Bonus Babies
The Anthem Award winning BONUS BABIES podcast is the only one of its kind that features the compelling true-life hard-hitting stories of those with a lived foster care experience and the people who care for them––all via the unique 360* lens of a Court Appointed Special Advocate (CASA) volunteer. Through raw first-hand accounts, BONUS BABIES reveals the daunting complexity of the foster care world while documenting the challenges, failures and successes of the system as well as the people and the agencies involved. The creator and host, Jayne Amelia Larson, is a CASA - a Court Appointed Special Advocate volunteer for youth in foster care. In the same way a CASA works, she explores all things in the foster care maze by talking to kids, parents, caregivers, attorneys, social workers, therapists, adoptees, adoptive parents, members of community and social programs...anybody and everybody who will speak to her to keep the conversation open and the information flowing about all things CASA––to give a forum to help people understand what it's like to have a lived foster care experience. Original music by Christina Apostolopoulos. Emma Karpman is our Social Media Manager. Audio engineering and mixing by Adam "Yukon" Harr of Blue Oak Mastering. Executive Producer is Jake Eberle. Cover art by John Crowther.
Bonus Babies
Mike Wiskar: Music Saved My Life As A Kid, Teenager, Adult...Totally
Jayne Amelia speaks with award-winning musician and adoptee Mike Wiskar. Mike is a Leo-nominated composer, songwriter, independent music producer, vocalist, and multi-instrumentalist. He was also adopted as a baby and raised in a caring home by a family who loved him very much. Even so, he longed to know his birth family and finally met his bio mom and his extended family only recently.
A graduate of the Music Program at MacEwan University as well as Langara's Digital Music Production Program, Mike began his music career in his teens as a singer/guitarist in rock, country, and jazz bands before working as a songwriter for various artists in Montreal, Quebec. While there he worked closely with Myles Goodwyn of legendary Canadian rock band April Wine, among other top-level songwriters and producers.
Mike has since written and produced songs and music scores for projects as diverse as corporate branding, theatre, short films, full length and series documentaries, choirs, contemporary artists’ repertoires and numerous television series'.
Recently, Mike has devoted his song writing skills to “Math Musicals” for Big Ideas Learning. A supplement to their public school math textbook, Math Musicals helps kids from kindergarten through grade five learn math through fun songs and engaging stories.
Go to Mathmusicals.com to hear his terrific work.
See bonusbabies.org to learn more about what we are doing and please donate to support us by making a 100% tax-deductible contribution. EVERY PENNY OF YOUR CONTRIBUTION GOES TO RECORDING AND PLATFORMING THESE STORIES. Yeah!
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