My advisor helped me so very much.  She was such a giving person. She was about two years from retirement.  She was the chairwoman of the department.  One day while I was wondering where my next meal was coming from, she called me and asked if I could help her son finish remodeling a duplex apartment that she had purchased for him to live and manage.

One of the most rewarding jobs I had was without pay.  I received an internship at US Senator Bob Graham’s office.  I spoke to people from all of the world who wanted the senator to write a letter on their behalf.  I spoke with judges, lawyers, the military, and even those who could be labeled strange.  When Hurricane Andrew hit South Florida, the social worker was sent there to help his constituents cut through the red tape that prevented them from receiving assistance.

After my internship was over, I was hired in the mailroom.  In the morning I would stop and pick up 5 popular newspapers for the staff to pick out the topics that we thought the senator needed to know.  He had three offices in the state.  I got the opportunity to see at firsthand how powerful the senator’s office could be.  He only stated that his constituent was interested.     

My daughter was a senior in high school, and I was in class during the evenings.  She spent time at a local nursing home caring for the aged.  She had so much compassion towards them.  I saw in her what I desired.  With her and through her I gained what was missing in my life.  In June we both graduated.  I received a M. A. in Applied Social Science and my daughter received her high school diploma.