Young People to the Front

Sherrie Bradford on Foster Care, Finding Her Voice, and Building Spaces That Actually Heal

Episode Notes

Episode Notes:

Sherry Bradford is a foster youth advocate, Prevention Early Intervention Training Coordinator at CASA of Los Angeles, educational consultant with Alliance for Children's Rights, and MSW candidate at Cal State Long Beach. In this episode, she sits down with Tonny to talk about her journey through the foster care system, how she got into advocacy, and her role in creating the TA(Y)LK To Me Podcast.

Topics covered:

• Growing up in foster care and experiencing homelessness after aging out at 21
• Navigating college as a former foster youth and the resources that made it possible
• Why compensation and support for advocates with lived experience is non-negotiable
• Creating the TA(Y)LK To Me Podcast, including how youth were paid, supported, and centered throughout
• The importance of hiring people with lived experience in full-time roles, not just as contractors
• Mental health alternatives beyond traditional therapy
• Cultural competency and meeting youth where they are
• The youth-to-youth support model and why it works