![\"Copy](\"http:\/\/www.crystalmyerswrites.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/02\/Copy-of-HIDDEN-FIGURES.jpg\")
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Hidden Figure: Sandra Braxton<\/strong><\/p>\n Crystal: What is the Sandra Braxton story?<\/strong><\/p>\n Sandra: I am the first girl in a family of 4 kids (the knee baby) born in Rocky Mount, North Carolina.\u00a0 My family was one of modest means. My fondest memories were of playing double dutch, hop scotch and dodge ball.\u00a0 After graduating high school with honors, I went into the United States Air Force as a Medical Administration Specialist.\u00a0 I celebrated my 21st<\/sup> birthday in Saudi Arabia in the Desert Storm Conflict.\u00a0 I spent the next 14 years of my life serving our country.\u00a0 While in the Air Force, I met and married Octavian.\u00a0 We have been married for 18 years.\u00a0 I have obtained my Bachelor\u2019s Degree in Information Technology, my Master\u2019s Degree in Business Administration and Certification in Project Management.\u00a0 I own a Travel Agency and have co-written a book with Octavian about our infertility journey entitled \u201cWhy Not Us\u201d.<\/em><\/p>\n Crystal:<\/strong> How do you use your story to empower others?<\/strong><\/p>\n Sandra: <\/strong>I utilized my infertility journey as an empowerment tool for all people because every aspect of my struggle is relatable to every one\u2019s test.\u00a0 It is a reminder that all of us have encountered some form of pain in our life that can be transformed into a testimony and shared with another person to enhance their time on this earth.\u00a0 I believe that it is our responsibility to throw a shawl over the puddle to keep the next person from getting their shoes wet.<\/em><\/p>\n Crystal: How do you define philanthropy?<\/strong><\/p>\n Sandra: <\/strong>Philanthropy is a multifaceted word.\u00a0 It can be shown in love, in support, in education, in showing up and in giving back of yourself.\u00a0 I have been giving back to my Community for many years.\u00a0 I have proudly mentored high school girls with Destiny\u2019s Daughters of Promise, serve as co-chair the Women of AT&T MyATT Committee where we spread the word about the dangers of distracted driving to high schools and colleges in our community, and am active in Women Veteran Organizations.<\/em><\/p>\n Crystal: Why did you begin speaking to women about infertility?<\/strong><\/p>\n Sandra:<\/strong> It wasn\u2019t my choice to speak out. As a matter of fact, I was reluctant to share my story because like most, I didn\u2019t want others to know the intimate facts of my life.\u00a0 What I have come to realize is that my speaking out is helping people and has hurt me in the least bit. I ask myself, \u201cIf not me, who?\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n Crystal: As a black woman, do you believe our community hides infertility? If so, why?<\/strong><\/p>\n Sandra: <\/strong>Yes, most definitely.\u00a0 For the reasons I stated in my previous answer.\u00a0 We feel as though it is a very intimate subject. We don\u2019t want anyone to know we are dealing with it because it makes us feel deficient in some way.\u00a0 My goal is to empower women so that they will scream it from the roof tops and strip the shame away because there is no reason for you to feel less than.\u00a0 It does not define you.\u00a0 You are freakin\u2019 fabulous, boo!<\/em><\/p>\n Crystal: How does your husband collaborate with you in telling your story of infertility?<\/strong><\/p>\n Sandra:<\/strong> Our story is not so different than most, but it is in the fact that it isn\u2019t told like most.\u00a0 We both had issues that contributed to our infertility journey.\u00a0 The fact of the matter is that men suffer from infertility as much as women, but they are not diagnosed because they don\u2019t go to the doctor for testing.\u00a0 So Octavian is a vital piece of our puzzle because he is able to speak to his issues and men can relate.\u00a0 It is very necessary.<\/p>\n Crystal: Have you encountered couples dealing with the same issues? <\/strong><\/p>\n Sandra: <\/strong>Yes, yes and yes.\u00a0 After we wrote our book, \u201cWhy Not Us\u201d, we thought we had gotten our story out and we were done right\u2026WRONG!\u00a0 That is when the phone began to ring, the Facebook inbox messages began to come in, and the email messages began to come in.\u00a0 We realized that this was much bigger than just a book. So, we created our Fertility Support Community.<\/em><\/p>\n Crystal: Did you know the Hidden Figures story prior to the movie?<\/strong><\/p>\n Sandra: <\/strong>No, I didn\u2019t but I am not surprised.\u00a0 There are so many of us working behind the scenes in everyday life.\u00a0 I see them in all walks of life.\u00a0 I meet them at every turn and it makes me proud to be one.\u00a0 Someone that is actively making a difference in the lives of many.<\/em><\/p>\n Crystal: Who is your Hidden Figure\/mentor?<\/strong><\/p>\n Sandra: <\/strong>The first person that immediately comes to mind is Donna Newman-Robinson.\u00a0 She has positively affected my life in multiple ways.\u00a0 She didn\u2019t know that she gave me the idea to write our book, \u201cWhy Not Us\u201d.\u00a0 She shares valuable information with no strings attached at every turn which has helped my businesses.\u00a0 Some would say we met by chance, but I would say it was a God thing.\u00a0 People are put in your path for a reason.\u00a0 I truly believe that.\u00a0 I\u2019m thankful for her crossing my path.<\/em><\/p>\n Crystal: Michelle Obama has a quote, \u201cSuccess isn\u2019t about how much money you make, it\u2019s about the difference you make in people\u2019s lives.\u201d What does that quote mean to you?<\/strong><\/p>\n Sandra:<\/strong> That quote means that we are all here on this earth to help each other, point blank.\u00a0 Once you figure that out, the happiness from it is more than obtaining any earthly possession.<\/p>\n Crystal: What is your passion?<\/strong><\/p>\n Sandra:<\/strong> My passion is ensuring that no one feels alone in their infertility journey, which is what we are during in our Fertility Support Community. \u00a0We are sharing resources with couples that are having issues conceiving.\u00a0 Resources such as health and wellness experts, financial planning, mental health counseling, spiritual mentoring, registered nurses, etc. that can be utilized in the decision making process of their fertility planning.\u00a0 Octavian and I also offer our mentoring services.\u00a0 We are committed to filling the gap for others.<\/em><\/p>\n Crystal: Do you have a favorite quote?<\/strong><\/p>\n Sandra: <\/strong>My favorite quote is, \u201cIn the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends.\u201d – Martin Luther King, Jr.<\/em><\/p>\n Crystal: What is your favorite book?<\/strong><\/p>\n Sandra: <\/strong>My favorite Book is \u201cWhy Not Us\u201d co-written by Sandra M. & Octavian M. Braxton.\u00a0 The reason it is my favorite book is because it is our vulnerability in helping so many people and that makes my heart happy.<\/em><\/p>\n Crystal: What words of inspiration can you leave the audience?<\/strong><\/p>\n Sandra: <\/strong>I would like for everyone to realize that whatever it is that they are going through to just keep moving.\u00a0 If you are in the darkest hours now, the light is coming and guess what\u2026you just might be able to help someone else with what you learn while you are in your darkest times.\u00a0 Keep the faith.<\/em><\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Hidden Figure: Sandra Braxton Crystal: What is the Sandra Braxton story? Sandra: I am the first girl in a family of 4 kids (the knee baby) born in Rocky Mount, North Carolina.\u00a0 My family was one of modest means. My fondest memories were of playing double dutch, hop scotch and dodge ball.\u00a0 After graduating high […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[1],"tags":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.crystalmyerswrites.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/545"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.crystalmyerswrites.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.crystalmyerswrites.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.crystalmyerswrites.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.crystalmyerswrites.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=545"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"http:\/\/www.crystalmyerswrites.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/545\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":548,"href":"http:\/\/www.crystalmyerswrites.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/545\/revisions\/548"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.crystalmyerswrites.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=545"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.crystalmyerswrites.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=545"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.crystalmyerswrites.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=545"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}