My Mom, Tough as Hell

Dear David, Marcus and Wizard

I would like to share with you The Never Quit Story of my mom, Pat Vaughan. My mom has been through a lot of challenges in her life. The challenges really began when I was seven months old and my dad died in a tragic boat accident on Lake Michigan. She went from being happily married to a widow with a newborn. She was completely devastated from my dad’s death but decided to put her focus on me and managed to get through it. I don’t know if she knew of her strength at the time, but looking back, we all see that’s where it began. At the age of 4 my mom met the second love of her life and remarried. Things were really great for a long time until my senior year of High School when she was diagnosed with breast cancer. The doctors felt hopeful that they caught it early enough but she still had rigorous treatment to get through. Even though this was an extremely scary time for us, she never showed weakness or had a victim mentality. She just accepted the situation for what it was and sucked it up. Still being there for my brother and I every day, making sure we had what we needed and always showed us a positive attitude. After successfully completing her cancer treatment, a social drinking habit turned into a more serious problem with alcohol. Alcoholism ran in the family but she kept it under control until then. This problem continued to grow until my step dad told her that they were heading down the wrong path and she needed to get sober for the sake of the marriage. This terrified her and she immediately turned to her strength and “fighter” mentality and checked into an outpatient rehab program. Half way through the program, my step dad decided to leave any way. This was absolutely devastating to her. The second love of her life just bailed. Here she was again at a major crossroads, continue with treatment, or turn back to alcohol and probably fall into a deep depression. She chose to fight and has not had a drop of alcohol since. Now, here she was at the age of 54, alone, with no career or plan for that matter. She had spent her life devoted to her husband and kids, never imagining that her dreams of growing old with this man would be completely shattered. Once again she chose not to play the victim and decided to start a career in real estate. The early years were very rough. She went from having a great income and a beautiful home to a small income and moving into a much smaller place. She had to downsize her living situation three more times after that and make uncomfortable sacrifices to make sure she could afford the things she needed. During all of this, she tried to maintain the best attitude possible. She surrounded herself with supportive people and still regularly attends AA meetings. Her persistence and courage have really begun to pay off. By 2016, she was listed as the number 6 agent out of 100 agents in her office. She has no team of people working for or with her. She has achieved this completely on her own. It has been so inspiring to watch her over the last 13 years grow as person and as a mom. We have never been closer. Each day she gets up and says a prayer to the Good Lord asking for the courage to be better. She never stops trying to be a better version of herself and improving her life. After all that she has been through, she could have given up on life and played the victim card. My mom knew deep in her soul that she has one shot at life and she was going to make the most of it. My wife and I are so proud her. Pat Vaughan is truly the definition of “Never Quit.” Thank you David, Marcus, and Wizard for all that you have done for this country. Thank you for this show. Please keep up the amazing work.

Sincerely,
Bill Vaughan

Author: Bill