In brief: On Holly Randall Unfiltered (Sept. 27, with an Oct. 2 clip), Courtney Tillia talked about her dog rescue, the 2021 New York Post story that changed her income, and a skydive where the instructor jumped before she was ready.
Contains adult themes: the embedded podcast video discusses adult-industry work.
We already covered Courtney Tillia’s Dr. Phil story. The full episode had more: a dog rescue, a master’s degree that barely paid, and a plane she says she will never jump out of again.
Her full interview, “Bankrupt School Teacher Turned OF Millionaire: Courtney Tillia’s Story,” went up on Holly Randall Unfiltered Sept. 27. A clip, “Courtney Tillia Got PUSHED Out Of A Plane!,” followed Oct. 2.
$20 a paycheck
She said she taught special education at a school for students who couldn’t attend public school, a job where she had concussions. She loved it, but the pay was low. A master’s degree, she said, “raised my income $20 per paycheck.” She left a later graduate program in behavioral health with a 4.0, and said she struggled to find work even after taking degrees off her résumé.
The big change came in 2021, when the New York Post wrote about “a former special ed teacher turned only fans,” and “that was my first six figure month.” The backlash that week was intense, she said, including a Candace Owens video and Breakfast Club’s “Donkey of the Day.” She said the host relented after reading the story.
Minnie’s Mutts
Her proudest project is a rescue. It started with a gray pit bull with cropped ears that another program had declined “because of her look.” She and her husband meant to foster her, but they “fell in love in 3 days and kept her.” The rest followed (33:29):
so we got our official 501c3 status uh probably 6 months ago and we’ve saved over 80 dogs in a year.
Her mother-in-law is the treasurer, she said, and knows what funds the rescue. That day she was picking up a senior dog with cancer that had been surrendered by its owner. The rescue is Minnie’s Mutts on Instagram, “Mini spelled Like Minnie Mouse.”
‘They pushed me’
Then came the skydive. She said she had a pilot’s license at 16, and engine-off practice circles never fazed her. In the doorway, though, her tandem instructor said “Dangle your feet over the edge,” and jumped as she did. “I thought we slipped prematurely,” she said. Asked how she jumped: “I didn’t. They pushed me.” Her verdict was “Never again.”
The New York Post story ran Jan. 11, 2021. The Post covered her rescue work in a Sept. 20, 2025 article, quoting her saying rescue costs pushed her to change what content she makes. The 80-dog count, the 501(c)(3) status, her pilot’s license and the Candace Owens and Breakfast Club reactions are her own account; we did not independently confirm them.
So she is a pilot who can’t skydive, a teacher whose degree paid $20, and a rescuer who has saved more than 80 dogs. The instructor who pushed her owes her a donation.