Dare to Dream

In this episode, I sit down with Susan, founder of a national foster care nonprofit now operating 18 chapters across 13 states, serving over 3,000 kids every month. But we don't spend the episode talking statistics. Instead, we go deep on the woman behind the mission.

Susan grew up in Corpus Christi in a 1,200-square-foot home that was always full of people — cousins, friends, neighbors — shaped by a mom with an open-door policy and a dad who worked two or three jobs and handed her a $100 bill at 18 and said, "Figure it out." She did exactly that — driving herself to Austin with a road map, working as a personal trainer and cocktail waitress, putting herself through school, and spending eight years in real estate chasing money that never quite filled the right hole.

The turning point came at a foster care conference, where a judge told the story of two boys who moved through the system — one who aged out into hopelessness, one who found a family — and said the difference often comes down to one person choosing to show up. Susan left that room knowing her life was supposed to go a different direction.

We talk about the massive leap of faith it took to leave her corporate career, the four-year battle to bring a foster care community center to life — complete with her own "almost quit" moment and the answered prayer that came just hours later — and her bold vision to reach every foster child and every foster family in the country by 2050.

We also get into her faith, her favorite scriptures ("Be still and know that I am God" and Peter walking on water), what laughter means to her, and why getting older has made her more grateful, more present, and more willing to savor the moment.

This one is rich. Don't miss it.

Also: we're both Enneagram 8s, we both love the desert, and we've apparently already had half of this conversation at a baseball field. Come meet Susan.

Link to Austin Angels

Link to Walking On Sunshine

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:00

Welcome back to the show, and I'm so glad you're here as we close out Foster Care Awareness Month. My guest today is Susan Ramirez, founder and CEO of Austin Angels, a wife, a boy mom, baseball bleacher, aficionado, and a self-described faithwalker. Since launching Austin Angels in 2010, Susan has grown the organization from a grassroots initiative into a national movement with 18 chapters across 13 states, a staff of 123 members, and thousands of volunteers. She and her team have created two signature programs, the Love Box and Dare to Dream mentorship program, designed to provide consistent relational and practical support to children and youth and foster caregivers. Her bold vision to reach every child and youth experiencing foster care by the year 2050 is something to be amazed by. We've been cheering side by side in the bleachers for a while. And today I finally got down to sit with her and ask her all the questions I've been wondering about. Not just about her organization, but about her. We are talking about the woman behind it all, not stats. Where she came from, what broke her open, and what keeps her going. I think you're going to love her just as much as I do. So let's get into it. Looking forward to this. So thank you for making the time. I'm so happy to be here with you. Yes. And just to get to know you better. I know we've known each other for a while. The listeners don't know that, but we've known each other for probably a year now. Started back in All-Stars last spring. We have done a lot of bleacher together and a lot of baseball watching. A lot of baseball watching. You get so close with baseball. I love baseball for that relation. I did that was one thing that surprised me with baseball, being a baseball mom, just how relational it is. It can be.

SPEAKER_03 2:22

Yes. You know, like it really can be.

SPEAKER_00 2:24

We got lucky because we had the best team and the best set of parents.

SPEAKER_03 2:28

And then when they leave, you get so much. I know, I know. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 2:32

It's hard when people, yeah, go on to other teams. But yes, well, thank you again. And I know you've done a lot of interviews and get asked probably a lot of questions about your nonprofit and your work. But I wanted just to take a different angle because I like to get to know the people really more intimately and what they were like as kids and just kind of what makes them tick. And so I'd like to start to know like where did you grow up and how did it shape you? So I grew up in Corpus Christi.

SPEAKER_04 3:01

Um, my mom and my dad uh two brothers, uh, but it was always an extension and an open door in our home. And I think that's where the love of people really came from was my mom just had a spirit of generosity and hospitality. And so we had my older brothers' friends uh lived with us, I had cousins live with us, and so we grew up in a pretty small home. It was 1200 square feet, but it was always packed with kids. And mom just kind of had an open door policy of lots of people, lots of love. Mom stayed at home, dad worked full-time, two, sometimes three jobs to provide for our family. And I think corpus didn't shape me, but certainly the environment in which I grew up did and impacted me as the mother that I am. And um, you know, I think I'm split pretty equally between my mom and my dad. So my dad was career and driven and motivated uh in terms of contribution and um had a mentality of working hard, and that really resonates. And also my mom was nurturing and caring and soft and had so much abundance of love. Yeah, and I am definitely like my mom. So I say I'm split 50-50, and it was a great childhood. I'm very lucky, and working in the place of brokenness and homes makes me realize just how good I really had it. Um, and my parents are still married, and uh, it's a great blessing of my life to watch two people commit to each other for as long as they have. They started dating when they were 13 years old.

SPEAKER_00 4:45

Oh my gosh.

SPEAKER_04 4:46

Uh yes, I didn't know that. Yes, yeah, so they they have been together virtually their own. I know. I cannot even imagine them finding their mate for life. But yeah, um, just such a great teacher for me about what it means to fight for things that you really care about. And my dad was an incredibly good man, and my mom was a good woman, and so their marriage wasn't perfect, but you had two people that loved each other.

SPEAKER_00 5:18

So yeah. Oh, I love that story, and I can definitely see that in you, Susan, just from getting to know you and your parents because of baseball. They show up, they buy all the kids ice cream. Yes, that generosity still is happening to this day to the next generation, yes, and yeah, the value of hard work because you are a hard working woman. Yes, oh, and I can see that from your dad and just your mom's joy too. She's just so joyful, she's just like a hug. She's just like a warm hug.

SPEAKER_04 5:49

Oh, she's gonna love to hear that.

SPEAKER_00 5:51

She is whenever I see her and she remembers. She remembers things. She remembers I had upset and tummy stuff, and she just remembers things about Otis and his brothers, and yeah.

SPEAKER_02 6:03

She deeply cares about people. You get that, you know, like deeply cares about people.

SPEAKER_00 6:09

Yeah, and you get that from her. I can see that in you. Yeah, so that's yeah, good story, good upbringing. I'm just curious, what did you want to be when you were a kid? When you were like out there growing up with this family and people coming in and out and just seeing all this love.

SPEAKER_04 6:25

Yeah, you know, I didn't I didn't have a strong point of view about what my future was going to look like. So interestingly enough, when I was in the third grade, I was diagnosed with a learning disability and had a learning disability, and you know, I don't know, I have not been retested as an adult, but really struggled academically from third grade all the way through and had a stigma kind of labeled on me and really felt like I was not smart. And it wasn't until I went to college. So while my dad was an extreme hard worker and we did not have a lot of extra financial support when we turned 18 years old. I remember my dad took me to the bank and he gave me a hundred dollar bill and said, Susan, this is all the money that I'll ever give you. Um, so you will have to figure out how to make it in life. And I remember literally going to the bank after I'd graduated from high school, having him pull a $100 bill for me. And I had a little bit from high school graduation, yeah. And I got out a roadmap and figured out how to get to Austin. And my best friend at the time was going to UT, uh summer provisional program to get in. And she had a one-bedroom apartment, and I wasn't sure about what my future was going to look like, but I wanted to be with my best friend. And so she was like, You should come move in with me, and you can start at ACC. And so I literally took the $100 bill, got out a roadmap, uh, drove to Austin and never turned back and worked two and three jobs, putting myself through school, eventually uh transferring to UTSA. But I would say that I wasn't a kid that had a strong point of view about what my future was going to look like. As I was navigating college, though, I had a girlfriend at the time who had a lot of influence in my life because she was a few years older than me. She was in real estate, was doing exceptionally well, making a lot of money. And I didn't grow up with money, and I certainly wasn't making any money, working two jobs. I was a personal trainer and a cocktail waitress. And so I certainly didn't have a vision of what my life was going to look like, but money sounded good. And so right after college, I started selling homes for a builder because that's what she had done. And I did that for eight years. And what I realized pretty quickly during that experience was that I was chasing money, but what I felt like in my life was that it was always intended to make an impact. And selling and closing homes, well, some colleagues really felt like, wow, I'm making a big difference for me. I just don't believe that was the calling on my life. So the only reason why I was there was because I was chasing the dollar. And no matter how high I climbed on the proverbial corporate ladder and made more and more money, it never really felt like that's what I was supposed to do with my life. And so, nor did I have a vision to start a nonprofit and certainly not a national nonprofit.

SPEAKER_00 9:28

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 9:28

And it's interesting because some people will say, like, you're such a visionary leader. And I really wrestle with that. Now, today I have very strong vision and direction about where we're going to go with our company. Absolutely. Very strong. But I would never say that as a kid or even a young person or even really navigating and starting out in the nonprofit space. I had no vision for what we were doing. What I did have was this obedience and knowing a knowing that my life was intended for impact, knowing that what I was doing was not. Yeah. And then kind of stepping into this service world and leaning into this space and be like, oh, this is where God wants me, you know?

SPEAKER_00 10:09

Right. What do you think was that spark that turned that that gave you that vision? It just almost like took the veil away and you could see clearly now what that direction, that purpose was.

SPEAKER_04 10:20

It was an absolute crystal clear moment for me. So I had sold a home to a CPS worker, and I was really wrestling with what I believe I'm doing, I'm not supposed to do, but who am I to walk away from a career that's this uh this good? Right. The comfort of a 401k and a paycheck and insurance to step away from that meant that I was gonna have to make some really bold and brave decisions. And how could I do that when I struggled financially my whole life? Felt um not responsible. And at that time, uh I had already had my first son. So little one at home. Yeah. Um, and so anyway, so I sold a home to a CPS worker, and this worker took me to a conference, and it was a conference on foster care and adoption, and I always felt like my life that adoption was gonna play some role. Foster care, no. Uh, I was like, who in their right mind can take kids into their home and then possibly have them leave? And that was a very myopic point of view at that time, making it about me, and that's exactly what the CPS worker said to me. She said, I want you to go in and listen to this judge speak on foster care. And I said, No, no, I'm not built that way. I don't know how to let kids come into my home and have them leave. And she softly and kindly said, Well, you know, foster care isn't about you. And wouldn't it be nice for somebody like you to open up your home to a kid who really needs it? And I was like, Yeah, you're right. I am making this about me. Yes, I will go in and sit and listen. And I went in not knowing the statistics around kids that navigate this really complicated system. And this judge completely changed my life. And and one thing that he said was, not everybody's called to foster or adopt, but everyone can play a role and make a difference in a child's life. And those words really resonated with me. And the judge had told a story about two little boys that had come in and out of his courtroom. Oh one little boy who ended up taking his own life at 18 years old had been in 23 different placements. Um, and the other little boy who was adopted at 18 years old, and he said, you know, there there can be hope and redemption. What's missing is in the foster care space is that we need to have people that may not be called to foster but can walk alongside and do something. And I left that conference. It is as if God said to me in that moment uh a veil was removed, an awakening of sorts that perhaps I could help do something that helps change the experience of foster care. And I was so heartbroken that a young person who navigated so much hardship that that would be what they would do at 18, aging out, that they felt like they had no hope and that they had nobody. And so I wanted to make a difference and I set out from that point moving forward and just feel like I am 100% in the place where God wants me to be. And also feel so humbled and honored that God doesn't need me to do this work, and I'm just so grateful that I get to do this work. Yesterday I was walking through our foster care community center. We're about 45 days out from it being close. It's so close. And I was just walking through there and I was just crying because I I'm like, I mean, I can't believe that God allows me to do this work. It's the greatest honor of my life that we can take volunteers who want to do something. You know, I believe that people are inherently good and they want a way in which to give back. And that's what our program does. It's that, you know, we allow people to make a difference in other people's lives, and we just so happen to do it in the foster care space. Um, but now so clearly know that this is where God has me until I'm no longer the right leader. He'll call me to do something else. But for right now, I just feel so humbled and honored and also aggressively passionate about the vision that I believe was placed on my heart, which is to reach every child experiencing foster care in every family who fosters. So while I didn't have vision when I was younger, I certainly have a bold, audacious goal and vision now, and that is by 2050, we want every family and every kid in the country in our program. So we started it here in Austin in 2010. Yes. I quit uh my corporate career in 2015. Okay, and so we're 11 years in full time, and we have 18 chapters in 13 states, 127 employees serving 3,000 kids on a monthly basis. And we praise God for that, and also know that there are so many kids and families who are unreached. And so I think the passion is that we just don't stop until everyone is in our program because we know that um you know people don't do community anymore. And that's really what our program does is establishes relationships because that's the only thing that can change foster care.

SPEAKER_00 15:09

Right. Uh just one person in a kid's life that can just completely set it off in that direction.

SPEAKER_04 15:15

Yeah, and families who are navigating the challenge of fostering, and and the challenge of, you know, what I have found is that there are so many good people who do this for the right and good reasons. I always have people say, Well, what about the families that are doing it for the wrong reasons? I've done this work for 16 years now, and I have yet to not just absolutely fall in love with a family. Um, because the majority of people want to do right and good by other human beings, but people are ill-equipped. I mean, this is hard work. This is the hardest work that people will ever do. And so I believe that those people need the emotional support, the financial support, um, and the gift of time. Because what we know is that foster families will close their home if they don't have that support, and that's the what perpetuates kids from moving from home to home to home to home. Right. So can we just support and love on so intentionally those who are called to foster so that we can help bridge the gap so that they can continue to do the work.

SPEAKER_00 16:16

Right. Keep it sustainable for them. Yeah. Because isn't it 50% are out within the first year? Yes. But still, yes, yeah.

SPEAKER_04 16:24

Not not great odds. Not great odds. Not great odds, yeah. And and you know, when I think, you know, most people if they hear about foster care, they're like, oh, that's somebody else's problem to solve, or I don't even know that I need to care about this issue.

SPEAKER_00 16:39

Right.

SPEAKER_04 16:39

So many people just don't understand foster care and don't understand that our prison, our homelessness, our human trafficking, all the big social issues that our country faces, if we just go upstream, right, what we know is that it starts at child welfare. So I just have so much hope and belief in people that we can change. It does not have to be this way, and we get to see it lived out every single day.

SPEAKER_00 17:06

Yes, yeah, you do. That's such beautiful stories and such good news. Yes that you're upbringing and hearing from that. Well, do you have I know that your spirituality is very near and dear in your faith in Christianity, and do you have a most memorable spiritual lesson that maybe a recent one or just one that sticks to you that you go to time and time again?

SPEAKER_04 17:30

Well, I don't know about time and time again, but I feel like I have led this organization with my palms facing right up, like God, you know, something that I pray for every single day is just like godly wisdom.

SPEAKER_01 17:42

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 17:42

To know what to do. This feels like a big role and a big responsibility, but I don't feel like I'm doing it on my own. And I feel like God has surrounded me with people time and time and time again to prove his faithfulness and his goodness, you know. I'll tell you something that just popped up as you were asking me that question. So this building was probably the biggest uh challenge that I have faced yet to date with uh you know the last 16 years, and that was because I believed that God wanted this, you know. Right. Um, but my goodness, was it difficult? Uh four years of challenging, could we could we actually get this building, could we not? We were fighting with the city uh because we were in a floodplain and the FEMA had done some regulation and and not just that, were we actually going to be able to raise the money uh to be able to see this? And I thought that I was gonna be like Moses in the promised land, that I would just be out there in the wilderness forever and ever and ever. That's what it felt like. Yeah, it felt like the calling was so big, and I was really questioning, are you sure you want this over and over and over again? And I had a girlfriend at the time who's on our board who just continued to speak truth in me. And, you know, when we were making the decision to purchase this building, it was bigger than anything that we had ever done before. I didn't quite know how big it was. And there was a lot of contention around this building, like maybe we shouldn't be doing this because it's so big from a revenue standpoint. Um, it felt so big, like maybe this is not what we should be doing. But I just had this vision, this wrestling, this knowing, and it could only be from God. Um, and wasn't sure if it was ever gonna get off the ground or not. But there was a time, and I'll just never forget this, but there was a time, and my girlfriend's name is Sarah, that I called her and I said, I think I want to quit. I I just think I think I I'm ready to pull back. This is just too hard. And she just said to me, you know, Susan, God never promised you that this was going to be easy. Um and so perhaps what we can do is we can just pray and ask him for a sign that we're on the right track. And I remember I was on the phone with her walking out in my neighborhood, working from home, and I was just such a mess over this and just thinking, I've I've made a mistake. And we prayed in that very moment and asked God for a sign. And I kid you not, like two hours later, I was in an interview with a woman, and right before we hung up with the interview, she said, Oh, Susan, one more thing. I just wanted to tell you that I went to your website and I was cruising around on the site, and I actually stumbled upon the foster care community center. And she said, I just have to tell you that I believe this is the smartest thing that I've ever seen, and went on and on and on and on and on.

SPEAKER_01 20:35

Oh my god.

SPEAKER_04 20:35

And I literally like ugly cried on the phone. And I was hanging up with her because I was just like, Thank you, God, I needed that sign. And I think in my weakness, in my flesh, like I'm like, this is too big, I want to give up. And my girlfriend just saying, like, hey, God never promised you that this was gonna be easy. And what you're asking, you got to be careful about what you're praying for, you know, because I was like, I just want it to be easy. Right. I that's what I want. Yeah, I would just want it to come to me. And I want the money to come, I want the barriers to be removed, and I just want this to be easy. And she said, That's not how this works. And I just think, like, guy, I needed somebody to remind me that God was good the whole way through. Yeah, but sometimes that means we're gonna have to go through a lot of hard to get there. And yesterday I was walking through the building and I had a former employee with me, and uh uh uh somebody that had come in for a training, and this former employee was now with a foundation that is still a part of our work. And she said, Oh my gosh, Susan, I can literally feel she said, When you presented the plans for us, I couldn't understand. I can't read blueprints, I couldn't understand the vision. And she said, But I can feel all these things that you're saying. I can feel it now because I'm inside this building. And I started to cry. And I was like, you know, I could feel that that feeling I knew before blueprints were even drawn. Yeah, I knew that from the moment that this building came from. Sale. I knew it. I had a belief, but my goodness wasn't challenged. And so now, you know, we're almost done with the building that will be a place of belonging for every person that walks through the doors. But I just think God's goodness and his grace is like the faithfulness of somebody who feels so convicted and a calling when I felt like nobody else around me had it. Nobody else saw the vision. Right. Only me. And I had to fight for it. Um, and so really humbled by the fact that sometimes God calls you to things that your spouse doesn't understand, your kids don't understand, a board maybe doesn't understand. My case, the board was fully, they fully were like, yes, we're with you. But you know, staff. Well, yeah, but I have I had staff that challenged this because it was so big.

SPEAKER_01 22:55

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 22:55

You know, and I think that's the thing about having faith and staying committed. But God also knew that I was weak and I needed somebody to help me see, you know. And so really humbled by the fact that God knew that I was not strong enough to do this on my own and needed people along the way.

SPEAKER_00 23:13

Right.

SPEAKER_04 23:14

You know, I think about the story in the Bible where Moses was holding the staff and he sent two guys to hold it with him because his arms weren't strong enough.

SPEAKER_00 23:24

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 23:24

Like Moses needed somebody to hold it with him.

SPEAKER_00 23:27

And it was like the new generation and the old too.

SPEAKER_04 23:31

Yeah. And and I felt like, man, I couldn't hold it anymore. But I had somebody willing to come and hold it with me, you know.

SPEAKER_01 23:38

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 23:39

And I think that's the reason why the building is as big and beautiful as it was always supposed to be, you know.

SPEAKER_00 23:47

Yeah. That's so special. And what a loving God that we have. Where you're sitting there and you're about to give up and you're at your end. And he comes in and gives you that little kiss, that little conversation just within a few hours of you crying out.

SPEAKER_04 24:00

Yes.

SPEAKER_00 24:01

Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. That's a good one. Very memorable. And that was another question I had. If you had a favorite go-to when you are in those times of travail and struggle, like a biblical story that you go to. So you mentioned Moses and the staff, but is there one that you kind of turn to?

SPEAKER_04 24:20

Well, I think something that I'm constantly reminded of of um is just be still and know that I'm God because I am a doer and I like to I I like to just take full control. Um, and so I think something that I just really lean on is like be still and know that I am God, that I am God of the universe, that I am God of the storehouses, that I can do more than you can ever imagine. And that is the story of my life, you know.

SPEAKER_00 24:51

Yeah, exceedingly and abundantly your wildest dreams.

SPEAKER_04 24:55

Yes. And I think, you know, scarcity is something it's interesting because people that are close to me would not say this about me, but scarcity is something that I have to fight. Like, can I do that? Well, of course, I can't do any of it, but he can, you know. And I just think that it's a reminder that none of it is really about your capability, yeah, but what he can do. And so I love that. I love the be still and know that I am God. It's my favorite scripture in the entire Bible, it's about surrender. And for somebody like me that is so convicted in the control and the outcomes, that is something that I really have to rely on.

SPEAKER_00 25:35

Relind yourself and go to.

SPEAKER_04 25:38

Another one I think um is when Peter walked on water. I I love that story so much. And in fact, when I was thinking about leaving my corporate career, I had gone to church and the pastor had talked about that sermon, and he said so poignantly, like, what is God calling you out of the boat to do, but you're too afraid, and maybe if you just keep your eyes fixated on him, you too could walk on water. And so I think you know, it's easy to be out in rough waters and take your eyes off Jesus and you begin to sink because things are scary and hard. Um, and so I feel like, you know, the story of my life is that I've just white-knuckled it. I've like looked at Jesus the whole way through, like, please don't let me go, please don't let me go, you know. Right. And so I can really resonate with that story too. But there's just so many stories, and I think the most beautiful part of the Bible is that over and over and over and over again, it's a showcase of God using people who were maybe not the smartest, maybe not the most capable, and can just do extraordinary things, and that we serve a loving, loving God who is gracious and good and came to save, not to judge, and just you know, I just think it's I think sometimes uh us Christians can really get it wrong. And I I just think what a beautiful invitation to offer Jesus to other people, you know. And I just think sometimes we really get the love of Jesus wrong and and the Bible wrong, you know.

SPEAKER_00 27:15

Right. Yeah, but he would say in Peter uh pure religion is taking care of the widows and the orphans. And if you're really pro-life, you know, after birth is where they need the support and yeah and full support of that whole family, community, that network of support, of love, yeah, abundant kindness and yes, and just this week I was talking to writer, my oldest, and read.

SPEAKER_04 27:43

We there was a sad thing that happened at school. One of the eighth graders had gotten into a go-kart accident and lost his life. Oh no, it was devastating, absolutely devastating. And so I was talking to writer and read about in the Bible where it says, Whatever you do for the least of these, you also do for me. And was talking about we don't know these people, we don't know the family. You didn't know the boy, but he went to your school. And what does it mean to show up for people, you know? And I love that too because I think that there can be so much judgment around and prejudice around. And I I love the idea of bringing people together in proximity because it's really hard, I think, to judge people if they don't look like you, talk like you, walk like you, vote like you, love like you, all these different things. Like it's really hard to have an idea of the other people when you're not close to them. And so one of the things I love about this work is that we get to bring people together to do life together in the most beautiful humanistic way. And I just think that it's just such a privilege and honor to get to do that. And every time we do that, it is doing it for the greater good of the kingdom, you know, and for what the Bible tells us about every time you're good to people, it's like you're good to him.

SPEAKER_00 29:04

And shouldn't we all be for the sacrifice that he made? Exactly. When he says whenever you've done it to Alistair, they see you've done it unto me. And you know, accepted someone, a stranger into your home and given someone food or a drink. That's right. And visiting the imprisonment, and visiting the imprisonment, yes, exactly. So and it's heavy work, but there's also the lighter side of things, and especially being around children, there's laughter and there's play, and that's what this community center is. That's right. Goal. That's right, that's right.

SPEAKER_04 29:41

To be a place of belonging and a place of play and fun. Yeah, and so yes, this work is hard, but I would say it's more hope-filled than it is hard.

SPEAKER_01 29:51

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 29:51

Um, getting to watch people transform their own lives and the lives of others is so beautiful. Yesterday I was on the phone call with somebody who contributes financially to our work, and he's a dear friend and a mentor, and um, he was talking about three years ago he was in the Love Box program, but he's still deeply connected with the family and has made a commitment to invest in these kids' lives forever. And I just think it's so beautiful. But I was on the phone with him uh talking about contribution because we're now in our phase two of our space, and I was like, we need to now focus on the outdoor space, and I don't want just any playground, I want the Taj Mahal of all playgrounds. I want it to feel like Disney World and I need a mascot, and all of these things cost money. And I now have this massive vision that we will follow the mascot rule like Disney, and that is that the mascot will hug you until you release, that the mascot's not allowed to release first. So if there's a hug, you know, yeah, and I'm like, and I'm gonna need about $250,000 to $500,000 in order to build my massive outdoor space. But yeah, play is so important, laughter is so important, hope is so important, belonging is so important, all of these things. So when we were designing the foster care community center, it was like, I don't want it to feel cold and sterile. I want it to feel like a coffee shop. I want it to feel like a home. We're gonna be offering free therapy for caregivers and a visitation site center. And I'm like, I'm like, these places should feel the warmth of a home. Uh, and so, you know, we were so lucky because God has just pulled the most amazing team of people together like just a couple of weeks ago. Um, I don't know if they want this publicized, so I'll not say their name, but one of the best furniture stores in Austin um has contributed $80,000 worth of furniture to our space. And it's not cheap stuff, it's the good quality, yeah, hospitality grade, really cool designed stuff. And, you know, we've just seen people over and over and over again come to make a space where when a kid walks in, they're like, wow, I want that to be the thing when they walk in, that they see their name on the screen, that they get to stop off in the kitchen and get a cookie or a snack, and that they get to be like this is their place, they belong. Oh, yeah, and for every family, you know, that they are celebrated.

SPEAKER_00 32:20

Kind of like how my mom did. Exactly. That's what I was thinking. Yeah, yeah. And even just to how you like after baseball games and stuff, invite everyone over from the team over to your home and a pool party and just come on over. Figure it out as we go. Yeah. Yeah. So what do you think laughter is? Like, what is laughter to you?

SPEAKER_04 32:38

Oh, the best medicine. Yeah. Yeah. I think laughter is so important. And I think, you know, we probably don't belly laugh enough. I think laughter is joy. I think it represents happiness. Um, and I just think that we each should do more of it, not take ourselves too seriously, you know. And it's like stop and smell the roses kind of thing. Like a check. When was the last time that I belly laughed? And if it's been over 30 days, well, we need to make a change.

SPEAKER_00 33:07

Exactly. Yeah, exactly. And it's so good, it gives your body oxygen, it's more oxygen to the brain. There's all of these things that happen in your body from laughter, yeah. And so healing, like medicine, yes, so many things. Yes. And I have always been intrigued. One of my favorite Bible stories was with Sarah, because I wanted children so bad, and Justin and I became parents. I was 42 when we had our first placement and became parents. And I was always just amazed how Sarah, when God told her she was gonna be a mother, she laughed. That was right first reaction. She laughed! Yeah, and then she named her son Laughter. Isaac's name means the one who made us laugh.

SPEAKER_04 33:50

Oh my gosh, I didn't realize that.

SPEAKER_00 33:52

Yeah, so the name Isaac in Hebrew, um, like um Abraham means father of nations, Isaac is the one that made us laugh, and Jacob is the one who wrestled with God. So they're their names there are indigenous names, like how we have, you know, grey horse or you know, eagle feather or sitting bowl. So he was named Laughter. And I've always been curious, like, why did God put in his own lineage someone named Laughter? And that's pretty significant. And I just want us to get back to that place, like children. Yes, and that you're creating a space for that. Yeah, I love it. It's just so powerful.

SPEAKER_04 34:29

I love that. It's transforming. Your podcast should start with a bunch of people laughing.

SPEAKER_00 34:33

Yes, I know. Well, that's why we've been doing the laughter library. Yeah, I love that. Yes, well, one of my questions is um how you're bringing levity to the world in all the ways you're doing it. And I know your biggest project right now is this community center, but do you have any other future projects you can tell our listeners about or ways that we can support you? You did just bring up this playground, which we need to start putting out there now. But any other visions?

SPEAKER_04 35:01

I mean, yes, every child on the horizon. Yeah, every single child in our program and every family in our program. By 2050? By 2050, yeah. All right. So we all year long do things where we need support from the community. So big back to school event, we need volunteers constantly to help us pull off things, Thanksgiving event, fall festivals, Christmas event, yes, spring break camps, summer camp. So all year long there is a need for support for the work that we do. Um, so the need is definitely there. And that's you know, I I always encourage people that everybody can do something. Come to us and we will figure out where to put you. I always say, like, what do you do for a living? and I'll tell you how you can impact foster care. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 35:48

Yeah. Absolutely. Well, this has been so insightful and so fun. Thank you for that conversation and just openness. And I like to wrap up each interview with a flash lightning. Okay. So these are quick questions where don't give it too much thought, just kind of what comes to your mind. Okay, perfect. And they're pretty quick, short answer type. And one, you took a test before you came on. I'm always curious to know. I love the Enneagram. Yes. And getting to know people. What do you think I am?

SPEAKER_03 36:16

Although you're not supposed to, you're not supposed to uh diagnose other people, but what do you think I do?

SPEAKER_00 36:20

I know.

SPEAKER_04 36:21

Well, uh do you know? Have we already talked about this? No.

SPEAKER_00 36:24

I don't remember if we did, but I think I know what you are because I'm an Enneagramate.

SPEAKER_04 36:30

Yes, we have talked about it then.

SPEAKER_00 36:32

Have we talked about this? And I feel like you are, because you are definitely you go for it. Yes, yes, I'm also an Enneagram.

SPEAKER_03 36:39

You're gonna be able to get it. Okay, did we talk about it? We must have, yes, because we did also I feel like it's a dicey roll. Every time you say an eight. That's right, we did talk about this. Yes, we said that, yeah. Yes, yes, yes, yeah. Yeah, play at the baseball. Probably at the baseball park. Probably at the baseball games, yeah. But you know what?

SPEAKER_04 36:53

I test so high as a three and as an eight. Oh I am like oh in fact the achiever. Yes. So what's so interesting is that I went to Sedona. Uh love that place. Yeah, that's right. There you go. Yes, yes. And I met with an Enneagram like master coach, and it was because of my fear of not liking to be controlled that makes me more of an eight than a three. But I test almost identical, but I'm definitely an eight. You're an eight. I'm a hundred percent an eight.

unknown 37:31

Okay.

SPEAKER_03 37:34

From one age to another age. I see you.

SPEAKER_00 37:38

I see you. My friend has a little girl who's four, and I'm like, oh, he's a night. Yeah, and she's like, okay, that makes a lot of sense.

SPEAKER_03 37:45

Yes, yes, exactly.

SPEAKER_00 37:46

Because she yeah, like you said, it can go either way. It's a day. Exactly. Yeah. Oh, I love that. Well, chocolate or vanilla? Vanilla, Mexican vanilla, actually, from Amy's good answer. That's one of my favorites. Yes. Good, good, good. Um, do you believe in aliens? No. Okay. I don't think. I don't know. I no. No. All right. There's no proof. It's all secretive. Yeah. You never know. Um, if your life had a song, like a theme song, what would it be? Or like one of your favorites. I turned it's like.

SPEAKER_04 38:22

I'll tell you what literally popped into my head is um I'm walking on sunshine. Uh-oh, and doesn't feel good. Oh, I love that.

SPEAKER_00 38:32

Yes, I can see that. Yes, you remind me of sunshine. Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 38:36

I that literally is what popped in my head in two seconds. Ah, I love that.

SPEAKER_00 38:40

Yeah, this is a sunshine season for you for sure. Yeah. Um, mountains, like the desert, the ocean beach, or a prairie, if you could choose.

SPEAKER_04 38:51

Oh Sedona, the desert. The desert. The red rock. Yeah. Favorite place in the whole world. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 38:57

Oh, I agree. I'm a desert person too. Yeah. I always answer that with desert. Maybe we're more like the look at us.

SPEAKER_04 39:04

Okay.

SPEAKER_00 39:05

I love this. I had no idea. I am drawn to the desert. I have to go there at least once a year. It's like my reset point. And I think I'm the same way too. It's like takes me a minute to just tone down a notch and be still. And that's like a place where I'm just like instantly like Yeah, the moment you drive in, it's like exactly just an automatic body's reset. Yeah. Nervous system just gets turned all the way down. I know. What is it with that? That's so funny. Well, and Sedona has the vortexes, which is even stronger. It's magical. Energy. Yeah. I love that. Um, so what is the one of the best things? This is my last one, about getting older for you.

SPEAKER_04 39:48

I think the thing that is the best is your awareness for like the gratitude, like the pausing, the reflecting, the realizing that life and people are so precious and so dear, and you just are so much more aware of how precious it is. And so you don't take things for granted like you do when you're in your 20s and your 30s. You're kind of invincible and you're building your career, and then you get into your 40s and older, and you just realize how little time we have, and it just puts everything into a different perspective, you know. I would say that.

SPEAKER_00 40:25

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 40:25

Yeah. You just you stop and savor it. You savor it. You savor it more. Yes. I feel like I am so fully present with my kids now than I was when they were really little. Yeah. You know, because um you just have an awareness, like, oh my gosh, I'm already running out of time with them.

SPEAKER_00 40:45

Yeah. Yeah. I can definitely feel that. And it goes so much faster. Like each year just seems like duster. I'm like, Otis, you only have two more months of seventh grade. I know. And then you're in eighth grade, and then you're in high school. And I'm practically gone. I know. And then you're gone. I've lost him. Yeah. Yes, yes, I know. Stop it.

SPEAKER_04 41:02

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 41:03

I love that answer. Well, thanks again. And I have just enjoyed this and getting to know how much we have in common. I know. Wow. We're twinning. I know we are.

SPEAKER_03 41:14

I'm happy to be here.

SPEAKER_04 41:15

I'm so proud of you for doing this. This is like, you know, really awesome. So good for you. And thanks for having me.

SPEAKER_00 41:21

Well, that's a wrap on today's episode. And honestly, what a conversation. Susan just has a way of making you feel like you're sitting across from someone who has truly figured out what matters and is running toward it every single day, full speed. From that $100 bill on a roadmap to a national nonprofit, from chasing money to chasing purpose. Her story is a reminder that clarity doesn't always have to come first. Sometimes surrender comes first. And clarity follows. If Susan's work resonated with you and you want to get involved, whether you want to volunteer, donate, or just learn more about what it looks like to show up for a child in foster care, I'll have all of the links in the show notes. There's a place for everyone. And as Susan says, tell us what you do for a living and we'll find a way to plug you in. And if this episode moved you, please share it with someone who needs to hear it. Leave a review and tell a friend. And come back next time for another conversation. Until then, go find something to belly laugh about, and remember to laugh on and levitate.