Finding Hope: From Urban Streets to the Desert

By Jackie Ross

Call me Jackie. Everybody does. Seemingly, every lost soul did and still does, from steaming sidewalks to desert sand.

Finding Hope is the story of one woman who dreamed of becoming a social worker and a defender for the oppressed. Jackie Ross demonstrated compelling advocacy for those who needed her expertise for over five decades-working with adolescents, young and older adults, and families. When she decided to retire, she wondered what she would do next, but serendipitously, a high-powered attorney from a Washington, D.C., firm that represented international clients asked for her advocacy abilities. The result of that phone conference provides a tale of intrigue, with the potential for danger and risk to her life as Jackie's work emanated from the Middle East for seven years, coming to a screeching halt on October 7, 2023. The respect and the trust that was built and nurtured for those seven years dissolved with one invasion into Israel.

About the Author: Jackie Ross is a seasoned social worker and advocate. She opened and administered her own 501(c)3 in New Jersey, serving youths, families, and adults. She sat on a juvenile drug court for almost a decade and was a well-known leader of legal-based community programs. Upon retirement from the urban streets, Jackie became an International Human Rights Advocate and Asylum Coordinator. She now takes on limited pro bono advocacy cases in the Middle East, fighting for human rights releases and asylum cases. Jackie has written extensive articles for Youth Today and the Juvenile Justice Information Exchange over the past many years. Finding Hope is her debut book, and she is now researching for her next one. She and her husband of fifty years, Professor Denis Ross, live in New Jersey.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1977275826
• ISBN13: 9781977275820
• Release Date: October 2024
• Publisher: Outskirts Press
• Length: 204 Pages
• Weight: 0.67 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.5" x 6.0" x 9.0"