Justin Finesilver has been on my show before. He was Episode 70 where we talked about his 3-D Printing Store. He’s also presented at my nonprofit venture Mile High 100 on behalf of his nonprofit Pawsthetics. We knew each other in college and worked together at the radio station.
Yet, in all that time I never knew he was a foster parent.
Foster parenting, in many ways, is largely invisible. So when Justin reached out to me and pitched me the idea of talking about this on my show, I jumped at the chance. And I’m so glad I did because the conversation we had was equal parts illuminating, inspirational, and emotionally wrenching. Foster care has a truly staggering number of layers and stakeholders, and to his enormous credit, Justin does a terrific job in providing insight into the system that many of us have heard of, but know nothing about. This is a shining example of exactly what I hope this show to be, and I am incredible grateful to Justin not only for the work he’s doing, but for being privileged enough to provide a platform for him to share it.
Not to give too much away because I want you to listen to this firsthand account from a foster parent, but my biggest takeaway was that all of us, even those of us who aren’t and never will be foster parents, have ample opportunity to support those doing vital, necessary, and compassionate work. Below is a list of organizations Justin mentions near the back half of this episode that are all doing incredible work in the foster realm. Look into them, and get involved.
Foster Family Assist: http://fosterfamilyassist.com/
Foster Together: https://www.fostertogether.co/
Foster Source: http://www.fostersource.org/
Meghan’s Wish: https://www.facebook.com/
Closet Cooperative: https://www.facebook.com/
CASA Volunteers of Colorado: https://www.coloradocasa.org/
Colorado State Foster Parent Association: http://www.csfpa.org
Rocky Mountain Children’s Law Center: https://childlawcenter.org
You can find this episode on iTunes, stream it on Stitcher, or download it directly from the Jon of All Trades homepage.
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