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Hello Everyone and thank you all for being so patient with me. So I officially
lost all the data from my first published website so I have to start my blog from
scratch. No biggie though, it has allowed me the opportunity to grow and learn on the way, so I take it for what it was....a learning lesson. So I would like to apologize to all my readers, viewers, followers, and listeners for my time off due to technical difficulties. Nonetheless I am back to provide you guys some value from books I have read and things that I have learned. I can't wait to share with you guys all the knowledge that I have aquired over time.
First, I would like to reintroduce myself to the world formerly. So my name is Hector Navarro, I was born in 1984 in Puerto Rico. I came from a poor and very humble childhood, we had very little, but we had a family which was all we needed. I lost my father at an early age which left my mother widowed with my younger brother and I. Sometime after my father's death; my mother got into an abusive domestic relationship with the father of my two younger brothers. My mother eventually moved away to the US to seek asylum from this abusive relationship. Until I was 18, my mother took care of my brothers and I the best way she knew how. She would make miracles happen to feed four grown boys that she raised by herself.
We had a rough childhood growing up. According to statistics my brothers and I should be out in the streets getting into trouble, in jail, or dead. We have to thank our mom's great parenting skills as well as God's grace to prevent us from becoming another statistic. Our saving grace was video games. I genuinely believe that gaming saved my life. Video games created many great memories for my brothers and I; we grew closer. I was an awkward child who liked sports but was too small to try out for any team in high school, so I stuck to what I knew how to do well which was playing video games.
After graduating high school in 2002, my passion for video games led me to try and attempt to apply to Gibbs University to pursue a degree in graphic design and become a video game designer. Unfortunately, financial aid did not cover the cost because my mother made too much.
They didn't take into consideration that she had four boys that she had to take care of. At the time I did not believe I had many options available so in 2003 I decided to join the Marine Corps to help me pay for my education as well as allow me the opportunity to travel the world. A couple of months after I graduated boot camp and got stationed at Camp Pendleton, CA I got a call from the red cross that my mother's house burned down.
During leave (military vacation) I was staying with my mother and three brothers at a Salvation Army down the road from one of the local community Churches we attended. Several months later in 2004, I would find myself deployed at Al-Ramadi Iraq from 2003 to 2004. We lost 15 men during the six months that we were deployed. They will never be forgotten. Iraq was a game changer for me; I valued the meaning of life and everything I have ever feared just suddenly went away.
I promised that I would not waste my time, from then on I saw my life from so many different perspectives, from the worse scenario and to the best scenario, I realized just how short life is. Because they sacrificed their lives for freedom, I will sacrifice my livelihood to ensure that their sacrifice is not in vain. I promised to not waste my breath or time in the stupid mundane things that don't matter. I vowed to make my life the most productive and impactful experience that I can.
After Iraq my lack of fear made me do some pretty stupid things, I took the meaning of "fight your fears" to the next level and pushed all limits.....in a negative way. Took some unnecessary risks and made some extremely dumb mistakes. I ended up getting out in 2007, married, re-enlisted, divorced two years later, and started to feel the symptoms of PTSD creeping in after my divorce. I attempted suicide three times; I eventually was kicked out of the military on my second term for testing positive in a urinalysis test for THC which I was using to avoid alcoholism and a dependancy on pills to numb the suicidal tendencies. After getting kicked out, I was soliciting perfume as a full-time gig to try and attempt to pay the bills. I received news that my grandmother passed away, I no longer wanted to live. I almost took my life that day. Fortunately, I did not go through with it and live to tell the story. With the help of my military brothers I served in Iraq with, my family, and some close friends I was able to get through the hardships of adapting to the civilian life.
I have been able to overcome all these negative setbacks and come back home and successfully help in establishing a nonprofit organization in my community called Brass City Gamers Tournament. Throughout the years we have been able to partner with Universities, Community Colleges, local small business and nonprofit organizations to help raise awareness on our brand as well as raise funds for other charities. This organization helps other businesses raise funds through the means of gaming tournaments. We also plan to develop a free STEM learning course for free for our community. This company is helping me in achieving my dream of working in the gaming industry. Granted it may not be graphic design but eventually, I see myself playing videos games and making a positive and significant impact in my community.
Additionally, I am also a spoken word artist trying to dive into the hip-hop scene and give it a try. I have received tons of feedback from my social channels and decided that I should go through with it. I plan to release several projects throughout the year and with your support I plan to make a significant impact in my local community and perhaps eventually the entire world. I would also like to help entrepreneurs and small business start-ups establish themselves to be able to provide more jobs in our local communities. Thank you so much for your attention and for the time you took in visiting my website. It means the world to me that you are interested in my journey and I promise I will not take it for granted. Have a blessed day and thank you in advance for your support!