Letitia Collins, Creator/Author

I am Letitia Collins, a native New Yorker who moved to Southern California in 1978.  I am the proud mother of a beautiful daughter and I believe that being a parent has been my single greatest accomplishment.  And by that, I  mean that we both made it out alive!

My very first job as a young girl was at a small family owned dry-cleaner in the heart of the South Bronx.  I would come to learn many years later that the business was a “front” for a number running scheme.  Even back then, I was covered by grace.  My next job, many years later, as an audio-visual clerk at the Palm Springs Public Library is where I was blessed with the opportunity to learn the basic skills that would carry me through to greater employment opportunities throughout my working career.  (Thank you Nancy Watt and Henrietta Robinson)  In 2001, I left the Coachella Valley and headed west to Orange and Los Angeles counties where I lived and worked until 2010.

September 11, 2010 is the date that my life drastically changed.  I was diagnosed with Ideopathic Transverse Myelitis, a rare  neuro-immune disorder that resulted in a non-traumatic spinal cord injury.   In less that 24 hours, I was transformed from a completely able-bodied person to a paraplegic person.   But that is a story for another time.

Life can change in an instant.  What becomes critical to our success in life is our ability to refocus and our ability to adapt to change.  In my journey to recovery, I have and continue to meet the most amazing people who are creating their very own roadmap to success regardless of their circumstance.  I hear stories of greatness that move my spirit and make me want to be more than I am and do more than I can even imagine doing.   It is for this reason alone that I have created this platform called Refocused Lives.  I want to share with you, the stories of the people that move me to action, inspire me to push past my own limits and believe beyond my boundaries.  I know without a doubt that they will do the same for you.