Posted by ronessa m. strickland (12.77.18.97) on March 04, 2000 at 20:10:23:
In Reply to: www.oprah.com Oprah's website posted by Don M. on September 15, 1998 at 15:37:47:
Dear Oprah,
My name is Ronessa Strickland and first of
all it is my pleasure to have you listen to my
letter. I am only 23 years old but I have been a
dedicated fan of yours for many years now.
I am writing you to try and get a point
across to as many people as I can about the
struggles across America for people in poverty.
I would like to know if you'd consider doing a
show that will help the poor find help and give
them some type of guidance. I am all too
familiar with poverty.
I am writing this to you from the motel
room in which I stay in with my two children
and my fiance. I have gone back to school to try
and make things better for all of us but the
consequenses of being poor are about to force me
to have to quit. This may sound puzzling to you
but there have been days that I have missed
school because there was no gas in the car
and I had to choose between having dinner
or getting gas to go into the car. I also
work for minimum wage at the local health
department through the work- study program
at school. I make about $200.00 a month
at this job. My fiance, bless his heart, works
full time on the midnight shift. When he gets home
he doesn't get to go to sleep because it is then
time for me to go to school. We work hard and
we have nothing to show for it. I would just
like for you to have a show that may open
some eyes and some hearts to the realization
of poverty in our country. I have never done
any drugs. I don't drink. I have goals and
I still believe that I have a future. I must
make things better for everyone's children that
are in my position. The poeple around my town
would probably be shocked if I told them that
I was in this predicament. My family and I dress
decently and we are clean. When the children get
gifts I take very good care of them so they will
last. I want to find a way to help myself and
to help others. Neither my children or anyone
else's children deserve this type of life. My big
dream is to start a program to help everyone
that will actually work. Please help all of us.
Nesh