I am a native of Sierra Leone, West Africa, and a retired U.S. Army veteran with 23 years of active duty service. I migrated to the United States in 1988, seeking an education and a better life. I consider myself a born artist who grew up with the gift of drawing. Though I studied arts at the University of Maryland Global Campus. I probably did not learn much because every project was effortless, with an "A" as a final grade.