Let me give you a peek into my life. I’m a family woman—wife, mom, grandma, and proud dog mom—who’s a free spirit and loves calling her own shots. That realization hit me after trying out a bunch of different jobs over the years.

I’ve been everything from a convenience store clerk and hospice helper to a waitress and bartender. Oh, and I once got to work as Ted Nugent’s Administrative Assistant—talk about a wild ride! My career has taken me from the largest male prison in Michigan, where I was Deputy Warden’s secretary, to crunching numbers as a payroll accountant for a construction firm that made $2 million look small. I’ve managed my own daycare with a waiting list longer than my arm, and I’ve also written stories as a staff writer for the Marshall Chronicle.

After going back to school and earning a master’s in psychology, I spent about 20 years running a counseling practice, mainly helping in foster care, adoptions, and some pretty heavy stuff like abuse and assault cases. 

Through all this, writing has been my steady sidekick—poems, stories, paranormal tales, thrillers, children’s books—you name it. It all started in third grade with Mrs. Fierke at Harrington Elementary in Albion, Michigan. She once told me, “Little Miss Peggy, you can achieve anything you aim for,” and honestly, those words stuck with me more than most family dinners.

Thanks to Mrs. Fierke, I’ve always believed in chasing dreams. When I closed my practice, I jumped into leadership roles—first as interim President of the Greater Albion Chamber of Commerce & Visitors Bureau, then as an Office Administrator at the Community Foundation in Athens. Still, my heart was rooted in writing and sharing what I love through seminars and workshops.

Now, at 63, I’m still full throttle, doing what I love. My message? Don’t let fear or anything else stop you from chasing your dreams. Life’s too short not to pursue what makes your heart sing.

My varied career has turned me into a jack-of-all-trades—and a connoisseur of life’s ups and downs. I like to call myself a “Maverick,” blazing my own trail with an independent spirit.

Whether you’ve spent decades doing the same thing or jumping from one thing to another, what really matters is the joy and fulfillment in your work. I’m grateful for all my different paths—they’ve helped shape the person I am today, and I’ve loved every messy, beautiful minute of it.