Learning your newborn daughter has cancer is one of the worst things you can experience. It’s shaped our lives in challenging ways. Discovering how lucky we truly were was a surprise.

My daughter was only six weeks old when she was diagnosed with leukemia , and she would remain hospitalized for a year.

I wanted her to have all the opportunities she possibly could. But I soon realized that even compared with the struggles I’d had to face, her life was going to be incredibly difficult.

My own childhood was a lively one. I was born in Brazil and lived there until I was 16. My parents were both veterinarians and my siblings and I had a menagerie of pets growing up: cats, dogs, turtles, horses, guinea pigs, and parakeets. To this day, I love having animals in the house.

A few years down the line, I was responsible for myself, and it wasn’t easy. I was working two jobs and going to school full-time. I could feel myself burning out. I began to look at my other options. One of the most alluring was joining the military. It may sound funny, but to someone who had as much on their plate as I did, the idea of joining the military, a place where your food and board were provided, sounded like a huge relief.

I became a medic in the Air Force and found myself drawn to certain aspects of the job. I pored over legal documents, reading every inch of fine print and had quite the attention for detail. I also learned a valuable lesson: how the mission is about the greater good, not about serving yourself.

I had been in the Air Force for seven years when my daughter was born. Finding out about her illness and watching my new baby go through the treatment was the hardest thing I’ve had to endure. When her health took a positive turn I felt more relieved than I ever have.

When her leukemia was cured, I felt something else that I hadn’t expected. Guilt. When your family experiences something like we did, you meet a lot of people whose stories don’t have a happy ending. What made us so special? Why did our child survive when so many others didn’t? In the end, all I could do was cling to my beloved daughter and be thankful we were the ones with the lucky outcome.

Like many couples, me and my husband at the time felt the incredible stress that was on us and ended up divorcing. Still, the most important element in that relationship is our daughter and while we weren’t the best husband and wife, we’re really good friends and excellent co-parents. I remarried, and my current husband acts as a third parent, providing a wonderful new dynamic.

My daughter is 13 now, happy and healthy, and a long way from the sick baby.

When I set out on my current career path, I was looking for a job that was limitless. I wanted to show my daughter that the future could be whatever she made of it. For me, real estate is the perfect fit. I can take the skills I learned in the Air Force and my passion of caring for others and do something special with it. Real Estate gives me the opportunity to continue to apply my skills to help others fulfill their dreams of home ownership.

I’m not a salesperson. I don’t see people as dollar signs. I’m committed to delivering the highest level of customer service. I educate and advise my clients, leading them to the best possible decisions in the future. Within my brokerage, I’m an asset and a mentor, teaching other agents the best ways to use technology and the internet to become more successful Realtors. I don’t view them as my competition, but a valuable part of my network. For my clients, I’m a guide through the process. I’m also occasionally a landscaper, babysitter, dog walker, whatever is needed of me, it’s all part of my concierge service. I think one of my most important roles is that of the person who keeps things in perspective. I will talk people out of making a deal that could bring me financial success if I know it’s the wrong fit for the client. I learn something new each day—I think we all do—and use that knowledge to help others. I can use it to help you as well!