Today we’d like to introduce you to Pearl Roziers.
Hi Pearl, so excited to have you with us today. What can you tell us about your story?
I am a retired educator, wife, mother and child of God. I was reared in a small rural Florida community that I believed gave me everything I needed to live a productive life. I say believed because up until December 1, 2015, I would consider my life to have been perfect. December, 2015 changed everything. On that day, neither all of my education, my upbringing, my top-level administrative position, nor my six-figure income could prepare me for what I had to face. On December 1, 2015, I received a call that my son, my only child, was deceased. My story began that day. With three small words, “Pearl, he’s gone,” everything around me changed. I had to find a way to girt my loins and muster up enough courage to live despite the pain. I had to face my grief, walk the journey of loss and move from the tragedy of death to the triumph of life.
I’m sure you wouldn’t say it’s been obstacle free, but so far would you say the journey have been a fairly smooth road?
No, the journey has not been smooth. For a mother that lost a child, to know that you will wake up each morning and not be able to say hello to your beloved child is an unbearable pain. You make it through the day only to realize that you can not say good night. The pain can be a circle of hopelessness. The struggles of living through the memories, the missed birthdays, the empty chair on special holidays, and the evitable visits to the cemetery are some of the struggles that will forever keep the struggles in the present. They never go away, but they can not consume you. I have learned to live through the struggles by facing them. Facing them head on. Walking through the denial, the bargaining, the anger, the depression, the truth and finally, the acceptance. Yes, there are times when I had to take pit-stops on the journey, but never staying there. I say I was there renting spaces in the grief process until I could afford to move into a more permanent dwelling. Facing the ITs of my journey forced me to move into a new dwelling so that I could live.
Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
I am a retired educator that spent 36 years serving the students of Duval County Public Schools in Jacksonville, Florida. I began my career as a Speech-Language Pathologist and retired as an Assistant Superintendent. After retirement, my husband and I launched the Mitch22 Foundation in honor of our beloved son. This Foundation is built on the premise of continuing the legacy of giving that our son started.
Using Service, Scholarship, Sponsorship and Support, the Foundation seeks to advocate for families of deserving youths who continue to live life with a smile despite their obstacles. My proudest moments of life have come at the lowest points on my journey. Being a mother that lost a child, my greatest desire was to provide other mothers with support during their struggle. To give them a sense of purpose and strength, the Foundation hosts an annual Pearls For Pearls Mothers Day Luncheon. This luncheon affords mothers the to opportunity to come together on the Saturday before mother’s day and bond with each other. Each mother receives a catered lunch and a special gift of pearls. The word that I believe sets me apart from others is my BRAVERY. I coined this word as the word for mothers that have lost children. For children that have lost their parents, they are called orphans. For married couples that have lost a spouse, they are called widows and widowers. But there are no word for the mother that lost a child. Nothing describes us better than the word BRAVE.
Realizing that women face many obstacles other than grief and loss, I became committed to finding ways to support women no matter their struggles. With this commitment, I penned my first book, FACE IT: Life’s a Journey, A Memoir of Triumph After Loss. This book shares the story of not just my pain, but the journey of one brave woman struggling with divorce and another having to accept the life altering illness of her mother as an only child. The success of FACE IT, led to the creation of an accompanying reflection journal and finally to my most recent publication, Women of Bravery, Balancing the Scales of Life, Love and Liberation. An anthology featuring 12 phenomenal authors sharing their testimonies, this book covers every situation or struggle a woman will face. From a little girl’s dreams of growing up, to understanding how love and the love cycle affects who a woman selects in relationships to understanding what it takes to BOSS Up and live in your full intended purpose.
Are there any important lessons you’ve learned that you can share with us?
Through this journey, I have learned patience and selflessness. To move through this journey, I had to be patient. I had to acknowledge my pain, accept it and wait for my healing. I learned selflessness because I had to understand my pain was not just for me. If it was going to help someone else and make their load a little lighter, I could not be selfish and keep it for myself. I had to release my fears and share it. I knew sharing would mean bringing back up the painful memories, but if it was going to make my sister’s journey easier, it was worth it. Releasing my patience and my selflessness not only allowed me to help others. It ultimately propelled me into a new life.
Contact Info:
- Email: MitchR22@outlook.com
- Website: www.Mitch22.org
- Facebook: Mitch22 Foundation
