The most debilitating chapter of my life was transition for married life in the suburbs of Cleveland to divorce and living alone in a condemned sixteen-room duplex in Cleveland's inner city.

I endured illness, exploitation, physical abuse and finally, poverty. After years of frustration, I purchased that duplex and used it as a springboard to acquire a string of multi-family living units and a retail store. During this time, I counseled women in similar straits and volunteered as a mentor.

My success is directly attributed to a painful, discriminatory experience in the fourth grade; hence, my decision to write fiction for children and Mr. Browne's Roses.