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Hello Everyone At AdlandPro!
It’s time again for the Feature of The Week!
The reason Kathy Martin and I John Sanchez created this forum was to honor people who have a positive influence on this community. To qualify the person has to be an active member and one who contributes to the positive atmosphere here AdlandPro. Here are the criteria for selecting a member for the Feature of the Week (also referred to as the
Person of the Week, POTW). This criterion can be seen at the site below:
Criterion
How Do I Get Selected as Person of the Week?
To be chosen as Person of the week you:
• Are highly visible on the community
• Are always seen as respectful, professional, and helpful.
• Must be
nominated for the program by another member of the Community and voted on by other members.
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It is our pleasure and honor to announce this week’s winner; she is long overdue for this honor, her name is Donna Lira. Life hasn’t always been kind to this lady but she has learned to be a survivor and has managed to keep a sweet spirit despite her misfortunes. Donna is true blessing to our community. She has been so kind and so helpful to many here at AdlandPro. Thank you Donna and congratulations! Enjoy your week of honor you deserve it!
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Here is
Donna’s Bio:
My name is Donna Lira, born in Baltimore, Maryland. Parents moved us to Chicago, Illinois when I was 4 yrs. old and from then on I was raised there. My mothers name is Grace, Father is Marshall and older Brother is Marshall Larry Lira. My nationality is 1/2 Mexican that is my Father’s side and German and Irish on my Mother's side.
I grew up in a dysfunctional family environment. My Father was sick in the head and a pedophile only to his Daughter as far as I know of. My Mother was an uneducated woman from a family of 19 children where she had to quit school to work for the family's survival, like most of her siblings.
My adolescent years were pretty bad for me. I couldn't measure up to my Father's standards. I was never good enough. Not pretty enough, and not smart enough. He wanted me to be like my Brother; everything came so easy for him and was very popular. I started to hate my brother because I was always compared to him. My brother and I became estranged because of this. Thankfully, I can say he and I have made amends some years ago once he realized what my father truly was.
I went to St. Clements grammar school and St. Gregory H.S. Unfortunately I did not graduate. My father got sick and we couldn't pay the tuition, and 3 months before graduation they told me that I couldn't get a free education and I had to leave school. I tried to enroll into night school, however the public school system doesn't recognize the Catholic school system crediting system. So by the time they got through total up everything, I might as well enroll into 4 years of H.S. again. So I got discouraged and quit. I tried a couple of Free GED centers but unfortunately they lost their funding and closed their doors and I was left out in the cold once again.
So I went into the work force. I worked for many companies over the years but the longest one was Bodine Electric Co. in Chicago, Il across from WGN Radio Station, I was hired in the purchasing department as a posting clerk and also as a relief switchboard operator. I was on my 3 months probation when I had to go into the Hospital for a Gall bladder operation. My boss was a jerk. He called me at the Hospital the day of the surgery. I just got out of surgery and he told me I didn't have a job if I didn't return to work on Monday. So, against my Doctor’s recommendation and the on staff nurse at my job, I returned to work, with no lifting restrictions.
Over the years I worked my way up through the ranks to Secy. to the Purchasing Agent and Supervisor of the posting clerk and switchboard operators. Eventually, our department merged with another department. Unfortunately that was not good for our department people, some were let go. I was given the opportunity to go downstairs and take over the Office Supply Department and Reproduction Procurement department and so I took it. I organized it, took inventory, put it all on computer, and reduced the inventory. Once all that was done. Well, I organized myself right out of a job. After 13 years of service they eliminated my job and I was gone.
I was out of a job for about a month. Going from door to door I finally landed a Receptionist job. I figure no stress anymore. Well, it didn't take long before they noticed my potential and they piled the work on. So, from the Receptionist desk I also did data entry, Payroll, Insurance Benefits, Workman's Compensation, and was Secy. to the V. P. of Operations. He was my best supporter. We became great friends and I learned alot. Unfortunately, the company was cheap and wouldn't pay me what I was worth. So, I got feed up, went into the President of the company told him I worked there now for 5 yrs. and go a very small increase once and asked for more money for the work I was doing, he said no he couldn't afford it. I gave him my 2 weeks notice and he said to me "You know Donna, now I am going to have to hire 3 more people to replace you." Of course, I said, well you should have thought about that before you let me go. My immediate Boss was devastated; he didn't want me to leave. I was his right hand person. Needless to say that way my last job.
I got married for the first time when I was 31 yrs. old to a man I knew I shouldn't have married. I stayed in the marriage longer then I should have. I got pregnant at the age of 36 and had complications and my Son (ADAM) died inside of me and there was a struggled to keep me alive. I remember while under, I had an out of body experience. I saw Me sitting above watching what was going on in the operating room, and watching them work on me. I started to go toward a bright light, but someone told me I had to go back that it wasn't my time. That was a strange experience. My husband at the time; while I was going through postpartum depression, told me he never wanted our baby. I could never forgive him for that. I couldn't imagine a man not wanting his own child. It would have been much better if he would have kept that to himself and just been relieved that our son had died instead of hurting me so much.
After a failed 20yr. marriage (divorce) I ended up moving across state to Modesto, California at the age of 50. I lived in Modesto for 4 yrs. with my significant other (Danny Russell, aka Heytex). We had an eBay business for that entire 4 yrs. We got bored with that; beside it was getting more and more difficult maintaining the level of business we were doing and the fees that are attached with running an eBay business.
I got into the Internet business out of necessity. I was divorced, 9/11 took a beating on my retirement funds. Then I was diagnosed as being Bi-Polar, chronically depressed, anxiety disorder, and a sleep disorder and couldn't work outside the home. I had to draw off of what was left of my retirement funds as a "hardship: withdrawal. So now I am on Medicare and been paying for my medications out of pocket; which has eaten up my retirement fund. So, it was out of desperation to supplement my social security disability.
Danny and I moved to Salina, Ks. because he had family there to help him with me, should something happen. OH, BTW, in California, they said that I had cirrous of the liver and we thought that I was going to die. Just so you know, I am not a drinker or a druggy and didn't have hepatitis, so we had no idea what caused this.
I am doing fine now. The specialists here say that my liver is damaged but I was not going to die. What a relief that was to hear.
So, here I am on the
Internet trying to make a living anyway I can. I came across Adlandpro and that's pretty much it.
My friends here at Adlandpro now know more about me then anyone in my life. I am a survivor. I survived by ways that I am not proud of but just the same I did survive. I am a "Work in Progress" and learning to like who I am and love myself. I have to give credit to my sweetie Danny, being a psychologist he was the one who saw that I needed help and got me into counseling and to a shrink. He is my support and my rock.
Now to explain my signature aka texgirl. Many of you maybe thinking that it stands for Texas girl, it doesn't, it just means that I am the girl of a Texan. You see my sweetie is from Midland, Texas.
Donna Lira
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Thank you Donna for sharing your story with us and for being so open with us. We hope that this will be the start of a better life for you. Blessings to you our sweet friend!
John Sanchez and
Kathy Martin
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