Our Story
It all begins with an idea.
There wasn’t hoopla. There wasn’t a ribbon cutting ceremony, but there was a BIG idea fueled by love, grief and the hope for a future without FTD.
So gather ‘round, y’all. We have a story to tell!
Both of them were caregiving, both of them had small children, both of them were glued to the news as the world shut down. It was March 2020 and as Covid took over, Maria took to Social Media. She felt the urge to share her experience as a care partner to her mother, Lia. As she perused her followers, she got to thinking about the growing FTD community that continued to share their content through hashtags and posts in hopes of spreading awareness . How can I help? She wondered. How can I elevate my voice to support us all? That night, as she got in bed, she turned to her husband, Mike and expressed her urge to make her voice loud and to express what this journey had been like. “I think I want to start a podcast,” she told him. She surprised herself with her statement but didn’t shy away from the thought.
The very next day, she embarked on an unknowing journey of her own by asking her followers if anyone wanted to/would share their FTD story on said podcast. Rachael, living across the nation, jumped at the opportunity to talk about her Dad, their journey, and the heartbreak that comes with FTD. The two made a plan to meet (on zoom!) to connect…
and from that initial zoom interaction, both women realized they were living parallel lives across thousands of miles. Although there were a few differences in their journey, their love and devotion to their parents instantly bonded them. The connection felt organic and complementary, so much so that Maria urged Rachael to be a host alongside her.
From there, Remember Me was born and a relationship between two strangers was forged.
On August 3rd, 2020 the first episode, “Frank” launched. Lia’s was presented the following week and since then, the Remember Me Podcast team has recorded over 100 episodes, participated in research, attended conferences, and said good bye to their respective parents. Lia and Frank passed one month + one day from each other (If thats not serendipity, than we don’t know what is!).
5 years later, 150+ episodes later, we are finally realizing our dream of forming our foundation. A continuation of our parents legacy, and an opportunity to do more for our community.
