EPISODES

Friends, we’re celebrating Valentine’s Day with a couple that are sharing their enchanting love story! Their engagement was marked by a viral video and widespread media, Matthew Schwab and fiancé Lucia Romano share everything from their first date to their dreams for the future. This power couple is dedicated to shifting narratives for people with Down syndrome and the entire Intellectual and Developmental Disability community. From being fluent in multiple languages, working, driving, owning a public speaking business, living independently, ballroom dancing, community volunteering, participating as a multi-sport athlete in The Special Olympics, and giving a TEDx Talk, these two are the definition of a power couple! They have a shared passion for advocacy and hope their story will help challenge stereotypes about people with Down syndrome. We discuss their advice for those nervous about dating, and their moms share advice for families navigating their loved one's dating. This is an episode (and love story!) you don’t want to miss! 

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Friends, last February we (Heather & Josh!) had an unscripted conversation about challenges with IEP’s and what the best setting for Macy’s education would look like. They say a lot can happen in a year, and when it comes to school, that’s an understatement. We’re talking about Macy’s journey in the last year, from a Charter school program and ultimately her decision to return to a life skills program. The importance of seeking advice, but most importantly, following our kid's lead, and asking what they want. If you’re feeling the exhaustion of fighting for a space where your kid feels belonging, we see you, you’re not alone. Join us for another unscripted conversation about inclusion in our schools, how it's worked (and not worked) for our kids the last year, and so much more! Be sure to let us know your thoughts, feelings, and experiences after listening to this episode.

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Friends, today we’re diving deep into the heart of our favorite topic: inclusion! We chat about the barriers preventing true inclusion and we're challenging societal norms and asking the important questions about what defines human worth. What kind of person gets to be celebrated? What kind of person with Down syndrome gets to be celebrated? We explore the buzzword status of “inclusion,” the role of privilege in accessing support and services, and so much more. As we navigate this journey, we recognize the honor and burden of advocating for a more inclusive world. Progress in inclusion is happening, but are we truly championing the essence of every individual? Is the current system promoting equal access and opportunities? We’re asking all the questions, you don’t want to miss this thought-provoking episode!

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We love any opportunity to have our friends from Massachusett’s General Hospital’s Down Syndrome Clinic on the show today we’re joined by Dr. Stephanie Santoro! Dr. Santoro, a renowned geneticist and pediatrician, discusses her impactful research in developing a Down syndrome instrument to enhance healthcare for individuals with Down syndrome. From prioritizing patient outcomes to filling gaps in resources, join us in exploring the unique aspects of health for those with Down syndrome and how research is vital to successful healthcare outcomes. Discover the insights gained from direct input, bridging the divide between medical guidelines and the lived experiences of individuals, caregivers, experts, and so much more! Be sure to check out the link in our show notes to be part of this important research survey!

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Friends, we had so many incredible conversations in 2023, before we kick off a new season we’re throwing it back to some of our favorite episodes as we get excited to hit a milestone of ONE MILLION DOWNLOADS in 2024! We’re joined by Tim Villegas, he’s the director of communications for the Maryland Coalition for Inclusive Education (MCIE), a nonprofit that seeks to be the catalyst for the meaningful and successful inclusion of all learners in their neighborhood schools. Throughout his 16-year career in education, Tim has advocated for including students with extensive support needs in general education classrooms. He is the founder of Think Inclusive, a podcast for inclusive education, and Inclusive Stories, a narrative podcast series about families and school districts fully committed to inclusive education. Join us as we chat about all things inclusion in our schools: advice for educators, parents, and those in leadership looking to create spaces where everyone belongs. This is an episode packed with resources, be sure to check our show notes for all the links to helpful books, organizations, and films!

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Friends, we had so many incredible conversations in 2023, before we kick off a new season we’re throwing it back to some of our favorite episodes as we get excited to hit a milestone of ONE MILLION DOWNLOADS in 2024!

There are so many feelings when we enter spaces alongside our loved ones with Down syndrome and disabilities. The question, “Is there such a thing as a difficult parent?” It made us think deeply about advocacy, boundaries, and how gender, race, and cultural stereotypes can play a role in this question. What does it mean to advocate? What is your job as your child's advocate? If you make people uncomfortable does that make you difficult or does that make you an advocate? Is there a way around advocating and not being labeled a difficult parent? Friends, you’re not going to want to miss our conversation on this hot topic!

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Friends, we had so many incredible conversations in 2023, before we kick off a new season we’re throwing it back to some of our favorite episodes as we get excited to hit a milestone of ONE MILLION DOWNLOADS in 2024!

We’re excited to have Jack’s Basket founder Carissa Carroll back on the show! Today she’s joined by Dr. Erin Plummer to chat with us all about a new curriculum they are launching for medical providers. They’re providing practical online training for providers to review the literature and allow reflection on their own experiences of giving a diagnosis. What could they do better? What went well? What were they feeling? How might their patient have felt? Carissa shares her own experience with receiving her son’s Down syndrome diagnosis and her passion for changing a family’s diagnosis story from the very beginning. We’re so grateful for the work Carissa and Dr. Plummer are doing for our community and can’t wait to share this incredible project they’ve been working on that will make a positive impact for so many families!

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Friends, we had so many incredible conversations in 2023, before we kick off a new season we’re throwing it back to some of our favorite episodes as we get excited to hit a milestone of ONE MILLION DOWNLOADS in 2024!

Have you heard about the Netflix series “Down For Love”?! We’ve been hearing about it from friends, family, and even one of our kid's healthcare providers, all with rave reviews. So we set aside some of the reality shows that we feel a bit guilty about admitting we’ve watched and enjoyed a wholesome reality dating show of people with Down syndrome on a quest for love. This show highlighted so many things for us to think about as parents. The conversations that we’ll need to have about boundaries and consent, what we’d want to see for our kids, and so much more. It of course brought up so many questions that we dive into like: Did the show represent all types of people with Down syndrome? Does the show honor people with Down syndrome? Is the title “Down For Love” problematic or just a fun pun? We’re diving deep into not only the show, but our thoughts (and some fears!) on our kiddos dating. This is an episode you don’t want to miss!

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We had so many incredible conversations in 2023, before we kick off a new season we’re throwing it back to some of our favorite episodes as we get excited to hit a milestone of ONE MILLION DOWNLOADS in 2024! Friends, we recognize and appreciate that so many of you come to us for our open, honest, and candid conversations week after week. After seeing the response Heather was receiving over on @theluckyfewoffical under a post that she wouldn’t be celebrating an abled person asking a disabled person to prom, we knew this topic deserved another conversation. We also knew the conversation deserved to include a person with disabilities. Our producer and self-advocate Ashley Fraccalossi joins us for this candid conversation on honoring people with disabilities and when that line can get blurred or crossed. She helps break down with us what inspiration p*rn means in the disabled community, unconscious bias, and how her own experiences with disability have shaped her views on this topic. We’re grateful to not only hear from her today, but to continue this important conversation with all of you. May we all continue to learn, listen, and grow from conversations like this together.

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Friends, we had so many incredible conversations in 2023, before we kick off a new season we’re throwing it back to some of our favorite episodes as we get excited to hit a milestone of ONE MILLION DOWNLOADS in 2024!

Today, we’re excited to have poet, author, and “levitator of language,” Sid Ghosh on the show! He describes himself as, “just your autistic boy next door with Down syndrome!” His Mom, Dr. Vaish Sarathy joins us as Sid’s communication partner and also shares their journey of using spelling to communicate with the world. This incredible sixteen-year-old is the author of two chapbooks: Give a Book and Proceedings of the Full Moon Rotary Club. It’s a unique opportunity and honor to feature a non-speaker on a podcast and for the first time in The Lucky Few Podcast history, we’re offering a VIDEO version of this episode! Friends, whatever version you choose, this is an episode you don’t want to miss!

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Friends, we had so many incredible conversations in 2023, before we kick off a new season we’re throwing it back to some of our favorite episodes as we get excited to hit a milestone of ONE MILLION DOWNLOADS in 2024!

Today we’re talking about the differences between Guardianship, Conservatorship, and Supported Decision-making. We have attorney and Executive Director of Massachusetts Advocates for Children, Anna Krieger here to help explain the differences and similarities between these options. Anna is a nationally recognized expert on Supported Decision-Making and has trained, advocated, and written widely on the topic alongside decision-makers and their supporters. We’re also joined by self-advocate Craig Kinney and his mom Sandy, who have chosen Supported Decision-Making and are sharing their experience with us today! We hope this episode helps you think about what next steps you may consider when deciding what is best for your family.

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Friends, we had so many incredible conversations in 2023, before we kick off a new season we’re throwing it back to some of our favorite episodes as we get excited to hit a milestone of ONE MILLION DOWNLOADS in 2024! On this week’s episode, we’re celebrating with a candid conversation about connecting with your child with Down syndrome! We know how important making meaningful connections with our kids is, today we’re talking all about nurturing those connections. What we’re doing to develop the relationships with our kiddos, learning new ways to give and receive love, and so much more!  And we might even have a surprise performance by none other than our very own Micha Boyett performing her original score of a still untitled Mother’s Day song. We hope all you lucky mama’s out there know we love you, and as always, we’re cheering you on!

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Friends, we had so many incredible conversations in 2023, before we kick off a new season we’re throwing it back to some of our favorite episodes as we get excited to hit a milestone of ONE MILLION DOWNLOADS in 2024!

We’re so excited to have the brilliant Dr. Brian Skotko and Dr. Noemi Spinazzi back on the show today! They’re here to tell us about a big research project they worked on involving patients with Down syndrome who identify as Black as well as parents of patients who primarily speak Spanish. This work included conducting surveys of parents and primary care physicians from across the country over the last two years. Its primary goal was to identify the barriers for families looking to access adequate care that shouldn’t only be found at specialty Down syndrome clinics in large cities. We chat about structural racism in medical care, striving for cultural humility, some of the surprises they found in their research, and so much more. They share some valuable resources for those without access to a Down syndrome clinic and how we can all strive to be champions for the Down syndrome community. Thank you to Dr. Skotko and Dr. Spinazzi for their continued work in making sure everyone in the Down syndrome community has access to quality health care.

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Friends, we're kicking off the new year with a bang! In our exciting sixth-season premiere, join us as we dive into the festivities, reflections, and dreams that come with the arrival of 2024.

Join us as we delve into our goals for 2024, both for our families and The Lucky Few Podcast community. Advocacy, inclusion, friendship, hope – these are the themes we're exploring and continuing to champion. We share our dreams of making this community even bigger and better, and we express our gratitude for the best listeners on the planet.

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