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August 18, 2025 34 mins

John Graham graduated from college with no real training, no direction, and no one to help him. As a result, he went through eight career detours, moving from state to state, feeling helpless, alone, and not knowing what to do or where to go much of the time.

 

It was not until he and his wife committed to helping others who were struggling more they were and founded Good Samaritan Home that he found his place and a sense of purpose.

 

 

John Graham had gone from homelessness, a series of career restarts over the years, to a business owner and a published author. He was a door-to-door salesman, children's home counselor, substitute schoolteacher, truck driver, fireman, building contractor, minister, and journalist.

At 75, he published his debut novel called Running As Fast As I Can, which had been rejected nearly 200 times. John is familiar with second, third, and fourth chances that many of us need to reach our goals. It is in developing what he calls calloused hands and a tender heart, along the journey.

 

 

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For Fans of WHERE THE CRAWDADS SING, A LITTLE LIFE, and FORREST GUMP

"... often profound historical novel. Our verdict: GET IT!" - KIRKUS REVIEWS

Growing up in the mill slums of Pittsburgh, Daniel Robinson was a punching bag for his drunken father, ignored by his mentally ill mother, and trapped in the grip of poverty. He's finally freed from the torture of that home, only to crash land in another hell when he's abused by the pastor who takes him in.

Daniel escapes once again, spending the next decade wandering homeless throughout the country during the turbulent 1960s. On his journey, he gets caught up in the hippie drug invasion in San Francisco, racial violence in Cleveland and Detroit, and especially a deadly anti-war protest at Kent State. Daniel finally finds love with someone who was running from her own demons. Together, they get a second chance at
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