Kim Gerhart

A man of faith, grateful dad, author. Follow my adventures on Facebook, Instagram, and Pinterest @kimjsgerhart.

Born in the outskirts of South Korea, my birth father had been killed. Unable to sustain us alone, my mother tasked my oldest brother to leave me at the police station. From there I was put into a sparsely funded orphanage. Those were dark times. I was blessed to be adopted by a wonderful American family. Their patience couldn't be overstated as I had trust issues. With enough patience and time I came around (Middle school age).

On the surface I grew up like many kids. I played football, basketball, track, baseball. I was a Cub/Boy Scout, in Youth Group, chess club, Sunday school. I had a wide range of interests such as fishing, fly tying, boating, canoeing, water skiing, downhill and cross country skiing, hiking, camping, photography, drawing, singing. At 12 I had a lawn business and have held a job ever since. While mostly good, like many kids, I was also confronted with poor behaviors. Bullying and racial slurs are two of the most memorable ones.

After finishing up my 1st year as a bio/chem student I decided to take a break from college. Never going back home, I landed a job and my first apartment. My 20s saw a great deal of ups and downs with some dark periods in life and my faith. This spilled into my 30s. It wasn't until the birth of my daughter that I was able to come back to my faith. From that moment on, even with much upheaval at times, I continued to grow.

I share these intimate details so that You know where my stories come from - often real and personal experiences. A final thought - Growth rarely happens when everything is good. Growth happens by seeing through (run, walk, crawl) the challenges that life surely brings. Thank you for reading.