No Ordinary Liz: When a Child Becomes the Advocate

What happens when a child becomes the one who calls for help?

As a young girl living in an abusive home, Liz made a decision that would change the trajectory of her life — and her siblings’ lives. She reported the abuse herself, stepping into a role no child should have to carry: advocate.

In this powerful and deeply personal session, Elizabeth Sutherland — author of No Ordinary Liz and contributor to Growing Up in the Care of Strangers — shares her lived experience of entering foster care, navigating sibling separation, and holding onto hope for reunification.

Liz’s story brings forward the emotional realities children often carry inside the child welfare system:

• The burden of self-reporting

• The fear and loyalty are intertwined in sibling relationships

• The confusion of identity when placements change

• The quiet determination to protect the people you love

• The lasting impact of separation — and the complexity of reunion

This session will create space to reflect on:

• How sibling separation shapes attachment and belonging

• What child-led advocacy reveals about safety and trust

• The invisible emotional labor children carry

• How caregivers can create stability, dignity, and healing

• What children in care wish adults understood

Through storytelling, reflection, and discussion, Liz invites caregivers to see foster care not through policy or paperwork, but through the lived perspective of a child who survived it.

You will leave with a deeper understanding of how your presence, your words, and your decisions can influence a child’s sense of safety and identity for years to come.