We were lucky to catch up with Sugar Rose recently and have shared our conversation below.

Sugar, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today Is there a heartwarming story from your career that you look back on?

God called me to lead & speak in love in every aspect of my life. This is my career, my God given purpose, Through my music, through my speaking, through the people that cross my path every single day whether at the grocery store, gas station, social media etc. We all know that our world is in upheaval right now. We all should see that the one thing we were taught to do was to lead and teach unconditional love to one another as Jesus did when he walked this earth. So many have lost what morals, values, kindness, forgiveness, grace, compassion, faith, and trust is. So many walk around dead while they are still alive, caring about time, money, material items, and have forgotten the heart. People don’t matter to others if you don’t have the next best thing your nothing, if you have an addiction you are worthless and you will never change you are a lost cause. If you don’t look picture perfect your an outcast, if you suffer with PTSD or trauma your weak or your unstable. Especially if you are a man you aren’t allowed to show weakness or vulnerability because your supposed to be the strong headed tough one and if you do you have shown your weakness others pray on like vultures. Our suicide rate is higher than ever in our Veterans and in general Men over women because there is a stigma in this world. When I accepted my purpose I made a commitment to myself to God and to the world to live and breathe only unconditional love without judgement to all. People have lost what this is. The other day when I got to my office there was a man laying in front of the office door with a jacket over his head. Everyone says leave the homeless alone. They are unstable, they are addicts, they have mental struggles don’t mess with them. How many take an actual moment to find out why they are an addict why they are homeless who has their back and supports them? This particular morning I had an urge to get to work early out of the blue. As I was talking to my fiancé on the phone later than usual, Together we decided to get him breakfast. I got him a breakfast sandwich. mocha latte and a bottled water for later. Slowly I went up to him and gently woke him up. I said good morning. I brought you breakfast. He started to stir around. Soon he woke up and sat up. I asked him if he liked coffee he said yes and I asked him if he liked breakfast sandwiches he also said yes. So I sat down with him as he ate. He couldn’t have been more than 22-24 years old. He told me he has never had anyone come up to him just to tell him he is loved he matters and he is enough. I sat and listened to his story. He is a struggling addict newly homeless. He doesn’t have anyone in his life to encourage him or lead him in a good direction. He said he prays daily for God to deliver him from this addiction. Not once did he ask me for money but he did ask me for a blanket and I happened to have an extra one in my car. He has been praying for guidance and a way to get clean. I told him about my church I just recently joined called Second Chance Church here in Anderson SC. A place where the broken come to heal. The addicts come for guidance, the lost come to be found. And Pastor P says it best ” You don’t come to church because your healed you heal by coming to church with others that have the same like mind understanding” You come broken so you can become whole. You come empty so you can leave with your soul filled. It is the first time in my life I have found a church that speaks and leads in love. I told him come as you are, no matter what you have and will go through you matter your enough and you are loved, I told him you can heal your heart and soul and find the light that lives inside you. I told him you absolutely have a purpose here we all do. Even YOU the person reading this yes YOU! You have a purpose here and you too can heal and change your life no matter what it is you need to overcome. He stood up and I told him I loved him. I gave him a huge hug and told him brighter days are ahead. The sun shines after the storm, sometimes the sun is in the storm, and sometimes after it but no matter what the sun will shine again and God has great plans for you life. He called me an angel and walked away as soon as cars started pulling up. Upon that moment I knew God put me there just for that reason. I then resigned and walked out of my work just as soon as I walked in that day. I found out the police had been called and the Dr. trespassed him. Without knowing his story, who he was, or why he was there just automatically went to greed and not wanting the non sense in front of his business. It could have been handled differently and it goes back to my above comment. People have lost what connection is, what unconditional love is, people have inherited greed and selfishness for themselves. I refuse to work for anyone who doesn’t truly put the power of God’s love first anymore. I will stand daily in every breath I take. My vow is to speak, teach, and lead in the love Jesus taught us as he walked this earth before we lose it. Moral of my story is everyone is somebody’s someone. We all need to be here to help, love, encourage, and lead each other other in love no matter what situation. If you are an addict, struggling with PTSD/ Depression, anxiety, mental health issues, trying to change your life, made mistakes, race, ethnicity, religion, You matter you are enough you can heal and you have a beautiful purpose here.

Awesome – so before we get into the rest of our questions, can you briefly introduce yourself to our readers.

I became a motivational speaker through a lot of my own life experiences. From going through struggles in my younger years being adopted to raised in group homes, to being teased in school as always being the unpopular kid, to growing up becoming an adult I have known how it feels to want to give up, never feel like your enough, feel like you don.t matter and just staying because someone says I love you even when they lie, cheat, verbally, mentally, and physically abuse you. I have experienced pain, loss trauma with myself and others. I know what true pain and loss feels like. I also know not one persons story id the same or can be compared to another. Through every experience I have endured I have grown from it, I have found beauty in the most awful pain. Sometimes that beauty is just helping another. Sometimes that beauty is knowing you will never allow yourself to go through that situation again. Sometimes that beauty is relating to someone else that isn’t able to do it on their won. You see because in the end we are ament to be here for one another. Think about this many if us at some point when we were little fell down, Maybe we cried and hurt ourselves pretty bad we turned to another for help whether a mom. dad. adult, friend whomever right, We looked to that person for help to get us a band aid, wash it off take us to the Dr, kiss and make it better, what ever it might be we needed help and someone helped us get better. Next time we think twice about playing the same way or doing the same thing and maybe we see someone else doing it and we know the outcome so we say heyyy don’t do that or stop let me help you, I’ve already done this and this is how it turned out. We are meant to develop compassion understanding and unconditional love for one another so they don’t hurt like we did or we can at least be there to relate to the pain so they don’t have to go through it alone. No one is ever alone this brings up my next part. I was an Army wife to a Veteran for years and a Family Readiness Leader for the national guard helping soldiers and their families. This is where I found my calling to help people take OFF the mask. I was married to a man that suffered silently with PTSD and depression he hid it so well I didn’t even know until I did. I was always on the outside looking in. This is truly where I found my passion to help our Veterans. To be a voice a love an encouragement and a movement to speak up and say it is ok to not be ok. It is ok to ask for help, you are not weak if you aske for help, you are not crazy and judged if you reach out.. Losing more than 22 Veterans a day is 22 too many as 1 is too many. This became part of my life long purpose God put in my path to yell it from the roof tops. No one is ever alone. You matter you can heal you are loved you are worth it and no matter what you have gone through you can retrain your mind, body, and soul, you can find your purpose you can reach out and ask for help, you can heal you can change your life. You can find peace again no matter what you have endured. Through my podcast I speak how to forgive yourself and others, how to let go of guilt, show grace to yourself and others, How to show yourself and others compassion, how to live in faith and trust in you and in God. How not to be dead while your still alive, how to find your light. and help others find theirs. So many walk around hopeless, lost, empty and feel alone they want to heal but they don’t know where to start, they want to change but don’t know who to ask and trust to open up to. I do my best to speak to all to let others know they are seen they matter they are loved and truly can heal. I also volunteer my time making motivational speaking videos on social media such as TikTok IG and Facebook to help as many as I can. Whether 1 or a million if I am able to help one person that is exactly why I am here & called to do what I do, I also travel, speak & sing. I have traveled and done some motivational speaking at Veteran events and I volunteer for Veterans Last Patrol to sing for our Veterans that are in hospice care to really let them know they matter and are so loved. I also write and I am in the middle of getting ready to put some of my own creative original music out to the world. All of my music I write is based around my purpose, my why my reason for doing what I have been called to do.. My vision in the next 5 years is to have a place people can come and speak sit down and let out their struggles cost free. A place where they can come have a cup of coffee or a bite and someone that cares to listen to them. I would love to travel the states and create a movement to meet people in person speak and sing and help as many as God puts in my path. Breathe life, hope love and light into one person at a time.

Can you tell us about a time you’ve had to pivot?

Before I became a Family Readiness Leader and a Motivational Speaker I was always a follower. I worked in the Eye field for many many years. I was always a yes Dr. No Dr. person. Yes sir, no sir. For years I felt I haven’t had a voice. I wasn’t enough, I didn’t deserve love, I didn’t deserve to be heard and my thoughts and opinions didn’t matter. I never for one second thought I would be able to speak in front of others, I was encouraged to try out being a Family Readiness Leader and I laughed I though no way I can’t stand up in front of people, I cant be a voice, no one values what I say, that is exactly what I said to myself but I was encouraged to try and I did be grudgingly. That moment when I went to the workshop and saw those women stand up and tell their story and speak of all the wonderful things I envisioned myself up there and I knew it was a calling put on my heart to be apart of it. So I accepted the position. I had my first gathering with the Company during drill weekend. I was nervous as all get out but I did it. I stood up there and I spoke. To my astonishment all eyes were on me and every ear was listening. What came out was incredible. I wasn’t worried or scared. I knew this was a milestone in my life at that moment, but I didn’t realize what a beautiful purpose it was all turning in too. I started becoming the go to person of the unit, The phone call in the middle of the night. The leader and guide for them and their families to create unity and love for one another. Unfortunately I also had to go to one too many funerals as 1 is too many, In those moments I found my calling and passion to learn about our veterans and PTSD, depression and started not only fighting for the stigma and cause but also speaking, spread awareness and teachings others that may not know. This is were my coffee shop came in. I felt led to open a military themed mental health supported coffee shop for any and everyone that wants to be educated on our veterans, people that suffer and struggle with PTSD, or just need someone to talk to. This coffee shop was for everyone no matter who they were. I became the town therapist for many.

We’d love to hear a story of resilience from your journey.

As above I had my coffee shop for a few years. The name of my shop was American Sugar. the nickname sugar was given to me by one of my soldiers when I was the family leader. I have kept it ever since because it truly is apart of my story and journey. After being in the local paper for what I had been doing and having a few articles on me for my purpose, I was on top of the world until my entire life crashed. In one decision my world was ripped upside down. I had to make choices I didn’t want to make. I was hurt angry and at times got on my knees and had a yelling match with God. I lost myself for a while but I never let go of God even when I was angry. I had a choice to live in anger, hatred, not forgive, not show grace and get revenge at that point. I won’t dent there were some moments that sounded pretty darn good. I was always brought up to love through it. forgive through pain show grace to the ones you are upset at. live in compassion and kindness no matter what the outcome. As hard as hell as this was at times I did just that. Through that pain I found truth. I found the MASK. I found the struggle that i had lived with for years but didn’t know about I didn’t see it. This goes back to the beginning I was always on the outside looking in a new song I am releasing soon. I found my calling my purpose my God given duty on my knees, at the bottom of the barrel when I was at my worst. I found beauty in my pain and I turned all my pain into beauty to make a vow to help others. to Let others know If i can heal so can you. There truly is beauty in all of our pain and again sometimes it is just being there for another that is truly more healing to your soul than you will ever know. Than COVID hit. I fought through COVID stayed open a year past couldn’t hire any employees because no one was coming in hardly. COVID kept everyone home in fear and afraid of going out. I ultimately sold my shop in 2019. I just couldn’t keep it going anymore. I tried everything and when I sold the day I signed the paperwork and handed over the keys I was devastated, everything I worked so hard to accomplish was down the drain in my eyes. Little did I know my entire world was about to change. New years eve 2020 my life changed overnight. In that moment I heard you changed life’s of many you helped many and now you are ready and I am giving you a bigger microphone so strap on your seatbelt here we go. I held on and I listened and everything I have done since 2020 has been a led journey and purpose, I found my singing voice again I started writing songs and now I speak to the world through my motivational speaking videos

Contact Info:

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/sugarrosemusic1279/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/sugarrose1279/
• Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/@SugarRose01/featured
• Other: https://www.tiktok.com/@sugarrosemusic