It’s been thirteen years walking alongside homeschool families, and this idea of a website that hosted great, vetted homeschool podcasts became a reality. I contacted some of my friends, and many said, “What is a podcast?” Once I explained, the enthusiasm caught on, and we started our “network” in 2013. Today I share a little about those past years and promises of what is to come.

Be sure to subscribe, follow, and download this episode. Our Sweet 13 Birthday Celebration launches October 1st & you don’t want to miss it!

We have a month-long party planned with giveaways, special episodes, and more.

Thirteen Years Walking Alongside Homeschool Families

The Ultimate Homeschool Podcast Network turns 13 — and Felice shares how it started, why it stayed, and who it was always for.

Hey friends. Thanks so much for joining me. Today we celebrate thirteen years of the Ultimate Homeschool Podcast Network. I started this as a way to reach homeschool families without leaving home. My husband and I had agreed early on that it was important to be here with our family. He is a builder. His work could have taken him around the state. He chose us instead, and he became a major homeschool advocate.

Thanks to our sponsor for helping keep this show and this network on the air, CTCMath.com

13th Birthday Special ~ Vintage Homeschool Moms

Show notes: VintageHomeschoolMoms.com. Network home: UltimateRadioShow.com.

How It Started

• I began Media Angels in 1995 with unit studies so all of my children could sit at one table and study one topic.
• I needed a way to reach homeschool parents that did not take me on the road.
• A major switch from hosting the Ultimate Homeschool Expo —more than 100 live webinars, introducing the speaker, editing, uploading, and putting out fires — to hosting a podcast platform.
• A writing-and-publishing podcast on another network was fun. It was not as fulfilling as walking with homeschoolers. I asked the Lord for help.
• The idea: invite the friends I had made at conferences and blogging events to join me on a podcast network.

What It Took

Over the years we have had forty-plus shows. Not all of them are still on air. It takes time, effort, and a real love for homeschool moms. We are not here as a focus to sell a product or narrate our week. Or even giggle with our friends over somethign outlandish that leaves you feeling out. We care deeply about our audience and we want to walk alongside you in support with real help.

The network was not a template. Audio outgrew servers. We upgraded year after year. A hosting-company developer once went into our backend because we were one of a handful of podcast networks and he wanted to see how it was built. When things broke, we fixed them for the podcasters. I hired help when it made sense. There were years I broke even and called that a win — especially if a mom who could not spend hundreds on a conference still got the help she needed.

I remember staying up until two in the morning to correct a newsletter. My husband came and made me go to bed. Family and a home business collide at times. That is the truth. I have felt like quitting more than once. The love for what you and I do as homeschoolers is what kept me moving onward but on a different schedule.

Radio, Then Podcast — and a Spare Bedroom

For a time it was the Ultimate Homeschool Radio Network. We were afraid the word “podcast” was proprietary. When we started, people at conferences asked how much it cost. I said it was free, and their eyes lit up.

One of my favorite notes: a mom wrote that she and her children were listening while they painted a spare bedroom. Even the kids were getting something out of it. That is why a phone in the backyard, or in the car on errands, still matters to me.

Media Angels curriculum sales fueled the network for years until podcasters joined and paid a small monthly fee. Sponsors now help us keep growing. I no longer do the newsletter or the social media. I record, I upload, and a wonderful administrative assistant (thank you Gina, you are a blessing) takes it from there. That is grace, and good help.

If You Are Still Here

I do this not because of the numbers — though the downloads are now in the millions — but because of the people and the hearts behind them. Moms and dads who want to do what is right for their families.

If this network has blessed you, reach out. If you are a homeschool mom with a passion to share what works, I am always looking for new talent. And if you are still listening after all these years, thank you for being part of what started in my own little kitchen, in my own little town, in my own little home.

Scripture

“Unless the Lord builds the house, those who build it labor in vain.”
— Psalm 127:1, RSVCE

Resources from Media Angels

• Media Angels store — the unit studies, science, and tools that helped fuel this network in the early years.
• Organize It! Planners — hold the week so the work of home and homeschool does not swallow the people in it.
• Character Counts planners — one quality and one real situation for the week.

More at MediaAngels.com/store.

More Listening

1. The Birth of a Homeschool Podcast Network (9th birthday)
2. Vintage Homeschool Moms — show home
3. How to Make a Homeschool Time Capsule
4. Time to Learn: How to Stay Consistent
5. About the Ultimate Homeschool Podcast Network

Until next time, be blessed. Have a happy homeschool week.