Despite its proven recreational and medicinal benefits, the use of cannabis remains sensitive across the globe. But despite the taboo shrouding cannabis, many have continued and supported others who rely on it to cope with various challenges in life. Melissa Marie Fogarty, better known as Missy, is an entrepreneur and advocate for the use of cannabis after seeing how it helped her through some of the darkest periods of her life. As the founder of Pothead Parent™, she strives to shed light on the many benefits of cannabis and support those who have been wrongfully incarcerated for using the substance. 

Pothead Parent™ is a community and a podcast aiming to fight the stigma revolving around the use of cannabis for recreational and medicinal purposes. The podcast and brand have grown since its inception, and Missy and her husband are eager to push it further to more audiences. By educating their listeners, Missy is optimistic that they will leave a positive impact on the world. As the brand grows bigger, Missy is ready to take it a step further and launch a project that is close to her heart. 

“As Pothead Parent™ gets bigger, I want to do as much as I can for the Last Prisoner Project, a non-profit organization dedicated to cannabis criminal justice reform. Being able to help all individuals, including mothers and fathers who have been wrongfully incarcerated for a substance that is considered a medicine in our home and many others,” shared Missy. “So many families have been destroyed due to this, and being someone who is a huge supporter of cannabis use recreationally and medicinally, I know I want to do more!”

As a Hispanic woman who has been through hell and back and has also seen others close to her suffer, she aims to leverage her personal and authentic experiences to genuinely and empathetically relate to her audience and following. 

“I want to create information and advocacy for cannabis use to help those who are confused, angry, or interested in the use of cannabis and may have questions,” shared the visionary. “Cannabis has become a way of life for me and my husband, Derek, who is the other half of Pothead Parent. He is a veteran of the marines and served in Afghanistan. Cannabis has helped him with his Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD). We want to help the cannabis community and prove to the world you can be a successful person while using cannabis recreationally and medicinally,” she added further. 

Besides her endeavors to amplify the benefits of cannabis, Missy is also the founder of IceCycle, an organization that directly impacts the lives of people diagnosed with cancer and is actively contributing to genetic cancer research. 

Both of Missy’s children have been sent to a cancer institute at some point in their lives in their early years. Her son Jackson was born with a rare eye disorder and is now blind in his right eye. Her son Gavin was born with a low blood count and had to undergo a transfusion at one year old. Luckily, both were cancer-free, but that did not spare Missy the stress of going through tests and hospital visits. So, on a mission to help everyone dealing with cancer, a horrible disease, she has partnered with Roswell Park Comprehensive Cancer Center, a local cancer treatment center, where she helps patients through indoor cycling.