I was seven years old when the Doctors first cut me open, but little did I know I would have surgery every year of my life and sometimes twice the same year. After 48 operations, 3 & 1/2 years in and out of hospitals, two years of chemotherapy and radiation treatment, I’ am blessed to beat the tough odds that were against me. The result left many scars inside and out, and like so many other kids, much pain.

 

In 1987, I went to Beverly Hills in California to see Michael Jackson’s plastic surgeon Dr. Timothy Miller, which was paid for by the Air Force, and thankfully it was due to my father’s 23 years of service. When I arrived at the Los Angeles International Airport, I saw a Ferrari 328, and Iasked the owner if I could take a picture next to the car, which forever changed me. At that moment, I felt like a rock star, a real celebrity! He let me sit in it, and over 20 years later, I still have never forgotten that experience.

 

“I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.” – Maya Angelou