YOUR BUSINESS AUTHORITY
Springfield, MO
YOUR BUSINESS AUTHORITY
Springfield, MO
Local women share their journey to the top of their professions and the challenges and triumphs they faced along the way. They’re rewriting the script on success and there’s no ceiling.
Brandi VanAntwerp is my first guest of Season 4 of No Ceiling. She’s the executive director of Foster Adopt Connect Inc. While her journey to that role is a full circle story, the path had many turns, including a childhood dream to practice law and become a country music singer. But her love for giving back to others has been a constant theme – she held her first fundraiser when she was just 12 years old. Brandi was born into a home with abuse at the hands of her biological father, but her story changed when her mom left and later remarried. Her stepfather, who she calls dad, adopted her as a young girl, and Brandi says that repair to her family system was critical to her development. Now in her work, she’s helping kids who face similar family trauma. In this conversation, Brandi talks about her journey to nonprofit work, becoming a foster parent herself and leading with empathy.
Below is an excerpt from my conversation with Brandi.
—Christine Temple, Executive Editor
Christine Temple: You had a scary start to life, followed by an exciting change of being adopted. I know you were really young when your mom experienced abuse by your biological dad, but can you tell me what you remember about that or what’s been shared with you?
Brandi VanAntwerp: My mom was 17 when she had me and lived here in town and went to Christian Schools of Springfield. My mom was dating a guy that was a tiny bit older than her. My grandparents were pretty strict in the fact that they insisted that she marry him. When my mom was pregnant, the abuse began. She did everything she could to kind of insulate and prevent abuse as much as she could. When I was about 3 months old, I was going into a doctor’s appointment, and I wouldn’t stop crying and he hit me in the doctor’s office. That’s when my mom knew that something had to change. We know folks endure abuse; we don’t really understand what they’ve gone through. It’s hard to place judgment and people shouldn’t place judgment. My mom started the process of a divorce, and it just took all of my family to basically keep him away.
My mom got remarried when I was 3 and when I was 4, the adoption was finalized by new dad, who I call my dad. The other person I’ve never called a dad before. I remember the day that documents came to the house that were essentially an official termination of parental rights from my bio dad.
My mom never held back in telling me the truth, and I could ask her anything I wanted to learn about. We kind of grew up together, so we’re really close with one another.
Temple: Your biological father made these choices in life that he wasn’t a part of your life, but then you have your new dad. What did that feel like to have that father figure back in your life?
VanAntwerp: When they got married, I was so excited that day because I kept saying it was our wedding. It was monumental in my development to have someone who cared for me like that, especially somebody who wasn’t my blood. I couldn’t be where I am if it weren’t for me having that two-parent household support plus the two-family group support.
A safe room and classroom addition at Willard Central Elementary School will be used by the music, arts and athletic programs for a district that had 4,536 students last year, according to Missouri Department of Elementary and Secondary Education figures, but school officials say enrollment is projected to grow.
