Quelyn Purdie

Validation Denied Grace Bestowed: Somewhere Between the Ghetto and God Was Something Called Foster Care... Quelyn Purdie

In the 1960's Quelyn and brother, J. P., four and six respectively, lived in a small, roach-infested apartment in Brooklyn. They'd eat starch right out of the blue and white box - Jacqueline used to leave them alone two to three days out of the week. Then the cops came.

In Validation Denied, Grace Bestowed, Quelyn lends a warm but candid voice to the web of emotions she experienced as a rebellious teenager who embarked on her own "revolution" to defy the stigma of living in foster care.

The awkward attempts at love and friendship in college would translate into a bittersweet experience and an even more painful young adult life, until 1986 when Quelyn meets a world-renowned meditation master. Through practicing meditation Quelyn transformed her quest for outer validation to an inner journey of self-love. She realizes that grace had been present all along and that she could finally release her past and live with a renewed sense of peace, integrity and purpose.