Jessica Pritchett

After a five year struggle with infertility, many heartbreaking disappointments, and with the help of IVF, Jessica Pritchett was finally pregnant. She and her husband awaited the arrival of their much-loved daughter, Izabella. But after multiple medical complications far outside of their control, and after all medical intervention failed, losing Izabella was inevitable and they were faced with the most horrible of choices: to carry the child further would result in Jessica’s death and her daughter’s too. The pregnancy was not far enough along for the infant to be viable outside the womb. Together with her husband and her doctors, Jessica made the agonizing choice to induce labor, knowing that her daughter would likely not survive it. This was grief upon grief for this couple that so wanted to be parents.Now, in the wake of the Supreme Court’s decision to disregard 50 years of legal precedent, and to overturn federal laws to protect a woman’s right to body autonomy and medical privacy, Jessica has discovered a new kind of grief. She’s been called vile, disgusting, selfish, and a murderer by those who claim to hold a “pro-life” stance. This is a story of hard choices and a family that has faced them, lived with them, and remained a loving family.

After a five year struggle with infertility, many heartbreaking disappointments, and with the help of IVF, Jessica Pritchett was finally pregnant. She and her husband awaited the arrival of their much-loved daughter, Izabella. But after multiple medical complications far outside of their control, and after all medical intervention failed, losing Izabella was inevitable and they were faced with the most horrible of choices: to carry the child further would result in Jessica’s death and her daughter’s too. The pregnancy was not far enough along for the infant to be viable outside the womb. Together with her husband and her doctors, Jessica made the agonizing choice to induce labor, knowing that her daughter would likely not survive it. This was grief upon grief for this couple that so wanted to be parents. Now, in the wake of the Supreme Court’s decision to disregard 50 years of legal precedent, and to overturn federal laws to protect a woman’s right to body autonomy and medical privacy, Jessica has discovered a new kind of grief. She’s been called vile, disgusting, selfish, and a murderer by those who claim to hold a “pro-life” stance. This is a story of hard choices and a family that has faced them, lived with them, and remained a loving family.

**SPECIAL EPISODE** with Jessica Pritchett: Hard Choices

Lucinda Jackson

Dr. Lucinda Jackson is the author of the memoir Just a Girl: Growing Up Female and Ambitious about her struggles to succeed as a scientist in male-dominated oil and gas and chemical organizations. Her story continues in her new book coming out April 2022: Project Escape: Lessons for an Unscripted Life about the complex transition from hard-hitting career to retirement. Jackson is the Founder of LJ Ventures, where she speaks and consults on energy and the environment and empowering women in the workplace and the Next Act.

**EXTRA BLOOMS** with Lucinda Jackson: Retired, But Not Retiring

Lauren Trantham

Lauren Trantham is the founder and executive director of Ride My Road. In 2016, Lauren started Ride My Road as a personal photography project to photograph American Survivors of abuse and sex trafficking. Since that time, and in addition to photographing over 80 survivors, she has ridden tens of thousands of miles on her motorcycle raising hundreds of thousands of dollars for survivor-led organizations.

Lauren Trantham: How to Heal a Broken Heart? Help Others

Meredith May was our guest, sharing her intimate and inspiring memoir, The Honey Bus. We welcome her back to share the story she portrays in Loving Edie: How a Dog Afraid of Everything Taught Me to be Brave. This new memoir is a story of a dog, to be sure, but it’s also much more than that. This is the story of what our relationships with vulnerable creatures can teach us about ourselves. Meredith’s books have been published in 17 countries and her first children’s book, My Hive, will be published in spring 2024. Previously, she was an award-winning journalist at the San Francisco Chronicle, where her reporting won the PEN USA Literary Award for Journalism, the Casey Medal for Meritorious Journalism, and was shortlisted for the Pulitzer Prize. She lives in Carmel Valley where she spends her time writing, beekeeping, and volunteering as a scuba diver for the Monterey Bay Aquarium.

Meredith May was our guest, sharing her intimate and inspiring memoir, The Honey Bus. We welcome her back to share the story she portrays in Loving Edie: How a Dog Afraid of Everything Taught Me to be Brave. This new memoir is a story of a dog, to be sure, but it’s also much more than that. This is the story of what our relationships with vulnerable creatures can teach us about ourselves. Meredith’s books have been published in 17 countries and her first children’s book, My Hive, will be published in spring 2024. Previously, she was an award-winning journalist at the San Francisco Chronicle, where her reporting won the PEN USA Literary Award for Journalism, the Casey Medal for Meritorious Journalism, and was shortlisted for the Pulitzer Prize. She lives in Carmel Valley where she spends her time writing, beekeeping, and volunteering as a scuba diver for the Monterey Bay Aquarium.

**EXTRA BLOOMS** with Meredith May: Fear and Vulnerability: Our Unlikely Teachers

Kevin Berthia is a suicide survivor and prevention advocate. Kevin was born with a genetic major depression disorder. In 2005, at the age of 22, Kevin attempted to take his own life by jumping from the Golden Gate Bridge. Eight years after his attempt, Kevin was reunited with the officer who talked him back to safety. Since then, Kevin’s story of HOPE has touched a diverse group of audiences all around the world. Kevin has had the opportunity to share his story with several magazine outlets along with local and national news stations. Kevin’s story was also featured on the Steve Harvey Show. The photo of him standing on the bridge was front page of the San Francisco Chronicle and placed on the 75 most iconic photos of the 21st Century.Kevin believes that having survived an attempted suicide plays a major role in the prevention of additional suicides. No one knows more about the darkness that surrounds suicide than those who have walked in its shadow.

Kevin Berthia is a suicide survivor and prevention advocate. Kevin was born with a genetic major depression disorder. In 2005, at the age of 22, Kevin attempted to take his own life by jumping from the Golden Gate Bridge. Eight years after his attempt, Kevin was reunited with the officer who talked him back to safety. Since then, Kevin’s story of HOPE has touched a diverse group of audiences all around the world. Kevin has had the opportunity to share his story with several magazine outlets along with local and national news stations. Kevin’s story was also featured on the Steve Harvey Show. The photo of him standing on the bridge was front page of the San Francisco Chronicle and placed on the 75 most iconic photos of the 21st Century. Kevin believes that having survived an attempted suicide plays a major role in the prevention of additional suicides. No one knows more about the darkness that surrounds suicide than those who have walked in its shadow.

Kevin Berthia: A Life Worth Saving, A Life Worth Living

Kevin Briggs

Kevin Briggs, a retired California Highway Patrol sergeant, spent a decade patrolling the Golden Gate Bridge. A trained negotiator, Briggs handled 4-6 crisis calls a month on the bridge. These challenging but rewarding efforts earned him the nickname “Guardian of the Golden Gate Bridge.”On one fateful day in 2005, Kevin met with one of the most challenging, yet rewarding encounters of his service career with a young man of twenty-two who had come to that destination to end his life. Kevin Berthia was that young man and the 90-minute, over-the-rail exchange between these two men not only saved his life but was the start of a life-long friendship. Their hopeful, life-affirming story offers insight into how we can gain an understanding for those in the throes of personal anguish and how to extend compassion to those who may be struggling.  Kevin Briggs has shared what he’s learned in his memoir, Guardian of the Golden Gate. He currently speaks with law enforcement organizations, schools, and businesses to share inspire compassion and understanding about mental health and suicide issues.

Kevin Briggs, a retired California Highway Patrol sergeant, spent a decade patrolling the Golden Gate Bridge. A trained negotiator, Briggs handled 4-6 crisis calls a month on the bridge. These challenging but rewarding efforts earned him the nickname “Guardian of the Golden Gate Bridge.” On one fateful day in 2005, Kevin met with one of the most challenging, yet rewarding encounters of his service career with a young man of twenty-two who had come to that destination to end his life. Kevin Berthia was that young man and the 90-minute, over-the-rail exchange between these two men not only saved his life but was the start of a life-long friendship. Their hopeful, life-affirming story offers insight into how we can gain an understanding for those in the throes of personal anguish and how to extend compassion to those who may be struggling. Kevin Briggs has shared what he’s learned in his memoir, Guardian of the Golden Gate. He currently speaks with law enforcement organizations, schools, and businesses to share inspire compassion and understanding about mental health and suicide issues.

Kevin Briggs: Pivotal Points

Silvia Foti

Silvia Foti was raised on reverent stories about her hero grandfather, a martyr for Lithuanian independence and an unblemished patriot. His granddaughter, growing up in Chicago, was treated like royalty in her tightly knit Lithuanian community. But in 2000, when Silvia traveled to Lithuania for a ceremony honoring her grandfather, she heard a different story…a “rumor” that her grandfather hand been a “Jew-Killer”. Silvia, an award-winning investigative journalist could not ignore such a sharply barbed rumor and embarked on a wrenching twenty-year quest for the truth. This journey into World War II history is intensely personal, but filled with universal lessons about courage, faith, memory, and justice as told her memoir, The Nazi’s Granddaughter: How I Discovered My Grandfather was a War Criminal.

Silvia Foti was raised on reverent stories about her hero grandfather, a martyr for Lithuanian independence and an unblemished patriot. His granddaughter, growing up in Chicago, was treated like royalty in her tightly knit Lithuanian community. But in 2000, when Silvia traveled to Lithuania for a ceremony honoring her grandfather, she heard a different story…a “rumor” that her grandfather hand been a “Jew-Killer”. Silvia, an award-winning investigative journalist could not ignore such a sharply barbed rumor and embarked on a wrenching twenty-year quest for the truth. This journey into World War II history is intensely personal, but filled with universal lessons about courage, faith, memory, and justice as told her memoir, The Nazi’s Granddaughter: How I Discovered My Grandfather was a War Criminal.

Silvia Foti: A Search for Truth

Susan Goldsmith

What’s the purpose of poetry anyway? In these troubling times of ecological challenge, political vitriol, and social unrest, it’s easy to wonder about the value of the arts in all forms. But for Susan Goldsmith Wooldridge, the answer is simple. Poetry isn’t merely a distraction from the world, it’s a necessary element of surviving in it. She sees herself as living between the worlds, the one our bodies inhabit and the one from where poems come. She’s dedicated much of her adult life to inviting others to join her in a world of words, taking poetry out of its rooms in high towers and making it accessible to anyone.Susan’s book, Poemcrazy: Freeing Your Life with Words (now in its 30th Crown/Random House printing) was number 7 on a Penguin Random list of the best books on writing. Anne Lamott wrote, “This is a wonderful book—smart, wide-eyed, joyful, helpful, inspiring. You’re going to love it, and love writing poetry more for having read it.” Susan has held workshops on journals, creative writing and collage with thousands of adults and children and has worked in over 80 rural libraries in sessions sponsored by Poets &amp; Writers Org. Susan has a chapbook of poems, Bathing with Ants, and a book on creativity and collage, Foolsgold: Making Something from Nothing and Freeing Your Creative Process (Crown).

What’s the purpose of poetry anyway? In these troubling times of ecological challenge, political vitriol, and social unrest, it’s easy to wonder about the value of the arts in all forms. But for Susan Goldsmith Wooldridge, the answer is simple. Poetry isn’t merely a distraction from the world, it’s a necessary element of surviving in it. She sees herself as living between the worlds, the one our bodies inhabit and the one from where poems come. She’s dedicated much of her adult life to inviting others to join her in a world of words, taking poetry out of its rooms in high towers and making it accessible to anyone. Susan’s book, Poemcrazy: Freeing Your Life with Words (now in its 30th Crown/Random House printing) was number 7 on a Penguin Random list of the best books on writing. Anne Lamott wrote, “This is a wonderful book—smart, wide-eyed, joyful, helpful, inspiring. You’re going to love it, and love writing poetry more for having read it.” Susan has held workshops on journals, creative writing and collage with thousands of adults and children and has worked in over 80 rural libraries in sessions sponsored by Poets &amp; Writers Org. Susan has a chapbook of poems, Bathing with Ants, and a book on creativity and collage, Foolsgold: Making Something from Nothing and Freeing Your Creative Process (Crown).

Susan Goldsmith Wooldridge: Still Poem Crazy after All These Years

Jarie Bolander

Jarie is an engineer by training and an entrepreneur by nature with over 25 years of bringing innovative solutions to markets. As a partner in JSY PR &amp; Marketing, he uses his passion for helping visionary companies find success.    His most recent book is The Entrepreneurs Ethos: How to build a more ethical, inclusive, and resilient world. Clearly, Jarie brings his values to his work. He’s also dedicated himself to inspiring and educating the next generation of entrepreneurs on his podcast, The Entrepreneur Ethos Podcast.  Alongside his business and entrepreneurial successes, Jarie suffered one of the worst kinds of setbacks in his personal life when his young wife was taken by leukemia. Rather than put that grief aside, he decided to take it on and write about it, completing a memoir on its way toward publication. Though he’d written books in the business world, this kind of writing was new for him. Toda Jarie works at balancing loss, new love, and business while serving his community.

Jarie is an engineer by training and an entrepreneur by nature with over 25 years of bringing innovative solutions to markets. As a partner in JSY PR &amp; Marketing, he uses his passion for helping visionary companies find success. His most recent book is The Entrepreneurs Ethos: How to build a more ethical, inclusive, and resilient world. Clearly, Jarie brings his values to his work. He’s also dedicated himself to inspiring and educating the next generation of entrepreneurs on his podcast, The Entrepreneur Ethos Podcast. Alongside his business and entrepreneurial successes, Jarie suffered one of the worst kinds of setbacks in his personal life when his young wife was taken by leukemia. Rather than put that grief aside, he decided to take it on and write about it, completing a memoir on its way toward publication. Though he’d written books in the business world, this kind of writing was new for him. Toda Jarie works at balancing loss, new love, and business while serving his community.

Jarie Bolander: Business and Heart

Elizabeth Appell

When enjoying lunch with a dear friend, Elizabeth Appell began to feel peculiar. The next thing she knew she was waking up in the hospital after surgery, following a sudden stroke. To her great good fortune, Elizabeth’s friend had been in the audience at a one-woman show of another Morning Glory Project guest, Dr. Diane Barns, who wrote and performed Stroke of Luck in which she shares her own story of suffering a stroke, along with tips for identifying and helping others having a stroke. She instantly called 911 and because of speedy help, Elizabeth’s recovery has been nearly miraculous. Elizabeth is a playwright, screenwriter, novelist, and filmmaker. Her play Confessions of a Catholic Child has won several competitions. The play was produced in San Francisco and Los Angeles. Her plays Chalk Lines and Moon Walkers both were semi-finalists at the O’Neill. Squawk the Musical! was tapped by Apples and Oranges, New York for development sessions and had its first reading late in 2019. More recently, she’s working on Elements of Betrayal, a limited series, and The Family Trick, a play about a woman who slips into the Nether looking for the truth about her family. The play was just shortlisted by the London Playwrights.

When enjoying lunch with a dear friend, Elizabeth Appell began to feel peculiar. The next thing she knew she was waking up in the hospital after surgery, following a sudden stroke. To her great good fortune, Elizabeth’s friend had been in the audience at a one-woman show of another Morning Glory Project guest, Dr. Diane Barns, who wrote and performed Stroke of Luck in which she shares her own story of suffering a stroke, along with tips for identifying and helping others having a stroke. She instantly called 911 and because of speedy help, Elizabeth’s recovery has been nearly miraculous. Elizabeth is a playwright, screenwriter, novelist, and filmmaker. Her play Confessions of a Catholic Child has won several competitions. The play was produced in San Francisco and Los Angeles. Her plays Chalk Lines and Moon Walkers both were semi-finalists at the O’Neill. Squawk the Musical! was tapped by Apples and Oranges, New York for development sessions and had its first reading late in 2019. More recently, she’s working on Elements of Betrayal, a limited series, and The Family Trick, a play about a woman who slips into the Nether looking for the truth about her family. The play was just shortlisted by the London Playwrights.

Elizabeth Appell: Different Strokes – A Healing Story

The Morning Glory Project is my earnest attempt to listen to, learn from, and celebrate people of exceptional determination.  Whether they’ve overcome obstacles, endured traumas or tragic losses, experienced setbacks, disappointments, or failures, or they’ve accomplished what others might have thought impossible, I want to know these folks, and it’s my joy to introduce them to you.   Morning Glory People endure, when others around them may not. They’ve survived what others might not have. I want to know what inspiration, practices, resources, and decisions keep them going when so many others might quit.  The stories of Morning Glory People are not all tidy, happy-ending stories. Those who endure do so with scars, but they endure. They survive. They thrive. They find meaning—life, love, joy, hope, passion—beyond their experience, and they turn their disappointments and disasters into determination. Morning Glory People inspire me; I just know they’ll inspire you too.

George Selleck

After a long career as a psychologist, organizational consultant, and sports education specialist, George Selleck has had a lot of experience at trying to understand people, groups, and relationships in work, sport, and life.  But in is in his twilight years, while suffering life-threatening illness that George’s greatest teacher has arrived in the form of a prematurely born grandson. In his heartwarming book, Kian and Me: Gifts from a Grandson, George shares insightful lessons about how to live in a happier, healthier, and more fulfilling way. But the lessons in this inspiring book are not from grandfather to grandson. Rather, it is Kian teaching his granddad about connection, curiosity, positivity, and so many more simple practices for living beautifully.

George Selleck: Gifts from a Grandson

Sallie Weissinger

Sallie Weissinger felt ready to date again after the passing of her beloved husband. She tried the updated version of the newspaper personal ads through which she’d found her husband in the first place and signed on to dating websites. When she made a list of the qualities she wanted in a new love she noticed that the first letters of those qualities spelled out “PASTRAMI,” which appealed to her sense of humor and her sense of purpose. Dating sites offered mixed results, so Sallie decided to employ other skills as well as her community of friends and family to help her find a romantic partner. She built a website and offered a reward of $5,000 to a non-profit chosen by a “Love Liaison” who successfully matched her up with someone special who fit her PASTRAMI qualifications and who proved to be a partner for at least one year. Her system worked and she was introduced to the second true love of her life.Sallie’s unique search reminded her to appreciate the abiding friendships, the meaningful volunteer work, and her garden and dogs. New love, she realized, would be only one of many blessings. Her story is about more than a search for romance, it’s about life lived fully, the importance of deep connections, and one woman’s search for meaning.

Sallie Weissinger felt ready to date again after the passing of her beloved husband. She tried the updated version of the newspaper personal ads through which she’d found her husband in the first place and signed on to dating websites. When she made a list of the qualities she wanted in a new love she noticed that the first letters of those qualities spelled out “PASTRAMI,” which appealed to her sense of humor and her sense of purpose. Dating sites offered mixed results, so Sallie decided to employ other skills as well as her community of friends and family to help her find a romantic partner. She built a website and offered a reward of $5,000 to a non-profit chosen by a “Love Liaison” who successfully matched her up with someone special who fit her PASTRAMI qualifications and who proved to be a partner for at least one year. Her system worked and she was introduced to the second true love of her life. Sallie’s unique search reminded her to appreciate the abiding friendships, the meaningful volunteer work, and her garden and dogs. New love, she realized, would be only one of many blessings. Her story is about more than a search for romance, it’s about life lived fully, the importance of deep connections, and one woman’s search for meaning.

Sallie Weissinger: Yes, Again

Angela Muir Van Etten

As a dual citizen of New Zealand and the United States, Angela Muir Van Etten served as national president of both Little People organizations and qualified as a lawyer in both countries.  She was admitted to the bar in New Zealand, Ohio, and New York.As a dwarf of three-feet-four-inches, LPA has twice awarded Angela its highest honor—the Kitchens Meritorious Service Award—for her work as a leader in banning dwarf tossing in licensed establishments in New York and Florida and in breaking the six-inch reach barrier in buildings and facilities open to the public throughout America.Angela has been a legal writer and editor of disability civil rights law books for Thomson Reuter, a staff writer for the Christian Law Association, and an advocate and coordinator for the Coalition for Independent Living Options. Her articles on dwarfism and disability advocacy have been published in LPA Today, and online in the HuffPost blog.

As a dual citizen of New Zealand and the United States, Angela Muir Van Etten served as national president of both Little People organizations and qualified as a lawyer in both countries. She was admitted to the bar in New Zealand, Ohio, and New York. As a dwarf of three-feet-four-inches, LPA has twice awarded Angela its highest honor—the Kitchens Meritorious Service Award—for her work as a leader in banning dwarf tossing in licensed establishments in New York and Florida and in breaking the six-inch reach barrier in buildings and facilities open to the public throughout America. Angela has been a legal writer and editor of disability civil rights law books for Thomson Reuter, a staff writer for the Christian Law Association, and an advocate and coordinator for the Coalition for Independent Living Options. Her articles on dwarfism and disability advocacy have been published in LPA Today, and online in the HuffPost blog.

Angela Muir Van Etten: Always an Advocate

Margot McMahon

Lucky-number-seven of nine children, Margot McMahon discovered their front acre of woods, ravines and the Lake Michigan shoreline before riding horses in prairies, hiking mountains and sailing while her social justice journalist parents wrote and painted their history. Natural materials like wood, sand, bronze and stone inspired her to sculpt while being locally, nationally and internationally awarded. Margot was compelled to find and tell their untold story to better understand herself as she emerged from a flock of artistic siblings. Growing up in this hectic and artistic family, young Margot was unaware of her parents’ history: Who knew her father was captive and force-marched between three POW Luftwaffe camps? That her mother flew across the nation in first generation Boeing planes, later finding ways to be an award-winning travel writer and teacher while raising a large family?Margot has preserved the history of her parents’ dramatic lives beyond what she observed in her own lifetime. Fasten your seat belts, hold on tight and enjoy the ride through A WWII Saga and If Trees Could Talk!

Lucky-number-seven of nine children, Margot McMahon discovered their front acre of woods, ravines and the Lake Michigan shoreline before riding horses in prairies, hiking mountains and sailing while her social justice journalist parents wrote and painted their history. Natural materials like wood, sand, bronze and stone inspired her to sculpt while being locally, nationally and internationally awarded. Margot was compelled to find and tell their untold story to better understand herself as she emerged from a flock of artistic siblings. Growing up in this hectic and artistic family, young Margot was unaware of her parents’ history: Who knew her father was captive and force-marched between three POW Luftwaffe camps? That her mother flew across the nation in first generation Boeing planes, later finding ways to be an award-winning travel writer and teacher while raising a large family? Margot has preserved the history of her parents’ dramatic lives beyond what she observed in her own lifetime. Fasten your seat belts, hold on tight and enjoy the ride through A WWII Saga and If Trees Could Talk!

Margot McMahon: Preserving Legacy Through Art

Judy Lipson

Judy Lipson is the Founder and Chair of Celebration of Sisters, established in 2011 to commemorate the lives and memories of her beloved sisters to benefit Massachusetts General Hospital. Judy has published articles, given speeches and been interviewed by the Open to Hope Organization, the Centering Organization, SKATING Magazine, and in literature published by Massachusetts General Hospital, where she has maintained a close philanthropic relationship for more than twenty years. Her passion for figure skating secured her the United States Figure Skating Association 2020 Get Up Champion Award.

Judy Lipson: It’s Never Too Late to Grieve

Willa Goodfellow

As an Episcopal priest, Willa Goodfellow’s ministry included work with troubled teens, college students, congregations in transition, diocesan structures to develop spiritual leadership within local communities, and advocacy for the full inclusion of LGBTQ people. She was a professional troublemaker.Life-long depression caught up with her in her fifties. Her poor pitiful brain nearly threw itself over the edge as a consequence of a major depression misdiagnosis and treatment with way too many antidepressants, until she was re-diagnosed with bipolar disorder and began her road to recovery. But hey—she got some great rants out of the experience and went freelance as a troublemaker. She is now a mental health journalist, speaker, blogger, and author of Prozac Monologues: A Voice from the Edge.

As an Episcopal priest, Willa Goodfellow’s ministry included work with troubled teens, college students, congregations in transition, diocesan structures to develop spiritual leadership within local communities, and advocacy for the full inclusion of LGBTQ people. She was a professional troublemaker. Life-long depression caught up with her in her fifties. Her poor pitiful brain nearly threw itself over the edge as a consequence of a major depression misdiagnosis and treatment with way too many antidepressants, until she was re-diagnosed with bipolar disorder and began her road to recovery. But hey—she got some great rants out of the experience and went freelance as a troublemaker. She is now a mental health journalist, speaker, blogger, and author of Prozac Monologues: A Voice from the Edge.

Willa Goodfellow: A Voice from the Edge

Stephen Dexter

Stephen Dexter is an actor, writer, audiobook narrator, and activist based in New York City whose work can be seen on both stage and screen. He has appeared on Off-Broadway and International stages and is a lifetime member of the legendary Actors Studio. He has worked steadily in film and TV, most recently appearing on "Evil" on Paramount Plus, "Dr. Death" on NBC Peacock, and "Billions" on Showtime. He is also an award-winning audiobook narrator with over 200 titles to his credit. His most recent film "American Morning", which he wrote, produced and stars in alongside Emmy-winner Richard Schiff ("The West Wing", "The Good Doctor"), deals with the aftermath of a school shooting and the desperate measures a survivor resorts to to reconcile his guilt and affect change. The film is currently on the festival circuit and has been lauded both here and abroad receiving a Spirit Of Cinema nomination and Special Mention for Best Short Film at the venerable Oldenburg Film Festival in Germany.

Stephen Dexter: American Morning

Laura Davis

As the co-author, with Ellen Bass, of the iconic and groundbreaking book The Courage to Heal Laura Davis rode the hurricane-force that was unleashed by empowering women to talk about surviving sexual abuse, while also being catapulted to fame for the worst thing that had ever happened to her. In her new memoir, The Burning Light of Two Stars: A Mother Daughter Story Laura reveals what it was like behind the force of that hurricane and tells the intimate story of her relationship with her mother, of whom she eventually became caretaker.

**EXTRA BLOOMS** with Laura Davis: The Burning Light of Two Stars

Damien Posey

In this Extra Blooms episode, we catch up with past MGP guest, Damien Posey, an award-winning Bay Area mentor, affectionately known as Uncle Damien to his community. When the coronavirus pandemic hit and other service organizations had to shut down, the most vulnerable took the brunt, and Damien stepped up what they do every day in a big way. Now, through his organization Us4UsBayArea Damien and his team work to provide health clinics, mentorship, food services, and entrepreneur training to help and inspire others to live healthy, happy, productive lives. There’s not a single term that describes what Damien—known as Uncle Damien, or “Unc” in his community—means to his beloved San Francisco Bay Area community. Perhaps his six-word biography says it best: “Once a monster, now a mentor.” As a low-income young man of color in the inner city, Damien chose an all too familiar path that led him to gunfire, crime, and ultimately incarceration. In jail, he realized he’d gotten there because of choices he’d made and that he could make different ones for himself, his daughter, and his community. Now he works to help others to avoid the path he took.Working in concert with existing organizations and resources, Damien has worked for decades to serve the young, the old, and the vulnerable in San Francisco. Regarding every young person as his “baby” and every adult as his sister or brother, Damien never stops doing all he can to serve his “family.”   Mayor London Breed awarded Damien the key to the city, and he holds the key to the hearts of many.

In this Extra Blooms episode, we catch up with past MGP guest, Damien Posey, an award-winning Bay Area mentor, affectionately known as Uncle Damien to his community. When the coronavirus pandemic hit and other service organizations had to shut down, the most vulnerable took the brunt, and Damien stepped up what they do every day in a big way. Now, through his organization Us4UsBayArea Damien and his team work to provide health clinics, mentorship, food services, and entrepreneur training to help and inspire others to live healthy, happy, productive lives. There’s not a single term that describes what Damien—known as Uncle Damien, or “Unc” in his community—means to his beloved San Francisco Bay Area community. Perhaps his six-word biography says it best: “Once a monster, now a mentor.” As a low-income young man of color in the inner city, Damien chose an all too familiar path that led him to gunfire, crime, and ultimately incarceration. In jail, he realized he’d gotten there because of choices he’d made and that he could make different ones for himself, his daughter, and his community. Now he works to help others to avoid the path he took. Working in concert with existing organizations and resources, Damien has worked for decades to serve the young, the old, and the vulnerable in San Francisco. Regarding every young person as his “baby” and every adult as his sister or brother, Damien never stops doing all he can to serve his “family.” Mayor London Breed awarded Damien the key to the city, and he holds the key to the hearts of many.

**EXTRA BLOOMS** with Damien Posey: Everybody is Family

Claire Hennessy

British-born Claire Hennessy is an award-winning storyteller, producer, podcaster (The Bonkers Brit) and author. She reconnected with her first boyfriend after not seeing him for 30 years and then uprooted her entire life in England and took her two kids to live in California to marry him. She then wrote a humorous memoir about her journey and is hoping to find an agent before she is too old to go on a book tour. She recently “came out” as a comedic storyteller, performing funny, true and often embarrassing stories around the San Francisco Bay Area. She started an online storytelling show at the start of the COVID-19 pandemic and co-produces Six Feet Apart Productions with longtime, successful comedian Regina Stoops. Together with her husband, Mark, they have produced over 40 online live storytelling shows. To top it off, Claire is the Morning Glory Project’s very first countess. We only hope she’ll let us borrow her tiara.

Claire Hennessy: The Art of Storytelling and a Bonkers Brit

Betsy is an engaged interviewer and her guests are interesting people who are giving back in big ways. This podcast is a welcome reprieve from the news podcasts I usually listen to and I applaud Betsy for sharing these stories of Morning Glory people. I’m loving the show!!

Thoughtful and inspiring

Betsy’s inquisitive and thoughtful questions make for wonderful listening! Each episode I’ve listened to has made me think more deeply about her guest and their lives as well as mine. It’s a rare gift, as well, to have such a beautiful spoken voice—confident and steady yet humble and kind. I love this podcast!!

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Best Episodes on Science, Humans & The World

The best philosophy podcast episodes. Asking questions about how to live a better life, what it means to be and do good, to the idea of God. This topic includes episodes that bring about important questions that everyone should be asking themselves. Add episodes you're interested into your queue below!