Special Fathers' Network Podcast

Our guest this week is Jason Bechtold of Cary, IL. a director of IT services and an executive coach at Bain as well as the father of three who have a variety of neurological, psychological and intellectual challenges.Jason and his wife, Lori Hermann, have been married for 8 years and he is the proud father of three children: Jordyn (24), Tyler (20), and Jessica (18), who between them have experienced: brain cancer, Asperger’s, ADHD and very sadly sexual assault.   Jason is a former weapons specialist with the U.S. Army Natiaonl Guard.  For the past 20+ years he has worked in Chicago at Bain, the international consulting firm, where he serves as director of IT and as an executive coach.  Separate from his work there, Jason also does leadership coaching for men.  Jason reflects on his spirituality and growing up as one of three boys with a father who was a pastor, owner of Christian book stores, a chaplain for the local police and fire departments as well as a long-time social worker in Cook County.  We’ll hear

Our guest this week is Jen Lumanlan of Berkeley, CA wife, mother, researcher, parenting coach, author, curator of the Your Parenting Mojo website and host of the Your Parenting Mojo Podcast.  Jen and her husband, Alvin, have been married for 15 years and are the proud parents of daughter, Carys, who is 10 years old.Jen was born and raised in England.  She has a bachelors degree: English & Forestry from U.C. Berkeley, a masters degree in environmental management from Yale and a masters degree in psychology (child development) & education.  As a result of becoming a parent, frustrated by the lack of suitable parenting resources and informed by her masters in psychology & education, Jen redirected her energies into doing research and creating the Your Parenting Mojo podcast to fill that gap.  That lead to creating the Parenting Mojo website and doing parent coaching.Jen is the author of Parenting Beyond Power: How To Use Connection & Collaboration To Transform Your Family & The World, which i

Our guest this week is Rady Johnson of Westport, CT, a recently retired senior executive at Pfizer and a father of three including one with intellectual disabilities.Rady and his wife, Diane, have been married for 38 years and are the proud parents of three children: Katherine (36), Bridget (30) and Michael (34) who was adopted from Romania as a one year old and who has intellectual disabilities.Despite a wide range of challenges, Michael has lead a pretty remarkable life.  Through organizations like Special Olympics, Best Buddies and church youth groups, Michael has grown and developed.  Remarkably, Michael holds down three jobs; one as an office aid a Tauck, the world-wide travel agency, another on the maintenance crew at a Long Island beach, and a third at Marshall's the department store.  The Johnson family story is a shing example about commitment and the importance of communityall on this episode of the SFN Dad to Dad Podcast.Show LinksPhone – (917) 545-3090Email – Rady.Johnson@outlook.comLinkedIn –  ht

Our guest this week is Kirby Rabalais of Glenview, IL the Director of Strategic Growth at Truce Software, father of two including one with Pitt Hopkins Syndrome and more recently the founder of 4TITUDE an online community created to support dads raising children with special healthcare needs.    Kirby and his wife, Chelsea, have been married for 8 years and are the proud parents of two boys: Porter (4) and Harley (6), who has Pitt Hopkins Syndrome, a rare genetic disorder that causes developmental, intellectual and physical changes in children.Informed by the experience of being a special needs dad and empowered by the benefits he's experienced from others, Kirby has created 4TITUDE, a community whose motto is: "Finding Strength in Every Challenge."  They understand the emotional journey and unique challenges that come with raising a child with disabilities. The 4TITUDE mission is: "to provide empathetic support, guidance, and resources to help fathers navigate this path with strength and resilience."Kirby is

Our guest this week is Tim Kane of Ridgewood, NJ a former Senior Director of Broadcasting for the NBA, board member at the Epic School Foundation and father of three children including an autistic son. Tim and his wife, Laurie, have been married for 28 years and are the proud parents of three children: Katie (27), Caroline (21) and Jack (24) who is Autistic. Tim reflects on his storied career that began at ESPN in the early days and with the NBA for more than 30 years as well as a long list of NBA A-listers who have showed an extraordinary level of compassion for the Kane family and especially their son.  Tim also talks about his faith and shares with gratitude some of the organizations that have had an influential role in their lives, including:       EPIC School Foundation      Autism NJ, and      Kennedy KriegerAll on this episode of he SFN Dad to Dad Podcast.Show Links - Phone – (201) 673-2750Email – tkane41@verizon.netLinkedIn –  https://www.linkedin.com/in/tim-kane-09aa304/Kennedy Krieger Institute http

Our guest this week is Sebastien Pelletier of Montreal, Canada a financial professional and father of four, three of whom were diagnosed with Retinitis Pigmentosa.  The Pelletier family was also featured in the National Geographic documentary BLINK.Sebastien and his wife, Edith Lemay, have been married for 14 years and are the proud parents of four children: Mia (13), Leo (11), Colin (9) and Laurent (7).  Mia, Colin and Laurent have been diagnosed with Retinitis Pigmentosa, a rare genetic disorder also known as Inherited Retinal Dystrophy (IRD) that causes loss of vision.  There is no known cure for IRD that will eventually lead to complete blindness.  In lieu of just providing their children with images, videos and movies to bolster their visual memories, the family embarked on an 18 month, 15 country journey around the world, which became the subject of the 2024 National Geographic documentary BLINK.  BLINK is more than a beautifully filmed travelogue to once-in-a-lifetime destinations, it's about the famil

Our guest this week is James Burch, of Georgetown, Grand Cayman, who is a corporate law partner at Walkers, amateur boxer and single father of three young boys, including one with global developmental delays.James was born and raised in Chelton, England.  After obtaining his education and becoming a lawyer he has worked overseas in Hong Kong and Grand Cayman. James and his x-wife, Gemma, were married for 9 years before divorcing seven years ago and are the proud parents of three boys: Charlie (10), Harry (12) and Archie (14), who suffered brain damage at the time of his birth and who has global developmental delays.There were complications with Archie's birth that required he be medevacked to Miami for emergency surgery, so on a moments notice, James joined Archie on the flight to Miami and didn't return to Grand Cayman for three years. James' story is a reminder, that "in the blink of an eye" life as you know it can end.  There's was a surreal experience and very fortunately Archie is a miracle child. We als

Our guest this week is Isaac Jean Paul of Los Angeles, CA. who is a father and U.S. Paralympic track and field champion who just happens to be legally blind.Isaac and his significant other, Myra Harris, are the proud parents of two year old daughter Shylah. Isaac was born and raised in the suburbs of Chicago.  In high school he was a track & field star.  As he began to lose his sight he didn't want to be treated any differently than everyone else.  A friend suggested he compete in adaptive athletics, which led to training and qualifying for the U.S. Paralympic Team.  He's won national championships and represented the U.S. Paralympic Team in Tokyo and Paris, where he is a two time medalist in the long jump. Isaac is also the author of a children's book entitled: Mya's Marvelous Day At The Games , which was published in July 2024.  Isaac will be inducted into the Lewis University Athletic Hall of Fame in March 2025, just as his mom was 20+ years ago.   Isaac is an engaging fellow and we’ll hear his thought

Our guest this week is Alfred Niwagaba, of Kampala, Uganda who is the director of the Little Angels School in Wakiso and father of four children including a son with Down Syndrome.  Alfred and his wife, Rosemary Nambooze, have been married for 16 years and are the proud parents of four children: Benjamin (5), Beroil (9), Abigale (15) and Abryl (14), who has Down Syndrome and has some hearing deficits.Alfred runs The Little Angels School, with over 600 students.  Alfred and Rosemary also run Angel’s Center For Children With Special Needs, a NGO that serves families raising children with special needs. It’s a fascinating story and we’ll hear it on this week’s episode of the SFN Dad to Dad Podcast.Show Links -Phone – +256-788-887077 WhatsAppEmail – niwaalfred@gmail.comLinkedIn –  https://www.linkedin.com/in/niwagaba-alfred-357ba814a/Angel’s Center For Children With Special Needs https://angelscentre.orgRegister for the 6th Annual SFN Dads Virthual Conference on May 10, 2025: https://us02web.zoom.us/meeting/regis

Our guest this week is Jason Tuttle of Atlanta, GA, a former physical education and special education teacher, a stay at home parent and father to two children with multiple physical and cognitive disabilities.Jason and his wife, Jennifer, have been married for 21 years and are the proud parents of two children: Samantha (16) who is non-verbal, epileptic, wheelchair bound and has severe neuro developmental delays, and Zachary who, very sadly, passed away in January 2022, at age 15, who was diagnosed with Eagle Barrett Syndrome, was non-verbal, epileptic and had severe development delays. Since Zachary's passing, Jason has dedicated his energies to writing and sharing his feelings about grief with the aim of helping other men in similar situations.  We learn about Bert's Big Adventure, an organization that had a profound impact on Zachary, Letters To Zachary and the Letters To Zachary Coloring Book.  Jason's story is one of tragedy and heartbreak as well as purpose and fulfillment all on this week’s episode of

Our guest this week is Michael McManus of Barrington, IL, Vice President of Captive Resources, co-proprietor of Jigsaw Farms and father of two adult sons, including one with Autism.  Michael and his wife Stacie have been married for 33 years and are the proud parents of two boys:  Matt (30) and Jake (29) who is Autistic.  Jake has benefited from a host of programs, including: Cure Autism Now (CAN), now known as Autsim Speaks,Brave Hearts, and Cowboy DreamsMichael & Stacie purchased a 50 acre working horse farm in Woodstock, IL and renamed it Jigsaw Farms.  In addition to their own horses, the farm currently boards 40 horses, includes three full time staff all with separate residences.  They also rebuilt a house which would be suitable for Jake to live in, along with space for a caregiver.We’ll hear about that and more on this week’s episode of the SFN Dad to Dad Podcast.Show LinksPhone – (847) 460-8792Email – mmcmanus@captiveresources.comLinkedIn –  https://www.linkedin.com/in/mike-mcmanus-21a12932/Facebo

Our guest this week is Scott MacGregor of Fishers, IN who is Executive Director of Content and Storytelling at Eli Lilly and Company and father of three including one with Down Syndrome.Scott and his wife, Sara, have been married for 23 years and are the proud parents of three living children: Ainsley (16), Jack (18) and Abby (21) who has Down Syndrome.  Very sadly, their son Owen who had Trisomy 13, was still born in 2011. We learn about a wide range of organizations Abby has benefited from, including: Gigi's Playhouse,, Unified Track, Kids Dance Outreach and First Steps as well as DADS (Dads Appreciating Down Syndrome).Scott supported his wife Sara as she co-founded Same As U, a nonprofit organization, located in Noblesville, IN established in 2019 to serve young adults with developmental disabilities and to help them live the life they imagine.  Same As U is filling a need for more meaningful activities and programming that often stop upon leaving the traditional school system.We’ll hear all about that sch

Our guest this week is Jessica Ronne of Holland, MI, author, speaker, podcast host, founder & executive director of the Lucas Project and perhaps most importantly, wife and the mother of eight, including one with special needs.Jess and her second husband, Ryan, have been married for 14 years and between them are the proud parents of eight children: four from her first marriage: Caleb, Lucas, Mable and Joshua, three from Ryan's first marriage: Tate, Mia, and Jada and Annabelle (9) who they had together.  Their son Lucas suffered a stroke in vitro at 20 months; has global developmental delays, is non-verbal, has hydrocephalous, severe Autism, scoliosis, and low muscle tone.Very sadly Jess' first husband Jason, died of brain cancer in 2010.  And Ryan's first wife, Kaci, also passed away from cancer in 2010.  The couple met through some mutual acquaintances and married after a brief courtship to go on to have their 8th child, Annabelle.  Jess is a prolific author having published four books: -- Sunlight Burni

Episode #359 – A Look Back on 2024  Hi I’m David Hirsch, founder of the 21st Century Dads Foundation and Special Fathers Network as well as host of the Special Fathers Network Dad To Dad Podcast.   Happy New Year and welcome to the first episode of 2025.   Tom Couch, the editor and producer of the SFN Dad To Dad Podcast, and I, thought we would do something special and provide a Look Back on 2024.   In total we produced 72 episodes, 52 were weekly episodes airing on Fridays and for 20 weeks from May through September we produced a series of short episodes with SFN Mentor Fathers who are also involved with the SFN Mastermind Group program.  We called them SFN Mastermind Group Monday Podcasts.    While we’d love to include a snippet from all 70+ episodes, to keep it more concise we decided to provide some highlights.   We hope you enjoy listening to this Look Back on 2024 Episode as much as we did producing it.   18 of the 2024 guests are authors.   Nine of the interviews included international guests, from the

Our guest this week is Emma Livingstone of London, England who is the mother of three typical kids, a self-advocate with Cerebral Palsy and founder & CEO of UP - The Adult Cerebral Palsy Movement. Emma and her husband, Derrick, have been married for 17 years and are the proud parents of three typical children ages 11-16.  She is the one who has cerebral palsy, which has propelled her to become one of England's most outspoken advocates for adults with CP.   Emma is founder and CEO of UP - The Adult Cerebral Palsy Movement, a non-profit whose mission is to help all members of the adult Cerebral Palsy community to live their best lives. It's an uplifting story about family, perseverance and service all on this episode of the SFN Dad to Dad Podcast. Show Notes -Phone/WhatsApp – 44-07-951-019-508Email –  emma@upmovement.org.ukLinkedIn – https://www.linkedin.com/in/emma-livingstone-080967a4/Website - https://upmovement.org.uk/Special Fathers Network - SFN is a dad to dad mentoring program for fathers raising ch

Our guest this week is Craig Parks of San Diego, CA who is a professional musician, band leader, camp director, author and father of two including one with special healthcare needs.Craig and his wife, Rachel, have been married for 23 years and are the proud parents of two children: Nashaman (10) and Jonah (20) who has multiple issues, including: anxiety, attention issues and Autism.Craig has a real passion for working with youth.  He has combined his love of music and talent as a musician with his commitment to serving youth in a variety of ways including serving as a camp director and band leader.More recently Craig authored an e-Book entitled: "Stress Less & Have Fun With Your Kids". He also created a curriculum the "Parenting A to E Course" available at: https://www.parentingharmony.com/ We’ll hear Craig’s story and about his musical and special needs journey on this week’s Special Fathers Network Dad to Dad Podcast.Show Links - Phone – (760) 505-3099Email –  craigparks@parentingharmony.comLinkedIn – h

Our guest this week is Tieal Bishop, of Walkerton, IN, mother to six including a medical fragile son and founder of A Rosie Place For Children.Tieal and her husband,Travis, have been married for eight years and between them they are the proud parents of six children: Max (25), Sam (22) and Gigi (20) and triplet 21 year old girls, Madeline, Abby and Kate.   Her oldest son, Max, had a precarious entry into the world.  Diagnosed with RSV, he required a G-Tube for feeding, a Trach for breathing and seven month in the PICU, which resulted in the family staying at the local Ronald McDonald House for seven months. Despite the early challenges, Max is thriving as a young adult.  Tieal is founder of A Rosie Place for Children, a state of the art, nurse-staffed specialty hospital for medically fragile children and respite for their parents, based in South Bend, IN. Tieal has a zest for life and a passion for service.  You'll hear her uplifting story on this episode of the SFN Dad to Dad Podcast.Show Notes - Phone – (57

Our guest this week is Phillip Koontz of Monument, CO a retired U.S. Navy Seal, combat veteran, a former pastor, co-founder of Buffalo Leadership Academy, owner of an e-commerce business, author and perhaps most importantly, the father to five children.Phillip and his third wife, Suzanna, have been married for 6 1/2 years and between them are the proud parents of five children: Briah (11), Robert (13), Zadak (13), Madeline (16) and Jacob (18), who is Autistic.   Phillip served for more than five years on Seal Team 10 and is a combat veteran, during which time Danielle, his first wife was diagnosed with stage four metastatic breast cancer and died four years later.  His second marriage produced two children: Zadak and Briah. Phillip is also the author of The Truth Behind My Trident, which provides a fascinating look into the U.S. Navy Seals program and some hard truths about the sacrifices made by those who serve.  He is also a principal of Buffalo Leadership Academy and owner of Karambit.com and e-commerce bu

Our guest this week is Dennis Watkins of Oak Park, IL who is a professional magician and father of two adopted children, including a son who is Autistic. Dennis and his husband, Sean Kelly, have been married for seven years and are the proud parents of two adopted children: Magnolia (15 months) and Henry (5), who is Autistic.  Dennis hails from Dallas and a long line of family magicians.  His grandfather, Ed Watkins, was a leader amongst magicians in Texas who had.a national reputation. After taking a BFA from Southern Methodist University, Dennis pursued a career in theatre.  Working his way up from a performer to being a director, Dennis is proprietor of The Magic Parlour, located in downtown Chicago, now in it's 15th season, where he performs six shows a week, which according to Trip Advisor it is the #1 show in Chicago.  Dennis has quite a story to tell and we’ll hear it on this week’s episode of the SFN Dad to Dad Podcast.Show Notes - Phone – (312) 300-6803Email – dennis@denniswatkins.netWebsite - https:

Our guest this week is Tom Parro of Grayslake, IL, president of MERK Capital and father of three including a daughter with a rare disease.  Tom and his wife, Janice, have been married for 27 years and are the proud parents of three children: Erin (24), Matthew (20) and Megan (22) who has Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome (POTS) a condition that causes a number of symptoms when you transition from lying down to standing up, such as a fast heart rate, dizziness and fatigue. With a degree in accounting and MBA in finance Tom has enjoyed a career in finance leading, 27 years ago, to founding MERK Capital, a boutique investment private equity firm.  We learn about the Parro family, their faith and commitment to one another all on this episode of the SFN Dad to Dad Podcast.Show LinksPhone – (847) 867-9793Email – tomparro@MERKcapital.comLinkedIn – https://www.linkedin.com/in/thomas-parro-405396/Special Fathers Network - SFN is a dad to dad mentoring program for fathers raising children with special needs. Ma