"It is by the grace of God that I can stand here - a strong woman that has faced many trials and tribulations.

I am a mother and a grandmother. God had to take me through so much pain and sadness to bring me to where I am today. I was a teacher by profession. It has always been my passion to work with children. God had other plans in store for me. In order to take me to the place that He wanted me to be I had to experience hurt.

I had a son who was also a teacher at a school not far from where I was teaching. We used to spend breaks together or he would pop into my class just to say hello. We had a very close mother/son relationship. God saw that in order for me to become a mother to many, He was going to have to take away something or someone special from my life and He took my son.

He was shot to death by his own best friend. I could not believe that the anchor in my life was gone. My whole world fell apart. I was angry at everyone and everything. I decided to resign from my school. This was my second hurt. I had to close another door in my life. I remained in my sadness and this became a part of my life until a friend introduced me to the SOS Children's Village in Ennerdale.

The village was looking for mothers to look after the children at the village. When I heard the stories they filled me with so much sorrow that I fell in love with them and became an SOS mother.

The children have helped me to overcome my sadness and have filled the emptiness in my life. I now have a home and a family of ten children. As much as I have helped them they have also helped me. We are now a family that have grown in love, respect and have found security in each other.

It is an awesome feeling to take a child that has had so much brokenness in life. That has known pain, suffering and heartache and to see that child smile with confidence knowing that he or she has been taught values of trust and commitment, and that they have enough courage to take on whatever the world throws at them."