Albert is a lifelong learner, CPA, author, and partner at a national public accounting firm. He earned a BS in Accounting from Southern University and A&M College and an MBA in International Business & Entrepreneurship from LSU with a 4.0 GPA. He is a member of multiple honor societies and a lifetime member of the National Association of Black Accountants (NABA). Guided by the principles “Accounting is the heartbeat of business” and “Follow the money,” Albert is committed to empowering future leaders, families, and entrepreneurs toward financial excellence and lasting impact.

With over a decade of experience trading foreign currencies, Albert Smith brings a deep understanding of the global financial markets and family to The Gentle Year. 

After years in retail, manufacturing, and corporate finance — including 17 years with a Fortune 500 investment firm — he went on to found his own commodity trading company.

Passionate about helping others achieve financial freedom, Smith believes that investing is not just about money, but about empowerment, independence, and choice. His insights on leverage, discipline, and long-term thinking inspire listeners to approach both finance and life with strategy and purpose.

Amber Trivedi — Co-Founder of LifeSpark Labs

Amber Trivedi is the Co-Founder of LifeSpark Labs, where she helps organizations and leaders cultivate curiosity, empathy, and emotional intelligence in the workplace. Drawing on her experience as both a professional and a parent, Amber brings a unique perspective on how the skills we use to lead teams can also transform how we nurture our families.

In her conversation on The Gentle Year, Amber reflects on parenting in the digital age — from navigating screen addiction and online communication to fostering emotional awareness and human connection. Her insights remind us that curiosity, patience, and understanding are the real tools of growth, both at home and at work.

Angela Caldwell grew up in El Paso, Texas, where a bilingual border culture shaped her adaptability, resilience, and ability to read people beyond words. Those early experiences laid the foundation for her work as a family therapist, helping her navigate complex family dynamics with ease and clarity.

A lifelong athlete, Angela brings the discipline, optimism, and confidence of competitive sports into her therapeutic work—balancing compassion with forward movement and change. She believes deeply in her clients’ capacity to endure hard things and grow through them.

Angela is a strong advocate for the “village” approach to raising children. She helps families identify shared values, communicate more effectively, and build the support systems they need to grow—together.

Dara Wax is the founder of SAM+LEO, a teen-focused wellness company born from both professional expertise and personal experience. With over 20 years in global and public health, Dara brings a rare perspective to the conversation around teen mental and physical well-being.

As a single mom raising two teenage boys, Dara created SAM+LEO after struggling to find clean, age-appropriate health products for teens. Her work addresses critical gaps in teen wellness, including screen fatigue, energy regulation, and everyday nutritional support—without relying on stimulants or adult-formulated supplements.

Dara is also a passionate advocate for community, open conversation, and practical tools that help families support teens in a post-COVID world. Her approach blends science, compassion, and realism—offering parents insight without judgment and strategies that meet kids where they are.

David Fowler is a dedicated teacher, mentor, and the founder of Your Future Basketball, a program that empowers young athletes to reach their full potential both on and off the court. With years of experience in education, David combines his passion for teaching with his love of the game to help students develop discipline, leadership, and confidence.

Through Your Future Basketball, he creates opportunities for youth to grow not only as players but as individuals — focusing on teamwork, accountability, and the mindset needed for success in life. His work reflects a deep belief that sports can be a powerful vehicle for personal growth and lifelong learning.

Dr. David Marcus, Ph.D. is a clinical psychologist with over 40 years of experience in research, therapy, and family advocacy. He earned his Ph.D. in Clinical Psychology from the University of Louisville, where his research focused on Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and antidepressant treatment for depression, and completed a postdoctoral fellowship at the University of Cincinnati Department of Psychiatry with an emphasis on Self Psychology and psychoanalytic theory.

Dr. Marcus has worked in a wide range of mental health settings, including community mental health centers and psychiatric facilities for children. His work centers on supporting families under stress, promoting children’s emotional well-being, and advising legal professionals on the impact of custody conflict on child development. His forthcoming book expands on these themes for parents.

Dr. Emily Levy is the founder and director of EBL Coaching, a specialized tutoring program providing individualized one-on-one instruction using research-based, multisensory techniques. She is the author of Strategies for Study Success, a 22-part workbook series focused on executive functioning, reading comprehension, writing, and test-taking skills; the Flags and Stars Orton-Gillingham series for decoding and spelling; and Flags and Stars Multi-Sensory Math. Her programs are used in schools nationwide.

https://eblcoaching.com/

James Moffitt has been married to his wife, Katy, for 35 years, and together they are the parents of four children. His life has been profoundly shaped by grief and loss. In 2001, James and Katy lost their daughter, Jessica Ann Moffitt, to childhood cancer. In 2025, they experienced another devastating loss when their 38-year-old son, Jeremy Moffitt, passed away after multiple complications during a five-week stay in the ICU.

Out of these experiences, James felt called to support other fathers navigating grief. He is the host of Father’s Refuge, a podcast created to provide fathers with a place of refuge and support as they process loss and trauma. He is also the host of ABC’s of Parenting Adult Children, where he speaks with parenting experts across multiple disciplines to help parents better understand and support their adult children.

Jeanean Tang is a speech-language pathologist, author, and mother who brings both professional expertise and lived experience to the field of early language development. With years of experience working in schools, preschools, hospitals, and early intervention programs, she has helped countless children develop the communication skills they need to thrive.

Jeanean’s perspective deepened profoundly when her son, Che, suffered a traumatic brain injury and stroke at just 13 months old. Doctors warned that he might never walk or talk, but through intensive therapy, resilience, and a deep understanding of early language development, Che has continued to defy those expectations. 

Jeanean is the author of Play Dumb and Sabotage, a practical guide designed to help parents create meaningful opportunities for children to practice and develop language in everyday life.

Jessica Danel is an author, entrepreneur, and mother of three who built a million-dollar preschool business from the ground up before stepping away to focus on her daughter’s special needs. A wife of 25 years and a natural storyteller, Jessica is known for her candid humor, emotional honesty, and unapologetic resilience.

Her memoir, Bucket List from a Redneck Girl, chronicles a childhood marked by trauma, family dysfunction, faith, and fierce perseverance. Blending grit with humor, Jessica shares the moments that shaped her—from surviving adversity to building businesses—and the quiet ways she felt guided through it all.

She is also the host of Jess Saying, a podcast exploring parenting, personal growth, entrepreneurship, and real-life conversations through a Gen X lens.

Kimberly Lechnick  empowers ambitious professional women in midlife to rediscover their self-worth and build meaningful, fulfilling relationships—starting with the one they have with themselves.

As a certified Relationship Coach and founder of Intentional Pathways By Design, she helps high-achieving women break free from self-doubt, reconnect with confidence, and create the deep, authentic love they desire.

Many of her clients have spent years excelling in their careers and caring for others, yet find themselves feeling disconnected or stuck in unbalanced relationship patterns. Through self-worth coaching, mindset work, and gratitude-based practices, she guides them back to the power of who they truly are—creating lives rooted in confidence, intention, and emotional fulfillment.

Most parents are raising children—very few are intentionally designing the adults those children will become.

Nathaniel A. Turner, JD, MALS, is a TED speaker, author, and creator of the Life Template Method, a backward-design framework that helps parents approach a child’s life with intention, structure, and long-term vision.

Known as the Humanity Propulsion Engineer, Nathaniel teaches families how to cultivate intellectual ambition, global awareness, and humanitarian purpose—starting in the earliest years of a child’s life.

Through his work with the League of Extraordinary Parents, he challenges the idea that a child’s future is left to chance—showing instead that it is shaped through vision, expectations, and intentional design.

Rebecca L. Norrington is a Happiness Specialist, author, and emotional wellness coach dedicated to helping people live from the inside out. With a background in psychology and over two decades of experience in personal development, Rebecca blends science, spirituality, and humor to teach others how to prioritize emotional balance over external success.

As a contributor to The Gentle Year, Rebecca offers insights that help parents, students, and families cultivate authentic joy, resilience, and peace — even in life’s most chaotic seasons. Her work reminds us that happiness is not something we chase, but something we choose moment by moment.

Roman Wyden is the creator and host of the ADHD Is Over podcast, documentary, and forthcoming book. After his eldest son was diagnosed with ADHD at age seven, Roman began a years-long investigation into childhood behavior, stress, and family dynamics. Rather than relying solely on conventional approaches, he examined environmental, relational, and systemic factors impacting his family’s life. His work focuses on parental responsibility without blame, questioning labels, and helping families create environments where children can thrive. Roman now coaches parents and speaks internationally about rethinking ADHD and modern parenting.

Shara Ruffin is a licensed therapist, parent, and founder of Journey to Licensure, a company dedicated to supporting social workers and mental health professionals on their path to professional licensure and emotional well-being.

As a mother, entrepreneur, and advocate for self-awareness, Shara shares candidly about breaking cycles of cultural conditioning, healing through emotional work, and homeschooling her Gen Alpha son while running a thriving business.

In her appearance on The Gentle Year, Shara opens up about motherhood, grief, and growth — offering wisdom and hope for parents striving to raise emotionally grounded children in a fast-paced world.

Sean Dawson is the creator and host of the Raising Men podcast, where he explores how to help parents raise boys into men of strength, character, and emotional resilience. What began as his personal search for guidance while raising his own son has grown into a platform featuring thoughtful conversations on modern masculinity, fatherhood, emotional intelligence, and boyhood development. Speaking from lived experience rather than theory, Sean asks the questions fathers are actually wrestling with — offering practical, real-world insight for parents who want to lead with intention and raise good men.

Suzzie Vehrs is a doula and childbirth educator who supports families through pregnancy, birth, and the postpartum period with a focus on emotional safety, informed consent, and compassionate care. Drawing from her own lived experience and extensive training, she helps parents navigate medical systems with confidence and trust their instincts during one of life’s most vulnerable transitions. Suzzie’s work honors birth as not just a medical event, but a deeply human experience that shapes how motherhood begins—and how it’s remembered.

Tanya Bunting is the mother of 5 children and is a dynamic creative instructor specializing in essay writing, storytelling, thumbnail design, video editing, and video production. With a passion for helping students craft compelling narratives—whether in written form or through multimedia—Tanya empowers learners to find their voice and express it with clarity and impact. Her background in visual storytelling and digital content creation equips students with real-world skills that translate seamlessly from the classroom to college applications, YouTube channels, and beyond. Whether polishing a personal essay or producing a standout video project, Tanya brings a thoughtful, energetic approach to every session. 

Ted Lamb is a veteran educator, historian, and father of two homeschool graduates with nearly three decades of experience in education. Trained in Social Studies Education, Ted teaches in the public school system while intentionally applying Biblical Classical and Principle Approach® methodologies wherever possible.

Over time, growing concerns about students’ declining critical thinking, resilience, and love of learning led Ted to deeply examine educational philosophy. Through study, prayer, and training with the Foundation for American Christian Education (FACE), he became a certified Principle Approach® teacher.

Ted believes history should be taught providentially—through primary sources, reflection, and an understanding of God’s hand in human events. His work focuses on restoring meaningful learning, critical thought, and moral responsibility in education. 

Terry Bean has always believed in magic—perhaps because she learned early to see the world through rose-colored glasses, long before she ever wrote a book about it.

In fourth grade, Terry played Mother Nature in a school play, stepping onto a dark, messy stage and walking off transformed in a flowing gown and rose-colored glasses. In many ways, those glasses never came off. 

Terry studied Communications and Marketing at the University of Hartford before beginning her career in Manhattan. 

After the market shift, Terry reinvented herself more than once, yet one constant remained: a magical story she wrote in 2014, always knowing it would one day be shared. That story became ABRACADABRA.

Today, Terry is back in New York caring for her mother. This quieter chapter is deeply meaningful, guiding her toward a life and work rooted in simplicity, gentleness, love, and joy—even through harder moments.

Tony Berardo is a content creator, entrepreneur, and father redefining modern fatherhood, success, and presence in the digital age. After nearly a decade in corporate marketing, Tony was laid off and faced life-altering events that forced him to reevaluate work, money, and legacy.

Today, he creates story-driven content across Instagram, YouTube, and his podcast Humanity & Hashtags, exploring fatherhood, masculinity, mental health, and entrepreneurship. He is also the founder of Human Dad, a community-first apparel brand celebrating involved, emotionally present fathers.

After years of infertility and IVF, Tony became a father to a daughter who reshaped his priorities. He now advocates for alternative career paths that allow parents to spend more time at home during their children’s earliest years.

Tony shares his work at theberardo.com.

Val Kleppen is a bereaved mother, homeschool mom, and host of The Motherhood Experience podcast. Her journey into motherhood includes NICU trauma, the stillbirth of her full-term daughter, and another emergency delivery — experiences that reshaped her faith, marriage, and purpose. Today, Val speaks openly about grief, Christian motherhood, resilience, and finding meaning after infant loss, reminding parents that even in the hardest seasons, love and life continue.