Every time Donna Crawford picks out an outfit for the day, she happily
wears her age as an accessory. She is a woman who has divorced three
times, and has experienced an abundant amount of emotional pain. But
through these divorces, she has developed an unbreakable heart and a
love for herself.
At the age of 63, Crawford loves the woman she's become and pays close attention to her appearance. Her blond hair flows to her shoulders, her blue eyes sparkle behind long eyelashes, and her red lipstick completes the elegance she exudes.
To keep this fresh look, she slips her feet into high-heels and strides atop her long legs to a hair salon once a week. This will be her only chance to fully relax and take a break from her independently owned business, Governmental Assistant Services, where she works as a grant administrator.
The click of her heels announces her arrival when she walks through the door of Hair Experts. After getting eyelash extensions, Crawford sits in Kaci Canada's chair to get her hair done.
Canada lightly brushes Crawford's fine and brittle hair and adds blond extensions.
"Donna sometimes wears wigs, but I think she spends time and money here to reflect the beautiful person she is on the inside," Canada said.
After her makeover, Donna walks out of the salon looking and feeling more beautiful for no one else but herself. She will not go home to a husband, but she will go back to the office and continue her work.
"I'll never get married again," said Crawford, recalling her three divorces. "I believe some people find that special connection with another person, but I never have."
When Crawford was younger, her parents pushed marriage instead of education. Influenced by this, Crawford married Herman Nordstrom in 1965 when she was just 20-years-old. During their marriage, Nordstrom served in the Vietnam War, and Crawford became pregnant when Nordstrom was on leave. She gave birth to Garrett, 38, but Nordstrom was not present.
According to Garret, Nordstrom wasn't a good father figure. "I'm one of those father issue people," said Garret.
"Herm had a lot of psychological problems when he came back from Vietnam. He saw them squashed over there," Crawford said.
She remembers how Herman would awake from his dreams in a rage, and then start choking her. "It was a very sad time in my life," said Crawford, "But it had to stop."
Crawford and Nordstrom divorced in 1972. After three years, she married Jack Mayes and gave birth to another son, Dax Mayes.
"Jack was a great guy, but he didn't show any emotion towards me," Crawford said. "I felt like a table that nobody wanted to dust."
In retrospect, Jack knew how to be a good father and even Garret calls him "Dad" today. Jack spends the holidays with Crawford and her two sons and has a healthy relationship with all three of them.
Crawford decided to give marriage another try with a man named Bill Crawford. Bill was a judge and according to Crawford, he was a cheater, and a habitual liar. "He always had good stories to tell so there was never a dull moment with Bill," Crawford said.
Because Bill had a profession in city administration Crawford became aware of grant writing and started to educate herself. She started working towards her goal of creating her business while married to Bill and then started GAS in 1985.
Today, Garret and Dax both work with their mother at GAS, and she is a woman that is content with being alone and supporting herself. Now that she has her life in order she says she doesn't take life too seriously.
"Too much seriousness is sometimes not the answer to our prayers," Crawford said, "As 
women we can lose ourselves in trying our best to prove ourselves."
At the age of 63, Crawford loves the woman she's become and pays close attention to her appearance. Her blond hair flows to her shoulders, her blue eyes sparkle behind long eyelashes, and her red lipstick completes the elegance she exudes.
To keep this fresh look, she slips her feet into high-heels and strides atop her long legs to a hair salon once a week. This will be her only chance to fully relax and take a break from her independently owned business, Governmental Assistant Services, where she works as a grant administrator.
The click of her heels announces her arrival when she walks through the door of Hair Experts. After getting eyelash extensions, Crawford sits in Kaci Canada's chair to get her hair done.
Canada lightly brushes Crawford's fine and brittle hair and adds blond extensions.
"Donna sometimes wears wigs, but I think she spends time and money here to reflect the beautiful person she is on the inside," Canada said.
After her makeover, Donna walks out of the salon looking and feeling more beautiful for no one else but herself. She will not go home to a husband, but she will go back to the office and continue her work.
"I'll never get married again," said Crawford, recalling her three divorces. "I believe some people find that special connection with another person, but I never have."
When Crawford was younger, her parents pushed marriage instead of education. Influenced by this, Crawford married Herman Nordstrom in 1965 when she was just 20-years-old. During their marriage, Nordstrom served in the Vietnam War, and Crawford became pregnant when Nordstrom was on leave. She gave birth to Garrett, 38, but Nordstrom was not present.
According to Garret, Nordstrom wasn't a good father figure. "I'm one of those father issue people," said Garret.
"Herm had a lot of psychological problems when he came back from Vietnam. He saw them squashed over there," Crawford said.
She remembers how Herman would awake from his dreams in a rage, and then start choking her. "It was a very sad time in my life," said Crawford, "But it had to stop."
Crawford and Nordstrom divorced in 1972. After three years, she married Jack Mayes and gave birth to another son, Dax Mayes.
"Jack was a great guy, but he didn't show any emotion towards me," Crawford said. "I felt like a table that nobody wanted to dust."
In retrospect, Jack knew how to be a good father and even Garret calls him "Dad" today. Jack spends the holidays with Crawford and her two sons and has a healthy relationship with all three of them.
Crawford decided to give marriage another try with a man named Bill Crawford. Bill was a judge and according to Crawford, he was a cheater, and a habitual liar. "He always had good stories to tell so there was never a dull moment with Bill," Crawford said.
Because Bill had a profession in city administration Crawford became aware of grant writing and started to educate herself. She started working towards her goal of creating her business while married to Bill and then started GAS in 1985.
Today, Garret and Dax both work with their mother at GAS, and she is a woman that is content with being alone and supporting herself. Now that she has her life in order she says she doesn't take life too seriously.
"Too much seriousness is sometimes not the answer to our prayers," Crawford said, "As 
women we can lose ourselves in trying our best to prove ourselves."
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