Meet Our Wonderful 2026 Cast!

Katie was a doer, a worker bee, fiercely independent and never sat still. She earned her

Bachelor of Science in Recreation and Business Management and her work experience

included childcare, business sales, and social director for two resorts. Katie coordinated

fun; personally, and professionally.

Now………..imagine losing all these abilities.

Katie’s loss became an asset, turning her into a speaker, author, and disability educator.

Five years post injury, Katie was employed as the “Access Coordinator” for the Webster

Groves, MO Parks and Recreation Department.

Then in 1997, with her fiancé, Steve the two co-founded Access-4-All with a mission to

educate, empower and entertain others through their programs and publications.

Katie co-produced her motivational video, “Change Takes Time” as well as three music

videos.

Katie has currently served on the Recreation Council of Greater St. Louis Board of

Directors since 1993 (three terms as President,) was the first president of the Delta Center

for Independent Living, as well as a performer and founding member of St. Louis’

“DisAbility Project.”

Katie’s honors include 2025 Arts Innovator, 2025 KHS Hall of Fame, 2025 What’s

Right With The Region Community Changemaker, 2022 Best New Play nominee for her

play ROLL WITH IT!, Ms. Wheelchair Missouri 2010, a 2001 St. Louis Woman of

Achievement; Missouri Jaycees 1998 Ten Outstanding Young Missourians; Missouri

Governor’s Council on Disability 1993 Advocate of the Year; Central Missouri State

University Outstanding Freshman in the Department of Recreation 1983–84; and

Kirkwood, Missouri 1982 Junior Miss.

Katie is a dynamic speaker, author, and disability educator. (314) 481-0633

Email Katie@access-4-all.com Website www.access-4-all.com

 Carla firmly believes we are here on this earth for a short time. During our stay, all of us must acknowledge that without the right upbringing, we will perish and our lives here on this planet will have been in vain. She believes we should all live our lives righteously and to the fullest.  Yes, mistakes will be made, tears will fall, life will bring us difficulties. Difficulties are lessons, and lessons are what makes us grow to become the best we can be. At the end of it all, the almighty will question us as to what we did to better someone else's journey.  Carla hopes with all her heart, that your answer will be enough to enter the gates of eternity. Peace be with you. 

Mary Clemens is a native of St. Louis.  She and her husband Rick have been married for 33 years.  They are the parents of four smart, beautiful and talented daughters, Alex, Bethany, Grace and Hannah.  Mary loves reading, gardening, flower arranging, playing the piano and taking walks or riding her bike in her Benton Park neighborhood and beyond.  She and Rick love to travel both within the US and abroad. She is passionate about meeting new people and making friends wherever she can, including during her past 19 years working at WashU. This is Mary’s third time being a part of this wonderful event and she is truly looking forward to celebrating motherhood with her “Mama Said, Mama Said” colleagues. 

 I am mom to two fabulous kids, son Sean and daughter, Renée. Thanks to them and their great spouses, Joanna and Brandon, I am the lucky Gigi to six perfect grandchildren. Although I am an old lady I am also fairly recently wed to my beloved Jimmy who I have known since I was a child. Jim came with more wonderful children and grandchildren.

I am also a retired teacher, kindergarten and mostly early childhood special education. I loved almost every minute, except for the paperwork.

I am the youngest of six children and have always adored my siblings, although that adoration is probably not mutual. We are blessed with a large, loving extended family with many storytellers amongst us. Our motto is “anything for the good of the story.” Some call that exaggeration even fabrication. I’m excited to be able to share one of my stories with a broader audience. A true story, by the way. 

 Judi Diamond is an award-winning multi-media talent known for engaging audiences in television, radio, podcasts, and live events with her relatability and unique humor. She loves to utilize her writing and storytelling skills to connect to every creature she encounters, especially humans and all of our shared quirks! She is blessed to have two of the best kids, and thanks the universe for bringing her to life in a loving amazing family.  She honors her mom and sister, both , she hopes, giving heaven a little bit of hell (in the best way) 

Nachalah “Catie” Duclerne is a twenty-six year old aspiring high school theater educator. You can find Catie around town in various theater companies making friends and connections. Nachalah first fell in love with theater at five years old when her mom was a twenty-six year old college student. She was at every rehearsal reciting the lines of the college students around her. By the time Catie was eight, she was running the spotlight for the college campus’ rehearsals. 
Theater is Nachalah’s first love and through that she discovered a passion for writing and directing. She wrote her first play at sixteen and directed her first piece at seventeen. The passion has just grown stronger since. A lot of her writing dives into her identity as a Black queer woman in a world so adamant to silence that. 

Other than theater, Nachalah is obsessed with a plethora of fandom topics. Some notable favorites are: Doctor Who, She-ra, Mortal Kombat, Interview with the Vampire, and more. While they may like different things, that ‘stan culture’ is inherited from her mother and is heavily referenced in the piece shown in this program. 

You can find Nachalah on social media either by her name or as Dream0Holder on Instagram and @femmefatality on TikTok!

 ZaZa Goodbrake is a public school teacher, mother, and activist. With her red nose in a journal since 1986, she’s traveled 40 countries and 45 states searching for answers to the American equation. She’s the creator of The New Story children’s show, featuring New Bird, Big Bird’s cousin. When she’s not running her two teens around, she’s querying her children’s book NO RAINBOWS and memoir, A Spoon is a Tiny Bowl. A spoon is a tiny bowl means YOU MATTER!  

Daemon is an outlier. He's particularly adept at navigating two distinct worlds; the glamorous and the gritty, the soulful and the hardcore.   A rapper, songwriter, performer, and producer from St. Louis, MO, this same nimbleness informs his music. Cleverly incorporating bars that demand a rewind over production that gets stuck in your head, Daemon has plenty to offer Hip Hop purists and partiers alike.  The world has taken notice. Daemon's tracks have been featured everywhere, from Bernie Sanders walkouts ("Feel Good") to Xbox Exclusives ("Turn the World Around" in Forza Horizon 5 or "Confidence Man" in The Crew 2) to Netflix shows (Inventing Anna, Daybreak, Work It, Locke & Key, Easy) to ads (Mini Cooper, Sephora, the ACLU) to TBS shows (the Jordan Peele-produced The Last O.G.). Daemon has also collaborated with Killer Mike and Trackstar the DJ from Run the Jewels, DJ Shadow, and more.

  Meramec Valley Girl is a wife and mother of 4 grown children and 2 grandchildren. As the kids grew up, she found herself filling her free time by writing melodies and lyrics, a soundtrack to her life. Now with the stage name of Meramec Valley Girl, she can be found around St. Louis singing her original songs to anyone who will listen. Susan is very honored to sing and play a song the new 2026 theme song she wrote just for the Mama Said Show.                    Good Enough 3.0 is about not being the perfect mom, but hopefully being “Good Enough”.   

Mary was born and raised in South St Louis County and now lives in South City with her husband, Justin, of nearly five years. Together, they enjoy exploring the city, attending sporting events, spending time on the water with their boat, and relaxing at their campground.

Mary holds a Master’s degree in Social Work and has dedicated her entire career to child welfare, driven by a deep commitment to improving outcomes for children and youth in foster care. As a proud parent of three children adopted from foster care — now grown and building lives of their own — she brings both professional expertise and lived experience to conversations about parenting, resilience, and family.

In her current role, Mary focuses on educating communities about the unique needs of children in foster care and connecting families with resources and support systems. She also serves on the Board of Directors for Foster Together, where she actively participates in events and volunteers monthly at the organization’s boutique.

Mary enjoys sharing honest perspectives on motherhood, the lifelong journey of parenting, and the realities and rewards of raising children through foster care and adoption. She is passionate about helping others understand that family is built through commitment, connection, and showing up for one another every day.

 I was born and raised just south of St. Louis in Jefferson County, where I learned to work hard and be my genuine self. I have been married for 25 years and my husband, Brian, and I have been blessed with four amazing children - Isabelle, Charles, Henry, and Genevieve. Ages 12-20, they are nothing if not hilarious! 

I worked for twenty years in Catholic education and leadership before moving to the world of Catholic health care. I currently serve Mercy Health as a Mission Integration Leader and also get the joy of teaching as an adjunct professor at Saint Louis University in the School of Education. Both of these roles allow me to help others see the good in themselves and the impact they can have on the lives of others. It is joy-filled and inspiring work! I have the Sisters of Mercy to thank for my part in Mama Said. I was nominated to be part of a standup routine for a fundraiser for the Mercy Retreat Center (who can say no to the Sisters?) From there, everyone said - your story is perfect for MamaSaid. Any storytelling I do is just part of my natural way of being in the world. I always have a story on the tip of my tongue - usually meant simply to entertain. This show is inviting me to widen my inner circle and I am thankful for the wonderful women I have met - they are amazing!

Noah Newson is a college student who values creativity, faith, and connection with the world around him. He has a deep love for nature and enjoys spending time outdoors, whether riding his bike, going on walks, or simply appreciating the calm and beauty of the environment. Music plays a big role in Noah’s life, and he expresses his creativity through his musical talents, especially playing the saxophone and keyboard.

Noah also cares deeply about people. He values his friends, family, and his church community, which provides support, guidance, and a strong spiritual foundation in his life. He enjoys building positive relationships and being someone others can talk to and rely on.

Along with his studies, Noah is proud to be part of Mama Said Mama Said Production, where he contributes his creativity and passion while working with others to create meaningful and inspiring projects.

 Carolyn is a serial hobbyist who swan-dives into rabbit holes. She and her wife, Rebecca, have two teenage sons and (thus) an overabundance of humbleness and humor. They all live together with Lenny and Carl(a), a pair of loyal and neurotic German Shepherd dogs named for secondary characters in The Simpsons.

Carolyn has worked with college students for more than 25 years, currently as an Assistant Professor at Saint Louis University. Her scholarly writing centers on neurodivergence, belonging, and the ways colleges sometimes make life unnecessarily complicated for the very students they hope to support. Her work features topics like autistic college student belonging, inclusive practices, and engaging with banned books. She has also written op-eds about parenting published in the Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, and St. Louis Post Dispatch. 

 Maureen Ragsdale

(also responds to: Mo, Quigs, Mom, Mimi… and, on rare occasions, MOTHER!)

Maureen is a daughter, sister, aunt, and friend, but her most cherished titles—by far—are Mom and Mimi. Widowed for 14 years, she has spent that time juggling a full‑time career in Finance with an impressive (and slightly suspicious) collection of extracurriculars. These include working Wednesday night bingo, Lenten fish fries, and hosting any gathering that even hints it might need a volunteer with a clipboard.

When she’s not keeping half the community organized, she’s writing and telling stories to her grandchildren—who are her favorite audience, mostly because they don’t interrupt with “That’s not how it happened.”

Maureen has been lucky enough to join Mama Said a few times, and she promises that one of these days she will finally finish telling all the stories about her mother… and maybe even move on to the adventures (and misadventures) of being a mother herself.

Linda Metzler will do just about anything for attention. Usually she satisfies that itch with writing, speaking, and occasional standup comedy, but sometimes she has to resort to dramatic outbursts or stunts like falling off a stepladder and breaking multiple bones. Linda has 5 daughters and 7 grandchildren with another on the way. She grew up in South City. Her family has been in The Lou for several generations. 

 Sara Springer has spent the last two decades supervising the chaos she has created. She is a married midwest mom of five and Adult Nurse Practitioner who has battled depression and anxiety for the better part of 30 years. She is now a mental health advocate and author. She writes about maintaining mental wellness in parenting, marriage, and online spaces. She is co-founder of the Lincoln County based mental health focused non-profit: Love Will Foundation. She tries to maintain her sanity through yoga and is a staunch practitioner of sarcasm. Her work has been featured on multiple sites including Her View From Home, Scary Mommy, and The Mighty. Her first book, ‘Was I Not Supposed to Say That?’ is now available at online retailers and select stores. She is beyond ecstatic to be able to add “Mama Said Mama Said 2026 Cast Member” to her probably-supposed-to-be shorter-than-this-but-she-couldn’t-help-herself bio! 

 Phanda, a born and raised St. Louisianan from the heart of the cities West side. She is the mother of an extraordinary son and the fairy godmother to many. Yes, it’s the best position to have in the whole world. Being taught and teaching to always treat people how you want to be treated regardless of reciprocation, you learn big lessons however her results always led her to an unexpected safe place, a fresh notebook and a pen. After years of her soft vulnerabilities being lost in the pages of her note book, she is happy to finally share some of the pieces she’s been working on. 

 Terry Baker is the mother of 5 adult children, "Mimi" to 6 precious grands, and wife to Jim, her husband of 53 years. (Yes, she was almost a child bride!)  A retired Early Childhood Special Ed Speech Language Pathologist, she's an avid reader and story teller. Terry fell in love with Mama Said, Mama Said in 2014 and is delighted to be a co-producer/director for the show that both she and her husband have been cast members. 

Laura is the very proud Mom of  two daughters - one a Special Education teacher at Hazelwood Central Sr High, and the other working and living half the time in the U.S. and the other half in Nicaragua (why, oh why couldn't she have fallen in love with someone in Ballwin?), and one  great stepson in Charleston.  She's the co-owner of Vintage Vinyl in the Delmar Loop,  author of the  'Brain Dead in the Burbs & Cooking Your Way Back to Sanity" series, and in April 2026, she and her  husband's  Soul Selector Productions is very proud to have their third season premiere of the National PBS series, 

'Papa Ray's Vintage Vinyl Roadshow', 

For 13 years, she has also been very proud to be a Co-Producer/Director of Mama Said, Mama Said and is excited that  National PBS picked up the series for the third year in a row!  Her dear friends, Terry Baker,  Sioux Roslawski, and Kelley Hiatt were very brave (or maybe, a bit masochistic) to become partners with her in this crazy, but very meaningful endeavor.   And yes, she knows this photo makes her look like she has gas. 

 Sioux Roslawski is a middle school teacher who retired and immediately begged to be put back into the classroom. Now, she's found such a heavenly job, she figures at some point she'll be so falling apart, she'll need to be wheeled in, strapped onto a dolly Hannibal Lecter-style, because she'll still want to teach. Sioux is a mother of two and grammy to four. In her spare time she rescues golden retrievers and freelance writes. Her proudest writing accomplishment? The publication of her historical novel about the Tulsa Race Massacre, Greenwood Gone: Henry's Story. Sioux has been on the Mama Said, Mama Said stage twice, and she's now thrilled to be one of Laura's lackeys. .

 Kelley is an experienced film and television Location Manager who has worked on popular TV shows such as Station 19, This Is Us, and Chicago Fire. She produced an award-winning documentary “Breaking and Entering”, which follows everyday people as they try to break world records. Kelley is currently the St. Louis Film Office Manager at Explore St. Louis. She is an advocate for the St. Louis production community and is dedicated to attracting productions to the St. Louis region. 

Judi is a Mother, (daughter Shira and son Leo),  a Daughter (Dad from England, Mom a Jewish Cowgirl from Wyoming) Sister (the youngest of four, 2 boy 1 girl) and friend (she is a friend to all unless they are mean).

Originally from L.A., she got into the “biz” young, and has felt blessed to parlay her creativity and talents into film, television, radio and digital media locally and nationally. 

Upbeat, free-Spirited open & optimistic, Judi looks to the positive with an attitude for gratitude in her heart. Judi loves to connect by sharing her life stories, especially all her imperfections and flaws, to inspire others and empower them to embrace their own inner beauty, just as they are.