Moms Raising The Spectrum

*Shine In your Spectrum Part Two* 

Please enjoy our final episode celebrating autism moms during the month of May — and what a beautiful way to close out the month. This conversation is heartfelt, inspiring, emotional, and full of love for the autism community.

Kirsten shares more about her motherhood journey, advocacy, family life, and the passion behind using her voice to uplift neurodivergent individuals and families everywhere. 💙

Thank you for celebrating autism moms with us all month long. We are so grateful for every story shared and every family represented.

#AutismMoms #Neurod...

*Shine in Your Spectrum *
🎙️As we close out the month of May celebrating autism moms, we are honored to welcome our final guest for the month — Kirsten Acklin 💙👑🧩

Kirsten opens up about her journey as a mom to her son Hudson, who is on the autism spectrum, and shares how motherhood has shaped her heart, purpose, and advocacy.

In this episode, she also talks about:
✨ Her pageantry journey
✨ Her passion for advocating for the autism & neurodivergent community
✨ Life with her daughters
✨ Her loving relationship with her fiancé
✨ Navigating motherhood while uplifting others thro...

*Mom& Daughter: Navigating Autism Together*

Don’t miss Part Two of our conversation with Sabrina Kearney this Thursday at 1PM Arizona time! 

Sabrina opens up about her pageantry journey and the extra challenges she faced while competing due to sensory sensitivities. Her story is such a powerful reminder that autism can look different for everyone, and that individuals on the spectrum can still pursue their dreams and passions. 

She also shares about reconnecting and remarrying her first husband, along with heartfelt advice for other parents navigating autism and family life.

This epis...

**MOM & DAUGHTER: NAVIGATING AUTISM TOGETHER**
Part One of our episode with Sabrina Kearney 
Sabrina is a brilliant woman working in the aerospace industry and a former Arizona pageant title holder who shares her powerful story of motherhood, autism, and self-discovery.
In this episode, Sabrina opens up about receiving her diagnosis and how it helped her better understand both herself and her daughter, EJ. She also shares EJ’s autism journey from childhood into the teenage years and the lessons they’ve learned along the way.
This conversation is honest, inspiring, and filled with insight for paren...

* LED BY THE CROWN & THE CROSS *

Join u for Part Two of our powerful conversation with China Allen 

China continues sharing her heart about motherhood, faith, advocacy, and raising her two sons on the autism spectrum. She also opens up more about her journey, her purpose behind the platform, and the importance of using your voice to inspire others 

This conversation is honest, encouraging, and filled with so much wisdom and love

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*LED BY THE CROWN AND THE CROSS*
Join us for Part One of our inspiring conversation with China Allen, Ms. International USA 💙✨👑
China Elizabeth opens up about:
🧩Raising her two sons on the autism spectrum
👑 Her journey in pageantry
🌟 Her platform and advocacy work
🧑‍🧑‍🧒‍🧒Navigating life with a blended family
✝️How faith guides her through motherhood and life
This episode is full of heart, encouragement, and powerful conversations you won’t want to miss.

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The conversation with Jasmine Bias continues in Part Two of this powerful episode as she shares even more about her family’s journey, faith, and navigating autism services for Micah.

This episode is filled with heartfelt moments, encouragement, and honest conversations that so many parents will relate to ✨

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Some behind the scene footage that got recorded- raw real talk. 

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*FAITH THROUGH THE JOURNEY*

This month we continue celebrating amazing autism moms and their journeys 

Join us  for a special TWO PART episode with Jasmine Bias as she shares all about her son’s journey and their family’s experiences navigating autism.

This heartfelt conversation includes great discussions about:

 Faith

 Family

 Autism services

 Advocacy & support

You won’t want to miss this inspiring and honest conversation  

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🌸 Kicking off our month honoring amazing mothers this Monday! 🌸

GUIDED BY FAITH
We are so excited to welcome Marisa Gadway to the podcast 💙 

Marisa is an inspiring author, devoted mother of 3, and proud autism mom. As a mother raising a child on the spectrum, she shares how faith keeps her strong through every challenge and triumph.

Her story is filled with love, strength, perseverance, and inspiration — and we can’t wait for you to hear it.

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We’re honored to feature trailblazer Armani Williams — the first autistic NASCAR  driver! 

In this powerful episode, Armani shares his journey to the NASCAR O’Riley Auto Parts series and what it took to break barriers in the racing world. From overcoming challenges to chasing his dreams at full speed, his story is nothing short of inspiring.

He also opens up about his passion for advocacy—using his platform to raise awareness for autism and connect with others through speaking engagements that truly make an impact. 

This episode is all about resilience, representation, and proving...

Yahya is the ultimate The Wiggles superfan and has met them several times which inspired him to write his book “Diaries of an Autistic Superfan” Yahya has written several other books  

His passion doesn’t stop there—he’s actively involved in theater and has a love for traveling that continues to inspire those around him.

 Tune in as we dive into Yahya’s journey, his creative work, and the joy he brings to everything he does. You won’t want to miss this uplifting and inspiring conversation!

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We’re so excited to introduce our incredible guest this week, Faye Nehrkorn  

Faye is on the autism spectrum and continues to inspire those around her with her strength, faith, and passion for life. She recently competed in the Arizona Colleen Pageant,  proudly embracing her Irish heritage and shining with confidence on stage  

Her love for God, her culture, and her determination to break barriers make her story one you won’t want to miss. 

Join us as Faye shares her journey, her experiences, and what motivates her to keep pushing forward.  

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🧩 We are so excited to introduce our 2nd  special guest for Autism Awareness / Acceptance Month Sam Shimel 

🎙️ In this episode, Sam shares her journey as an adult on the autism spectrum, breaking barriers and redefining what it means to shine with confidence and purpose. As a pageant queen 👑, theater performer 🎭, and passionate volunteer with multiple organizations, Sam is using her voice to inspire, advocate, and make a real difference in her community.

💙 Tune in as we talk about:
• Embracing authenticity and being yourself 
• Navigating life on the spectrum as an adult
• Finding confidence through pageant...

kicking off Autism Awareness/ Acceptance Month we will have our first guest for this special month aired on 4/1 This week, we are joined by our incredible special guest, Cyrus Bringardner—an adult on the spectrum who shares his joy, personality, and love for The Wiggles! 💛💜❤️💙  Cyrus kicks things off by showing us one of his favorite dances (you don’t want to miss it! 🕺), and then we sit down for a heartfelt and fun conversation where we get to know him, his passions, and his unique perspective on life. This episode is full of smiles, authenticity, and a reminder to celebrate every in...

Amy and MJ discuss the challenges autism parents face with figuring out their kiddos meltdowns vs having a tantrum and hard it is to find the balance of disciplining your child on the spectrum

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Guest Ted Kackowski with Exercise Prescription joined us to talk about the services he provides for Autistic Kiddos and about his Adaptive Pickleball project.

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Tyler who is on the Autism Spectrum talks about college and living independently. He is joined by his mom and sister who talk about their careers and what they would like to see change within the Autism Community. 

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Pageant Queen/ Director, Author and Autism Mom Felicia West shares with us about her remarkable son who is on the Autism Spectrum and her wonderful family. She talks about how being involved with pageantry has given her a platform to advocate for her son and bring awareness.

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Pageant Queen and Autism Mom Felicia West shares with us about her remarkable son who is on the Autism Spectrum and her wonderful family. She talks about how being involved with pageantry has given her a platform to advocate for her son and bring awareness.  

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On this episode Amy and MJ join each other virtually for some discussions that are close to their heart. MJ makes a wonderful announcement and shares what its likes to be in a blended family with a kiddo on the autism spectrum. Amy opens up about a traumatic experience her and her son Jaxon went through involving a church wanting to pray the autism away. 

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Amy and MJ talk to Tyler and his mom and sister. Amy met Tyler at the Phoenix Children's autism summit in 2025. They talk about the summit and when Tyler was diagnosed with Autism and his childhood with school and services. Unfortunately, due to technical difficulties our second part of the episode we were not able to upload. We will be re-recording soon so stay tuned for more from the Potter family.  

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Co Host Amy's dear friend Diane is our first guest that is on the Autism Spectrum. She shares her life story and accomplishments with us. From being involved in pageants, working with Special Olympics and graduating college she has done some incredible things.

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Amy and MJ welcome their first guest on their podcast. Lexx Longoria who is a mother of a son on the autism spectrum and is a Photographer and board member of the Autism Society of Greater Phoenix. 

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Amy and MJ continue discussing services and adults realizing they are on the spectrum. Amy shares her pageant journey and how it helps her advocate for autism. And MJ shares her vision for her LLC and how it can help the autism community. 

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Amy and MJ continue to share their stories not only about their sons on the spectrum but a little about themselves as well. They talk about their faith and their experiences at their churches; education and the different routes they have taken for their sons. 

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Amy and MJ introduce themselves and talk about their sons Jaxon and Kaizen who are on the Autism spectrum and inspired them to do this podcast. 

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We are so excited to start this journey. We will be posting episodes weekly. Stay tuned for more information. 

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