Manage episode 516859271 series 3645493
Senior year can feel like standing on a cliff’s edge, and Leah Schmidt brings us right to that moment with clarity, humor, and heart. Hosted by Dan Schmidt and Ben Spahr, this conversation follows Dan’s daughter as she wraps a long soccer journey, weighs college athletics, and chooses something rarer: a future built on faith, family, and balance.
From small town sidewalks to country life, 4-H chores, and the day a goat didn’t make it, Leah shows how responsibility and loss shape character long before resumes do. She walks into a new club team where no one knows her name and still finds her voice. She explains why she stepped away from the D1 chase to protect what matters most. Church and camp helped turn prayer into a real back and forth. A raw breakthrough from her dad during a rite of passage reframed vulnerability as strength and growth as a choice.
You’ll hear about the lively chaos of five siblings, firm consequences with love, and how a teen cleaning business quietly teaches service, standards, and grit. If you’re a parent guiding without smothering, or a student deciding who you want to be beyond the next game or grade, Leah’s story offers honest encouragement that growth lives just past comfort and grit comes from losses you carry well.
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Chapters
1. Sponsor Message: Catrin’s Glass (00:00:00)
2. Community Update: Join Our Patreon (00:00:29)
3. Meet Leah: Senior Year Spotlight (00:02:09)
4. Childhood Moves: Neighborhood To Country (00:06:09)
5. 4‑H Lessons: Animals And Responsibility (00:08:40)
6. Sports Journey: Soccer, Volleyball, Track (00:12:17)
7. Stepping Out: New Club Team Nerves (00:15:33)
8. Life With Four Siblings (00:18:50)
9. Ending A Soccer Chapter And College Choice (00:20:42)
10. Faith Ups And Downs: Camp And Prayer (00:24:14)
11. What’s Next: Applications, Hobbies, Pickleball (00:28:10)
12. Advice To Younger Self And Siblings (00:31:12)
13. Dad, Mom, And Family Reflections (00:33:20)
14. Rite Of Passage: Seeing Dad’s Vulnerability (00:37:12)
15. Rapid Fire: Home, Values, And Humor (00:41:20)
16. Parenting Today: Let Kids Fail, Hold Accountable (00:45:10)
17. Closing Thanks And Patreon Reminder (00:49:18)
18. Sponsor Message: Catrin’s Glass (00:54:55)
83 episodes