Jean and her twin sister Inez were born on Novemeber 9,1929 in the coal fields of West Virginia. They were born into destitution to a woman that had already given away three of her children. They were taken to the orphange in Charleston, WV . Jean was very sickly and not expected to live. Inez was healthy and was adopted out the back door to a wealthy Charelston couple. A few days later, another wealthy couple discovered Jean and adopted her and neither couple were aware that the babies were twins. Jean was raised as an only child by Wm. and Velva Goff in Logan, WV. She became an excellent dancer and won the Shirley Temple talent contest and was offered a screen test in Hollywood, but her mother forbade her to go. She enrolled in an exclusive ladies college, but eloped with the high school football star. Their marriage produced three children, with the youngest dying within hours of his birth. Jean had no idea that her husband, Duncan, was a womanizer. He was the Justice of the Peace and could keep his affairs hidden. They also owned an exclusive ladies dress shop. Duncan decided that they needed to sell the dress shop and move to Sarasota where her parents had retired to. Jean was unaware of the reasons "why" he insisted on moving. They bought a new home and another very exclusive ladies dress shop. They became friends with another couple. Eventually, Duncan would divorce Jean and take everything that they owned. He then married her best friend. Jean's beloved daddy had passed away and with the divorce her life decended into chaos and disaster. Her mother kept all of her inheritance from her daddy's estate and Jean was forced into the workplace in her early forties. Her life continued into a very dark arena. She became an alcholic and lived with several different men. She learned to shoplift in order to eat. She met a man from Alabama, who was first cousin to the devil himself. She became a battered woman long before the term became vogue and the justice system ever recoginized it. On numerous occassions the man beat her to a bloody pulp and left her for dead. After years of abuse, she was able to escape from him and move to Ohio. There she met another man, Mike, who she fell in love with and married. He also had a dark past. Mike searched for several years on the computor until, with the help of the Good Lord above," he was able to find Jean's twin. This is a story that you have to read to beleive that it really happened. If you have been adopted I hope that this will give you hope to never give up. And, if you have been a battered woman, I admonish to run from that situation just as fast as you can; it can cost you your life.
About the Author: Jean and her twin Inez were born on November 9,1929 at the beginning of the Great Depression in the lower coal fields of West Virginia. She and Inez were thrown away and taken to the orphange in Charleston; where they were both adopted out the back door to different sets of wealthy parents. They would never see each other again until their 70th birthdays. Jean was raised in affluance. Married had three kids and later divorced by her womanizing husband who left her destitute. Her life spireled out of control, becoming an alcholic and forced to steal in order to survive. Beaten unmercifully by her boyfriend she was blessed to have survived. She escaped from him and moved to Ohio to care for her elderly mother. Mike, her new husband, spent many years trying to find Jean's twin. Finally, after 70 years they were reunited. A must read for anyone who has been adopted. Also, anyone whose spouse or boy friend had physically abused them to the point of almost killing them. It was only by God's love and grace that she was able to endure and survive.