Awareness Podcast

Sexual Offenders: Acquaintance | Nice Guy I want to begin today's episode with an apology, I have done you a great disservice. So please accept my sincere apology. I am sorry. If you have noticed the podcast feed lately, on March 22nd 2018 I released episode 13 called "Predators", I have renamed that episode to "Sexual Offenders: Facing Reality". On today's episode you will understand why I was compelled to change the name of episode 13 and the reason for the apology. In order for awareness to be effective, we can not continue identifying sexual offenders under the obscure guise of labels like "Monster" or "Predator". We use these labels to conjure up feelings of fear and anxiety. It is our expectation that those labels will wake us to awareness we expect that these labels will raise our level of vigilance, but the opposite can be true. Sexual Offenders cloak themselves in gestures of kindness, and affection, they display altruistic behaviors to lull us into complacency. This is all part of the grooming process and it is intended to widen the chasm between our perception of monsters and predators and reality. This is why I changed the name of episode 13 and why I believe an apology is warranted.  On today's episode, you will be introduced to the worst kind of sexual offender, the kind that is a master of manipulation, the kind that attracts kids and adults alike,  the kind that works their way into leadership positions, positions of authority, positions with access to our kids. Podcast Social Media Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AwarenessPod/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/AwarenessPod Website: https://www.awarenesspodcast.com Email: MyStory@awarenesspodcast.com   Jim Clemente Hosted Podcasts: https://www.realcrimeprofile.com  https://wondery.com/shows/best-case-worst-case/   7 reasons why you should never force your kid to hug anyone article: https://thebodyisnotanapology.com/magazine/your-child-should-never-be-forced-to-hug-anyone-yes-including-a-relative-here-are-7-reasons-why-2/   Thanks: Thanks to Shane Yoder and his team at puttheminasong.com for the theme song, and thanks to my family for allowing me to do my part to help raise awareness.   Intro Music: Fake Views-Vate Closing Music: Hearts on wire-Mike McGuill  

Bullying: Empowerment with Danielle Matthew If you are finding the show for the first time, this is final episode, at least for now, on the bullying series. When I conceptualized this series I wanted to bring you bullying from different angles. It was my goal to show you bullying from a school administrators perspective we did that on episode 3 with Dr. Perrodin, I wanted to expose how devastating it could be and how it can really happen to anyone. Mallory's story is a powerful one and it gives you a good overall view of the problem and how in just a short amount of time, it can drain the life and spirit out of our kids. It was important for me to show you how involved Dianne was in trying to address this issue, and how she underestimated the affect of bullying, and how deep the spiritual wounds can be. I can relate to Dianne's perspective, her mindset as she was going through it, to be honest, it is very likely that I would have followed the same path, as I am sure most of you  would have as well.  Mallory's story was highlighted on episodes 14 and 15.  I also shared with you my story, I felt it was important to show you how easy it is to get caught up in the power struggle with the schools, how in some cases the schools are out of touch. As much as I didn't want to hear it, Dr. Perrodin's analysis was tough but fair. He assisted us in understanding how to navigate a tough conversation using my story as a real world example. You heard my story on episodes 16 and 17.  And then I shared with you my discussion with Nancy Willard, who's perspective on bullying, really changed the way I look at this phenomenon. When you frame bullying situations and wrap it in the context of social dominance, it makes sense how when bring the bully and bullied together to resolve the issue, more often than not, doesn't work. It didn't work in Mallory's case. It is extremely important that we look at bullying from different angles, different perspectives, we need to understand it at it's core. Nancy's view give us more insight and understanding. My discussion with Nancy Willard was on episode 18.  On today's episode, we are joined by Danielle Matthew a bullying expert and author of the book  "The Empowered Child". It was really important for me to provide solutions so that we can be proactive rather than reactive because once the effects of bullying take hold, it is very difficult to escape it's grasp. Those of you going through this with you kids know, it can feel like we are powerless to help our kids but don't fret, today is about hope, about realizing that help is out there, it's about realizing that you are alone, that  you can get help. Danielle will provide some practical advice that you can start using today. I have been practicing her advise and have been having success, not just with bullying (which, I am happy to say, is non existent) but allowing me to have a deeper connection with my girls. Podcast Social Media Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AwarenessPod/ Facebook Bullying Group: https://tinyurl.com/y8osxqto Twitter: https://twitter.com/AwarenessPod Website: https://www.awarenesspodcast.com Email: MyStory@awarenesspodcast.com   Find Danielle Matthew’s information here: https://www.awarenesspodcast.com/guests/   Thanks: Thanks to Shane Yoder and his team at puttheminasong.com for the theme song, and thanks to my family for allowing me to do my part to help raise awareness.   Intro Music: Wiederkehr des Seins-Philipp Weigl   Closing Music: Changing Colors-Mark Preston

Bullying: A New Perspective with Nancy Willard Welcome to Awareness, a show that reveals the story beyond the headlines, it has been a quick 3 weeks for me and I am very happy to say that I am coming to you from the new awareness studio, and I am truly grateful for your patience.  So Let's jump right in, today we are going to reframe our perspective on bullying. We are going to change the way we look at this crisis. It's time we change our lens and look at bullying in context of social norms, up until now you have heard how devastating the effects bullying can be on our kids. Mallory Grossman and the Grossman's story is an example of how cruel bullying can be, you have also heard about my  encounter with bullying and the schools reaction. But now it's time we shift our focus to understanding this phenomenon.  You will hear a point of view that is much different than anything you have heard on the mainstream media. It took me a while to find this point of view, and I am happy I am able to share this with you.  Today we are joined by Nancy Willard, author of the books Cyberbullying and Cyberthreats: Responding to the Challenge of Online Social Cruelty, Threats, and Distress Cyber-Safe Kids, Cyber-Savvy Teens, Helping Young People Use the Internet Safely and Responsibly Cyber Savvy: Embracing Digital Safety and Civility These books were published in 2007 and 2011 respectively. Nancy's book on Cyberbullying was the first book published on cyberbullying. With Nancy's help, the goal for today is to help you understand why it's not only the "weak" kids that get targeted but also the strong and popular ones. Also, you will gain a different level of understanding about bullying behaviors and a possible explanation for their expression. For me, Nancy's information created a context and an deeper understanding  about bullying that has helped me, help my daughters.   Psychology Today article: https://www.psychologytoday.com/us/blog/sex-drugs-and-boredom/201006/culture-evolution-and-dominance   Podcast Social Media Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AwarenessPod/ Facebook Bullying Group: https://tinyurl.com/y8osxqto Twitter: https://twitter.com/AwarenessPod Website: https://www.awarenesspodcast.com Email: MyStory@awarenesspodcast.com   Find Nancy Willard’s information here: https://www.awarenesspodcast.com/guests/   Thanks: Thanks to Shane Yoder and his team at puttheminasong.com for the theme song, and thanks to my family for allowing me to do my part to help raise awareness.   Intro Music: Highlander-Sasha Merkulov Closing Music: Pain-Attic Trax

Bullying: A School Encounter | Part 2 The Analysis with Dr. David Perrodin If you are here for the first time, this is part 2 of a 2 part story so please go back and listen to part 1, episode 16, otherwise you might be lost. I want to start of today's episode by saying thanks to those who posted their comments on the Facebook bullying discussion group as well as those who have reached out to me telling me about how they perceived my interaction with the school counselor. There were a few people that took the counselors side, some that took my side, and some that teetered back and forth. I considered many different ways to share that episode with you but ultimately decided that I wanted to try to deliver the episode as straight forward as possible, without interjecting much emotion. I wanted to deliver just the facts of what happened. Based on the feedback so far, I believe the episode had it's intended effect. I really do appreciate all of the feedback!  The last episode was very emotional for me, I seriously considered whether or not to release it to you. After a few months of debating, I decided to ask Dr. Perrodin if he would take the raw audio and analyze it. I knew his over 20 years experience in this arena would help me frame how the discussion went. After he said yes, I knew I had to share this insight, that was the moment I decided to share this with you. When I sent the audio to Dr. Perrodin, he didn't have any knowledge of the events leading up to the conversation, he just had the audio of the conversation. So his analysis is solely based on the conversation.  Dr. David Perrodin has 12 years experience as a Director of Student Services. He left the profession to focus exclusively on researching school safety and high-stakes decision-making  at the University of Wisconsin – Madison.  As an expert in safety preparedness and response, Dr. Perrodin has presented on public television, in school districts, and at school safety conferences. He is a school safety litigation expert witness with The Expert Institute. He has meticulously reviewed thousands of pages of depositions and policy documents to inform legal counsel and courts on matters of student safety and he brings that expertise to you today. Podcast Social Media Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AwarenessPod/ Facebook Bullying Group: https://tinyurl.com/y8osxqto Twitter: https://twitter.com/AwarenessPod Website: https://www.awarenesspodcast.com Email: MyStory@awarenesspodcast.com   Thanks: Thanks to Shane Yoder and his team at puttheminasong.com for the theme song, and thanks to my family for allowing me to do my part to help raise awareness.   Intro Music: Final Approach-Adam Fielding   Closing Music: Run Home-Align in Time

Bullying: A School Encounter | Part 1 If you are finding the podcast for the first time, this is the 4th episode on the bullying series, so check out the other 3 each of them are titled beginning with the word “Bullying”. Bullying has been one of the issues on my mind since March of 2017 when I spoke to Maurine Molack, her son 16 year old David completed suicide on January 4th 2016 after months of bullying and cyberbullying, and was the event that propelled me to create this podcast. It was the moment I realized that all the information I found researching these stories needed to be shared with you, because true awareness requires a community. Since then I have spoken to Diane Grossman, who's 12 year old daughter Mallory committed suicide last year and you heard their story on the 2 episodes before this one. These two conversations deeply impacted me and I am determined to apply and share any learnings from those 2 tragedies that I can. I am determined to allow their hindsight to guide my way and hopefully yours as well. There is so much to learn from these 2 families, we can apply those learnings to honor their children and the countless others who have experienced the same type of attacks.  On April 1st 2017, Dr. David Perrodin sent a direct message on Twitter via the Typical Daddy Podcast handle, (Typical Daddy is a podcast I was a cohost on), in that message he praised an episode we did with author Nancy Jo Sales, ( that episode was released as a bonus on this feed).  Since then, we have struck up a friendship and we have collaborated on various projects. I have been on his show, and his expertise has been featured on a few episodes on this show. As I was writing the first episode of the bullying series (episode 3) in honor of  National Bullying Prevention Month in October of 2017 , I thought it would be a good idea to have his expertise on that episode. On short notice, he agreed to come on the show to share insight from a school administrator's perspective. We recorded that episode the night of Sept 20th 2017 and little did I know, that just a few months later, I would have to lean on his advice.   Podcast Social Media Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AwarenessPod/ Facebook Bullying Group: https://tinyurl.com/y8osxqto Twitter: https://twitter.com/AwarenessPod Website: https://www.awarenesspodcast.com Email: MyStory@awarenesspodcast.com   Thanks: Thanks to Shane Yoder and his team at puttheminasong.com for the theme song, and thanks to my family for allowing me to do my part to help raise awareness.   Intro Music: Future Morning (bonus track)-Curl Closing Music: Princess-future_former  

Bullying: Mallory Grossman | Part 2 of 2 with Dianne Grossman As parents, we spend our lives moment by moment trying to protect our kids from harm. Every moment life offers, we try to anticipate the danger our kids might face. Our generation was raised on tough love, believes in sticks and stones, we were told to fight back, toughen up, defend ourselves. That was a different time, a different era, those rules don't apply now, the game has changed, technology has changed the game, we haven't changed and we need to. We are pretty good at shielding our kids from physical harm, but what about the emotional and spiritual harm, little consideration was given to that when we were growing up, the disconnect from bullying while at home gave us crucial moments with our friends and family. Those moments nurtured us to resilience,  gave us a fighting chance. They lifted our spirits enough to face another day.  Technology has infiltrated those moments, they are all but non-existent, the effects of bullying are now with our kids 24/7. No time to recharge, no time to heal… On today’s episode we are joined by Dianne Grossman. Dianne's contact information can be found on https://www.awarenesspodcast.com/guests/. Podcast Social Media Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AwarenessPod/ Facebook Bullying Group: https://tinyurl.com/y8osxqto Twitter: https://twitter.com/AwarenessPod Website: https://www.awarenesspodcast.com Email: MyStory@awarenesspodcast.com   Thanks: Thanks to Dianne and the Grossman family for trusting me with their story. I am truly grateful! Thanks to Shane Yoder and his team at puttheminasong.com for the theme song, and thanks to my family for allowing me to do my part to help raise awareness.   Intro Music: The Prodding-Ehren Starks   Closing Music: Maribo-Mystic Crock  

Bullying: Mallory Grossman | Part 1  The bullying series begins with the 2 part story of Mallory Rose Grossman, a 12-year-old who's spirit was crushed by the burden of bullying and ended her life by suicide on June 14th, 2017. On today's episode, we will examine the acts of bullying Mallory experienced as well as the aftermath, we will also look into what mechanisms were in place to help Mallory and her parents through these acts of hate. By the end of this episode, you will likely reach the conclusion that I did while researching this story, and that is, that I shouldn't be doing an episode about Mallory Grossman.   Podcast Social Media Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AwarenessPod/ Facebook Bullying Group: https://tinyurl.com/y8osxqto Twitter: https://twitter.com/AwarenessPod Website: https://www.awarenesspodcast.com Email: MyStory@awarenesspodcast.com    Thanks: Thanks to Shane Yoder and his team at puttheminasong.com for the theme song, and thanks to my family for allowing me to do my part to help raise awareness.   Intro Music: Everything Is Wide Open - Adam Fielding   Closing Music: When All Is Said And Done - Adam Fielding  

The bullying series is coming this summer! You will hear about a personal encounter with a school official how an army was mobilized - Mallory's Army was is quite possibly the cause of bullying behaviors if your child is bullied how to provide them the support they need Change the way you look at the bullying epidemic this summer!!

Bonus: Season 1 | Part A Story Updates The summer is fast approaching and we are getting closer to resuming the release of new episodes. A lot has happened since the podcast launched last October and there have been updates that I want to share with you.  Today we are going to check in on Child Sex Trafficking story 1, see what Crista Miller has been up to, we will also check in on Lorin Lafave (Breck Bednar's Mother) and finally, we will have an update on school attacks.   Music: Lead In:  Breaking Out - Stephen Schweyen Outro: Twist and Turn - Sandeep Bhandari  

BONUS EPISODE! Hello fellow Awarians and welcome to back for this bonus episode!  I want to thank you for sharing the episodes and for sticking with me so far. Together we have raised awareness in almost all 50 states and 11 countries, and that is truly amazing!  And as a thank you, I wanted to share with you the first interview I conducted for a podcast. This interview was done in conjunction with Henry, who is a co-host on the Typical Daddy podcast with me. This was also the 3rd episode I produced, and at the time which was last year, I was still learning the craft so please be patient with the audio.  This interview ignited my passion for helping people, to help by sharing the information I found during my research And now 13 episodes in, we have learned a lot together and we will continue to do so.   As you listen to the episode, you will hear many of the same themes I have covered already, a lot of the direction I took for this podcast, came from this interview. The interview was with best selling author Nancy Jo Sales and we discussed her book called American Girls: Social Media and the Secret Lives of Teenagers published in February 2016.   Podcast Social Media Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AwarenessPod/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/AwarenessPod Website: https://www.awarenesspodcast.com   Intro Music: Dhajala-Mystic Crock  

Sexual Offenders: Facing Reality **WARNING** This episode contains graphic language about violence towards children, please use your discretion. This will be our mid-season finale, with episodes returning this summer.   Over the last 6 months, I have brought you stories about child sex trafficking and how groomers prey on victims to turn them into sex slaves. We have also examined stories about groomers and how they are everywhere on the internet and nowhere is safe, if you are connected to the internet.   Now it is one thing for me to bring you stories about how these people are preying on our children, stalking them post after post, for me to tell you how deviant these people are using words like monster and predator, but it’s another thing for you to hear it for yourself.   On today's show we are going to examine the deviant minds of sexual predators, and it's going to be extremely graphic and at times very difficult to listen to, I have been struggling for months now on whether or not to share this with you, but this is the Awareness Podcast and thus you must be made aware of what we are dealing with. We need to stop the powerful myths that make us feel safe the ones these monsters trade on, the ones that jeopardize the safety of our kids, the ones that make our children vulnerable.   If you still can't make the leap, to see how dangerous our world is today for our kids, just take a look, spend a few hours searching for it and you will find it, as I did, and it's why I'm here today.    On this episode, you are going to hear from sexual predators, in their own words, their thoughts their desires and how easy it was for them to commit these heinous acts and this was before social media and unfettered access, and as you listen, take note, that it is now easier than ever before in history, for a predator to come into our lives and wreak havoc, because their deviancy has no limits, it has no boundaries. It is very dangerous when we fail to recognize the reality of malevolence. We don't have to understand it, but we must recognize it.    Video Source(s): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0sEqWlJbEX4 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dwGVuZ54Eyg https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t7fywYUZqbk https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iopDGjrjpzY https://www.theindychannel.com/news/call-6-investigators/convicted-child-molester-says-social-media-is-givingSe-more-tools-to-predators   Website Source(s) https://www.ipredator.co/   Safety Doc Podcast Episode 61 | Where I was interviewed about grooming:  YouTube: https://goo.gl/2GVfKA Podbean: https://goo.gl/HwpevB Apple Podcast: https://goo.gl/ZLHX72     Podcast Social Media Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AwarenessPod/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/AwarenessPod Website: https://www.awarenesspodcast.com   Thanks: Thanks to Shane Yoder and his team at puttheminasong.com for the theme song, thanks to Ed Luby for the Awareness Logo, and thanks to my family for allowing me to do my part to help raise awareness.   Intro Music: Pa - Tokee Closing Music: Deep Atmospheres (remix)-Mystic Crock  

School Attacks | Part 3 with Dr. David Perrodin  I have been at it for a year now, researching stories about people who have been affected by some of the worst that humanity has to offer. The next episode will be the 13th of this podcast and it feels like a good time to take a break and recharge, but don't fret, I will be back with more episodes this summer, cause after all Awareness never stops, so I will continue to investigate more stories to bring you.  If you haven't already, check out  part 1 and 2 on school attacks because at the end of this episode Dr. Perrodin will summarize our discussion and you might be a little lost if you haven't heard them already.  On today's episode, Dr. David Perrodin is back, as we are going to conclude our school attacks series. We will be bringing you 2 more stories, the attacks on Bethel Regional High School and Sandy Hook Elementary. You will continue to see that there were warning signs, chances for someone, anyone to intervene, and yet no one did. And this continues to happen to this day....   Resources: https://www.adn.com/alaska-news/2017/02/18/evan-ramseys-tattered-life-filled-him-with-rage-then-he-brought-a-shotgun-to-school/ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vmoTqaFT7Ic&t=1282s http://cspsandyhookreport.ct.gov https://www.lawenforcementtoday.com/adam-lanza-spoke-a-year-before-sandy-hook-but-nobody-listened/  https://schoolshooters.info/sites/default/files/lanza_posts_1.0_1.pdf https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AIQt9Jdp94Q   Safety Doc Podcast Episode 61 Interview about grooming:  YouTube: https://goo.gl/2GVfKA Podbean: https://goo.gl/HwpevB Apple Podcast: https://goo.gl/ZLHX72   Podcast Social Media Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AwarenessPod/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/AwarenessPod Website: https://www.awarenesspodcast.com   Thanks: Thanks to Dr. David Perrodin for sharing with us his expertise on school safety and for joining us for the school attacks series. Go check out his podcast, The Safety Doc Podcast, and if you need his contact  information, you can find that on https://www.awarenesspodcast.com/guests/. Thanks to Shane Yoder and his team at puttheminasong.com for the theme song, thanks to Ed Luby for the Awareness Logo, and thanks to my family for allowing me to do my part to help raise awareness.   Intro Music: This was my last hope-Etherine   Closing Music: Running With Insanity-Mystic Crock  

School Attacks | Part 2 - Columbine with Dr. David Perrodin  As the world mourns yet another mass shooting, thoughts and prayers, from around the world, are being sent to the family and friends of the victims of Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School . In the coming weeks, we are going to be inundated with information, some of it truth, some of it conjecture, And it is only through the passage of time, that the false narratives will be panned from the truth, we will hear theories as to why our politicians have failed us, and many experts are going to posit reasons as to why this happened again. We will be bombarded with statistics, and be shown how around the world gun violence is almost non-existent. Both sides of the gun debate will trot out their experts providing us with a decision to make, either for or against, {interject your cause of choice}. We have all seen this before. This is what happened 19 years ago in Littleton, Colorado in the aftermath of the Columbine school attack.  Most people have heard of the Columbine school attack, there are thousands of documents, dozens of video and audio clips, and a few documentaries. During the first part of this episode, we are going to take a retrospective look at the events of April 20th 1999.  This story has been scrutinized every which way. There have been many things learned from this tragedy, some of which, Dr. Perrodin will share with us today.   Today's episode will unfold in 2 parts... Dr. Perrodin will take us through what we have learned about the Columbine School Attack and how this changed our preparedness.. and then we will examinee some frightening similarities of the events leading up to the attack at Columbine and the attack at Marjory Stoneman Douglas high schools, specifically we will be examining a lesson that some have learned but at the same time, others have not and the consequences are devastating…   Resources: http://www.acolumbinesite.com http://www.king5.com/article/news/crime/student-accused-of-plotting-everett-school-shooting-could-be-charged-today/281-518703506  http://www.heraldnet.com/news/grandmother-turns-in-teen-who-allegedly-planned-shooting/  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ex_7zxAz3uE http://komonews.com/news/local/police-everett-teen-arrested-after-plotting-a-shooting-at-his-high-school http://time.com/5159578/student-suspect-washington-state-school-shooting-plot/ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N43k2hKCFiU http://columbinefamilyrequest.org/2010/01/columbine-anatomy-of-a-coverup/   Safety Doc Podcast Episode 61 Interview about grooming:  YouTube: https://goo.gl/2GVfKA Podbean: https://goo.gl/HwpevB Apple Podcast: https://goo.gl/ZLHX72 Podcast Social Media Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AwarenessPod/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/AwarenessPod Website: https://www.awarenesspodcast.com   Thanks: Thanks to Dr. Perrodin for lending his expertise! Check out the Safety Doc Podcast here: https://thesafetydoc.podbean.com and you can find his contact information here: http://www.awarenesspodcast.com/guests/   Thanks to Shane Yoder and his team at puttheminasong.com for the theme song, thanks to Ed Luby for the Awareness Logo, and thanks to my family for allowing me to do my part to help raise awareness.   Intro Music: Arcadia - Monkey Trial   Transition Music:  Self Leveling-Mystic Crock   Closing Music: Wrong Side Of The Bed-Mystic Crock    

School Attacks | Part 1 with Dr. David Perrodin  Bath Consolidated School Sources: 22 things you may not have known about the 1927 Bath school massacre Bath School bombing: Oldest surviving student recalls ‘how awful it was’ Book TV: Arnie Bernstein, author of “Bath Massacre: America’s First School Bombing”   Grover Cleveland Elementary School Sources: Brenda Spencer Documentary | I Don’t Like Mondays Justice Story: 16-year-old girl shoots up school, tells reporter 'I Don't Like Mondays'   Social Media Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AwarenessPod/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/AwarenessPod Website: https://www.awarenesspodcast.com   Thanks: Thanks to Dr. Perrodin for lending his expertise! Check out the Safety Doc Podcast here: https://thesafetydoc.podbean.com and you can find his contact information here: Awareness Podcast Website Thanks to Shane Yoder and his team at puttheminasong.com for the theme song, thanks to Ed Luby for the Awareness Logo, and thanks to my family for allowing me to do my part to help raise awareness.   Intro Music: Gaja-Amfibia   Closing Music: H15-Mystic Crock  

Trafficked Story by Dottie Laster & Online Grooming: Carly Ryan  Today's episode will unfold in 2 parts.   During the first part of the episode… Dottie will be sharing the story of a high school student we will be calling "Nancy" who was abducted and forced to do things that would destroy her innocence. Her story is a cautionary tale for the vulnerability of our kids not just from the internet monsters but from those around them. I have come across many stories of high schools students being tricked by people in their schools, the ones they call friends, who set them up for predators like the ones you are going hear about today. You will also be introduced to the power of coercion, a term not unlike grooming, in that it's power is only matched by it's ability to stay under our radar.   The second part of this episode will feature Carly Ryan's story, her story will be the final story of the online grooming series for a while. This is an important story, so it must be told. We often underestimate the deviant nature of these predators, we underestimate the desire they have to inflict harm on our children. This story will cap off the grooming series I promised you. Over the last few of months, I have shared with you stories, that I wouldn't have imaged were possible, stories that seem like they could only exist in our nightmares. Stories that we now know are very real.  If you take away only one thing from this series of episodes, It is my hope that you know that you must beware, they are out there, waiting lurking, planning…   Social Media Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AwarenessPod/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/AwarenessPod Website: https://www.awarenesspodcast.com   Thanks: Dottie and I are in constant communication, and we will likely bring you more from the world of human trafficking. Thank you Dottie for meeting with me and for sharing your stories. On behalf of the listeners and me, Thanks for your service!    Thanks to Shane Yoder and his team at puttheminasong.com for the theme music, thanks to Ed Luby for the Awareness Logo, and thanks to my family for allowing me to do my part to help raise awareness.   Intro Music: Memorial-DP Kaufman   Closing Music: Riding The Ghan-Mystic Crock  

Online Grooming: The Grooming of Adults | with Dottie Laster: On today's episode, Dottie Laster returns with a truly shocking story about an adult being groomed. As parents, we pour our hearts and souls into raising our kids. Spending countless moments filling them with love and building an unbreakable trust. A trust we believe will stand the test of time and will be impervious to anyone trying to break that bond. As parents raising our kids in the world of smartphones, tablets, and online connectedness, we are fighting an uphill battle, unlike anything seen in history. The devices we hold dear, are producing the effects of addiction. Just like any addiction, the effects make people behave in ways that are uncharacteristic. It is this dependency, that groomers are adept at exploiting.   Today we are going to hear how important it is to prepare our kids, to give them the tools they will need as adults to understand how to use technology appropriately because a lifetime of love and trust can be destroyed in 18 months.   Social Media Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AwarenessPod/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/AwarenessPod Website: https://www.awarenesspodcast.com   Thanks: Dottie Laster is a big supporter of this show, I thank you Dottie for the support you have given me. Thank you for sharing this story with us, so that we may learn, so that we may become aware! Thanks to Shane Yoder and his team at puttheminasong.com for the theme music, thanks to Ed Luby for the Awareness Logo, and thanks to my family for allowing me to do my part to help raise awareness.   Intro Music: Through the Walls-Ehren Starks  Closing Music: Mourning-Mystic Crock  

Human Trafficking with Dottie Laster: This year on the Awareness podcast, I have interviewed some amazing people. Christine O'Donnell (a journalist featured on episodes 1 &2 about child sex trafficking), Dr David Perrodin (a safety expert and host of The Safety Doc Podcast featured on episode 3 about Bullying), Crista Miller (a Parent advocate and mother of a survivor, featured on episode 4 about child sex trafficking ), and Alicia Kozakiewicz, a survivor of a grooming kidnapping, featured on episode 6). So it is only fitting that we close out 2017 with another amazing person, Dottie Laster a Human Trafficking expert.   Enter my promo code AWARENESS at checkout for 30% off everything at PutThemInASong.com on orders over $50.   Social Media Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AwarenessPod/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/AwarenessPod Website: https://www.awarenesspodcast.com   Thanks: Thanks to Dottie Laster for fighting for us, and for sharing her story! You can find Dottie Laster's contact information here: https://www.awarenesspodcast.com/guests/   Thanks to Shane Yoder and his team at puttheminasong.com for the theme music, thanks to Ed Luby for the Awareness Logo, and thanks to my family for allowing me to do my part to help raise awareness.   Intro Music: Bright Light - Mokhov   Closing Music: Cybele - Mystic Crock    

Online Grooming: Internet Safety with Alicia Kozakiewicz: In 2002, the internet was budding and the world was creeping into our households. Browsers like Lynx, Netscape, Opera, Internet Explorer and Mozilla were being turned on. It was the equivalent of advertising to the world that our front doors are unlocked and everyone is welcomed without restriction and the online groomer was born. Social Media Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AwarenessPod/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/AwarenessPod Website: https://www.awarenesspodcast.com   Thanks: I want to thank Alicia Kozakiewicz for telling her story and dedicating her life to raising awareness about internet and child safety. No one can imagine the pain that she endured those 4 days in January, she has been sharing her story in the attempt that we as parents take heed. We give power to her message by taking action and learning about internet safety so that we may impart our knowledge to our children.  Thanks to Shane Yoder and his team at puttheminasong.com for the theme music, thanks to Ed Luby for the Awareness Logo, and thanks to my family for allowing me to do my part to help raise awareness. Intro Music: Kaleidoscope-Monom   Closing Music: Relay-macabro      

Online Grooming: Gaming | Breck Bednar: A summary of an article posted on psychologytoday.com published February, 10th 2014: [In the United States alone, an estimated 99 percent of boys and 94 percent of girls play video games.  Video games have become an important part of popular culture. Dutch researchers suggest that not only do the newer video games provide young people with compelling social, cognitive, and emotional experiences, they also can potentially boost mental health and well-being. Video games nowadays can be played either alone, with others, or in competition with thousands of other online players. For most gamers, video games are played for enjoyment and to help improve their mood. Along with distracting them from real-world problems, succeeding in video games can lead to positive feelings, reduced anxiety, and becoming more relaxed. Many gamers report intense emotions of pride and achievement by immersing themselves in games that allow a high sense of control that "takes them out of themselves".] The benefits of gaming are becoming clear, but are these benefits making our kids vulnerable to the effects of grooming… Social Media Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AwarenessPod/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/AwarenessPod Website: https://www.awarenesspodcast.com   Thanks: Thanks to Shane Yoder and his team at puttheminasong.com for the theme music, thanks to Ed Luby for the Awareness Logo, and thanks to my family for allowing me to do my part to help raise awareness! Intro Music: Westbound - prettyhowtown Closing Music: Tundra - Macabro      

Child Sex Trafficking: Story 2 | with Crista Miller Social media has connected us in ways we could never have imagined. We are now connected, even if we are physically away from our friends and family.  Our lives on are display for the world to see, our proudest moments, our deepest sadness. The times of self-reflection and isolation to regroup ourselves, are a thing of the past, as we turn to the internet for comfort and a sense of belonging. Cause, after all, it is easy to share our lives with just a few clicks. All the while, "they" could be watching, and by "they" I mean the predators.  When I say predators, I don't mean the monsters that we conceive in our mind that are constructed out of our nightmares, I am talking about everyday people, working everyday jobs. The people you see, day in and day out, the ones you would say, "I didn't think they were capable of doing that, they were so nice", those are the predators I am talking about. The ones hiding behind the gentle façade of a friend request and then lurking and waiting for the right opportunity. The ones who have infiltrated our lives masking themselves as our friends.  As adults growing up, we were taught about Stranger Danger, don't talk to strangers, we were told in a stern voice. There is no doubt that it was easier for us to determine if a person approaching was a stranger. Fast forward to today, is a person you call a friend on social media considered a stranger? Is it clear to our kids what a stranger is? How do we teach our children to distinguish a stranger from a friend? Social media has blurred the lines and it is important that we teach our kids the difference. But in order to teach them the difference, we need to get right about what a stranger is nowadays.  On today's episode we are going to hear Crista's story, a mother whose daughter was groomed, tracked on social media, and during a moment of typical teenage angst, got herself into a trafficking situation. Her story is a cautionary tale about relying on parenting strategies of yesteryear that are no longer enough and how through giving our kids grace can change the course of our relationships with them.   Social Media Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AwarenessPod/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/AwarenessPod Website: https://www.awarenesspodcast.com   Thanks: Thanks to Shane Yoder and his team at puttheminasong.com for the theme music, thanks to Ed Luby for the Awareness Logo, and thanks to my family for allowing me to do my part to help raise awareness.   Intro Music: Imagine Beyond - Mokhov   Closing Music: They Know - Macabro