Education & Career
Stories about challenges in education and in the professional world
What They Call Me, What I Answer To
By Mame Kwayie In retrospect, we’d probably crossed a professional boundary. But I wanted the insight, so I kept our conversation going. I was in my early twenties, working as a communications director in San Antonio, and chatting with a presenter before one of my...
60 New Things in My 60th Year
by Nancy Amos Sometimes a pivotal life event will trigger major changes in one’s outlook or perspective. This happened to me in 2009 when I experienced a bad car accident. It stopped me in my tracks of working long hours and put me in the ICU for a week. I was off...
My Soggy Encounter With Mr. Lewis
By Misty Raley Gassaway Celebrating my friend, I had the opportunity to meet Congressman John Lewis after graduating college and then again later and I will forever remember the encounters. He took the time to treat people with dignity and respect. Mr. Lewis fought...
Swimming, Floating and Floundering: A Therapist Comes Clean About Her Challenges
By Edie Weinstein My fingers are tip, tap, typing the words that flow through my busy-buzzy brain. Bleary-eyed after a tumultuously dream-filled night....
Hope for Vulnerable Children
My name is Chelsea Reidland. I have been married to the love of my life for almost 15 years. We have six kids and sponsor a girl in Ethiopia that we go see at least once a year. The first date I had with my husband I told him, “I want to adopt one day, I want to be a...
Books With Wings
By Ruth Anne Wood Do you love your local library? As an avid reader, independent book editor, publisher and former show host of “Live Your Peace” that featured close to 160 authors and storytellers, I love reading and hearing people’s stories. I feel so inspired I...
An Extended Spring Break
By Dana Friend When people say that senior year goes by quickly, you might doubt them until you blink and suddenly realize that graduation is only hours away. All of these questions then swarm around you: “Wasn’t it the best year of high school?,” “Didn’t you have so...
I’m Still Quarantining
https://youtu.be/VeDssvihmAM Interviewer: Tell me about yourself Lillian: My name is Lillian. I live in Fort Worth, Texas, and I am 9-years-old. I am in 3rd grade at Fort Worth Country Day. Interviewer: How long have you been in quarantine? Lillian: I have been in...
Coronavirus Through The Eyes of a Teen
By Shayna Levy I think at least once a week, I would complain about school and say ‘I wish I was a dog. They just get to stay home and do nothing all day.’ Crazy how true that became. And, now that I have sat around and done nothing all day, in a weird way, I miss...
Veteran’s Day: No Guts No Glory
by Rhonda Loftis A week after my 18th birthday I was on my way to Recruit Training Command Orlando, Florida for eight weeks of boot camp. The good news was that I enlisted with one of my very best friends from high school, which, no doubt, made life so much easier....
For Parents of Children with Learning Differences
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9EuVDrfzoP4&feature=youtu.be Dr. Judith Loredo holds a Certificate of Completion from San Antonio College; a BS in the Science of Communication Disorders, an MA in Speech Pathology, and a M.ED. in Education, from Our Lady of the...
Never Destined to Succeed
https://youtu.be/g-eKgNeKo-U Dr. Judith Loredo holds a Certificate of Completion from San Antonio College; a BS in the Science of Communication Disorders, an MA in Speech Pathology, and a M.ED. in Education, from Our Lady of the Lake University; and a Ph.D. from the...
Never Make Assumptions!
By Kay Lynn Means Darling As I’ve previously written, my career choice was law enforcement, which extended to approximately 30 years. This incident recently crossed my mind so I thought I would share. During my first decade in the business, I was involved in pistol...
King Margo
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kxQvcy_Iyi8 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L3CwVz4uAbs&t=8s Check out their bios: Checkout their website: https://www.kingmargo.com Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/kingmargomusic...
FaithWorks of Abilene Podcast
FaithWorks formed in the mind and heart of Joyce Dalzell several years before the first class began in 2003. It was while she was volunteering at a local food pantry that she realized that the people being served "just have never learned the skills they need to find a...
Flygirl: Get Gutsy
Vernice Armour, AKA FlyGirl, recorded this video just for Iron Butterflies Project. She is a world renown author and speaker and we are thrilled to have her as part of our community. After listening to her story below, check out her site: http://vernicearmour.com ...
Creating a Stage for Special Needs Children
By Joshua Levy My passion for enriching the lives of children with special needs is rooted from my experiences as a teacher’s aide throughout my middle and high school years. While in eighth grade I had the opportunity to work with special needs students; I recall...
Poem of Joy and Freedom
By Marianna Dydek Waite My story is one of my joy and freedom. I once lived a life based on a balance of trust along side a faint and haunting noise of mistrust. Fear and mistrust are very noisy, indeed, distracting and misleading. Love is not. Love is clear, sure and...