Outskirts Press, INC.

Sholonda Nicole Hawley was born November 29, 1985 as Sholonda Nicole Randolph in Durham North Carolina. She is a proud mother of five amazing and accomplished children. She is married to a multitalented, God-fearing man, David Deuese Hawley; He shares her same aspirations as an author. While still a baby Sholonda moved to Gary, Indiana and resided there most of her younger childhood years. Life was rough at times; but while she endured her childhood, she gained wisdom and knowledge, becoming as they call it, “an old soul.” She had so many unanswered questions about her father, like who he was, and why was he not in her life. She learned so much at a young age, earning the title by her teachers as one of the smartest in her class throughout her grade school years. She felt thrilled to hold that title after she won first place in a Spelling Bee at Pride Elementary School in Gary, Indiana in 1992. As a young girl she had the opportunity to attend Sunday school. She began to fill that void of not knowing her father in the flesh with the only spiritual true father God our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. She was very active in the church choir, becoming the only child to sing a solo during church service. Her accomplishments did not stop there. Sholonda was forced to grow up fast. After moving back to her hometown, ten years later, she began her journey as a student in Durham Public Schools. Sholonda faced many challenges, especially racism while attending elementary school and not seeing many faces like hers. She believes that she broke barriers between students as she wrote songs and school plays and acted them out in front of the class. During her high school years at Hillside High School, Sholonda joined Army JROTC (Junior Reserve Officer Training Corps) for discipline and hopes of joining the military. She later meets her high school sweetheart in the organization as he was her Battalion Commander. She soon became the first black female Battalion Commander that the organization had in over ten years. She was also the leader of a fancy squad that she organized herself. She knew she had to work extra hard to gain the respect of her fellow officers because her team organization consisted of mostly young men. Again, Sholonda broke barriers by winning first place at several state level drill competitions. During her sophomore year she and her high school sweetheart had a son and later got married while only a senior in high school at the age of eighteen. Her ex-husband joined the military and was drafted to the war immediately after basic training to serve in Iraqi Freedom, leaving Sholonda and their newborn son behind. This only made her stronger. Soon after his return they divorced and she found herself alone, a single mom raising a son to become a man. This motivated her to be the best parent she could be. She would later get a trade as a Cosmetologist in the beauty industry and continued until she gained her Bachelors in Criminal Justice.