Summer, Support, and Self-Care: Notes from a Season of Change
The Shining Beautiful Series Podcast
Release Date: 08/02/2025
The Architecture of Hope
The Shining Beautiful Series Podcast
The Architect of Hope What does it mean to stay hopeful when the world feels divided and uncertain? In this mid-month update of The Shining Beautiful Series Podcast, Katherine reflects on the quiet work of becoming an architect of hope. Through stories from nature, mentorship, caregiving, and community, she explores the difference between hope and despair, the powerful role of both nature and nurture in shaping our lives, and how mentors plant possibilities that continue to grow long after they are gone. She also shares why building authentic relationships with people who may see the world...
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More than a Meeting
The Shining Beautiful Series Podcast
What makes a great support team? It isn't the agenda, the meeting notes, or the action items. It's the relationships built around the table. In this heartfelt episode of The Shining Beautiful Series Podcast, Mikelle, Katherine, and team member Torie explore why team meetings are about so much more than logistics. They share how open communication, mutual respect, and shared purpose create a support system where everyone has a voice—and where Mikelle feels seen, heard, and deeply supported. Together they discuss: Why trust is the foundation of every successful support team Creating...
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Freedom's Promise: Loving Our Country Enough to Keep Building It. A Fourth of July Reflection
The Shining Beautiful Series Podcast
As America celebrates its 250th anniversary, Katherine reflects on the complicated emotions of this Fourth of July. As the mother of an adult daughter with significant disabilities and someone who has spent more than four decades advocating for community living, employment, and self-determination, she celebrates the extraordinary progress our nation has made while also sharing her growing concern about recent policy shifts affecting disability rights. This deeply personal episode explores what freedom has meant for Mikelle's life—from becoming a homeowner and entrepreneur to building a life...
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Coffee, Bracelets & Brave Beginnings: Welcoming Rachael to the Shining Beautiful Team
The Shining Beautiful Series Podcast
What happens when a tattoo artist with social anxiety joins the support team of one of the world's first nonverbal podcasters? You pull up a chair, pour a cup of coffee, and discover that community grows one conversation at a time. In this heartfelt episode, Mikelle introduces listeners to Rachael, one of the newest members of the Shining Beautiful team. Together, they share stories about friendship, finding confidence, and the unexpected ways people change one another. What begins as a conversation about supporting Mikelle quickly becomes a story about mutual growth. Through neighborhood...
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Building Employment From the Inside Out
The Shining Beautiful Series Podcast
Dr. Peter Smith on Family Discovery and Customized Employment In this warm and thoughtful episode of The Shining Beautiful Series Podcast, Mikelle and Katherine sit down with longtime friend and customized employment leader Peter Smith from the Centre for Disability Employment Research and Practice in Australia for a casual conversation about families, Discovery, and the importance of truly getting to know a person before trying to build employment opportunities around them. Rather than focusing on assessments and paperwork alone, Peter shares insights from his evolving work around the Family...
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Encore Episode: Building a Life Before Building a Job Person-Centered Planning and Employment Success in Uncertain Times
The Shining Beautiful Series Podcast
In this encore episode of The Shining Beautiful Series Podcast, Mikelle and Katherine revisit an important conversation with Debra McLean and Emily Harris from Washington Initiative on Supported Employment on how person-centered planning can create a pathway — and even a prophecy — for employment success. As families, educators, providers, and systems across the country navigate workforce shortages, Medicaid pressures, and growing uncertainty, this conversation feels more relevant than ever. Debra and Emily explore how truly listening to a person’s interests, gifts, relationships,...
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Storm Clouds Over Care: Medicaid Cuts and the Lives They Touch
The Shining Beautiful Series Podcast
Join co-host Katherine Carol for a powerful mid-month update on Colorado Medicaid cuts—and what they mean for families, care teams, and the future of support. The sky feels different these days. Here in Colorado, we’re watching another kind of storm roll in—not one you can see building over the mountains, but one you can feel in policy decisions, budget sheets, and quiet conversations around kitchen tables. Through lived experience, we explore what it takes to build and sustain a care team over time, what families risk losing, and what communities across Colorado are quietly navigating...
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From Memoir to Imagination: Brittany Gilbert Begins Her Fiction Journey
The Shining Beautiful Series Podcast
In this return conversation, Brittany “Lenny” Gilbert joins us again—this time stepping into an exciting new chapter as she begins work on her first fiction book. Many of you will remember Brittany from our earlier conversation around Ruby and Me. Now, her storytelling is stretching in new directions, shaped by imagination, lived experience, and a deep desire to reach the next generation. Together, we explore what it means to move from telling your own story… to creating stories for others. Brittany shares how her experiences as a writer and as a person with cerebral palsy are...
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Caring Through the Squeeze: What Sustains Us When Everything Costs More and Government Budgets Tighten
The Shining Beautiful Series Podcast
As grocery bills climb, gas prices rise, and budgets tighten, caregivers are feeling the pressure in real and immediate ways. In this mid-month reflection from The Shining Beautiful Series, Katherine shares a deeply personal story that reaches back through generations—from a rustic mountain cabin in Colorado to the pioneers who endured hardship on the plains, cutting lumber, and in coal mines. At a time when families are navigating increasing costs and uncertain systems, this episode explores a powerful truth: while systems may shift, it is community, resilience, and the strength we inherit...
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Discovery Begins at Home: Peter Smith on Customized Employment and the Family Discovery Model
The Shining Beautiful Series Podcast
What happens when we begin the employment journey not with a system—but with the people who know someone best? In this episode of The Shining Beautiful Series, Katherine and Mikelle welcome Peter Smith, a long-time leader in the customized employment movement in Australia, for a thoughtful conversation about his emerging work on the Family Discovery Model. Discovery has long been a cornerstone of Customized Employment, helping people with disabilities identify their strengths, interests, and ideal conditions for work. But Peter’s recent work asks an important question: What role do...
info_outlineIn this heartfelt midsummer episode, Katherine reflects on a season full of sparkle, growth, and the power of a strong support team. From Mikelle’s night out at Film on the Rocks to the everyday victories made possible by a dedicated crew of caregivers, The Shining Beautiful Series Podcast celebrates the joy that comes when everyone has space to shine.
Katherine also shares a timely update on the ongoing impact of the Big Beautiful Bill (BBB), and why staying connected—and taking care of ourselves—is more important than ever. With warmth and honesty, this episode offers a glimpse into how families like Mikelle’s are navigating uncertainty while continuing to show up for joy, community, and creativity.
Whether you’re a caregiver, advocate, or just someone trying to catch your breath this summer, this episode is for you.