I had my first experience with working hard for someone that was placed in an unfair situation by someone else in 1992. I was 11 years old at the time in my hometown of Prichard, AL in the Mobile area. On March 2, 1992, I heard the news that my mother had been shot at point blank range, in the top of the head by men who had broken into our home. She fought for her life and survived. Though she lived, she was paralyzed and had lost use of everything except her neck and right arm. When a brief period of time passed after her recovery, she and I moved to an apartment on our own.

As a 12-year-old at that time, I

adjusted to doing almost everything for my mother who had done so much for me. I realized that I had taken so many things for granted like rolling over in the middle of the night to get comfortable, tying shoelaces, and walking into the kitchen to get a snack. I slept in her room to make sure I could hear her if she needed me in the morning before I caught the bus to school. and I put her back in bed at night. I cooked (or followed her instructions to the letter), cleaned, and became the “man of the house” being fiercely protective of her.

Life continued this way until my mother passed away in 1995 at the age of 33. I was only 14 years old when she passed, but I have never forgotten the lessons learned from her and those experiences.