Latest / Skin Anarchy / Kate Somerville, Founder of KATE SOMERVILLE Skincare and Maggie Lin, Co-Founder of Foster Nation

Transcript

Kate Somerville, Founder of KATE SOMERVILLE Skincare and Maggie Lin, Co-Founder of Foster Nation · Skin Anarchy

• 0:01
  SPEAKER_00: Diablo 4 has arrived.
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• 0:38
  SPEAKER_04: Hi guys.
• 0:39
  SPEAKER_04: So I wanted to just mention that before this episode starts, um, this is something that's very, very special to me.
• 0:47
  SPEAKER_04: Um, I feel very honored, very humbled, very um just very happy that I had the opportunity to speak with uh Kate Somerville and Maggie Lynn for um their collaboration.
• 1:03
  SPEAKER_04: And so what I ask of all of you that are listening right now is when you're listening to this episode, think about um, you know, right now, actually, right now, sit down and think about what your perception of foster care is.
• 1:20
  SPEAKER_04: Just have that in your mind, okay?
• 1:22
  SPEAKER_04: And then listen to this episode.
• 1:24
  SPEAKER_04: And I promise you that something will be taken away from this episode.
• 1:31
  SPEAKER_04: I hope you love it.
• 1:32
  SPEAKER_04: Um, this has been a wonderful experience for me in the sense that I've definitely learned a lot.
• 1:38
  SPEAKER_04: I've grown a lot um mentally in this in this specific topic.
• 1:42
  SPEAKER_04: Um, and yeah, this was truly an honor even uh hosting both of these amazing women.
• 1:49
  SPEAKER_04: So I hope you love the show and stay tuned, and yeah, definitely let me know what you think.
• 1:56
  SPEAKER_04: I would love to keep this conversation going after you listen to the episode.
• 2:00
  SPEAKER_04: Thanks, guys.
• 2:36
  SPEAKER_04: So um, without further ado, I want to introduce you guys to Kate Somerville of Kate Somerville Skincare, which we've all heard of.
• 2:44
  SPEAKER_04: So welcome to the show, Kate.
• 2:45
  SPEAKER_04: I'm so excited you're here.
• 2:47
  SPEAKER_01: Oh, thank you.
• 2:48
  SPEAKER_01: I'm really excited to be here and um honored to be on your show.
• 2:53
  SPEAKER_04: Oh, the honor is truly mine, trust me.
• 2:56
  SPEAKER_04: I am such a fan.
• 2:57
  SPEAKER_04: I have been a fan for many, many years, and um, you know, I just I can't wait to learn about you and the line and how it all came to be.
• 3:05
  SPEAKER_04: So, can we get started with that?
• 3:11
  SPEAKER_01: So, you know, it really started for me as a kid, believe it or not.
• 3:16
  SPEAKER_01: Um, I grew up with eczema, and eczema is something that um is really painful as a kid.
• 3:26
  SPEAKER_01: It's super embarrassing.
• 3:27
  SPEAKER_01: I was an athlete, so um I had it on behind my knees and on my elbows and inside of my um arms, sometimes in my eyes.
• 3:39
  SPEAKER_01: And um, you know, it just it it I really understood what it was like to feel uncomfortable in your own skin.
• 3:50
  SPEAKER_01: And um early on, my mom, we lived on a farm, which was not good for eczema because it has to do with a lot of it's genetic, but it also allergens can play a part and what you eat, and you know, it's a constant battle.
• 4:08
  SPEAKER_01: And um, so here I was a kid, and my mom, I would just be miserable sometimes, and she ended up putting goat's milk in my bath one morning because we lived on a farm, and I saw a considerable change, and you know, I realized at that moment, like, okay, products and things of that nature really um make a difference.
• 4:37
  SPEAKER_01: And so I was always trying to figure out my own puzzle.
• 4:41
  SPEAKER_01: And then um I was in college, I was in college for interior design, and I ended up moving to a small town in the middle of California on the coast, um, San Luis Obispo.
• 4:56
  SPEAKER_01: And I had a really good friend, um, she was a dermatologist, and she had said to me, you know, Kate, you should start doing skincare inside of a doctor's office.
• 5:09
  SPEAKER_01: A lot of my nurses are starting to do peels and um, you know, really taking care of the skin.
• 5:17
  SPEAKER_01: And so I thought this is such a great idea for me.
• 5:22
  SPEAKER_01: Um, because at the time I was waitressing like three jobs, and I wasn't sure where I was gonna go in life.
• 5:29
  SPEAKER_01: And so this I felt was a great opportunity to go to school.
• 5:34
  SPEAKER_01: And um, so during school, I put a business plan together and went around to my local doctors and landed with a plastic surgeon and dermatologist.
• 5:46
  SPEAKER_01: And it was so funny because this was before really um medical aesthetics was created, honestly.
• 5:56
  SPEAKER_01: Um, there was a few um estheticians that were doing this um in the country, mostly nurses.
• 6:04
  SPEAKER_01: And in fact, when I went into interview with my doctors, they were like, What are you gonna do?
• 6:10
  SPEAKER_01: You're gonna put my clients to sleep?
• 6:13
  SPEAKER_01: And I'm like, no.
• 6:15
  SPEAKER_01: Um I want to, you know, do facials, prep your client's skin before a facelift, help with postoperative care, and really do in-depth um skincare treatments.
• 6:30
  SPEAKER_01: And they both loved the idea because at that time um doctors did not advertise.
• 6:37
  SPEAKER_01: They saw this as a kind of an unethical thing to do.
• 6:42
  SPEAKER_01: And so I did a lot of advertising.
• 6:45
  SPEAKER_01: I got a lot of traffic through their offices and you know, and then um about three years into my career, lasers came on the scene.
• 6:56
  SPEAKER_01: And lasers back then were like a third-degree burn.
• 7:01
  SPEAKER_01: And so that's what really prompted me to start my skincare line because a lot of my clients couldn't use the normal products, and I just felt like I wanted to create my own tools, and so that's how really I got started, and you know, really young.
• 7:22
  SPEAKER_01: I was I was 20 years old and I'm 51 now, so it's been 31 years, believe it or not.
• 7:28
  SPEAKER_04: Well, you still look very, very, very much close to the first half, 20.
• 7:34
  SPEAKER_01: So thank you.
• 7:36
  SPEAKER_01: I will take that.
• 7:38
  SPEAKER_04: No, I mean, honestly, here's the thing, you know, I'm gonna be very transparent and real.
• 7:42
  SPEAKER_04: Like, you know, when I uh first discovered your brand, my biggest problem was, you know, I grew up with acne, you know, and so I had these like, you know, those scars, they're not like ice pick scars, but the they're indentation scars, right?
• 7:56
  SPEAKER_04: And so I was like going to Sephora and I remember walking in and being like, you guys, I need something that's gonna help me that I can use on a daily basis or weekly or whatever.
• 8:07
  SPEAKER_04: And instantly they were like, Kate Summerville, like they pointed to your area in this shop, and they were like, anything made by her is gonna work.
• 8:16
  SPEAKER_04: And I and you know, and I went in and I bought the products and they really worked, and that's when I knew how powerful skincare can be.
• 8:24
  SPEAKER_04: So, you know, I completely understand when you say that, you know, doctors weren't on board at first, and I think they're still kind of coming around, you know, for sure.
• 8:33
  SPEAKER_01: And you know, I I just feel lucky because I was really at the right time, at the right place, and I I met my husband, um, my husband now, and his family, his dad lived in Hollywood.
• 8:49
  SPEAKER_01: So it was just by chance um that I ended up in Hollywood.
• 8:54
  SPEAKER_01: And um I I ended up with this really prominent plastic surgeon, and that's how I kind of fell into kind of the celebrity type um, you know, clinic.
• 9:08
  SPEAKER_01: And then in 2004, um I decided to go out on my own and um I opened Kate Somerville on Melrose Place, and that's when really things really started to snowball as far as the brand becoming a brand, right?
• 9:28
  SPEAKER_01: Because I, you know, I'm an aesthetician, so I was in the room really transforming skin, and we did something so unique.
• 9:36
  SPEAKER_01: Um, we, you know, once you come into our clinic, we we um assess your skin, we give you a roadmap, and we um first you see an esthetician, they prep your skin, they do a cleanse, they exfoliate, and then um we have nurses on staff.
• 9:55
  SPEAKER_01: So they would roll in um these amazing lasers and transform skin, and then the esthetician would follow up.
• 10:04
  SPEAKER_01: And so to this day, it's a really unique clinic, and we're able to really transform skin and also help people that you know are at their wits' end, you know, they feel like they have no hope or they've been everywhere, and you know, every single product in my clinic is you it starts there, and you know, that's my lab, and I get to test you know, ingredients and formulas, and it's just it's a full circle um approach to skincare, like you're really getting each formula has been really worked out inside the clinic.
• 10:47
  SPEAKER_01: So we know it works, we know people like the smell, we know it doesn't break you out.
• 10:52
  SPEAKER_01: Um, so really it's been an incredible journey um to have both, right?
• 10:59
  SPEAKER_01: To be an expert and an aesthetician, um, being able to spend time with my clients and understand how topicals work, but also knowing, you know, treatment is very powerful as well.
• 11:13
  SPEAKER_04: Absolutely.
• 11:14
  SPEAKER_04: And you know, okay, I just want to say, like, you know, I think this is very important to understand when it comes to I think science and especially uh dermal science is that you have to be like you have to approach it in a in a very academic mindset, if you know, for for lack of a better term.
• 11:32
  SPEAKER_04: So the way that you've described your process and the way that, you know, um you've you've really explained that to me that just it reminds me of someone who is, you know, like like PhDs in a lab, they go through, you know, numerous subcultures before they figure out, you know, this is the one that I want to.
• 11:47
  SPEAKER_04: So you have to go through that.
• 11:48
  SPEAKER_04: You have to go through that process.
• 11:50
  SPEAKER_04: And I remember, you know, when I was, like I said, when I discovered your line, it was not hard to figure out what I should use.
• 11:57
  SPEAKER_04: It was not something where I was bombarded with like a million products and I was, you know, a new consumer, obviously.
• 12:04
  SPEAKER_04: I had you know, and I I didn't feel uncomfortable.
• 12:06
  SPEAKER_04: That's the biggest thing.
• 12:07
  SPEAKER_04: And that's I think that really comes through with the line is that you, you know, it's a packaging and the way you explain it on the you know, just on the packaging and the way the products work, it's very understand understandable to everybody, like how this is going to help your skin.
• 12:23
  SPEAKER_04: So I love that.
• 12:24
  SPEAKER_04: I love that.
• 12:25
  SPEAKER_01: You know, that's important to me because you know, when I'm teaching a client how to take care of their skin, um, you know, first off, every product has a a reason for being, right?
• 12:39
  SPEAKER_01: Like exfolicate is an incredible exfoliator.
• 12:44
  SPEAKER_01: You know, we have a vitamin C retinol moisturizer.
• 12:47
  SPEAKER_01: My favorite line in the in the um in the collection is called Kate Pseuticals.
• 12:53
  SPEAKER_01: That's all about, you know, peptides and how that transforms aging skin.
• 12:59
  SPEAKER_01: Um, and then we have, you know, there's a a product line that we came out with um collection called Delicate.
• 13:07
  SPEAKER_01: And delicate is really kind of after my own heart, um, because I have really severe, you know, sensitive skin.
• 13:16
  SPEAKER_01: So I created that line for all my clients that had irritation or um were coming out of some kind of laser treatment.
• 13:26
  SPEAKER_01: And what's so exciting um was, well, first off, that launch during COVID, which, you know, at first I was like, this is scary to launch during this time.
• 13:38
  SPEAKER_01: But what we found was when all the healthcare workers um went into the hospitals and they were working hour after hour, their skin started to break down.
• 13:50
  SPEAKER_01: And so we employ a lot of nurses that worked on the front lines.
• 13:56
  SPEAKER_01: And so we quickly, because we had to shut down our operation at the clinic, we quickly um gave all of our PPE to them because they were out of PPE, and we also were able to donate most of our launch to the healthcare workers to help their skin barrier with delicate.
• 14:17
  SPEAKER_01: So there's been some really amazing products that have come out of our clinic, but it's also driven by purpose, which um makes me happy, not only healing skin, but we're able to kind of do social things that that help um people in need.
• 14:37
  SPEAKER_04: Yeah, no, I I absolutely love that you mentioned that.
• 14:40
  SPEAKER_04: You know, I I myself uh was a frontline worker, you know, I and being a trauma surgeon, it was very much like chaos when COVID happened.
• 14:49
  SPEAKER_04: And everything I remember, you know, any help that we got was uh, you know, it was like life-saving, you know.
• 14:56
  SPEAKER_04: Such a scary time.
• 14:57
  SPEAKER_01: I mean, I just remember having conference calls with the girls.
• 15:02
  SPEAKER_01: Um, and you know, at times they were like, I like in tears, like I don't want to die.
• 15:08
  SPEAKER_01: Like that's where we were at.
• 15:09
  SPEAKER_01: And and it was it was really emotional for our clinic team because we've been together for over 15 years.
• 15:16
  SPEAKER_01: We're family, you know.
• 15:18
  SPEAKER_01: So um it was just a really scary time, but you know, luckily we got through it and the clinic survived it, which um, you know, I I just heard some statistics that um, you know, I think it was like 46% of salons went under.
• 15:38
  SPEAKER_01: Um, and during those months um that we got shut down, um, there was like only 84% of jobs for the beauty industry.
• 15:49
  SPEAKER_01: So it really sh, you know, hit our industry really, really hard.
• 15:56
  SPEAKER_04: Yeah, I, you know, I was gonna ask you that because I've always I was curious, you know, because in COVID, everyone was so locked, you know, they were locked up.
• 16:05
  SPEAKER_04: And uh, you know, being at home so much, I was always, you know, curious, like, did it make the skincare industry, you know, kind of thrive or did it really limit things?
• 16:15
  SPEAKER_04: Because I mean, you're at home all day, you know, what are you gonna do?
• 16:19
  SPEAKER_04: Yeah, so yeah.
• 16:21
  SPEAKER_01: So here's the good news.
• 16:23
  SPEAKER_01: I, you know, and I thank my lucky stars every day that I kind of was forced to create a retail line.
• 16:30
  SPEAKER_01: Um, you know, I didn't, I didn't like that was I didn't see that coming early on in my career, but um a lot of the press was talking about um my skincare clinic and you know, my my celebrity clientele were really talking to the press about um going to me.
• 16:54
  SPEAKER_01: And so the retailers are the ones that reached out and said, hey, Kate, we want to carry your line.
• 17:00
  SPEAKER_01: And I was like, well, I only have a few products, you know, that I use um that are actually bottled because I mix on site um a lot.
• 17:12
  SPEAKER_01: And I said, give me some time.
• 17:14
  SPEAKER_01: And we were able to um bring our first seven products um to retail when we launched, and we launched with Nordstrom, Sephora, and QVC.
• 17:28
  SPEAKER_01: No, sorry, Nordstrom's Neiman's QVC.
• 17:32
  SPEAKER_01: And what's so amazing, and I I didn't realize this at the time, but we were the first brand ever to be in Neiman Marcus, a really high-end retailer and QVC, which at the time was not really looked at as um, you know, a high-end retailer, but I really knew I wanted to be on QVC because I really wanted to explain to people how to use my products to really get skin health.
• 18:05
  SPEAKER_01: And um, so it was an exciting time um during that time.
• 18:10
  SPEAKER_01: And um, but we definitely got hit.
• 18:14
  SPEAKER_01: We we were closed for on and off for a year and a half at the clinic, but the product line um is what really um actually grew during um COVID because people were at home, they were taking care of themselves.
• 18:29
  SPEAKER_01: I ended up doing a lot of videos of how to.
• 18:34
  SPEAKER_01: Um, and so we were able to pay all of our people um through the whole pandemic and keep our clinic whole um and continue to pay rent.
• 18:48
  SPEAKER_01: And so um we're just I'm super proud that um my team, um, I have an incredible leader, um, CEO Ruben, um, that really committed himself to like we're not gonna lose um clinic staff, we're gonna keep them on.
• 19:08
  SPEAKER_01: And and and we we did suffer lots of loss um as far as you know, financial loss at the clinic during that year, but believe it or not, we're we're back up and we have what it did too is it really changed a lot of safety protocols in the clinic.
• 19:26
  SPEAKER_01: So um it it was it was a journey for sure.
• 19:31
  SPEAKER_04: Yeah, no, I can imagine.
• 19:33
  SPEAKER_04: And I think that, you know, COVID was a time where everyone had to, we we all got to pause in a weird way, you know, and and really that kind of manifested into so many different things for different people.
• 19:44
  SPEAKER_04: And you know, I can I can definitely see that, especially as an established brand.
• 19:48
  SPEAKER_04: I I want to ask you this question because I'm genuinely curious.
• 19:51
  SPEAKER_04: Like, you know, I've seen your line from the beginning, you know, I've always seen it as a hallmark, you know, a bar um in terms of like, you know, what good skincare should be like.
• 20:02
  SPEAKER_04: And I want to know how you feel about all the emerging brands that have come out during this time of like COVID, and you know what I mean?
• 20:09
  SPEAKER_04: Like it's like every day a new skincare line model.
• 20:12
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 20:12
  SPEAKER_01: You know, it's confusing, right?
• 20:15
  SPEAKER_01: And and listen, uh, you know, I'm an expert and I I really care about people's skin and I want to see transformation and I know how to get transformation.
• 20:26
  SPEAKER_01: Um, you know, there's a lot of marketing companies out there that, you know, like the whole clean industry, um skincare, like, you know, it's like it's confusing to the end user, honestly.
• 20:42
  SPEAKER_01: But um, you know, for me, I try not to look at the clutter, like, because it does get um, there's so much competition now, and and it does get overwhelming.
• 20:54
  SPEAKER_01: But I've always been someone that like really have stayed in my clinic, have worked my products, and um at the end of the day, when someone has an issue and they find us, they find solutions.
• 21:08
  SPEAKER_01: And so I just have to keep going and um just keep doing what I do because if I start to look outside of Kate Somerville and look at the the industry, and I've never been a follower that way either.
• 21:23
  SPEAKER_01: Like I will never come out with like a 24 karat gold moisturizer or yeah, um, you know, I'm not gonna be gimmicky.
• 21:32
  SPEAKER_01: I I literally am gonna give you skin results.
• 21:35
  SPEAKER_01: So, so I'm trying to really kind of keep my blinders on and do what we do and just continue to heal the people that end up coming into the brand and loving it.
• 21:48
  SPEAKER_04: Well, you know, I think there's something to be said about a brand when you pick up a product and you can genuinely say to a friend, no, no, trust me, this works.
• 21:57
  SPEAKER_04: Like, you know what I mean?
• 21:58
  SPEAKER_04: That is a huge testament.
• 22:00
  SPEAKER_04: For the brand.
• 22:00
  SPEAKER_04: And I can honestly, everything I've ever tried from your line, I can do that with.
• 22:04
  SPEAKER_04: Every single thing.
• 22:05
  SPEAKER_04: It's never been like, oh, well, this doesn't work for me.
• 22:08
  SPEAKER_04: No, it does work for me because you've obviously been through a very tedious process to make sure that it works for your consumers.
• 22:16
  SPEAKER_04: And so that is, you know, and that's a message that I think a lot of new brand owners really need to understand, especially for skincare lines that are coming out, is that, you know, don't be so quick to just push out a line because you think that avocado is going to heal everyone's soul.
• 22:32
  SPEAKER_04: You know what I mean?
• 22:33
  SPEAKER_04: Like it's like, don't do that.
• 22:34
  SPEAKER_04: You need to go through the process.
• 22:37
  SPEAKER_04: So I yeah, I really appreciate, I really appreciate, you know, your journey and just how much you've put in to really making this, you know, just perfect.
• 22:45
  SPEAKER_04: Like per perfection is is a very hard thing to achieve for a lot of, you know, a lot of entrepreneurs and they don't want to put in the work.
• 22:52
  SPEAKER_01: So yeah, well, listen, I I'm trying to undo perfection too, by the way.
• 22:58
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 22:58
  SPEAKER_01: Like during COVID, I have to say, like everything was not perfect.
• 23:04
  SPEAKER_01: And I had a really hard time with that.
• 23:07
  SPEAKER_01: And so, um, you know, perfection can be a tough game, but I guess it's pretty good when you're in the skincare industry.
• 23:17
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, absolutely.
• 23:18
  SPEAKER_04: I mean, I always think that, you know, skin is never going to be perfect, but your skincare, the products you put on your skin can be pretty damn near perfect.
• 23:27
  SPEAKER_04: You know what I mean?
• 23:28
  SPEAKER_01: So if you find the right thing for you, absolutely.
• 23:33
  SPEAKER_04: Yeah, I agree.
• 23:34
  SPEAKER_04: So I want to actually ask you because I know that you are such a self-made woman, and I really admire that.
• 23:40
  SPEAKER_04: And I think that so many women out there, especially young women nowadays, they need to hear from, you know, just leaders like you about what it takes to just get this far in life and really kind of go from the ground up and do it, you know.
• 23:55
  SPEAKER_04: So I would love if you can give us some wisdom, some, you know, just some tips for anyone listening.
• 24:00
  SPEAKER_04: Yeah.
• 24:01
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 24:01
  SPEAKER_01: So um a lot of people don't know this.
• 24:04
  SPEAKER_01: In fact, it's so funny when I meet people, they're like, oh, I thought you were gonna be snooty and older.
• 24:11
  SPEAKER_01: And and I I'm definitely now like I'm I'm definitely looking older and 52 now.
• 24:18
  SPEAKER_01: But when I started my brand, I was really young.
• 24:21
  SPEAKER_01: I was 20.
• 24:22
  SPEAKER_01: So I would shock people when I would meet them.
• 24:26
  SPEAKER_01: But one of the things I grew up, and what people don't know is um I grew up with two parents.
• 24:35
  SPEAKER_01: Um, one, my mom became a severe alcoholic to the point where she was homeless by the time I was about 14.
• 24:45
  SPEAKER_01: And my dad raised me, but he um created a new family.
• 24:52
  SPEAKER_01: And so I was pretty displaced as a kid.
• 24:55
  SPEAKER_01: I grew up in a lot of chaos, and um and so what happened to me was I ended up leaving home at 15 and I just took a backpack with all my clothes and I started living off of my friends really, um, and couch surfing.
• 25:15
  SPEAKER_01: And um, you know, I just bounced around a lot and I I I was in survival mode.
• 25:24
  SPEAKER_01: And um so when I went to college, you know, things were really tough for me.
• 25:31
  SPEAKER_01: I I um I couldn't really rely on um normal means that a lot of kids, like even in high school, I was working, I didn't live at home, um, I was paying rent by the time I was a senior in high school.
• 25:48
  SPEAKER_01: So I ended up graduating early and going into college.
• 25:52
  SPEAKER_01: And you know, my journey really transformed when I met it, it was actually a boyfriend's mom.
• 26:00
  SPEAKER_01: Her name was Barbara Wells.
• 26:02
  SPEAKER_01: And Barbara told me, she took me in.
• 26:07
  SPEAKER_01: I lived with her and she had cancer, she had cancer for 12 years.
• 26:11
  SPEAKER_01: Her husband had left her.
• 26:13
  SPEAKER_01: Um and for a younger woman, she had three kids.
• 26:18
  SPEAKER_01: One of the kids was um schizophrenic, so she had a lot of challenges and she was really holding on to life to really get her kids um established.
• 26:30
  SPEAKER_01: And she had the time to take me in, which is so crazy, but she gave me unconditional love at this really incredible moment.
• 26:40
  SPEAKER_01: And she looked at me one day and I was freaking out about something.
• 26:44
  SPEAKER_01: And I, you know, I wasn't going down the right path either.
• 26:47
  SPEAKER_01: You know, I was I was kind of victimized.
• 26:50
  SPEAKER_01: I felt I was partying probably too much, I wasn't going to class.
• 26:56
  SPEAKER_01: And she just looked at me one day and she goes, you know, you can choose your your future.
• 27:02
  SPEAKER_01: And I looked at her and I'm like, what do you mean?
• 27:05
  SPEAKER_01: And she goes, you know, you can continue to blame your parents and um live this chaotic life, or you could you could create it however you want.
• 27:16
  SPEAKER_01: And I at that moment was like, what do you mean?
• 27:20
  SPEAKER_01: Like, because you know, as a kid, when you're growing up in that situation, you don't you don't know that there's stability because you know nothing else but then chaos.
• 27:30
  SPEAKER_01: Right.
• 27:31
  SPEAKER_01: And so that moment I was like, okay, I'm gonna create it like I want.
• 27:38
  SPEAKER_01: And three months later, I had this little bug, tutoro.
• 27:42
  SPEAKER_01: It was a little blue bug, and I packed all my stuff and I'm like, I'm moving to the coast.
• 27:48
  SPEAKER_01: And that's when I moved to San Luis Obispo area, and that's when my life started to change.
• 27:54
  SPEAKER_01: I was like, I am gonna make my life great.
• 27:57
  SPEAKER_01: And I have been really just trying to envision, and you know, I asked the universe for certain things, and then I have the guts to go for it, right?
• 28:09
  SPEAKER_01: And there's been a lot of naysayers, there's been a lot of challenges, especially as a young girl building a brand, and especially in this industry.
• 28:19
  SPEAKER_01: And um, you know, I just kept trying to do the right thing and build the brand and build my life.
• 28:27
  SPEAKER_01: And I now have a really successful family, as far as um, I've been married for almost 28 years.
• 28:35
  SPEAKER_01: I have a son that's 19 who's brilliant and going to college.
• 28:41
  SPEAKER_01: And I created this life for myself.
• 28:44
  SPEAKER_01: And I I really um just tell people out there, no matter what challenges you have, if you have a vision, you just have to go for it.
• 28:54
  SPEAKER_01: And I'll never forget, my husband and I, we had zero money when we started um Kate Somerville, and we lived underneath my husband's um father in like literally less than 500 square feet.
• 29:10
  SPEAKER_01: And we were building out Kate Somerville, literally like building the walls.
• 29:14
  SPEAKER_01: And I remember one moment and I was painting the wall, and I was like, what am I doing?
• 29:22
  SPEAKER_01: Like, I can't do this.
• 29:24
  SPEAKER_01: I don't know what the hell I'm doing.
• 29:26
  SPEAKER_01: I I the it got too big, right?
• 29:28
  SPEAKER_01: Like the yeah, and so I literally was like, just keep painting the wall, just paint the wall and do the next thing.
• 29:37
  SPEAKER_01: And what that taught me was I made a lot of lists.
• 29:42
  SPEAKER_01: So I made to-do lists, lists, and all those lists, I would, it felt so good to cross them off.
• 29:49
  SPEAKER_01: But those little tiny details became Kate Somerville.
• 29:53
  SPEAKER_01: And um, and I just followed my path.
• 29:57
  SPEAKER_01: And um, when it got really tough, I would just dig deep and try and trust.
• 30:03
  SPEAKER_01: And you know, I could if I were able to tell my younger self, like it's all gonna work out, don't worry.
• 30:10
  SPEAKER_01: Um, I wish I could go back and say you're you're gonna be okay.
• 30:15
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah, that there was moments where I did not know things were gonna be okay.
• 30:20
  SPEAKER_04: You know, that's so oh my gosh, thank you for sharing that because you know, it's crazy to me sometimes.
• 30:27
  SPEAKER_04: I I I think about this is that you know, we never realize when moments turn into a lifetime, you know, and it's like this idea of just if the more I love what you said about painting the wall, because you know, like I've had days where I'm just like to just look up, look up at the sky, you know, so I can definitely relate.
• 30:46
  SPEAKER_04: And it's like, you know, you just you keep, I don't know.
• 30:49
  SPEAKER_04: I mean, some I one day you look back and you're like it's been 30 years, and you know, it's a like a lifetime ago.
• 30:56
  SPEAKER_04: So wow, I'm just I'm so that's so inspirational.
• 30:59
  SPEAKER_04: And I can't, I I don't even know, you know, how to praise you enough for going through what you did.
• 31:04
  SPEAKER_04: You are such a strong person, and I hope everyone listening.
• 31:07
  SPEAKER_04: I mean, come on, you know, you got you gotta get some motivation from this.
• 31:11
  SPEAKER_01: If this doesn't motivate you, I don't know what I say it, you know, anyone if you have a dream, you can achieve it.
• 31:19
  SPEAKER_01: It's just it are you willing to go through the fire?
• 31:23
  SPEAKER_01: And you know, listen, like I had to go on QVC, which is live, and the it's so intense going on QVC because if your product doesn't do a certain number per minute, it doesn't come back and all the products come back to you as a company.
• 31:40
  SPEAKER_01: So the pressure is so intense.
• 31:43
  SPEAKER_01: And I just remember like I'm an aesthetician, I don't, I'm not an on-air person.
• 31:48
  SPEAKER_01: I don't know, you know, and I just was like, talk to her.
• 31:53
  SPEAKER_01: And I had to fight and walk through a lot of my fears, you know, and um so I just say like it's so funny because Nemo is literally my favorite movie in the whole world because I'm I'm kind of Marlin, the the clownfish, like always like, oh my god, oh my god.
• 32:13
  SPEAKER_01: And I'll just I I love that movie because the writing, first off, is so great.
• 32:18
  SPEAKER_01: But Ellen Dory is always like, just keep swimming, just keep swimming.
• 32:24
  SPEAKER_01: It's gonna work out, just trust the presence.
• 32:27
  SPEAKER_05: I love Dory.
• 32:29
  SPEAKER_05: Oh my gosh, yes, yes, Dory is kind of my hero.
• 32:34
  SPEAKER_05: Yeah, I love that.
• 32:37
  SPEAKER_04: No, I love that because I I I feel the same way.
• 32:39
  SPEAKER_04: I remember like when I you and I first watched it, I was like, yeah, you know what?
• 32:43
  SPEAKER_04: This is really the secret to life.
• 32:45
  SPEAKER_04: Just keep going.
• 32:46
  SPEAKER_04: Like, you know, just don't stop.
• 32:47
  SPEAKER_04: But I want to actually, you know, Kate, I want to, I wanna take uh this moment and kind of transition because I know that you are doing this amazing collaboration with Foster uh Nation.
• 32:57
  SPEAKER_04: And I would love to introduce everybody to the founder of Foster Nation, uh Maggie Lynn.
• 33:03
  SPEAKER_04: So welcome to the show, Maggie.
• 33:05
  SPEAKER_04: I'm so excited that you've joined us.
• 33:08
  SPEAKER_03: Hi, everyone.
• 33:10
  SPEAKER_03: Hi, here thank you so much for having me.
• 33:13
  SPEAKER_01: Oh, it's such an honor.
• 33:15
  SPEAKER_03: Hi, Katie.
• 33:17
  SPEAKER_03: I miss you.
• 33:18
  SPEAKER_04: I know, I miss you too.
• 33:21
  SPEAKER_04: I would love to I would love to start with you telling us, Maggie, about foster nation and the whole vision of it because I know that you know, um, Kate and you are doing a beautiful collaboration, and um I'd love to dive into that, but first I want to know all about the all about the you know cause.
• 33:38
  SPEAKER_03: Sure.
• 33:39
  SPEAKER_03: So the mission of foster nation is to engage the community to provide resources, social support, and career mentorship to help foster youth lead self-sufficient lives after they age out of the system.
• 33:50
  SPEAKER_03: So our big goal is really to help foster youth know that success is not impossible, even if they were dealt a horrible hand in life.
• 33:58
  SPEAKER_03: So, kind of going off of what um Kate has been saying throughout this podcast is just, you know, we obviously don't get to choose the family we're born into.
• 34:07
  SPEAKER_03: We don't get to choose the circumstances that, you know, that we have to live through.
• 34:12
  SPEAKER_03: But um, but I think that success is not impossible.
• 34:16
  SPEAKER_03: Um, and a lot of times it's really just making sure that there's a community around you that um helps you understand that there is hope.
• 34:25
  SPEAKER_03: And you know, whether it's a mentor or an organization like ours, um going off of Kate's story, having that person in your life to just kind of say, I'm in your corner and I'm here for you.
• 34:37
  SPEAKER_03: And so that's that's a big part of what um we're all about as an organization.
• 34:42
  SPEAKER_04: I love that.
• 34:43
  SPEAKER_04: Oh my gosh, I love that.
• 34:44
  SPEAKER_04: That's that's phenomenal.
• 34:46
  SPEAKER_04: And you know, kudos to you for even, you know, going in that direction.
• 34:50
  SPEAKER_04: I remember in college, you know, just a quick little blurb.
• 34:54
  SPEAKER_04: Like, I remember in college, um, there was a kid and he was a triple major, believe it or not.
• 34:59
  SPEAKER_04: And he had nowhere to live, no family, nothing.
• 35:02
  SPEAKER_04: And he used to live in this abandoned church that was right next to our campus.
• 35:06
  SPEAKER_04: And I used to bring him lunch every day and I used to ask him, I'm like, like, are you ever scared?
• 35:11
  SPEAKER_04: Like, what's going on?
• 35:12
  SPEAKER_04: You know what I mean?
• 35:13
  SPEAKER_04: So it's just like seeing his drive, and he had nothing, he had literally nothing except his books and his his heart and his mind.
• 35:21
  SPEAKER_04: So I love what you're doing.
• 35:22
  SPEAKER_04: This is amazing.
• 35:23
  SPEAKER_04: That's phenomenal.
• 35:24
  SPEAKER_04: Kate, I would love for you to comment on um what really made you want to partner up with Maggie and and get go towards this, you know?
• 35:31
  SPEAKER_01: Well, first off, um just because I kind of lived through a lot of turmoil and I I can really relate to kids that don't have kind of a stable environment and um really live, you know, in um uncertainty.
• 35:53
  SPEAKER_01: And so it's really hard and difficult when you're just surviving to even think about the future.
• 36:01
  SPEAKER_01: And um, Maggie, Maggie, you have to tell your story because there's a reason behind foster nation, because um, and I'll let you tell that story, Maggie.
• 36:12
  SPEAKER_01: But um, when the partnership um actually got presented to me, I said, this is the ultimate perfect match for me as a as a person and a founder of a company, because if I'm able to be kind of that Barbara Wells or give um these foster kids hope and say, you know, listen, I didn't grow up in foster care, but I grew up with a lot of adversity.
• 36:44
  SPEAKER_01: And you're now 18.
• 36:46
  SPEAKER_01: You can create a great life for yourself.
• 36:51
  SPEAKER_01: If I can just say that to these kids and give them hope.
• 36:56
  SPEAKER_01: And then also just we we're a we're also mentoring these kids if they're interested in the beauty field.
• 37:05
  SPEAKER_01: Um, and also we're giving scholarships to um kids that are interested in being an aesthetician or you know, a makeup artist and go to beauty school because the beauty industry really is such an amazing industry where you can kind of create your own future and you can do it um without a huge uh outlay of money, and it's it's a shorter time than say um a four-year college.
• 37:40
  SPEAKER_01: So it's just an opportunity to for some kids that may not want to go through that four-year or may not have the aptitude to get through it or the financial resources.
• 37:54
  SPEAKER_01: And um, so this is really um full circle for me because I'm able to now at least shed light on the issue.
• 38:05
  SPEAKER_01: Um, and I'll I'll let Maggie take over because the statistics for a child um getting out of the foster care, like everything's stacked against them.
• 38:16
  SPEAKER_01: So, Maggie, do you want to take over from here?
• 38:18
  SPEAKER_04: Yeah, Maggie, I would love to hear your story too.
• 38:21
  SPEAKER_04: I'm so sorry.
• 38:22
  SPEAKER_04: I I didn't uh start with that.
• 38:23
  SPEAKER_04: I'm I'm so sorry for that, but I would love to hear your background and your story and how this really came to be for you.
• 38:29
  SPEAKER_04: Like the the conversation.
• 38:30
  SPEAKER_03: That's all right.
• 38:31
  SPEAKER_03: I'm I was happy to talk also just about the organization, but I think, of course, having some uh context to kind of I guess the passion behind the organization is also helpful.
• 38:42
  SPEAKER_03: Um so kind of staying high level because otherwise we'd be here for days.
• 38:47
  SPEAKER_03: Um, my sister Rachel and I uh were put into a foster care system when I was eight years old because of family abuse.
• 38:54
  SPEAKER_03: And I moved through eight different uh placements, uh, and she moved through about 11 different placements.
• 38:59
  SPEAKER_03: We were separated uh for a year, but I ended up in foster care because my father was murdered when I was a year old, and my mom was really too young to care for us.
• 39:08
  SPEAKER_03: I share this part of the story to really help people understand that kids and youth don't end up in the system because they are quote unquote troubled or there's some issue with them, right?
• 39:18
  SPEAKER_03: Because more often than not, they're just kids that did nothing wrong but ended up in the system because of family circumstances.
• 39:26
  SPEAKER_03: And, you know, the thing that for me was so powerful about this partnership with Kate Somerville and foster nation is that even though um Kate didn't grow up in the foster care system, it's it's very clear that there are a lot of people who end up under the radar and really should have been in the foster care system.
• 39:45
  SPEAKER_03: And I think that, you know, the the journey that leads into foster care and throughout foster care affects more people than than we think because it is so stigmatized, right?
• 39:55
  SPEAKER_03: And people don't want to talk about it.
• 39:57
  SPEAKER_03: But so many people think that kids are just dropped off somewhere and and the government will take care of them, but that's not necessarily the case, right?
• 40:05
  SPEAKER_03: A lot of times kids are being physically, emotionally, or sexually abused, um, or in dire situations that robs them of their childhood, um, such as parents with drug addictions, like in Kate's situation, or parents that end up going to prison.
• 40:19
  SPEAKER_03: And a lot of these cases are reported by teachers and neighbors, and from that moment the child is taken away and basically, you know, placed in home after home after home.
• 40:31
  SPEAKER_03: And the average number of homes that a foster child moves through before they age out at 18 is eight.
• 40:37
  SPEAKER_03: Um, but that number to me, yeah, I I love that you said wow, because uh quite honestly, we work with so many foster youth that um, you know, have moved through 40, 50 foster homes before they even turn 18.
• 40:53
  SPEAKER_03: And so, of course, there are great foster parents out there, but sadly the reality is that there are also foster parents who take in kids um for the wrong reasons.
• 41:02
  SPEAKER_03: And so, you know, there are an insane amount of horror stories that you you hear about foster care being separated from your sibling, which happened to me um when I was in seventh grade.
• 41:13
  SPEAKER_03: And it was very hard because she was the only person I thought I had left in the world.
• 41:18
  SPEAKER_03: Um, we lived in foster homes where they would put locks on the fridge and the only meal we had was the free lunch at school.
• 41:24
  SPEAKER_03: Um, or even, you know, foster families that would drop us off at the library or mall whenever they went for family dinners.
• 41:31
  SPEAKER_03: And so when you grow up with these types of scenarios that are constantly reminding you that like you are not wanted or you're a burden, or you're just this extra person, it sounds like it only happens in the movies, but this experience is far too real for so many of the youth that we work with, including, of course, you know, my own experience.
• 41:53
  SPEAKER_03: Um, but the scariest part of the whole experience, I think, and Kate touched on this, is really when you turn 18 and age out.
• 42:01
  SPEAKER_03: You know, she left home a bit earlier, even than some of our foster youth age out, but it's a really, really scary time because you I think it it's such an overwhelming time of helplessness and fear when you when you don't know who to go to or where you're supposed to go next.
• 42:18
  SPEAKER_03: And um and when you age out, it just means you don't have a roof over your head and no support system to turn to at all.
• 42:24
  SPEAKER_03: So typically your social worker shows up, you know, gives you a trash bag to hold all your belongings and a list of homeless shelters, and then they tell you, okay, like you're you're on your own.
• 42:36
  SPEAKER_03: And so similar to Kate's story, I often felt like that was my only choice in life.
• 42:42
  SPEAKER_03: Um, and it wasn't until my you know sophomore year in high school that I met someone um who was like a mentor to me and also helped me understand that I could choose and create the life I wanted, similar to Kate's story.
• 42:56
  SPEAKER_03: And and what I love um about our coming together is is how similar some of those emotions are, despite not having the same life story at all.
• 43:07
  SPEAKER_03: Um, and so I think for me, when I think about my own personal journey and why I ended up, you know, starting foster nation, it's really, you know, referencing Kate's uh earlier point about the horrible statistics, it's that the fact that 50% of foster youth um end up homeless or in prison within the first two years of aging out is completely unacceptable, right?
• 43:34
  SPEAKER_03: Like we are we are yeah, yeah, we're failing, we're failing the kids that again did nothing wrong.
• 43:42
  SPEAKER_03: And I think um uh another staggering statistic that I always reference is that you know, um foster youth are two times more likely to experience PTSC than US war veterans.
• 43:54
  SPEAKER_03: So think about the fact that someone has gone overseas to fight in a war and Amount of PTSD they must experience.
• 44:02
  SPEAKER_03: Now take that um with kids in the foster care system, and they're two times more likely to experience that.
• 44:09
  SPEAKER_04: I was actually going to ask you that.
• 44:10
  SPEAKER_04: No, no joke.
• 44:11
  SPEAKER_04: I was really because like you've created this um you know foundation, and and I was just gonna ask you like, does that ever elicit PTSD for you?
• 44:20
  SPEAKER_04: Because I can only imagine, you know, the trauma and the pain, right?
• 44:24
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah.
• 44:25
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, I think that's a really um that's a really great question, actually, because I I will say in the first year and um in the first year of starting the organization, I think I found myself, I would be, you know, driving somewhere, nothing's wrong, and I just completely fall apart.
• 44:41
  SPEAKER_03: I'm like falling in my car for no reason other than that I realize so many of the kids that we're working with and the youth that we're trying to provide wraparound services or support for.
• 44:53
  SPEAKER_03: I just I see so much of my own journey and in their journey.
• 44:57
  SPEAKER_03: And there are times where I get very emotional just thinking about the fact that they don't yet know that things are going to be okay.
• 45:06
  SPEAKER_03: Um, it's just that when you're in it, it's so tough, you know.
• 45:09
  SPEAKER_03: So when I when I reflect on why I started the organization, it's it's really so that we can shed light on this problem and and help foster youth understand that they're not alone, you know, because when when I was going through the system, I was very fortunate.
• 45:24
  SPEAKER_03: I got a full ride to Dartmouth College.
• 45:26
  SPEAKER_03: And I was really the first in my family to go to college.
• 45:29
  SPEAKER_03: And and on top of that, only about one to three percent of foster youth graduate from college.
• 45:34
  SPEAKER_03: So that was something that was obviously a huge achievement, but was also very isolating because I didn't want to tell anybody I grew up in foster care.
• 45:44
  SPEAKER_03: Um, I didn't have necessarily a place to go that I felt like I could go over the holidays, over the summers, um, over spring break.
• 45:54
  SPEAKER_03: So a lot of times I opted for um service trips or things that I could do with the college.
• 46:00
  SPEAKER_03: But you know, when I think about all of the kids that are now in college feeling alone because, you know, the holidays are coming up because they have no one, you know, to celebrate that with or no home to go to.
• 46:12
  SPEAKER_03: That's really the the main reason behind why um I started foster nation, just so that I feel like it's it's something that as an organization, as well as just the community at large, I think it's really important that people step up for the kids that grow up without any of that support and any of the resources that kids with biological families have.
• 46:36
  SPEAKER_04: Absolutely.
• 46:37
  SPEAKER_04: And you know, I just want to say, you know, in medical school we learn about Ericsson's, you know, different stages of development, and we learn about all these things that go into, you know, child and adolescent development.
• 46:49
  SPEAKER_04: And I it just all everything you've just talked about here just makes me, you know, it makes me think, but it also in my heart makes me mad because from a medical perspective, there should be a lot more attention given to these children.
• 47:03
  SPEAKER_04: Um, if we're talking about real, you know, uh development.
• 47:07
  SPEAKER_04: You cannot even, I mean, I don't even know how as a medical community we can we can, you know, look at this and not approach it in a different way.
• 47:16
  SPEAKER_04: There should be psychiatric things in place, or you know what I mean, like just resources in place.
• 47:20
  SPEAKER_04: So there's just so many, you know, it just it makes my mind just go in so many different directions.
• 47:25
  SPEAKER_04: Wow.
• 47:26
  SPEAKER_04: I mean, I'm I'm so so honored and humbled to be hosting you.
• 47:30
  SPEAKER_04: This is this is such a you know beautiful thing that you've created and I the such a beautiful cause.
• 47:37
  SPEAKER_04: Um, I hope everyone listening, um, you know, I want to find a way that we can help or any time any way that we can reach out and you know do something because this is really for me, it's it's actually kind of life-changing right now.
• 47:48
  SPEAKER_04: I'm having a moment right now on air, like, you know, because it's it's very important.
• 47:52
  SPEAKER_04: This is very important.
• 47:53
  SPEAKER_04: This is something that no one hears about.
• 47:56
  SPEAKER_04: And I can't believe that those statistics that you shared, I had no idea.
• 48:00
  SPEAKER_04: I had no idea.
• 48:01
  SPEAKER_04: So, you know, so what is the so what's the collaboration all about then?
• 48:05
  SPEAKER_04: Lau, I want to know more about the details, like in terms of like, you know, how long is this gonna be?
• 48:10
  SPEAKER_04: And you know, um, what are you guys looking to do in terms of like just you know, the the process of it?
• 48:16
  SPEAKER_01: So we are uh Kate Somerville um is giving a hundred thousand dollars annually and also five scholarships um to foster kids that that are interested.
• 48:31
  SPEAKER_01: And we're also mentoring um anyone in the organization that um is interested in the beauty field.
• 48:40
  SPEAKER_01: So we're mentoring kids and and you know, if they want to go into marketing or you know, really are interested in the beauty field.
• 48:49
  SPEAKER_01: Um, we just did this incredible um exercise where um a lot of the foster kids came in and they did a piece of art that is gonna go on our exfolicate um carton and it's gonna be sold through.
• 49:07
  SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
• 49:08
  SPEAKER_01: So and and the crazy thing is is we had, I think we had 36 or 38 um people and we ended up using not just one winner, um, but we chose um almost up to like six or seven different pieces of art that we're gonna use throughout the year um this year.
• 49:31
  SPEAKER_01: You'll you'll see it um, you know, on package, you'll see it.
• 49:35
  SPEAKER_01: In fact, just I had a meeting and we had um the Phoenix, one of one of the students drew or painted this gorgeous Phoenix.
• 49:46
  SPEAKER_01: And um that was it, it it's become our Kate Somerville um uh kind of like our inspiration for the year because we've come out of such a tough year.
• 49:59
  SPEAKER_01: So it's super exciting how we're um, you know, and and each student that that won, you know, where we gave$2,000 to use their artwork.
• 50:12
  SPEAKER_01: So we're giving them not only opportunities to win um and have big wins, but also financially.
• 50:21
  SPEAKER_01: And this is not a campaign.
• 50:23
  SPEAKER_01: Um, this is a commitment.
• 50:25
  SPEAKER_01: So um this is gonna be ongoing.
• 50:28
  SPEAKER_01: So um it's it's something that we're really committed to.
• 50:32
  SPEAKER_04: I love that you said that.
• 50:33
  SPEAKER_04: I love that you said commitment because everything I've just learned from Maggie, that's the word that really encompasses what we need to do as just a you know, a population of people, you know, or just humanity for for kids who go through this trauma is commit to them because no one else is committing to them.
• 50:51
  SPEAKER_04: That's I mean, I I'm like almost in tears just thinking about this.
• 50:55
  SPEAKER_04: And you know, Maggie, I want to ask you so much more because I I'm not gonna lie, I, you know, I don't know enough about foster, you know, situations and I wish I did.
• 51:06
  SPEAKER_04: And I and I really wonder how we can get, for example, universities involved in where, you know, they go and they have programs where, you know, they have a certain number of slots that are definitely only filled by kids who've gone through the foster system or, you know, something similar to that.
• 51:23
  SPEAKER_04: We should, you know, like there should be things like that in place for these children.
• 51:27
  SPEAKER_04: There's like you said, Maggie, you know, it's it's not anyone's choice where you're born.
• 51:32
  SPEAKER_04: It's not anyone's choice which which family you land into, you know.
• 51:36
  SPEAKER_04: So it's this is something that I mean, you've really kind of opened my eyes a lot in this.
• 51:43
  SPEAKER_03: Oh, thank you so much.
• 51:44
  SPEAKER_03: I uh one thing I'll say is I'm first of all, you know, so grateful to be a part of this whole thing.
• 51:50
  SPEAKER_03: But I love that you touch on a point that I think is is critical in this partnership, is what just what you said right now is I did not know about this.
• 51:58
  SPEAKER_03: How did I not know about this, right?
• 52:00
  SPEAKER_03: And I think the thing that makes me most excited about this partnership is that, you know, Kate has built this incredible brand and um an incredible team of people who I think over time, over years of this partnership will really help to tell the, you know, to champion and also to kind of um tell the foster care narrative in a way that people can actually understand that this is something that they need to do something about, right?
• 52:27
  SPEAKER_03: And I think, you know, as a nonprofit, obviously a lot of our work I always consider as kind of like the boots on the ground, a lot of our work is in the community.
• 52:35
  SPEAKER_03: And I will say we're not we're not amazing at PR or marketing, but that is what Kate does.
• 52:42
  SPEAKER_03: I mean, look at her, right?
• 52:43
  SPEAKER_03: So it's like I'm incredibly excited about this partnership.
• 52:47
  SPEAKER_03: Um, just kind of to your point that we need to figure out a way to raise awareness so that people can start to be become a part of the solution, right?
• 52:55
  SPEAKER_03: And so a lot of times when people ask, you know, how can I get involved?
• 52:58
  SPEAKER_03: How how do I learn more and how can I get involved, whether it's with foster nation or any in any part of this kind of the foster care uh journey or other organizations, I always say, you know, to obviously aside from making donations, I feel like that's what all organizations need because, you know, we need to be able to operate.
• 53:18
  SPEAKER_03: But I think a big part of it is really, you know, be a mentor, consider being a mentor.
• 53:23
  SPEAKER_03: Um, take the time to listen to someone's story and and really think about how even if you give them an hour a week, a few hours a month, you know, that you could really change the trajectory of their lives, right?
• 53:37
  SPEAKER_03: And that's similar to, you know, that's exemplified by by Katie's story, by my personal story.
• 53:42
  SPEAKER_03: And the other thing that, you know, I'll say is is um to really donate your conversations or your connections, right?
• 53:50
  SPEAKER_03: Just to your point of how do we how do we get more people talking about this?
• 53:55
  SPEAKER_03: Um, a lot of times people think they can only contribute money to a nonprofit, but more often than not, you know, whether you're sitting at dinner um or you know, having drinks with friends or whatever it is, if you if you just take the time to talk about something um related to foster care so that people can actually learn about the issue, you might be shocked at how that helps people do something about the problem, whether they become you know volunteers, donors, or foster parents.
• 54:25
  SPEAKER_03: So yeah.
• 54:27
  SPEAKER_04: Yeah, no, and I love that.
• 54:29
  SPEAKER_04: I love that you said that.
• 54:30
  SPEAKER_04: And honestly, I will say this, and I'm and I'm honestly I'm being very honest, and a lot of people might give me hate for this, but I grew up in a South Asian family and uh South Asian culture, and there's this weird stigma when it comes to like, for example, adoption, or like, you know, uh instead of having your own child, you go and you find a beautiful child who needs a home.
• 54:52
  SPEAKER_04: You know, there's the stigma around things like that.
• 54:55
  SPEAKER_04: You know, that's just an example.
• 54:56
  SPEAKER_04: And I and I just want to mention this because I would like I remember like, you know, talking to my parents about this, and this is for some reason coming to my mind is that, you know, why would you procreate and create more people on this planet when there are so many children who need help and you can also help them, right?
• 55:18
  SPEAKER_04: So it's like I brought that up and I got this like huge, like, you know, um lash back in a way, and it was just the weirdest situation.
• 55:26
  SPEAKER_04: And so it really makes me think about that whole embedding of like this stigma towards foster kids in the society that we live in, and you know, just how we think about them in general and how we forget about them, you know, we forget about that this problem exists.
• 55:42
  SPEAKER_04: That's a huge problem, and that's such a multi-layered um issue that I think that really it needs to be unraveled, it needs to be looked at further, it needs to be talked about.
• 55:52
  SPEAKER_04: And and I love that you gave us examples of, you know, bring it up at dinner conversations.
• 55:56
  SPEAKER_04: But hey, you know, I say bring it up everywhere, you know.
• 55:59
  SPEAKER_04: If you're at work, bring it up at work, you know.
• 56:02
  SPEAKER_04: If someone's got you know infertility issues or something, you know, talk to them and be like, I want, you know, I don't know, anything, you know.
• 56:09
  SPEAKER_04: I'm I'm not gonna like rant, but my point is like I I really think that this is something that I would love to talk about more.
• 56:15
  SPEAKER_04: And Maggie, I if you ever have the time, I would love to do a whole uh podcast on on just talking more about this.
• 56:23
  SPEAKER_03: Yeah, I would love that.
• 56:24
  SPEAKER_03: I got the thumbs up from Katie.
• 56:27
  SPEAKER_04: Awesome.
• 56:28
  SPEAKER_04: Well, thank you.
• 56:29
  SPEAKER_04: Thank you both so much.
• 56:31
  SPEAKER_04: This has been literally one of the best podcasts I've ever recorded.
• 56:35
  SPEAKER_04: I am so honored, I am so humbled, I am so enlightened after this conversation.
• 56:39
  SPEAKER_04: And Maggie, you are such an inspiration.
• 56:42
  SPEAKER_04: Kate, obviously, you know I'm your biggest fan.
• 56:44
  SPEAKER_04: Um, you know, and everyone listening, I hope you've learned a lot here because wow, you know, we've we've really unpacked a lot of things.
• 56:51
  SPEAKER_04: And if you have any comments, um, any thoughts, please leave them in the concept art for this episode.
• 56:56
  SPEAKER_04: Um, we're going to be posting a few different posts.
• 56:58
  SPEAKER_04: So let us know and stay tuned because I'm going to be bugging Maggie and Kate to come back on the show as soon as possible.
• 57:05
  SPEAKER_04: So thank you.
• 57:07
  SPEAKER_01: Thank you.
• 57:08
  SPEAKER_03: Thank you so much for having us.
• 57:10
  unknown: Bye.
• 57:11
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