Angie Day Peters is still learning the art of the exhale. For over twenty years, she has been unlearning the habit of earning her keep. She spent decades navigating the structures of leadership and expectation, only to find that the most profound work happens when you finally stop trying to be the architect of everyone else’s peace. She isn’t a spiritual strategist or a life manager; she’s a fellow traveler who decided to stop running and see what happens when the dust actually settles.

As the founder of Unedited Life, Angie has traded the polish of religious performance for the honesty of the wreckage. She lives in Junction City, Kansas. She is convinced that the most beautiful things in our lives don't need to be forced—they just need to be allowed.

Her life is a vibrant, unscripted mix of six grown kids, three grandchildren, and her high school sweetheart, John. It is a life that is often messy and rarely follows the script, unedited. 

As a former licensed foster parent, adoptive parent, and someone with a deeply personal connection to childhood adversity and complex trauma, Chrystal Smith has seen firsthand the gaps in the child welfare system and the unmet needs of both caregivers and children. Through her journey, she observed that families and children surrounded by consistent, therapeutic networks of support were far more likely to experience lasting growth and healing. This insight became the foundation for Foster Village.

As the founder and visionary behind Foster Village, Chrystal is deeply committed to strengthening families and communities. She is most passionate about her role as a wife and mother to her four children and about being a vessel of hope through a story shaped by resilience, healing, and grace. Chrystal is widely regarded as a trusted voice in advancing solutions to systemic challenges within the child welfare system. 

John Emery is a former pastor turned entrepreneur, brand strategist, and startup advisor. He is a musician, Songwriter, designer, painter, poet, and athlete—an unapologetic aspiring renaissance man, with a reverence for life. He’s the founder of Emery.com: An Awakening Company, where he and his team help visionary brands wake up to their deeper purpose and build cultures that are more playful, impactful, and alive.

John’s career has spanned pulpits, boardrooms, concerts, and campfires. His clients range from bootstrapping founders to global icons like Paul McCartney’s nonprofit, podcasters Rich Roll and Mark Hyman, and global yoga icon Adriene Mishler. 

He lives on the southern coast of Maine with his wife, Elyse, and their three kids. Sacred Silly is his first book—a love letter to the playful, curious, wholehearted life he’s still learning to live.

Leyla King is a Palestinian-American Episcopal priest and author, an advocate of small churches, and a wife and mother. She is a founding member of both Palestinian Anglicans and Clergy Allies (www.palestiniananglicans.org) and The Small Churches Big Impact Collective. Currently, she serves as the Canon for Mission in Small Congregations for the Episcopal Diocese of West Texas. She writes about her experiences as a Palestinian, a clergywoman and a mother at thankfulpriest.com Her first book, Daughters of Palestine: A Memoir in Five Generations won the Last Syllable Book Award for Nonfiction. She lives in Austin with her husband and three children.

Since launching Austin Angels in 2010, Susan has led the organization from a grassroots initiative to a scalable, sustainable model with 18 chapters across 13 states. What began as a single program in Central Texas has grown into a national movement, fueled by a committed team of over 120 members, thousands of volunteers, and steady year-over-year growth in operating revenue. Blending heart with hard work, Susan brings strategic clarity, operational discipline, and a sense of purpose to every aspect of the organization.

Motivated by her personal experience as a foster parent, Susan and her team created innovative, research-informed programs, Love Box® and Dare to Dream®, designed to provide consistent, relational, and practical support to children, youth, and caregivers.

Susan lives in Buda, Texas with her husband, their two sons, and their Goldendoodle, Chloe. They enjoy spending quality time outdoors and can often be found in the backyard or at the ballfield.