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Would you leave your family, friends, home, and job to move over a thousand miles away to take care of a pet squirrel? Meet two people who did just that for 8 year-old Thumbelina.

Then, meet a birdkeeper at the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute who was chosen by an endangered crane to be her life partner for almost 20 years.

Suggested episodes:
Wings, pouches, and snouts: The world of uncommon emotional support animals
Birdwatching legend Peter Kaestner's journey to 10,000 birds
Audacious kids: Stories of courage, conservation, and compassion

GUESTS: 
Christina and Michael Reyes: The human parents of Thumbelina, an eight-year-old squirrel who has more than two million followers on social media
Chris Crowe: Birdkeeper at the Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute’s campus in Front Royal, Virginia, and caretaker of Walnut, an endangered white-naped crane from 2004 until her death in January 2024

Would you leave your family, friends, home, and job to move over a thousand miles away to take care of a pet squirrel? Meet two people who did just that for 8 year-old Thumbelina.
Then, meet a birdkeeper at the Smithsonian Conservation Biology Institute who was chosen by an endangered crane to be her life partner for almost 20 years.
Suggested episodes:
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.ctpublic.org/show/audacious-with-chion-wolf/2023-05-26/wings-pouches-and-snouts-the-world-of-uncommon-emotional-support-animals" data-cms-ai="0">Wings, pouches, and snouts: The world of uncommon emotional support animals</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.ctpublic.org/show/audacious-with-chion-wolf/2024-08-23/birdwatching-legend-peter-kaestners-journey-to-10-000-birds" data-cms-ai="0">Birdwatching legend Peter Kaestner's journey to 10,000 birds</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.ctpublic.org/show/audacious-with-chion-wolf/2023-12-08/audacious-kids-stories-of-courage-conservation-and-compassion" data-cms-ai="0">Audacious kids: Stories of courage, conservation, and compassion</a></li>
</ul>
GUESTS: 
<ul>
<li>Christina and Michael Reyes: The human parents of <a href="https://www.tiktok.com/@little_thumbelina_girl" data-cms-ai="0">Thumbelina</a>, an eight-year-old squirrel who has more than two million followers on social media</li>
<li>Chris Crowe: Birdkeeper at the <a href="https://nationalzoo.si.edu/" data-cms-ai="0">Smithsonian’s National Zoo and Conservation Biology Institute</a>’s campus in Front Royal, Virginia, and caretaker of Walnut, an endangered white-naped crane from 2004 until her death in January 2024</li>
</ul>

Audacious with Chion Wolf will highlight the uncommon experiences of everyday people – asking the hardest, most uncomfortable questions. With curiosity and compassion, Connecticut Public producer and host Chion Wolf digs deeper, encouraging listeners to ask hard questions in their own lives.

Find out more at https://www.ctpublic.org/audacious

Audacious with Chion Wolf will highlight the uncommon experiences of everyday people – asking the hardest, most uncomfortable questions. With curiosity and compassion, Connecticut Public producer and host Chion Wolf digs deeper, encouraging listeners to ask hard questions in their own lives.
Find out more at https://www.ctpublic.org/audacious

Audacious with Chion Wolf

Audacious with Chion Wolf will highlight the uncommon experiences of everyday people – asking the hardest, most uncomfortable questions. With curiosity and compassion, Connecticut Public producer and host Chion Wolf digs deeper, encouraging listeners to ask hard questions in their own lives.

Find out more at ctpublic.org/audacious

Audacious with Chion Wolf will highlight the uncommon experiences of everyday people – asking the hardest, most uncomfortable questions. With curiosity and compassion, Connecticut Public producer and host Chion Wolf digs deeper, encouraging listeners to ask hard questions in their own lives.
Find out more at <a href="https://www.ctpublic.org/show/audacious-with-chion-wolf/about">ctpublic.org/audacious</a>

When wild animals become family: Thumbelina the squirrel and Walnut the crane

Family secrets are often kept to protect, but hiding the truth can sometimes cause more harm than good.

When Michael Hainey’s father died, the explanation he was given never quite added up. Decades later, uncovering the real story changed his life, and inspired him to write a memoir.

Melissa Daniels faced a different kind of revelation: the man she thought was her father wasn’t her biological dad. Her determination to uncover the truth became unstoppable.

Hear their powerful stories of discovery, and what unfolded after the secrets came to light.

Suggested episodes:
Conception deception: The fight for transparency in the fertility industry
Forgiveness: How we define it and how it defines us

GUESTS: 
Michael Hainey: A journalist and author of the memoir, After Visiting Friends: A Son’s Story". It details how he uncovered the circumstances surrounding his father’s death decades later
Melissa Daniels: Her father passed away when she was seven. As a teenager, she learned that she was conceived by a donor and set out to connect with her biological father

Family secrets are often kept to protect, but hiding the truth can sometimes cause more harm than good.
When Michael Hainey&rsquo;s father died, the explanation he was given never quite added up. Decades later, uncovering the real story changed his life, and inspired him to write a memoir.
Melissa Daniels faced a different kind of revelation: the man she thought was her father wasn&rsquo;t her biological dad. Her determination to uncover the truth became unstoppable.
Hear their powerful stories of discovery, and what unfolded after the secrets came to light.
Suggested episodes:
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.ctpublic.org/show/audacious-with-chion-wolf/2023-07-13/conception-deception-the-fight-for-transparency-in-the-fertility-industry" data-cms-ai="0">Conception deception: The fight for transparency in the fertility industry</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.ctpublic.org/show/audacious-with-chion-wolf/2024-03-14/forgiveness-how-we-define-it-and-how-it-defines-us" data-cms-ai="0">Forgiveness: How we define it and how it defines us</a></li>
</ul>
GUESTS:&nbsp;
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.michaelhainey.com/" data-cms-ai="0">Michael Hainey</a>: A journalist and author of the memoir,&nbsp;<a href="https://a.co/d/imKcbBU" data-cms-ai="0">After Visiting Friends: A Son&rsquo;s Story"</a>. It details how he uncovered the circumstances surrounding his father&rsquo;s death decades later</li>
<li>Melissa Daniels: Her father passed away when she was seven. As a teenager, she learned that she was conceived by a donor and set out to connect with her biological father</li>
</ul>

The weight of family secrets: Finding freedom in the truth

Imagine waking up one morning and seeing every face around you as demonic - twisted, distorted, and unrecognizable. Are you hallucinating? Would you think people were possessed? Should you call 911? Now, what if it’s not demons you’re seeing, but constantly shifting facial features on everyone, including yourself? And what if this has been your reality since birth?

Meet two people living with this rare and perplexing condition, prosopometamorphopsia (PMO), and a researcher dedicated to understanding it. Hear their stories and learn about a simple, surprising treatment for this mysterious disorder.

Suggested episodes:
Revealing Our Blind Spots About Blindness
What it’s like to be able to smell illnesses
What is foreign accent syndrome? After a stroke, one man’s southern drawl turned British

GUESTS: 
Brad Duchaine: Researcher at Dartmouth who studies face blindness and is a leading researcher on PMO
Victor Sharrah: Clarkesville, Tennessee resident who discovered in 2020 that he has prosopometamorphopsia (AKA demon face syndrome or PMO). He found help on the
Veronica Smith: PMO patient who sees facial features moving. They have been experiencing this since they were four years old, and the distortions appear mostly on themself rather than on other people

Imagine waking up one morning and seeing every face around you as demonic - twisted, distorted, and unrecognizable. Are you hallucinating? Would you think people were possessed? Should you call 911? Now, what if it&rsquo;s not demons you&rsquo;re seeing, but constantly shifting facial features on everyone, including yourself? And what if this has been your reality since birth?
Meet two people living with this rare and perplexing condition, prosopometamorphopsia (PMO), and a researcher dedicated to understanding it. Hear their stories and learn about a simple, surprising treatment for this mysterious disorder.
Suggested episodes:
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.ctpublic.org/health/2020-12-11/revealing-our-blind-spots-about-blindness" data-cms-ai="0">Revealing Our Blind Spots About Blindness</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.ctpublic.org/show/audacious-with-chion-wolf/2021-11-18/what-its-like-to-be-able-to-smell-illnesses" data-cms-ai="0">What it&rsquo;s like to be able to smell illnesses</a></li>
<li><a href="https://www.ctpublic.org/show/audacious-with-chion-wolf/2023-06-09/what-is-foreign-accent-syndrome-after-a-stroke-one-mans-southern-drawl-turned-british" data-cms-ai="0">What is foreign accent syndrome? After a stroke, one man&rsquo;s southern drawl turned British</a></li>
</ul>
GUESTS:&nbsp;
<ul>
<li><a href="https://prosopometamorphopsia.faceblind.org/" data-cms-ai="0">Brad Duchaine</a>: Researcher at Dartmouth who studies face blindness and is a leading researcher on&nbsp;<a href="https://lab.faceblind.org/" data-cms-ai="0">PMO</a></li>
<li>Victor Sharrah: Clarkesville, Tennessee resident who discovered in 2020 that he has prosopometamorphopsia (AKA demon face syndrome or PMO). He found help on the</li>
<li>Veronica Smith: PMO patient who sees&nbsp;facial features moving. They have been experiencing this since they were four years old, and the distortions appear mostly on themself rather than on other people</li>
</ul>

When every face you see is distorted: Living with PMO

Imagine you’re 16 years old, living in Lahore, Pakistan, and preparing for the adventure of a lifetime: A high school exchange year in Rockville, Maryland.

Just as you’re getting ready to leave, a public radio show in Connecticut asks to document your journey!

This is the story of Salaar Muhammad - before, during, and after his transformative year in the United States. We explore how this experience changed his perspective, shaped his future, and touched the lives of those around him.

Suggested episodes:
Francesca Abroad: Following an American high school student’s year in Sarajevo

GUESTS: 
Salaar Muhammad: a student from Lahore, Pakistan, who spent the 2023/2024 academic year in Rockville, MD through the U.S. Department of State’s Kennedy Lugar YES program. He lived with a host family and went to a local high school
Sarah Clapp: Sarah’s family hosted Salaar during his stay in the US

Imagine you’re 16 years old, living in Lahore, Pakistan, and preparing for the adventure of a lifetime: A high school exchange year in Rockville, Maryland.
Just as you’re getting ready to leave, a public radio show in Connecticut asks to document your journey!
This is the story of Salaar Muhammad - before, during, and after his transformative year in the United States. We explore how this experience changed his perspective, shaped his future, and touched the lives of those around him.
Suggested episodes:
<ul>
<li><a href="https://www.ctpublic.org/show/audacious-with-chion-wolf/2022-08-25/francesca-abroad-following-an-american-high-school-students-year-in-sarajevo" data-cms-ai="0">Francesca Abroad: Following an American high school student’s year in Sarajevo</a></li>
</ul>
GUESTS: 
<ul>
<li>Salaar Muhammad: a student from Lahore, Pakistan, who spent the 2023/2024 academic year in Rockville, MD through the <a href="https://yesprograms.org/" data-cms-ai="0">U.S. Department of State’s Kennedy Lugar YES program</a>. He lived with a host family and went to a local high school</li>
<li>Sarah Clapp: Sarah’s family hosted Salaar during his stay in the US</li>
</ul>

When wild animals become family: Thumbelina the squirrel and Walnut the crane

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