February 3, 2025 • 23 mins
Over 600,000 people are reported missing annually in the United States. Melissa and Whitney are joined by fellow co-founder of AdvocacyCon, Eric Carter-Landin, to talk about the upcoming conference and why its inception was needed.
AdvocacyCon is a crime conference unlike any other. We bring together experts, non-profit organizations, families of the missing and murdered, and individuals passionate about advocating for justice. It aims to create a platform for education, connection, and collaboration in the fight for justice.
Learn more at: www.advocacycon.com
Purchase Tickets at: www.givebutter.com/advocacycon
#advocacycon #nationalmissingpersonsday #ignitethespark
AdvocacyCon is a crime conference unlike any other. We bring together experts, non-profit organizations, families of the missing and murdered, and individuals passionate about advocating for justice. It aims to create a platform for education, connection, and collaboration in the fight for justice.
Learn more at: www.advocacycon.com
Purchase Tickets at: www.givebutter.com/advocacycon
#advocacycon #nationalmissingpersonsday #ignitethespark
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:22):
So today's not a regular episode for Melissa and I.
We wanted it to be something special because today is
natural Missing Person's Day.
Speaker 2 (00:31):
There is an.
Speaker 1 (00:33):
Alarming amount of people that are reported missing every year
and it's not accurate because there's so many more that
are not reported.
Speaker 3 (00:41):
So yeah, today we wanted to talk about advocacy con
and what we're doing to help fight this humongous problem
the whole world faces. But it is absolutely insane the
amount of people that go missing, and Whitney and I
talk about it every week that it is astonishing how
(01:02):
people vanish in just a moment, and there just needs
to be more done about this. There needs to be
different legislation, Things need to be happened, The process needs
to be changed because this cannot keep happening.
Speaker 2 (01:14):
We are going to.
Speaker 1 (01:16):
Be talking about this conference we've been telling you about
for well over a year now. So Eric has joined
us because we are in the final steps.
Speaker 3 (01:28):
Yeah, Hi, Hi, how are you doing great? Just getting
nervous about this conference, but so excited about everything that
we have planned and what is upcoming. It is going
to be an amazing event and we just wanted to
bring you on chat about it. Some events who's going
to be there workshops. Just give the downlow on what's happening.
Speaker 1 (01:52):
I don't know if we've ever really talked about the
initial history, like how did it all start?
Speaker 2 (01:58):
It we started?
Speaker 1 (01:59):
Have we talked about that, or we've just been like, hey,
we're doing this awesome idea.
Speaker 3 (02:03):
I don't think we ever have. I don't even know
if we've really talked about what AC is. Besides, hey,
you could go buy tickets. We're going to do this
unless it's on Lives, but not on the podcast itself.
Speaker 2 (02:17):
Right, So give on the spill, Eric, start from the beginning.
Speaker 4 (02:21):
Okay, So if you don't know me, you should know me.
But if you don't know me, my name is Eric
Carter Landine, and I am baby Jacob Londine's big brother.
First and foremost. Jacob was killed in eighty seven, and
my mom and I have been fighting for justice for
him ever since. I think you've heard his story on
(02:41):
the podcast if you've listened, like way way back several
seasons ago when we talked about Jacob's case. But I
also had to have had a true crime podcast and
called True Consequences. I just haven't really been producing episodes
for a long time, and for the listeners that are
listening on my feed, I'm sorry that's been a long time.
(03:04):
I promise I have really good reasons for why I've
been away, and you'll know more about that probably in
the near future. But I'm rambling. You got to stop
me from rambling. I went from the podcast and my
mom and I founded a nonprofit that helps families in
New Mexico that are fighting for justice. We give them
grants for things like funeral expenses, counseling, private investigations, DNA testing.
(03:27):
There's so many things. Whitney's on the board actually of angels, voices,
silence no More. And you know, I'm kind of one
of those people, like I'm kind of crazy in the
sense that more is always more for me, so I
always have multiple projects going. So I was like, hey,
I don't have enough projects on top of my full
(03:49):
time job and my advocacy work for Jacob's case, my podcast,
my nonprofit. You know, I just don't have enough to do,
So why don't I try to do some more? And
this is coming from the place of for me, I've
wanted to make an impact in the lives of people
like my family in the lives of people who are
(04:11):
out there looking for answers, fighting for justice. It's a
very lonely road. It's a very difficult, challenging thing. And
so I had this crazy idea to put together a
conference that brings together the experts, the nonprofit organizations, the
other family members who have walked in those shoes ahead
(04:32):
of us, to all learn from each other and to
hopefully provide some hope for people that are out there
fighting this very lonely fight. And so I tagged when
Nie and Melissa, I tapped them on the shoulder. I
begged and pleaded and asked them to help me pull
this crazy idea off. I'm curious to know, as we stand,
(04:55):
almost exactly two months away from the conference, what do
you think? Are you glad you said yes? Are you
not glad you said yes? And then you can tell
whatever else you want.
Speaker 3 (05:06):
But I'm just curious to know where as we stand now,
where you are? I, for one, there wasn't a question
in my mind if I was going to be a
part of this. As soon as you brought it to me,
I'm like, yes, we'll figure it out. That's always been
a Whitney and Ies thing. We'll figure it out. And
just like you, Eric, like if I get rid of
one project, I somehow end up getting an extra one
(05:28):
or two something that's a little more time consuming. So yeah,
never even cross my mind that I wouldn't be a
part of this once you brought it to us. I'm
I'm not how do I say this, I'm completely one
hundred percent glad. I said, Yes, this is some amazing work.
We have met some amazing advocates in this space. I
(05:50):
could not even imagine not doing this, even though it
is terrifying, especially this first year, especially for a person
with chronic anxiety. Well, I know it'll be fine, Like
it will be fine, and the families that we will
help and it'll just all be worth it.
Speaker 1 (06:08):
Yes, I feel the same way. I'm the person that
doesn't say no to really anything. I'm the chronic yes always.
But this is something that I think has been such
a It's been such an interesting part of our journey.
Like Melissa and I've always talked about how we started
over a glass of wine telling the stories everyone had
heard of, all all the serial killer stories, the popular ones,
(06:31):
and then we knew we were doing something wrong. We
met families, we started working with families, and I think
this step in our evolution to advocate to becoming actual
advocates has been one of the scariest but best jumps
that we could have done. So it's not just us
saying that we are here to help families, like this
(06:53):
is proving we are going much further than just telling
a story. We are putting our names, our lives, everything
on hold to help someone else.
Speaker 2 (07:06):
And it's been very i don't know, like insightful.
Speaker 1 (07:09):
And like we talked about how this podcast has become
our passion or went from hobby to passion to purpose,
and it really I think solidifies that for us because
we just had our annual meeting. What do we want
to do with this year for the podcast? Melissa and
I and there's so many opportunities for different events that
(07:29):
we are going to go to. Which events are we
going to go to this year? Which speaking engagements are
we going to seek out? And we both decided that
we're going to focus on the events that help families
more so than help us. It's not about the podcast anymore.
It's about how we are pushing those families first. And
(07:50):
I think that that's been a big part of this
journey and the conference coming together. So I guess if
now I'm rambling, But the roundabout side of that is that, yes,
I'm still one hundred percent in, and yes i am terrified,
even though I'm usually the one that's it's fine, like
it's burning down and it's fine and we're going to
work through it and we just have to power through.
(08:12):
I'm I handle my anxiety as stress, and we just
work through that stress and we get over it and
it's not a big deal.
Speaker 2 (08:19):
It's fine. Everything is fine.
Speaker 1 (08:21):
And we're now that we're down to weeks not months anymore,
the pressure's there. Did we think of everything? Are we
approaching everything from the right standpoint? Every day I'm like,
do we need this? Do we not need this? Or
what is that? Did we even think about this? What
haven't we thought of? So it's been an interesting journey.
Speaker 4 (08:41):
I just want to say that I love you both
of your answers, and I think that this, what we're
doing here is groundbreaking. What we're doing is novel. What
we're doing doesn't exist in the form that we are
creating it to exist in right. So I'm really grateful
and I know that you two are the perfect partners
(09:02):
for this because I feel like we all balance each
other out really well. So thank you for doing this
with me. And please, if you I know we're going
to ask you to buy tickets later, but please, if
you're interested at all injustice or advocacy or making an impact,
we would love to have you at Advocacy con.
Speaker 2 (09:21):
And it's not even if you can attend.
Speaker 1 (09:23):
If you can't attend, because we know finances are tough,
we know it's hard to travel. We tried to pick
a easily accessible location for this first year, but there's
other ways you can help us. If you have connections,
you have resources, you have ideas, send them our way.
We are open to any and all ideas, information, connections.
Speaker 2 (09:46):
Sign us up.
Speaker 3 (09:48):
Yeah, And this is not just for the family members
of the missing or murdered. This is for anyone that
wants to learn more about becoming an advocate, how to
do it in the right space, how to have empathy,
and just learn from these people and then at the
end of the day, see how you can help because
everyone has their special skill set. These families are already
(10:10):
going through so much. Just giving them that time that
acknowledgment means so much.
Speaker 1 (10:17):
So We've kind of talked about what Advocacy Con is.
What can a person that is an attending expect when
they walk through the door.
Speaker 4 (10:29):
I'm just going to take it and then fill in
any holes that I leave, because I probably will leave
some things out. You can expect to hear from some
amazing advocates. I think the one that I am super
excited about. I'm excited about all of them, but the
session I'm most excited about is Beth Holloway talking about
hope and holding on to hope through twenty years of
(10:51):
seeking answers for her daughter Natalie. Is going to be incredible.
She's our keynote speaker. We're going to have so many
other amazing surviver advocates, family advocates, professionals in the field
of DNA identification of dose professionals in the field of
utilizing AI tools to advocate, professionals like law enforcement and
(11:16):
legal professionals. There's going to be so many things to learn.
And one thing that I'm excited about is the three
trainings over the course of the event, and not just
family advocates, but professional advocates can come and get some
professional development at Advocacycon as well, so if you are
(11:37):
in an advocate role with an organization or an agency
and you want some professional development, there's gonna be some
amazing courses there as well. We'll have exhibitors, nonprofits, resources,
all kinds of amazing people to talk to.
Speaker 3 (11:55):
Besides all the learning opportunities, Advocacy Con will be providing
breakfast on both Saturday and Sunday as well as lunch
on Saturday. That will definitely help cut down on the cost.
We want it to be a very relaxed atmosphere where
people can mingle, talk to who they need to talk
to get that insight without feeling so stuffy inside a
(12:16):
speaking room. So there'll be plenty of opportunities outside of
the classes and in order to network. But yeah, like
Eric would saying, we have so many amazing people.
Speaker 2 (12:27):
We have Hailey Gray.
Speaker 3 (12:28):
She will teaching the families how to research their own cases.
There's just tons of different people from various walks of
life that are going to come together and literally just
help the families start figuring out how to advocate for
their case. This could be a case from a week
old or something that's a cold case like Beth Holloways.
(12:50):
So it's going to be such a powerful weekend. That's
for sure.
Speaker 1 (12:56):
One thing I'm excited to hear about because it's not
something Melissa and I deal with regularly. And Eric knows
a little bit about this based on his advocacy work
in his own personal journey, But we don't deal with
a lot of legislative issues because all of our cases
are unsolved that we've covered in the most recent years.
So I'm interested to hear from people like Alison Duker
when she was coming to talk about her Lonnie's Law
(13:19):
about her mother who's been missing for thirty years over
three decades, I believe thirty maybe.
Speaker 4 (13:26):
More than that, nineteen to eighty one, so.
Speaker 1 (13:29):
Way more than thirty years. And then John Palmer has
worked with legislators, so I'm excited to hear from him.
And those are just things we don't run into in
our regular research. So those types of things the OVC
classes will be just just immeasurable in my opinion.
Speaker 2 (13:47):
So yeah, we're excited.
Speaker 1 (13:48):
We think that we have an incredible lineup for these sessions.
Speaker 2 (13:54):
And yeah, also you get breakfast and lunch.
Speaker 4 (13:57):
He can be done, and we're going to have a
fun game night or game afternoon. I guess on Sunday afternoon.
We'll be raising money for Impact Advocacy Foundation, which is
the charitable arm of Advocacy Conference as well as he'son
of Justice. And there's gonna be all kinds of fun
things like board games, card games, maybe some bingo, be
(14:20):
some good prizes, and it's just gonna be a lot
of fun. So I'm excited for that. It's gonna help
break up the weekend and some of the sadness I think,
and bring some joy to the event. So looking forward
to that too.
Speaker 3 (14:32):
Speaking of being a heavy weekend, we also plan to
have therapy dogs on site. There will be a are
we calling it a therapy room.
Speaker 4 (14:41):
We haven't named it yet, but we're trying to find
a clinician to help as well. That's taking some time,
but we're working on it.
Speaker 3 (14:48):
Yes, there'll be a yoga session in one of the mornings.
There will be a meditation another morning. We're just trying
to give these family members and attendees every tool that
we can possibly give to have with them exactly.
Speaker 1 (15:03):
Another thing that I'm super excited about, and this is
something that I think the families will benefit from, but
they may not realize that they're going to benefit from
it in the beginning is we're planning on having a
dedicated room for them to record their own stories, so
in the event that they want to work with content
creators in the future to get their story out, we
(15:26):
are providing them a way to record their loved one
stories in their own words and take that file with
them so they can give that to content creators she
use they are approved quotes. We'll also talk with them
about if they need assistance with editing that. I know
that Melissa and I would be honored to help with that.
Eric can help with that. On top of all of
(15:46):
the content creators that will be there, I'm sure they'd
be willing to donate some time to edit that as
well for them so that it is a fully usable
file for their future needs, which I think is really important.
I don't think that people realize that something that they
can use in the future.
Speaker 3 (16:04):
Yeah, it takes the toll on these families repeating this
story over and over, but it's their only outlet to
get the word out for their loved ones. Sometimes, especially
in these cases that are lesser known, media hasn't picked
them up. What else are they supposed to do besides
go on every single podcast and regurgitate everything and relive
(16:25):
that day over and over again. So if this helps
even a few families not experiencing that trauma of having
to relive it, then we did a great job in
my opinion.
Speaker 4 (16:37):
I agree. I think that's something that people don't really
think about when you hear somebody going on a bunch
of podcasts telling their story over and over again. I've
done it. It is emotionally draining, it's exhausting. I often
find myself in bed for hours and hours after these
interviews because it's just really difficult. So I love this idea.
(16:57):
I think that it's going to really make make a
difference and make it a lot easier for these families
to get the word out and know that they aren't
going to be misquoted. We can't guarantee they won't be
mis edited, but they won't be misquoted and the information
will be available from their perspective, which I think is
super important whenever people are telling these stories.
Speaker 3 (17:17):
Also, we will not be giving out the audio to
anyone but the family. It's up to their discretion who
they want to work with. Just wanted to make a
note of that.
Speaker 2 (17:27):
Absolutely.
Speaker 1 (17:28):
Also, I know that Melissa and I are giving the
opportunity for any family that attends if they want their
loved one story shared on our feed here, they have
that opportunity. We will gladly do an episode with them
about their family member. I know that if Eric was
actively podcasting, his schedules a little full right now. If
he was actively podcasting, he would of course offer that
(17:49):
as well. But you can be on this show if
you are a family member, regardless missing unsolved murder. We're
here for you to share your loved one story.
Speaker 4 (17:57):
Probably like, great, you're telling me all about this event,
but I don't know when it is, I don't know
where it is, I don't know what's going on. What
are you guys talking about. This part is for you.
So the event itself, Advocacy Con is going to be
March twenty eighth through the thirtieth, twenty twenty five, So
in just eight short weeks we should be in Indianapolis, Indiana,
(18:20):
at the Marriotte in the East Hotel Friday. It's going
to be all about arrival and setup for the families
and for the resources. There will be a little mixer
for them to get to know each other before the
conference starts, so that's a little bit more intimate time
for people to connect, and then as the conference continues,
we're hoping that those connections will grow into relationships and
(18:44):
hopefully partnerships and people helping each other. That's what our
overall hope on That is Saturday. It's going to start
in the morning, like Melissa said, with either yoga or meditation,
and then we'll go into Beth's keynote. It's going to
go all day until I think about six o'clock, and
then everybody will be on their own for dinner. Sunday morning,
(19:05):
we'll meet back up. We'll either do yoga or meditation
in the morning, and then we'll have a half day
at programming. You'll get breakfast on like Melissa said, both
day's lunch on Saturday, and then we'll have the event
around two pm to raise money for a season of
justice and impact Advocacy Foundations. If all of that is
too much and you're furiously writing notes, you can just
(19:26):
go to advocacycon dot com. All the answers to your
questions are there, or you can look us up on
social media. I'm sure you'll find some information there as well.
Speaker 1 (19:35):
Yes, and that's also where you can get your tickets,
where you can book your hotel room. It's all in
one convenient location. What if we do before the Internet.
Speaker 2 (19:42):
I don't know. Thankful that I didn't live in that timeframe.
Speaker 3 (19:47):
Because we have an amazing web designer and it's so
easy to click and purchase.
Speaker 2 (19:53):
It's Whitney. Whitney does the webs.
Speaker 3 (19:55):
We understand traveling, especially during the school year. If you
have things going on on jobs, it's difficult to always
just get up and go for a weekend get away.
So we have some other ways that you are able
to help our mission and help these families that are
going through such hard times. We encourage you to share.
Speaker 2 (20:15):
Our event on social media.
Speaker 3 (20:17):
It's very easy. You do not know how many families
benefit from a shared post. You never know whose eyes
that gets in front of You can also donate to
sponsor a family to attend. A lot of our families
have been struggling for years with systemic issues, and all
of their money already goes to searching for their loved one.
(20:37):
We don't want to add this extra expense to their plate.
That's why we created Impact Advocacy Foundation, a nonprofit that
will allow these families to attend for free. Essentially, we
have given away many grants to families to attend that
includes their hotel, their travel expenses, as well as admission
(20:58):
into this event. If you have any families that you
know that could benefit from this weekend conference, please direct
them to our website or our social media. Please tell
them to email us, just let us know what it
is you're needing and what's going on, and I am
sure we can figure out a way to assist. We
(21:19):
always could use sponsors and donations. This is obviously our
first event and we are figuring it out as we go,
and we want to just make it so special for
these families to learn and come without the overbearing costs
associated with it. So if you have anybody that could
possibly be a sponsor, please send them our way as well.
(21:41):
You can also email at info at advocacycon dot com.
Speaker 4 (21:45):
So thank you Winny and Melissa for inviting me on.
Thank you to the Navigating advocacy community that's out there
helping to bring awareness to these cases. Thank you to
the True Consequences community that cares so much about the
people in New Mexico. We would love for you all
(22:07):
to join us in whatever way you can, whether it's
sharing the event, whether it's attending the event, whether it's
helping a family, any way that makes sense for you,
We would definitely love your support. And Advocacy CON is
first of all, I need everyone to know it's conference,
not convention. That's something that we've made very clear from
(22:28):
the beginning when we started planning this, and so advocacy
CON is all about igniting hope for the families of
the missing and murdered and bringing hopefully change and education
to help give these families the tools that they need
to move forward. And it's amazing what the smallest amount
(22:49):
of hope can do for somebody like me, for somebody
like Julie Murray, like Beth Holloway, like Sarah Turney, like
so many other people that are out there every day
have to talk about the person that they love and
miss more than anything. And so we hope that you
will join us to ignite that flame, to spread the
(23:10):
hope across all of the families of the missing and
murdered so that they can continue to fight
So today's not a regular episode for Melissa and I.
We wanted it to be something special because today is
natural Missing Person's Day.
Speaker 2 (00:31):
There is an.
Speaker 1 (00:33):
Alarming amount of people that are reported missing every year
and it's not accurate because there's so many more that
are not reported.
Speaker 3 (00:41):
So yeah, today we wanted to talk about advocacy con
and what we're doing to help fight this humongous problem
the whole world faces. But it is absolutely insane the
amount of people that go missing, and Whitney and I
talk about it every week that it is astonishing how
(01:02):
people vanish in just a moment, and there just needs
to be more done about this. There needs to be
different legislation, Things need to be happened, The process needs
to be changed because this cannot keep happening.
Speaker 2 (01:14):
We are going to.
Speaker 1 (01:16):
Be talking about this conference we've been telling you about
for well over a year now. So Eric has joined
us because we are in the final steps.
Speaker 3 (01:28):
Yeah, Hi, Hi, how are you doing great? Just getting
nervous about this conference, but so excited about everything that
we have planned and what is upcoming. It is going
to be an amazing event and we just wanted to
bring you on chat about it. Some events who's going
to be there workshops. Just give the downlow on what's happening.
Speaker 1 (01:52):
I don't know if we've ever really talked about the
initial history, like how did it all start?
Speaker 2 (01:58):
It we started?
Speaker 1 (01:59):
Have we talked about that, or we've just been like, hey,
we're doing this awesome idea.
Speaker 3 (02:03):
I don't think we ever have. I don't even know
if we've really talked about what AC is. Besides, hey,
you could go buy tickets. We're going to do this
unless it's on Lives, but not on the podcast itself.
Speaker 2 (02:17):
Right, So give on the spill, Eric, start from the beginning.
Speaker 4 (02:21):
Okay, So if you don't know me, you should know me.
But if you don't know me, my name is Eric
Carter Landine, and I am baby Jacob Londine's big brother.
First and foremost. Jacob was killed in eighty seven, and
my mom and I have been fighting for justice for
him ever since. I think you've heard his story on
(02:41):
the podcast if you've listened, like way way back several
seasons ago when we talked about Jacob's case. But I
also had to have had a true crime podcast and
called True Consequences. I just haven't really been producing episodes
for a long time, and for the listeners that are
listening on my feed, I'm sorry that's been a long time.
(03:04):
I promise I have really good reasons for why I've
been away, and you'll know more about that probably in
the near future. But I'm rambling. You got to stop
me from rambling. I went from the podcast and my
mom and I founded a nonprofit that helps families in
New Mexico that are fighting for justice. We give them
grants for things like funeral expenses, counseling, private investigations, DNA testing.
(03:27):
There's so many things. Whitney's on the board actually of angels, voices,
silence no More. And you know, I'm kind of one
of those people, like I'm kind of crazy in the
sense that more is always more for me, so I
always have multiple projects going. So I was like, hey,
I don't have enough projects on top of my full
(03:49):
time job and my advocacy work for Jacob's case, my podcast,
my nonprofit. You know, I just don't have enough to do,
So why don't I try to do some more? And
this is coming from the place of for me, I've
wanted to make an impact in the lives of people
like my family in the lives of people who are
(04:11):
out there looking for answers, fighting for justice. It's a
very lonely road. It's a very difficult, challenging thing. And
so I had this crazy idea to put together a
conference that brings together the experts, the nonprofit organizations, the
other family members who have walked in those shoes ahead
(04:32):
of us, to all learn from each other and to
hopefully provide some hope for people that are out there
fighting this very lonely fight. And so I tagged when
Nie and Melissa, I tapped them on the shoulder. I
begged and pleaded and asked them to help me pull
this crazy idea off. I'm curious to know, as we stand,
(04:55):
almost exactly two months away from the conference, what do
you think? Are you glad you said yes? Are you
not glad you said yes? And then you can tell
whatever else you want.
Speaker 3 (05:06):
But I'm just curious to know where as we stand now,
where you are? I, for one, there wasn't a question
in my mind if I was going to be a
part of this. As soon as you brought it to me,
I'm like, yes, we'll figure it out. That's always been
a Whitney and Ies thing. We'll figure it out. And
just like you, Eric, like if I get rid of
one project, I somehow end up getting an extra one
(05:28):
or two something that's a little more time consuming. So yeah,
never even cross my mind that I wouldn't be a
part of this once you brought it to us. I'm
I'm not how do I say this, I'm completely one
hundred percent glad. I said, Yes, this is some amazing work.
We have met some amazing advocates in this space. I
(05:50):
could not even imagine not doing this, even though it
is terrifying, especially this first year, especially for a person
with chronic anxiety. Well, I know it'll be fine, Like
it will be fine, and the families that we will
help and it'll just all be worth it.
Speaker 1 (06:08):
Yes, I feel the same way. I'm the person that
doesn't say no to really anything. I'm the chronic yes always.
But this is something that I think has been such
a It's been such an interesting part of our journey.
Like Melissa and I've always talked about how we started
over a glass of wine telling the stories everyone had
heard of, all all the serial killer stories, the popular ones,
(06:31):
and then we knew we were doing something wrong. We
met families, we started working with families, and I think
this step in our evolution to advocate to becoming actual
advocates has been one of the scariest but best jumps
that we could have done. So it's not just us
saying that we are here to help families, like this
(06:53):
is proving we are going much further than just telling
a story. We are putting our names, our lives, everything
on hold to help someone else.
Speaker 2 (07:06):
And it's been very i don't know, like insightful.
Speaker 1 (07:09):
And like we talked about how this podcast has become
our passion or went from hobby to passion to purpose,
and it really I think solidifies that for us because
we just had our annual meeting. What do we want
to do with this year for the podcast? Melissa and
I and there's so many opportunities for different events that
(07:29):
we are going to go to. Which events are we
going to go to this year? Which speaking engagements are
we going to seek out? And we both decided that
we're going to focus on the events that help families
more so than help us. It's not about the podcast anymore.
It's about how we are pushing those families first. And
(07:50):
I think that that's been a big part of this
journey and the conference coming together. So I guess if
now I'm rambling, But the roundabout side of that is that, yes,
I'm still one hundred percent in, and yes i am terrified,
even though I'm usually the one that's it's fine, like
it's burning down and it's fine and we're going to
work through it and we just have to power through.
(08:12):
I'm I handle my anxiety as stress, and we just
work through that stress and we get over it and
it's not a big deal.
Speaker 2 (08:19):
It's fine. Everything is fine.
Speaker 1 (08:21):
And we're now that we're down to weeks not months anymore,
the pressure's there. Did we think of everything? Are we
approaching everything from the right standpoint? Every day I'm like,
do we need this? Do we not need this? Or
what is that? Did we even think about this? What
haven't we thought of? So it's been an interesting journey.
Speaker 4 (08:41):
I just want to say that I love you both
of your answers, and I think that this, what we're
doing here is groundbreaking. What we're doing is novel. What
we're doing doesn't exist in the form that we are
creating it to exist in right. So I'm really grateful
and I know that you two are the perfect partners
(09:02):
for this because I feel like we all balance each
other out really well. So thank you for doing this
with me. And please, if you I know we're going
to ask you to buy tickets later, but please, if
you're interested at all injustice or advocacy or making an impact,
we would love to have you at Advocacy con.
Speaker 2 (09:21):
And it's not even if you can attend.
Speaker 1 (09:23):
If you can't attend, because we know finances are tough,
we know it's hard to travel. We tried to pick
a easily accessible location for this first year, but there's
other ways you can help us. If you have connections,
you have resources, you have ideas, send them our way.
We are open to any and all ideas, information, connections.
Speaker 2 (09:46):
Sign us up.
Speaker 3 (09:48):
Yeah, And this is not just for the family members
of the missing or murdered. This is for anyone that
wants to learn more about becoming an advocate, how to
do it in the right space, how to have empathy,
and just learn from these people and then at the
end of the day, see how you can help because
everyone has their special skill set. These families are already
(10:10):
going through so much. Just giving them that time that
acknowledgment means so much.
Speaker 1 (10:17):
So We've kind of talked about what Advocacy Con is.
What can a person that is an attending expect when
they walk through the door.
Speaker 4 (10:29):
I'm just going to take it and then fill in
any holes that I leave, because I probably will leave
some things out. You can expect to hear from some
amazing advocates. I think the one that I am super
excited about. I'm excited about all of them, but the
session I'm most excited about is Beth Holloway talking about
hope and holding on to hope through twenty years of
(10:51):
seeking answers for her daughter Natalie. Is going to be incredible.
She's our keynote speaker. We're going to have so many
other amazing surviver advocates, family advocates, professionals in the field
of DNA identification of dose professionals in the field of
utilizing AI tools to advocate, professionals like law enforcement and
(11:16):
legal professionals. There's going to be so many things to learn.
And one thing that I'm excited about is the three
trainings over the course of the event, and not just
family advocates, but professional advocates can come and get some
professional development at Advocacycon as well, so if you are
(11:37):
in an advocate role with an organization or an agency
and you want some professional development, there's gonna be some
amazing courses there as well. We'll have exhibitors, nonprofits, resources,
all kinds of amazing people to talk to.
Speaker 3 (11:55):
Besides all the learning opportunities, Advocacy Con will be providing
breakfast on both Saturday and Sunday as well as lunch
on Saturday. That will definitely help cut down on the cost.
We want it to be a very relaxed atmosphere where
people can mingle, talk to who they need to talk
to get that insight without feeling so stuffy inside a
(12:16):
speaking room. So there'll be plenty of opportunities outside of
the classes and in order to network. But yeah, like
Eric would saying, we have so many amazing people.
Speaker 2 (12:27):
We have Hailey Gray.
Speaker 3 (12:28):
She will teaching the families how to research their own cases.
There's just tons of different people from various walks of
life that are going to come together and literally just
help the families start figuring out how to advocate for
their case. This could be a case from a week
old or something that's a cold case like Beth Holloways.
(12:50):
So it's going to be such a powerful weekend. That's
for sure.
Speaker 1 (12:56):
One thing I'm excited to hear about because it's not
something Melissa and I deal with regularly. And Eric knows
a little bit about this based on his advocacy work
in his own personal journey, But we don't deal with
a lot of legislative issues because all of our cases
are unsolved that we've covered in the most recent years.
So I'm interested to hear from people like Alison Duker
when she was coming to talk about her Lonnie's Law
(13:19):
about her mother who's been missing for thirty years over
three decades, I believe thirty maybe.
Speaker 4 (13:26):
More than that, nineteen to eighty one, so.
Speaker 1 (13:29):
Way more than thirty years. And then John Palmer has
worked with legislators, so I'm excited to hear from him.
And those are just things we don't run into in
our regular research. So those types of things the OVC
classes will be just just immeasurable in my opinion.
Speaker 2 (13:47):
So yeah, we're excited.
Speaker 1 (13:48):
We think that we have an incredible lineup for these sessions.
Speaker 2 (13:54):
And yeah, also you get breakfast and lunch.
Speaker 4 (13:57):
He can be done, and we're going to have a
fun game night or game afternoon. I guess on Sunday afternoon.
We'll be raising money for Impact Advocacy Foundation, which is
the charitable arm of Advocacy Conference as well as he'son
of Justice. And there's gonna be all kinds of fun
things like board games, card games, maybe some bingo, be
(14:20):
some good prizes, and it's just gonna be a lot
of fun. So I'm excited for that. It's gonna help
break up the weekend and some of the sadness I think,
and bring some joy to the event. So looking forward
to that too.
Speaker 3 (14:32):
Speaking of being a heavy weekend, we also plan to
have therapy dogs on site. There will be a are
we calling it a therapy room.
Speaker 4 (14:41):
We haven't named it yet, but we're trying to find
a clinician to help as well. That's taking some time,
but we're working on it.
Speaker 3 (14:48):
Yes, there'll be a yoga session in one of the mornings.
There will be a meditation another morning. We're just trying
to give these family members and attendees every tool that
we can possibly give to have with them exactly.
Speaker 1 (15:03):
Another thing that I'm super excited about, and this is
something that I think the families will benefit from, but
they may not realize that they're going to benefit from
it in the beginning is we're planning on having a
dedicated room for them to record their own stories, so
in the event that they want to work with content
creators in the future to get their story out, we
(15:26):
are providing them a way to record their loved one
stories in their own words and take that file with
them so they can give that to content creators she
use they are approved quotes. We'll also talk with them
about if they need assistance with editing that. I know
that Melissa and I would be honored to help with that.
Eric can help with that. On top of all of
(15:46):
the content creators that will be there, I'm sure they'd
be willing to donate some time to edit that as
well for them so that it is a fully usable
file for their future needs, which I think is really important.
I don't think that people realize that something that they
can use in the future.
Speaker 3 (16:04):
Yeah, it takes the toll on these families repeating this
story over and over, but it's their only outlet to
get the word out for their loved ones. Sometimes, especially
in these cases that are lesser known, media hasn't picked
them up. What else are they supposed to do besides
go on every single podcast and regurgitate everything and relive
(16:25):
that day over and over again. So if this helps
even a few families not experiencing that trauma of having
to relive it, then we did a great job in
my opinion.
Speaker 4 (16:37):
I agree. I think that's something that people don't really
think about when you hear somebody going on a bunch
of podcasts telling their story over and over again. I've
done it. It is emotionally draining, it's exhausting. I often
find myself in bed for hours and hours after these
interviews because it's just really difficult. So I love this idea.
(16:57):
I think that it's going to really make make a
difference and make it a lot easier for these families
to get the word out and know that they aren't
going to be misquoted. We can't guarantee they won't be
mis edited, but they won't be misquoted and the information
will be available from their perspective, which I think is
super important whenever people are telling these stories.
Speaker 3 (17:17):
Also, we will not be giving out the audio to
anyone but the family. It's up to their discretion who
they want to work with. Just wanted to make a
note of that.
Speaker 2 (17:27):
Absolutely.
Speaker 1 (17:28):
Also, I know that Melissa and I are giving the
opportunity for any family that attends if they want their
loved one story shared on our feed here, they have
that opportunity. We will gladly do an episode with them
about their family member. I know that if Eric was
actively podcasting, his schedules a little full right now. If
he was actively podcasting, he would of course offer that
(17:49):
as well. But you can be on this show if
you are a family member, regardless missing unsolved murder. We're
here for you to share your loved one story.
Speaker 4 (17:57):
Probably like, great, you're telling me all about this event,
but I don't know when it is, I don't know
where it is, I don't know what's going on. What
are you guys talking about. This part is for you.
So the event itself, Advocacy Con is going to be
March twenty eighth through the thirtieth, twenty twenty five, So
in just eight short weeks we should be in Indianapolis, Indiana,
(18:20):
at the Marriotte in the East Hotel Friday. It's going
to be all about arrival and setup for the families
and for the resources. There will be a little mixer
for them to get to know each other before the
conference starts, so that's a little bit more intimate time
for people to connect, and then as the conference continues,
we're hoping that those connections will grow into relationships and
(18:44):
hopefully partnerships and people helping each other. That's what our
overall hope on That is Saturday. It's going to start
in the morning, like Melissa said, with either yoga or meditation,
and then we'll go into Beth's keynote. It's going to
go all day until I think about six o'clock, and
then everybody will be on their own for dinner. Sunday morning,
(19:05):
we'll meet back up. We'll either do yoga or meditation
in the morning, and then we'll have a half day
at programming. You'll get breakfast on like Melissa said, both
day's lunch on Saturday, and then we'll have the event
around two pm to raise money for a season of
justice and impact Advocacy Foundations. If all of that is
too much and you're furiously writing notes, you can just
(19:26):
go to advocacycon dot com. All the answers to your
questions are there, or you can look us up on
social media. I'm sure you'll find some information there as well.
Speaker 1 (19:35):
Yes, and that's also where you can get your tickets,
where you can book your hotel room. It's all in
one convenient location. What if we do before the Internet.
Speaker 2 (19:42):
I don't know. Thankful that I didn't live in that timeframe.
Speaker 3 (19:47):
Because we have an amazing web designer and it's so
easy to click and purchase.
Speaker 2 (19:53):
It's Whitney. Whitney does the webs.
Speaker 3 (19:55):
We understand traveling, especially during the school year. If you
have things going on on jobs, it's difficult to always
just get up and go for a weekend get away.
So we have some other ways that you are able
to help our mission and help these families that are
going through such hard times. We encourage you to share.
Speaker 2 (20:15):
Our event on social media.
Speaker 3 (20:17):
It's very easy. You do not know how many families
benefit from a shared post. You never know whose eyes
that gets in front of You can also donate to
sponsor a family to attend. A lot of our families
have been struggling for years with systemic issues, and all
of their money already goes to searching for their loved one.
(20:37):
We don't want to add this extra expense to their plate.
That's why we created Impact Advocacy Foundation, a nonprofit that
will allow these families to attend for free. Essentially, we
have given away many grants to families to attend that
includes their hotel, their travel expenses, as well as admission
(20:58):
into this event. If you have any families that you
know that could benefit from this weekend conference, please direct
them to our website or our social media. Please tell
them to email us, just let us know what it
is you're needing and what's going on, and I am
sure we can figure out a way to assist. We
(21:19):
always could use sponsors and donations. This is obviously our
first event and we are figuring it out as we go,
and we want to just make it so special for
these families to learn and come without the overbearing costs
associated with it. So if you have anybody that could
possibly be a sponsor, please send them our way as well.
(21:41):
You can also email at info at advocacycon dot com.
Speaker 4 (21:45):
So thank you Winny and Melissa for inviting me on.
Thank you to the Navigating advocacy community that's out there
helping to bring awareness to these cases. Thank you to
the True Consequences community that cares so much about the
people in New Mexico. We would love for you all
(22:07):
to join us in whatever way you can, whether it's
sharing the event, whether it's attending the event, whether it's
helping a family, any way that makes sense for you,
We would definitely love your support. And Advocacy CON is
first of all, I need everyone to know it's conference,
not convention. That's something that we've made very clear from
(22:28):
the beginning when we started planning this, and so advocacy
CON is all about igniting hope for the families of
the missing and murdered and bringing hopefully change and education
to help give these families the tools that they need
to move forward. And it's amazing what the smallest amount
(22:49):
of hope can do for somebody like me, for somebody
like Julie Murray, like Beth Holloway, like Sarah Turney, like
so many other people that are out there every day
have to talk about the person that they love and
miss more than anything. And so we hope that you
will join us to ignite that flame, to spread the
(23:10):
hope across all of the families of the missing and
murdered so that they can continue to fight
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