Born and raised in Roxbury, Boston,  Massachusetts to a single mother who raised me and 3 older siblings. My father was absent from our lives from the start. She hustled as a cleaning lady to provide for my brothers and me. 

 

              I became exposed to the street life at the age of 13, walking outside my apartment and seeing it first hand. Having older brothers, I would find guns and drugs in their room. At the age of 14 I discovered the street life firsthand and the brotherhood that went with it. The money, flashy clothes, cars along with drugs were enough to peak my interest. I didn't realize the trouble and the path I would set myself up for. At the age of 15 I started selling drugs on the street and became addicted to the lifestyle, especially the quick money I was making. At the age of 16 I dropped out of high school. The fast life came to an end quickly when I was arrested and served two months at the Juvenile Detention Center and another 4 1/2 months in a halfway house.

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          When I turned 18 I was released, but I went right back to the streets, selling drugs. But this time I was using them. My drug of choice, heroin. I didn't learn my lesson before and I needed to make a quick dollar. This is all I knew, so I went back to the streets where it was a familiar environment. That didn't last long because at the age of 19 I went right back to jail, but this time, I did a 3 year bid. At the age of 22 I was finally released and had no choice but to clean up my act, not only for myself, but for my newborn daughter. I kept it clean, out of trouble and off the streets for approximately 3 years. In 2006 I was back to my old ways, running the streets again. The only difference this time was that I wasn't just using drugs, I was robbing banks. 14 banks to be exact. My "luck" eventually ran out, and I was incarcerated and sentenced to 10 years in Federal Prison. I had 14 charges against me and two separate sentencings. During my time in prison I got clean from heroin, received my GED, got an apprenticeship in Culinary Arts, started writing poetry and attended anger management and drug classes.

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               On December 24, 2014 (Christmas Eve), I was released from jail after serving 8.5 years. I was determined to do whatever it took to stay off the drugs and not go back to that lifestyle that consumed me since I was 13 years old. I was clean and ready to make some power moves for myself. I moved outside of Boston, landed a job as a dishwasher and eventually made my way up to main cook. Around 2015, I decided to get my CDL license and started working for a party rental company for a few months. I knew I was in a good place mentally and was ready for the next chapter in my life. Blessed, I got accepted to work for Benevento Cement Company as a cement truck driver. They gave me a chance to better myself and didn’t hold my past against me. This August, I will be with Benevento for 6 years. Since then, I have also worked security for Rob Gronk, Cisco Brewers, Boston Man Magazine and Autism Awareness.

 

                About 2 years ago (2019) I started a group on Facebook called “Positive Juice Poet” that now has over 600 members. I created this group to spread the positive word and have an outlet for others to come to when they need uplifting. It was a great platform for me to do what I love best, Motivational Speaking. Unfortunately, in 2020 we were hit with the pandemic and found a group on Facebook called “Quarantine Karaoke”. People from all over the world began to join this group and share their love for music. There is where I really became invested in motivational speaking. I would go live and talk to people, tell them my story in hopes that my story would help another person. Nearly a year later, I have gained over 2500 followers. I’ve received hundreds of messages of people sharing their story and asking me how I was able to turn my life around for the better. This platform allowed me to also share my story on iHeart Radio – Tough as Nails with Cindy Stompo.

 

                My journey has been rough but I want to show kids and young adults that they are not alone, if they have a dream that they can fulfill it with the right attitude. To show them that you can turn your life around, you can be anything you desire to be as long as you put in the work. These kids are our future and I want them to make a difference in this world.