Fostering Change

On this episode of Fostering Change, Rob Scheer is joined by his friend, Pedro Andrade, an Emmy Award–winning journalist, producer, and global storyteller whose work explores identity, culture, and what it truly means to be a family.Pedro is the host and producer of the HBO Max documentary series Somewhat Familiar, which follows Pedro and his husband as they adopt a baby and travel the world exploring how families are formed across cultures and communities.One episode of the series is especially meaningful to the Fostering Change community. Episode five featured Rob Scheer and the Scheer family, offering an honest look at foster care, adoption, and what permanency can look like in real life.In this conversation, Rob and Pedro revisit that experience and explore how storytelling can expand our understanding of family, bring visibility to foster care, and inspire more compassionate conversations about belonging.Episode HighlightsHow media and storytelling can redefine traditional ideas of familyWhy foster care stories deserve a place in global conversations about belongingPedro’s experience of becoming a parent and how it shaped his perspective on adoptionWhat the Scheer family story revealed about permanency and resilienceThe role of documentaries in shifting public understanding and reducing stigmaAbout the GuestPedro Andrade is an Emmy Award–winning journalist, producer, and global storyteller known for his work exploring culture, identity, and human connection. He is the host and producer of the HBO Max documentary series Somewhat Familiar, which follows Pedro and his husband as they navigate adoption while exploring family structures around the world. Through his work, Pedro highlights diverse stories of belonging and invites audiences to see family through a wider, more compassionate lens.Connect with Pedro📸 Instagram: @pedroandradeTV🎬 Series: Somewhat Familiar with Pedro Andrade on HBO Max

On this episode of Fostering Change Podcast, Rob Scheer is joined by Temple Lentz — nonprofit CEO, local elected official, and debut novelist — for a thoughtful conversation about what happens when the systems designed to protect vulnerable families don’t always work the way they’re supposed to.Temple is the author of the novel Not Quite Home, which explores the cracks in America’s social service safety net. While the book is fiction, its themes are grounded in real-world experience. Having worked both inside nonprofit leadership and as an elected official, Temple brings a rare systems-level perspective to the conversation.Together, Rob and Temple discuss the gap between policy and lived reality, how well-intentioned systems can sometimes cause unintended harm, and why storytelling may be one of the most powerful tools we have to illuminate the need for reform.Episode Highlights• Why systems meant to help families often fall short• The unintended consequences of well-intentioned policies• What people misunderstand about how social service systems actually function• Why fiction can humanize policy failures more effectively than reports and data• How civic engagement and storytelling can open doors to meaningful reformAbout the GuestTemple Lentz is a nonprofit CEO, local elected official, and debut novelist. She earned a BA from the University of Chicago and a master’s degree in Organizational Leadership from Claremont Lincoln University. Her writing has appeared in outlets including the Portland Mercury, Vancouver Business Journal, Live Wire! Radio, New City Chicago, and the Windy City Times.Her first novel, Not Quite Home, examines the human impact of systemic gaps within America’s social safety net.Connect with Temple🌐 Website: templelentzbooks.com📘 Facebook: Temple Lentz📸 Instagram: @gototemple🐦 X/Twitter: @gototemple🧵 Threads: @gototemple🔗 LinkedIn: Temple Lentz

On this episode of Fostering Change, Rob Scheer sits down with Dr. Liz DeBetta — an award-winning writer, educator, and solo performance artist whose work explores adoption, trauma, identity, and healing through storytelling.Dr. Liz is the founder of Migrating Toward Wholeness, a trauma-informed, arts-based healing framework, and the author of Adult Adoptees and Writing to Heal. Her work centers on an often-overlooked truth: adoption isn’t a moment — it’s a lifelong identity journey.This conversation is especially meaningful for Rob, who reflects on his own experience adopting his son Alex, who joined the Scheer family at 18 and was formally adopted at 22 — a powerful reminder that belonging and permanency have no age limit.Together, Rob and Dr. Liz explore how adults navigate adoption-related grief and identity, why healing can unfold later in life, and how storytelling becomes a transformative tool for reclaiming voice and wholeness.Episode HighlightsLate and adult adoption as meaningful and transformativeHow writing and embodied storytelling support trauma integrationWhat “wholeness” means for identities shaped by early lossThe role adoptive families play in supporting adult adoptees over timeAbout the GuestDr. Liz DeBetta is an award-winning writer, educator, and solo performance artist whose work focuses on adoption, trauma, and identity through narrative expression. She is the founder of Migrating Toward Wholeness™, the author of Adult Adoptees and Writing to Heal, and the creator of the acclaimed one-woman show Un-M-Othered, which examines adoption and patriarchy through embodied storytelling. Holding a Ph.D. in Interdisciplinary Studies, she blends research, lived experience, and art to support healing and identity integration.Connect with Dr. Liz🌐 Website: www.lizdebetta.com📘 Facebook: Dr. Liz DeBetta📸 Instagram: @dr.liz.debetta🎵 TikTok: @dr.liz.debetta🔗 LinkedIn: Liz DeBetta, Ph.D.

This episode of Fostering Change was originally scheduled to air in March — but after recording, Rob Scheer felt the conversation was too important to wait. He personally requested that it be released early so listeners could hear it as soon as possible.Rob is joined by Rachel Bruno, a Nashville-based author, speaker, and advocate whose deeply personal experience with the child welfare system ignited a powerful call for accountability and reform.After her children were unlawfully removed by child protective services, Rachel found herself confronting a system where parental rights, due process, and family integrity are often overlooked. Instead of staying silent, she fought back — ultimately securing a seven-figure civil rights settlement and emerging as a leading national voice for families facing similar injustices.Rachel is the author of Fractured Hope: A Mother’s Fight for Justice and founder of Giver of Light, an organization dedicated to supporting families navigating child welfare involvement. Together, Rob and Rachel discuss hope after trauma, the urgent need for accountability, and why lived experience must guide ethical, child-centered reform.Episode Highlights• How one mother’s fight sparked national conversations about reform• What families experience when due process is ignored• Accountability and justice within child welfare• How Giver of Light supports families in crisis• Why lived experience belongs at the center of policy change📘 Book RecommendationRob strongly recommends Rachel’s book:Fractured Hope: A Mother’s Fight for Justice — a powerful firsthand account that exposes the realities families face inside the child welfare system and why reform is urgently needed.👉 Get the book directly from Rachel:https://rachelbruno.com/book/Purchasing directly supports her advocacy and helps amplify voices too often unheard.About the GuestRachel Bruno is an author, speaker, and advocate for parental rights. Her lived experience navigating the child welfare system made her a national leader in reform. After securing a civil rights settlement for the unlawful removal of her children, she authored Fractured Hope and founded Giver of Light. She continues to serve in leadership and advisory roles, promoting family integrity, accountability, and ethical child welfare practices.Connect with Rachel & Giver of Light🌐 Website: www.thegiveroflight.org📘 Facebook: facebook.com/rachelbrunospeaks📸 Instagram: @rachelbrunospeaks🐦 X/Twitter: @bruno.rachel🔗 LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/rachelbruno

Nonprofits exist to serve people — not paperwork.But too often, outdated financial systems slow growth, strain leadership, and pull focus away from mission-driven work.This week on Fostering Change, Rob Scheer sits down with Stephen Garten, Founder & CEO of Charity Charge, a Public Benefit Corporation built exclusively to support the financial needs of nonprofit organizations.Stephen launched Charity Charge in 2015 after recognizing a widespread problem: nonprofits were forced to rely on banking and financial tools never designed for how they actually operate. Today, Charity Charge serves more than 3,000 nonprofits nationwide, offering nonprofit-specific credit cards, bookkeeping and compliance tools, gift cards, and over $60 million in working capital — empowering leaders to focus on impact instead of infrastructure.Rob and Stephen also reflect on their recent crossover conversation, following Rob’s appearance on Stephen’s podcast, The Charity Charge Nonprofit Spotlight, where they continued discussing leadership, transparency, and sustainability in the social sector.🎧 Watch or listen to Rob’s interview here:https://www.charitycharge.com/nonprofit-resources/rob-scheer-comfort-cases/Episode Highlights• Why traditional banking often fails nonprofit organizations• How Charity Charge was built specifically for mission-driven leaders• The connection between financial transparency and donor trust• Lessons learned from supporting thousands of nonprofits nationwide• What it takes to build long-term sustainability without losing sight of missionAbout the GuestStephen Garten is the Founder and CEO of Charity Charge, a Public Benefit Corporation providing financial infrastructure built exclusively for nonprofits. Since launching in 2015, Charity Charge has supported more than 3,000 organizations, delivered over $60 million in working capital, and granted more than $1 million through the Charity Charge Foundation.His work has been featured by Forbes, Fast Company, and The Today Show, and he hosts The Charity Charge Nonprofit Spotlight, highlighting nonprofit and social impact leaders across the country.Connect with Charity Charge🌐 Website: www.charitycharge.com📘 Facebook: facebook.com/CharityCharge📸 Instagram: @charitycharge🐦 X/Twitter: @charitycharge🔗 LinkedIn: Charity Charge

As Fostering Change continues through Season 7, this episode dives into an urgent but often unseen issue: menstrual and postpartum poverty, and how it impacts girls in foster care and communities around the world.Rob Scheer sits down with Yvonne Esipila Patron, Co-Founder and CEO of the PATESI Foundation, an organization working globally to ensure women and girls have the dignity, resources, and education they deserve.In 2025, Comfort Cases and PATESI began a powerful partnership to make sure no girl entering foster care faces her first night without essential menstrual supplies. Through this collaboration, PATESI donates up to 10,000 emergency menstrual kits each year, included in Comfort Cases® backpacks for girls ages eight and up — providing dignity, protection, and confidence during moments of deep transition.Together, Rob and Yvonne unpack why menstrual poverty remains invisible, why postpartum poverty continues long after childbirth, and why involving men and boys is key to ending stigma and driving real change.Episode Highlights• The global impact of menstrual poverty and why it’s rarely discussed• How entering foster care can make menstruation even more stressful for young girls• What the Comfort Cases × PATESI partnership delivers each year• Why postpartum poverty deserves national attention• How male allyship strengthens long-term solutionsAbout the GuestYvonne Esipila Patron is the Co-Founder and CEO of the PATESI Foundation, a global nonprofit dedicated to ending menstrual and postpartum poverty. With a background in public health and sustainable development, she has spent her career advancing reproductive health equity, youth empowerment, and community-driven solutions.Connect with PATESI🌐 Website: www.patesifoundation.org📘 Facebook: facebook.com/patesifoundation📸 Instagram: @patesifoundation