Martin Family Counseling
Where Our Story Starts
I’m Jo Leda Martin, and this is the story of how my daughter Mia came to join my practice—and why it matters to the work we do together.
Long before our family began, I knew something about how it would be built.
Even before Dave and I were married, we had conversations about adoption. I had always felt a quiet, steady conviction that part of our family would come through adoption—specifically from the Pacific Rim. At the time, it wasn’t common. There wasn’t a clear path, and very little precedent. But it was something I carried with certainty.
I also knew I could only marry someone who shared that vision.
When I told Dave, he didn’t hesitate.
“Of course,” he said.
That mattered more than I could fully articulate at the time.
The Early Years
It took eight years for us to have our first child. We had been told we would likely never conceive on our own, so when our oldest son was born, he felt nothing short of miraculous.
Two years later, we welcomed our second son—and at the same time, we began the long and often uncertain process of adoption.
There were stacks of paperwork.
Extensive home studies.
Years of waiting.
Two years, to be exact.
And then, we were matched.
The Moment Everything Changed
At the beginning of January 2003, I made a decision that reflected the weight and clarity of that moment—I resigned from my role as a Vice President at Janus.
On January 14, 2003, I held my daughter in my arms for the first time.
Mia.
There are moments in life that exceed anything you could have planned, imagined, or even felt worthy of receiving.
Mia is one of those.
The only language I have ever had for it is this:
“Now to Him who is able to do immeasurably more than all we ask or imagine…” (Ephesians 3:20)
She has been that—more than I could have imagined, and more than I deserved.
The Complexity of a Real Story
Like any real story, ours has not been without complexity.
There were seasons that were hard.
Moments that required work, patience, and support.
Times when Mia herself navigated challenges and did the courageous work of sitting in counseling as a teenager, facing her own story honestly.
Those experiences matter.
They are not side notes—they are part of what shaped her.
Mia Today
Today, Mia is now a licensed clinician and a full member of this practice. She brings both her personal story and her professional training into the work she does.
She loves people.
And she carries a deep, informed compassion for:
- Foster and adoptive children and their families
- Mixed-race families
- Multicultural family systems
- Teenagers navigating identity, belonging, and emotional complexity
- Young adults in their 20s facing questions of direction, career, and relationships
- Individuals and couples stepping into marriage and early family life, including the transition into parenthood
She understands these spaces not just academically, but personally.
She has lived them.
She has done her own work within them.
And now, she is committed to walking alongside others in theirs.
A Full Circle Moment
As a clinician, Mia is thoughtful, empathetic, and grounded.
As my daughter, she is—still and always—my baby girl.
And it is both a privilege and a full-circle moment to now welcome her into this practice.
This is more than a shared profession. It is a shared story—one shaped by faith, formed through experience, and now extended to the families we have the honor of serving.
Ready to connect?
If you are interested in counseling that is grounded, respectful of your capacity, and designed for sustainability, this may be a fit. Schedule a focused, no-pressure conversation.