Healing Emotional Wounds: A Story of Overcoming the Long Hard Road to Recovery from Abuse and Abandonment

Board certified in both pediatrics and public health/preventive medicine, Nancy M. Welch has been a public health director in Virginia since 1976. She also holds master's degrees in health administration and business administration. Her most valuable preparation, though, for the parenting challenges of her two adopted children is having grown up as the second eldest of five children to parents who provided unending support, encouragement, and belief in the ability of each child to overcome any obstacle to achieve their aspirations. Nancy is an accomplished community speaker and public health spokesperson, having appeared in all media formats on topics ranging from community health assessments and public health response to local crises, health education, and medical school graduate classes. She has received numerous recognitions, including Distinguished Lynchburg College Alumni and YWCA Distinguished Woman.