Welcome to Real Talk with Tina and Ann!

Helping Our Kids Today Episodes

Fear is not a Prophecy: Living, Showing Up, Advocating and taking Charge
Jan. 14, 2026

Fear is not a Prophecy: Living, Showing Up, Advocating and taking Charge

Send us a text Tina and Ann explore gratitude that tells the truth in crisis: not a list, but a lifeline beside cancer, caregiving, and long grief. Kara Lockwood’s story and Robert Emmons’ research anchor practical ways to find small joys that help us keep showing up. • Cara Lockwood’s remission st…
Rethinking Possible, When Life Throws Curveballs, Build a Batting Cage
Dec. 24, 2025

Rethinking Possible, When Life Throws Curveballs, Build a Batting Cage

Send us a text Some stories don’t fit inside neat arcs. Rebecca Galli’s life holds a brother gone at 17, a son who passed at 15, two children with special needs, and sudden paralysis nine days after divorce. What unfolds is not a list of tragedies but a blueprint for living when certainty disappear…
Hope on the Border part 2: I Love the Me I See in You with Gil Gillenwater
Dec. 17, 2025

Hope on the Border part 2: I Love the Me I See in You with Gil Gillenwater

We follow a wrong turn that became a mission and explore how dignity-based service transforms both givers and receivers. Gil shows how housing, education, and reciprocity can turn charity into equity, and why true joy is found when we serve. • enlightened self-interest and why service elevates the …
Border of Hope: I love the Me I See in You with Gil Gillenwater
Dec. 10, 2025

Border of Hope: I love the Me I See in You with Gil Gillenwater

We bring the border into focus as a lived place, not a line, and confront how wealth disparity, US demand, and policy choices shape human lives. Gil Gillenwater shows why enlightened self interest, housing with dignity, and education beat walls and fear. • wealth disparity between $18 an hour and $…
Guest: Gil Gillenwater
What Happens When We Finally Hear It’s Not Your Fault: Rj Formanek's story
Nov. 12, 2025

What Happens When We Finally Hear It’s Not Your Fault: Rj Formanek's story

Send us a text We share real, lived experiences from someone navigating life with FASD: the diagnosis, the data, and the dignity that often get lost in the conversation. Together, we unpack the daily struggles and the deep relief that comes from hearing the words, “It’s not your fault.” What follow…
Guest: RJ Formanek
How trauma shaped us, how truth freed us, and how we learned to love differently.
Oct. 8, 2025

How trauma shaped us, how truth freed us, and how we learned to love differently.

Send us a text What if the love you learned was never love at all—but performance, peacekeeping, and fear dressed up as care? Ann sits down with Denise Bard to tell the truth about growing up inside conditional love, the survival roles that helped them get through, and the slow, stubborn work of bu…
Building Kids Who Can Stand on Their Own: A Recipe for Raising Today’s Youth
Oct. 1, 2025

Building Kids Who Can Stand on Their Own: A Recipe for Raising Today’s Youth

Send us a text Randi Crawford, certified life coach and TEDx speaker, joins us to share her “Pickleball Parenting” philosophy. It is a fresh, practical approach to raising resilient kids who can face challenges with confidence and independence. In this episode, Randi talks about the ways modern par…
Unmasking Brilliance: Living Boldly with ADHD in a Neurotypical World
Sept. 10, 2025

Unmasking Brilliance: Living Boldly with ADHD in a Neurotypical World

Send us a text Ron Souers joins us to explore how ADHD minds can transform perceived weaknesses into remarkable strengths through self-discovery, mindfulness, and acceptance. We examine the experience of navigating a neurotypical world with a neurodivergent brain and uncover practical strategies fo…
Guest: Ron Souers
Blessed and highly favored: One lady’s story of growing programs for youth & transforming community
Aug. 20, 2025

Blessed and highly favored: One lady’s story of growing programs for youth & transforming community

Send us a text Miss Betty Smith shares her incredible journey from childhood poverty to creating a state-of-the-art arts education center that transforms young lives in Canton, Ohio. At 84, she dances in parades, leads drumlines, and builds programs that give children alternatives to gang recruitme…
Guest: Betty Smith
Let's Talk Self-Worth with the Founder of the Self-Worth Initiative
July 23, 2025

Let's Talk Self-Worth with the Founder of the Self-Worth Initiative

Deborah Weed, creator of The Luckiest Penny musical and founder of the Self-Worth Initiative, went from being bedridden and broken to becoming a fierce advocate for self-worth. After learning that a rare 1943 copper penny was worth over a million dollars, she had a powerful realization: even things…
Guest: Deborah Weed
Monsters with a Mission: How Sarah Sparks Is Helping Kids Tame Big Emotions
July 2, 2025

Monsters with a Mission: How Sarah Sparks Is Helping Kids Tame Big Emotions

Send us a text What happens when a devastating brain injury leads to an unexpected creative breakthrough? For Sarah Sparks, it meant birthing the "Monsters on Mill Street" series – vibrant, heartfelt stories that are transforming how children handle big emotions and life's challenges. Sarah's journ…
Guest: Sarah Sparks
Let Your Love Be Larger Than Your Circumstances: Rebecca Galli's Journey
May 21, 2025

Let Your Love Be Larger Than Your Circumstances: Rebecca Galli's Journey

What does resilience look like after losing your brother, your son, your marriage, your ability to walk, and raising a child with autism? Rebecca Galli knows this terrain intimately. As a bestselling author of over 400 column...
Guest: Rebecca Galli
Finding Faith After Unimaginable Loss: Autumn Starr Canterbury's story part 2
April 30, 2025

Finding Faith After Unimaginable Loss: Autumn Starr Canterbury's story part 2

The resilient spirit refuses to be broken. Autumn Star Canterbury embodies this truth in ways that will leave you breathless. When you've been traded for a horse, abandoned at a homeless shelter, and told repeatedly that your...
Navy SEAL to Social Warrior: Tom LaGrave's Mission for Youth
March 19, 2025

Navy SEAL to Social Warrior: Tom LaGrave's Mission for Youth

Tom LaGrave shares his remarkable journey from Navy SEAL to licensed clinical social worker, revealing how personal struggle and recovery led him to create Honor Bound Academy, a transformative program for youth transitioning...
Guest: Tom La Grave
Embracing Adoption and Differences: A Journey with Author Sasha Saidman part 2
March 5, 2025

Embracing Adoption and Differences: A Journey with Author Sasha Saidman part 2

Can a children's book change a life? In this inspiring episode, author Sasha Saidman reveals how stories about adoption, differences, and self-acceptance meet kids exactly where they are—sparking empathy, imagination, and con...
Guest: Sasha Saidman
"First Day, An Adoption Story: Sasha Saidman on Love, Adoption & Belonging"
Feb. 26, 2025

"First Day, An Adoption Story: Sasha Saidman on Love, Adoption & Belonging"

Can a children's book change a life? In this inspiring episode, author Sasha Saidman reveals how stories about adoption, differences, and self-acceptance meet kids exactly where they are—sparking empathy, imagination, and con...
Guest: Sasha Saidman
The Escape: Victoria Ellen's Courageous fight against abuse and systematic failures. Part 2
Feb. 19, 2025

The Escape: Victoria Ellen's Courageous fight against abuse and systematic failures. Part 2

Victoria Ellen's extraordinary journey from terror to triumph is the heart of this episode. Eight months pregnant and seeking refuge from an abusive marriage, Victoria's tale is a powerful testament to courage and resilience....
Guest: Victoria Ellen
When the one hurting you is in your own home: An interview with author Victoria Ellen Part 1
Feb. 12, 2025

When the one hurting you is in your own home: An interview with author Victoria Ellen Part 1

What if the person who vowed to love and protect you was the very one orchestrating your pain? Join us on Real Talk with Tina and Ann as Ann sits down with Victoria Ellen, the courageous author of "Painting in the Rain: A Tru...
Guest: Victoria Ellen
Navigating Invisible Differences: Empowering Parents and Children on Unique Journeys with Kari Baker part 2
Jan. 22, 2025

Navigating Invisible Differences: Empowering Parents and Children on Unique Journeys with Kari Baker part 2

Join us for an inspiring conversation with Kari Baker as we dive into the complexities and triumphs of parenting children with invisible neurological differences. Kari shares invaluable insights on navigating special education systems, mastering IEP meetings, and understanding parental rights. From…
Guest: Kari Baker
Finding Kind with Kari Baker: Parenting Children with Invisible Neurological Differences
Jan. 15, 2025

Finding Kind with Kari Baker: Parenting Children with Invisible Neurological Differences

Join us for an inspiring and heartfelt exploration into the world of parenting children with neurological differences. Our guest, Kari Baker, shares her courageous journey from a thriving career in financial services to her n...
Guest: Kari Baker
Blessed and highly favored: One lady’s wisdom and story of growing programs for youth. transforming communities and living what she preaches.
Aug. 14, 2024

Blessed and highly favored: One lady’s wisdom and story of growing programs for youth. transforming communities and living what she preaches.

How can one person help to transform community institutions, or inspire a youth movement with creative programs? Join us on Real Talk with Tina and Ann as Ann sits down with the phenomenal Miss Betty Smith, whose journey of r...
Who you are in your Fear is NOT who you Really are part 2
Aug. 7, 2024

Who you are in your Fear is NOT who you Really are part 2

Have you ever been controlled by fear that it felt like a physical barrier, preventing you from becoming who you were meant to be? We discuss some of our fears and our freedoms and the importance of not letting fear silence o...
Guest: Denise Bard
Who YOU are in your Fear is NOT who you REALLY are
July 31, 2024

Who YOU are in your Fear is NOT who you REALLY are

When you live in fear people do not get to see who you really are. A beautiful, daring, caring, loving, dream-seeker person is hidden behind that mask. let's talk about the courage of breaking from that mask. Follow us on Tin...
Guest: Denise Bard