Jamie Finn
Jamie C. Finn is the author of best-selling book, Foster the Family, and Filled: 60 Devotions for the Foster Parent’s Heart. She is the founder and President of Foster the Family and the founder of the Filled Gathering. Her popular social media accounts offer a glimpse into the real life of a foster parent and provide encouragement to tens of thousands of foster and adoptive parents. She lives in Sicklerville, New Jersey, with her husband, Alan, and their 7 children through foster care, adoption, and birth.
Jason Johnson
Jason is a writer and speaker who encourages families and equips church and organizational leaders on their foster care and adoption journeys.
He currently serves as the National Director of The Pure Religion Project with Christian Alliance for Orphans. In his work he develops resources, coaches leaders and teaches in a variety of contexts on church-based ministry structures, organizational leadership and strategy. He is also a sought-after speaker for churches, retreats, conferences, and events for foster and adoptive parents as well as for those considering getting involved.
Prior to his work at CAFO Jason spent 14 years in church staff ministry, including planting and pastoring a church in Houston. It’s there that his family's foster care journey began.
Jason and his wife, Emily live in Texas with their daughters. He has authored 4 books: Reframing Foster Care, Everyone Can Do Something, The ALL IN Curriculum and Effectively Engaging Churches. You can find many of his resources at www.jasonjohnsonblog.com.
Annika Marek-Barta
Annika Marek-Barta is a former foster youth that spent 5 years in the foster care system. At the age of 26, she was adopted as an adult, displaying the truth that we never outgrow the need to belong. She has volunteered as a Court Appointed Special Advocate in Washington state and works as a graphic designer/photographer. Her heart is to advocate for seats to be added to tables as the lonely are invited into belonging.
Ryan & Kayla North
One Big Happy Home
Ryan and Kayla North have dedicated their careers to helping adults create environments where children feel safe, welcome, and loved. Through their work, they have become trusted voices for parents, professionals, churches, and educators, equipping them with the tools to foster healing and connection.
Their commitment to empowering caregivers and strengthening families has earned them a well-deserved reputation as leaders in their field. They inspire and guide caregivers through conferences, workshops, online courses, articles, podcasts, and coaching.
As Co-Founders of One Big Happy Home, they provide resources and support, offering practical strategies and emotional guidance to help caregivers address trauma, behavior challenges, and attachment issues. Their approach is rooted in empathy, understanding, and evidence-based techniques, creating a space where parents can learn and grow together.
Ryan and Kayla are the cohosts of Better Together, a marriage podcast that offers candid conversations, practical advice, and encouragement for couples seeking to strengthen their relationship.
They cohost The Empowered Parent Podcast, which offers insights and strategies to help parents navigate raising children with trauma histories. Their warm and relatable style makes their podcasts go-to resources for those seeking wisdom, encouragement, and practical guidance.
You can learn more about their work at onebighappyhome.com and follow them on social media @onebighappyhome
Peter Mutabazi
Peter Mutabazi is the founder of Now I Am Known, an organization dedicated to providing resources and support to vulnerable children. Originally from Uganda, Peter’s childhood was filled with hardship. At the age of ten, he fled from an abusive home and lived on the streets for nearly five years. Today, Peter is a proud single father to three adopted children—Anthony, Ryder, and Skyler—as well as the many foster children he’s welcomed into his family over the years.
Peter’s powerful and moving journey from street kid to foster father is detailed in his debut book, Now I Am Known. As a new author and longtime advocate, Peter has spent the last two decades using his voice for the voiceless, both in the U.S. and internationally. His work and mission is to ensure that every child is seen, heard, and valued. He believes every child deserves to feel known and loved, no matter where they come from.
Learn more about Peter at www.nowiamknown.com and follow him on social media @fosterdadflipper.
Renaut Van der Riet
If you find me at home, you’re likely to see me carrying heavy bags of food for the chickens or turning compost because Brooke is passionate about gardening. I love to go zip lining with my kids through the backyard adventure course we built together and make waffles with them on Saturday mornings. Every day I am thankful I get to wake up alongside them and explore the freedom for which Christ has made us free.
I came to know and serve Christ in a military home in South Africa during the apartheid era. By the time I was in high school, I had discerned that God was inviting me to pastoral ministry, so after graduation, I enrolled in Bible college in the Washington, DC, area. I met my wife, Brooke, there, and shortly after getting married in 1996, we moved to California, where I served as a student ministries pastor until we sensed God calling us to plant a church in Florida. We founded Mosaic Church in Winter Garden in 2002 with the goal of meeting the spiritual and tangible needs of the local and global community. It is an overwhelming privilege to watch Mosaic’s story unfold and, with it, to see lives changed along the way.
This incredible adventure I’m living with Christ has brought some amazing opportunities. Brooke and I were able to adopt four of our eight kids from Axum, Ethiopia. That journey inspired us to found Axum Coffee Company, a growing chain of coffee shops and restaurants whose goal is to fund justice and mercy initiatives, as well as Love Made Visible, a nonprofit organization that equips families, individuals, churches, and agencies to care for orphans and vulnerable children across the United States and worldwide. Most recently, I am developing The ReStory, a website aimed at providing gospel clarity to followers of Christ by extending them an invitation to tumble headfirst with me into the wonder of the freedom for which Christ has set them free.
