Hear Me Out - A Masonic Children's Clinic Podcast

Hosts Niki Lampi and Tamara Pogin introduce the Masonic Children’s Clinic for Communication Disorders podcast, Hear Me Out , featuring parent Laura Brekken and therapist Annika. Laura shares her family’s experience navigating hearing loss, speech delay, autism, and AAC with her sons Jameson and Henry. She highlights Jameson’s growth after starting therapy at the Masonic Clinic, including increased...

Hosts Niki Lampi and Tamara Pogin speak with Angela Carroll, a mother of four autistic children. Angela shares her family’s journey with the clinic—from early speech delays and rapid progress through play-based, parent-involved therapy to later evaluations and individualized supports for her twins. She highlights the importance of trusting parental instincts, advocating for services despite long w...

Hosts Niki Lampi and Tamara Pogin sit down with Devon Maycock for a meaningful conversation centered on autism, advocacy, and building stronger support systems for families. Devon shares insight into the lived experiences of families navigating autism, the importance of community connection, and the need for spaces that truly embrace and celebrate neurodiversity. The episode highlights how collabo...

Hosts Niki Lampi and Tamara Pogin on  Hear Me Out , sharing the heart behind the Masonic Children’s Clinic for Communication Disorders—a place where families find support, hope, and free speech, language, and hearing services when they need it most. In this episode, they sit down with longtime supporter Maggie Holt, whose connection to the clinic spans generations. From her father’s passionate fun...

Hosts Niki Lampi and Tamara Pogin interview Masonic Children’s Clinic SLP Corinne Schmidt about the clinic’s AAC consultation and outreach work, including device trials for families, training other SLPs, and lessons from the Closing the Gap conference. Corinne emphasizes that there are no prerequisites for AAC and describes supporting minimally speaking autistic children by accounting for analytic...

Hosts Niki Lampi and Tamara Pogin from the Masonic Children’s Clinic for Communication Disorders interview Heather Brockman, a pediatric SLP at Essentia Health for 22 years who helped establish the Fetal Alcohol Diagnostic Clinic, works with teens at Northwood Children’s Services, and consults with ToivoTek on Speech Sense Pro. Heather shares her own history of having a speech disorder and explain...

In this episode of 'Hear Me Out,' hosts Niki Lampi and Tamara Pogin speak with parent Brandon Benzer about his son Chet’s speech delays. Brandon describes how parent participation, themed play activities, sibling support, and field trips helped their family, and how Chet’s articulation and frustration improved over time.  He encourages parents to seek evaluations early, get on wait lists...

In this episode, Steve Kaarbo discusses his work with Northwood Children's Services and the MNSWCA, a non-profit organization. He talks about the transition to community-based mental health support and the impact of COVID-19 on children's social skills. Steve explains how MNSWCA raises funds for the Masonic Children's Clinic through events like the Frozen Force Artist Showcase and E...

In this episode of 'Hear Me Out,' hosts Niki Lampi and Tamara Pogin from the Masonic Children's Clinic for Communication Disorders sit down with retired speech-language pathologist Tahirih Bushy. They discuss Tahirih's impactful career, which has spanned public schools, outpatient healthcare, university teaching, and private practice. They share anecdotes about their past exper...

In this podcast episode, hosts welcome back Jillian Little and her student intern, Jadyn Weckworth, to discuss the student intern experience in the field of speech-language pathology. The episode covers the journey aspiring speech pathologists undertake, including acquiring a master's degree and completing clinical hours. Jadyn shares her inspiration to join the profession, her experiences at...

 In this episode of 'Hear Me Out,' hosts Niki Lampi and Tamara Pogin discuss the 'Stage Play' program with guest Kate Horvath. They explore how this acting class for neurodivergent children uses theater to enhance communication, social skills, and emotional awareness. The episode covers the program's origins, growth, and the impactful collaboration between the Masonic Chil...

In this episode of 'Hear Me Out,' hosts Niki Lampi and Tamara Pogin from the Masonic Children's Clinic for Communication Disorders discuss communication disorders with guest Alyssa Acker, a school speech language pathologist. Alyssa shares her personal journey into the field, inspired by her daughter's hearing issues. The discussion covers the Help Me Grow referral process in M...

This episode features Tristan Feld and Natalie Wark, speech language pathologists who work in both public schools and the Clinic. They discuss their journeys into the profession and the PACC program—Parents and Children Communicating—aimed at parent education. The program, originally developed in the 1990s, provides services to families with children facing communication challenges. It includes pa...

In this episode of 'Hear Me Out,' Niki Lampi and Tamara Pogin introduce Emily Wolf, office manager, and Andrea Thyen, therapy aide at the Masonic Children's Clinic. Emily discusses her career shift from hotel management and her dynamic role at the clinic. Andrea shares her journey from a communications degree to her current role, emphasizing her work with sibling childcare and creat...

In this episode of 'Hear Me Out,' hosts Niki Lampi and Tamara Pogin from the Masonic Children's Clinic for Communication Disorders welcome Mike Rosensweig, a long-time supporter whose father, Joe Rosensweig, was one of the clinic's founders. Mike shares touching stories about his father's dedication to the mission, the importance of community support, and the lasting impac...

In this episode of 'Hear Me Out,' podcast hosts Niki Lampi and Tamara Pogin, both speech language pathologists at the Masonic Children's Clinic for Communication Disorders, interview Sarah Sheppard, an occupational therapist. Sarah, who has worked with the clinic for three years, shares her journey from a special education teacher to an occupational therapist. She discusses the uniq...

In this episode, we welcome Annika Juenemann, a SLP at the clinic, to discuss her journey into speech-language pathology and her experiences with her therapy dog, Arlo. Annika shares how a shadowing experience shifted her focus from counseling to speech therapy. She details her educational background, her initial work with a diverse patient demographic, and her eventual specialization in pediatric...

In this episode of 'Hear Me Out,' the official podcast of the Masonic Children's Clinic for Communication Disorders, hosts Niki Lampi and Tamara Pogin explore various aspects of communication disorders. They speak with John and Katie, parents of Lily, who share their journey of discovering and handling Lily's profound hearing loss. The family discusses the initial screenings, u...

In this episode of 'Hear Me Out,' the official podcast of the Masonic Children's Clinic for Communication Disorders, hosts Niki Lampi and Tamara Pogin welcome Carolyn Garay, who shares her son River’s journey. Carolyn recounts her initial concerns about River's speech development, the support she received from the clinic, and the determination to pursue early intervention despi...

In this episode of Hear Me Out, hosts Niki Lampi and Tamara Pogin of the Masonic Children's Clinic for Communication Disorders welcome Amanda and Kevin Sutherland. They share the inspiring story of their son Reid, who was diagnosed with sensorineural hearing loss as an infant. Reid's journey included early interventions, the use of hearing aids, and eventually receiving cochlear implants...

In this episode of Hear Me Out, hosts Niki Lampi and Tamara Pogin interview pediatric audiologists Dr. Linda Kalweit and Dr. Amy Packer. They discuss their careers, the critical role of audiology in diagnosing and treating hearing disorders in children, and the importance of early intervention. The conversation covers types of hearing tests, the impact of hearing loss on language development, hear...

In this episode of 'Hear Me Out,' hosts Niki Lampi and Tamara Pogin of the Masonic Children's Clinic interview Jocelyn Benson, a dedicated parent and founder of Lions Hope, a nonprofit supporting children with complex needs. Jocelyn shares her personal journey with her son Leo, who was born with spina bifida and uses an AAC device. They discuss the challenges and triumphs of raising...

In this episode of 'Hear Me Out,' hosts Niki Lampi and Tamara Pogin from the Masonic Children's Clinic for Communication Disorders discuss the clinic's mission and efforts to support children with communication disorders. They interview Markus Mueller, the Regional Director of Northern Minnesota for Masonic Charities, who shares his experiences and insights on fundraising and c...