You've Come a Long Way Baby

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In 1995, McKenzie was born and, while fairly healthy, had to spend her first 6 months  on an apnea monitor. Apparently, my kids didn't like to breath in their sleep because Nathan also spent the first 18 months of his life on an apnea monitor as well. Hannah would complete our family in 1997, no apnea monitor required.

From 1991 until early 1998, I had become increasingly ill suffering from constant migraines and nerve pain that would leave me debilitated for hours at a time. For years, doctors didn't know how to diagnose me, leaving me to rely on pain pills in order to function throughout the day. It wouldn't be until a church trip to Isreal later that year that I would learn about my own neural tube defect. In a chance encounter with another tourist on the top of the Mount of Olives, I'd come to learn about my version of Chiari Malformation, and how the symptoms are widely misdiagnosed. By September 1999, I had reconstructive surgery done on my skull , alleviating years of suffering and pain.  The entire back-half of my skull was completely removed and rebuilt.

Life had become more routine, but the medical bills never stopped coming. In 2003, the financial stress of 11 years of medical debt finally took its toll at the expense of my marriage. While I was scared for how I was going to raise three kids as a single mom, it was the best decision for my family and my overall  happiness. 

As I began life as a single mom, I made sure God and church were paramount to my kids upbringing. I served as the church children's choir director, attended regular mission trips, directed children's musicals for Christmas and Easter, was an active member of the United Methodist Women's groups and showered my kids in music as much as possible. We never had a lot, but as long as we God and each other, that was all that mattered. Nathan would ultimately make music his career going into college and was  privileged to be a featured singer/dancer at Dollywood Theme Park for four years. 

Between school concerts, hospital stays, and homework, I learned to enjoy hobbies I never had the luxury to pursue during my marriage. I quickly fell in love with ballroom dancing, while at the same time learning to be a host for Reality TV web series that reviewed shows like Big Brother, Survivor, Dancing With The Stars,, The Apprentice, and The Amazing Race.  My kids were happy and healthy, and that's all that mattered.

By 2015, my two oldest were off at college while my youngest was finishing her senior year of high school. After 18+ years of being the #1 advocate on behalf of Nathan's health, I  found myself at a crossroads with what to do with my life now that this job was over. Having had to live on financial assistance while he was a minor meant that I was forced to live in poverty in order to ensure he was given the best medical care possible.

During this time, I became increasingly interested in politics. After having to live within the welfare system in order to survive, I came to learn about my deeply conservative ideals and wondered how I might be able to help like-minded conservatives win office. Then, Donald Trump made his way down the escalator. From that very moment, I knew that this man would be the next president and that I was going to do everything in my power to ensure his election.

I started by volunteering all of my available free time to the Trump Campaign team in the primary of 2015. Within three months time, my daughter, McKenzie, and I had been promoted as full time staffers on behalf of the campaign.  Nathan and Hannah, while not official staffers, also volunteered their time and talents as they both were honored with singing the National Anthem at two different Trump Rally's leading up to his 2016 election.