My interview with the Author of "Garbage Bag Girl", Celeste Edmunds, Executive Director of Christmas Box International.

In Celeste's own words: Garbage Bag Girl is my story of being raised by addicted parents and, at a young age, learning to survive and protect my siblings from rapists and drug dealers. Eventually, the state separated our family, and I was adopted alone into a dysfunctional, fractured home where a sadistic and manipulating mother treated me as an unwanted outsider. Contemplating taking my abuser’s life, I eventually ran away, finding shelter wherever I could, until a compassionate woman stepped in to give me home and love. Ultimately, Garbage Bag Girl is an unforgettable story of hope and resiliency.

Buy Celeste's Book at her website: www.celesteedmunds.com

FROM DARKNESS TO ADVOCACY: ONE SURVIVOR’S JOURNEY TO EMPOWER VULNERABLE CHILDREN

Celeste goes on to say: My childhood was an ongoing cycle of police calls, fighting, and physical, sexual, and mental abuse. At age 7, I was taken by the state and placed into a child welfare system, where moving every few months to a new environment became normal. So did living out of a garbage bag. By age sixteen, I had lived in more than 30 cities.

My childhood was a difficult and often unbearable experience where evil manipulation almost broke my spirit. But there were also caring people along the way who stepped in to do what they could to protect and nurture me, and as an adult, I look back at those moments and realize that they saved my life. My goal is to help as many children in the child welfare system have the opportunities for success that I was not provided.