Midwest Made, My Early Inspiration
Born a middle child in the small midwestern town of Chanute, Kansas to a blue-collar working-class family, I learned early the value of boundaries in relationships, education, and hard work. My father is a proud and gruff man with a jovial sense of humor. A dedicated patriot, he served in the United States Marine Corps, was a maintenance worker for low-income housing, and a sales clerk with a local supplier of drilling equipment for the petroleum and natural gas industry in Kansas and Oklahoma. Mother worked in a factory until she was injured on the job and at thirty years old, became a nontraditional student earning her master’s degree in Special Education from Pittsburg State University. My parent’s dreams, hard work, and financial sacrifices taught me how education could open new doors to opportunities and help kids escape rural poverty in America. A bit hyperactive and inattentive, I was inquisitive, constantly moving and losing things as a kid. My dad jokes about how I would climb fences and door jams as a toddler with a fearless sense of curiosity and zest. In the 1980s, you could find me barefoot, swimming in lakes, fishing in muddy rivers, turning over every stone, and always searching for the next adventure. I distinctly remember learning to ride a bike and the independence gained by facing my fear and trusting in myself. I aspired to escape beyond the financial limitations of my hometown and dreamed of adventure in the big city. A bit bourgeois, I strived for a life I’d never known, Mom always said, “Shawn has champagne taste on a beer budget.” However, with a natural “Joie de vivre,” I was never one to let financial limitations get in the way of fashion and adventure. Once my mother told me she knew I would be one of her three kids to move away from home, destined for a life beyond the confinement of a chain-link fence and small-town mentality. It’s safe to say my midwest upbringing challenged me in many ways but it also influenced who I am today, and while my ambition has taken me around the world for work and adventures, I will be forever grateful to my parents for their humility, encouragement, and inspiration. If I’ve learned anything, it is that "Love liberates, it doesn't just hold, that's ego. Love Liberates." -Maya Angelou
I grew up in Nature and value the preservation of wildlife spaces, Shawn DeCoster Kid Star!
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