Claiming Your Voice

Simon Benn is the creator of the podcast Thriving Adoptees. As an adult Simon confronted the issue of his adoption and went on a search to find happiness. Today he is the host of his own podcast to help other adoptees share their story and as he says, to "help each other home" .

https://www.thrivingadoptees.com/

#adoptees #adopteefog #adoption #simonbenn #awareness

Claire Magenheimer is a Korean born adoptee, who after years of feeling lost, decided to find a way to become unlost and empowered. Now, through her own healing journey, Claire wants to lead others to find empowerment through release of the past through somatic breathe work.

#Empowerment # Coach # SomaticBreathWork

You can message Claire at Claire@coachwithclaire.com

Jacky was adopted just shy of being two years old. Growing up with autism, ADHD, and a visual disability has not stopped this inspiring individual from being his own unique personality! Take a listen and hear what Jacky has to say to adoptees.

#Adopted #TransnationalAdoptee #TransgenderAdoptee #Autism

pucksupport.com

In Part 2 of this interview, Tammi shares about her near death experience, choosing to live, and taking responsibilty for her choices to love. Listen to the end for a special performance of a cover song that Tammi recorded!

#Adoption #NearDeathExperience #Choosetolive

Trigger Warning: This episode containes themes of alcohol abuse, surving child abuse, and suicidal thoughts.

Tammi VanBuskirk was adopted at age six months to a family already lacking stability. After her parents divorced, she was often left in the care of her maternal grandparents. Tami has lived through many challenges and shares her story of finding community in the Fireside Adoptee Facebook group. Thank you to the many leaders of Fireside who have provided a welcoming space for adopted persons seeking support.

#Adoptee #AlcoholAbuse #Survivor #Gifted #ChildAbuseSurvivor

Michele Kriegman is a domestic adoptee who later discovered that her birth father was Native American. She is an advocate for the rights of Native Americans to be able to keep their children. Michele is also an author and you can find her works on Amazon. Please visit change.org and sign the petition! Please share and subscribe to Claiming Your Voice.

https://www.change.org/p/keep-native-children-safe-native-pass-the-nj-indian-child-welfare-act?utm_source=share_petition&utm_medium=custom_url&recruited_by_id=11df0180-e6c8-0130-b60c-38ac6f16d25f

https://www.bia.gov/bia/ois/dhs/icwa

* Reader community: https://www.facebook.com/Suzanne.Gilbert.in.Michele.Kriegman

* Reunion Land Bookshelves: https://bookshop.org/lists/featured-the-birth-fathers-club-series

* Instagram shots: https://www.instagram.com/reunionlandpress/

* Twitter handle: https://twitter.com/ReunionLand

#Adoptees #NativeAmerican #ICWA #Birthfathers # Birthmothers #Adoptiveparents #change.org

This is a continued conversation with Michael Park Ingram. In this episode we talk about the comfort women of Korea and their importance in the history of the country. Michael also shares about how he connected with his birth mother and biological siblings.

Please listen, share, and follow Claiming Your Voice!

#KoreanAdoptee #Koreancomfortwomen #KoreanQuarterly #Mixedraceadoptee #AfricanAmericanKoreanAdoptee

Michael Park Ingram is an actor and film director. His most recent appearance was in the series "Pachinko". In this episode Michael shares his experience of being a mixed-race Korean adoptee raised in the United States. His visit to Korea helped him to embrace his identity and discover his birth family. We celebrate with Michael in his continued journey of sobriety.

Please subscibe and share this podcast!

#Korean Adoptee # MixedRaceKorean #PachinkoActor #Film #FindingBirthFamily

Former guest Kristi Eikenes shares about her brother Gary Koch who was adopted at age four from South Korea. His journey to the United States began with the help of an Army Sgt.

Gary served as an officer with NYPD during 911 and later developed cancer due to contact with toxins released from the implosions. We thank Kristi for sharing his story.

#KoreaAdoptee #SouthKoreaAdoption #KoreanWarOrphan

Greg Gentry is a domestic adoptee from the "baby scoop" era. He is an active member of online and in-person adoption communities. Greg talks about his personal journey of adoption, coming out of the "adoption fog", and being in reunion with family members. We also talk about the importance of open communication between the adopting parents and the adoptee.

#Adoption#BabyScoopEra#AdopteeConstellation#AdoptionPractices #AdoptionAdvocacy

Considered as a first wave adoptee from South Korea, Kristi shares her adoption story. Recently, she returned to her homeland for a visit and learned about the aged out orphans. Listen to this podcast to hear about this complex social problem in South Korea. https://lovebeyondtheorphanage.org/

#Korean Adoptee

#Adoption

Guest Catherine Shields talks about raising a child with a disability and how she realized her own denial. The title of her book is The Shape of Normal and it will be released sometime in November 2023.

Catherine (Cathy) Shields, M.S. Ed., writes about parenting, disabilities, and self-

discovery. In her debut memoir, THE SHAPE OF NORMAL, Cathy explores the truths

and lies parents tell themselves, illustrating how she effectively used denial to protect

herself from the stark reality of her child’s diagnosis. Cathy and her husband reside in

Miami, Florida, where they raised three grown daughters. They kayak, ride bikes, hike in

the Everglades, and visit the two grandchildren who live nearby.

The Shape of Normal: A Memoir of Motherhood, Disability

and Embracing a Different Kind of Perfect – debuting

November 2023 from Vine Leaves Press

Visit: https://www.vineleavespress.com

https://www.cathyshieldswriter.com

https://substack.com/@cathyshieldswriter

https://www.instagram.com/cathyshieldswriter

https://www.facebook.com/cathy.p.shields.3

Patricia is the creator of myadoptedlife.com

She was a black market baby who was given to a Texas couple through the workings of an attorney. In part two she talks about reuniting with her birth father.

Guest Patricia Knight Meyer is an author, journalist, and content creator. She was relinquished for adoption by her birth mother. In her adult life Patricia was in reunion with both her birth mother and father. Her website is myadoptedlife.com where you can learn more about her adoption story.

In this episode my guest Julie Molisho talks about her journey from Congo to Iowa. The reason why she and her family had to leave Congo and the challenges that she has experienced here in the United States. Julie has started a non-profit to help her Congolese community to navigate the social systems here in Iowa. The name of her non-profit is The River ARC (Advocacy, Resources Center) and she may be reached at Juliemolisho@theriverarc.org

Thank you for supporting Claiming Your Voice so that we can bring you more of the human experience!

Angelica is a fan of spelunking, reptiles, and research! She shares about how growing up in a poverty stricken family helped her to learn the value of earning her own way.  Angelica's life path has launched her into a scientific medical career. She wants to help others know the power of science and education. 

Margaret was adopted in 1958 from South Korea. She was found on the floor of an orphanage alongside of her adopted brother Charles. They were both starving and in need of immediate attention. They were featured in many newspapers and tv shows because of their unique family which was made up of 19 adopted children. 

https://youtu.be/zeFSItRl1r0 To Tell the Truth (1967)

https://youtu.be/JmHmD55eIZg   The Mike Douglas Show  (1965,  Start at the 53 minute mark)

Anne is a Korean born adoptee who was raised in Minnesota and Missouri. She has two adopted siblings from Korea and together they traveled back to their birth country in the summer of 2022. Anne tells her story of reunion and also shares her opinion of adoption.  

Katie is a Chinese adoptee who grew up in Texas. During her formative years she chose her own identity. Now as an adult she is proud to be Chinese and American. 

Shirley is a mixed race intercountry adoptee. She is on the journey to finding her birth parents and has some interesting leads. Also, at the time of adoption, her US citizenship was not finalized through the naturalization process. At present she is seeking how to gain US citizenship 

Glenda is a Korean born adoptee who chose to forgive her abusive parents. She is writing a book about her life experiences and is planning on going to visit Korea. 

Mary Ellen Gambutti was adopted as an infant into an Air Force family. In this conversation she shares her quest of finding her biological family.

Here is the link to her book: I Must Have Wandered: An Adopted Air Force Daughter Recalls

https://www.amazon.com/Must-Have-Wandered-Adopted-Daughter-ebook/dp/B0B94T45JY/ref=sr_1_1?crid=FI7X51BX8OPZ&keywords=books+mary+ellen+gambutti+i+must+have+wandered&qid=1667707360&sprefix=I+must+have+wan%2Caps%2C194&sr=8-1 

Dee was adopted around age two from a home of neglect. He was raised by a loving adoptive mother who showed him love and stability. Dee is the survivor of sexual asault and encourages anyone who has trauma to seek therapy. He says, 'it will be okay."

Trigger warning topic of sexual abuse. 

I was honored to be the guest host for Fireside Adoptees interview series with special guest Lynelle Long.

Lynelle is the founder of InterCountry Adoptee Voices which serves for providing rich resources for adoptees.

This interview is posted with permission of Fireside Adoptees.

This podcast is about infertility and the feelings of loss that accompanying it

We also talked on topics of adoption and foster care. 

And the questions of how to talk to someone who has experienced miscarriage and infertility. 

Polly is a professional flutist and  is also a private flute instructor. Growing up with a musical father provided an encouraging environment to learn the accordion, piano, and flute. Her desire was to be a performance major and has earned a  Masters  from the Eastman school of music.

Take a listen to a light hearted conversation about Polly's beginning interest in music that took her on a musical path to teaching and then to performance!

Jay was adopted at the age of 8 months old to a family in Minnesota. As a young adult he was incarcerated where he was able to further his education in psychology. Jay also found a connection to God and faith and now works in prison ministry.

Listener warning: suicide ideation topic is mentioned

Sherrie was born in prison to a teen mom. She was placed into foster care at age two. At age nine, her mom wanted her back, but it was not a fairytale reunion. Sherrie suffered being molested by a family member and was placed into 47 different foster homes. Please listen as she shares her story of hope and her faith in God. 

TJ is a Korean born adoptee who resides on the East Coast of the US. She came to the US at age three and remembers her father's ice cream shop in Ithaca, NY. Later when she moved to another state she experienced being made fun of because of the shape of her face and dealt with sadness and loneliness as a junior high student. TJ also had to deal with the feelings of reabandonment when her mother left the family.

Through it all she has accomplished much and continues to work toward her life goals.

Listener discretion: The topic of assault occurs in this conversation. 

TruGuy is an ambassador of the heart, a poet, and a musician. He was born to parents who were blind. At six years old he experienenced a traumatic assault. Despite these traumatic experiences, Tru has been a seeker of the truth and is a healer through his poetry and music. 

Emma Stevens is the author of The Gathering Place. In this interview she discusses her book and the impacts of adoption.

Brett is a first generation queer transfer student who now works in student services in higher education. He is an advocate for all students who are on their pathway in higher education. He also wants to helps students and staff broaden their understanding of the queeer community through inclusivity and advocacy via displayed artifacts in workspaces. 

In this episode I visited with Dr. Patrick Dupont, who teaches courses in health professions. We talked about our journey through the doctoral process at ACU, career transitioning as mature individuals, and the desire to help students.

Kristen is an adoptee who grew up in the same town as members of her biological family. She never knew the truth until she was 18 years old.

On the date of this interview she celebrated 92 days of sobriety. 

Jessica was adopted at birth to her forever mom.  When she became and adult she began a search for her biological family. What she found out was not a happy ever after ending to her search. She believes that God used her in an amazing way to help take care of her birth mother. Jessica says that she has found the diamonds of life amid the pain of her birth search. 

Keith grew up in a big Italian family in New York. It wasn't until his early 30's that he found out that he had been adopted and it had been kept a secret from him. He then went on a journey to find his biological family. 

In this episode I talk with guests Joe Soll and Mark Miner about adoption.
The opinions expressed in this episode are those of the individuals.

Matthew is an Amerasian Korean Adoptee who was adopted at age seven. He grew up in New Hampshire, joined the military and served in two wars. In 2018 Matthew found his father through DNA testing. After the experience of identity confusion as a child, he can now proudly say that he has paternal roots in Kentucky.

Ryan Anderson was adopted as an infant from Morocco and grew up in Scotland. 

He shares his story how he used addiction to deal with feelings of shame. Now he is on a mission to help others by telling his message of hope to live life through conection and support. Disclaimer: topic of addiction and suicide.

As an infant, Joe Soll was trafficked into the adoption system. He grew up to be a psychotherapist and author of ten books. He facilitates a free nightly chat where participants can work on healing adoption related trauma. Joe wrote Adoption Healing...A Path to Revcovery to help adoptees on their healing journey. 

In this interview, Mark Miner shares his story of foster care and adoption. He and his sister were taken from their family at very young ages and lived through abuse and neglect in the foster system. Mark's story is one of encouragement and empathy.