Brutally raped and stabbed at 7, aged out of a group home, parenting as a foster mom, and earned an Emmy - Mandy Lemond - S6 E65

Author Mandy Lemond is a former foster child turned Emmy Award-winning TV Producer.  At just 7 years old Lemond‘s father raped her and left her for dead, that same night, he murdered little Mandy's mother. Lemond's father's crime left the Kentucky native a true orphan.  Mandy aged out of foster care after spending more than 11 years in a group home. She recalls, “I went to college with $5 to my name." With the same tenacity Lemond used to overcome her childhood trauma, she graduated on time from Eastern Kentucky University and was immediately hired by the local NBC affiliate as a TV Reporter.  Lemond continued to beat the odds – statistically only 3% of foster youth have a college degree.  Mandy's life finally seemed perfect, until December 2020, when Lemond's foster-adopted son, high on drugs, shot into the wrong home. The unintended target nearly died, the gunfire blinding the then 5-year-old. Lemond’s nearly 20-year marriage crumbled. She found herself divorced, with a son in jail, and facing homelessness. But, with the same determination she garnered as a child, Mandy found a new purpose.  She developed the 5-method, which is featured in her memoir, The Fostered One. Her book release is planned for December 2023, and her second book release is scheduled for spring 2024. Mandy is also a motivational speaker  FIND HER HERE: https://www.instagram.com/mandy.leighanne/ --- Send in a voice message: https://podcasters.spotify.com/pod/show/becoming-parents/message