About Me | RachelMarieSpeaks

About Rachel

I’m here to testify that what we focus on can change our lives.

I am driven to share my story that it may motivate, uplift, and encourage struggling youth. I share my story to testify of how I came to know of Christ. I share to say who I am and what I have learned. To the struggling youth of today's world, I get it, I was once there too. I'm passionate about sharing that there is a better path out there. It's up to you to go get it!

I was a third grader when I was first labeled an at-risk youth. My school found out I was living in a home with a lesbian mother and her partner and that I was getting myself to and from school without adult supervision. They called me a "latch-key-kid". That's when I was enrolled in services due to my unique living circumstances.

I describe my experience of having same-sex parents and the absence of a father as an extremely difficult challenge.

My home situation was not secure. My mother and I moved out of and back into our home on at least an annual basis because of the unhealthy relationship she was involved in.

Mental illness, violence, and alcoholism were all a part of my upbringing. My existence was the topic of most of the conflict in the home. Between the ages of 7 and 14 I was shuffled among the homes of various friends and family members.

Out of necessity, I left home at the age of 15. I experienced homelessness for the first time. I moved in with an older boyfriend with whom I had an unhealthy relationship, but it didn’t take me long to realize that I deserved better. I had my 16th birthday and a few months later I came to the realization I needed to leave that living situation.

Once again I didn’t know where I was going to live. I found myself couch surfing and contemplating if I would be a high school dropout or if I was going to be able to graduate. Knowing that no one else could do life for me, I made the ambitious decision to take on three part-time jobs, earning enough money to pay for rent in a small apartment. I also took on a very grueling school schedule. I enrolled myself in the traditional high school, the alternative high school and signed up to do as many packets as I could get my hands on with a goal to be a high school graduate as my primary focus.

I’m here to testify that what we focus on can change our lives! Not only did I graduate, but I was able to graduate one year ahead of my classmates. When I received my final report card, for the first time in my entire life, I received straight A’s!

At the age of 17, my life experiences had prepared me for receiving a testimony of God and his son Jesus Christ. This brought many new and exciting changes into my life. It was a gradual process for me as I turned my life to the teachings of my new religion. I was swift to be baptized, but my conversion was a process as I learned, line by line, step by step, how to be a disciple of Jesus and how to live according to His teachings.

I have been shaped, not only by my experiences, but also by strong and courageous women in my family line. I have been shaped by gifts given from Heaven that help me in my journey and by the discovery of religion, angels, and even miracles. Part of what makes me, me, has been becoming a woman who can make my mother proud. I have an amazing mom and I would only share my story with her full support, which I am so blessed to have.

My childhood did not include a father in the home. It did not include a father anywhere.

But I have a father. He is in heaven. He is my God. He is the only father I will ever know. I love Him and it is to Him that I dedicate my story. He opened the windows of Heaven and poured out His heavenly help so I could beat the odds and persevere and focus on the crazy, ambitious goals I set for myself. I am filled with gratitude and He is taking such good care of me.

The Day to Day

I married my eternal companion at years old in 2003. I am a mother of 3. We live in a lovely home with a huge backyard where my kids run and play. Although my childhood did not include the sweetness of grandparents, my children have enjoyed the opportunity of having their grandparents next door.

My home is not perfect, but it’s filled with as much love, joy, and peace that I can give it. My children have a sense of purpose and belonging.

I love creation, so I work to do something creative every day. Anything from painting, design or crafting, to refinishing and DIY. I love it all!

I actively participate in my religion and enjoy the opportunities I get to serve amongst my congregation and community. It has brought me so much joy serving the youth through the last decade in various roles. Including doing firesides as a motivational speaker. My favorite has been putting together and running girl's camps. I love seeing girls and put in hard work to grow new skills!

Doula Work

I was a Doula and childbirth educator for 16 years. A Doula is a support person who assists a mother and her partner in the birthing process providing educational, physical, emotional, and even spiritual support. As a doula I've seen mothers through the creation of their unborn children and witnessed the creation and growth of hundreds of families. I count it a privilege to have the opportunity of witnessing the joy and love parents feel for their brand new babies. I have loved working in the healthcare field.

One of my greatest surprises was running one of the most successful doula practices in my area and co-owning a business that would provide advanced training in an accredited college course. I also had the opportunity of holding positions in a nonprofit Doula organization as a board member for many years, and even as president-elect. As a board member I assisted in the planning and hosting of a yearly retreat, and an educational conference to provide support and continuing education for our Doulas, midwives and other birth professionals.