logo
episode-header-image
Dec 2020
48 m

CASA, Foster Care, and Supporting the Fu...

Jennifer Wallace & Elisabeth Kristof
About this episode

Shannon Shubin is a Texas CASA, licensed foster parent, mentor, and advocate for children. Join us as she dives into the system, children's wellness and therapy, becoming a foster parent, how we can support these organizations, and debunking some myths and fears surrounding adoption from foster care.

 

Discussed in this episode: 

  • [1:32] Shannon shares what CASA is
  • [3:41] Shannon explains different scenarios where a child can be removed from their home
  • [5:20] Why the foster care system is broken
  • [7:09] Group homes exist because there are not enough foster families
  • [8:53] How behavioral needs are being met
  • [10:27] The impact the pandemic has caused
  • [15:37] Children that are reunited with family or adopted
  • [17:09] Shannon goes over the process for someone wanting to adopt from foster care
  • [22:26] She informs us of the failures in the Texas foster care system & how you can help create change
  • [26:25] How much time CASA’s spend with these children
  • [28:30] Negative outputs from traumatic exposure in their childhood
  • [32:15] Difference between private & state groups
  • [34:15] The first step for someone to take if they’re interested in becoming a foster parent
  • [35:07] Shannon talks about the fears & myths people have about foster children
  • [38:01] What life is like as a CASA volunteer
  • [40:28] Shannon shares the different organizations to donate to & get involved

Resources From This Episode:

Find an organization you’d like to get involved with by volunteering your time or make a donation. Become a CASA volunteer HERE.

Operation Underground Railroad

No Kid Hungry

The National Angels Foundation

Love Box

Foster Village Inc.

Countering Human Trafficking

 

Work with Jennifer

25% Off a Private Coaching Session HERE

 

Connect with Jennifer

Website

Facebook

Instagram

 

Connect with Shannon

Instagram

Up next
Oct 6
Trauma Isn't Just In Your Head (It's In Your Cells)
Trauma is not a single moment. It is an ongoing dialogue between your brain, body, and environment. In this conversation, Dr. Mbemba Jabbi explains how neuroplasticity and affective neuroscience help us understand protective patterns like hypervigilance, shutdown, and dissociatio ... Show More
1h 4m
Sep 29
The Emotional Block That No One Talks About
Have you ever drawn a blank when asked how you're feeling? Or maybe you experience constant inner buzzing, numbness, or anxiety without any words to describe it. You’re not broken—and you’re not alone. In this deeply informative and compassionately nuanced episode, Jennifer, Eliz ... Show More
39m 34s
Sep 22
The Duality of Emotions: Why Ambivalence Isn't Confusion
Ambivalence isn’t confusion or weakness, it’s your nervous system doing its job. Feeling both joy and grief, relief and loss, fear and excitement, is not dysfunction but survival wisdom. In this episode of Trauma Rewired, Elisabeth Kristof and Jennifer Wallace unpack ambivalence ... Show More
51m 13s
Recommended Episodes
Mar 2025
Fostering: Being a ‘bonus parent’
Millions of children globally are separated from their birth families. For many, foster care is the best option. Foster carers from Moldova and the US speak to Ella Al-Shamahi about the realities of caring for vulnerable children and why they’re pushing for change in the system.A ... Show More
26m 28s
May 2019
Giving Kids in Foster Care a Leg Up
Jim weighs in on ancestry testing, chats with Ty Burrell about giving opportunities to kids in foster care and examines how kid influencers are vulnerable to exploitation. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices 
22m 43s
Feb 2020
Have You Considered Volunteering at a Shelter? Darla Takayoshi of Homeward Pet Adoption Center Demystifies the Process.
Darla Takayoshi is a seasoned volunteer at Homeward Pet Adoption Center, an animal shelter and adoption program, in Woodinville, WA. Darla shares her story and numerous volunteer positions she's held along the way. If you or someone you know is interested in volunteering in Seatt ... Show More
51m 21s
Jun 2025
I Was Adopted 21 Times
#podcast #adoption #family #trauma #healing In this episode of We’re All Insane, we sit down with Jessica who was adopted 21 different times. She opens up about her journey through each home, what it was like adjusting to new families over and over again, and the deep emotional t ... Show More
3h 6m
Oct 2024
Case Study: How Unschooling Helps Create Independent Kids
Are you tired of the traditional school system stifling your child’s natural curiosity? Have you ever wondered what it would be like to trust your child to lead their own learning journey? Today, I am joined by Leah McDermott, a homeschooling expert and advocate for unschooling. ... Show More
19m 29s
Jul 2024
Meet The Foster Parent To Over 60 Children
On this episode of Our American Stories, Dr. John DeGarmo has had over 60 foster children come through his home. Here he shares some of the joys and the heartaches of being a foster parent. Support the show (https://www.ouramericanstories.com/donate)See omnystudio.com/listener fo ... Show More
20m 18s
Oct 2024
New Grad Social Workers - How to Land the Perfect Job - Ep. 92
Mim and Lis hear from a new graduate social worker who landed a position in a rural Allied Health Graduate Program. The social worker shares her journey, from initial hesitation to embracing the unique opportunities and challenges of rural practice. The social worker describes he ... Show More
39m 58s
Nov 2024
It’s Never Too Late To Change ft. Jordan Foster
I sit down with Jordan Foster, the youngest of the Foster sisters. Jordan and I discuss her psilocybin journey and how it changed her, life as the youngest of three sisters, finding her career later in life, her biggest fears about her marriage, how she ended up in NYC, what’s to ... Show More
1h 1m
Aug 2024
Inside The California House Of Horror: 13 Children Rescued After Being Shackled And Abused
Inside the “California House of Horrors” where 13 children were starved, chained and abused by their own parents. Family, neighbors and childhood friends speak about the tragedy. Cleveland kidnap survivor Michelle Knight sends a message to the children. For more information: http ... Show More
42m 44s