The Barefoot Shoeshine Boy

Child abuse is beyond the realm of reasonable people, yet it happens far too often. How does a child process abuse? What gives a child the courage to face daily humiliation, pain, and suffering? The damage for many children is beyond repair, and often opens up a lifetime of heartache and shame. As a child, Al Rivera endured the daily verbal and physical abuse of the one person who should have showered him with love: his mother, and from foster parents who took her place in raising him until he was eighteen. Despite daily abuse, however, Al Rivera faced each new day with a smile and with the excitement of a schoolboy counting the minutes until recess. Yet, Al was not a schoolboy when he found his joy. He was a barefoot shoeshine boy, from the age of four to eight, walking miles every day to find customers on city streets. Downtown Phoenix, Arizona became Al Rivera's playground, his source of happiness, where life was as real as the dumpster food that kept him alive. Al's daily search for food was just another game to him. Yet, unlike many children who grow up on the streets, Al Rivera overcame all odds to excel in school, sports, and business. He became the Number One minority masonry business in Arizona. His successful climb to the top is the subject of his next book. The Barefoot Shoeshine Boy will touch your heart like no other book. Its stories of a young boy's triumph over abuse and adversity will inspire, and its little chapter lessons will offer insights into the power of the human spirit to survive.