Amanda Coleman- An Irish Angel for First Responders and Vets
In this article Kevin P. Donaldson shares the extraordinary story of Amanda Coleman: an Irish Angel for First Responders and Vets.
In a world often filled with challenges, Amanda Coleman rises above adversity and inspires us all.
There are rare people in this world who find joy in reaching out to those they never met and have no connection. For the simple joy of knowing that they made the world a better place and contributed something to humanity. Those that can give this totally benevolent assistance, usually come with their own traumatic past. They know what it’s like to be marginalized, to be misunderstood, to be hurt. Amanda Coleman is such a person with the largest heart and drive to carry through.
Born in Dublin, Ireland, Amanda knew what the word stability meant, but had no experience. Growing up in an economically struggling nation, Amanda was raised in a household that was broken and fatherless. Poverty can play tricks on the young mind. Fooling children into thinking that this was just life. Only after you grow and look back do you see how difficult it was to spend your formative years with very little.
If poverty was the only obstacle, Amanda had to experience, it still wouldn’t be acceptable, but at least we could understand. At a very young age, Amanda was the victim of child sexual assault from a family member. There are no words that can describe the sheer horror that a child feels when somebody close to them betrays their trust. Moving around from household to household wherever her mother could afford, left Amanda in need of stability. In her teenage years, she was a victim of rape at the hands of an ex-boyfriend furthering the legacy of broken trust.
These external factors would crush the normal human being, but Amanda is different. She still can see the beauty in the world amongst all the ugliness. After so many years of seeing the worst in life, Amanda finds a gentleman and they fall in love. Planning to get married, it appeared that finally that her life was changing for the better. Not so fast. As Amanda is out on her bachelorette party it comes to her attention later in life that her soon to be husband slept with her mother. The ultimate betrayal of trust.
Amanda has witnessed a life that very few can possibly imagine. The pain, the struggle for her was very real, but somehow she made it through. Her resiliency in overcoming is nothing short of a miracle, but the most important thing in Amanda‘s life is that her heart never changed. She still had the innate ability to see the best in humanity.
Living in Ireland, the United States news is global. Amanda started seeing how law enforcement in the United States was getting treated during the changing landscape and climate of the highly politicized world of policing. Taking to the social media platform, LinkedIn, Amanda goes on a verbal crusade to speak up for those who have appeared to be marginalized wrongly in the eyes of so many. Posting under the name, Irish Angel, this woman who has seen the horrors of life, began to stick up for those she never met. Maybe this was a karmic attempt to show resilience in the face of adversity or possibly it was Amanda’s attempt to show the world that we should stick up for those who may be unable or unwilling to stick up for themselves.
The Irish Angel posts began to gain enormous traction. It became a movement that seemed to take on a life of its own. Out of this simple blog post by a wonderful woman from Dublin spawned the organization, Irish Angel. Their mission statement reads;
“Irish Angel is a support network for Law Enforcement, EMS, Firefighters, and the Military. We provide education, awareness, and resources about addictions, PTSD, PTSI, TBI, Depression, and anxiety. Through our partnerships, we offer opportunities to inform, heal and promote a healthy lifestyle for first responders.”
Amanda has now become a symbol to protect those that protect us. Her face is known worldwide as a champion for all first responders in military veterans. The name of the organization fits Amanda perfectly. She is that angel from Ireland that sits on their shoulders as a guide to show what real love and compassion can be.
Amanda would have every right to sit inside and play the victim, but Amanda chose to be the victor. The world needs more people like Amanda Coleman. Life is about what you can offer to the world, not what you can grab for yourself.
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