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Mother's Quest Podcast

Mother's Quest Podcast

Written by: 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. Parenting Relationships Social Sciences
Episodes
  • 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 hr and 3 mins
  • A New Way of Life: How Love Disrupts Systems of Harm with Susan Burton and Pamela Marshall

    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 mins
  • Ep 112: Mothering Through the Darkness: Lessons Inspired by The Mystics Almanac

    Ep 112: Mothering Through the Darkness: Lessons Inspired by The Mystics Almanac
    Dec 18 2025
    Welcome to this special episode, one I recorded in the days leading up to the holidays and the winter solstice, the darkest days of the year in the Northern Hemisphere. This season, when the nights are long and the light feels scarce, invites us to pause, reflect, and seek warmth and meaning in intentional ways. And this year especially, the darkness has felt more than seasonal. In the face of heartbreaking events unfolding in the world, I've found myself needing practices and perspectives more than ever that help me stay grounded, connected, and hopeful. It was from this place that I found myself returning again to the Mystics Almanac. This fall, I had the honor of contributing another piece to the Almanac, a powerful creation by my friend and mentor Lindsay Pera. Years ago, inspired by the enduring legacy of the Farmers Almanac, Lindsay envisioned something similar but more mystical—an annual guide grounded in her beautifully illustrated Oracle Deck, woven with astrological insights, divinations, and reflective writings from a diverse circle of contributors. The Mystics Almanac isn't just a book of forecasts and dates. In Lindsay's own words, it's a mirror, a guide, and a reminder that we are not alone on this path. I've turned to the Almanac for this reason myself over the years; and it was especially poignant and supportive of me and my family in the days before my father passed away. The months before writing my piece for the Almanac felt incredibly heavy. In my own motherhood journey and in our country and the world, it seemed that not only were things in crisis, but that they were collapsing. Past stories, systems, and patterns revealed their cracks, leaving me disoriented and searching for new footing. I returned often to the Mystics Almanac and drew cards from the Mystics Oracle Deck. Again and again, I pulled the "Fear" and the "Beneath" cards, mirrors of all I was experiencing in the not knowing. As I sat with these cards, I realized that my personal feelings were also reflected in our collective story. Echoes of History As I listen to and read from historians, I keep noticing how much this moment echoes others in our history. The turbulence and backlash of Reconstruction, when newly won freedoms were met with violence and suppression. The Gilded Age, when vast inequality and political corruption left ordinary people struggling while the wealthy few consolidated power. The 1930s, when economic collapse and widespread fear created conditions that allowed authoritarian movements to rise across the world. Each of these times brought real devastation and loss. And yet, they also carried seeds of transformation. Reconstruction, though violently cut short, planted the roots that later grew into the Civil Rights Movement. The abuses of the Gilded Age gave rise to reforms in the Progressive Era. The despair of the Depression led to the New Deal, the creation of social safety nets, and labor rights that reshaped American life. And though the 1930s brought the world to war, its aftermath renewed global commitments to democracy, human rights, and rebuilding, even if those commitments have been fragile and incomplete. History does not repeat, but it does rhyme. Life moves in spirals, not straight lines. We return to familiar struggles, facing injustice, violence, and division, but when they arrive again, we are not the same as before. We come with new perspective, new resilience, and often hard-earned wisdom we did not have the last time around. Guiding Lights This summer and fall, I found myself asking "how should we navigate this new ring of the spiral?" How might we mother ourselves, our children, and our communities through the darkness of collapse without losing faith that something transformative is taking root beneath it all? Just as the Mystics Almanac draws on cards to illuminate the energies of the year, I decided to turn to the Mother's Quest Podcast as my own kind of oracle, revisiting conversations from episodes with mothers whose wisdom can light our way. Three voices called to me most strongly: the Mystics Almanac's own intuitive strategist Lindsay Pera, From Scratch author, producer and screenwriter Tembi Locke, and the Revolutionary Love Project civil rights leader Valarie Kaur. Lindsay's words deepened the concept of the spiral itself as a guide. Life, she confirms is not linear but more like a nautilus shell, circling back with new perspective. Challenges return, not as failures, but as invitations to greet them with greater compassion for ourselves and others. She likens our lives to the rings of a tree, each year holding stories of hardship and growth. What once felt like collapse can, with time, be recognized as part of a larger pattern of healing and becoming. Tembi reminded me of the power of ancestry and constellations. Raised by an "ecosystem of women," her mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother, she carries the resilience and faith they instilled. She told ...
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    35 mins
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