Fortitude
Everyone has a story of Fortitude! When we tell our stories of pain in adversity - stories of courage, redemption and hope - we give others permission to speak up and get the help they need. Each episode will give the listener a look inside what overcoming adversity looks like no matter what life throws at you. Each story is uniquely different - stories of alcoholism/addiction, infidelity, rape, abuse, loss of a child/children, cancer, rare disease, tragic accidents...etc.! We are in this life together to support one another and build community around hope and redemption. I am your host, Heather Kittelson, and I am so excited to have you here as part of the Fortitude community!
Episodes
Paul, Jill & Nora TenHaken, Part 3
She's grown up in a home where the whole city knows her dad's name.
Eight years. Press conferences. Public scrutiny. Campaign seasons. Security details. Dinner conversations most kids never have to carry.
And through all of it, Nora TenHaken has been watching.
Watching how her dad leads. Watching how her mom holds everything together. Watching what faith looks like when ...
Paul & Jill TenHaken, Part 2 (drop today)
She held the home. He led the city. And somewhere in between, they had to figure out how to stay married, stay close to God, and stay close to each other.
Part 2 is here.
Paul and Jill TenHaken sit down together for a conversation most couples in public life would never have on a mic. And they went there.
What "oneness" actua...
Before the city knew his name, before the title, before the office, there was just a kid from Worthington, Minnesota.
In this conversation, we didn’t ask Mayor Paul TenHaken about policy. We didn’t ask about budgets or elections or what comes next in his career.
We asked the question most people never get to ask a leader they admire:
Who are you when no one’s watching?
What does your faith ...
Our newest episode is live, and this one is deeply personal.
So many of you have heard my story.
My healing.
My journey.
My voice.
Today, you get to hear from the man who lived it with me.
Amos steps into the guest seat for a raw and honest conversation about marriage, healing, addiction, faith, leadership, and what it looks like to stay when life gets hard.
Behind so much of my story is the man who chose to stay and ...
We’re live right now.
Episode 68 just dropped, and I’m saying this clearly: this one is for the person who’s been trying to stay strong while quietly falling apart.
Today’s conversation is with Laura Pedersen. She doesn’t give you a polished testimony. She gives you the real version. Loss, heartbreak, and the long road of choosing joy when life hurts.
And that’s the point.
Sometimes “choose joy” gets used like a cute qu...
Christmas Day Episode!
In this Christmas Day conversation, we sit down with Jill Miller. Jill is a singer-songwriter and speaker who has lived a lot of life, and she tells the truth with so much grace.
We talk about the kind of seasons that don’t get wrapped up in a tidy bow.
Infertility. Adoption. Divorce. Loss. The moments that make you wrestle with God, not perform for Him.
Jill also shares what she calls “sacr...
🎙️ Episode 66 — Turning Grief into Grace
Guest: Deb Hadley, Founder of KT Humble Hearts
When unimaginable loss struck, Deb Hadley faced the kind of heartbreak no parent should ever endure. Within months, she lost both of her children, Kaylie and Tyler. Her world shattered, but her faith refused to die.
In this powerful conversation, Deb shares how she turned grief into grace and pain into...
🌟 Episode 65 is LIVE! 🌟
Today, we are honored to host a global voice of resilience—Amberly Lago—on the Fortitude Ministries Podcast.
This is not just another survival story. It’s a story of transformation. After a devastating motorcycle accident, Amberly could have stopped at her pain. But she refused. She chose purpose. She chose faith. She chose joy.
In Episode 65: Joy Through the Journey, Heather and Amos sit down...
✨ Episode 64 is Live! ✨
We are honored to kick off Season 4 by sitting down with an incredible woman, Chantelle—a daughter, wife, and leader whose story carries both depth and hope.
In this episode, Heather and Amos talk with Chantelle about:
- The beauty and challenges of living out your faith in everyday life
- What it means to lead with both strength and humility
- How to rise through family, marriage, and communit...
🌟 Season 4 of the Fortitude Podcast is Here 🌟
This isn’t just the start of a new season—it’s the testimony of what God can do when a couple chooses to say yes to His calling, even through the hardest seasons.
Heather and Amos open Season 4 by sharing the real journey behind Fortitude: the valleys, the rebuilding of trust, the sacrifices of motherhood and leadership, and the courage to keep showing up for each other,...
Rerun: Bloom Where You’re Planted with Paul DeJong (Episode 42)
In this powerful conversation, Heather and Amos welcome back their dear friend Paul DeJong for part two of his story. Paul, the former owner of Landscape Garden Centers in Sioux Falls, shares the journey of retiring after his Parkinson’s diagnosis and the life changes that followed.
He opens up about the challenges of letting go of independence, moving in...
🎧 Episode 63 is LIVE: Miracle at the Mall
Listen now wherever you get your podcasts.
🔗 Book link: https://a.co/d/6Kie6Y7
Some moments change the world.
Some miracles leave a scar.
And some mothers walk through the unimaginable… and still choose faith.
Today, we share one of the most heartbreaking and hope-filled stories ever told on the Fortitude Podcast.
Kari Hoffman’s 5-year-old son, Landen, was thrown from the 3rd flo...
🎧 Episode 62: Living Without a Stomach – Heather Parmeter’s Story of Faith, Risk, and Radical Resilience
At just 29 years old, Heather Parmeter sat across from a doctor and heard the impossible:
She had an 83% chance of developing the same aggressive stomach cancer that had taken both her mother and grandfather.
If she waited for symptoms to appear, she’d have only a 4% chance of survival.
So Heather made a decision mo...
Episode 61: The Boldest Chapter – with Alicia Schumacher
What if clarity doesn’t come from having a perfect plan—
but from losing everything that made you think you had to?
In this powerful episode, Heather and Amos sit down with Alicia Schumacher, founder of Bold Minds and Bold Identity Studio, to talk about identity, reinvention, and the raw reality of starting over.
After nearly 20 years in marketing, Alicia’s life t...
“Wrecked for More” with Pastor Phill Tague
This episode will challenge what you think you know about calling, grace, and leadership.
What happens when God doesn’t just save you—but stops you?
Phill Tague knows. He was the guy with all the answers, all the hustle, and all the wrong direction—until God called him out, broke through his pride, and gave him something far more dangerous: purpose.
Before Ransom Church.
Before ...
In this deeply moving episode, Amos and Heather sit down with Benson Langat—a former elite runner from Kenya, now a sought-after coach, mentor, and founder of Bensane Run Coaching & Sports Consulting.
Together, they explore the tension between performance and purpose, the gift of slowing down, and the powerful role faith plays in Benson’s coaching philosophy. From his early days of chasing medals to learning how ...
In this compelling episode of Fortitude Podcast, we sit down with South Dakota DCI Special Agent Brian Freeouf, a man who has spent his life fighting for the most vulnerable—often from the shadows.
From serving undercover to stop predators targeting children, to leading high-tech forensic investigations, Brian’s journey is anything but ordinary. But what makes this episode truly unforgettable isn’t just Brian’s caree...
Jon Setzer is a dynamic speaker, coach, and former professional athlete with a passion for inspiring others to unlock their full potential. As the founder of Setzer Elite, Jon combines his experience as a professional football player with his gift for communication to deliver powerful messages on faith, leadership, resilience, and personal development.
With a background in college and professional football, Jon under...
In this episode of Fortitude, hosts Heather and Amos Kittleson sit down with Bintu and Luc, a remarkable couple with a compelling story that spans continents. Bintu shares her journey from the Congo to Belgium, her escape from war, and her mission to bring hope and education back to her homeland through her nonprofit, Future Hope Africa.
Luc, who was atheistic most of his life, recounts his unexpected path to faith ...
Albert Huizing is a steadfast man whose life story is a testament to resilience, faith, and the power of unwavering parents and community. Albert shares his journey of experiencing family bankruptcy and living in poverty as a child to becoming a successful family man, business owner and author. His foundation in faith was established early on in his life by attending Christian school and witnessing Christ-centered l...
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