Episodes

It's always fascinating to learn how those with no family members in the Special Needs community come upon the choice to make it their mission to serve our community. Kyle Stock is both a Special Education teacher, and an advocate for those with Special Needs. With a literature/philosophy undergrad degree, he did not have a clear career path. Until one day he went to work with his Mom in a Special Education classroom & knew within minutes that this was his calling. Mentioned: https://www.edjoin...

David & Tiger Villec visit with Shawn & Brian to discuss his path as a father to his 10 year old son, Tiger who was not only diagnosed with ASD, but is a self taught, world renowned artist, the youngest to participate at New York's Comic Con, and has been featured in multiple news and media outlets including Disney & Telemundo. Theirs is a story of triumph and inspiration. Website: https://linktr.ee/theautistictiger Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/tigervillec/ Facebook: https://www.faceb...

Shawn & Brian discuss the need for comradery amongst men in general, but in particular, how it fits in today's world, especially for those who are dads or caregivers to those with special needs and how it became the impetus for their men's group, The Den. Mentioned: The Good Life: https://a.co/d/8sVCDf0 — eMail:wearejusttwodads@gmail.com Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/just_two_dads/ Podcast: https://anchor.fm/justtwodads LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/justtwodads Facebook: h...

Melissa Gagne is a partner with the Law firm of Laviano & Gagne, LLC in Sherman, Connecticut. She is the Executive Vice President of the Board of Directors for CCARC, a nonprofit agency that provides day and residential services to adults with disabilities in Connecticut. She is also on the Board of Directors for Special Education Equity for Kids of Connecticut (SEEK), a nonprofit that lobbies at the State Capitol to improve special education on behalf of Connecticut’s Special Education students...

Sasha Long, BCBA, M.A., is the founder and president of The Autism Helper, Inc. She is a board certified behavior analyst and former special education teacher. Sasha works full time as a consultant, writer, and behavior analyst. Sasha manages and writes The Autism Helper Blog, as a way to share easy to use and ready to implement strategies and ideas. Sasha also travels internationally as a speaker and consultant providing individualized training and feedback to parents, educators, therapists...

Larkin O'Leary is the Chief Operating Officer & Co-founder of Common Ground Society, a passionate educator, credentialed through CSU, Chico, having taught grades ranging from Pre-K-8th grade, & has won several awards. She also spends time caring for her son who was born with Down Syndrome, hearing loss, & list of medical issues. She most recently completed her first TEDx talk entitled, Fostering Differences on Common Ground. She is an Advocate and then some. She visits with Shawn & Brian to shar...

Angelica "Jelly" Robinson is a 31 year old server of dreams who is based in Houston, Texas. At a young age, she began cutting & styling her classmates’ and cousins’ hair for fun. As she grew older, she realized that she wanted to make a career out of hairstyling. She found that she naturally had a connection with kids, particularly those with sensory challenges & thus, Peace & Love Studios was born. Today, Peace & Love Studios provides mobile hair styling for those with sensory needs all over th...

Shelley Cox's family is her strength. She is a mom to three children including one daughter whom she says is her alter ego who holds her accountable, a son who she describes as a steady thinker, her daughter who has cerebral palsy, who she says is the muse of her career, and her husband is the glue that holds them all together. Her career includes her BS is in Human Development with an emphasis in Early Childhood & Special Populations, an MA in Counseling, an MS in Psychology with a specialty in...

Slipped through the cracks of special education, graduated high school with a second grade reading level, faced trauma, became incarcerated, started a personal trainer business in his native Pennsylvania, saw the pandemic bring his business to a halt, then took steps to change his life. How? By seeking treatment for his OCD diagnosis, changing his diet, re-committing to healthy nutrition, moving to California and doing something remarkable. Oliver decided to first face the fact that he could not...

Kelley Coleman is a writer and a mom to two boys, one of whom has multiple disabilities. She's served as an advocate in multiple capacities with organizations such as Children's Hospital of Los Angeles, The Los Angeles Unified School District, and service dog organization Canine Companions. She also has a forthcoming book about what else? Everything no one tells you about parenting a disabled child. Website: https://www.kelleycoleman.com/ Mentioned: https://disabilityvoicesunited.org/ https:/...

After securing a career with an established entity in the corporate space, Chris Felton found himself faced with a mountain of challenges. He re-invented himself by first demolishing his previous mindset, & changed industries by going into business for himself. Today he is a 7 figure entrepreneur, an Amazon Best-Selling Author, has helped thousands of people internationally to overcome their resistance to change, create more success, peace, and impact in their lives. Values, principles, and phil...

Dr. Sohee Jun visits with Shawn & Brian. She is a top Leadership coach, Amazon Best selling author, works with world renowned Fortune 500 companies, across a variety of industries helping emerging leaders & executive teams to identify & strategically capitalize on moments of shift. But doing this on her terms, as an owner of her own business was not always the case. Prior to that she served as Executive Director of Organizational Development and Change Management at Warner Bros. Entertainment. Y...

If you were faced with raising a son diagnosed with autism, becoming a widow, and being faced with all the challenges that life brings anyway, what would you do? If your name is Debra Vines, here is what you might do. Become a warrior of a mom and Advocate. Launch a non-profit organization that assists parents and caregivers in navigating the systems of social services and academic inequality. Connect families to resources, support groups, opportunities, and so much more. Constantly bring great ...