Stand Up Speak Up

Part of our human trafficking series, this episode delves into the mind of a pimp. How does he think? How does he control the victims of sex trafficking? Listen for some answers. Understanding modern-day slavery is the first step towards ending it. 

Host and Producer: Karla Stephens-Tolstoy

Co-Producer: Danielle Gallagher

Editor: Cesar Del Castillo

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Who pays for sex? Why do they pay for sex? Often, without even knowing it, Johns are supporting sex trafficking operations. In this human trafficking awareness series, we examine prostitution from John's point of view. 

Host and Producer: Karla Stephens-Tolstoy

Co-Producer: Danielle Gallagher

Editor: Cesar Del Castillo

Receive our newsletter, contribute show ideas and feedback by emailing: karla.tolstoy@st...

Jenny Maher has been through a lot. Growing up with a mentally ill mother, she was in and out of the foster system. Jenny experienced some bad things in her childhood, but she managed to overcome them.

Today, she is an inspiration to anyone facing challenges in life. She's the author of Never Give Up, a book that goes into even more of the obstacles she's faced in life. In this episode, we talk about the issues in the...

We talk a lot about mental health and fighting your inner demons. But what happens when those demons take over? It's a sad conversation, but one that we need to have. That's why this episode takes a look at serial killers. But there's a twist. Instead of looking at their actions, we look at their poetry.

We delve into their minds and try to understand more about what made them that way. And we try to understand if there's ...

There is a disproportionate number of homeless LGBTQ teens on the street, but most people don't talk about it.

House of Mayhem is talking about it. House of Mayhem is a new tv series about LGBTQ youth in the foster system. It gives today's teens hope that they will find acceptance and love.

We speak with creator/writer David Pumo about the plight of LGBTQ youth.

We also speak with actress Quei Tann, former America's Next T...

This is the first episode in a series about missing and murdered native women in Canada. We head to Kenora, Ontario to tell the story of Delaine Copenace, a 16-year-old aboriginal girl who went missing in 2016 and was found in Lake of the Woods a month later. We speak with her mother Anita Ross, who is still trying to make sense of her daughter’s death.

Host and Producer: Karla Stephens-Tolstoy

Researcher, Interviewer, E...

Reporter Drew Penner travels with Anita, the mother of a 16-year-old native girl named Delaine who went missing in 2016. We retrace her last known steps, in an effort to get a better understanding of the issue of missing and murdered aboriginal women in Canada.

Host and Producer: Karla Stephens-Tolstoy

Researcher, Interviewer, Editor, and Co-producer: Drew Penner

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While researching for our episodes on the foster care system, we came across Scott Inman and felt he deserved an episode all to himself.

Scott's story begins like so many others forced into the foster system - his father passed away when Scott was only 10, leaving him and two sisters with a mother who suffered from mental illness and could not properly care for them. Where Scott's story turns to remarkable is in how h...

Reporter Drew Penner tracks down four very different but important perspectives on the evolving harm reduction movement. This episode will take you from the east coast of the United States to London, Ontario, to Vancouver's downtown eastside. And we'll even wade into the thorny topic of an illegal, but promising therapy. Harm reduction isn't for the faint of heart, but the stories we bring you today are empowering tales.

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Patricia Rodenbaugh was turned over to the L.A. foster care system at the tender age of 12. By her later teen years, she had given birth to two children and married just to escape the system. While Patricia had a rough start, she was determined to ensure a better life for her kids.

We hear about Patricia’s experience in the foster care system, including time at the notorious MacLaren Hall Children’s Center, and a troubling ...

As a child, Michael James knew that life with his parents was not what it was supposed to be. Their drinking was taking its toll on his childhood and it led Michael to approach the police to take him away to a more stable environment. Instead, he landed at MacLaren Hall in El Monte, California.

This was just one of a series of centers that failed to provide support and eventually a plan for what he would do when he turned ...

Shelley Desrochers hasn’t been seen since January 2016. She’s one of three women who lived a “high-risk lifestyle” to go missing from London, Ontario, Canada in the last decade.

In this series, we go beyond the police and news reports to take an in-depth look at Shelley’s life, ask questions surrounding the case and speak with guests and experts such as Mike Arntfield, host of “To Catch A Killer” and former London police o...

Shelley Desrochers hasn’t been seen since January 2016. She’s one of three women who lived a “high-risk lifestyle” to go missing from London, Ontario, Canada in the last decade.

In this series, we go beyond the police and news reports to take an in-depth look at Shelley’s life, ask questions surrounding the case and speak with guests and experts such as Mike Arntfield, host of “To Catch A Killer” and former London police of...

Shelley Desrochers hasn’t been seen since January 2016. She’s one of three women who lived a “high-risk lifestyle” to go missing from London, Ontario, Canada in the last decade.

In this series, we go beyond the police and news reports to take an in-depth look at Shelley’s life, ask questions surrounding the case and speak with guests and experts such as Mike Arntfield, host of “To Catch A Killer” and former London police of...

We take a look at the Finding Shelley Desrochers series so far.

You’ll hear some of Karla’s radio interviews, and then get an inside view of what it’s been like behind the scenes working on this podcast and dealing with the flood of information that has come in.

Have you seen Shelley Desrochers? E-mail findshelleynow@gmail.com

London Police Missing People: www.londonpolice.ca/en/about/Missing-People.aspx 

Host and P...

By now you’ve heard Shelley’s story. You’ve heard about her troubled childhood, her time in the foster care system, how she was trafficked into sex work, and everything we know about Shelley’s disappearance.

We now wanted to make the most of all the attention this series has received, so we take a look at the foster care system and programs available today, to see if anything has changed. Plus, Karla finds a private invest...

Karla took to the streets of London, with Chris from Canadian Private Investigation Services, to see what they could find out with regards to Shelley’s disappearance. Karla talks about what that experience was like, visiting crack houses, and talking to people on the street. We also hear two dramatic stories that shed a light on some of the serious things happening in our very own cities that we may not even realize. Next ...

Karla and private investigator Chris Williams of Canadian Private Investigation Services spent an entire day in London, Ontario in the area where Shelley was last seen. They speak with people who live in the neighbourhood, other sex workers, and drug users who live in the crack houses that Shelley frequented. While interviewing, Karla & Chris started hearing a few names mentioned repeatedly, along with eerie stores and...

We call in the London Police after making a gruesome discovery. Karla and Chris Williams P.I. enter dangerous situations while trying to uncover the truth about Shelley Desrocher’s disappearance.

At this point in time, we’ve been led to a group of individuals and one theory that seems highly likely. These possible suspects seem to be exhibiting strange behaviour after our meddling. The pieces seem to start falling into pla...