All Stories

Ed – Service Should TRICKLE DOWN from One Generation to the Next

I retired from the Sheriff’s Office after 23 years on the job. Helping people always made me feel good. That’s why, at 84, I drive to Winchester to ...

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Ibby – VOLUNTEERING is a Lifestyle Choice

With so many women working full-time jobs now, nonprofits are finding it hard to attract and retain volunteers. I hope that others will find a way to ...

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Nery – Losing a Job with Four Babies to Feed is Scary

Shortly after buying a home for our family of six, my husband and I both suddenly lost our jobs. We were unemployed for a full 3 months. With 4 babies ...

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Cesar – Life Does Not End When You Flee to Another Country

Nine years ago, my family and I fled Venezuela when a dictator took over. I was terrified for my wife and two young children. So, I abandoned a ...

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Connie – It’s Time to Erase the Stigma of Mental Illness

If you met me, you would never guess I have struggled with mental illness my entire life. I have had a high-powered, lucrative career. I am married. I ...

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Veronica – Down’s Syndrome Cannot Silence My Voice

I was born in 1997 with Down's Syndrome. As a teenager, I felt all alone. I was a wallflower at school, just trying to avoid the bullies who teased ...

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Sean – Autism is a Diagnosis NOT a Life Choice

Since as long as I can remember, I have been different. I really wanted to be more like my classmates—to be normal. But I just couldn’t. Eventually, ...

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Josette – We Must Free Ourselves from Domestic Abuse

For more than a decade, I was a victim of domestic violence. I stayed in the marriage because I did not know I could get help. But I was determined to ...

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Olivia – I am So Much More than My TBI Diagnosis

I was only 3 when a car hit our minivan from behind and drove us into a guardrail. When I was 10, my parents told me that I had suffered a traumatic ...

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Amy – I Won’t Let Cerebral Palsy Interfere with My Life’s Purpose

Twenty-one years ago, I was born 11 weeks premature and with Cerebral Palsy. As a result, I have been confined to a wheelchair most of my life. It was ...

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Danni – Medicine for Me or Food for My Family?

Every day, I have to decide between feeding my two daughters or keeping my MS at bay. That reality was almost unbearable for me. There seemed to be ...

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Raven – The Family Car Should NOT Be the Family Home

A few months after moving from Georgia to Loudoun County, everything had gone horribly wrong. We found ourselves sleeping in my car, relying on food ...

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