Alex Sloan (he/they), is a Transracial, Transgender and Nonbinary human, adopted from La Chorrera, Panama. He was adopted as an infant by a single white woman, who adopted another child from Panama 7 years prior, (who he later found out was his biological cousin through DNA testing). After his adoption was finalized at six months old, Alex was then moved overseas with his adoptive family to Okinawa, Japan, until 2006, when his family PCS'd (Permanent Change of Station) moved to an American Air Force base in Aviano, Italy. Alex was in Italy until he graduated High School and was accepted to Northern Arizona University, in 2012. Alex graduated and obtained a Bachelors degree in Social Work and a minor in Psychology and Sociology. Alex moved to Portland, OR, in 2023, for new opportunities a safer environment for his queerness, and outside the heat of Arizona!. Alex currently works at a non-profit, as a Case Manager Supervisor, providing case management services to adults who experience Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities. Alex is excited to continue to be involved in the adoptee community and share his story.

https://www.bipocadoptees.org

Music by Corey Quinn

Lilly Anspach is an artist, writer, and adoptee advocate whose work explores healing, identity, and truth-telling. She is the founder of Center to Shape, a creative healing initiative, and The Yuri Group, a leadership and organizational consulting practice. Through art, writing, and community engagement, Lilly examines the complexities of adoption, belonging, and personal transformation. She is also involved with Adoptees for Family Preservation, where she works to elevate first mother voices and advocate for family preservation and ethical adoption practices.

https://www.adopteesffp.org

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After losing her son, to a devastating unnecessary adoption Renee Gelin discovered her purpose to help other mothers avoid unnecessarily separating from their newborns. Renee started speaking to other expectant mothers and realized that many of the reasons that they were considering adoption were similar to hers – temporary. She started explaining the lifelong trauma that maternal separation causes both mothers and their newborns and the mothers listened. The adoption community began to see moms with their babies and began to support Renee’s efforts of family preservation. Others online began to direct mothers considering adoption to speak with Renee and the concept of Saving Our Sisters became a reality. Renee married her son’s father and together they parent their daughters in Florida.

https://savingoursistersadoption.org

Recommended Resources: https://thefamilypreservationproject.com https://untanglingourroots.org https://concernedunitedbirthparents.org

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Sullivan Summer is an independent scholar, critic, essayist, poet, podcaster, and adoptee rights advocate. Her work across genres has been published in popular, literary, and academic outlets, and her pop culture hot takes and author interviews can be heard on the Adoption Pop!, Adoptees Off Script, and New Books Network podcasts. Her chapbook, Performance Anxiety, was published in 2025 by Black Sunflowers Poetry Press, and she is a 2025 "Best of the Net" anthology nominee. When not reading, writing, and podcasting about reading and writing, you can find her leading history-based reading groups at Brooklyn’s Center for Fiction, and engaging with visitors to The New York

Historical, the City’s oldest museum, where she is a Docent. You can find Sullivan at her website, on Instagram, and on Substack.

Adoptees for Family Preservation

https://onadoption.net

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Lora K. Joy/Lora Alegria is a returning guest.

Lora is a domestic, same race adoptee who is fully estranged from her adoptive family and reunited with both maternal and paternal biological family. In 2022, she legally changed her name back to her birth name and Lora’s biological mom reclaimed her through an adult adoption. Lora has self-published 3 illustrated books and a blog at www.myadopteetruth.com. She also co-led the publishing of the adoptee anthology The Flourish Experience.

Lora is the Secretary of Adoptees for Family Preservation (AFFP), a nonprofit organization committed to raising awareness of adoption industry practices. Lora co-leads a peer support group on estrangement through Adoption Knowledge Affiliates. And she is a Producer for the Adoptees On podcast.

Resources: https://www.adopteesffp.org

https://www.adoptionknowledge.org/peer-support-groups.html

Music by Corey Quinn

Dr. Zoe Shaw is a licensed psychotherapist, author, speaker, podcast host, relationships coach and fitness lover. She is passionate about helping women who struggle in difficult relationships, especially that sometimes difficult relationship with themselves, overcome complex shame and co-dependency.

After 15 years in traditional psychotherapy practice, Dr. Zoe jumped off the couch and now helps women using a different modality with a mix of virtual therapy, coaching services and programs, through a lens of psychology, faith and a dash of feminism.

Dr. Zoe is the author of the Ask Dr. Zoe Column in the Grit and Grace Project women’s magazine and the books, A Year Of Self Care and Stronger In The Difficult Places released by Penguin Randomhouse Waterbrook. She has been featured in the OWN documentary series UNLOCKED, abd published in Oprahmag.com, Recovery Today magazine, Forbes and Today.com. She writes about helping women overcome shame and co-dependency. You can find her in the media on Instagram: @Drzoeshaw and in most social places at the handle DrZoeShaw.

https://drzoeshaw.com

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Dani Janae is a poet and journalist from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Her work has been published by Longleaf Review, SWWIM, Palette Poetry, and others. Her debut collection of poetry, Hound Triptych, will be published by Sundress Publications in the Spring of 2026. She lives in South Carolina.

When she is not writing she enjoys having intimate conversations with the things that puzzle and delight her, admiring spiders, watching horror movies, and hunting for figs.

https://danijanae.com

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Abbi Johnson is a natural mother who didn't get to raise her first child. She was sent to the Liberty GodParent Maternity Home in Lynchburg, VA in 2008 and at the age of 17 was coerced into relinquishing her son.

In March of 2023 she created her IG and TikTok accounts @voicelessbirthmother to begin sharing her story.

In 2025, Abbi collaborated with journalist T.J. Raphael on the investigative podcast Liberty Lost, which aired in the summer of 2025 and examined the realities of maternity homes and adoption practices.

Resources: https://wondery.com › shows › liberty-lost

Music by Corey Quinn