Chronic health struggles can’t stop her
“In 2009, I was raising my kids. I was doing weddings. I was teaching group fitness. I was doing all this stuff, then my voice kept going out. “I was a fitness instructor for 17 years....
Category: Short Stories
Food ministry ‘delivering hope’
“I made a mistake. I used the wrong address for a food fair location. I caught it, but I knew some of the flyers had already gone out. “I was worried that some people might go...
Cousin’s suicide changed filmmaker’s life
“Through my films, I’d like to support non-profit organizations and bring attention to certain causes. Because I lost someone to suicide, mental health and suicide prevention are really important to me. “Mario Arturo Valverde was my...
Movie lover inspired to make his own films
“I’ve always loved movies. Growing up, I had very emotional reactions to them. Sometimes I would break down in the theater because of the way a movie ended. “Wonderful films like ‘Interstellar,’ ‘The Shape of Water’...
He was prepared to take a bullet for woman
“I consider myself a ‘protect.’ It means that I’m someone who’s willing to protect other people. In a bad situation, if I have to, I’ll step in and take physical injuries or whatever to protect another...
Keeping memories alive through embroidery
“My granddaughter, Addison, turned 2, and we had her birthday party on a Saturday. On Monday, she and my daughter, Emily, were at my house after we’d been shopping. When her phone rang, she didn’t recognize...
Baytown Pay It Forward Diner feeds the hungry
“We’ve been homeless, and we’ve gone without. There were so many times that our food budget for every two weeks was $50. So we know what it’s like. We’ve always helped people through outreach, but we...
Russia invasion of Ukraine impacts adoption plans
“I had my daughter 8 1/2 weeks early. She weighed 2 pounds, 4 ounces. She stayed in the NICU for six weeks. And then my son was born six weeks early. Both he and I ended...
Injuries, age can’t stop basketball lover
“It was October 3rd of ’98. I was working at Bayer, vacuuming out chemical waste. The hose swept under me. It threw me about 6 feet. I had to get stitches in my head. I had...
Retirement plan pays off for bike enthusiast
“I made up my mind when I was young that I was going to retire early. And I did it. I retired last August after 33 years with LyondellBassell, just as I was fixing to turn...
