Bonus Babies

Send us Fan Mail Jayne Amelia speaks with foster mom and adoptive mom Deena Murray. Deena serves as a consultant to Million Kids for Development, Events and assisting with Operations. She is the Director and Producer of VIP Events for RCDL Enterprises and is a Certified Meeting Professional.  Deena has provided foster parent services for four Southern California counties and has been a foster pare...

Send us Fan Mail Jayne Amelia talks with crypto kid Daron Bennett. In this episode we discuss his journey from generational poverty to inspiring others. Daron is a foster care alumnus who grew up on the hard rough and tumble streets of Los Angeles. Violence, abuse, and neglect were ever present in his young life but he was determined to break free from the devastating cycle of trauma. At age 11, h...

Send us Fan Mail Jayne Amelia speaks with foster care alumnus Cody Renegar who is a hairstylist and fine artist, and author of the memoir "Changing the Stars" (2021).  We thank him for his frankness, courage, and generous spirit! Here's what Jayne Amelia covers with Cody Renegar in this episode: 1. How did Cody overcome a horrific cycle of abuse and neglect to become a healed, carin...

Send us Fan Mail BONUS BABIES producer Jake Eberle introduces this between seasons bonus episode which includes special moments from Season 1 with Teena Festa (#17), Howie Cohen (#21), and Venus Manuel with Lori Nelson (#5), as well as upcoming excerpts from Season 2 with Daron Bennett and Cody Renegar. Thanks for listening and we will be dropping new episodes soon. Please visit our website bonusb...

Send us Fan Mail Jayne Amelia talks with former foster youth Angelo Melendez.  When Angelo was orphaned at the age of 2, he was sent to live in foster care in an all boys group home. Luckily he soon went into the care of loving foster parents, Howie and Carol Cohen, who call him "the one" and wanted to adopt him.  Angelo spent several happy years with them in Beverly Hills until the cour...

Send us Fan Mail Jayne Amelia talks with former foster youth and advocate Alexis Obinna. Alexis is one of the founders and a current member of the Los Angeles Reproductive Health Equity Project Youth Advisory Board. During Alexis's time in California’s foster care system, volunteering at church was fun and better than staying at home. During college, Alexis was able to grow and learn more abo...

Send us Fan Mail Jayne Amelia talks with former foster parent, Howie Cohen. The LA Times dubbed him “A Real-Life Don Draper.” In an advertising career that spanned five decades, Howie Cohen wrote the immortal words for Alka Seltzer, “I can’t believe I ate the whole thing” and “Try it, you’ll like it” both in the Clio Hall of Fame. Howie got his start as the youngest copy trainee at Doyle Dane Bern...

Send us Fan Mail Jayne Amelia talks with a devoted and talented child therapist, Kylie . Kylie is a School Therapist working for a non-profit organization providing therapy to students ages 5-22 who live in the residences on campus, or come from homes in the nearby community. These are children who need additional support and aren't able to thrive in a general school environment due to many d...

Send us Fan Mail Jayne Amelia talks with producer, entrepreneur, and serial philanthropist, Peter Samuelson. Peter Samuelson is the  Co-Founder and President of First Star, and CEO of PhilmCo Media llc. Mr. Samuelson is a serial pro-social entrepreneur. In 1982 he co-founded the Starlight Children’s Foundation; by 1990 the positive psychological impact of Starlight seeded his next pro-social endea...

Send us Fan Mail Jayne Amelia Larson talks with foster parent and adoptive mother, Anita, who when she was  single and only 22-years-old welcomed an 11-year-old girl, Ashleigh, into her home thinking it was for short respite care, maybe a week or a month... and ended up caring for her for years and then adopting her. Anita says: "I would not have been able to do this if I didn't have the...

Send us Fan Mail Jayne Amelia talks with Teena Festa who is a new CASA volunteer and also a former foster youth. After having a very difficult time in foster care, as well as struggling with mental health and addiction as a young adult, Teena persevered and decided to try and help people like her. On top of being a CASA, she is working on her psychology degree with a concentration on child and ado...

Send us Fan Mail Jayne Amelia talks with former foster youth Tamar, who is also a proud and happy young mother. "I’m Tamar and a sophomore student at Orange Coast College. I am in the process of achieving an Associates degree for transfer in Political Science, Communications, Psychology, as well as Liberal Arts. I am an active member on my campus and am involved in programs such as Guardian S...

Send us Fan Mail Jayne Amelia talks with Sid Gardner who co-parented four biological, step, and adoptive children during the past 50 years. Mr. Gardner is a Southern California native and serves as President of Children and Family Futures which he co-founded with his wife, Dr. Nancy Young. He served as Director of the Center for Collaboration for Children at California State University, Fullerton...

Send us Fan Mail Jayne Amelia talks with the gracious and always growing, Megan Green, Founder/CEO of Motivate Vibe Grow and Crownworkshops all over the world. "Service isn’t one act of kindness," she says. "It has been a lifestyle for me.  I have been a leader and advocate for marginalized groups and people of color throughout my whole career. I have dedicated my life to serving ot...

Send us Fan Mail Jayne Amelia talks with foster care alumnus Diane Martell who has talent and grit too.  She's an experienced learning & organizational development consultant, is known for supporting clients in reimagining current processes, procedures and team talent, and maximizing performance as they develop plans for the future. With 30+ years working in both the profit and nonprofit...

Send us Fan Mail Jayne Amelia Larson talks with the powerhouse Wendelyn Julien who served as CEO of CASA of Los Angeles from 2016-2021, and is now the Executive Director of the new Probation Oversight Commission at Los Angeles County. She is an attorney with over 20 years of experience in social justice work with a focus on improving our community for young people. Wende is a biological parent of...

Send us Fan Mail Ashleigh Nichols is a creative New York-based artist, web designer, developer, and illustrator living in Brooklyn with a penchant for all things creative. Ashleigh grew up in a suburban town just outside of D.C. and now calls Brooklyn home. She graduated from The New School with concentrations in Visual Arts and Writing and began coding in 2016. She has worked for large non-profit...

Send us Fan Mail Jayne Amelia talks with former foster youth Jaronna Yates. Jaronna has worked in the entertainment industry for the past 22 years, spanning across three major studios, and is currently the Sr. Project Director with Illumination Entertainment heading up the Global Project Management Team for their Marketing Division. From ages five to 13, Jaronna was raised in a Catholic orphanage...

Send us Fan Mail Jayne Amelia talks with former foster youth Toni Cunningham. Anthony Cunningham, better known as Toni, is currently in his fourth year in the Recreation Tourism Management program at Cal State Northridge. Born and raised in South Central Los Angeles in the foster care system, Toni has overcome the many obstacles that have been placed is his path. Toni can be described as resilient...

Send us Fan Mail Jayne Amelia talks with former foster youth Vaughn Laws. "My name is Vaughn  and I wish I knew where I was headed, but this adventure that has been life left me a husk of who I used to be. I've come through a lot and managed to keep my wits about me and pretty much out of trouble. I am currently aspiring to be a graphic designer. I had more ambition when I was a teen sin...

Send us Fan Mail Jayne Amelia talks with children's attorney Juan Valles. Juan was born in Downey, California, and grew up in Southeast Los Angeles County. After graduating from the University of California, Berkeley, with a B.A. in linguistics, Juan spent several years working in higher education administration. In particular, he worked with undergraduates in advising, career planning, and s...

Send us Fan Mail Today's guest is LaTanya Hill. "LT" is a writer with a background in law, education, government, and most recently became a Reiki Master and started  her own energy healing business in Los Angeles  – IMREIKINOW.  She has been a CASA for over 4 years and is still assisting her very first child in the program. Please see imreikinow.com for more information about LT&ap...

Send us Fan Mail Jayne Amelia Larson talks with former foster youth Venus Manuel and her case worker Lori Nelson, a former social worker working in the LA County foster care system. Venus spent her adolescence and teen years bouncing from foster home to home, and credits one great social worker, Lori Nelson, with saving her life.  And Lori says they saved each other. Venus is now an Independent Li...

Send us Fan Mail Jayne Amelia talks with Lori Nelson, former social worker working in the foster care system and now with the LA County Probation Department. "Lori was born a crusader with a heart for lost pets, the kid bullies made fun of and the person to run to and run away with when things were scary and unsafe. Lori’s childhood experiences led her to work in the helping profession in var...

Send us Fan Mail Jayne Amelia interviews former foster youth, Venus Manuel, a shining example of how nurture does not always triumph over nature.  From an early childhood rampant with sexual and physical abuse followed by a string of nine foster care homes, the development of another disillusioned dysfunctional youth seemed tragically imminent.  However, the strength, passion and individuality inh...