Ms. Willodean “Debbie” Kirby (née Dykes) was born in 1954 and grew up in Sylacauga, Alabama, with her parents, James and Willie-Pearl Dykes, and four younger siblings. As the oldest daughter, Ms. Kirby spent much of her youth caring for her younger siblings. After graduating from Sylacauga High School in 1971, at age 17, Ms. Kirby moved to Washington, DC, to help her aunt (her father’s youngest sister) take care of her daughter. After living with her aunt for six months, Ms. Kirby moved out on her own. She also got married at this time, at age 19, but she and her husband soon separated. Ms. Kirby had one daughter, Wakela Kirby, but her mother took her daughter back to Alabama and raised her. For most of her childhood, Ms. Kirby’s daughter would only stay with her during the summer months. In DC, Ms. Kirby worked as a data specialist. Though she never went to college, Ms. Kirby always sought to improve herself, taking additional work trainings and night classes. As her mother and father began to have health challenges, Ms. Kirby retired around 2012 and returned to Sylacauga to care for her parents at the end of their lives. She now lives in her parents’ old home and is enjoying her retirement and spending time with family.