The Journey of My Mother's Son

Dan Clouser

My name is Dan Clouser. I am a podcast host, author and a speaker. I founded and ran a nonprofit youth sports organization for 30 years called the Berkshire Baseball & Softball Club, which later became the BIG Vision Foundation. We ran teams, tournaments and a 130 acre sports complex. I loved every second of what I did. I loved working with kids and teaching them leadership skills and life lessons through sports and community service. I thought that I would have died doing what I loved. Then in 2019, I felt a calling from God for my wife, Sandy, and I. We decided to leave our comfort zone and start a new journey. A literal journey, selling most of our material things and setting out across this beautiful country in an RV with our golden retriever, Youkilis. Sounds crazy, but it was also destined to happen. You see I was raised by a hippy named Loretta Magary, she was a free spirit who quit her job and embarked on her own journey in the mid-1980's. Her journey started in a 1967 Plymouth Valiant with the back seat removed to make a bed and a .38 Special for protection. She later evolved into a 1978 Toyota camper. After she passed away in 2005, we were able to experience a small part of her journey by going through her old photos and letters. The people that she met along the way were amazing. I'll be conducting speaking engagements and writing more books on our travels. More importantly, this is our chance to continue my mother's legacy of giving back through volunteering. We will tell the stories of the people that we meet along the way through this podcast, blogging, and social media. This is truly "The Journey of My Mother's Son" and as Michael Franti says in the opening verse of his song, "Gloria," "When many little people in many little places, Do many little things, then the whole world changes." It will be our job to share and tell the stories of those "Many Little People" through this podcast and my writing. Some of the people that we interview may be famous, most will not be, but they'll all have a story to tell about the difference they're making. Some stories will still have a sports theme, others spiritual, some will be about music, others about food, some will talk about travel, but all will be about the many little people, in the many little places who are doing the many little things to make the whole world change. We pray that you enjoy these stories and are inspired to do your own little things to make this world a better place for all of us.

  1. Making Adjustments - Dan Clouser (A Monologue)

    08/15/2025

    Making Adjustments - Dan Clouser (A Monologue)

    In this episode of the Journey of My Mother's Son podcast, we return from a one month hiatus with a monologue. Today marks five years that we have been traveling full-time in our RV.  It also marks the first time in the history of the Journey of My Mother's Son podcast that an entire month passed without an episode being released.  Why the break?  Well, many of you know that Sandy had been in the hospital for eight days back in July.  I you missed that, you can read the details about us looking forward to Brighter Days by clicking this link. One of the things that I talk about in this return episode is our need as humans to be able to make adjustments when life throws us a curve ball.  That's what Sandy and I had to do last month.  We planning on kicking off the presale campaign for my newest book, A Good Boy's Journey on my birthday and the book was initially slated to be released today.  Obviously, that didn't happen.  Instead, we spent my birthday with Sandy getting a kidney biopsy, so we made some adjustments.  The presale campaign kicked off later than expected and the publication date will be later this month, but that's ok, we made the adjustment.  Sandy's health was the priority and still is. Just remember in your own life, when life throws you those curve balls, you just have to bear down and make the adjustment. If you're interested in purchasing a copy of my newest book in the the presale campaign, be sure to do so now by clicking on the link below: A Good Boy's Journey Presale Campaign

    7 min
  2. Teri M. Brown – Lessons from a Double-Butted Adventure

    06/20/2025

    Teri M. Brown – Lessons from a Double-Butted Adventure

    In this episode of the Journey of My Mother's Son podcast, I talk with Teri M. Brown. Born in Athens, Greece as an Air Force brat, Teri M. Brown came into this world with an imagination full of stories to tell. She now calls the North Carolina coast home, and the peaceful nature of the sea has been a great source of inspiration for her creativity. Not letting 2020 get the best of her, Teri chose to go on an adventure that changed her outlook on life. She and her husband, Bruce, rode a tandem bicycle across the United States from Astoria, Oregon to Washington DC, successfully raising money for Toys for Tots. She learned she is stronger than she realized and capable of anything she sets her mind to. Teri graduated from UNC Greensboro with a multitude of degrees – majors in Elementary Education and Psychology and minors in Math and Sociology – she just couldn't settle on one thing! While homeschooling her four children, she began her writing career by focusing on small businesses, writing articles, blog posts, and website content. During this time, Teri published five nonfiction self-help books dealing with real estate and finance, receiving "First Runner Up" in the Eric Hoffman Book Awards for 301 Simple Things You Can Do To Sell Your Home Now, finalist in the USA Best Books Awards for How To Open and Operate a Financially Successful Redesign, Redecorate, and Real Estate Staging Business and for 301 Simple Things You Can Do To Sell Your Home Now, and Honorable Mention in Foreword Magazine's Book of the Year Award for Private Mortgage Investing. In 2017, after finally getting out of an emotionally abusive 14-year marriage, Teri began dabbling in fiction, a lifelong dream. Upon winning the First Annual Anita Bloom Ornoff Award for Inspirational Short Story for a piece about her grandfather, she began writing in earnest, and published her debut novel in 2022, Sunflowers Beneath the Snow, a historical fiction set in Ukraine. Her second novel published in 2023, An Enemy Like Me, takes place during WWII. Her latest novel, Daughters of Green Mountain Gap, a generational story about Appalachian healers came out in January 2024. In June 2024, her short story, The Youngest Lighthouse Keeper, came out in the anthology Feisty Deeds: Historical Fictions of Daring Women. Her latest book, 10 Little Rules for a Double-Butted Adventure (Feb 2025), is an inspirational look at the life lessons she learned riding across the United States on a tandem bicycle. In April, her first children's book, Little Lola and Her Big Dream launched. Teri is a wife, mother, grandmother, and author who loves word games, reading, bumming on the beach, taking photos, singing in the shower, hunting for bargains, ballroom dancing, playing bridge, and mentoring others – especially youth and women who are having trouble discovering their worth. To find out more about Teri, you can check out her website at https://terimbrown.com/.

    40 min
  3. Christian Ray Flores – Live to Give

    06/06/2025

    Christian Ray Flores – Live to Give

    In this episode of the Journey of My Mother's Son podcast, I talk with Christian Ray Flores. Christian was born in Moscow, Russia to a Chilean father and a Russian mother. The family moved to Chile when Christian was nine months old. During the 1973 military coup of Augusto Pinochet, Christian's father, Americo Flores, was arrested along with thousands of others and spent time in one of the infamous concentration camps. His mother Larisa and two children went into hiding under an assumed name and with a fake Argentinian passport. After Americo's release, the family spent some time in a UN refugee camp and was granted asylum in Germany, moving to Munich. After living in Germany and Russia, Americo and Larisa moved to Mozambique, at the government's invitation, which was recruiting international professionals after a mass exodus of Portuguese upon the nation's independence. Christian learned four languages by age nine: Russian, Spanish, English, and Portuguese. After his parents' divorce, Christian returned to Russia with his mother and sister in 1983. Christian got a master's degree in economics in 1991 from the RUDN University in Moscow. In 1993, Christian released his first single in Russia and became an instant success, winning awards like Generation '93 and Ovation in 1996 and playing nationwide. Back-to-back top ten hits culminated in his number one single, "Our Generation" – an anthem of freedom and change. It became a song widely used as the anthem of Boris Yeltsin's election campaign. Christian campaigned for Yeltsin as part of the Russian version of Rock the Vote, credited to giving Yeltsin the youth vote and victory in the campaign. After moving to the US in 2004, Christian worked for the international charity HOPE Worldwide, serving as a country director for Latin America, focusing on health care and education in nine different countries. He also developed and directed the Positive Choice education program, implemented around the US and internationally in Mexico, Jamaica, Indonesia. Christian co-founded a production company, Hollywood World, in Los Angeles with his wife, Deb de Flores. Hollywood World allowed international artists to work with top Hollywood producers and directors. Among other projects, Christian did voice acting for the English and Spanish versions of Masha and the Bear, a popular animated TV series. After moving to Austin, Texas, Christian and Deb co-founded (with Brandon Knicely) Third Drive, raising millions of dollars for startups and creating digital media projects for emerging businesses, public personalities and non-profit organizations. Christian speaks to audiences in the US and internationally, hosts the Headspace with Christian Ray Flores podcast and YouTube Channel dedicated to success in career and calling Headapace newsletter. His short film Dance With Me was selected to several international film festivals, and its title song was released on all major music platforms. In the first days of the war in Ukraine, the Ascend Mission Fund launched the Ukraine Relief Network, serving refugees in Ukraine. Christian and Deb personally visited Ukraine in September 2022. In 2022, Christian and Deb launched the Xponential career coaching program for high achievers. Christian and Deb have been active in Christian ministry in the US, Eastern Europe, and Latin America for two decades. They lead The Tribe, a community of faith in Austin, Texas. Ray frequently speaks to different audiences in the US and overseas. They are also active in philanthropy through their charity Ascend Mission Fund and projects like the Ascend Academy in Mozambique that lifts children out of poverty through developing character, communication, and computer skills. To find out more about Christian, you can check out his website at https://www.christianrayflores.com/.

    46 min
  4. Santo D. Marabella – Il Mio Posto a Tavola

    05/30/2025

    Santo D. Marabella – Il Mio Posto a Tavola

    In this episode of the Journey of My Mother's Son podcast, I talk with Santo Marabella. I was honored to have the opportunity to have my old friend from Berks County, Santo, on my show.  We have been friends for over fifteen years now.  We first got to know each other when we both served on the board of the Berks County Visitors Bureau and through volunteering with the Reading Filmfest.  However, I never really knew Santo's story of how he arrived in the United States until recently.  It is an incredible story, and again, I feel honored to be able to give Santo a place at my table, and help tell a little bit of his story on my show. Santo D. Marabella, MBA, DSW, The Practical Prof® is an author, playwright, filmmaker, speaker and educator with writing, directing and producing credits for books, television pilots, a musical, short films and plays. He is the co-founder ReadingFilmFEST and the ReadingFilm Office, for which he served as ReadingFilm Commissioner (2006-2018). Recent projects include writer/director of the play Rocky Road Ain't Always Sweet, (2024). producer, AVA (2023); producer, FLASHLIGHT (2023); director/co-producer, workshop for Love Is Afoot!, an original musical (2023); writer/producer/director, THE CAREGIVER (2022). Marabella, Professor Emeritus of Management, Moravian University, is a member of The Lambs®, The Dramatists Guild of America and Theatre Communications Group. His newest film, Il Mio Posto a Tavola (My Place at the Table) is a first-person documentary which examines our universal need to belong, as seen through the heart of the filmmaker. Born in a Catholic orphanage in Aosta, Italy, and flown to the United States just one week shy of his first birthday, Santo D. Marabella was one of over 3700 Italian born children adopted by Italian American parents between 1951 and 1969. Known as the "Baby Scoop" era, tens of thousands of Italian unwed mothers were forced to give their children up for adoption, leaving behind generations of children devastated by their perceived abandonment. Though he was the treasured only child of his adoptive parents, Santo was bullied by his peers and struggled from an early age to fit in and connect with others. Growing up, the realization that he was gay further deepened this isolation, straining his relationship with the Church to which he was so dedicated and the parents he so loved. Despite self-doubt and fear, he refused to be stopped. He tried harder and achieved more, carving out a life as a caregiver, educator, writer and artist. But he was still on the outside. In this journey to belonging, Santo returns to Italy to find his place at the table (posto a tavola) To find out more about the film, check out its website at https://ilmiopostofilm.com/.

    51 min
5
out of 5
34 Ratings

About

My name is Dan Clouser. I am a podcast host, author and a speaker. I founded and ran a nonprofit youth sports organization for 30 years called the Berkshire Baseball & Softball Club, which later became the BIG Vision Foundation. We ran teams, tournaments and a 130 acre sports complex. I loved every second of what I did. I loved working with kids and teaching them leadership skills and life lessons through sports and community service. I thought that I would have died doing what I loved. Then in 2019, I felt a calling from God for my wife, Sandy, and I. We decided to leave our comfort zone and start a new journey. A literal journey, selling most of our material things and setting out across this beautiful country in an RV with our golden retriever, Youkilis. Sounds crazy, but it was also destined to happen. You see I was raised by a hippy named Loretta Magary, she was a free spirit who quit her job and embarked on her own journey in the mid-1980's. Her journey started in a 1967 Plymouth Valiant with the back seat removed to make a bed and a .38 Special for protection. She later evolved into a 1978 Toyota camper. After she passed away in 2005, we were able to experience a small part of her journey by going through her old photos and letters. The people that she met along the way were amazing. I'll be conducting speaking engagements and writing more books on our travels. More importantly, this is our chance to continue my mother's legacy of giving back through volunteering. We will tell the stories of the people that we meet along the way through this podcast, blogging, and social media. This is truly "The Journey of My Mother's Son" and as Michael Franti says in the opening verse of his song, "Gloria," "When many little people in many little places, Do many little things, then the whole world changes." It will be our job to share and tell the stories of those "Many Little People" through this podcast and my writing. Some of the people that we interview may be famous, most will not be, but they'll all have a story to tell about the difference they're making. Some stories will still have a sports theme, others spiritual, some will be about music, others about food, some will talk about travel, but all will be about the many little people, in the many little places who are doing the many little things to make the whole world change. We pray that you enjoy these stories and are inspired to do your own little things to make this world a better place for all of us.