Presentations,
On the air:
Interviews, etc.
"Understanding Gender Identity - An Evening of Education and Storytelling." A presentation delivered online for the Marin County Library (featuring Janna Barkin, Suzanne Ford, Jordan Decker, and Alex Marshall).
Interview about parenting transgender kids with Janna and therapist Mere Abrams by Kate Raphael on SF Bay Area FM radio station KPFA (January 2018).
Interview with Janna by Brian Edwards Tiekert on SF Bay Area FM radio station KPFA (October 2017).
Janna and her husband Gabriel were interviewed for an "Inquire Within" podcast with Darren Main (July 2016).
I am the proud mother of a transgender son. I am also a published author, a professional speaker, a coach/group facilitator for parents and families of transgender youth, and a passionate advocate for transgender youth rights.
My book He's Always Been My Son: A Mother's Story about Raising Her Transgender Son (Jessica Kingsley Publishing, August, 2017) is an uplifting and supportive memoir of my journey raising a transgender son from birth through to adulthood. He's Always Been My Son has been an Amazon.com #1 bestseller in the United States, and was chosen as a "Book to Watch" selection in The Bookseller, a U.K. publishing industry magazine.
I am a featured speaker & workshop facilitator. My experience includes presenting at the Gender Spectrum Conference, at Fortune 500 corporations including The Gap and Microsoft, and at schools, bookstores, libraries, churches, synagogues, and other community gathering centers.
I lead support groups for parents and caregivers of transgender and gender expansive and questioning youth at the Spahr Center in San Rafael, CA.
My blog has been published in the Huffington Post as well as on my own website, and I have also written for Common Ground. I've been interviewed regarding my transgender advocacy on Bay Area radio stations KGO and KPFA.
I am a lifelong educator, well-known and loved in my northern California community as a yoga teacher and early childhood teacher / director.
I share my story about raising my transgender child to raise awareness, and to foster more compassion, understanding, and acceptance in our society.
About Janna.
Experience. Education. Empathy.