A child can be safer and still be grieving. A decision can be necessary and still have a human cost. Holding both ideas together is the starting point for this week’s TRP update.
Listen: what does the first day feel like?
In Rhonda Paulsen: Changing the Way Foster Care Begins, the Isaiah 117 House founder describes the hours between removal and placement—and why a welcoming space, a meal, clean clothes and small choices matter. She also talks about supporting caseworkers and foster families.
This is a conversation about practical care, not a claim that every difficult problem has an easy solution. As you listen, ask: whose experience is missing from my first impression?
Watch or listen to Rhonda’s conversation
If you only open one link this week, make it that one. Content note: the episode discusses family separation, foster care and childhood trauma.
Try a three-question pause
Before deciding what someone needs, write down: What do I actually know? What am I assuming? What could I ask or verify next? Keep the answers separate. A confident explanation is not the same thing as an established fact.
You can use this with a news story, a workplace decision or a conversation about public services. The point is to slow the jump from observation to conclusion.
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Read: decisions, evidence and human consequences
Exploring Criminal Justice: The Basics of Ethics and Theory by Brandon Burley introduces policing, courts, corrections and the ethical questions that connect them. It asks readers to distinguish what a source establishes from what still needs checking. The IngramSpark page offers a contents preview and a paperback purchase option.
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Learn: identify the next justified action
The Evidence Before Conclusions online course teaches learners to classify information, trace claims to root sources, and state conclusions in proportion to the evidence. One practical outcome: documenting the next justified action instead of treating an unanswered question as permission to guess. Digital course access is currently $50.
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Wear: Jesus Saves 24/7
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What ordinary act of care made a difficult transition easier for you? You can reply without sharing anyone else’s private story. Thank you for reading The Redemption Project.