I want to invite you to be encouraged by a podcast that we’re launching.

It’s called Take Heart. It’s a podcast of hope, joy, and encouragement for special needs moms by special needs moms.

It Launches September 1st

 Each month, we choose a topic such as Diagnosis, Faith, etc. and a new podcast will become available every Tuesday. Weekly, Amy J. Brown, Sara Clime, and I take turns hosting an 8-10-minute segment encouraging special needs moms on their journey. The last week of every month is a panel collaborative of the three of us wrapping up the topic.

You can find us on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Podcast Addict, Podchaser, Overcast, Castbox, and Deezer

On Tuesday, September 1st:

• Listen in.
• Leave a review
• Subscribe so you’ll never miss a show. 
• Share it with others through your Social Media Channels
• Even if you don’t have a special needs child, you probably know someone who does. Send it to them in a text, e-mail, etc.

We hope that you will find that even if you don’t have a child with special needs, the things we discuss and have learned apply to anyone who has gone through trials.

You can also gain perspective and learn some ways to encourage families you know who are raising children with special needs.

In January I took a step of faith, put money where my mouth was literally and figuratively, and joined the first Hope*writers Mastermind (HWM) group. A “Mastermind” is a group of people that gather together to learn from each other, have similar goals, and work hard to accomplish them. In our HWM group, we also receive one on one coaching and group coaching from Emily P. Freeman, Gary Moreland, and Brian Dixon. All have written books, one is a business coach, and Emily is a very successful author and podcast host. The three of them lead hope*writers, which is its own online community of writers and speakers. I joined that group in October.

I have been writing, journaling, blogging, and speaking for several years, but I had not really shared it with the world. I have been convicted to write a book, but also to share God’s faithfulness through our journey with Toby over the last 13+ years.

Writing a book has always been a dream of mine, but I did not realize until this year, that there’s so much more to being published than just writing a book. You need an audience, and you need to meet a need for that audience, which is hopefully why you are here!

In March, right before the country shut down, we had our first in-person gathering of the Mastermind. There I met two other amazing special needs moms. We connected, even though our stories are quite different, and began to pray about starting a podcast.

Amy J. Brown has six children, three biological and three adopted. Her experience of special needs has been reactive attachment disorder, fetal alcohol syndrome, and arthrogryposis.

Sara Clime has two sons and one with Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy. He’s a teen and wasn’t diagnosed until he was eight years old.

Then, there’s me, Carrie.  I have four kids: three teen boys and one daughter. Our third son Toby was born with Spina Bifida, hydrocephalus, and later ended up with a trach, ventilator and feeding tube. He’s in and out of the hospital frequently, and just had his 56th surgery.