About Debbie

What sets my journey apart was what I decided to do with it (eventually)...

My journey to where I am now was anything but a straight line. In fact, it was filled with unexpected twists and turns... But isn't that true for almost everyone?

My unique and a tad bit challenging health journey started by age 9. I really have no idea when it actually started. We just found out when I was 9.

More about that journey in a bit.

But where did the mission of Aging Vibrantly come from?

I had wonderful parents. That's the bottom line. My dad was 41 and my mom 35 when I was born. So, I always had older parents than most of my friends. Fast forward 35 years, I was 35 , Mom was 70 and Dad was 76. Health issues for them, especially Mom, had already begun. Dad was doing great and then he wasn't. Macular Degeneration began its fairly quick march for him at 77. He never wore glasses, not even readers and then, near blindness in one eye in about 8 weeks from diagnosis and eventual advanced sight impairment if not near blindness in the next 8 years in his other eye. Add in the Parkinson's Disease with Dementia for Dad, heart valve replacement and a slew of other things for Mom and, well, the reality of caring for parents hit home. In reality, my sister shouldered just about all of the care for many years, while I moved around the country supporting a Navy husband and raising my kids. When we returned to Maryland in 2005, Dad was 81 and Mom was 75.

I knew from my 20's that I had a call to serve Jesus. What that call would actually look like remained a mystery for quite a while. I served in various capacities and ministries at the churches I attended as we moved around the country. In particular, one ministry, Stephen Ministry, spoke to my heart. It is a lay-person ministry where trained individuals walk alongside those struggling with life's common challenges (loss of a loved one, illness, divorce, loss of a job, etc.) and provide much needed, confidential, Christian support. It has had a tremendous impact on my life and was the beginning of the path to ordained ministry. The combination of experiencing the challenges of caring for aging parents and Stephen Ministry, led me to focus my attention on Older Adult Ministry.

The health challenges that I have experienced and those of my parents, the unknown of caring for older adults, the ways that I was let down by the allopathic medical system, or maybe how it has just fell short, (I am not saying intentionally), and a variety of life experiences have led me to where I am today. Where is that?

On a mission to empower Older Adults to thrive in community successfully, by integrating whole-person wellness through Christian values and natural health practices, providing a vibrant, supportive community, for spiritual growth, physical health, and emotional well-being.

What happened when I was 9? Here you go...

In 1976 no one really knew much about autoimmunity. One day my mom discovered a huge lump at the front of my neck. I was in 4th grade. After a fairly successful 1st to 3rd grade existence, learning well, having fun, and making friends, I all but slept through Fourth Grade. In the Spring of that year, we found out I had a severely hyperactive thyroid. I lost weight, slept all of the time, and had a resting heart rate in the 120's.

The confusion was compounded by a severe allergic reaction to penicillin. With a case of strep throat, I ended up in the hospital for a week completely unable to walk. Thankfully, an intern suggested taking me off of penicillin rather than continuing to increase the dose to fight off this mysterious illness. Voila! By the next day I could walk! Looking back, Honestly, I think the joint pain began then, and had really never stopped.

Little did we know that this was the beginning of a journey that would lead to life-long medication, a thyroid removal at 23, a self-discovered Celiac diagnosis at 44, another surgery, life-long pain, a difficult metabolism, and so very much more.

So, yes, this my story, at least a big part of it.

This is what happened. Now, what happens next?

It's time to turn this Test into a Testimony and this Mess into a Message.

Join in. You do not need to start from scratch. Take what I have learned, meet the experts that I have learned from, use it, share it, and Age Vibrantly, especially as we move past 55!

Together, let's

Love Jesus, Learn the Ways & Benefits of Living More Naturally,

and Thrive in Community!

What you might like to know about Debbie

Global Methodist Church (Ordained Deacon, May 2024)

Founded Winter Grace Senior Ministries, Inc, (2017 to Present)

Wesley Theological Seminary, (Master of Theological Seminary) May 2016

Board Certified Functional Wellness Coach (Since 2020)

Certified Revelation Wellness Instructor (Since 2019)

Certified Wellness Revelation Facilitator (Since 2019)