The Free to Be Podcast

Ep 11: We Interview Dawn Fenner from Essentials Cafe!

Today, Lauren and Byrnese are sitting down with Dawn Fenner, the Executive Director of Essentials Cafe in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. Essentials Cafe is A pay-what-you-can community cafe whose mission is to reduce food insecurity in the Lehigh Valley and to provide a place where friendships and where friendships and understanding can flourish across all socio-economic groups. They strive to create a place of equality where everyone, with different gifts, abilities, and resources, has the opportunity to eat, find welcome, and contribute as volunteers. Patrons at the Café donate what they can to eat food together in a warm and hospitable environment. Volunteers work together to grow, cook, and serve food in warm and welcoming ways. As you'll hear in our episode today, in 2025 Essentials served more than 13,000 guests, and more than 8,000 of then paid less than the suggested price - so we think they're absolutely living into their mission! If you want to learn more about Essentials, connect, volunteer, or stop by for a meal, they are located at 418 3rd Ave in Bethlehem, PA. You can also find them online at ⁠https://www.essentialscafe.org/ ⁠ [https://www.essentialscafe.org/] and on ⁠Facebook.⁠ [https://www.facebook.com/EssentialsCafe418] Thanks again to Dawn for joining us! Thoughts? Questions? Things you'd like to hear us cover in future episodes? Send us an email and let us know! Free to Be is led by Pastor Lauren Applegate - a woman in recovery, mom, wife, and pastor. She loves going to the beach, brewing coffee, riding roller coasters, and reading books. She is on a journey of honoring the freedom she has found in relationships where God’s love is made real, and is showing up to welcome and encourage others into the same kinds of relationships. Join Lauren and cohost Byrnese Craig as they engage listener questions and explore what it means to live Free. Follow along on socials! IG: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@free_to_be_community⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ [https://www.instagram.com/free_to_be_community/] ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠FB: Free to Be⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ [https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61556803206209] IG: (Byrnese) ⁠⁠⁠@pastorbyrnese⁠⁠⁠ [https://www.instagram.com/pastorbyrnese] Online: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠godslove.org/freetobe ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ [https://nepasynod.org/freetobe/] and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠mannabethlehem.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ [mannabethlehem.com] Contact us: Lauren: Lauren@freetobecommunity.org Byrnese: hello@mannabethlehem.com

Ep 10: Practice Makes Easier

This week on the podcast, we're talking freedom from perfectionism, the joy (and work!) of life with a puppy, and what's going on in your brain when you practice that difficult work of growth. Thoughts? Questions? Things you'd like to hear us cover in future episodes? Send us an email and let us know! Free to Be is led by Pastor Lauren Applegate - a woman in recovery, mom, wife, and pastor. She loves going to the beach, brewing coffee, riding roller coasters, and reading books. She is on a journey of honoring the freedom she has found in relationships where God’s love is made real, and is showing up to welcome and encourage others into the same kinds of relationships. Join Lauren and cohost Byrnese Craig as they engage listener questions and explore what it means to live Free. Follow along on socials! IG: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@free_to_be_community⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ [https://www.instagram.com/free_to_be_community/] ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠FB: Free to Be⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ [https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61556803206209] IG: (Byrnese) ⁠⁠@pastorbyrnese⁠⁠ [https://www.instagram.com/pastorbyrnese] Online: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠godslove.org/freetobe ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ [https://nepasynod.org/freetobe/] and ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠mannabethlehem.com⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ [mannabethlehem.com] Contact us: Lauren: Lauren@freetobecommunity.org Byrnese: hello@mannabethlehem.com

Ep 09: Let's Talk About Love

Love - it's a word we use a lot! Today, Lauren and Byrnese challenge some of the assumption our society holds about what love truly is, and wonder how we embrace and practice love in our own lives. You're invited to join the conversation! Share this episode with your friends and family, and as always, feel free to reach out with any questions or thoughts you might have. Got any ideas for a future podcast topic? We'd love to hear it! Email Lauren at Lauren@freetobecommunity.org Free to Be is a community of small groups of families and individuals that come together for mutual support, truth speaking, story sharing, and connection building. Through these conversations and time spent together, we are able to find and live in freedom, and support others as they do the same. Free to Be is led by Pastor Lauren Applegate - a woman in recovery, mom, wife, and pastor. She loves going to the beach, brewing coffee, riding roller coasters, and reading books. She is on a journey of honoring the freedom she has found in relationships where God’s love is made real, and is showing up to welcome and encourage others into the same kinds of relationships. Join Lauren and cohost Byrnese Craig as they engage listener questions and explore what it means to live Free. Follow along on socials! IG: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@free_to_be_community⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ [https://www.instagram.com/free_to_be_community/] ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠FB: Free to Be⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ [https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61556803206209] IG: (Byrnese) ⁠@pastorbyrnese⁠ [https://www.instagram.com/pastorbyrnese] Online: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠godslove.org/freetobe ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ [https://nepasynod.org/freetobe/] and ⁠⁠⁠⁠mannabethlehem.com⁠⁠⁠⁠ [mannabethlehem.com] Contact us: Lauren: Lauren@freetobecommunity.org Byrnese: hello@mannabethlehem.com

Ep 08: Chaos Check In

The chaos just won't quit - spring is here and we're entering this season carrying lots of questions about how to stay grounded, thrive, and live in freedom. Check out this week's episode as we explore all of this, and more! You're invited to join the conversation! Share this episode with your friends and family, and as always, feel free to reach out with any questions or thoughts you might have. Got any ideas for a future podcast topic? We'd love to hear it! Email Lauren at Lauren@freetobecommunity.org Free to Be is a community of small groups of families and individuals that come together for mutual support, truth speaking, story sharing, and connection building. Through these conversations and time spent together, we are able to find and live in freedom, and support others as they do the same. Free to Be is led by Pastor Lauren Applegate - a woman in recovery, mom, wife, and pastor. She loves going to the beach, brewing coffee, riding roller coasters, and reading books. She is on a journey of honoring the freedom she has found in relationships where God’s love is made real, and is showing up to welcome and encourage others into the same kinds of relationships. Join Lauren and cohost Byrnese Craig as they engage listener questions and explore what it means to live Free. Follow along on socials! IG: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@free_to_be_community⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ [https://www.instagram.com/free_to_be_community/] ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠FB: Free to Be⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ [https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61556803206209] IG: (Byrnese) @pastorbyrnese [https://www.instagram.com/pastorbyrnese] Online: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠godslove.org/freetobe ⁠⁠⁠⁠ [https://nepasynod.org/freetobe/] and ⁠⁠⁠mannabethlehem.com⁠⁠⁠ [mannabethlehem.com] Contact us: Lauren: Lauren@freetobecommunity.org Byrnese: hello@mannabethlehem.com

Ep 07: Self Care

We're chatting self-care today! What is it? Why bother? We have thoughts. Registration for the Free to Be Retreat for Moms is live! Click this link for all the details and to sign up. [https://forms.gle/NYxbN5kEhBs6zhmV8] Here are the questions we discussed. We'd love to hear from you, send us an audio message via Instagram DM responding to one of these questions and we'll try to work some digital audio magic to include it in our next episode! 6 Self-Reflection Questions for Self-Care From Katrina Leggins 1. What does self-care look like for me in this season of my life? 2. What gets in the way of me taking care of myself, and why? 3. Which self-care practices help me feel most grounded and connected to myself? 4. After I care for myself, how do I notice my mood, thoughts, and body change? 5. What have I recently discovered or realized about myself? 6. What do my mind, body, and spirit need from me today? Join the conversation! Share this episode with your friends and family, and as always, feel free to reach out with any questions or thoughts you might have. Got any ideas for a future podcast topic? We'd love to hear it! Email Lauren at Lauren@freetobecommunity.org Free to Be is a community of small groups of families and individuals that come together for mutual support, truth speaking, story sharing, and connection building. Through these conversations and time spent together, we are able to find and live in freedom, and support others as they do the same. Free to Be is led by Pastor Lauren Applegate - a woman in recovery, mom, wife, and pastor. She loves going to the beach, brewing coffee, riding roller coasters, and reading books. She is on a journey of honoring the freedom she has found in relationships where God’s love is made real, and is showing up to welcome and encourage others into the same kinds of relationships. Join Lauren and cohost Byrnese Craig as they engage listener questions and explore what it means to live Free. Follow along on socials! IG: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠@free_to_be_community⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ [https://www.instagram.com/free_to_be_community/] ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠FB: Free to Be⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠ [https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=61556803206209] Online: ⁠⁠⁠⁠⁠godslove.org/freetobe ⁠⁠⁠ [https://nepasynod.org/freetobe/] and ⁠⁠mannabethlehem.com⁠⁠ [mannabethlehem.com] Contact us: Lauren: Lauren@freetobecommunity.org Byrnese: hello@mannabethlehem.com