Our Stories

Being diagnosed with multiple sclerosis has enabled me to become the person I always wanted to be. I was diagnosed at the age of 28, in 2008, and while it was a shock, it was also a relief to know what was wrong with me so I could start being practical about how to move forward.

I took a good look at my life and I made that “bucket list” of things that I’d always wanted to do but ...

Death has inflicted a deep wound on my life which will not heal anymore. Ever since someone called this wound “cancer” and declared it incurable, I have been living with the presence of death in my everyday life.

It glares at me when I look at myself in the mirror. In the mornings, it wakes up at my side and it huddles up against me in bed at night. It laughs with me in my happiest moments and cries with me ...

Kateri is my name
I am
Black
Female
Obese
And
Disabled
The world would define me as marginalized, disadvantage, feel sorry for me, say I could not achieve anything
That I am destined to be poor, miserable, and incapable of achieving greatness
Yes, this world has been harsh to me
But what the world has destined me to be has not been my TRUTH
Yes, I am black, female, obese, and disabled
But I have achieved so much
I played ...

“Never, ever, ever, ever, ever give up.”

Up until about the time I hit my 40’s, I both enjoyed great health and took wonderful care of my health through exercise (tennis, swimming, walking, running, biking), eating right and making sure I spent lots of quality time with friends and family to balance out work and other life stressors. My health took a dramatic turn, when, first, I needed emergency gallbladder surgery, and then two years later, was diagnosed with a rare ...

I am just about to turn thirty. I have the most wonderful two-year old daughter. We are blessed to live near the ocean and I love to put her on the back of my bike for the joys of the seaside. Yet my vision is becoming bizarre. My eyesight seems to wobble, then I lose vision in one eye and, thankfully, it returns before I lose vision in the other. My eye doctor refers me to a neurologist. An unfeeling, ...

It was the time of my life young, healthy and fearless starting a career. First it was Milan, then it became LA Requests were pouring in, no casting no more. My dreams were just a step away from becoming real.

Dizziness and headaches all the time, doctor cannot find anything wrong It must be stress or exhaustion. Perfect timing, going home for a gig. Holidays with family and friends is just what I need.

The dizziness was never so ...

My name is Alison Bonds Shapiro and I have a story about stories to tell.

Although I have spent most of my professional career in the business world, I have always had a passion for painting and drawing. Ever since I was a child, I’ve dreamed about illustrating a children’s book. With my own children grown and out of the house, at last I had the chance to concentrate on reaching for that dream. And while I was still working I ...