The Brave Files

Two Different Worlds

When she was in high school, Kirsten Palladino seemed like just another cheerful student. No one suspected that she was being repeatedly sexually assaulted by her classmates for months on end. In this week’s episode of The Brave Files, Kirsten tells the story of how a confrontation turned into her salvation. Listen now to hear how Kirsten emerged from the world of abuse to become a successful businesswoman and author.Detailed Show Notes Here.

Life Wide Open

Dana Gerrits isn’t just a nomadic, homeschooling, working mother of five. She’s doing all of that while managing a chronic illness. Dana has faced many fears — from feeling like she was at war with her own body, to the uncertainty of the life she and her family have chosen. Through it all, her bravery and trust in herself has kept her going. Learn more about Dana’s life-altering illness, and how her family maintains a sense of community while being constantly on the move, in this week’s episode of The Brave Files.Detailed Show Notes Here.

Brave Out of Necessity

Becoming a mom at age 14 wasn’t part of Kimberly Carson-Richards’ plan. But this week’s Brave Files guest is living proof of how life’s challenges can help us focus on the things that really matter. Now a successful entrepreneur and mother of two, Kimberly shares her inspiring story, talks about her “best mistake,” and explains why being in her 40s is fantastic.FULL SHOW NOTES HERE.

Embrace the Fear

When an accident in the 1980s left Dale Spencer paralyzed from the waist down, the 20-year-old college student quickly saw that his motto of "I'll do it myself" wasn't going to work anymore. Dale's experiences overcoming his own fears motivated him to help others do the same. Learn more about the split-second decision that changed Dale's life, and the new path he made for himself, in this episode.Detailed Show Notes Here.

From Grieving to Giving

In this episode, Alexa Bigwarfe describes how she has channeled two life-changing moments — a brush with gun violence, and the loss of her infant daughter — into a commitment to helping moms and families. This week Heather and Alexa talk about how to find ways to celebrate every moment, the importance of finding a support network, and what happens when soul-searching leads you to new beliefs and convictions.Detailed Shownotes here.

Recovering Homophobe

How does one go from being a severely depressed, homophobic, suicidal teen to being an empowered and passionate leader in the LGBTQ community? Tune in to this week’s episode of The brave Files to meet Mason Aid, who has done just this!In this episode, Mason shares their story of being a troubled teen with suicidal tendencies, living in a deeply conservative and religious small town and hiding who they truly are from everyone, even themself. Mason has gone through the darkest of times and many of the people around them had given up on Mason’s future. But with determination, a lot of hard work and the loving support of their parents, Mason overcame and is now a mentor to kids venturing down the same possible path.Charity of the week: The Trevor ProjectFull show notes here.

The Road to Everywhere

Two years ago, Morgaine Trine had plans to become a curator of ancient Mediterranean history. Those plans, however, kept hitting a brick wall no matter how hard she tried! Feeling utterly defeated, Morgaine realized that what she really wanted was to travel and simply be near this history that she loved so much. Not one for half-steps, Morgaine decided she would begin to travel, set a deadline for when she would leave and then set about figuring out how to support herself. Today, she is living her "why" as a boss-bookkeeper with her business Honestly Bookkeeping and traveling around the world.In this episode, Morgaine calls in from sunny Las Palmas in Spain's Canary Islands to talk to Heather about her brave journey from unfulfilling part-time work to a radically different life-path as a traveling, virtual bookkeeper.Detailed Show Notes Here

The Theory of Accountability Part 1

Part 1 of Omar Yamini's InterviewImagine being arrested, charged and sentenced to prison for a murder you didn’t commit. This week’s guest, Omar Yamini, experienced just that and he breaks all of the stereotypes of someone who has a murder conviction and served 15 years in prison. Omar reinvented himself after his release, graduated from college, become an education consultant, built a non-profit, started a family, and is an extraordinary member of society and one of the kindest hearted individuals I have ever known.Detailed show notes, video and photos here.

The Theory of Accountability Part 2

In part two of this interview, we continue to explore Omar’s story and how our country’s criminal justice system failed him and thousands more who are and have been imprisoned for crimes they did not commit. He shares his personal experience of living inside prison and how much extreme mental effort it took to not to become inhuman or broken. Omar constantly improved himself in preparation for his re-entry into the real world and even still, seven years after his release he continues to improve himself and help others do the same. Detailed Show Notes Here.

Can’t Keep Me Down

Alex Foley is a force and an inspiration. Life presented challenges to her from a very young age when she was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes at 9 years old, At the time, treatment for Diabetes was difficult and dangerous with tremendous side effects. Alex went through countless treatments and surgeries that lead to her loss of vision at 27. Despite all this, Alex has had more adventure than most able-bodied people have. She has literally climbed mountains, ridden motorcycles, traveled the world with her seeing eye dog, and built businesses.Detailed show notes, video and photos here.