I have been a registered nurse for over 20 years and am passionate about caring for my patients and their families. Working in ICU has made me a much more compassionate and caring individual. Along with my love for my profession I also have a gift for music. Without formal music education, I have to rely on my fundamental knowledge and as a writer I am always looking for inspiration. Recently I discovered inspiration was all around me in the stories of my patients and their families.
Last April marks the first anniversary of Kayla's miraculous recovery from toxic septicemia. She was a young girl who suffered from a life threatening infection so severe that she had multi organ failure and collapsed lungs. Tiny emboli invaded her brain, doing damage and leaving no hope for a meaningful recovery. While she was fighting for her life, her family and friends and her entire community pulled together in faith and support. After nine weeks in a coma she woke up laughing and now is making a full recovery. I knew right away that she was a special girl. As a child she had been neglected and abused. She never knew love, only fear until at age 12 she was adopted by a loving family.
Inspired by Kayla's story, I drafted a song called "Bright like the sun," and my friend Tammy, being a vocalist herself, recognized its potential. We finished co-writing the song and she agreed to benefit my organization of choice...Our Children, Our Community which is a coalition for awareness and prevention of child abuse and neglect based in Washington, DC where four little girls were recently murdered by their mentally ill mother (Benita Jacks Case) (www.Joinus2.org).
Our Children Our Community's goal is to make the community aware of how they can help keep children safe by being informed and knowing what government/law enforcement agencies to contact when they suspect children are being abused and mistreated.
There were many lost opportunities to save the Jacks children, but people obviously did not know how to navigate the child welfare system; Signs of mental illness also went unnoticed by family and neighbors. Our Children Our Community wants to “even the playing field” for children at risk of abuse/neglect, and some times murder.
As we prepare the song for recording, we advertised for singers around Southern California and a talented 10 year old named Sabrina Lentini caught our attention. She was the perfect candidate to render the song, and now that it is ready to be heard, be prepared to be amazed. Music download is now available through http://tandprecords.com/sabrina.html
My utmost gratitude to Shirley Tabb for sharing my vision from the start and a special thanks to Kayla's family for allowing us to share her story, hoping to raise awareness about abuse and neglect, something no child should ever have to endure.
Please download this beautiful song on behalf of abused and neglected children every where and in this case, in Washington DC, where Our Children Our Community was founded.
Thank you in advance for your support in this effort.
