I Promised God is a true, human-interest story. It

deals with a family's anguished unyielding fight to save a son from the

worst that life can deal us. Yet it is also a story of survival. My

hope, as the author and mother of a courageous son, whose life was lost

for two decades, is that in sharing our family's story with others, they

might find strength in it for their own lives.

The story covers the complex environment of my oldest son's early

years, his developing character of kindness and positive influence,

strikingly evident until he reaches adolescence, when his promising

young life is suddenly dead-ended by circumstances beyond his

understanding or control. The reason for writing this story is to

fulfill a promise I made to God at a dark, seemingly hopeless moment. It

is my desire that by revealing an intimate chronicle of our lives, I

might reach someone who is suffering and in need of the means that

helped me maintain the emotional, intellectual and physical energy to

cope with prolonged disaster.

And through the story, I hope to send the reader a personal message.

Even if you are often alone, desperately trying to help your loved one,

find and indulge in activities that sooth you and give you peace. You

will regenerate strength to persevere for your loved one and help other

family members meet their needs as well. I believe that God gave us each

other, so that no one need ever walk or cry alone.