The Living Wilder Foundation is dedicated to empowering parents of neurodivergent children by providing compassionate support, practical resources, and a thriving community.
We are committed to promoting mental health, fostering resilience, and celebrating the unique journey of every family, ensuring that no parent navigates this path alone. Together, we champion understanding, acceptance, and well-being for parents and children alike.
Our Story
The Living Wilder Foundation was born from lived experience.
When our founder, Tristan Forester, became a mother through adoption, she stepped into a journey filled with deep love and unexpected challenges. Her son, Wilder Jace, would later be diagnosed as neurodivergent—an awakening that reshaped her understanding of parenting, mental health, and what support really looks like.
Like many parents raising neurodivergent children, Tristan found herself overwhelmed, isolated, and searching for resources that truly met her needs—not just for her child, but for herself. What she discovered was a gap in support: a lack of spaces where caregivers could feel seen, held, and understood without judgment.
So, she created what she couldn’t find.
The Living Wilder Foundation exists to support the parents behind the diagnosis—the ones advocating, learning, stretching, and often forgetting to care for themselves along the way. We are here to walk alongside families, offering community, practical tools, and emotional nourishment so they don’t have to walk this path alone.
This is more than a foundation. It’s a movement rooted in love, lived truth, and the belief that when we nurture the caregiver, we strengthen the entire family.
We envision a world where families of neurodivergent children are empowered, supported, and equipped to thrive.
Every parent should have access to the mental health support, understanding, and community they need to nurture their child’s potential—while also caring for their own well-being.
Our Team
Tristan Forester
Founder
Tristan Forester is a mother, advocate, and single parent to a remarkable neurodivergent son named Wilder Jace—the inspiration behind The Living Wilder Foundation.
Her journey into motherhood began through adoption, but it was her son’s autism diagnosis that sparked a deeper mission: to support the emotional and mental well-being of parents navigating a path that is often overlooked and misunderstood.
After years of balancing career demands with caregiving, Tristan stepped away from real estate to focus on what truly mattered—building a life rooted in presence, purpose, and advocacy. Along the way, she realized that parents like her—especially single moms—deserved more than survival. They deserved support, connection, and a place to be seen.
With a heart for community and a passion for authenticity, Tristan created The Living Wilder Foundation to be the kind of space she once needed: grounded, compassionate, and full of hope.
She writes openly about motherhood, meaning, and neurodivergence on her Substack. When she’s not working on the foundation, you’ll likely find her outside with Jace—biking through the woods, walking along the beach, or hiking new trails. She also makes space for stillness through meditation and quiet reflection.