#TheMotivatorsSeries: Am I a Fixer? By Alberta Lampkins

Am I a Fixer?
By Alberta Lampkins

I do enjoy putting into action my problem-solving skills and helping others to see the value of their lives. Maybe it’s a gift or a calling – whichever one it is, it has been of enormous help to my life. I have a built-in aspiration to be better and I like to inspire, encourage and support others to enjoy their journey in life and follow their dreams. I tend to live in the moment and be grateful for the splendor of each episode. Each new day gives us an opportunity to learn something new or do something different, why not invite others to share your faith and confidence that what God has done for one, he may do even better for you. No one can greatly drive you but you. However, enthusiasm is transmittable and I thrive on energizing people around me. My faith allows me to walk in the steps of optimism and see the world through a glass that is half full and not half empty.

I tend to believe that those we encounter in our day-to-day lives were meant to be there for some reason or another. Our lives are connected for a purpose and if it is not to uplift each other, then maybe it’s for us to learn a lesson and move on. Supporting other’s budding ambition leads right into guiding me towards my own personal discovery. I’m not cramped by societal standards and I tend to overlook flaws and look for the beauty in each person I meet. They may be the reflection of God he wants me to see. I’m grateful for a forgiving heart and a loving soul toward human kind.

My earliest mentors were my parents. I remember dancing and singing in front of the mirror as a girl and my father smiled. He said I sang and danced well, though I’m not so sure I was really in tune or in rhythm. But his smile and his words of encouragement made me feel like I could dance or sing. A brown girl from an urban neighborhood in Buffalo, New York could be whatever she wanted to be because, not only did her father tell her that, but her mother did as well. I never became a dancer or a singer; however, I’ve pursued my dreams and continue to live a life knowing that I can do whatever I will with faith, hard work and dedication. I believe anyone can achieve their goals in life and sometimes it just takes someone to encourage them along the way.

A grade school teacher paid the remaining balance of my field trip to New York City after my father passed and never asked for a penny of it back. She believed I had potential and wanted to give me the opportunity to experience culture. A supervisor wrote me a note thanking me for joining her staff – she believed I would make a good social worker one day. I met a stranger, who after a brief introduction, shared her story of struggle with depression and I listened and I told her what I saw in her – she said she believed we met for a reason and she felt better that day.

Am I a Fixer?  The definition of a fixer is a person whose actions and opinions strongly influence the course of events. Not sure if that directly fits me, however I do like to find solutions to obstacles holding people from moving towards success in life. If I have said a word of encouragement that sparked an action and helped someone foster their goal or to see things in a bigger and brighter light, then I count it as paying it forward.




ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Alberta Lampkins is a willing and dedicated advocate for children and adults. She is the affiliate leader of the Fayetteville-Raeford CARES Mentoring Movement, a non-profit organization dedicated to recruiting, training, and deploying mentors to serve at-risk youth in the Sandhills region. Fayetteville-Raeford CARES is an affiliate of the National CARES Mentoring Movement founded by Susan L. Taylor, editor-in-chief emeritus of Essence Magazine.

Alberta is also a public servant, author, and publisher. She served as a Child Protective Services Social Worker, Army Chaplain Family Life Services Assistant, certified Applied Suicide Intervention Skills Trainer (ASIST), and has provided suicide intervention and prevention training to more than 120 military soldiers and family members.

She is an active member of Zeta Phi Beta Sorority, Inc. and a member of Sister Circle Book Club, Fayetteville, North Carolina.

Alberta is the author of the novel, Teach Me How to Fly, which was published in July 2014, a contributing author and Project Coordinator of the book Messages to Our Children, published in June 2014, and the author of her self-help book, What’s Your Plan? A Pathway to Writing and Publishing Your Work released in August 2015.

Alberta holds a Bachelor of Arts Degree and a Master of Arts Degree in Sociology from Fayetteville State University. Her graduate research project on HIV testing among African American women was proudly accepted for scholarly publication in the Journal of Research on Women and Gender, Texas State University.

Alberta Lampkins is a proud Army wife and has been married to her husband, CSM (Retired) Albert Lampkins, for more than thirty years. She has two outstanding adult children, Alexis and Ahmad, and one very handsome grandson, Elijah. Alberta Lampkins is a native of Buffalo, New York, however, resides in North Carolina with her husband.



Alberta Lampkins at The Partnership for Children of Cumberland County 
https://ccpfc.org/author/alberta-lampkins  


Fayetteville-Raeford CARES Mentoring Movement
http://fayettevilleraefordcaresmentoringmovement.org