Life is ten percent what happens to me and ninety percent how I react to it. -Charles R. Swindoll
Barbara Colvin, MSCP, lost her family not once, but twice. Orphaned at fourteen, Colvin found new security and love with her husband. Together they had two beautiful sons. Colvin's happiness seemed secure, until three separate tragedies robbed her of everything.
First, vehicular manslaughter took her sixteen-year-old son. Her husband of thirty-two years died the victim of violent crime, and finally, in 1993, she lost her oldest son to AIDS. Colvin was orphaned a second time.
Such all-encompassing tragedy can be emotionally paralyzing. Colvin chose to fight back. Combining her faith with examples of strength from her family, Colvin succeeded in turning grief into gratitude and pain into positive action.
Colvin discovered that prayer alone is not enough; you must be willing to recognize God's grace when it enters your life and use its presence to move in a proactive direction.
In the Shelter of the Oak recounts Colvin's determined journey toward healing, proving that what life throws at us is less important than how we respond to it.
About the Author: Barbara Colvin, MSCP, earned her BA in organizational communication in 1998 from Rollins College in Winter Park, Florida. In 2000 she received a master's degree in counseling and psychology from Troy University, also in Winter Park.
Colvin's tale of loss and recovery has been featured in Profiles in Character by Jeb Bush and Brian Yablonski, Orlando Magazine's "Meet Central Florida's 25 Most Intriguing Personalities," and many local newspaper articles. While serving as a victim's rights advocate, she was interviewed by radio and television stations across Florida.
In 1996, Colvin was honored by the Victim Services Coalition of Orange and Osceola counties for her outstanding commitment to victims of crime.
Colvin lives in Fairhope, Alabama, with her second husband Ed and their blended, three-dog family. She is available as a speaker to share her story, and can be reached at myjourneytoo@yahoo.com .
