My family almost lost hope of ever escaping Cuba, but sowing hope harvests love. In 1963 our lives changed, all because I was born in Trenton, NJ. That fact saved my life. The American Red Cross exchanged medical supplies for children who had been born in the US and their parents. I was born while my parents were visiting Trenton and I lived there until I was three months old. The US government granted my family asylum, and on February 19, 1963 we arrived in Miami with nothing but our clothes on our backs. And fortunately, the church gave my family hope, relocating us to Baltimore, MD. However, life turned out to be a struggle for survival for me, who neither spoke nor understood English. Losing hope, I endured a life of poverty in the slums of Baltimore.

I believe in the value of mentorship, it provided me hope and played an important role in my life. While in Middle School, a coach saw something more in me than just an angry youth. I remember my coach’s words: “He told me anger has positive and negative forces; it can be destructive or you can shepherd and guide it into things.” The coach steered me into soccer, track, and martial arts. The skills I gained from my commitment to excelling in sports helped me not only to receive an athletic scholarship to a small college in Tennessee but provided me with a sense of accountability, a trait I deem important to my daily basis. I earned a degree in Business Administration, Economics, and Psychology in four years, while also working three jobs. This accomplishment validated my belief in the power of accountability. I secured a position with CSX where I worked for 42 years, holding various positions within the company.

Over the years, I cultivated hope to harvest love and in 2016, I founded Three Grains of Rice Missions. The parable of the sower whose seeds fall on good soil to reap a bountiful harvest epitomizes my work. I tell my own parable about three grains of rice: “There are 21,000 grains in a sack of rice. I’m asking that you give up 3 grains of rice consistently throughout your life.” Just as the grains of rice increase exponentially over a lifetime, sowing hope to harvest love also increases within us over a lifetime. I hope that others will sow their three grains of rice and join me in my mission to end homelessness, empower women and assist children in distress. I survived a life filled with these same hardships and desires to assist others just like I was assisted years before.