Midlife with Courage

Korinn Hawkins has a passion for helping others to connect to themselves. She lost her husband Corey three years ago very unexpectedly and she talks with Kim about the journey with her two children and learning to move forward. She used what she calls her "bag of tricks" to navigate the process of bringing herself and her children through a dark place and the blessings that have come from the journey.

Korinn courageously shares her story including her strong belief that emotions need to be felt and expressed and how she helped her children do that as well. She encourages everyone to "Live your Heart. Because in learning how to listen to your heart, and letting it be expressed, you are opening yourself to living the life your heart truly wants for you."

Korinn S. Hawkins is an author and a meditation instructor. Hawkins has a background as an energy therapist and is a trained AcuEnergetics® Meditation Instructor and Practitioner. She has written and illustrated several children's books and the self-help memoir: The Four Relationships: Seeking connection in a world of disconnect. She offers meditation online through her website and at her YouTube channel Open Heart Living where she hosts 365 Days of Open Heart Living.

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Christina Flach is a world renowned makeup artist to the stars who has worked with celebrities, magazines and big name brands but she is much more than that. She has experienced loss in her life which propelled her to do good for underprivileged children and honor her husband and son. Listen to this episode to hear more from Christina about her bumpy road and her focus on coming from a place of gratitude despite the losses. She also indulges Kim's "fan girl" tendencies by sharing about her experiences with her favorite celebrities and shares some skin care and makeup tips for those over 40.

Simone Knego has a wonderful story about her life journey which includes climbing Mount Kilimanjaro, creating a family, writing and speaking to inspire others. This conversation covers adoption, loving yourself, parenting and learning to quit changing who we think we are supposed to be and loving ourselves for who we are and so much more.

Tami Adrian-George is a rehab specialist, nutrition coach, Pilates instructor and so much more. Enjoy this delightful conversation where Tami shares her experience as a dancer, model and actress (anyone heard of General Hospital?) and how her "side gig" teaching Pilates taught her to do things her way because they worked despite what she was being told by the traditionalists. You can't help but smile when listening to her upbeat personality.

Can you imagine having to navigate the health care system in a foreign country alone, without knowing the language and dealing with a serious injury? That's exactly what Karen Rudolf had to face earlier this year when she took a trip to Costa Rica. She talks with Kim about advocating for herself, surrendering to the process and so much more. This episode is filled with many important messages that we all need to hear.

Cassandra Crawley Mayo is a speaker, author, and mentor who talks with Kim about her journey working in corporate America for over thirty years and how she became a mentor to other women. As the first African American executive in all of her positions, she found herself leading and proving herself throughout her career. She found herself naturally mentoring other women of all ethnicities and eventually experienced burnout, imposter syndrome and health issues as she realized she was working much more than the 40-hour work week. After retiring at 55, she looked for what her next path would be and found herself writing her book called "Is Your Way in Your Way?" but that was not the end of what she was meant to do.

Listen to this wonderful conversation about living without regret, spirituality and questioning God as well as empowering you to live your best life.

Mindy Hoey Personal Family Lawyer® (PFL) is a wife, mom, entrepreneur and now lawyer who realized a few years ago that she was stuck. Like many of us, she took the "traditional" (and expected) route after high school and eventually decided that she did not want to live the cubicle work life her whole career. She successfully obtained her law degree and passed more than one bar exam while she worked full time and raised a family. She talks with Kim about making the decision to try law school and her passion for educating everyone she can about the importance of estate planning. Along the way she offers many lessons about mindset, confidence and consistency. Anyone who knows they want more out of life and is not sure how to get it needs to listen to this episode.

Lisa Reichelt is a wife, mom and grandma who has had a long career in education. As she interacted with students and parents in her teaching and administrative roles, she realized she wanted to do more to help parents gain the skills they needed to create the type of relationship they wanted with their children. Lisa and two other women founded a parent coaching business called Champion Your Parenting that helps parents with kids of any age (even grown up kids) learn ways to lead with love. They partner with parents to work through any issues or just create an environment that benefits both parents and children. Lisa and Kim talk about parenting kids in the social media age, parenting your adult kids and even grandparents who have found themselves parenting again.

Gina Mitchell is a Mom, a teacher and a midlife woman who is ready to move into new arenas. Her role as a teacher has been very fulfilling and she's ready to move into the next stage of her life. Her son, Sam was diagnosed with autism as a young boy and Gina has dedicated a lot of her time to supporting him in all of his amazing endeavors including his own podcast and leading his non-profit to help raise awareness of autism and remove the negative stigma surrounding it.

Gina and Kim talk about her own vision for her life and her experiences as a mom including the challenging times, her career and how excited she is about the future for herself and her family. Listen to this wonderful conversation about sharing vulnerability, challenges and unlimited potential for those who may not fit the "normal" mold in our society.

Rebekah Chamberlain is a Realtor®, coach, and proud mom of four who loves to get into the outdoors whenever possible. She always knew her purpose in life was to make a difference but she didn't always know how. She grew up in a religious cult, married a man chosen for her and as the relationship became abusive, found the courage to leave about seven years ago. She talks with Kim about how the true courage was not in the decision to make the change but in the season afterward. She also shares some valuable messages about taking ownership to live an extraordinary life and how she is helping others who are leaving abusive situations through her non-profit called Emotional Justice. This organization provides financial help as well as mentorship to those who want to end the cycle of victimhood.

Bobbi Kahler is an author, podcast host, coach and entrepreneur who woke up one morning in 2003 (March 6th to be exact) and realized she could not lift her arm to brush her teeth. Trying to find the answers with her healthcare providers was frustrating and when they finally found a diagnosis she was told only 3 % of people get better. Her positive focus helped her find the doctors who could help and after 14 months, she was able to function again. She also talks with Kim about the positive influence of her Mom and how she affected Bobbi and her life moving forward and so much more. This is a wonderful and uplifting episode with so many great messages.

To learn more about Bobbi Kahler and her message of always finding a way forward check out her website and LinkedIn links below:

C.K. (Kelly) Collins believes in paying it forward and she is doing that in a big way. Kelly had what she called a major trifecta happen to her in 2017-her last child went to college (hello empty nest), she found herself getting divorced and she decided to sell her business. Kelly decided she needed to do something, make some change and do something "positively drastic." She embarked on a sabbatical which included selling her house, giving away a lot of her possessions and traveling for two years. Her adventures led her to writing a book, starting a podcast and entering the dating world again. This is a wonderful conversation filled with tips for getting unstuck, finding your people, loving yourself and so much more!

Erin Wood loved who she was when she was younger but years of chronic illness changed that and she didn't realize it until she made a seemingly random comment to her husband. Listen to this conversation to learn about Erin's story of learning how to love yourself before you can love others.

Erin helps others who are caught up in compassion exhaustion and/or going through life transitions through her coaching called Empower Me Life Coaching. She believes that every person has the power to create the life they desire, and her mission is to help individuals tap into this power and live a fulfilling and meaningful life. 

You can find her on social media at the links below or her website:

Anna Haugen is a wife, mom and piano teacher from St. Paul, Minnesota who took a literal journey across the country with her husband and kids for six months. They packed a van, took their kids out of school and took a break from their jobs to see the country.

As a woman who had been used to saying no to things that were outside her comfort zone, she surprised her husband by saying "yes" to this trip when he suggested it. She talks about lessons learned like "turn your fear into fun" and leaping before the net appears that you will want to hear.

This episode with Amy Stein, an herbalist and energy medicine educator, is a bit longer than usual because she shares so much information! Amy has had a long medical journey which culminated in her body shutting down and she shares how she learned to be her own advocate and eventually turning to what she knew was right for her despite what the doctors were telling her. Her story of reconnecting with nature and taking her power back will inspire and educate. She wants to help others learn to respect their body by decreasing toxins, eating good food and breathing.

Kathleen shares her story of caring for her husband for 17 years and then finding ways to heal herself after he passed. This 74 year old took a solo pilgrimage (or two) in Spain and Portugal and met many interesting people along the way. Listen to this courageous woman's amazing story of caring, listening to her angels and helping others through her teachings and her book called Wisdom on the Camino.

Anjel B. Hartwell is a dynamo who shares her story of realization that what she thought mattered in her life, really did not. She talks with Kim about her spiritual awakening as she experienced what she calls "life ruptures" and how she came out the other side after giving herself permission to heal.

Anjel also shares her very valuable tips for living your best life and welcoming wealth into our lives rather than pushing it away. Spoiler alert: wealth is not just dollars. While this episode will be very helpful for those of us with businesses, Anjel also has some wonderful advice for living your best life now. If you listen closely, you can hear the light bulb going off over Kim's head during the recording!

Anjel B Hartwell is an internationally known artist, author & evolutionary alchemist. Honored as a Be The Change “Movement To Watch” Award Winner and considered one of America’s Premier Experts, she has appeared multiple times in major media and is the Creator, Executive Producer & Host of the 8X Award Winning & Apple #1 Internationally ranked Wickedly Smart Women Podcast. Her book Be Heard By Millions & Live Your Destiny was a #1 New Release in 3 Categories. She is hired to consult with high achieving visionary leaders who are called to be the Vanguard of the Creative Age.

You can reach Anjel via email at this address: team@wealthylifementor.com

Lauren St. George is a South African by birth, an American by choice and a global explorer by design. These life experiences have fostered in her an appreciation for the diversity of people's ideas, motivations, strengths, and dreams.

In this episode, she shares her story of helping others by giving them simple tools to use when navigating big life challenges such as divorce, empty-nest or career changes. She offers some great tips for those of us who are feeling a bit stuck or unsure.

Shannon Russell was a "TV kid" who dreamt of having a career in the television industry. She worked hard to achieve that dream and worked at: MTV, E!, Yahoo!, Pop Sugar, A&E, TLC, VH1 in New York and Los Angeles. She met her husband (who was also in the industry) and they started a family.

Shannon experienced her "aha moment" after becoming a Mom and realizing her priorities were shifting. She shares her story of her own perceptions about what success looks like and realizing that pivoting in life does not mean failing despite what others may tell you.

Kim talks about a beautiful experience she had this week that really had her thinking about age and mindset. This is a short but sweet episode that you don't want to miss. She also shares some news about her upcoming new venture.

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Kim Benoy is an RN, wife, mom, Certified Aromatherapist(pending) and podcast host who wants to encourage and inspire women, especially those over 40. Her passion is helping you find your courage and confidence by sharing the inspirational stories of women just like you and offering aromatic options for your health and wellness.

Donna Tashjian talks to Kim about her journey which includes becoming a mother at the age of 15, the meaning of "FINE" and how her spiritual life has helped her become the person she is today. She always knew she was meant for something more and she has found what that means for her and all the people she helps. Listen to this episode to find out what she means by turning baggage into luggage.

Kim speaks with Nicole Kerr about her amazing story of growing up in the Bible belt, people pleasing despite knowing she was in the wrong place and a horrific accident that left her literally dead on the side of the road. Her story is one of resilience and learning to love herself and of letting go of what doesn't serve her, even if it means family.

This is an important conversation with a courageous woman who is on a quest to change our perceptions about death and how to live. Her book is called You Are Deathless, A near death experience taught me how to fully live and not fear death and Kim highly recommends it for everyone.

Jodi Ellingson is an amazing midlife woman with a story of serving, challenges, and hope. As a young girl, she wanted to help others and this trait continued even when she found herself taking a path she hadn't envisioned for herself. Along the way she learned one of life's greatest lessons about treasuring those moments (sometimes lots of moments) that challenge us in the worst ways. She and Kim discuss how and when she learned to treasure and seek the good out of these situations and she even helped Kim see things in a different way.

Jodi's service to others continues with her mission work with MissionE4 and she talks about this during this interview as well. If you would like to learn more or even sponsor a child, go to this website: https://missione4.org/

If you would like to contact Jodi directly, you can email her: jellingson@missione4.com

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Kim Benoy is a retired RN, Certified Aromatherapist (pending), wife and mother who has found a passion for inspiring other women through her inspirational podcast called Midlife with Courage. She is following her journey to be a light and lead others who are feeling stuck and even bored doing what is expected. She helps women over 40 find their courage, confidence and calm so they can live every moment!

We all know how important sleep is for our overall health and Martha Lewis started on her path to better sleep after having a baby who wouldn't sleep. She talks to Kim about what functional health is and how it can help us be healthy. She has some insight into midlife women and the role of hormones in getting good sleep as well. 

Martha Lewis is a certified functional health coach and sleep coach helping people who have tried everything and still can't sleep.  As founder and CEO of the Complete Sleep Solution, she addresses both body and mind with stress resilience techniques and testing for hidden health issues to get to the root cause of her clients’ insomnia.106

Juliet Rose is an author and activist whose goal in life is to make her time count by using her skills and voice to help others succeed and feel acknowledged. She has weathered some challenging (to say the least) life experiences including the death of her daughter which, among other things, caused her to stop writing for 15 years. Juliet shares why she started writing and and today she continues to write mostly contemporary and supernatural fiction along with rescuing dogs, cats, rabbits and chickens on her property in Georgia. Listen to this important conversation about making yourself the priority and helping others feel seen and heard. 

Mindy Leishman is a Certified Life Coach, Dreambuilder Coach and Life Mastery Consultant who has done amazing things like manifesting a home in Costa Rica. She shares her story about her 25 year career as a realtor and the rollercoaster of knowing she wasn't living her best life. She has some wonderful insights about finding the passion to live your life how you truly want to. 

Fiona Valentine is a teacher at heart and very creative. She believes all of us are creative but we don't always recognize it even though it's a very important part of who we are. At one point in her life, she pushed her own creativity aside because she did not believe it was important enough to spend time on it.  Listen to her story of feeling stuck and how she overcame it and learned that creativity is not about talents, it's about skills. She tells us why being creative matters to us and how we can find where our creativity lies. Fiona also loves to dispel the myth of the "starving artist" and why it's just not true. 

To learn more about Fiona and how she helps others you can find her here:

Instagram: @fionavalentineartist 

Website: www.fionavalentine.com to find out more about her business school for artists and get her free guide How to Start Selling Your Art.

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Kim Benoy is a recently retired RN, wife and mother who has found a passion for inspiring other women using essential oils, blog, and podcast called Midlife with Courage. She is following her journey to be a light and lead others who are feeling stuck and even bored doing what is expected. She helps women over 40 find their courage, confidence and calm so they can live every moment!

Listen to this wonderful conversation with Lisa Kindle who empowers women through her art, coaching and counseling. She and her husband took a big leap last year and moved from Minnesota to Arizona with plans to offer a wellness retreat under the desert stars with a 40 foot labyrinth and other meaningful activities. Kim and Lisa also talk about using color to connect with yourself and others including your kids and partners and share an example of how that helped Kim during a time of grief. 

Lisa Kindle is an Artist, certified Therapeutic Art Life Coach & Wellness Counselor and former Minnesotan. She worked as a graphic designer and ran her own design studio for over 20 years. Now-a-days, you can find her working in her art space creating new things. In 2022, she created an art and affirmation deck, "I Am Colorfully Made" and the Color Affirmation Deck based on life path colors. Lisa founded Solquest Retreat with her husband in 2023, located in Tucson, Arizona where she now teaches creative wellness.  

To learn more about Lisa, her retreat, please visit her website: www.lisakindle.com or find her on social media by searching @lisakindlearts.

To reach her directly, please email her at hello@lisakindle.com

Call for artists: Lisa would like to feature artwork in her gallery at the SolQuest retreat. Contact her to learn more. 

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Kim Benoy is a recently retired RN, wife and mother who has found a passion for inspiring other women using essential oils, blog, and podcast called Midlife with Courage. She is following her journey to be a light and lead others who are feeling stuck and even bored doing what is expected. She helps women over 40 find their courage, confidence and calm so they can live every moment!

WOW!!!! MIDLIFE WITH COURAGE HAS REACHED 100 EPISODES!! THANK YOU TO ALL WHO HAVE AND ARE LISTENING TO THIS PODCAST! 

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To say that Rachel Awes is colorful is a major understatement. Just go to her website or follow her on social media and the first thing you notice will be all the beautiful colors! Rachel is a psychologist, author, art playgroundist and clothing influencer and offers some beautiful messages that are helpful for anyone and especially those of us in midlife. She shares her thoughts and tips for living a more joyful life during this conversation with Kim. 

Rachel Awes works as a psychologist, art playgroundist, and author, who loves listening to the beauty in people and animals and all living colors—and she truly embodies color, as she is also an ambassador for the Swedish clothing company, Gudrun Sjoden.  Her 4 published gift/self-help books are infused with loads of her colorful drawings, all designed to affirm the human heart. Her newest illustrated book "The Relationship Book: A Soulful, Transformational, and Artistic Inventory of Your Connective Life" is just releasing. She lives in Saint Paul, Minnesota, with her husband and tortoises, complete with wild bunnies in her yard, and two dear sons (ages 24 and 26) living nearby. Her most tender and mighty hope is to hold up a mirror for many, reflecting a hearty truth of your boundless worth.

Margo Johnson's journey includes what she calls a major pivot that led to a new career and opportunities for self-evaluation and freedom. When the floor dropped out from under her, a door opened and she talks about that experience including her reluctance to speak in front of others knowing that she needed to prove to herself and others that she could do it. She is a woman who truly shows courage and a great example to others. 

Margo owns OpenHeart Wellness and is an AcuEnergetics Practitioner. She uses energy modalities and meditation to teach balancing of body, mind and emotions.  Margo focuses on restoring the body’s natural flow of energy, so the body can organically restore its function. She offers sessions, classes and select products to bring you back into balance and help you create your life of joy, abundance and flow.  

Listen in this week as Kim shares updates and talks about her word of the year. If you listen closely you may hear Jake's contribution to the episode. 

Are you looking for the good? Sometimes it's difficult but it can be done. 

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Kim Benoy is a recently retired RN, wife and mother who has found a passion for inspiring other women using essential oils, blog, and podcast called Midlife with Courage. She is following her journey to be a light and lead others who are feeling stuck and even bored doing what is expected. She helps women over 40 find their courage, confidence and calm so they can live every moment!

If you spent time over the holidays with your aging family members-parents or grandparents-you may have noticed that they need a little more help with self-care, hygiene, or simply getting around. Women over 40 generally become the caretakers in this situation and they may not know that options are available to help keep our relatives safely at home as long as possible or know when it's time to consider independent or assisted living. 

Alicia Harmon talks with Kim about these options, including respite care that can help keep everyone safe and happy as they age in place. She offers ways to start those tough but necessary conversations that most of us don't really want to have. 

These are the links to the resources that Alicia mentions during this conversation. Please share with anyone who may need this information. 

Tina McDermott is on a mission to live a life of joy and share it with others. Tina battled Lyme disease as a younger person which led her to change her diet and lead a better life overall.  She is an inspirational chef and you will love her energy as she talks about her story and how she shares joy. As a weight loss coach, she helps her clients find their own mission in life by asking the right questions and giving them the freedom to be who they are. Her focus is on living and not "DIEting" and she talks with Kim about how she helps others acknowledge their struggles and find the right tools to deal with what life brings us. Tina even offers cooking tips during this fun interview. 

Danielle Bernock is the lady on the internet who loves you. She is an author, podcast host, and life coach from Michigan who came into her own after age 50. Her past history of trauma gave her a stoic yet oppressive attitude toward dealing with the life changes we all go through. She talks about her struggles and how she learned to deal with the past trauma in her life that she only discovered after writing her book at age 55. This is a conversation about faith, realization and re-evaluation of our lives.

As a young adult, Candy Motzek did what she was supposed to do. She chose a career in geological engineering and then as life happened, she joined the corporate world in order to have a family. She kept saying yes to opportunities despite not really wanting them, and even with all the outside appearances of success, she was not happy. 

As many of us do, she became burned out and one day realized she needed to make a change and soon. This realization led her to become a business coach for life coaches which draws on her early desire to be a therapist. Candy offers us some wonderful lessons as we navigate our own journeys of courage and change.

Imagine going to an acting audition and having the casting director being really excited about your name and then when they realize you aren't who they thought, they are visibly disappointed. Lucy Liu (not THAT Lucy Liu) talks about comparing herself to others and how she always felt behind and was always chasing something. Listen to her story of realizing that all of these negative thoughts were of her own making and how she overcame it. Transforming her own life has led her to helping other women realize they can live an epic life and shatter those limiting beliefs we all have at some point. 

If you would like to learn more about Lucy's offerings, check out her links below:

Sandra Lee is a helper, as a Human Design Specialist and Biofield Tuning Practitioner, she helps women make sense of their life experiences, recognizing their gifts, and learning how to manage challenges. Her Biofield Tuning helps them find freedom from stress and energetic chaos that keeps them stuck.  Like many of us, she needed to do a career pivot when the pandemic hit, so after a 30-year career as a massage therapist, she added some other aspects to her healing. 

You will want to hear this conversation with Sandra which also includes a discussion about a reading she did with Kim based on something you may never have heard before. She shares beautiful messages that we all matter. 

Reach Sandra at the following links: 

Email: Sandra@miracleinspirations.com  

Joanne McConville survived one of the most scary situations most of us can think of: she went skydiving and her parachute didn't open. She talks about the experience of leaving her own body and making the decision to live or die as she was falling, her recovery, including the nurse-as-patient experience, and how her life is still affected by the fall. She leaves us with some wonderful messages that we all should listen to no matter what age we are. 

You can find out more about Joanne and her amazing story by going to her website at the link below. She also has written a book that details her experiences.

Debby Krusz has found her path by helping others to find a way to fulfill their dreams. She was working a job that made her miserable and finally listened to the voice telling her to quit and start writing. 

Listen to this conversation about bees, faith, humor and finding your way in the world. You will find at least one takeaway you can use to live your amazing life. 

Connect with Debby and get a free 15 minute phone call and download her latest book! 

https://store.bookbaby.com/bookshop/cart/viewcart.aspx  

https://bookme.name/debbykruszewski/lite/dream-designing-consultation 

https://debbykrusz.com 

Social Media: @debbykrusz

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Kim Benoy is a recently retired RN, wife and mother who has found a passion for inspiring other women using essential oils, blog, and podcast called Midlife with Courage. She is following her journey to be a light and lead others who are feeling stuck and even bored doing what is expected. She helps women over 40 find their courage, confidence and calm so they can live every moment!

Janice Baskin is a wife, mom, grandmother and business owner who shares her journey with Kim this week. She left her original career in the not-for-profit world to start working with her husband after realizing they were better when they spent more time together. She shares her lessons learned through her experience with colorectal cancer and the day someone reached out to her when she was feeling very low. That seemingly random connection helped her through some tough days and she encourages all of us to reach out to someone with a "small" gesture like a text or phone call. It could turn out to mean so much to that person. 

Listen in as Janice talks about completing the Boston Marathon and starting her blog after a few years of procrastinating and then regretting not getting it going. 

You need to connect with Janice on Instagram and read her blog! Links are below:

Instagram @janice_baskin 

TikTok @janicebaskin 

Website and Blog: www.blindenthusiasmblog.com

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Kim Benoy is a recently retired RN, wife and mother who has found a passion for inspiring other women using essential oils, blog, and podcast called Midlife with Courage. She is following her journey to be a light and lead others who are feeling stuck and even bored doing what is expected. She helps women over 40 find their courage, confidence and calm so they can live every moment!

Ruthi Mund is a 74 year old energetic dynamo who lives in her faith and wants others to know how to feed their bodies in a healthy way. She did not use the traditional methods of treating her cancer which caused some fear in others around her but she stuck to what she believed would help. Listen to the full story in this lively conversation. 

Connect with Ruthi: 

Email: ruthimund@gmail.com

Facebook: Ruthi Mund Wellness  https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100035421176445

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Kim Benoy is a recently retired RN, wife and mother who has found a passion for inspiring other women using essential oils, blog, and podcast called Midlife with Courage. She is following her journey to be a light and lead others who are feeling stuck and even bored doing what is expected. She helps women over 40 find their courage, confidence and calm so they can live every moment!

Joyce Dales is a Mom who needed to protect her newly adopted child and this journey led her to build a business called Buzzagogo. Joyce empowered herself to learn as much as she could about the way we contract colds and flu and then used that knowledge to develop her Cold Bee Gone Nasal Swab remedy.  

You will love hearing about how she developed the product in her own kitchen and how the company has grown to include being a sponsor of the Boston Red Sox baseball team and so much more.