Hope Comes to Visit
Hope Comes to Visit is a soulful podcast that holds space for real stories, honest conversations, and the kind of moments that remind us we’re never alone. Hosted by author, speaker, and former TV journalist-turned-storyteller Danielle Elliott Smith, the show explores the full spectrum of the human experience — from the tender to the triumphant. Through powerful interviews and reflective storytelling, each episode offers light, connection, and presence for anyone navigating the in-between. Whether you’re grieving, growing, beginning again, or simply craving something real, Hope Comes to Visit will meet you right where you are — with warmth, grace, and the quiet belief that even in the dark, transformation can take root. New episodes drop every Monday and Friday, so you can begin and end your week with a little light, reflection, and hope.
Episodes
What if the most difficult chapters of your life were actually preparing you for unexpected gifts?
In this moving episode of Hope Comes to Visit, award-winning writer Maria de los Angeles shares how caring for her parents with Alzheimer’s taught her the very resilience, humility, and compassion she would later need to face her own esophageal cancer diagnosis.
Maria speaks candidly about the sacred and heartbreaking real...
Grief doesn’t end with goodbye. For many, it’s followed by a quiet, exhausting weight no one talks about — the paperwork, the phone calls, the endless “to-do’s” that come when your heart has already been broken.
When Adria Ferrier lost her mother after a five-year battle with cancer, she not only faced the deep ache of missing her, but also the overwhelming burden of navigating the practical aftermath. From transferrin...
“Hope has to evolve and change.”
These powerful words shaped the extraordinary journey of Martha Sharkey, Founder & CEO of Today is a Good Day — a nonprofit creating a lifeline for families navigating the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU).
When Martha and her husband, Paul, welcomed identical twin daughters at just 23 weeks, their world turned upside down. Claire weighed barely over a pound. Mary, only slightly mo...
What would your life look like if you used every single second with intention?
This week on Hope Comes to Visit, I’m joined by Donald L. Dowridge Jr., a man who embodies resilience, purpose, and what it truly means to live with hope.
Donald’s early childhood was filled with pain most couldn’t imagine — abuse, neglect, and words no child should ever hear. But instead of allowing his past to define him, Donald chose to ca...
What if the darkest moments of your life were actually preparing you for your greatest transformation?
In this week’s episode of Hope Comes to Visit, I sit down with Valerie Rowekamp, whose story is a breathtaking testament to resilience, audacity, and the power of refusing to give up on hope.
Valerie’s journey began in crisis: at just 22 weeks pregnant, her water broke, and doctors offered little optimism for her son, ...
What happens when life breaks open in every direction? For Aimee Kandrac, it all came crashing down in a six-week period — empty nesting, a cancer scare, the end of her 23-year marriage, and selling her dream home. But from that breaking point came something extraordinary: “Amy 2.0.”
In this episode of Hope Comes to Visit, Aimee shares how she rebuilt her life with new boundaries, deeper self-knowledge, and a joy her o...
“You were the most chosen.”
These are the words Miranda Ward spoke to her son after he learned he was conceived through sexual assault. In this week’s episode of Hope Comes to Visit, Miranda shares her extraordinary journey from a moment of unthinkable violation to building a life defined by fierce love, protection, and healing.
With courage, strategy, and an unshakable belief in her intuition, Miranda navigated a syste...
What happens when you set out on an 86-mile journey with no athletic background, no clear “why,” and only three days to complete it?
For Ian Hawkins — Speaking and Storytelling Coach at Netflix — the answer was far more than sore feet.
In this conversation, Ian shares his whirlwind trek along the historic Pilgrim’s Way from London to Canterbury Cathedral — a pilgrimage that most take a week to complete, but he...
Grief shatters us in ways we never imagine possible until we're standing in its wreckage.
When Marty died suddenly, almost 2 years ago, on August 13, 2023, I found myself navigating the rawest form of pain while thousands of miles away in Greece with my children. The frantic journey home, the 17 days by his hospital bed, and the impossible decision to let him go fundamentally altered who I am.
Grief does...
What happens when your world breaks open… and you find a way to keep breathing anyway?
In this deeply moving episode of Hope Comes to Visit, Danielle sits down with writer, speaker, and bold belief builder Kim Moldofsky, whose life changed forever after the loss of her son Isaac to suicide five years ago. Together, they explore the layered terrain of grief, motherhood, identity, and rebuilding — not with false positivi...
What happens when the life you asked for arrives — and it’s not what you wanted, but exactly what your soul needed?
In this episode, I sit down with Holly Plont — a devoted mother of two, wife to her best friend, and a woman who found herself standing in the middle of the dream life she had worked so hard to build… only to realize it didn’t feel like home.
We talk about the courage it takes to pivot, to listen when life...
What happens when the dream doesn't look the way you thought it would — but turns out even better?
In this episode of Hope Comes to Visit, Danielle Elliott Smith sits down with former award-winning journalist and communications executive Marla Cichowski, who shares her powerful journey to becoming a single mother by choice (SMBC).
After nearly two decades reporting from the frontlines of history — from natural disa...
(Because You Don’t Have to Hit Bottom to Choose a Better Life)
Six years ago, I made one of the most powerful decisions of my life:
I stopped drinking.
Not because I hit bottom.
Not because I lost it all.
But because I was slowly losing myself.
I was high-functioning.
I was successful.
I was spiraling — and smiling through it.
Wine had become the way I coped.
Until it wasn’t.
This week, I’m sharing a truth I ...
There are conversations… and then there are the ones that stay with you.
This is one of those.
In this episode, I sit down with Dr. Dan Peters—psychologist, executive coach, author, and host of Make It a Great One—for a deeply honest and hope-filled conversation about the power of purpose, presence, and embracing your own evolution.
We talk about:
- Letting go of expectations and choosing alignment over achievement
- ...
Hope in Action: A Story of Light and Consistency
with the radiant @CarlaBirnberg
There are people who show up with such unwavering integrity that you feel braver just being near them. That’s how I feel about Carla Birnberg.
In this episode of Hope Comes to Visit, we explore what it means to lead a mission-driven life — one grounded in heart work, radical consistency, and a commitment to showing up even whe...
Finding Art, Hope, and Voice with Little Junior
In this deeply personal episode, I’m joined by my friend Oliver — a gifted creative, devoted father, loving husband, social worker, and the heart behind the artistic identity Little Junior. By day, he serves his community with compassion and care. But within, lives a storyteller, a poet, a music producer, and a man who has fought to find — and use — his voice in a world t...
A Conversation with Wendy Faith on Surrender, Truth, and Soul Recognition
What happens when everything you’ve built no longer feels like you?
In this deeply honest episode, creative business coach, author, and late-in-life lesbian Wendy Faith opens up about what it means to walk away from a life that looks successful on the outside but feels misaligned within. After years as a prolific writer, entrepreneur, and public f...
Before there was light, there was isolation and there was grief. There was loss, confusion, silence.
In this intimate first episode of Hope Comes to Visit, host Danielle Elliott Smith shares the deeply personal story behind the show — one rooted in the loneliness of struggles with alcohol and the decision to recover, the ache of sudden loss, the unraveling that followed, and the long, quiet path to healing.
From choosi...
In this powerful premiere interview of Hope Comes to Visit, Dr. Ashley Wellman shares her extraordinary story of heartbreak and healing after the sudden loss of her husband. With her four-year-old daughter by her side, Ashley began a journey through grief, rediscovery, and reinvention — one that led her to write a children’s book, fall in love again, and welcome a new baby into her life.
This is a tender conversation a...
What happens when your entire sense of safety is rooted in certainty — and that certainty disappears?
In this thought-provoking conversation, author, speaker, and business consultant Allison Carmen shares how her deep attachment to knowing what’s next became its own form of addiction — and how everything began to shift when she discovered the quiet, liberating power of maybe.
Together, we explore the illusion of control...
Popular Podcasts
Gregg Rosenthal and a rotating crew of elite NFL Media co-hosts, including Patrick Claybon, Colleen Wolfe, Steve Wyche, Nick Shook and Jourdan Rodrigue of The Athletic get you caught up daily on all the NFL news and analysis you need to be smarter and funnier than your friends.
I’m Jay Shetty host of On Purpose the worlds #1 Mental Health podcast and I’m so grateful you found us. I started this podcast 5 years ago to invite you into conversations and workshops that are designed to help make you happier, healthier and more healed. I believe that when you (yes you) feel seen, heard and understood you’re able to deal with relationship struggles, work challenges and life’s ups and downs with more ease and grace. I interview experts, celebrities, thought leaders and athletes so that we can grow our mindset, build better habits and uncover a side of them we’ve never seen before. New episodes every Monday and Friday. Your support means the world to me and I don’t take it for granted — click the follow button and leave a review to help us spread the love with On Purpose. I can’t wait for you to listen to your first or 500th episode!
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com
Football’s funniest family duo — Jason Kelce of the Philadelphia Eagles and Travis Kelce of the Kansas City Chiefs — team up to provide next-level access to life in the league as it unfolds. The two brothers and Super Bowl champions drop weekly insights about the weekly slate of games and share their INSIDE perspectives on trending NFL news and sports headlines. They also endlessly rag on each other as brothers do, chat the latest in pop culture and welcome some very popular and well-known friends to chat with them. Check out new episodes every Wednesday. Follow New Heights on the Wondery App, YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts. You can listen to new episodes early and ad-free, and get exclusive content on Wondery+. Join Wondery+ in the Wondery App, Apple Podcasts or Spotify. And join our new membership for a unique fan experience by going to the New Heights YouTube channel now!
The Clay Travis and Buck Sexton Show. Clay Travis and Buck Sexton tackle the biggest stories in news, politics and current events with intelligence and humor. From the border crisis, to the madness of cancel culture and far-left missteps, Clay and Buck guide listeners through the latest headlines and hot topics with fun and entertaining conversations and opinions.