Live Inspired Podcast with John O'Leary
John O’Leary welcomes Cara Finger on the Live Inspired Podcast to share how she’s improving the lives of children in foster care through My Bag My Story.
Cara Finger is the founder of My Bag My Story. Inspired by her own adoption journey and her experience as a foster parent, Cara was shocked to see children arriving with their belongings in trash bags. This simple yet powerful observation sparked her mission to create meaningful change.
Today, Cara shares her journey in establishing her social enterprise, offers practical ways we can support those in the foster care communities and beyond. And she reminds us how seemingly small gestures, like providing a quality bag, can significantly elevate a child’s self-esteem and sense of normalcy during tumultuous times.
My friends, if you’re seeking a heartfelt example of the transformative power of empathy, community, and action, this conversation is for you.
SHOW NOTES:
- While they didn’t give me life, they gave me the rest of my life. Cara and her brother were both adopted and recognizes the wonderful, beautiful and ugly mess that comes with being adopted.
- After welcoming their first biological child, Cara and her husband adopted their daughter Corinne two and a half years later, and their son Christian three and half years after that.
- In becoming a foster parents, their goal was to share a child love whether they lived in their house for a day or for a year.
- Almost 400,000 young people are in the foster care system in the United States. On average, they remain in the system for nearly two years before being reunited with family or adopted. In 2020, 33. 7% of children in the state of Tennessee’s foster care system experienced placement changes three or more times in that one year of custody.
- “They’re not bad children. They’ve been dealt a really bad hand.”
- My Bag My Story: Noticing that children were showing up to foster homes with their belongings in garbage bags or grocery bags, Cara wanted to make a change. For every bag purchased, one bag is donated.
- “A bag seems so small, but it makes such a huge difference in a child’s life.”
- “We’re making giving a child in foster care a trash bag a thing of the past.”
- To learn more, or purchase a bag, visit MyBagMyStory.com.
CARA FINGER'S LIVE INSPIRED 7
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Q. What is the best book you’ve ever read?
A. Hillbilly Elegy by J.D. Vance. -
Q. What is a characteristic or trait that you possessed as a child that you wish you still exhibited today?
A. Boldness. -
Q. Your house is on fire, all living things and people are out. You have the opportunity to run in and grab one item. What would it be?
A. A family photo album. -
Q. You are sitting on a bench overlooking a gorgeous beach. You have the opportunity to have a long conversation with anyone living or dead. Who would it be?
A. Mother Teresa. -
Q. What is the best advice you’ve ever received?
A. From Mother Teresa, if you want to be successful, go home and love your family. -
Q. What advice would you give your 20-year-old self?
A. Don't be afraid to try things. -
Q. It’s been said that all great people can have their lives summed up in one sentence. How do you want yours to read?
A. She lived honestly, she lives out loud and she lives for other people.