I grew up in a lower middle class family in a small town in Oregon. My father was a logger/Baptist minister. My mother was a teacher. I am the third of four girls. I was extremely shy and insecure as a youngster, but I did well in school after 5th grade. A special teacher drew me out of my shell. I graduated in the top 20 of my high school class. I got a tuition scholarship that allowed me to attend community college and then a four year university. I graduated with a BA in English. I started work in the Portland Model Cities program in 1971, worked with people of many different races, ethnicities, and religions. Eventually, I became a school teacher (high school English). I married a person of color and have a 34 year old son of color. My son has a serious illness and I am currently his support and caretaker. I am retired and volunteer in many different areas. I know that being female held me back from several different career options that would be open to me today. Other than that, I have pretty much been able to succeed with persistence and hard work.