Twisted Sisterhood

Mercedes is a birth mother from St. Louis. At 20 years old, she pursued adoption for her daughter and dealt with the child welfare system in the process. Because of this experience, Mercedes is passionate about connecting foster youth to their biological families in every role she undertakes. Mercedes has over a decade of experience serving families engaged with the child welfare system, most recently as a Field Operation Specialist for Missouri Children’s Division, overseeing the St. Louis Region with the support of data for the implementation of legislation and improvement planning.

She is passionate about gathering and analyzing data to impact policies for youth and families. Mercedes graduated from the Minority Professional Leadership Development Program (MPLD) with AdoptUSKids, where she developed a language resource group to address a language barrier that adoption recruiters faced when working towards permanency for their Hispanic youth. In short, Mercedes is an absolute rockstar.

We are back with the second episode of season 3 of the Twisted Sisterhood Podcast! Today, we talk about stereotypes and stigmas... but it's not what you think. We have grown tired of the usual conversation surrounding stereotypes and stigmas and how this doesn't foster inclusivity or bring anyone closer to community, healing, or understanding. We reject the idea of a hierarchy within the lowest rung on the adoption ladder. We encourage you to listen to today's episode with an open mind and discover how to bring people into your circle.

Show Notes:

• Relinquished by Gretchen Sisson
• Lifetime Healing Foundation - Find a support group near you!

Welcome to Season THREE of the Twisted Sisterhood Podcast! We have a great season lined up for you, you'll be hearing all about the projects that are happening in the adoption world, as well as policy changes, new books and documentaries, and hearing from more birth moms about their experiences.

Show Notes:

• AdoptChange.org for the Adoption Provider Search, state law information, and more on how to get involved with change in adoption
• Ethical Family Building
• Lifetime Healing Foundation - Find a support group near you!
• Adoption Unfiltered book, releasing December 1st! Pre-order on Amazon or Bookshop
• Adoptees United - Stay updated on current legislation regarding open birth records for adoptees
• Adoptee Rights Law Center - Greg Luce, Esq. - Find out more about open records and the steps to obtaining an original birth certificate in your state.

In this episode, we address the curious event of switching roles in the adoption community and how we can stand in the gap for others. Kelsey talks about the loss of her grandmother, and what it felt like to watch her dad grieve his birth mom. Ashley and Kelsey dive deep into what experiences they have had where others have filled in the gap for them, and how they have filled in the gap for other people.

Erika Gonzales is a 30 year old birth mom from California. She is just over four years post-placement in an open adoption and she is here to be an ally for fellow birth moms and help normalize healthy, close relationships between birth parents & adoptive parents. In this episode we talk about the feeling of "not being in the club" when you have a healthy open adoption, classism in adoption, and what systems are in place that perpetuate the need for adoption to occur.