I was born on July 7, 1946; an original baby boomer. My mother gave birth to me in Lewiston, Idaho. Just before my sixth birthday, my mother, father, little brother, John, my maternal grandparents, and my mother’s youngest brother moved to Los Angeles, because that’s where the jobs were. Several years later, my mother and father divorced. My mother rented a small apartment very near my grandparent’s home in West Los Angeles. My mother was a single parent, and therefore a working mom. My grandparents and my uncle were role models and helped raise my brother and me. We were a Catholic family. Besides going to church every Sunday, we went to “novena” on Wednesdays, and every celebration associated with Christmas and Easter. I went to ‘confession’ every week. From my grandfather I learned the most important things in my life: kindness, acceptance, respect for everyone in my life, a high moral standard, and a work ethic like no other. At the age of ten, I began an interest in politics. I di...