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Showing posts from July, 2017

What I Do As A Homeless Homeless Advocate

As it turns out, some of my most-read blog posts in recent months had to do with: why I'm homeless , my 80-year old mother having had her social security payments cut by $1,000 per month for 17 years because she adopted and the direct connection between DC Mayor "Mascara Muriel" Bowser shutting down homeless tent cities and her failing to create a sufficient amount of affordable housing (or anything that even comes close). My readers evidently like to read about my personal affairs and about local political issues for which they intuitively see the direct connection to their own lives and struggles. I've always tried to keep posts about myself to a minimum, realizing that "It's not about me" . Nonetheless, I'll indulge you yet again with an explanation of "What I Do As A Homeless Homeless Advocate" Though it may come as a surprise to many, I'm very self-critical. I think what has people confused in that respect is the fact that

Widow (80) & Mother of 37 Denied Social Security for 17 Years Because She Adopted -- Doesn't Regret Choice

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************************************************************************ You read the title correctly.  My mother, Joanne Elizabeth  (Tedesco)  Sheptock and my Father, Rudolph Peter Sheptock, Sr  (who never changed "Sr" to "I" when my nephew was born),  raised 37 children.  They had seven biological children and  adopted 30 . My brother Jonathan (whose first name is my middle name) passed away in 2007 as my eldest sister Mary Grace sat beside him in the hospital. In addition to 36 surviving sons ad daughters,  my mother has at least 46 grandchildren, 11 grandchildren and many sons- and daughters-in-law (me having asked most recently around Thanksgiving 2015). She spends her days keeping up with  over 100 people . Dad died on September 13th, 2000, with my older brother Robert having taken a leave of absence from his job at Shands Hospital in Gainesville, Florida to help care for Dad in his last days. It also helped that Mom is a retired nurse who also taugh