Found Family with MaryB. Safrit MaryB. Safrit

Today's episode is the story of an expert in all things story who is obsessed with helping you unearth your inner wisdom and connect with your people by teaching you to write your story. 
Allison Fallon (she/her) is an author, speaker, and founder of Find Your Voice, a community that supports anyone who wants to write anything. In addition to her books The Power of Writing It Down, Packing Light, and Indestructible, she has ghostwritten 11 books and has collaborated on countless others. Through Find Your Voice, she has helped leaders of multinational corporations, stay-at-home moms, Olympic gold medalists, recovering addicts, political figures, CEOs, and prison inmates use her methods as powerful tools to generate positive change in their lives. She has lived all over the country in the past decade but now lives in Nashville, Tenn., with her husband and two kids, Nella and Charlie. 
Ally and I discuss
Writing your story as a practice of personal developmentThe counterintuitive trick to writing resonantlyThe storytelling techniques that transform usRethinking what it means to be the "hero" of your story and so much more! You can follow Ally at allisonfallon.com. Write Your Story is out TODAY and available wherever you buy books. Follow her on Instagram @allyfallon. Listen to her podcast, Write Your Story, wherever you're listening to this one or anywhere else you might stream episodes. Additional resources can be found at findyourvoice.com and writeyourstory.com.
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Today's episode is the story of a woman who survived and escaped the Christian Patriarchy movement and created a new life of agency, advocacy, and unconditional love. 
Cait West is a writer and editor based in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Her work has been published in The Revealer, Religion Dispatches, Fourth Genre and Hawai`i Pacific Review, among others. As an advocate and a survivor of the Christian patriarchy movement, she serves on the editorial board for Tears of Eden, a nonprofit providing resources for survivors of spiritual abuse, and co-hosts the Survivors Discuss podcast.
In this episode, you'll hear Cait and I discuss: 
Detangling the perfectionism that patriarchy rewards Repairing the line between us and our anger Growing up within the Christian Patriarchy Movement — and un-forming its work in us Reconnecting ourselves with our agency—and building support systems that can help that thrive and more! Cait's story and perspective are compelling and compassionately told!
Rift is out today and available wherever books are sold! Follow Cait on social media @ caitwestwrites. You can read more of her work on her website, caitwest.com, and on her substack, caitwest.substack.com. 
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Today's episode is the story of a celibate gay man who finds family through committed friendship and embracing clarity and different convictions in the LGBTQ+ Christian community. 
Art Pereira (he/him) was born in Minas Gerais, Brazil, and immigrated to the United States at the age of four. Having navigated marginalization from a young age both as an immigrant and a gay man, Art has a heart for community-building across cultural divides. After earning a BS in Youth Ministry from Nyack College, Art spent the last ten years working in youth ministry, growing his own heart for discipleship and pastoral care. 
Art has spoken at Revoice conferences and several podcasts on the topics of sexuality, faith, and community. He currently resides in Bernardsville, NJ, where he shares an apartment with his chosen brother and 60+ houseplants.
In this episode, you'll hear Art and I discuss
How to navigate differences in conviction and theology with nuance and inclusivityMaking and keeping friends through life changesThe found family of immigrant churches Why we can retire from being the morality policeand trusting the Holy Spirit will do their thing with others. You can learn more about revoice and get your tickets to the June conference at revoice.org. Use code REVOICEPOD for $10 off your ticket. Follow @ revoiceorg on the 'gram for updates and encouragement, and follow @ art_per for pictures of coffee and plants. 
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Today's episode is the story of a 40-year-old intentional community in San Francisco, as told by a self-professed granny queer who's seen the LGBTQ Christian scene evolve since she came out in her thirties. 
Lin Melone (she/her) is a member of the Church of the Sojourners, an intentional Christian community in San Francisco, California. She has spoken at LGBTQ Christian conferences such as Q Christian Fellowship, Revoice, and E3, and presented workshops at children's ministry conferences on how to make churches more welcoming for LGBTQ youth and families. She also serves on the QCF EDI Advisory. She is the queer mom of a grown son from a former mixed-orientation marriage, and after retiring from a career as a Montessori teacher, she currently works for Catholic Charities in homelessness prevention.
In this episode, you'll hear Lin and I discuss 
Creating inclusive, empowering spaces for diverse beliefs, convictions, and experiences Tips for keeping your community from veering into cult territoryHow to structure a flexible community that works for its peopleand the importance of having non-negotiable and negotiable values--and knowing what yours are! You can learn more about Lin's church and community at churchofthesojourners.org. If you'd like to support Red Letter Christians, head to redletterchristians.org. Their Gaza Peace Pilgrimage has already happened, but Red Letter Christians and the organizations that also organized the pilgrimage are still active in calls for a ceasefire. Lin particularly recommends checking out and supporting Freedom Road. You can find ways to do so at freedomroad.us
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Welcome to our very first episode as Found Family! I can't think of a better conversation to kick things off. Today, I'm talking to Nia and Katie Chiaramonte.
Nia Chiaramonte holds a BA in psychology from the University of Northern Iowa and an MBA in Human Resources from Northwest Missouri State. She is currently the Executive Director of Human Resources for a non-profit near Washington DC. Nia spent the first thirty-five years of her life hiding in plain sight, scared to be who she is and scared of what it might cost her. While the cost has been high, the reward of being free has been worth it. She is cofounder of Love in the Face, an organization to help and support other transgender and LGBTQIA+ individuals on their own journeys of self-discovery.
Katie J. Chiaramonte holds a BA in family services from the University of Northern Iowa and is a sendee of The LivingSchool. In addition, she is a certified reproductive doula. After over fifteen years of formal and informal lay ministry in the Christian tradition, Katie has found that love has brought her out into a more spacious place where tradition melts away and all things connect in a wide and endless web
Y'all are going to love Nia and Katie. In this episode, you'll hear us talk about:
What is queer family, and how to embrace itNavigating the coming out journey with family and communityA nontoxic practice of forgiveness The generative synergy of queer community and creative community and more!!Thanks for listening! Embracing Queer Family is available wherever you buy books. Nia and Katie are on Instagram @finding.nia and @katiechiaramonte. You can listen to their podcast, Love in the Face wherever you get podcasts. Learn more about their work at loveintheface.com
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Many of us have been sold the idea that family is a matter of blood and legally binding agreements. But something in you knows that can't be all there is. But what is the alternative to the model we've been given? 
Welcome to Found Family. Every Tuesday, I have honest conversations with our dynamite guests, celebrating the creative ways they make community in their actual lives and providing tips about how you can do the same. 
Our first episode drops next Tuesday, so make sure to hit that follow button wherever you're listening so you don't miss any of the dynamite interviews we have coming up! That's all for now. Catch you on the flippity flop. 
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