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
Elizabeth Garcia Herrera: I've Got To Do My Part Of Not Repeating The Same Mistakes As My Family
Jayne Amelia speaks with foster alum Elizabeth Garcia Herrera. Liz and her sisters (America's story is Episode 16 of Season 3) were placed in foster care when their mother could no longer look after them. Liz was 17 and spent several confusing years struggling to get on her feet but she put herself through college and now works as a supervisor in child welfare. She's married with two small children and her mom helps to care for them.
Elizabeth is a Program Supervisor for the Healthy Families America Home Visitation program at SHIELDS for Families. Before being promoted to a Supervisor, Elizabeth was a Family Support Specialist (Home Visitor) with the Healthy Families America program for seven years. In her role as a Family Support Specialist, Elizabeth promoted healthy and secure attachments between parents and babies, delivering in-home services to families with children from in utero to five years of age. Elizabeth attained her Certified Lactation Educator (CLE) certification in 2021, and remains passionate about promoting a secure bond and attachment and healthy babies by promoting and educating families on breastfeeding. She is planning to pursue the International Board Certified Lactation Consultant (IBCLC) certification. Elizabeth currently works with families in supporting a team of Family Support Specialists in a Program which its mission is to help prevent child abuse by educating and helping families in attaining the needed protective factors that prevent the involvement of Department of Children and Family Services (DCFS) and support families with these cases as well.
Elizabeth graduated with a Bachelors in Social Work at California State Long Beach in 2014, and is married and a mother of two boys ages one and six years old (and continues to breastfeed her youngest). Elizabeth is also a passionate Christian and is involved in her church as a Greeter, Leader and student Coach. Elizabeth hosts weekly Women's Bible Study Groups and supports and encourages women to grow in their faith and receive healing and freedom following her church's vision to "bring God's freedom to this generation."
Families Uniting Families
Shields For Families
Please call 988 or text 741741 for help if you're in crisis.
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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