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Mother's Quest Podcast

Mother's Quest Podcast

De : Julie Neale
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Are you a mom who is ready to live a truly E.P.I.C. life? A few months before a big milestone birthday, host Julie Neale, a life and leadership coach, community builder and mom to two high-energy boys, decided to stop sidelining her dreams and become the hero of her own journey. She created this show to help light her way by gathering words of wisdom and lessons learned from other mothers further ahead on their quest. Join in for intimate conversations with a diverse group of inspiring mothers as they share how they are living an E.P.I.C. life, engaging mindfully with their children (E), passionately and purposefully making a difference beyond their family (P), investing in themselves (I), and connecting to a strong support network (C). Come along with Julie and you are sure to find some treasures of your own. Parentalité Relations Sciences sociales
Épisodes
  • Ep 115: Father's Day Special: Four Fathers on the E.P.I.C. Framework

    Ep 115: Father's Day Special: Four Fathers on the E.P.I.C. Framework
    Jun 19 2026
    Welcome to this Father's Day special of the Mother's Quest Podcast. This year, I decided to reach out to the husbands and life partners of incredible mothers I've interviewed on the podcast in the past, inviting four extraordinary fathers to share their reflections on living an E.P.I.C. life. E.P.I.C. is a metaphor for answering the call of our own hero's journey and also an acronym mnemonic for the guideposts that help us live that life while we are raising our kids. E - Engaging mindfully with our children, P- Pursuing our passionate and purposeful impact, I - Investing in ourselves, and C- Connecting to a strong support network. Each father offers a glimpse into what they've been on a quest for, insights into one of the guideposts from the E.P.I.C. framework, and an invitation to try something that will help us more fully live our E.P.I.C. lives. Together, these four fathers bring perspectives shaped by different faith traditions, cultures, and lived experiences. And they all offer a masterclass on what it takes to parent and live life fully, with strength and humility. Thank you Rabbi Hugh Seid-Valencia, Iftikhar Ahmed, Franklin Hysten, and George Brian Sellner for entrusting us with your reflections, and for the love and intention you bring to fatherhood and to living your lives. And thank you Tricia, Saadia, Jenjii, and Jadah, the mothers whose voices have shaped this podcast over the last decade, and whose connection with me inspired this episode. All of these contributions felt like a gift for me. Wherever you are listening, whether you are a father yourself, parenting alongside one, or maybe missing one, I hope this conversation is a gift for you too. Happy Father's Day. This Episode Features: Rabbi Hugh Seid-Valencia, Chief Community Officer at Jewish Silicon Valley, who teaches and lectures on Jewish approaches to leadership, meditation, and parenting. Hugh, the husband of my recent podcast guest Tricia Creason-Valencia, reflects on Engaging mindfully with our children, the practice of stepping up and stepping back as a father, the Jewish humility teaching of how much space to take up in a relationship, and how a lifelong practice of martial arts informed his approach to parenting. Iftikhar Ahmed, co-founder of Kaizen Financial Strategies and co-author with his wife Saadia of A Planning Guide for American Muslims. Iftikhar, who came to financial services after a first career in engineering and tech leadership, reflects on Pursuing our passionate and purposeful impact, the Kaizen philosophy of small steps leading to big results, drawing passion from those who find happiness through helping others, and being a role model for his children. Franklin Hysten, founding partner of Blaze Consulting Group and a coach and facilitator of more than 20 years developing leaders in nonprofits and public sector organizations. Franklin, the husband of my Episode 7 guest Jenjii Hysten, reflects on Investing in ourselves, the solo three-week journey to London where he sat with himself and his journal, the courage to ask for support through therapy and men's groups, and the shift from a love language of service to what he calls "the ministry of presence." George Brian Sellner, founder of One Heart Music and One Heart Men's Circle, whose work draws from Jungian archetypes, Internal Family Systems, somatic practices, mythology, and contemplative traditions. George, the husband of my Episode 95 guest Jadah Sellner, reflects on Connecting to a strong support network, the couples meeting practice he and Jadah have held for years, the daily blessing he sends his daughter Zoe, and creating safe spaces for men to show up emotionally. Topics Discussed in this Episode: Hugh on the practice of stepping up and stepping back as a father, and the Jewish humility teaching behind it "Be careful of what works" and the trap of imposing our will on our children How Tai Chi shapes Hugh's approach to redirecting energy rather than meeting force with force Iftikhar on the Kaizen philosophy of small steps leading to big results, applied to raising children Drawing passion from those who find happiness through helping others, not wealth or fame Why Iftikhar believes we cannot achieve significant goals alone, and the value of teaching children to work with others Franklin's solo three-week journey to London and the journal questions that changed him The courage to ask for support through therapy, men's groups, and coaching Shifting from a love language of service to what Franklin calls "the ministry of presence" with our children The couples meeting practice George and Jadah have held for years The daily blessing George sends his daughter, now as a voice memo since she left for college One Heart Men's Circle and why men need spaces to be held without being fixed About Our Guests: Rabbi Hugh Seid-Valencia, Chief Community Officer, Jewish Silicon Valley In his current role, Rabbi Hugh serves as a primary connector ...
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    46 min
  • Ep 114: Fierce Love, Grief and Showing Up Anyway with Tricia Creason-Valencia

    Ep 114: Fierce Love, Grief and Showing Up Anyway with Tricia Creason-Valencia
    May 7 2026
    I'm honored to share this special Mother's Day episode with my friend Tricia Creason-Valencia, recorded live in the UnMuted Studio at PowerHouse, the creative event space Tricia co-founded in San Jose. Tricia and I first came into each other's lives while collaborating on the Autism Storytelling Project. Then, she said yes to spending a full day together for a new offering I was piloting called Spark Your EPIC Life in a Day. On a Milestone Hike, during lunch and then coaching in my garden afterwards, Tricia reflected on what she was grieving in the aftermath of Covid, made commitments to herself that could pave a way forward, and named out loud big dreams to become a speaker and find a creative room of her own to pursue her artistic expression. Her bio today blends the powerful pieces of her past with the dreams she has now realized. She is an Emmy-nominated director, producer, and motivational speaker whose documentary films have won multiple awards and screened at film festivals and on public television nationally. She holds an MFA in Cinema from San Francisco State and a BA in Social Sciences from UC Berkeley, and has taught filmmaking at Santa Clara University, UC Santa Cruz, San Francisco State, and high schools. She co-founded PowerHouse, a podcast and media production studio and event space for women+ creatives in San Jose. And she is the 2026 Creative Ambassador for the City of San José, currently producing a city-wide multimedia project called "I am/We Are: Our Stories Connect Us." As a loving daughter and the mother of two children who came to her through adoption, she has lived through some of the hardest chapters that mothering and caregiving can bring. The day we recorded, Tricia almost canceled. She was carrying a profound anticipatory grief because her mother, Barbara, who had dementia, was in hospice. But we decided together to show up anyway and be with whatever came into the room. Her mom has since passed away, and in a voice note she sent me recently, Tricia said of our coming together that it was "A testimony to all the things that we have on our hearts and on our minds as mamas who are being pulled by our babies and our families and our mothers, and yet we show up, and we stay in conversation with each other. If this podcast is a testimony to staying in it, then I am proud of us." I am proud of us too. When we recorded the conversation, I had been going through some hard things in my own parenting journey that were asking the same of me. And what Tricia shared in this conversation gave me language and perspectives I needed that day... radical acceptance, slow hope, and fierce love. That last one she traces all the way back to her mom, and it's woven through everything she does. Topics Discussed in this Episode: The full circle moment of recording inside Powerhouse, the "room of her own" Tricia first named in her Spark Your EPIC Life day before the space even existed Navigating motherhood when your children's reality doesn't match the one you imagined Radical acceptance as the practice of stopping the push against what is, without saying it's okay Slow hope, borrowed from the climate movement, and the friends who text you to point out how far you've come The concept of "other mothering" and how it shows up in Tricia's teaching and community work Using art as a tool for mental health for yourself and for others What it took to invest in PowerHouse, and why she stopped saying "paid fairly" and started saying "paid abundantly" Her son calling her a visionary, and what it meant to be seen by him after everything The fierce love Tricia inherited from her mother Barbara, the three different ways Barbara responded to "I love you, Mom" in her final weeks, and the truth that we come from love This Episode is Dedicated by April Adams Pertuis April Adams Pertuis helps leaders and entrepreneurs turn their Story into a strategic advantage—driving deeper connection, stronger relationships, and greater visibility. As the Founder and CEO of LIGHTbeamers, April is a storytelling and visibility expert who equips audiences with the tools to communicate with clarity, build engaged communities, and create meaningful opportunities. Through her keynotes, she shows leaders how to move beyond simply delivering a message—and instead use their voice to influence, connect, and lead at a higher level. A former television journalist and producer, April has evolved into a sought-after thought leader in visibility and women's leadership. She has helped thousands of women build brand authority through strategic speaking, podcasting, and publishing—turning their stories into platforms for growth and impact. Her work is grounded in a powerful belief: everybody has a story—and when it's shared with intention, it becomes a force for connection, influence, and opportunity. Free download on learning to tell your story: Your Story Formula www.lightbeamers.com/formula About Tricia ...
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    1 h et 3 min
  • Ep 113: A New Way of Life: How Love Disrupts Systems of Harm with Susan Burton and Pamela Marshall

    Ep 113: A New Way of Life: How Love Disrupts Systems of Harm with Susan Burton and Pamela Marshall
    Feb 13 2026
    I'm honored to bring you a special episode of the Mother's Quest Podcast during Black History Month, featuring two extraordinary Black women, Susan Burton and Pamela Marshall, who are shaping history in real time, breaking cycles of incarceration for women through their work with the organization A New Way of Life (ANWOL.) I first met Susan and Pamela through Democracy Clothing, the brand my sister Caren founded, when we visited A New Way of Life to bring clothing to the staff and residents and later invited a group of their mothers to the Democracy studio. Spending time with them, seeing their impact firsthand, and later reading Susan's memoir, I was struck by how they transform personal loss and systemic harm into healing and hope for women rebuilding their lives. Susan founded A New Way of Life in 1998 after surviving nearly two decades in the cycle of incarceration herself. Following the devastating loss of her young son, her grief led to substance use that was criminalized and punished again and again, instead of supported. After her sixth release from prison, she finally experienced recovery rooted in dignity and opportunity and committed to bringing that same humanity to other women. What began as one home in South Los Angeles has grown into a nationally recognized reentry model that has provided safe housing to more than 1,800 women, reunited over 400 mothers with their children, and helped thousands clear legal barriers to employment and housing. This work is especially urgent given that the number of incarcerated women has increased by more than 600 percent since 1980, and that women returning home often face unique barriers, including higher rates of trauma, primary caregiving responsibilities, and limited gender responsive reentry support. Susan is now a grandmother and a great grandmother, building legacy across generations of women in more ways than one. Pamela's story is woven into that legacy. She joined A New Way of Life through a transitional employment program when Susan saw something special in her. Over time she was mentored, entrusted with greater responsibility, and eventually Susan passed the baton. Today, as one of two Co- Directors, Pamela carries the vision forward, expanding ANWOL's reach and impact. This conversation was recorded months ago, but the episode's release feels like it's arriving at exactly the right time. At this moment in our country, as state-sanctioned immigration raids harm families and destabilize communities across cities like Minneapolis, we feel the weight of injustice and wonder how to respond. And yet, we are also witnessing communities of care step forward, neighbors disrupting cycles of harm where they live, choosing solidarity over fear and acting from compassion. That is exactly what Susan and Pamela have been building for decades. Their wisdom grounds us in the knowledge that change begins close to home and is rooted in love. Topics Discussed in this Episode: The criminalization of addiction, the impact of intergenerational trauma, and the systems of poverty and racism that create cycles of harm Moving from being fueled by rage to being powered by forgiveness and love as a force for transformation How A New Way of Life creates safe homes where women returning from prison find stability, support, and the foundation to rebuild their lives Raising children to use their voices and be brave in the face of injustice Creating networks of support with like-minded people and remembering we're all connected Staying out of the "deep, dark hole" of the news cycle to protect your spirit Learning to pour into yourself while also caring for and uplifting others Why Susan believes real systemic change begins in hearts and minds, not legislation About Susan Burton Ms. Burton struggled to rise above a life of poverty, violence, and loss. As a way to cope, she fell harder into substance misuse and became enmeshed in the cycle of mass incarceration for nearly two decades. After being released from prison for the sixth time, Ms. Burton was finally able to access recovery services in an affluent area of Los Angeles. There she discovered and embraced opportunities that were never offered before. Determined to bring those resources to areas plagued by poverty and over-incarceration, Ms. Burton founded A New Way of Life (ANWOL) in 1998. Ms. Burton is a co-founder of All of Us or None (AOUON) and the Formerly Incarcerated & Convicted People and Families Movement (FICPFM), both national grassroots civil rights movements composed of formerly incarcerated individuals, their families and community allies. In collaboration with UCLA's Critical Race Studies Program, she launched an employment rights reentry legal clinic, which has grown to be the largest of its kind in Southern California. Susan has earned numerous awards and honors for her work. In 2010, she was named a CNN Top Ten Hero and received the prestigious Citizen Activist Award from the Harvard ...
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    53 min
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