I am from Plant City, a small town in Florida I like to call Itty Bitty Plant City. My father joined the military when I was six years old, so I have lived and traveled worldwide. I even graduated from high school in Stuttgart, Germany. At the...
By Lauren Sisler, ESPN Sportscaster | Addiction Prevention Advocate | Inspirational Speaker As a sports reporter, I get the opportunity to share a lot of stories about teams, coaches, individual athletes, fans, and even entire communities. It is what I "do" as a professional, but most...
Julie Thurgood-Burnett, Hereward Farms Julie Thurgood Burnett is a self-made woman. She is a mother, developer of numerous passions – and is no stranger to both trials and successes in her life. Currently, Julie serves as the President and CEO of a lavender farm and skincare...
Cassandra James Weathersby, Champion for Mental Wellness I suffered in silence for so many years due to stigma and cultural biases within my communities regarding mental health care and treatment. I was faithful in my church, yet there was no help. I was dying on the inside, barely getting...
When My World Paused: Miscarriage and Life By Jennifer Vickery I suffered a miscarriage in March. I have two wonderful children. I’m very blessed. My firstborn is a sweet boy, and my second is a lively daughter. Both are my light. While I thought my path to...
By Yolanda Pourciau We agreed to meet at a seafood restaurant known for its catfish and gouda grits, called Jonah’s. It was the Holiday Season, and most people were wearing their annoyingly cheerful reds and greens. Even I, had on red. I don’t tend to dress...
By Jennifer Davis Dodd We’re almost two weeks into 2022, and I’ve been thinking a lot about old ways and new doors. Like many women who’ve unexpectedly added “lived through a multi-year, global pandemic” to her bio, I’ve been assessing the “ways” I’ve lived since late 2019...
By Peter Gamache, Ph.D. & Jackie Sue Griffin, MBA, MS, Turnaround Life, Inc. The Hillsborough County Anti-Drug Alliance (HCADA) is a nonprofit in Hillsborough County, Fla., providing education, resources and support for adults, teens and children to prevent drug, alcohol and tobacco abuse. Youth Coordinator Denise Birungi Evans...
Perhaps no one can identify more with the mission of the Hillsborough County Anti-Drug Alliance than a parent who has lost a child to overdose. Sadly, the nonprofit’s own executive director, Cindy Grant, is among them. In 1997, Cindy and her husband lost their son,...
By Jessica Quaid As we wrap up 2021, it’s safe to say this was the year of “self-love” and “self-care,” but what about self-confidence? I know that sometimes self-confidence can be perceived as being arrogant, vain or conceited. I’m not talking about overdoing it; I simply mean...