Called to Help: The Many Paths to Building and Supporting Families with Katy Encalade

On this episode of Fostering Change, Rob Scheer is joined by Katy Encalade, President and CEO of Egg Donor & Surrogate Solutions, who has spent more than two decades helping to create and support families.Katy brings a unique and deeply personal perspective to this conversation. She has been a foster parent, an egg donor, and a surrogate — offering a rare view across multiple paths of supporting children and building families. Her experience as a foster mom serves as a meaningful bridge, grounding this conversation in the realities of child welfare while expanding the lens to include other ways people can step in to help.While Fostering Change often focuses on foster care, adoption, and permanency, this episode broadens that perspective. Katy encourages listeners to consider that there are many ways to support children and families — whether by opening your home, helping someone become a parent by choosing to be a surrogate or egg donor, or finding other ways to show up with compassion and responsibility.Episode HighlightsHow foster care, surrogacy, and egg donation connect through a shared purpose of supporting children and familiesThe importance of lived experience, including Katy’s time as a foster parentWhy stability, care, and belonging remain central across all family-building pathsThe role of ethics, transparency, and trust in family-building workEncouraging people to explore different ways they can help support children and familiesAbout the GuestKaty Encalade is the President and CEO of Egg Donor & Surrogate Solutions, an organization that has helped create more than 2,000 families worldwide. A former foster parent, egg donor, and surrogate, she brings both personal experience and professional expertise to her work. Katy has spent more than two decades advocating for ethical, transparent, and relationship-driven approaches to family-building, previously served as Board Chair of the Society for Ethics in Egg Donation and Surrogacy, and now serves as Board Chair of Families Out Loud.Connect with Katy🌐 Website: www.CreateAHappyFamily.com📘 Facebook: Egg Donor & Surrogate Solutions📸 Instagram: @createahappyfamily🎵 TikTok: @createahappyfamily🔗 LinkedIn: Katy Encalade🎥 Watch the full video episodes on YouTube!Head over to Comfort Cases on YouTube to catch every inspiring conversation:👉 youtube.com/@comfortcases Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.