S3 Ep. 17: Cormac

Cormac was born into a mother-and-baby home in Ireland, which was known to be exceptionally cruel to both mother and child. He was adopted at five months old. He's always known he was adopted but it was never spoken about. Ever. He did not look for his biological family until his adoptive parents died. He re-connected with his birth mother just before his fiftieth birthday. Sadly that didn't work out. He's just recently found out about his birth father, who is deceased. He found this podcast by chance and is devouring it daily. He would like to send his gratitude to Louise and Sarah for their brilliant and insightful podcast. Each episode just shouts out something he never knew but knew all along.

S3 Ep. 16: Shari

Shari was adopted at the age of four. She spent the first year in a hospital. Then went to several foster homes after that. When she met her adopted family, there was always an open conversation about her beginnings. She always knew her story from her past, so she never had many questions. Later on in life, she began a spiritual quest to heal from journey, as a young girl. This brought her to meet a spiritual teacher, and become a healer. This powerful work helped others as well and grounded Shari into a bigger version of herself. A true, successful, story of the wounded healer.

S3 Ep. 15: Greg

Greg was born California in 1969 and placed in a closed adoption as an infant after spending 6 weeks in foster care, which was a common practice with Baby Scoop Era adoptions. Growing up, he sensed a certain ill-fit with his family, and found out about his adoption when he was 10. In 2006, at age 37, he finally discovered and made contact with his biological maternal side, and has experienced all the attendant ups-and-downs that so often accompany reunion. He was able to connect with his paternal family in late 2021, and is currently navigating the landscape and complexities of those newly-emerging relationships. Since coming out of the fog in 2021, Greg has been an active member of the online and in-person adoptee communities.

S3 Ep. 14: Charity

Charity Elliott was born in 1969 and after spending 3.5 months in foster care was placed for adoption with the State of California. Growing up in Missouri, Charity was a happy adoptee and found great comfort in her faith and in the sport of basketball. After a collegiate career that ended with her team making it to the Final Four, Charity entered the college coaching ranks where she has spent the last 25 years. Despite being located and contacted by her birth mother in college, Charity never realized the impact her adoption had on her until she lost her adopted father and shortly after met her birth father for the first time. Over the last two years, the realization of the impact of her adoption has been brought to the forefront and she's been processing all the changes that have occurred in her life. Charity has been married to her best friend and most patient husband ever, Chris Elliott, for 24 years and is the proud "mama" to a Jack Russell named Daxton Prince and all of her current and former players. She is now in her 2nd year as the head women's basketball coach at Point Loma Nazarene University in San Diego, California.

S3 Ep. 13: Jim

Jim Serrano's origins as a domestic adoptee started on January 22nd, 1962 in San Jose, California. Being adopted at 6 months of age, his journey has had many ups and downs. From childhood to his search for his biological family 23 years ago, Jim continues to heal from the trauma that is still so present in his life.

S3 Ep. 12: Emily

Emily Sinagra was born and relinquished, in 1958, at a Salvation Army Hospital for Unwed Mothers. After four months of foster care, she was placed in a closed adoption. Thirty years later, she found her birth parents and has been trying to put herself back together ever since. Writing, theatre, improv, clowning, painting, these are the tools she wields to patch and paste. Her memoir, How I got Born, is nearing completion, and she hopes her voice will collaborate with others to change assumptions about adoption and provide impetus for change. Most importantly, she is the mother of three adult children and one granddaughter. Miracles, all. Emily presently lives in Portugal.

S3 Ep. 11: Adam

Adam Anthony is a same-race, black adoptee and blogger on the platform "Onward & Upward," which explores his motivation for persona development, mental health awareness, and his adoption discovery experience. Adam is a doctoral student, writer, and podcast host of two shows, "Curiously Becoming" and "Mentorship Mondays." Some of his featured writing on his perspectives on being an adoptee has been shown in online mediums like "Love What Matters" and "Severance Magazine."

S3 Ep. 10: Ruth

Ruth Bendig is a “Baby Scoop Era” domestic adoptee. The oldest of her adoptive

parents' three children, she and her brothers were all relinquished as infants and raised in the Midwest.

S3 Ep. 9: Garth

Given up at birth, placed in foster care, then adopted by a military family, Garth Garrett grew up always knowing he was adopted. He thought being adopted was no big deal - like being left-handed in a right-handed family and that his lingering sense of longing stemmed from the nomadic life of an Army brat. Only upon starting therapy in mid-life did he discover that adoption was actually the central issue of his life, including his own alienation from his own feelings. His multiple searches for each biological parent yielded information, more heartbreak, two more rejections by his biological mother, and ultimately a deep, happy connection with his biological sisters and a renewed sense of family with his adoptive sisters. Garth recently retired after 31 years with L.A. Metro.

S3 Ep. 8: Daphne

Daphne Keys is a BSE adoptee born and raised in Maryland as the middle child between two brothers who are the biological children of her adoptive parents. Daphne always knew she was adopted, had access to the minimal non-identifying information provided at her adoption hearing, and always searched the faces of her community for a connection to her biological family.

S3, Ep. 7: Jon

In this episode, Sarah and Louise continue their Season Three with a discussion of their first adoptee memoir in a three-part series. They discuss "The Mistress's Daughter" by A.M. Homes. Then they speak with Jon Stautzenberger.

S3, Ep. 6: Amy

In this episode, Sarah and Louise continue their Season Three with a discussion of their first adoptee memoir in a three-part series. They discuss "The Mistress's Daughter" by A.M. Homes. Then they speak with Amy Hansen.

S3, Ep. 5: Daryn

In this episode, Sarah and Louise continue their Season Three with a discussion of their first adoptee memoir in a three-part series. They discuss "The Mistress's Daughter" by A.M. Homes. Then they speak with Daryn Watson.

S3, Ep. 4: Laurie

In this episode, Sarah and Louise continue their Season Three with a discussion of their first adoptee memoir in a three-part series. They discuss "The Mistress's Daughter" by A.M. Homes. Then they speak with Laurie James.

S3, Ep. 3: Danielle

In this episode, Sarah and Louise continue their Season Three with a discussion of their first adoptee memoir in a three-part series. They discuss "The Mistress's Daughter" by A.M. Homes. Then they speak with Danielle Gaudette.

S3, Ep. 2: Koko

In this episode, Sarah and Louise continue their Season Three with a discussion of their first adoptee memoir in a three-part series. They discuss "The Mistress's Daughter" by A.M. Homes. Then they speak with Nikole Shaw.

S3, Ep. 1: Bob

In this episode, Sarah and Louise start off their Season Three with a discussion of their first adoptee memoir in a three-part series. They discuss "The Mistress's Daughter" by A.M. Homes. Then they speak with Bob Guyer.

S2, Ep. 18: Lisa

In this episode, Sarah and Louise discuss the conclusion of “Journey of the Adopted Self” by Betty Jean Lifton, and then they speak with Lisa King.

S2, Ep. 17: A.M.

In this episode, Sarah and Louise discuss Chapter Seventeen of “Journey of the Adopted Self” by Betty Jean Lifton, and then they speak with A.M. Homes.

S2, Ep. 16: Ruth

In this episode, Sarah and Louise discuss Chapter Sixteen of “Journey of the Adopted Self” by Betty Jean Lifton, and then they speak with Lynn Grubb.