My Story in BlinkBriefs™

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Let us hold fast the confession of our hope

without wavering, for He who promised is faithful.

- Hebrews 10:23 -

Our Mission

ABC's to Psalm 119

As the second of eight siblings, my childhood was straight out of The Waltons with a twist of Little House on the Prairie. Days were filled with homeschooling, gathering eggs, chasing runaway goats, and evenings crocheting by the fire while Mom read aloud to the family. Sundays meant corporate worship in the morning and evening hymn-sings and family devotions, where I learned the difference between religion and a living relationship with Jesus. The rhythm of searching for and finding the Lord Jesus in all aspects of life shaped my growing years.

High school brought a deep devotion to music — hours at the piano, organ, and in voice lessons, fueled by dreams of a professional performance career. My senior recital showcased not only a full program of classical works but also the recitation of Psalm 119. When I tossed my cap in the air, my diploma carried more than academics; it carried the strength of music, the roots of faith, and the bonds of family that would hold me steady for the road ahead.

Attempting to Adult

Stepping out of childhood, I poured myself into music, teaching over thirty students in my in-home studio, Joyfully in Tune, while continuing my own studies through correspondence at the International Academy of Music. I sang with the Birmingham Concert Chorale, performing alongside the Alabama Symphony Orchestra and even taking the stage at Carnegie Hall. Those years brimmed with harmony, discipline, and the thrill of making music at a semi-professional level.

Yet behind the music, my body waged war. At eighteen, I was diagnosed with Stage 4 endometriosis, and after years of failed treatments, I underwent a complete hysterectomy at twenty-three. The physical pain was relentless, but the deeper wound was grieving the loss of biological motherhood. It was a season of seemingly unanswered prayers, nights of ache, and raw questions for a God who felt silent — a breaking that began shaping me into a chronic griever, wrestling with the collision of faith and pain.

When music teaching no longer paid the bills, I launched a career in property management, commuting long hours and learning the business from some of the finest in the industry. In the midst of that demanding season, I welcomed my first foreign exchange student, Mii from Thailand. She planted in me a love for international cultures and gave me the joy of introducing someone to Jesus for the very first time. What began as “attempting to adult” became a crucible where faith, vocation, and global vision were forged together.

Our Mission

Kon'nichiwa, Minna San!

Imagine stepping off a plane in Japan, not a clue about the language, culture, or why everyone is so fascinated with my terrible chopstick skills. I was there to share the hope of Jesus and through teaching English as a second language… this involved a lot of smiling, nodding, and hoping I didn't just agree to sing karaoke in front of the whole neighborhood!

Stay tuned for the full story. Let's just say there were a few lost in translation moments, but I promise, it’s worth the wait!

Miracle of Motherhood

It started with the receipt of a short email on a crowded Monday morning commuter train in Japan — a single imperative statement that changed everything in the blink of an eye: “I think you should pray about adopting this baby.” After the shock wore off and many days on my face before the Lord, seeking His will, I committed to the adoption process! Suddenly, my world became a flurry of confidential calls with my attorney, FaceTime updates, and decisions that turned my life upside down. Within sixty days, I had guardianship of a tiny blond-haired, blue-eyed princess from over 7,000 miles away. One late-night phone call forced me to name her on the spot, combining the name that first captured my heart in Japan — Nozomi, meaning hope — with her birth name, Ava, and the dawn of a new chapter.

Leaving Japan felt like leaving half my soul behind. I said goodbye to students, church members, taxi drivers, convenience store attendants, and a culture that had become home. Thirty hours of travel carried my tears of grief and excitement toward the U.S. of A., where, in an unforgettable moment, my mother rounded the corner at the Birmingham International Airport holding the sweetest bundle I had ever seen. On the luggage carousel, I fed Nozomi-Dawn for the first time, memorizing the contours of her little face, tiny hands, and itsy feet — realizing that the ache of goodbye had brought me to this holy hello.

Two months later, after home studies, paperwork, and a whirlwind of preparation, the October day came. Standing before the judge, I raised my right hand, holding my daughter in my left, and said “I do” to forever. With the gavel’s rap, Ava Nozomi-Dawn became legally mine — and I became a mother. The Lord restored to me what a hysterectomy had taken, turning loss into a living testimony of His goodness. Today, her every “Mom!” is a glimmer of mercy and grace — the miracle of motherhood made flesh.

Our Mission

When I Blinked

In early 2017, what began as routine asthma care turned into relentless knee pain that never went away. Within months, my career in property management was gone, and a devastating new diagnosis arrived: bilateral avascular necrosis of the knees. Life, as my doctor quietly told me, had changed forever. It felt like my world shattered.

The years that followed were filled with wheelchairs, failed surgeries, and endless hospital stays. Exchange students, who once filled our home with laughter and international meals, now visited me in the hospital, keeping joy alive amid the chaos. My daughter and I moved into my parents’ home, turning our family of two into four overnight.

At the recommendation of our local medical team, we reached out to Mayo Clinic for a treatment plan. I was quickly accepted, and we spent two weeks in Rochester at what I affectionately called “Six Flags over Medicine,” where new diagnoses were stacked on the old — AVN in my hips, May-Thurner Syndrome, and confirmation of the ever-present severe anaphylactic asthma. My body felt like it was betraying me, one system at a time. We left being followed by Orthopedics, Endocrinology, and Pulmonology. Soon, Infectious Disease (ID) and Neurosurgery would be added.

In January 2021, COVID nearly claimed my life. I was airlifted, intubated, and fighting for each breath. My father wrestled with the hardest prayer a parent can utter: whether to ask the Lord to release me to eternity or bring me back to this world’s suffering. In a clinical miracle, I survived COVID and was discharged just in time for my daughter’s birthday — answering the prayer she had prayed from the moment I was airlifted. At 11:50 p.m. the night before her big day, Dad wheeled me across the threshold of our home. Nozomi-Dawn threw her arms around me shouting, “You’re home, Mommy! God said yes!” That day, we celebrated life — hers and mine.

But the battles didn’t stop. Two brutal spinal surgeries in 2021 left me fused from T3 to L2. Sepsis in 2022 nearly silenced my faith when terrifying hallucinations robbed me of even the Scripture I’d memorized. And in 2023, new words entered my medical vocabulary: craniotomy, nocardiosis, lifelong antibiotics. Twice, surgeons opened my skull to fight a rare brain abscess that kills most who face it. Each time, God pulled me back. Each time, the Lord reaffirmed my reason to keep breathing: to declare His glory.

Medical Dossier

Basic Diagnoses:

Adrenal Insufficiency
Anaphylactic Asthma
Anemia
Avascular Necrosis of the Hip (Bilateral)
Avascular Necrosis of the Knees (Bilateral)
Chronic Pain Syndrome
Cushing’s Syndrome
Deep Vein Thrombosis
Diabetes Mellitus
Dysautonomia
Endometriosis
Immunoglobulin Deficiencies
Interstitial Cystitis
Kidney Stones - Recurrent
May Thurner Syndrome
Mitral Regurgitation
Non-Epileptic Seizures
Obstructive Sleep Apnea
Osteopenia
Osteoporosis
Posterior Subcapsular Cataracts (Bilateral)
Pulmonary Embolus
Tachycardia
Visual Impairment

Surgeries / Procedures:

Abdominal Laparoscopy x 3
Cataract Repair (Right Eye)
Core Decompression (Right Distal Femur)
Cystoscopy x 3
Hysterectomy with Oophorectomy
Left Knee Arthroplasty
Lithotripsy
Power Port Removal
PowerPort Insertion x 2
Right Hip Arthroplasty
Spinal Epidural Block x 4
Subchondroplasty of the Knees (Bilateral)
Trans-Oesophageal Echocardiogram
Ureteroscopy x 5
Vertebral Compression Fracture Repair T3 to L2 (Cement Augmentation, Decompression Laminectomy, and Corpectomy with Bilateral Rods and Screws) x 2
Craniotomy x 2
Left Arthroplasty Revision