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As Proud as a Mom Can Be!
Submitted By Anonymous

I received a distress email a few years ago from a 20 year old, soon to be mother of 3.
She sounded so desperate I didn’t even think that it could be a crank email. Nakiema was raised with no father, on the streets by a mother who suffered from addiction. As a teen, she took care of her brother until he died of leukemia at age 14. Now, she was about to have a third child as a single mom; alone, with no family, no money and no husband to help.

At the time, my best friend cautioned me that I may be taken for a ride if I got involved but what if it was all true?

I never forget the starfish story. A million starfish washed up on a beach and a man asked a young boy why he was throwing them one by one back into the ocean. “How could you make a difference, he said? And, the boy threw another one back in the ocean and replied, “I made a difference to that one.”

Well, after 3 years and a lot hard work on Nakiema’s part, I was so proud to be with her 3 boys to watch her walk down the aisle and receive her High School Diploma. As I was sitting there during the ceremony, it struck me that if I didn’t come, she would have no family there to see her looking so beautiful in her white cap and gown and making this phenomenal achievement.

So this one smart lady is not looking back at all. She will move mountains in her lifetime even though it is still not easy. And, for me, I need to convince more people to help one starfish be a star.


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