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money away; It's beer to give than to receive." What would has been your greatest challenge you faced and how you overcame it? My biggest challenge in life was getting a divorce, realizing how I am going to manage to take care of my children and work full- time. It put on my big girl panties realizing that you have to take care of maers and nobody can tell you what you can or cannot do. You just have to do it. You don't have a choice. Your ex-husband had some legal challenges in a very public case. How did you balance being in the public eye and going through something so emotional? No one k new what I was going through. Basically, in a nutshell, he was embezzling and I was the last one to k now. I thought I could read people well. I thought I would k now what was going on in my own life, my own family, but, I had no clue. He didn't tell me any thing. Here I am reading it in the paper with ever yone else. So I took the two k ids and le. I asked for sole custody and a legal name change. Now I can talk about it, but at the time, it was the big scandal. So I literally changed my name and my children's last name and I moved on with my life in Sarasota. It was forgoen about, but at the time, it was the hardest thing for me to go out in the community. I was like, "I did nothing wrong." What's one thing people might be surprised to know about you? I like to eat. At the Louisiana State Fair, I won the watermelon spiing contest. I was eight. I did it as a job. I was like mom, I'm going to go enter, and my mom was like 'you're not spiing.' How do you define success in your life? You k now that saying , " it doesn't maer how wealthy you are?" I think it's just about being the best person you can be and tr ying to be the best you can regardless of what people say or do. Because of what I do for a living , I see it doesn't maer the years in a life, it maers the life in the years. Because for me, it doesn't maer how much money you make or any of that stuff, it just depends how you change someone's life. I have families that come in and they're just miserable but they leave here happy and smiling , and that to me is a successful day. You k now, a smile goes a long way because you don't k now what people are going through. Like this lady in the checkout line was so nasty the other day, just in a bad mood. A nd I don't k now, her husband could have just died. You just don't k now, so you just tr y and put your best foot for ward. Now that you have perspective on life and your experiences, what advice would you give to your 16-year-old-self ? I want to be like I was when I was 16. en I had a voice and a mission and didn't care what anyone thought, so I want to be more like that 16-year-old self. I want to explain this to girls or anybody. I tell my children, "Never expect anyone to take care of you." You need to take care of yourself because you don't k now what life has for you and these young girls get married and they're like my husband is going to take care of me but then they're like ,"oh no." You beer have something to fall back on like, a career. My 16-year-old self would say, "It doesn't maer what anyone thinks. Just stay focused on your life and what you want to be. Stay true to yourself." D It doesn't matter the years in a life, it matters the life in the years. " " Favorite Quote ONE WOMAN CAN MAKE A DIFFERENCE BUT TOGETHER WE CAN ROCK THE WORLD Market yourself with us! P R I N T - D I G I TA L S O C I A L - E V E N T M A R K E T I N G -ALL IN ONE- Market you and your business to professional and affluent women in the Tampa Bay - Sarasota region. Let's give the Old Boys a run for their money! Visit GravitasMag.com for details or call us at 941.227.7331 New Girls Club

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