My Story

From There to Here
Born to Help Others

Sometimes I think I was born to have the life I’m living right now. I’m passionate about helping and supporting others and advocating for people who ask the question: Where do I go from here? These are questions from caregivers. They are the same questions asked by women. 

Several years ago, I assumed both those roles. There were responsibilities I wanted to take on for people I loved. Namely, my grandparents. There were also responsibilities to keep myself moving forward. It was not easy ... not one bit of it ... and it took a toll that ultimately forced me into figuring out how to pick up the pieces and regroup.

These life experiences and essentially unexpected challenges inspired me on a journey of self-discovery. What I learned left me with a mission to help others ... to help caregivers rise above the frustrating and emotionally draining outcomes of caregiving responsibilities andwomen establish goals, manage the challenges of realizing them, and achieve balance in their lives. My goal is to help all these dedicated individuals become the best versions of themselves.

I recognize that in all our lives bad things happen. Somewhat tongue-in-cheek, I point out that mine happened early on.

• My father leaving for work one day when I was three and never returning like fathers are supposed to do. Just like that he left.
• My mother being forced to go back to work full time to support us and bettering herself by going back to school to get her college degree. Though her work as a medical billing consultant and schooling took up most of her time, she always made time for me. One special memory is going to the office with her on weekends when she tied up loose ends and enlisted me as her helper in developing techniques that streamlined her work processes. 
• My grandparents, Nonna Lidia and Nonno Mimmo, becoming my surrogate parents—and what loving parents they were! The house where we all lived together along with my Aunt Marisa and Uncle Frankie, the place I called home till I got married in my late 20’s, was filled with love. 

The challenges I experienced from those events and all the good that came out of them taught me so much. I took in the emotions and the learning of each of these experiences and have grown from a young child to a young adult to a woman who is completely committed to helping others and to being a resource for them—and to accomplish things at home and at work with effectiveness, focus, efficiency, and tremendous caring.

If it hadn’t been for those experiences, I wouldn’t have gained such clarity and the inspiration to help others on their journey of caregiving and/or self-discovery. I call all these experiences my life lessons. These life lessons came out of difficult times. They gave me such focus that I am not only motivated but also capable of helping others who provide care for a loved one with dementia and/or other co-morbidities. I am also able to help women find their way to living a fulfilling life and have created WomenCare to accomplish these goals.

Perhaps the biggest lesson I learned was that the answers I was looking for were there for me all along. And that’s where Legacy, as I view Legacy, plays a central part. Legacy involves all those values and beliefs you assimilate from your family while growing up. It’s also how you apply them in your adult life and role model them to your children, if you have children, or others with whom you interact or have influence.

Sometimes things happen that make you doubt that compass. But if you persevere, you will find what’s in your head and your heart, make it your Legacy and tie all your actions into that legacy to make certain the experiences you create fulfill your purpose, reflect your ideas, and fulfill the intrinsic values of those special people who have come before you.

In the end, reconnecting with the values with which I grew up in an environment of unconditional love and an understanding of the importance of the bonds of family saved me and got me to my life’s purpose: to recognize that all of us have strength and capability within ourselves...