On December 6, 2014, Maria Coadys only son, Thomas, died unexpectedly after a tragic motorcycle accident left him with irreversible brain injuries. The passenger on his bike also died of similar injuries. He was 22 years old and a promising pre-medicine Biology major at the university where Maria worked as a professor. Thomas was her closest ally, voice of reason, and teacher of life. Most days, Maria found it impossible to believe that Thomas was gone. Her life became divided into two parts: before Thomas died and after Thomas died. As she struggled through shock, anguish, heartbreak, and deep despair, Maria tried to make sense of her world. She wondered how other parents dealt with their grief and how life could go on without her son in it. This is Marias unique story. It is about what she experienced the first year after the loss of her son, and the ways that she tried to cope, and the strategies she used to survive. This is a story that offers affirmation and hope to parents who have faced a similar loss, and insight to those who seek to understand the loss of a child.

Nine-year-old Luisa Maria thought she was dreaming when she heard her father whisper very softly and calmly, "Honey, get up, stay low, and do not say a word." He held her hand and, in a crouched position, led her to the top of the stairs where she saw her mother holding Luisa Maria's newborn brother. Her twelve-year-old brother was kneeling next to her mother. She thought this was not the way she would usually wake up every morning. Where was the unique sound of the tocororo bird letting her know that it was a brand-new day? Instead, she woke up listening to whispers, sounds of bombs going off, and faces full of fear. What is going on? Luisa Maria thought to herself. She saw her family all gathered by the large wooden mahogany door that guided the entrance to the grand front balcony of their home located in the suburb of Alturas de Belen, the Heights of Bethlehem, which was just outside Marianao, Cuba. Maria Luisa asked, "Where am I?" She thought in her semi-asleep state. She did not know what was happening. Was it real or all part of a terrible nightmare? She became frightened. It was an overwhelming fear, one that she had never experienced before in her life. It was not the fear that she had when her older brother would play tricks or pranks on her. It was not the fear she experienced when she would hear her Aunt Isabel's ghost stories from the old days. It was not the fear of the "crazy" woman that would walk the streets, throwing stones at houses. It was not even the fear caused by the famous "El Caballero de Paris," the Count of Paris, a very well-known harmless transient that roamed the streets of Havana. This time it was different. This fear was one that left her speechless. For it was more than fear; it was sheer terror. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ The First Day Of Many recounts the journey of a young Cuban girl coming to America and the trials and tribulations she endured along the way to reunite with her family in a foreign land which came to be known as "home" for them

Many of Ellen's intimate, playful stories will make you laugh. Her natural exuberance and fascination with life is contagious. She rivaled her grandmother's catering career with a love of cooking, fine foods, and gluttony. Her "Brownie" camera pictures led her collecting enough photographs to fill this book (and many others.) Stories of her love of travel will make you want to hop on a plane. Her passions (chocolate, sex, cats, the arts, etc.) may become your temptations. Even her most painful experiences - the deaths of her beloved aunt and brother, her infertility, and the loss of her business gave her strength. Ellen's unique perspective will encourage you to value your own precious memories. Ellen M. Levy, B.S., M.A., C.A.G.S., grew up in Newton, Massachusetts. She has worked in non-profit management for over 30 years. This is her first full-length book.

The Projects: Life and Times in Marble Hill brings to life the detailed story of author Tony Licchi Jr.'s youth in this Bronx neighborhood during the fifties and sixties. Sharing events both large and small, it's a story filled with long-lasting friendships and relationships. This memoir narrates stories about the people, places, and events in the Marble Hill projects from the age of seven until he married and left home. Licchi describes the pushcart man outside of school selling jellied apples on a stick and shaved ice in a cup; the seltzer man delivering seltzer bottles with chocolate syrup; and the games the children played such as Johnny on the pony, hide-and-seek, and ring-a-leeveo. Setting his experiences against the backdrop of the times while referencing current and historical events, and music and popular culture, The Projects: Life and Times in Marble Hill represents a unique period in Licchi's life. It encompasses both happy and sad experiences and brings forth nostalgic memories of a first date, the first kiss, dances, and fun times in the good old days.

Clovis Hartford was your average, run-of-the-mill, middle aged woman. She had been married to the same man for more than three decades and had four grown children. One day on her lunch hour, she witnessed the murder of six people. She could identify the shooters. Her entire life was changed as it was determined, after she testified at the trial of one of the shooters, she should enter the Federal Witness Protection Program. For reasons unknown at the time, her husband Harry refused to enter the program with her. She would either not testify or go alone. Clovis had a strong sense of justice and testified. A year later she learns why Harry wouldn't accompany her in what could be the adventure of a lifetime. She was alone for the first time in more than thirty years. A new name, a new town, no friends...only a US Marshal to call on when she thought she would fail as Evelyn Beale. She found a job as an administrative assistant and nearly blundered with her name at the interview. She recovered the near goof and was hired. This book takes Eve, as she prefers to be called, through the first few years of her experiences as someone new. Things happen to her that, in other circumstances, would be taken as “stuff happens”. But as a Witness Protection person these things lead to considerable worry that the people from whom she's being protected may have located her. She gradually makes friends and puts together a decent life.

In a Heartbeat documents a tale of a grief journey like no other concerning the fatal vehicular accident that took the life of a mother and wife while she was on her way to work to the horror, challenges, and thoughts experienced by her husband as he navigated through his new life without her. This sudden unexpected death of his spouse caused by a distracted driver shocked family, friends, and the community to the core. Follow his path of uncertainty as the author begins to cope with the loss of his soul mate through time and ask questions that there are no answers to. In a Heartbeat follows a grief time line through heartache and sorrow that began more than a decade ago. The author discusses topics that include choices, risks, regrets, triggers, signs, and resilience. He also provides insight through the sharing of actual entries from his personal journal while experiencing the grieving process. In a Heartbeat details the companionship and support of his wife's dog, Hal, that comforted and consoled him throughout his life without her. After years of therapy, support groups, and multiple moves, the author was grateful that Hal was present to help him through choices made and risks taken in an attempt to move forward. As time moved on, another painful loss plummets him into a downward spiral of rekindling grief. The author begins a second grief journey requiring additional help and support to pull him through this new reality that he must acknowledge and accept as he continues on with his life. In a Heartbeat: A Tale of Reflection, Faith, Hope, and Resilience explains the adversity one man faced after losing the love of his life. Relying on faith and hope, he is guided toward survival through self-discovery. While praying and hoping for a positive life change, the author searches for comfort, peace, and grace in his new beginning of life's journey and realizes that the only way to move forward was through prayer, forgiveness, and helping others.