FASD Hope is a podcast series about Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD), through the lens of parent advocates with over nineteen years of lived experience.
Episode 84 is an INSPIRATION-FILLED Episode with Melissa Jacobus. Melissa Jacobus has been advocating for her adopted children and the rights of all individuals with FASD since 1998. At the national level, she is a parent advocate and member of the Justice Task Force for the National Organization Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (NOFAS), serves on the Advisory Committee for FASD Communities and served as a member of the Speakers Bureau for the Centers for Disease Control's FASD Southeast Regional Training Center. In 2019, Ms. Jacobus was inducted into the NOFAS' Tom and Linda Daschle FASD Hall of Fame. Melissa is also active at the state in Georgia. Among her accomplishments, in 2012, she presented at the Georgia Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities Suicide Prevention Program and the Supreme Court of Georgia's Committee on Justice for Children. In 2013, her work led Governor Deal to designate September 9th as FASD Awareness Day, which has continued under the current governor, Brian Kemp. Melissa co-led the 2018 Atlanta Training on FASD at the State Bar of Georgia. In May 2021, she published a book about FASD advocacy titled, The Accomplice. Melissa received a Bachelor of Science in Broadcasting from the University of Florida. She worked for the Tribune Broadcasting Company and she was awarded the company's highest honor for customer service before resigning in 1997, to devote herself fulltime to raising awareness and understanding FASD. She resides in Atlanta, GA.
In this HOPE-FILLED episode, Melissa explores the following topics: her family's journey, early advocacy efforts, when she shifted from local FASD parent advocate to regional / national advocate, her involvement in the FASD justice conferences, what led her to write her book The Accomplice, the importance of her faith, the living angels in her life and what she hopes readers can take away from her book.
"Teach me to do Your will, For You are my God; Your Spirit is good. Lead me in the land of uprightness." - Psalm 143:10
CLARIFICATION MESSAGE FROM EPISODE GUEST -
"Guest Melissa Jacobus inadvertently mentioned that she presented with Billy Edwards in Missouri and New Orleans, when in actuality, she presented with Billy Edwards in Mississippi and New Orleans."
EPISODE RESOURCES -
You can contact Melissa through the NOFAS website
https://nofas.org/
The Accomplice by Melissa Jacobus
https://www.amazon.com/Accomplice-Melissa-Jacobus/dp/1665300035/ref=sr_1_1?crid=14TED630GN1J9&dchild=1&keywords=the+accomplice+melissa+jacobus&qid=1632106013&sprefix=The+Accomplice+by+Meli%2Caps%2C178&sr=8-1
FASD HOPE RESOURCES -
https://www.fasdhope.com/
natalie@fasdhope.com
Instagram - https://www.instagram.com/fasdhope/
Facebook - https://www.facebook.com/fasdhope1
Twitter - https://twitter.com/fasdhope
LinkedIn- https://www.linkedin.com/in/natalie-vecchione-17212160/
Clubhouse - @natalievecc
Check out our new book “Blazing New Homeschool Trails: Educating and Launching Teens with Developmental Disabilities” by Natalie Vecchione & Cindy LaJoy BUY IT NOW!
179 - Three Years Later and a Plot Twist with John and Natalie Vecchione
178 - Tinderbox - A Conversation with Lynn Alsup
177 - Sip By Sip - A Candid Conversation with Patti Kasper
176 - FASD Legislative Update and Run FASD 2023 with Jenn Wisdahl and Rebecca Tillou
175 - All About FASD - FASD and Neurocounseling with Dr. Jerrod Brown
174 - An Update from the UK and Scotland with Jessica Rutherford, Ph.D. and Ailsa Clarke
173 - Dream Acres FASD Community - A Conversation with Kathryn Meinhardt
172 - FASD North Dakota - A Conversation with Carl Young
171 - A Journey of Faith and Strength - A Conversation with Liz Kulp
170 - All About FASD - Energy Drinks and FASD with Dr. Jerrod Brown
169 - FASD Legislative Update and Upcoming FASD United Events with Jennifer Wisdahl
168 - CAMP FASD - A Conversation with Nicholas Tassone and Emma Melendez-Scherer
167 - FASD Legislative Update AND Run FASD 2023 with Jennifer Wisdahl and Rebecca Tillou
166 - All About FASD - Excessive Sugar Consumption and FASD with Dr. Jerrod Brown
165 - Mom, Author and Navigator - A Conversation with Laura Bedard
164 - Welcome Back - We Need More Hope! A Conversation with Jennifer Wisdahl and Natalie Vecchione
163 - Be Still - Our Final Episode
162 - The Families and The Kids That We’ve Left Behind - A Conversation with Best Selling Author, Andrew Bridge
161 - FASCETS Friday - A Family’s Transformation with Lynn and Clare Alsup
160 - The Fellowship of Rural FASD - A Conversation with Rob More
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