The Birth of LemonSpark
My appetite for serving the public interest has stewed in me for some time, but I did not find full satisfaction in my endeavors until my life fell apart. My first 30 years of life clipped along as planned. Then, after trying for four years to conceive with my husband, I faced for the first […]
Gayle Zinda – Pink Lemonade Presentations
Sometimes sharing a lemon sparks a new life for another. Gayle’s life has been full, filled with plenty lemons of her own. “Young and dumb” might be how she would describe her first marriage and lemon, if it weren’t for her two remarkable boys that were products of that marriage. Faced with an abusive and […]
Janet Tyler Johnson – JATAJ, LLC
My lemons include losing a sister to leukemia, two divorces and a corporate career that failed to offer me a fulfilling life. My sister died when I was just an infant – she was just 3 years old. All my life I felt her presence and in 1996 co-founded a walk to raise money for […]
Margaret Trost – The “What-if? Foundation”
On a warm September evening in Cottage Grove, Wisconsin, Margaret reflected her life’s treasures: a wonderful five-year-old son, a successful home-based health and wellness business and a satisfying marriage. She and her husband, Rich, talked about wanting to slow down, even though they were both only in their mid-thirties. She envisioned them aging gracefully together, […]
Judy Sutherland – My Path to Freedom
My husband is a brilliant, hard working financial consultant. He has incredible stamina and an ability to keep going to work without complaining. I believe his work ethic operates as a way to fulfill his need to be close to others. Yet, paradoxically, he forbids others from being close to him. He is extremely private […]
Linda C Smith
In late November of 2001 I suffered a mild stroke. I’ve lived for many years with a mysterious seizure disorder but this time it wasn’t the usual temporary ailment I was used to; this time I ended up with the news that I’d have to quit work and retire. At first this was a blow. […]
Linda Remeschatis – Wisconsin Made
It was 1996. I had been working as an Assistant District Attorney in Dane County, Wisconsin, for 10 years. I enjoyed my job as an ADA, but it was stressful. Then, at the age of 46, I was diagnosed with breast cancer. At first, I thought the diagnosis was a mistake. I was in denial. […]
Jacquelyn Mitchard – Author
Jacquelyn Mitchard’s Second Act In 1993, when I was in my 30s, my husband, barely 40, was diagnosed with stage 4 colon cancer. Within four months, he was dead, leaving me with three little boys, aged 9, 6 and 3 and life insurance in the amount of his annual salary as an editorial page editor, […]
Tom Meyer – Aaron House
Cling to the thought that in God’s hands the dark past is the greatest possession (you) have…the key to life and happiness for others. With it (you) can avert death and misery for them. Taken from the Big Book, p. 124. The phone call all parents dread is worse than your mind will let you […]
Susan Macaulay – Amazing Women Rock
The seeds of amazingwomenrock.com were sown one spring afternoon in 1993, when my husband Bob stepped off the shuttle bus that brought him home from work. It was a typical May day in Abu Dhabi – sweltering. I was off to the gym, striding purposefully across the parking lot where the bus had stopped to […]
Mandie Holgate – Business & Life Coach
Five and half years ago 6 months after the birth of my second gorgeous child, my cat got run over, yes I was upset but I had no idea it was the catalyst (no pun intended) to 2 and half years of hell. I slowly noticed that I was feeling different and when we were […]
Eliz Greene – Embrace Your Heart
Eliz’s struggle with infertility was long and wearisome. She and her husband tried infertility treatments for five years before taking a break from the roller coaster ride. They traveled and relaxed. On January 1, 2000 while at the Rose Bowl game, Eliz decided that she liked her life as it was – she had a […]