Thank You To Our Guest Speaker Today: Barbara Bartocci

Motivational speaker, author and spiritual life coach  Author of nine inspirational books.  Frequently published in such popular national magazines as Good Housekeeping, Readers  Digest, Family Circle, Woman’s Day, Self, Glamour, and many others.  Anthologized in four Chicken Soup for the Soul books.  Former managing editor, Hallmark Cards.  President of an award-winning advertising/public relations firmfor ten years.  Business trainer throughout North America for National Seminars &Padgett Thompson  and American Management Association.

The Day Life Changed Forever In my twenties, I was happily married to a Navy fighter pilot; a stay-at-home mom of three small children.  When John’s plane went down over Vietnam, my life--and my children’s lives–changed forever. Widowed at 29, I went back to college, earned a Master’s Degree in Creative Writing, and moved my little family from San Diego to Kansas City to work for Hallmark.

Unexpected Answers Frankly, those were difficult years. But even in dark moments, I discovered that God provides grace. I began writing and speaking about how to stay positive and faith-filled in the face of life-altering change. I have experienced the death of a spouse, mid-life divorce, children’s  needs, losing a job, providing care to older parents, parents’ deaths, and a serious personal illness (which, thankfully, healed). I feel a deep empathy for others’ life transitions.  It has influenced my writing and speaking and has enabled me to offer individual life coaching.  Life's Joys I have surely had as many joys as tribulations. One is long-distance bicycling. Another is grandchildren. What a thrill when my grandson Jake wrote an essay for his sixth grade class and titled it,  “My seminar-giving, spiritual-writing, bicycle-riding, super-Grammy."  Now Who could ask for a better endorsement than that?