When Race Weekend is Cancelled

 

When I look at the devastation that happened on Cape Cod from the Blizzard of 2026; that people and businesses are still without electricity 4 days after the storm, I realize that the cancellation of Hyannis Marathon Weekend pales in comparison with what people are going through right now. We were extremely fortunate during and after the storm. We did not lose electricity which meant that we did not lose heat. One of our neighbors' friends had come over to snow blow his friend's driveway. Tom offered to pay him to help us since our snowblower did not have the power to clear our driveway. He wouldn't take a penny and cleared our driveway and sidewalk. Our Town continues to move the big snow piles and our street is down to bare pavement. I saw my friend's photos from Falmouth where some streets are not yet plowed and trees and power lines are in the street. One of my friend's posted that her house was at 43 degrees. She was eating Oreos and protein shakes for breakfast because nothing feels normal right now. She later messaged me that she got transportation to a friend's house with heat and electricity. The World Central Kitchen is on the ground on the Cape to help feed people who are without heat and electricity.

 

On Wednesday, I tried calling the host hotel for Race Weekend unaware of the extent of the devastation that had occurred on the Cape to see how they fared during the storm. Their line was busy and their website was down. I received an email saying our Reservation had been cancelled. Much to my surprise, they refunded our deposit! Later in the day, Paul Collyer, Race Director sent out the email saying:

 

"I have received word this afternoon from Hyannis officials that due to utility power still out in parts of Hyannis including the host hotel and other close proximities, deep snow, downed lines and trees and days of clean-up still ahead that they can not allow the road race to take place on Sunday due to safety concerns on the roads and proper staff needed to ensure a safe one.

It is too early to discuss a potential re-schedule date as Hyannis is and will be grappling with the storm the rest of the week into early next week. I will begin the discussion late next week when town hall has re-opened and things are returning to normalcy." 

 

Was I disappointed? Of course! Tom and I trained for the past 8 months imagining what it would be like coming into the finisher's chute celebrating my 20 years of my healing, his 74th birthday happening on 3/2, the 49th anniversary of when we met on his 25th birthday and on 3/4, 48 years of marriage. The mind and body cannot distinguish between what is real and what is imagined. I feel as though the joy we experienced in our moments of imagination, already happened. And, as I said, any disappointment pales in comparison to what people and businesses are experiencing in Hyannis right now. Hotels with electricity are full as families seek shelter out of the cold; many don't have the means to pay for hotels. Schools remain closed. 

 

I feel incredibly blessed and grateful. Our training cycle was the most gratifying training cycle I've had since I trained for the 2009 Boston Marathon. I went beyond the distance of the 10K to celebrate my birthday with 7.2 miles. I've already crossed the finish line of a training cycle that was more than the miles and more than the goal. I will admit that those last several training runs in the cold with snow and ice on the ground took quite a toll. With taper time, everything is resolving, but Tom and I decided that we are going to take our victory lap on Saturday (when the weather looks spectacular given the winter we have experienced) with a 5K. There is a lot of snow on the ground and we will need to navigate around snow piles and narrow sidewalks for safety. When the weather warms up, we will begin a new training cycle building miles once again to the 10K distance.

 

Our plans are being modified and adapted but my purpose to inspire others with what's possible despite all appearances to the contrary is permanent. I am chomping at the bit to get out and run again and resume our regular schedule of strength training workouts and runs. We have a 4 day weekend together to enjoy delicious meals both at home and in restaurants and will have time for more digging out from the Blizzard of 2026. The joy at the heart of our celebratory weekend remains. As a side note, this is not the first time a blizzard has caused us to change plans. My bridal shower was scheduled for February 6, 1978, the day of the start of the Blizzard of '78. We were planning to have our wedding reception at Anthony's Pier 4 aboard the Peter Stuyvesant Ship that sunk during the blizzard. Tom and I like to joke that the ship sunk but our marriage stayed afloat!

 

We moved the reception to the Church and used the money we saved from the reception to start our savings as we began our journey as Team McManus on March 4th, 1978.

 

My thoughts and prayers are with everyone affected by the Blizzard of 2026. We are grateful for all those tirelessly working on clean up efforts. Tom and I will pivot this weekend with our hearts overflowing with gratitude for all that this training cycle has given us and will continue to give us as we age strong.

 

In health and wellness - Mary

Visit my ***NEW*** website to learn how poetry, optimism, gratitude and the mind/body connection helped me to transform my life. After having been told in December 2006 that I should prepare to spend the rest of my life in a wheelchair, I went on to cross the finish line of the 2009 Boston Marathon and have many adventures as runnergirl 1953. Be sure to visit the recently updated News and Events Page for links to podcast interviews, speaking engagements and where you can find my incredibly inspirational story.

My Trilogy of Transformation chronicles my journey from having been told to prepare to spend the rest of my life in a wheelchair with the diagnosis of Post-Polio Syndrome, a progressive neuromuscular disease by Western Medicine standards to a woman transformed through the sport of running. Take a journey into a world of healing, hope and possibilities with my 7 books, available on Amazon. My 7th book, "A Most Unlikely Runner: Inspiration From The Heart of a Warrior" is a selection of the WBZ News Radio Book Club and Bill Rodgers Running Center Billy's Bookshelf: Recommended Reading for Every Runner. You will be inspired by my strength, courage, resilience, determination and overcoming the inevitable setbacks that come with a journey to health and wellness. 

 I was recently the guest on The Optimism Institute Blue Sky Podcast. 
"Mary McManus has never had it easy. As a kindergartner, she was a victim of polio just a short time before the vaccine was introduced. She also faced trauma in her home life but somehow managed to persevere and overcome these and still more obstacles throughout her life. Today, Mary is an inspiring author, poet, motivational speaker, and finisher of the Boston Marathon." Here is the link to the Episode Website. Be sure to subscribe on your favorite podcast platform and on YouTube.

  

 

 

 

 

Perspective on a Rainy Day Run

 

There is a quote that says every storm runs out of rain. It was hard to believe that to be true in the Northeast during the past few weeks. It was cold, raw and rainy but one must brave the elements when one is training. You never know what the weather might be on race day. I was never afforded the luxury of being out in the rain as a child splashing in puddles and feeling that unbridled joy and freedom of being out in the elements. Still, even I, with my attitudes of optimism and gratitude was getting tired of the unrelenting gray skies and rain. I was reminded of Helen Keller's quote about pessimism and knew I needed to get a new perspective.

  I baptized my new Altra running shoes during these runs and was very impressed with how well they held up keeping my feet relatively dry. As the dreary days dragged on, I knew I needed a mood shifter on my runs. I thought about building an ark as a distraction but I wanted to find a way to be present.  In Winter, it might have been a bit more challenging to find a shift, but we are having a most glorious Spring here in New England. Big thanks to these periods of rain followed by abundant sunshine.

 

I found the most glorious purple bush and stopped to take a photo:

In December of 2006, when I was diagnosed with the progressive neuromuscular disease of Post-Polio Syndrome, I felt as though I was being drawn into the vortex of darkness; of a doom and gloom prognosis. I was told to prepare to spend the rest of my life in a wheelchair, expect an accelerated decline in functioning as I aged, possibly need a feeding tube and a sleep apnea machine at night. It wasn't until February of 2007, when I got still and asked for Divine Guidance, that the light pierced the darkness that enveloped me.

I had no idea how or when the answer to my prayer would come. It came very quickly in the form of the poem, "Running the Race." The portal to healing opened wide as I fired up my imagination shifting perspective and perception of my current situation. It was quite a miraculous process. I wrote that first poem, "Running the Race" while wearing a toe-up leg brace, using a cane and at times a wheelchair for mobility. I felt no pain when I wrote poetry. I kept a yellow legal pad and pen with me at all times. I was even so bold as to start "New World Greeting Cards Customized Poetry for Every Occasion" as I began planning my Second Act and taking a leap of faith leaving behind my award-winning social work career. 

Amidst the doom and gloom of news; attempts to instill spine chilling fear in our hearts and minds, I consciously shift perspective focusing on beauty, optimism, kindness, gratitude in both my own behavior in real life, the behaviors of others and in my news feed. Is this serving my mental health and well-being is a question I frequently ask myself. Do I want to focus on the fog, the lackluster gray of the Reservoir and muddy brown puddles or the spectacular splashes of purples, pinks, whites and lush green that can just as easily draw my attention if I allow it to. Even if I do focus on the muddy brown puddles, I can feel the joy and gratitude that I am now physically able to splash in puddles.

 

The great thing about perspective is we get to choose where and what we focus on. If I would have focused on the experience of a progressive neuromuscular disease, I'm not sure I would still be here and I certainly would not be sharing the wisdom I garnered through these past 18 years of healing. If I choose to focus on doom and gloom scrolling rather than fanning the flames of hope, gratitude and optimism, I will sap myself of life's joys while also placing my health at risk. 

Here's to directing our perspective to life's beauty, joys and goodness.  As Helen Keller so eloquently said, "No pessimist ever discovered the secret of the stars, or sailed to an uncharted land, or opened a new doorway for the human spirit."

 

From my heart to yours--

In health and wellness - Mary

Visit my website to learn how poetry, optimism, gratitude and the mind/body connection helped me to transform my life. After having been told in December 2006 that I should prepare to spend the rest of my life in a wheelchair, I went on to cross the finish line of the 2009 Boston Marathon and have many adventures as runnergirl 1953. Be sure to visit the recently updated News and Events Page for links to podcast interviews, speaking engagements and where you can find my incredibly inspirational story.

My books share a powerful message of healing, hope and possibilities; what's possible despite all appearances to the contrary and are available on Bookshop  My 6th book, "Into the Light:Emerging From the 2020 Pandemic" and my 7th book, "A Most Unlikely Runner:Inspiration From The Heart of a Warrior" are selections of the WBZ News Radio Book Club. "Inspiration From The Heart of a Warrior" is also a selection Bill Rodgers Running Center Billy's Bookshelf: Recommended Reads for Every Runner. Be sure to visit my Author Page on Amazon for rave reviews. 

 

 

 

 

What if today we were grateful for everything?

 

During this week last year, our oven stopped working. It's one of the essays in my newly released book, "Into the Light: Emerging From the 2020 Pandemic," which is how I know it was during this week last year. At first I panicked. It was two weeks before Thanksgiving. We were experiencing supply chain issues as I looked for a replacement oven believing the oven was over 10 years old. We initially couldn't get an appointment to see if it could be repaired. All worked out as a technician appointment "magically" opened up a week sooner than anticipated and it was an easy fix. The oven was only two years old and we were able to enroll in a Service Protection plan. I expressed heartfelt gratitude to the technician, the customer service representative who helped us with the Protection Plan and to the Universe.

Ever since the diagnosis of Post-Polio Syndrome, 16 years ago this December, I have practiced an attitude of gratitude. As I was loading our dishwasher on Thursday evening, I said out loud to no one, "I am so grateful I have a dishwasher." 

When I pushed the start button, nothing happened.

I checked to see if I had somehow blocked the doorway and moved dishes around.

Still nothing...

Tom was out running errands with Ruth Anne and he tried to start it when he got home.

Still nothing...

It was too late to get a dish drainer to empty the dishwasher and do the dishes. 

When we got up on Friday morning, I asked Ruth Anne if she would come to Target with me to get a dish drainer and do a little retail therapy for the holidays. Ruth Anne loves Target. Until recently, it's not been a place I've enjoyed shopping but since the pandemic, I  am so grateful to be able to go into a store and shop.

I knew we were going to go in for a dish drainer but come out with a full shopping cart because that's what happens at Target; very smart placement of items and layout of store! We had so much fun together making sure we remembered our dish drainer, choosing new Christmas decorations for home and the tree, and various other items that will bring enjoyment to Team McManus. 

When we got home, we emptied the dishwasher and had a dish washing party putting on our favorite music and feeling joy in the moment. I made the washing of the dishes a meditation feeling grateful for hot water, sight to be able to see what I was doing, that Ruth Anne and I are healthy and that we have abundance to be able to go to Target and shop with joy and ease.

The technician appointment is for next Thursday. I am focusing on a quick fix with replacing the control panel. Since the technician has the model and serial number and knows that it won't turn on, they will have the necessary part to install! 

If, however, we need a new dishwasher or it will take time to get replacement parts, we will share the joy of doing the Thanksgiving Dinner dishes together with my son and his wife. 

I learned wonderful soul lessons last year as we emerged from the pandemic. I did not panic or get upset when the dishwasher wouldn't start. I focused totally on an attitude of gratitude realizing how incredibly blessed and fortunate we are to even have a dishwasher, running hot water, food to put on plates that then need to be washed and most importantly of all a home and our health and well-being.

Just imagine how wonderful life can be if we are just grateful for everything!

From my heart to yours,
In health and wellness,
Mary

Be sure to visit my website at https://marymcmanus.com to learn about my journey to health and wellness in the wake of paralytic polio and trauma

Visit the News and Events tab to listen to my inspiring and uplifting interviews

My books to motivate, uplift and inspire you are available on Amazon

postscript: 11/17/2022

Pat, our favorite GE technician came right on time. He told us everything he was going to do to run diagnostics to rule in or rule out certain problems. I had such confidence in Pat's ability to repair our dishwasher that I did not do today's breakfast or lunch dishes!

As he worked his mojo, I had total confidence that he was going to be able to diagnose and repair the dishwasher today.

Sure enough, it was the control board. He had one on his truck!

He ran further diagnostics to make sure there were no other issues with the dishwasher and did a software update. We had been having an occasional issue with the dishwasher not completing its cycle so in the morning, the dishwasher had to be run again. The software update fixed the problem!

I told Pat he was in my book, and told him that it was just a year ago he came to fix our oven and 'save Thanksgiving.' He asked me the title of the book and I signed and handed him a copy of "Into the Light: Emerging From the 2020 Pandemic." I put a bookmark on the page with the essay about his visit last year. I also gave him a copy of the 'prequel', "Hope is a Garden: Poems and Essays From the 2020 Pandemic." He told me how much he loved to read and looked forward to reading them!

We chatted a bit more while he made sure everything was working in the dishwasher's cycle. He has worked as a GE Technician for 35 years. His parents live near him and are into their 80's. His mother still cooks Thanksgiving dinner and he loves going to his parents' house for the holiday. I shared with him how my son and his wife are coming for dinner and while we could have easily done dishes by hand, it's a blessing to have the dishwasher repaired. He gave us a senior citizen discount and the total cost of the repair saved us about $500 from what a new dishwasher would have cost and that doesn't include the cost of having the plumbers come to install a new one! 

The best part of the encounter, though, was being able to express heartfelt gratitude to Pat and for Pat, his expertise, his care for the work he does and his kind and gentle demeanor. We had the opportunity to get to know him a little better after many service calls he has made to repair our wall oven. I am so grateful he was the technician assigned to us today.

My gratitude in advance that the dishwasher would be fixed and expressing that confidence to the Universe by not doing today's dishes, created a wonderful encounter with a delightful positive outcome that we will be able to load our dishwasher after our Thanksgiving feast!

What if today YOU were grateful for everything that you have now and give thanks for blessings on their way. 

On Gratitude Runs & Perspective

After Saturday's run, I was so grateful to wake up to melting snow and dry ground on Monday morning. As I did my 5K through the neighborhood while Tom and Ruth Anne did their 3 mile tempo run, I felt inspired to pick up my pace while feeling blessed by the glorious sunshine. Sunday was a dreary grey day in Boston and Monday's sunshine provided a delicious contrast to the gloom that dominated Sunday's skies.

Despite all the doom and gloom in the headlines, I felt uplifted with the sunbeams feeling my connection to the Divine in all of her glory. I reflected on the miracle of my healing from the effects of paralytic polio and trauma and the miracle of my being having overcome the diagnosis of Post Polio Syndrome which was due in large part to the unhealed trauma of my youth. We went out over Tom's lunch hour. We all devoured our lunch savoring not only the food but how great it feels to move our bodies outdoors in the winter. 

Wednesdays are rest days for Tom and Ruth Anne so it's up to me to get my motivation gears in motion and get out the door to do my 5K. Temperatures were still in the teens when we got up but the forecast called for moderating temperatures. By 11:30 the temperature went up to 36 degrees! Talk about perspective thinking temperatures were UP to 36 degrees Fahrenheit. I was ecstatic the the arctic blast of minus 10 degrees with wind chill had quickly moved through. We've had winters when we've been 'trapped' in the Polar Vortex.

Ruth Anne insisted on taking a photo of me since I am the one who has been documenting their Providence Marathon run:

Gratitude filled my heart that she wanted to acknowledge what I continue to accomplish in my own way at my own pace. After all, 15 years ago I was told to prepare to spend the rest of my life in a wheelchair as a survivor of paralytic polio having been diagnosed with Post Polio Syndrome, a progressive neuromuscular disease.

I let the sun's warmth bathe me mind, body and soul reflecting on the miracle of healing in my life. Since we are in the middle of winter here in New England, I looked to the skies for beauty. I captured the presence of the Divine and angels through my camera's lens.

 

 I often use the hastag every step is a gift and every mile is a blessing. I felt it with every foot step on Monday's and Wednesday's runs. I was running what could have been a boring and mundane run around the neighborhood. Instead the run was transformed by the attitude I chose to bring to the run. I feel inspired by Tom and Ruth Anne's dedication, consistency and persistence with their training on the road to the Providence Marathon for Victory Programs and ReVision Urban Farm. Despite the climate of fear and uncertainty that dominates the headlines these days, people are incredibly generous with donations and words of support and encouragement. They know the marathon of healing that Ruth Anne endured and they know the integrity and passion that fuels Team McManus' journey on and off of the roads. The work that Victory Programs does saves lives and transforms lives. Their staff is second to none.

It could be so easy to get swept away once more, as we did in 2020, by the tsunamai of divisiveness, terror, panic and hopelessness yearning for the pandemic to end. During these challenging times I find it is vital for our family and me to stay focused on goodness, doing good, feeling well, being well and, as I talked about in a previous post, being unrelenting with compassion and kindness.

An attitude of gratitude and keeping perspective in my corner of the Universe sends out ripples of positive energy, love and moves the world into the light.

From my heart to yours

In health and wellness,

Mary

Be sure to visit my website at https://marymcmanus.com to learn about my journey to health and wellness in the wake of paralytic polio and trauma

Visit the News and Events tab to listen to my inspiring and uplifting interviews

My books to motivate, uplift and inspire you are available on Amazon

 

 

                                                                                                                                                                                

 

 

 

The Magic of Gratitude

 

In the midst of challenging times, when anxiety overtakes the mind and body, it can be difficult to shift the focus to gratitude. And yet that is just the time we need to focus on gratitude. When I look back over the past several years, it is easy to feel anger and outrage at how my daughter's condition was misdiagnosed and mistreated but instead, I focus on the earth angels who finally came into our lives to help Ruth Anne to heal.

As I waited for Ruth Anne at Spaulding Rehab while she had her appointment with Erin,  her earth angel Occupational Therapist, my heart opened with gratitude for her healing and recovery. 

As I saw the plexiglass partitions on the Constitution Cafe's tables, the signs about Infection Control, the need for all staff to be vaccinated by October 15th, the therapeutic pool devoid of aquatics classes and the empty gift shop, I felt the sadness and grief that hung in the silence. The Front Desk Ambassador, Margaret, who we have known from when I took aquatics at Spaulding and then going to appointments with Ruth Anne told us that they were hoping to open the pool in September but now, "Who knows?"

There's hand sanitizer and masks when you first enter the building and there is no more public access to the cafeteria or the pool. The hustle and bustle of staff gathering in the cafeteria, patients and family members moving out and about the first floor and garden area and the sense of Spaulding's community is noticeably absent.

It's so easy to focus on all that is missing in our lives right now, especially after our sense of freedom and ease in the early days post-vaccination. But focusing on what's missing drains me of my energy and tends to turn on the biochemistry of negative "what if's."

I sat down near the lobby of the hospital since it was raining outside, took a few deep, cleansing breaths and this poem flowed out of me:

Magic of Gratitude

Like a magic wand
gratitude whisks away all fear
conjuring a delicious recipe for life
open heart
bubbling over with joy
salty tears trickle
eyes feasting on simple pleasures
sunrises and sunsets
lingering luscious scent of summer
rippling of waves an aural delight
sun’s warmth from Source kisses skin
a taste of heaven

Grateful for precious gift of life
Love greater than fear
sprinkle sparkling eyes everywhere I go
reflecting blessings
kindle kindness and compassion
pass the torch of thankfulness
spread seeds of hope
let the magic begin! 

From my heart to yours
In health and wellness,
Mary

My books to uplift and inspire you are available on Amazon.

Visit my website to learn more about my journey of transformation in the wake of paralytic polio and trauma to the finish line of the 2009 Boston Marathon and beyond.

Be sure to visit my News and Events tab on my website to hear interviews that will open your heart and mind to a powerful message of healing, hope and possibilities.

Perspective

 

It can be very easy to feel discouraged by the latest news about "break through" cases of COVID in vaccinated persons and an overall uptick in cases for unvaccinated persons. Uncertainty of the trajectory of the pandemic once again brings great concern to public health officials and to the general population. The only thing I can control is what choices I make about the risks I choose to take when going out and choosing my perspective. My family and I made the choice to get vaccinated.

We are now choosing to wear a mask indoors. 

I absolutely loved this editorial from CNN written by Comilla Sasson, MD, Ph.D. She compared navigating COVID to being on an airplane. 

When we get to cruising altitude, the seatbelt light turns off and we can now move freely aboard the aircraft. But sometimes we hit turbulence. When the pilot comes on the speakers and says, "time to get back in your seats and put your seat belt on," we (most of us at least), find our seats, put on our seatbelts, and brace ourselves for a rocky ride. 

 

When we put our seatbelts on, do we ask ourselves, why didn't the pilots, flight attendants or air control predict this? Do we question the credibility, reliability, or intentions of our flight crew? Nope. We understand that things can change quickly, and we must adjust to the conditions. There is a reason for what we are doing.

 

She goes on to say,

Well, Covid-19 is the biggest, scariest pandemic plane ride, and the entire world is currently on it together. When we go into lockdowns, restrict travel, and mandate masks and other prevention strategies, health care and public health officials, along with government workers, make these decisions, based on the data they have, with conditions changing quickly, in order to keep the public safe. 

 

Vaccines came out and are ridiculously effective in preventing people from becoming hospitalized as a result of Covid-19. We had hit that beautiful cruising altitude in our pandemic plane ride, where we could all take a breath, literally and figuratively, and take off our masks, see family & friends again, and reopen businesses and schools. 

 

But the vaccines are not a silver bullet. We can still get Covid-19. But the chances are dramatically lower that we will get Covid-19 if we are vaccinated, and even if we do, it will be a mild case that does not require hospitalization. What we didn't and couldn't predict, is how quickly Covid-19 itself changes, how much of the world remains unvaccinated, and that this novel coronavirus, which no one had heard of or had to treat just 24 months ago, would cause these crazy, unpredictable, turbulent conditions. 

 

Tom and I ran in a torrential downpour last week. Our perspective kept us moving mile after mile until we hit the 5K mark which was our goal. It was relatively warm outside. Soon there would be snow and ice so we wanted to enjoy being outdoors without layers upon layers of clothing. We are healthy and enjoy our time together unplugged. When Ruth Anne and I were in the middle of a run and it started to drizzle, we had perspective that at least it was not the torrential downpour on our previous run.

After last year's experience, we have a very different perspective on this year's uptick in COVID cases. There is hope with the vaccine and knowledge that with masking, vaccination, social distancing and good hygiene as well as investing in our individual health and well-being, we can and will end the pandemic. We flattened the curve and we can do it again!

 

A new language emerged last year that included phrases such as mask up, social distancing, fully vaxed, lock down, quarantine, Phased Reopenings and supply chain shortages. As we emerge from the pandemic, I see phrases such as Post-Pan (We Hope) and Quasi-Pandemic. A year ago, those phrases were not even on our radar. There is no State of Emergency splashed at the top of every page across our home-delivered Boston Globe.

That space on our bookcase for masks just in case is now once again filled with masks and are part of our regular laundry. 

The risk of contracting COVID as a fully vaccinated family is extremely low and we are keeping that risk low by re-instituting wearing masks and being mindful of what social activities we plan to be a part of.

Last year we had to wear masks all the time and the risk of contracting COVID was quite high limiting our choices of what we could do and where we could go.

Is it disheartening that officials declared the pandemic over and we were set free to live our lives only to see the metrics moving in a direction indicating that the pandemic is not yet over?

Of course but I prefer to keep everything in perspective living with an attitude of gratitude and seeing how far we've come from where we were last year at this time.

From my heart to yours
In health and wellness,
Mary

Visit my website to learn more about my journey of transformation in the wake of paralytic polio and trauma to the finish line of the 2009 Boston Marathon and beyond.

Be sure to listen to my recent conversation with Liz Brunner, award winning journalist, now CEO of Brunner Communications on her podcast Live Your Best Life. I share how I live my best life despite the challenges that I faced at an early age.

For all of my recent appearances, be sure to visit my News and Events tab on my website.

My books to inspire and uplift you are available on Amazon.