Mother of five children becomes passionate teacher and writer
Susan Jennings was born in England, the only child of a Canadian/English mother and English father; her childhood was that of a normal suburban family. After high school she studied Home Economics before marrying a medical doctor and settling down to her dream life of keeping house, raising children and living ‘happily ever after’. This was not to be; abuse, drugs and alcohol would shatter that dream on many occasions. The family would move from place to place searching for a solution and finally in 1970 settling in Ottawa, Canada where the dream turned into a nightmare. By 1977 Susan was abandoned by her husband and was faced with raising five children alone, in a time when divorce and single parenthood was unusual and not accepted by society in general. Having not worked out of the home for 16 years finding suitable work was a challenge. Susan rose to this challenge and over the years worked as a real estate agent followed by customer service and sales representative positions, selling everything from ‘soup to nuts’, just to keep food on the table. After experiencing being ‘laid off’ from a large multinational corporation, (as many good people did in the mid ’90’s) Susan decided to pursue her PASSION for teaching adults. She studied for and achieved the Certificate for Teaching Adults and now conducts seminars and workshops where she found her second passion for writing.
Today Susan still lives in Ottawa with her small dog Trixie, the children are all adults with their own families, and at last count there were seven grandchildren, five boys and two girls. Susan is now a published author spending most of her time promoting her book Save Some for Me, Inspiration for single mothers and the people who love them, as well as speaking to various groups. By telling her very personal story Susan hopes she can be an inspiration to all women young or not so young, single moms, abused women and to those children who were raised in single parent homes. Susan’s goal is to be an inspiration and to make a difference in all of their lives.
What can we learn from Susan’s story?
Despite one’s challenges and background, it is possible to find the strength to rebound with courage and passion and the drive to make a difference in the world.