina and is the head baseball coach and guidance counselor at North Stokes High School in Danbury, NC.

As I was mapping out our return trip to Florida, I realized that the Lord had the stars align for us to see Stephen coach a road game against one of theie big rivals, Mt. Airy.

One of the things that my mom used to love to do on her travels was surprise people by showing up on their door step, place of employment, or anywhere else that she could track them down at. Honestly, at the time, I thought that it was always kind of goofy. However, as I age, I also seem to now get a certain sense of satisfaction with the element of surprise as well.

So, on Tuesday, May 11, 2021, we started the day early in Christiansburg, VA and drove down the Blue Ridge Parkway to have breakfast at Mabry Mill. From there went into Mt. Airy, North Carolina (aka Mayberry) and spent the day checking out the Andy Griffith Museum and all of the Andy Griffith Show attractions around the town.

A little after 4:00 PM, we headed over to Mt. Airy High School, ate dinner in the RV, and waited for the bus from North Stokes to arrive.

Once the team unloaded and got settled in, I made my way over to the visitors’ dugout to surprise someone who I hadn’t seen, other than through Facebook, for about 25 years. The look on Stephen’s face when he had to give me a double-take was priceless!

We talked for a while before the game and he introduced me to some of his assistant coaches.

After the game, we made arrangements for me to swing by North Stokes to do this podcast the next day.

During the podcast, we reminisce about a ton of memories, from playing against the Colorado Silver Bullets to playing against a team of convicts at Graterford Prison, a maximum-security prison in Pennsylvania.

Stephen reflects on his old American Legion coach, Dick Gochnauer and the influence that he had on his life. As a coach now, he still recalls many of the lessons that Dick taught him both on and off the field and passing those lessons on to his players now.

In this episode of The Journey of my Mother’s Son podcast, I sit down and talk with fellow full-time RVer and Berks County native, April Crossley.

April and I have been friends on Facebook for several years, but have only really started to get to know one another last year when we found out that we were both getting ready to ditch the life that our society says that we should be living.

Within a few months of each other, Sandy and I in August of 2020 and April and her husband, Justin in October of 2020 started off on our new journeys. We all had an understanding that life needs to be experienced by getting outside and soaking in Vitamin D while making memories that will last a lifetime. All of the “things” that we end up accumulating over time are really just that, things. Most of which are really not actually needed. What is needed for the true human experience is connection. Connection to others, to nature, and to God.

As April and I prepared for the podcast, we found out that we have much more in common than just being full-time RVers and Berks County natives. April, like me, became a parent at 16 years old. She turned her test into a testimony. Against all odds, and in the face of doubters at every turn of the way, she completed high school, college and had a successful career in healthcare. In her mid-30’s, she felt unfulfilled and with the experience of flipping a few houses under her belt, she retired from healthcare and launched a successful real estate investment company, Crossley Property Group.

Crossley Property Group is now a multi-million-dollar real estate investment company and April helps others learn how to build wealth through real estate investment.

For April, it’s not just about building generational wealth, it’s about helping others build wealth and get out of a poverty mind-set.

April and I have gone through a mental and spiritual transformation over the past two years that has led each of us onto this journey, I am sure that you will find this conversation interesting. My hope is that you too, become inspired to start experiencing life, it doesn’t have to by selling everything and living in an RV, although I highly recommend that. I just pray that you listen to God and find your own way to truly experience life.

In this episode of The Journey of my Mother’s Son podcast, I sit down and talk with my youngest grand-daughter, Lizze Croft.

At 11 years old, she surpasses Ella Witman as the youngest guest that I’ve ever had on the show.

One of the three main locations that we stay at when we come back to visit in Pennsylvania is at Lizze’s parents house. My daughter, Sherry, and son-in-law, Stephen have a beautiful 3-acre mountain-side property that backs up to the woods.

When we’re mooch-docking at their house, Lizze loves going on walks and hikes with Youk, Sandy and I. There is a nice trail through the woods right behind their house and plenty of back road walking routes with some amazing scenic mountain-side farmland.

Lizze loves walking and being in nature. Before we started our journey last summer, her and I would take Youk up to Swatara Creek Park in Lebanon County. We would pack a lunch and take the RV up to explore for several hours. It was some really great quality time.

Lizze is super smart and has a unique zest for life that I pray that she’ll never lose as she gets older. She loves to read and write and hopes to someday author and publish several books. To have another author in the family would be absolutely incredible.

One of Lizze’s responsibilities at her house is to help take care of the chickens. They have 15 chickens and one rooster on their property. Lizze takes great pride in being one of the primary caretakers of the chickens.

I am so proud of Lizze and I’m excited to see what she’s going to accomplish in her life.

Sandy and I are so blessed to have not just Lizze, but eight wonderful grand-children. We can’t wait to see what they do with their lives and hope that they all know how much we love each one of them.

I hope to have them all on the show at some point.

In this episode of The Journey of my Mother’s Son podcast, I sit down and talk with Phil and Shar Roos from, A Year to Volunteer.

Phil and Shar are fellow full-time RVers. Phil retired from the Navy after a 36-year career. Shar retired from Insurance and Finance. After years of doing humanitarian and volunteer work in their careers, they found themselves unfulfilled in their daily lives. They wanted to travel, Phil initially wanted to sail across the world by boat, but Shar wasn’t having it. She bought into the full-time RV concept, but wanted to do it with purpose. One day after work, during a conversation in the pool, Shar said, “Let’s take a year to volunteer,” and the “A Year to Volunteer” project was born.

They plan to visit and volunteer in each state. The plan is to volunteer for a total of at least 365 days. They find people, places, charities, cities, and communities that need help. They then solicit volunteers to give them a hand via Facebook, Twitter, Instagram and YouTube. The projects are not limited to just RVers. People in each of the respective communities that projects take place in are encouraged to join in as well.

I first started following Phil and Shar back in January when they had commented on one of my Instagram posts after Sandy got a little banged up while we were rescuing a dog that jumped off a dock. What they were doing immediately resonated with me. After 30 years in the nonprofit world, encouraging our young players the importance of giving back, and my mother’s influence on my own life which instilled community service in my blood, I definitely wanted to learn more about their project.

Sandy and I are looking forward to being able to help with one of their projects in the future.

In this episode of The Journey of my Mother’s Son podcast, I sit down and talk with another one of my former players, Billy Hartranft.

Bill is now a licensed professional counselor and sports consultant with Mind Matters Counseling. We talk about the importance of mental health in youth sports.

In his practice, Bill utilizes a person-centered, evidenced based approach to therapy that allows his clients the freedom to create their own path towards a successful and fulfilling life. His goal is to provide a safe, trustworthy, and judgement-free environment that is essential to helping people focus on their individual needs, and to begin moving towards a life full of purpose. Bill works with people of all ages, and has a decade of experience working cognitively and behaviorally with individuals on issues such as depression, anxiety, trauma, drug and alcohol addiction, self-esteem, mood/personality disorders, and family dynamics.

Bill is also a coach and former college athlete with a passion for the psychology of sports and peak performance. He enjoys using his experiences and research to help athletes increase their confidence and mental toughness, and to help coaches learn how to get the most out of their teams.

We discuss the importance of recognizing mental health issues in young athletes as well as removing the stigma that many times still goes along with getting help.

We put so much emphasis on getting additional training for the physical and technical aspects of sport. Yet, many times, we still ignore the mental health component that goes along with an athlete’s ability to achieve their peak performance. We wouldn’t drive a car in which we’re only concerned about making sure that we have air in three of the four tires, so we shouldn’t expect our young athletes to perform at their highest levels without focusing on the mental side of sports as well.

Bill and I talk about how it truly does take “a village” in order to raise well rounded athletes who will one day become productive members of society. Parents, coaches, administrators, family, and friends are all part of the process. They all need to be on the same page to recognize the signals of a young athlete who may be struggling with their mental health.

We need to be sure that young people understand that it’s ok to ask for help. Asking for help is not a sign of weakness, but to the contrary, it’s actually a sign of strength. We all experience mental health issues from time to time and it’s perfectly fine to ask someone for help.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down with my cousin, Debi Wade-Scavone.

We talk about our parents and the importance of remembering our roots.

When my Mom was traveling around the country, one of the things that was so important to her was being able to connect with her family and friends. This is one of the things that Sandy and I have been very fortunate to do so far on our travels.

Debi had started working on our family tree several years ago. Her and my daughter, Sherry did a lot of digging to trace back the roots of our family. Our family is very big, and we’re scattered throughout the country. We’ve been scattered throughout the country for as long as I can remember. However, the distance seemed as though it was always easy for our parents to overcome. They always found a way to get us together when we were growing up. My cousins were all like brothers and sisters to me growing up. As we grew older, we drifted off and our own lives took over. In recent years, we’ve all started to reconnect again, something that I think would make our parents very happy.

For whatever reason, our parents, our aunts and uncles always found a way to keep us together and connected as we were growing up. Perhaps it was because as children, they were separated at young ages when their parents divorced. After the divorce, our family grew even bigger as my grandparents each went on to have more children.

All in all, there were eleven brothers and sisters. My mom always referred to all of them as family – period. There were no “step” or “half” brothers or sisters. She wouldn’t have it; they were all just family. It was one of the things that she made very clear to me when I first started my relationship with Sandy. I had one child and she had three, my mom in her own special way, made sure that I understood that we had to be one family if it was going to work. Not “my kid’ and “her kids,” only “our kids.”

Debi points out how important our roots are and how important it is that we keep those roots alive and pass them on to the next generation.

Ron McCoy understands the importance of experiencing your life, not just living it.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, I sit down to talk with Ron McCoy. When we first met Ron just a few weeks ago we were introduced as “family.” He is the father of my cousin, Carole’s good friend, Tim. Tim and Carole have known each other for 30 years and are like family to each other, so that’s how we were introduced.

Ron and his wife spent almost 20 years traveling across the country in an RV. We speak about the importance of people not just talking about what they want to do in the future, but just going out and doing it. Life is too short to wait until tomorrow, so go out and experience a life that is lived to the fullest and filled with experiences.

God gave us a beautiful country and way too many people go through their entire life without taking the time to enjoy His wonderful creation.

Since Sandy and I have started this journey, so many people have told us that they hope to do what we’re doing “someday.” Ron and I are in agreement when we say that someday can be today. Don’t overthink it, just get out and do it. Don’t fall into the myths that society creates on how we should go about living our lives. None of us know how long we have on this earth, so be sure to take advantage of the moment because in reality, the only thing that any of us truly have is this moment.

Even at the age of 80, Ron has no plans of slowing down. He may not take another 4,000-mile road trip by himself, but he’s not going to stop traveling or enjoying life to the fullest. He’s looking forward to heading back to the Pacific Northwest and jumping on his new 25-foot boat and doing some fishing and crabbing.

One of the things that my mother taught me was that family is always family.

In this episode of “The Journey of my Mother’s Son,” I sit down with my cousin Patty Wade to talk about our family and the impact that our parents still have on our lives today.

It was almost two years ago now that I took two road trips by myself in January and February of 2019 that seem to have really started the journey of my mother’s son. The second of those two trips, was to Orlando to participate in an Ali Krieger Adult Football Camp. While in Orlando, I stayed at my cousin Carole’s house, who was living in Orlando at the time, just a few miles from her sister, Patty.

Part of the camp was a meet and greet with Ali on Friday night, which Patty and Carole went with me to. As we were walking back to the car after the event, Patty had said to me, “I can see you doing what your mom did someday.” I just chuckled and said, “No, not me.”

As I look back now, I think that Patty’s comment definitely planted a seed in me. It wasn’t too long after I returned to Pennsylvania that I really began contemplating this new adventure. The Lord had Patty plant that seed and it was starting to bloom.

I think that one of the things that started to resonate with me was how great it was to connect with family and friends on those two trips. To really be able to spend some quality time with them and connect. Prior to 2019, I couldn’t tell you when the last time was that I had seen Patty or Carole, but if I had to take a guess, it was probably at a family member’s funeral. Unfortunately, too many of our “reunions” have been at the funeral of a family member.

My mom comes from a very large family, she had 10 siblings total, but there was an interesting dynamic to our family tree. Her parents divorced when her and her siblings were very young. Both her mother and father remarried and went on to have additional families of their own. When explaining to others, my mom would refer to her siblings as, “His, Hers, and Ours.” She had two brothers and a sister from her parents first marriage (ours), two sisters and a brother from her dad’s second marriage (his) and a sister and three brothers from her mom’s second marriage (hers). My mom never referred to any of her siblings as half brothers or sisters, they were all just brothers and sisters – period. I never heard her call her step-father by his name, only Dad or Daddy.

That’s one thing that my mom made very clear to me when Sandy and I first started dating. Sandy had three children and I had one, so my mom made it clear to me that my relationship with Sandy was a “package deal.” It was going to have to be one family if it was going to ever work. That advice came over 30 years ago, so I hope that I can say that I took it to heart.

This journey has been about spiritual growth and connecting with friends and family. Thanks, Patty, for planting that seed in me a couple of years ago.

Here’s to family and friends!

In our current polarized world, we really need to just sit down and have genuine conversations with each other in order to recognize the humanity in others. In this episode of The Journey of my Mother’s Son podcast, I once again sit down with my good friend, and brother from another mother, Anthony Henderson. Anthony and I met through Positive Coaching Alliance (PCA) during the spring of 2020. We were both going through the certification training process to become coaching workshop trainers for PCA.

We did our first podcast together on June 24, 2020. That podcast was done on Zoom, while we were sitting 1,100 miles apart. This time, we got to do it sitting in our RV, just outside of a Bahama Breeze in Sunrise, Florida.

Anthony is the definition of positivity. He is always upbeat and offers those he interacts with words of encouragement.

During our conversation, Anthony and I talk about how we as a society really need to start taking the time to listen to one another. There are way too many people in our world who just want to shout over each other, as opposed to simply sitting down and having a conversation. A real conversation where there is dialog, empathy, and understanding. Conversation where we are trying to listen twice as much as we’re speaking. The good Lord gave us two ears and one mouth, we really should start using our ears twice as much as our mouth.

We live in a day and age where we try to make everything political. The truth is, most things that are going on in the world today are not political at all, they’re human issues. The left and the right continue to try to divide us, but in fact, most people are more in the center. We need to stop waiting for Washington to solve our problems and get out into our own little communities and start being the change that we want to see. Just like the song in which the subtitle of my podcast says, “Many little people in many little places.” That subtitle was derived from the opening lyrics of the Michael Franti song, “Gloria,” which states, “When many little people in many little places, do many little things, then the whole world changes.”

We need more little people doing more little things in their own little communities and the ripple effect of those positive actions will truly change the world.

Days like this, when Sandy and I get to connect and break bread with people that God has given us the blessing to have our paths cross really make us realize what a wonderful journey we are on.

In this episode of “The Journey of My Mother’s Son” podcast, Sandy and I talk about our 21-day journey from Pennsylvania to Florida. We also talk about some of our adventures and new friends that we’ve met since we’ve been here. This is the longest period of time that we’ve spent in one place since we started this journey in August.

We arrived in Florida around 9:30 PM on November 23rd. We got to my Aunt Sally's house in Melbourne on Wednesday, November 25th at 5:08 PM.

We left Pennsylvania on this leg of our journey on November 4th. In the past, we would make this trip in about 18 hours. My brother and I did it in 15 hours when my mom passed away.

My whole life I've been on a schedule. Rushing here, rushing there. Not anymore. God has told me to slow down. To enjoy the journey. To take time to connect with those we love. To not allow two decades to pass again between sharing time. Yes, we’ve left some great friends and our incredible immediate family in Pennsylvania, but we’ve stayed connected with them like never before.

When we had finally arrived in Melbourne, 21 days had passed by. There was no rush this time, only great memories.

We were able to spend time with some of my former players, family members, and people who have been part of our lives for decades, just a few years, and others who we’re just getting to know. We are grateful that the Lord allowed us to spend some time with each of them. These 21 days were filled with incredible connection to people who have been the threads to the quilt of my life.

Now that we’re in Melbourne, we've begun the process of establishing our domicile address in the state of Florida. I guess you could say that maybe I've come full circle.

Funny how things work out in life, but God always puts us exactly where we belong at the exact time that we need to be there.

Doctor Zac Schneider sits down to talk to me about baseball memories and growing by being willing to leave your comfort zone.

In this episode of The Journey of my Mother’s Son podcast, I sit down and talk with another one of my former players, Zac Schneider.

Sandy and I were blessed to spend a few days with Zac and his dog, Baby Girl at his house just outside of Atlanta, GA. Zac first started playing for the Berkshire organization as a junior in high school in 2000. I was fortunate to coach him on our Quad-County Optimist team throughout his college years and beyond. Like my last guest, Kyle Stover, he was part of three championship teams while he played for me, in 2003, 2006 and 2007.

So much more than the championships that we won together, we remember the bonds and friendships that have been built off the field. Every player that I ever coached holds a very special place in my heart. Using this time that Sandy and I have on our journey to reconnect with some of them has meant more to me than words could ever express. Anyone who has ever coached a sport will understand exactly what I mean when I say that.

Zac is now a Doctor of Education in Higher Education and we talk about two difficult decisions that he had to make in life that involved leaving his comfort zone in order to achieve his own greater growth.

The first, was eight years ago as he made the difficult decision to leave his friends and family in Pennsylvania and move to Atlanta to take a new job.

The second was just recently when he decided to leave his position at Georgia State University to take a new opportunity with StudentBridge as a Business Development Representative.

Zac talks about how both of those decisions were difficult and forced him to leave his comfort zone, but also allowed him to grow both individually and professionally.

A player and his former coach reflect back about the life lessons that baseball has taught.

In this episode of The Journey of my Mother’s Son podcast, I sit down and talk with one of my former players, Kyle Stover.

I first met Kyle when he was 14 years old and started coaching him when he was 15 years old. He’s now 36 years old, married, a father of three wonderful boys, and a professional in the medical field.

One of the objectives of this journey was to connect with some of my old players across the country. Kyle is still in Pennsylvania, living in Southern York county, so as we started our trek down to Florida for the winter, we didn’t want to miss the opportunity to spend some time with Kyle, his wife Angie and their three sons.

The greatest reward that I have gotten after thirty years of coaching is the relationships that have been built with some of the players that I coached. Yes, I won a lot of games and several championships over the course of my coaching career, but all of the trophies and medals pale in comparison to developing relationships and life-long friendships with some of my players.

To look back and digest that I’ve been a part of Kyle’s life for over half of his existence here on Earth is quite overwhelming to think about. Sandy and I have been to his graduation parties, a couple trips to the ER following game injuries, his wedding and some birthday parties for his kids. When you’re doing things like, you understand that coaching is about so much more than the game itself. It’s about truly being a positive influence and mentor in someone’s life. The memories of the games, the wins, the losses, the ties, they will all fade over time, but these types of relationships will last forever.

Billy Staples was a just a kid from Jersey until someone saw more in him than he saw in himself.

In this episode of The Journey of my Mother’s Son podcast, I sit down and talk with my friend, Billy Staples. Billy and I have known each other for just a few years and have really only spent a few hours overall with each other, however, we’re kind of like soul mates when it comes to paying it forward. We were introduced to each other a few years ago by a mutual friend and another author, Bob Solomon. As I said, we immediately hit it off. Not because we were both authors, and not even because we both absolutely loved baseball, it was our common desire to use the game of baseball to genuinely help kids.

So, when we were selling off all of our stuff, I had a few memorabilia items that I hadn’t sold. Knowing that Billy runs BEST, Inc., a 501(c)3 charitable scholarship organization in the Lehigh Valley, I asked if he could use the remaining items of my collection for the silent auction at his fundraising event in November. He was ecstatic and grateful that I’d be willing to donate the items to his organization. Two days before we moved out of our house, I drove to his place in Nazareth and gave him the items. We hung out and talked for several hours and he invited Sandy and I to the fundraiser to be his guests. He even offered his driveway for us to stay for the weekend. I was hesitant to make a commitment because being in Pennsylvania in November was something that Sandy and I definitely were not planning on doing when we started this journey. We already had to be back in Pennsylvania in late October to take care of some things for Sandy’s mom, so it was really a matter of delaying our plans of heading to warmer weather by a week, but I was still skeptical of the weather.

We agreed to stay in Pennsylvania the extra week, the weather was cold, we had to run the furnace a lot and were going through propane like it was going out of style, but we have no regrets at all.

To hear Billy talk about BEST, is one thing, to witness it first-hand, is a completely different experience. Sandy and I were both humbled to hear the stories of the kids that went through the program as well as how the program touched so many former MLB players.

As an added bonus, we also got a chance to chat with our old friend, Bill “Spaceman” Lee, who we missed when we were in Vermont, but happened to be attending the BEST fundraiser.

God always seems to put us in the places where he knows we need to be. Attending the BEST event recharged my battery and reminded me of what incredible work my old organization, BIG Vision Foundation had done for kids over the years.

The ripple effects of being a positive influence in a young person’s life are something that will live on long after we’re gone.

Billy and I encourage you all to, “Pay it Forward.”

Dan and Sandy Clouser sit down to talk about where they've been so far on their journey. Highlights of the 6,500 miles and 15 states that they've covered so far.

Sometimes God gives us a big vision, even if we really don’t want it.

In this episode of The Journey of my Mother’s Son podcast, I sit down and talk with Pastor Mike Conner, who along with his wife, Vilma is a co-founder of the Dream Center of Southeast Texas. The Dream Center is a faith-based recovery facility located in an old juvenile prison Beaumont, Texas. Mike was involved with the Dream Center of LA and came to Southeastern Texas with a simple plan to start a small ministry with his wife as he prepared for his retirement years. Little did he know that God had bigger plans for he and Vilma, much bigger.

Those plans included entering into a lease with the county for the old juvenile prison that had been sitting dormant for several years. The facility has over 10 acres, 13 buildings, and an incredible vision of making an amazing positive impact on the Beaumont community. Several of the buildings still need a lot of work and investment before they can be used, but Mike’s faith and trust in God to provide is stronger than ever.

This week we began our new journey. In this episode of The Journey of My Mother's Son podcast, I have another chat with my beautiful wife, Sandy about the first few days of our new journey.

Leading up to our departure, it was a crazy, sometimes frustrating two weeks from our original settlement date on our house. Again, trusting the Lord’s timing isn’t always easy for me. However, during the extra 10 days that we had in Berks County from our original plan, we were able to spend some extra time with some of our family members.

Another Friday breakfast with my dad, an in person visit with Sandy’s mom, spending a few hours with my Aunt Joan on her 83rd birthday, and time with our kids and grand-kids was precious indeed.

We spent Monday at another daughter’s house in Perry County and early Tuesday morning we embarked on our first journey. We're a few days in. On Tuesday, we went down Skyline Drive and 60 miles of the Blue Ridge Parkway into Lynchburg, VA, where we stayed in our first campground. Day two took us to dinner at Mabry Mill and a night at Fancy Gap Cabins and Campground. We'll travel the entire Blue Ridge Parkway from top to bottom on this first leg, taking our time and enjoying the journey. The destination is now secondary.

It was bittersweet to leave Berks County, but we’re excited to see what the Lord has in store for us on this new adventure.

Below is poem that I came across when I was 17 years old. I found it along with some other stuff that I was cleaning out when we were emptying the house. I did not write this, I do not know who did for sure, but I do find it fitting for this moment.

Peace.

Good-Bye Sometimes it seems I just get to say helloWhen suddenly I find myself saying goodbyeMaybe that’s why we should live each day as our lastFor today we live, but tomorrow we may die

I hope I brought some smilesTo brighten people’s dayAnd if I didn’t offend my GodHe’ll now clearly point the way

We may forget each other’s nameAs tide and time roll onFor tomorrow is upon usAnd yesterdays are gone

If we never meet againThis is one thing I’d like to sayI’m very glad I met youAnd so glad you passed my way.

We’re one step closer to our next chapter, but still trusting God’s timing.

In this episode, Sandy and I talk about continuing to trust God’s timing. We were supposed to close on our house on Friday, August 14th, but that didn’t happen. Nothing major for the hold up, just some warranty work that has to be done on our solar panels. Our buyer’s bank wouldn’t approve their financing without a letter from Tesla informing them that the roof damage that was caused by their original solar panel installation was covered under our warranty, which it was.

We’ve become temporary landlords as we signed a pre-settlement occupancy addendum so that the buyers could still move in and we still moved everything out on Friday as planned.

We’re currently boon docking in our one daughter’s yard. Sandy is learning how to relax, sleep in a little, and enjoying time with grandchildren. We still have a few things here that need to be taken care of anyway, which have been easier to do with us still in the area as opposed to had we been on the road already.

The exterior repairs to the roof were completed today, so we should definitely be able to get the house settled this week, and if we don’t, it is what it is. We’ll just adjust as needed.

Normally, a situation like this would have my anxiety escalating off of the charts, but now, I’m just taking it in stride. The situation is in God’s hands and we’ll start this new journey when the Lord knows that the timing is right.

We’re excited to get started, but not forcing the issue. We understand that God has a greater plan for us than what we may see today and we have to trust Him and have faith that He is working in the background in order for everything to work out for the best.

We’re getting closer to our next chapter, but still have some loose ends.

In this episode, Sandy and I (and at times, Youkilis) talk about preparing for our new journey, which amazingly, is only one week away. It’s hard to believe that it’s been roughly 18 months since I first ran the idea by Sandy that we should sell all of our belongs, buy an RV and travel the country. In some ways it seems like it was so long ago, yet in other ways it seems as though it was only yesterday.

Once we put the house on the market, it seemed like it took forever to sell, partly due to putting it on the market, taking it off due to the pandemic, and putting it back on again. When we signed the agreement of sale in June, it seemed like our original settlement date of August 31st was light years away. When our buyers asked if we’d be willing to move the settlement date up to August 14th, we thought, “No big deal, it’s only three weeks.” However, there have been many times over the course of the past few weeks that we’ve realized the value of three weeks.

The task of selling every piece of personal property to our names, almost literally, one piece at a time, has seemed like a daunting, borderline, impossible task at times. Sandy and I have each had our days of feeling overwhelmed and unprepared for the task, yet each step of the way, God has shown us that His grace and timing are perfect. The one thing about our relationship is that we can always pick each other up. If she’s having a bad day, I can help get her back on track, if I’m having a bad day, she seems to know exactly how to pick me up as well. If we’re both having bad days, which thankfully are rare, Youkilis is always more than happy to offer us a nudge of his nose or tail wag to bring a smile to our faces.

We’re both excited and yet, still sometimes a little scared about our new journey, but throughout all of this, we have shown faith and trust that the Lord is always working in the background on our behalf.

Here’s to new chapters!

We’re not where we want to be, but we are moving forward.

In this episode, I sit down with Chris White and Michael Wardlow.

Chris, a native of North Carolina who is now living is Dallas, Texas, is a former Division I football player for East Carolina. He is also a fellow trainer with Positive Coaching Alliance.

Michael, who I also met through PCA, lives in the Tampa, Florida area and is now the Middle School Academy Director for the Suncoast Boys & Girls Club.

We continue our discussion on race relations in America. We talk about the progress that has been made over the course of the past few months, but understand that we still have a long way to go in order to achieve true racial equality in this country.

Each of us feel very optimistic about the direction that we’re going and we see hope for the future in our younger generation. As three guys with sports backgrounds, we understand the role that sports can play in the healing of our country and influence of our next generation. Kids are young and impressionable, the more that they are put into diverse situations where they understand that the only color that matters is the color of their jerseys, the more empathetic they will be in recognizing the humanity of others. Sports is a microcosm of life, so what we can teach our kids on the athletic field will most definitely carry over into their daily lives.

In Michael’s new role with the Boys & Girls Club, he feels as though he has found his calling. He is helping young people to find their voices. More importantly, how to use those voices in an eloquent manner in order to spark, and be, the change that they want to see. As adults, we also need to listen to this next generation and learn from them. The status quo isn’t always the best path to success. As a coach, if there is one thing that I have learned in my 30 years of experience is that sometimes the students can teach the teacher a lesson, and that is perfectly fine.

It’s time for us to stop talking so much and start listening, and learning. These kids are onto something good.

In this episode, I talk with New York Yankees Minor League Hitting Coach, Rachel Balkovec.

Rachel has just entered her first year as a minor league hitting coach with the New York Yankees. She is the first woman to hold that title in the history of professional baseball and is joining 3 other women that will be in uniform this season in various roles. She joined the Yankees after completing her second master’s degree in biomechanics and statistics in the Netherlands. While in Amsterdam, she served as an assistant hitting coach for the Netherlands national softball and baseball programs and went on to complete her research at the world leading baseball performance research facility in Seattle, Driveline Baseball. Previously, she was in several roles with the Houston Astros’ strength and conditioning department. She completed the 2018 season with their AA affiliate, Corpus Christi Hooks and served as the Latin American Coordinator in her first 2 years with the organization. The first time she made history in professional baseball was in 2014 when she was hired as the first full time female strength and conditioning coach in the MLB in the role of Minor League Strength and Conditioning Coordinator for the St. Louis Cardinals. She also worked in apprenticeship roles for Louisiana State University, The Chicago White Sox, Arizona State University, Los Tigres Del Licey Beisbol and EXOS early in her career. The Omaha native is a former NCAA Division I softball catcher and has special interest in organizational culture and behavioral psychology in relation to coaching. She has an undergraduate degree in Exercise Science, a master’s degree in Sport Administration from LSU.

In this episode of the Journey of My Mother's Son podcast, I speak with Sean Gibson, who is the great grandson of Negro League great and baseball Hall of Famer, Josh Gibson. Currently serving as the Executive Director of the Josh Gibson Foundation.

We talk about the 100th anniversary of the Negro Leagues, the legacy of Josh Gibson, and race relations in America today.

The Girl with the Flower: The Journey is the Trip.

In this week's episode, I sit down and speak with Jan Rose Kasmir, who was featured in an iconic photograph that was taken by French photographer Marc Riboud. Riboud photographed Kasmir, who at that time was a high-school student on October 21, 1967 while taking part with over 100,000 anti-war activists in the National Mobilization Committee to End the War in Vietnam's March on the Pentagon to protest U.S. involvement in Vietnam. In the photo, seventeen-year-old Kasmir was shown clasping a chrysanthemum and gazing at bayonet-wielding soldiers. The photo was featured in the December 30, 1969 special edition of Look magazine under the title The Ultimate Confrontation: The Flower and the Bayonet. The photo was republished world-wide and became a symbol of the flower power movement. Smithsonian Magazine later called it "a gauzy juxtaposition of armed force and flower child innocence."

Kasmir graduated in 1986 from the New York College of Health Professions in Manhasset, New York as a massage therapist, and worked in Hilton Head Island, South Carolina until 1991. She then moved to Aarhus, Denmark, with her Danish husband and their daughter. She returned with her daughter to the United States in 2002, and resumed living on Hilton Head Island, South Carolina.

In February 2003, Riboud again photographed Kasmir protesting against the Iraq War where she carried a poster-size copy of the 1967 photograph.

In 2010, Kasmir was invited by the Spanish organization Avalon Project Peace NGO to speak during activities for International Peace Day in Seville, Spain.

In January 2017, she joined the Women's March in Washington, D.C.

Jan Rose just published her second book, The Girl with the Flower: The Journey is the Trip, which is her long-awaited and highly acclaimed autobiography, Jan Rose lays it bare. In an honest and frank account, she pulls no punches and talks about the sex and the drugs, her stays in state mental institutions, the death of her sister and the collapse of her family, which she would spend a lifetime overcoming. Yet, she never forgot about what she believed was her role in life - a peace campaigner, first and foremost. Through the gloom and despair emerges inspiration, a true story of love, of how she managed to pry herself from the jaws of self-destruction, and ultimately learn how to love her daughter and most of all, herself.

In this week's episode, I sit down and speak with Paul Cartwright, who is the president and founder of Sports Celebrity Marketing (S.C.M. Inc.), which is a full service sports marketing company located in Ontario, Canada specializing in facilitating personal appearances, keynote speeches, endorsements, fundraisers, marketing, PR and event planning. Paul is also a newly published contributor of the book, "A Walk in Our Cleats: 25 Athletes Who Never Gave Up" with author and former NFL player, Steven Johnson Jr. A Walk in Our Cleats is an exciting, inside look at 25 notable NFL players and their faith journeys. Each player has faced unique circumstances in staying fit, pursuing their dreams, and getting to play in the NFL, but all have one thing in common: the power of Jesus Christ in their lives. During the conversation, in addition to the book, we talk about how Paul came to start his business, the influence that some of his players have had on him over the years, his faith, his mixed race marriage, and his feelings on the current racial tensions in our society.

In this week's episode of "The Journey of My Mother's Son" podcast, I talk with another PCA trainer, Cameron Campbell of Houston, Texas. Affectionately known as Coach Cam, he is a servant, sports enthusiast, and social entrepreneur who has spoken more than a thousand times for various sports and philanthropic organizations including the National Football League (NFL), National Basketball Association (NBA) and Major League Baseball (MLB). He is a former division one (D1) football athlete and graduate of the University of Houston who transformed his passion for sports into a career serving students as an Athletic Director and Head Coach where he was recognized as the all-time winningest coach. He is currently empowering others as a business consultant and owner of Texas Athletics Construction and recently released his highly anticipated book, Alpha Redefined, in 2019. We continue the conversation on race and talk about how we need to reevaluate how we look at things like a history class in schools, police training, and how we're raising our young men in society.

In this week's episode of the Journey of My Mother's Son podcast, I sit down with Anthony Henderson, South Florida's biggest Hope Dealer. That's right, Anthony feels that we have way too many dope dealers, so he has chosen to go out and deal some hope to our society. Anthony is also a former athlete, coach and a fellow trainer for Positive Coaching Alliance. His optimistic attitude can be felt in his voice. We pick up the conversation that I started with Monica Livingston about what we can do to help move the needle forward in regards to our country's current and jagged past when it comes to race relations. We are both hopeful and optimistic, but also realize that we are in what Anthony is referring to as a "marathon relay." We're on the same team, but it's a long race and we need to know when to hand the baton to someone else so that we can rest for a little while.and take care of ourselves.

Have you ever gotten that pit inside your stomach when your spouse or a good friend walks into the room and says to you, "Hey, sit down a second, we need to talk?" We've all been there. The uncomfortable conversation that we all try to avoid and hope that it will take care of itself with no effort from us. Well America, that's where we are today. As a society, we need to talk, and what we need to talk about is systemic racism in America. We've all tried our best to ignore it and hope that it would go away on it's own, but it hasn't, so we need to talk about it. More importantly, we need to listen. We need to put ourselves into rooms with people who don't look like us and have that difficult conversation about race. We need to talk about the black race and the white race and every other race, but most importantly, the human race. In this episode of "The Journey of My Mother's Son," I sit down with Monica Livingston, who is one of the many absolutely incredible human beings that I've been blessed to meet through the Positive Coaching Alliance. She is a former women's professional football player, entrepreneur, consultant and speaker. Her company, 36 Nation, located in Washington, DC provides individual representation to meet her clients needs. We both had to overcome our fear and had that uncomfortable conversation about race. We recognize our differences, but more importantly chose to focus on our similarities. We're all on the same team, we can only move forward together. We know that we're only two little people, but we're going to start the conversation and hope that it inspires others to have the tough conversation with those who don't look like them as well.

In this week's episode of The Journey of My Mother's Son, I talked to Stacy Piagno and Isaac Wenrich who made history on July 15, 2017 when Piagno recorded a win against the Pittsburg Diamonds in her first start of the 2017 season. In doing so, she became only the third woman since the 1950s to win a game in an American men's professional league. Wenrich, who is a former player of mine from my Berkshire Baseball days, was her catcher that day. The two share memories of that day and the season in general. Stacy talks about how important it was for the men in the Sonoma clubhouse to simply accept her and her female teammate, Kelsie Whitmore as nothing more than teammates and fellow ballplayers. Isaac talks about how having the women on the team pushed him to push himself and work even harder to improve his own skills.

In this week's episode of The Journey of My Mother's Son podcast, I was fortunate to sit down with Ella Witman. Ella is only 12 years old, soon to be 13, but people of all ages should be inspired by her story. An avid softball player and horseback rider, Ella had her world come crashing down in late October of 2018 when she broke her hip in a freak accident a few days following injuring it on the field. Faced with the possibility of never being able to ride a horse or play the game of softball again, Ella's strength and perseverance has her back in the saddle and soon to be back on the playing field as well. Ella leaned on a strong support system within her family and close friends as well as some encouragement and prayers from some awesome former Olympians, Jennie Finch, Leah O'Brien-Amico, Crystl Bustos, and Toni Mascarenas.

In this episode of The Journey of My Mother's Son podcast, I continue the conversation with Homa Shafii. Born and raised in Iran for the first 11 years of her life, her father had the foresight to move to the United States in order to create more opportunities for both him and his family. Baseball wasn't the only male dominated endeavor that Homa took on and excelled at. She also became a Firefighter, Peace Officer and first female member of her California SWAT team. More importantly, her story is one of faith and finding Jesus during one of her darkest times. She now loves to help others by inspiring them to find their own faith and trust in God.

Another two part episode of The Journey of my Mother's Son podcast. I was able to talk to Homa Shafii. Homa came to the United States from Iran when she was only 11 years old. Once in the US, she fell in love with the games of baseball and softball. A late starter, only beginning to play softball at age 14, she was able to persevere and work hard to play high school softball. Not heavily recruited out of high school, she continued to overcome obstacles in her journey. Going to junior college, getting cut, transferring, and being told that she wasn't good enough. Against all odds, she continued to work hard and fight for the opportunity to play the game that she had grown to love. While playing softball, she also began to play baseball and loved it equally. She played in a men's amateur league in California, which she eventually went on to be the commissioner of and was part of the US Women's National Baseball team development program in 2017. She is currently training and pursuing her dream of making the US Women's National Baseball team and compete in the Women's World Cup, which has been postponed to 2021. Homa's story is one of faith, perseverance and never giving up on your dreams.

I've known Jeff Potter for over 12 years now. We first met when he published his first book, "Whatever Happened to Baseball." We share the same philosophy of teaching life lessons through the game of baseball. I was in the midst of writing my first book, "The Beauty of a Diamond, through the eyes of a Coach." when Jeff and I met. He was a big reason as to why I got it to the finish line and published, I had been working on it for years and no one other than my wife and mom knew that I was writing it, he challenged me to start telling everyone that I was writing a book. When I asked him why, he simply said that those who I tell would hold me accountable to get it finished because they'd ask me about the progress. I followed his advise and he was right. I published in 2012. Jeff now runs the Potter Baseball Tour, in which he takes a group of young people on a 30 day field trip across the Mid-Atlantic region playing barnstorming baseball games and giving back to the communities in which they visit. He has written two additional books since we met, "Saving Baseball" and "Far from being Done."

Following her season with the Silver Bullets in 1994, Michelle continued to understand the importance of being a positive role model for young women everywhere. She went onto be an author and speaker, work for sports apparel giants, Nike, Louisville Slugger and adidas to name a few and has her own consulting business, Red Rock Consultants, LLC. Most importantly though, she has what she calls her “Passion Projects.” The Go Girl Futures Program, Rim to Rim Club of the Grand Canyon & Rim to Rim Zion Hike & Club. The Go Girl Futures project help empower young women, while the hiking clubs help people challenge themselves and find their own personal relationship with God and nature. We immediately connected when she heard that Sandy and I were selling everything to live fulltime in an RV. In addition to a standout athlete, she is a nature lover, who lived in a Tiny House for a little while. She completely understands how selling everything and starting a new chapter can create a new spiritual connection. FAITH over FEAR has been her mantra as well.

Making connections is what life is all about. God works in mysterious ways. Following my podcast with Missy Coombes, who was an original Silver Bullet from 1994-1996, another door opened. My friend and another former guest on the show, Tina Whitlock reached out to me and asked if I would be interested in meeting a fellow South Carolina alumni, who was also a member of the Silver Bullets, Michelle Delloso. When Tina asked, I immediately recognized the name because Michelle garnered a lot of media attention during the game that I had coached against the Silver Bullets in Reading due to the fact that she grew up in Quakertown, which is less than an hour from Reading. I immediately said, “Yes!” Tina introduced us and we immediately connected. I am sure that you will enjoy her story as we take another stroll down memory lane to recognize another incredible Trailblazer from that Silver Bullet team.

In this episode, I sat down with longtime friend, Paul Johnson to talk about his 30 years of coaching baseball in the inner-city of Philadelphia. A recipient of the Quarter Century of Leadership & Dedication to Baseball Award from the ABCA (American Baseball Coaches Association) in 2014, Paul has dedicated his life to giving back and teaching leadership skills and life lessons through the game of baseball. A coaching philosophy that we have both shared throughout our careers. Paul has a legacy of producing young men who have gone on to be productive members of society.

In this episode, I sat down with longtime friend, Paul Johnson to talk about his 30 years of coaching baseball in the inner-city of Philadelphia. A recipient of the Quarter Century of Leadership & Dedication to Baseball Award from the ABCA (American Baseball Coaches Association) in 2014, Paul has dedicated his life to giving back and teaching leadership skills and life lessons through the game of baseball. A coaching philosophy that we have both shared throughout our careers. Paul has a legacy of producing young men who have gone on to be productive members of society.

On August 1, 1994, I had the opportunity to coach against the Colorado Silver Bullets, a women’s professional baseball team that was sponsored by the Coors Brewing Company. The team existed from 1994 through 1997 barnstorming across the country playing minor league teams, men’s semi-pro and amateur teams. A few years ago, I connected on social media with Missy Coombes, who was one of the original Silver Bullets. She played three years with the team from that inaugural season in 1994 through the 1996 season. The Silver Bullets seem to be somewhat of a forgotten era in women’s baseball. It was great hearing Missy’s story of her experience with team and how she still loves the game today.

I had the opportunity to talk with Tina Whitlock, who is one of only five females to be coaching in professional baseball. She was hired as a fourth coach in the St. Louis Cardinals organization this past spring. Tina’s story isn’t just about being a trailblazer and breaking glass ceilings, more importantly, it’s one of faith, grit, determination and resilience. Tina became a widow and a mother to her second son within nine days of each other and her journey ever since has been nothing short of amazing.

This episode was originally recorded in mid-February and was planned to be released right before the MLB Trailblazer Series. The Trailblazer Series is a girl’s baseball event that is conducted every year in Compton, CA right around the time that MLB celebrates Jackie Robinson breaking the color barrier. The event has been postponed indefinitely due the COVID-19 pandemic. It was an honor to talk to Elizabeth Benn, who is the Sr. Coordinator of Player Programs, Baseball Development, and Diversity for Major League Baseball. Her and a team of dedicated professionals are committed to increasing the opportunities for women in baseball, both and off the field.

In this episode, I had the opportunity to sit down with my good friend, Leah Amico and talk about Faith and Softball. We spoke about how we’re dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic. Leah is a 3-time Olympic Gold Medalist in Women’s Softball, so we also speak about the NCAA season getting cancelled as well as the postponement of the 2020 Olympics.

My wife, Sandy and I sit down at the kitchen table prior to a game of 500 Rummy to talk about how we’re dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic and being quarantined in our house for going on three weeks. We’ve found that balance, fresh air, sunshine, walking and most of all scripture and prayer have helped us find that “peace that passes all understanding” during these uncertain times.

Old friends reminisce about the past and look forward to the future. I recently sat down with two of my good friends, Phil Raccuglia and Chris Blum. Like me, each of them are starting a new life journey. Phil, who was a long-time coach at several local programs, Berkshire, Exeter and Muhlenberg stepped down this past season after 26 seasons of coaching. He led the Berkshire 30-Over team to a second place finish in the nation during the 1995 NABF World Series. At Muhlenberg, he led the A’s to several state tournament appearances during his tenure. Phil’s new journey is continuing his father’s legacy by running the family business, Pizza Como in Temple, PA. Chris, who also had his first head coaching position with the Berkshire ACBL team was released from his position at Kutztown University prior to the end of the 2019 season. Chris was the winningest coach in Kutztown University history, his team’s won six PSAC titles and made five trips to the NCAA Division II World Series. He spent 8 years as an assistant and 17 years as the head coach. Chris’s new journey is as an assistant coach for Kutztown University’s girls softball team. Even though baseball is still in our blood, we’re all excited to turn the page and start these new chapters of our lives. I love when I get the opportunity to stroll down memory lane with these two guys, I am truly blessed to have them as part of the threads that have helped make up the quilt of my life.

Keeping with the “new chapter” theme, I was able to sit down with long-time Exeter Fire Chief, Bob Jordan, who has recently retired after 24 years as Fire Chief and 47 years of service overall as a firefighter in both Reading and Exeter. Bob recalls some of his fondest memories, talks about the importance of his family and how he is looking forward to spending more time with his wife, Brenda.

In this episode, I sat down to talk with the Reverend Pastor Dennis Trout, who retired after 50 years in the ministry at Swamp Lutheran Church. He speaks about the importance of having the ability to make adjustments and change over the years and making the adjustment to his new normal as he and wife start this next chapter of their lives.

“The Journey of My Mother’s Son” and as Michael Franti says in the opening verse of his song, “Gloria,” “When many little people in many little places, Do many little things, then the whole world changes. Toni Reece talks to Dan Clouser about the power of changing one's life, setting out on an adventure with his wife, and meeting wonderful people along the way. This is the premiere episode of The Journey of My Mother's Son.