This podcast episode lives at the intersection of hope, community, and the quiet heroism of parenthood.

It is not a cancer story — it is a story about what human beings are capable of when everything is stripped away.

On Canada Day 2019, Janelle Stanley's 2.5 year-old son Finley was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia. His platelet count was 9. He could have bled out internally without a single warning sign.

Within hours, Janelle was on a Learjet to BC Children's Hospital — no wallet, no change of clothes, no plan. Just her son, and the terrifying unknown.

What she didn't know yet was that the place waiting for them — Ronald McDonald House BC and Yukon — was a place she had helped design.

In this episode of August After Dark, Janelle shares the raw, real, and deeply moving story of what it means to let go of control, lean on community, and watch your child not just survive — but thrive.

Today, Finley is in remission, approaching five years cancer free. He describes his time during treatment as the best time of his life.

This conversation is for every parent who has ever felt helpless. Every family who has sat in a waiting room not knowing what comes next. And everyone who wants to understand what Ronald McDonald House truly means to the families inside its walls.

🔗 Donate and support Finley's 5-year cancer-free milestone: augustafterdark.com

Matt August and Mike Hall have been the guys behind August Motor Cars from the beginning — and in this episode, they're finally telling the whole story.

From bidding on a foreclosed building their families thought was a terrible idea, to sneaking into the Indy 500 pits, getting dressed as pirates at a supercar rally, crashing a Radical at track, and eventually taking a McLaren 765LT across America on the Gumball 3000 — this is the unfiltered origin of one of Canada's most recognized exotic car brands.

But more than the cars, this episode is about what it actually takes to build something real: the doubt, the roadblocks, the police pullover that wasn't their fault, and the guy who traded two Clydesdale horses for a supercar. If you've ever had a dream that people told you was too crazy, this one's for you.

What does it actually mean to be successful — and what if everything you've been chasing has been keeping you from the peace you already have?

In this episode of August After Dark, host Matt sits down with entrepreneur, digital marketing pioneer, and consciousness explorer Nicholas for one of the most honest, wide-ranging conversations the show has ever had.

Nicholas's story starts before he was even born — a miracle pregnancy, a prophecy spoken over his mother, and a path that led him to pastor a church at 17, build a $100M+ digital advertising empire, and eventually walk away from it all to ask the questions that actually matter.

They cover it all:

• How Nick went from church pastor to Facebook ads pioneer — generating close to a billion dollars in client sales
• The dark side of social media algorithms and how platforms are engineered to keep you anxious, scrolling, and never enough
• Why your identity might not actually be yours — and how to start questioning the stories you've inherited
• The McLaren obsession — from a six-supercar test drive to hunting down a 765LT and why toys are just toys when you know who you are
• Dream Rally — and the unexpected ripple effect it has not just on the kids in the cars, but on every single person watching from the sidewalk
• Nick's new documentary "Unbecoming" — a two-year, seven-country journey through monasteries, neuroscience labs, and psychedelic research centers asking one question: What if fulfillment isn't about becoming more, but unbecoming everything you're not?
• The 5MEO DMT protocol Nick and his team have developed — combining clinical therapy, neurofeedback, Buddhist coaching, and psychedelic medicine to collapse the patterns that cause suffering
• Why presence, not performance, is the new definition of success

This episode will challenge the way you think about ambition, identity, social media, philanthropy, and what it means to truly know yourself.

Key Themes: Inner clarity · Entrepreneurship · Social media & mental health · Psychedelics & consciousness · Philanthropy · Dream Rally · Identity & suffering · The Unbecoming documentary

Good things happen to good people. Throw the ladder back down.

Subscribe, share, and if this episode moved you — visit augustafterdark.com to support the kids and families behind Dream Rally.