“When I got out of the Army Reserve, my ex-wife and I were in the process of getting a divorce. At first, we had shared custody of our two kids. Then she started doing drugs, so I got my kids fulltime. “They are the reason … Continue readingYoung daughters provide motivation for dad
“I lost my husband. He died from drinking too much. I couldn’t keep him from drinking. We were married for about 10 years. “Since he passed away, I don’t have any family here. So I’m kind of by myself again. It’s lonely. Real lonely. “It’s … Continue readingHomeless woman: ’embarrassing to ask for money’
“I was born in a border city in Texas, but then we went back to Mexico because my dad was a preacher. We moved around a lot when I was very little. I have bits and pieces of memories of different houses and places we … Continue readingSpanish-to-English transition happened fast
“I was going to be an engineering major. I was going to outfit planes. All the insides, where you can decide if it’s going to have wood paneling or if it’s going to be stainless steel. You have to do all of that within budget, … Continue readingBest-laid college plans take last-minute detour
“I made some pretty bad choices as a teenager. I used to threaten my parents, like saying I was going to kill myself. I did it just to make them feel bad, so I could get what I wanted. “They finally had enough of it. … Continue reading‘Lot of regrets’ for tumultuous teenager years
“There are a lot of people in this world who only care about themselves and money. I don’t want to be like those people. I want to make a difference and help change lives. I want to help people who don’t have a chance. Right … Continue reading‘I want to make a difference and help change lives’
“My husband thought he wanted us to have a baseball team until the twins came along. I guess reality hits at how challenging that can be sometimes. But then he was so happy when we found out that we were having one more. “Before all … Continue readingIt’s no baseball team, but three boys keep them busy
“I was a cop for years, and I always enjoyed doing stuff for kids. If some kid came up to me and told me that his bicycle was stolen, I’d go find him another one. That’s kind of how it all started. “For 16 years … Continue reading‘Fat Mac’ ensures kids have bikes for Christmas
“I turned 76 last month. Never thought I’d live this long. I’ve had a bunch of medical problems. Right now, it’s my legs. I’ve got peripheral artery disease, where the veins get all stopped up. I’m hoping I can do away with this walker pretty … Continue readingDespite health issues, ‘Fat Mac’ keeps on going
“My boyfriend and I broke up. We’re still friends. We’re still on speaking terms. But that wasn’t what I wanted. I didn’t want to leave the relationship. “It’s kind of like losing my late husband all over again. Because of the you-don’t-see-it-coming thing, it kind … Continue readingBreakup like losing late husband all over again