I wouldn’t be the person I am today without the help and influence of a lot of people. Our interpersonal relationships, whether good or bad, help define who we are, what we do in response to life situations and how we treat others. This page is an ever growing list of those that have taught me valuable lessons in life, spirituality, friendship, love and everything in-between. If you’re not on this list it’s just because I haven’t gotten to you yet!
Thank you for being a part of my journey! 🙂
A very heartfelt and special thanks to…
Eric for being an amazing partner filled with love, compassion and understanding.
To my Mom for showing me the meaning of unconditional love.
To my sister Bibi for being my best friend.
To my friend Ricky for his unconditional friendship and always being there, even when it was hard to be my friend.
To my Dad for showing me what not to do and for just enough of his intelligence to keep me grounded.
To Jose Ginarte for teaching me the meaning of true friendship, for always going above and beyond, for recognizing my abilities and setting me on a course for success. Rest in peace my friend.
To Christina and Mike for saving my life in High School.
To my Aunt Olga and Uncle Jean for Sunday dinners.
To my cousin Debbie for her love and wonderful smile. Allan too. 🙂
To “Grandma and Grandpa” Bogue for being the grandparents I always wanted when I needed them the most.
To Juvee for showing me that TV moms do exist.
To Christie for being the childhood friend I will never forget.
To everyone at Zoo Miami that gave me nearly two decades of love, friendship, knowledge and laughter. I will never forget any of you.
To all the animals at Zoo Miami that taught me and countless others the beauty of the natural world.
To my “sister-in-law” Robin for late night conversations and a home away from home when I needed one.
To Ana, for my first set of Angel Cards.
To my niece and nephew Jenay and Jon for becoming such wonderful human beings.
To Olga for crying when I came out to her.
To Odilia and Mary for helping me grow.
To Ivye for being the high school friend you see in afterschool specials.
To George for introducing me to the online world when it was brand new, late night phone conversations, laughter and deal-a-meal.
To Danny for keeping me safe for almost a decade until we found ourselves.
To Marty for introducing me to California.
To Nancy for loving and enduring friendship… and teaching me how to shop at Macy’s.
To my nephew Christopher for wanting a haircut like mine.
To my niece Vanessa for teaching me about sugar skulls.
To Marty for his Southern charm, old fashioned friendship and introducing me to Aunt Lucille and Uncle Bill.
To Ms. Panaro for her wonderful big city acting classes.
To Ms. Velasco for saying “you’re good!”
To Dr. Ray for baptising me.
To “Mimaw” for my first bible.
To Ronnie for being my first friend in Miami.
To Mike for being an amazing boss, teaching me to be self sufficient and picking me up when I fell down.
To Donald and Debbie for being the crazy friends I needed to escape from life.
To TomTom for Alaska and referring me to Jennifer.
To Jeff for being the great friend and little angel on my shoulder that I have never met.
To Kim for being a shining light in the darkness.
To Susan for being wise, so loving and loud.
To Nzinga for his worldliness, objectivity, fairness, Julie and recommending WordPress
To Maria for staying with me until I fell asleep when Jose died.
To Carlos for being a fellow geek and a friend since the 10th grade.
To Lisbeth for her cool friendship, tying herself to a tree, and delicious venison meat sauce.
To Gwen for being the kind of biologist I would have loved to be. Maybe there’s still time.
To Paula for being one of the most interesting multipotentialites I will ever know. Your insight and advice carries me to this day.
To Alyce for protecting, mentoring and helping me realize my potential.
To Raquel for driving me home, always being a friend, even when circumstances separated us.
To Nikitha for enriching my spiritual growth.
To Yara for being my wise and special friend.
To Margarita for teaching me everything about Miami politics I needed to know.
To Sandy and Jamie for being the perfect friends.
To Tiffany for teaching me about belly dancing and pursuing your dreams.
To Janine for teaching me not to be so gullible.
To Frances for her spirituality, friendship and a very wet shoulder to cry on.
To Maite for being my first neighbor.
To Tania for taking me to get my first tattoo.
To Willie for being the first lightworker I ever met.
To everyone at Winn-Dixie that taught me so much and helped me discover that I was actually good at something when I thought I was useless.
To Brett for amazing validation, insight, instruction and energy.
To Karla for the gift of knowledge and inspiration.
To Tricia, Crystal and Lauren, for paving the way to finding my true path.
To Justine, for being on my true path when I got there, and showing me all the coolest places to hang.
To Donna the “Safety Lady” for making me feel important and recognizing my talents.
To Emily for being a bad ass zookeeper, and for helping to make my time at Zoo Miami so special.
To Rene for being a true and kind friend, and for always making me feel like a prince.