The Alumni Spotlight is a periodic feature of the Mom’s Choice Awards® blog. It is part of our ongoing effort to “shine the spotlight” on our honorees and their contributions to promoting excellence in family-friendly media, products, and services. We share their stories not only to celebrate their accomplishments, but to give you an opportunity to see the benefits of being part of the Mom’s Choice Awards family of programs.

Jodee Kulp is an award-winning author, producer, and advocate who works tirelessly to serve children and families of Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Discorders (FASD). Hers is a mission of education, compassion, and growth. Through her nonprofit Better Endings, New Beginnings and outreach programs like Toolbox Parent, she knows that only through communication can we learn about stories that ” inspire, build hope and provide wisdom to change the world one person at a time. “

MCA: Welcome to the Alumi Spotlight Jodee. I’m so glad you could join us today. Can you please tell us about the inspiration for Better Endings New Beginnings?
Jodee: In 1986, my husband and I adopted a beautiful failure-to-thrive baby. With the help of a registered nurse, we loved this little girl back to a sparkling spirit. Our daughter challenged us to think, love and live with new strategies and possibilities. Her responses to the world were different from other children we had loved, lived, and worked. In the beginning, our child struggled with sensory issues — lights flickered, noise spread chaos, and smells overwhelmed her. As she grew older she struggled with friendships and as the years passed, new learning experiences overwhelmed her. For years, the experts misdiagnosed her symptoms. At age 12.5 we learned about fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD). Our daughter, her responses to her world and her learning complications were due to permanent cellular damage that was 100% preventable. Our beloved daughter was our foray into advocacy – to become a voice for the voiceless.

MCA: What are your goals for Better Endings New Beginnings in the next year? Jodee: We have some exciting new products and campaigns coming out for different fetal alcohol awareness markets.

First, we are going to revive our Toolboxparent radio show on Blog Talk Radio. We did ten test episodes in this summer and they went really well. We are ready to step out to make a difference for families and professionals working and loving intense children and adults. We also have a new collection of books coming out.

• My Invisible World: Life with My Brother, His Disability and His Dog by Morasha Winokur is a delightful read written by the 11-year-old sister of a young man with FASD and opens our eyes to sibling realities.
• Nuzzle by Donnie Kanter Winokur and illustrated by Jodee Kulp will be our first entry into the picture book market.
• Wounded in the Womb, a Story of Adoption, Disability and the Hope We Found on Four Paws by Donnie Kanter Winokur exposes the adoption of an international adoption.
• The Braided Cord: Tough Times In and Out by Liz Kulp is the culmination of her journey into adult transition with fetal alcohol.
• Sighting for Success by Dr. Lyelle Palmer helps children develop straight aiming in sports and life.
• Bear in Mind; Dealing with Anger is my second E-workbook for families to help children and adults with FASD. Bear in Mind; Handling Intense Feelings is the other e-workbook.

Our educational outreach is very important, and we have two curricula series, one for middle school students and one for high school students. These are free downloads with the purchase of several of our books. We have a number of free awareness campaigns, with ideas and downloads available at the Better Endings website. Here are some of the campaigns available in our Cafe Press store.

Be a Lifesaver offers ideas to build community awareness of fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD) and encourage n0 alcohol usage for nine months. It is a virtual million mind march to build better baby brains.

Each on Reach One – Be a Friend is a friendship campaign to encourage people to become friends with a person with fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD) or another disability.

Raise the Standard – Building Better Baby Brains offers a pledge of a sober friendship with a pregnant woman. Ideas for baby showers, family support of new mothers.

MCA: If someone gave you air time for a 15-second commercial, how would you entice people to understand fetal alcohol spectrum disorders (FASD)? Jodee: I think I would take a multi-generaional approach …

Adult Voice: What if you were trying hard to learn, and the floor was moving as letters danced on your paper. All the noise in the room meshed together in a roar and though you could hear, you only understood every third word. What if each year you attended school the teacher spoke faster and faster. Imagine. Teasing. And bullies. And trying to stay positive. Imagine a lifetime of this. Our country’s largest disability is 100% preventable. Raise the standard. Support sobriety during pregnancy. We have a choice to Build Better Baby Brains and prevent Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders in this next generation.

Child voice: Guess what Gramma? Mommy’s building better baby brains in her tummy and Daddy and I are helping her.
Grandma: A new baby?
Child: Yep, We’re being her friends. I’m her helper outer and Daddy’s not drinking alcohol when mommy grows our new baby.

Adult Voice: Each year tens of thousands of children are born with fetal alcohol brain damage. There is no guarantee if you drink, it won’t happen to your child. It’s up to us. Each one can reach on. To learn more visit www.betterendings.org, we the voice for the voiceless.

MCA: You started with an idea and now have successful, award-winning books. Looking back on your journey, what was the easiest part? The hardest? What surprised you the most? Jodee: Writing the books was far easier than learning to understand the intellectual and biological differences a person with FASD is challenged with each day. The awards surprised me. When I sent our books I thought “Well, at least 20 new people will learn about FASD.” I didn’t expect to win … especially four Golds!

MCA: Since launching your books, what has been your most rewarding experience in promoting or sharing it with the public? Do you have a favorite memory? Jodee: Slowly, but surely people are realizing this a real issue. I know I am passionate about this, but it is vital we understand we have the power to change the destiny of tens of thousands of American children each year. My favorite memory is the thankfulness of the librarians when we gave away 400 books for their shelves from the Mom’s Choice booth in New York in May 2009. The most common response was, “Oh, this is wonderful. We have nothing on our shelves about fetal alcohol.”

MCA: Could you please tell us why you chose the Mom’s Choice Awards® program in seeking recognition for your books? Jodee: Mom’s Choice represents families. The books and products are well produced, wholesome and well thought out. In addition, the people at Mom’s Choice are exceptional folk.

MCA: What does it mean to you to be a Mom’s Choice Awards® alumnus? Jodee: It means I must continue to strive to provide products and materials that meet the Mom’s Choice high standard to the public in the future.
MCA: What did you learn about yourself in the process of creating your award-winning books? Jodee: Moms (and dads) have the power with their voices to make a difference in the lives of complex, intense children. People with intellectual and biological differences have the opportunity to be heard. Never underestimate the power of what LOVE for another human being can do.

MCA: Would you recommend the Mom’s Choice Awards® to other entrepreneurs? If so, why? Jodee: Absolutely. In addition to the recognition, the marketing programs available to the alumni work like a cooperative. By working together with other alumni we can all save time and money and attain recognition in a tight economy.

MCA: How have you/your company benefited by being a Mom’s Choice Awards® honoree? Do you have any tangible examples? Jodee: This has been a really hard year for me. I fracured my back in February 2009, so I have had to tone down my marketing efforts while I rebuild and heal. Next year, we will reach out to new markets with new authors and products and I am really excited about where we are going with this. We built our base with small blocks and it has been a long, hard journey. These five Gold Awards will add to the building blocks of excellence we will need in the future. I really do appreciate everyone at Mom’s Choice and it’s been really fun to meet everyone. You are all great.

Mom’s Choice Awards® Honors
2007 – Tiny Titan; Journey of Hope by Ann Yurcek (Gold, Adult Nonfiction)
2009 – The Long Way To Simple; 50 Years of Ideas to Live, Love and Laugh as a Person with FASD by Stephen Neafcy (Gold, Adult Nonfiction)
2009 – The Whitest Wall; Book One Bootleg Brothers Trilogy by Jodee Kulp (Gold, Adult Fiction; Fols, Young Adult Fiction)
2009 – The Best I Can Be; Living with Fetal Alcohol Syndrome or Effects by Liz Kulp (Gold, Contributing Young Author)

Social Media and Contact Information
Website – betterendings.org and toolboxparent.com
Blog – Silent Voices
Twitter – @silentvoices
Facebook – jodeekulp