Bank Your Story

For one year, I taught fifth grade. And one child stole my heart: Alex. As a fifth grader, Alex's grades never exceeded a "D" or "F." He was a consistent discipline problem; however, Alex had a sweet temperament and high energy, albeit a somewhat forlorn disposition....

Because we were “the best,” the career opportunity of a lifetime fell in our lap. We would soon become business owners.

I confronted a bully at only three years old and ironically, this defining moment, gave me confidence for the rest of my life. I lived in poverty as a child.  I lived in an apartment complex with my family and the other would bring the whole farm with them: pigs,...

It wasn't easy to rebuild trust in my relationships because the problem started pretty early.  Actually, it was sixth grade.  I found a big grocery bag in a locker at school in the PE room.  I knew what it was and I was curious.  So, I emptied out my mom’s cigarettes...

I had been relocated by my company to a new city, half way across the earth….well, Okay, half-way across the U.S.  Within weeks of this expensive upheaval in my life, the company I was working for folded.  I found myself unemployed in a strange new place—no contacts,...

Mom was in jail and I was a drop-out. My greatest struggle was about to be my greatest triumph.  I was only 16 and for the second time, I dropped out of school.  My mom had been thrown in jail temporarily for a month, but now she was arrested again and going away for...