WWW.USVETERANSMAGAZINE.COM U.S. VETERANS MAGAZINE 77

pxo!dbsffs!up!oe!gvmmmnfou!bt!b!npuifs/! Aaron is now a major and senior dpnnvojdbujpot!pdfs!tfswjoh!bu!VTND! Forces Central Command in Tampa, Florida. The family has faced overwhelming adversity. First, their newborn son, Kelvin, was diagnosed with holes in his lungs, requiring immediate surgeries. Then, unspeakable tragedy struck the family when the Middletons' 5-year-old daughter Scarlett died from an undiagnosed illness. The shock and trauma of Scarlett's passing has shaken the family to its core. Scarlett loved picking and giving away pxfst-!boe!ifs!gbwpsjuf!tpoh!xbt-!Zpv! Are My Sunshine." Through pain and inspiration, Holly promised to keep alive the joy Scarlett brought to everybody who knew her. The grieving mother created a charity called Scarlett's Sunshine, using random bdut!pg!ljoeoftt!xjui!pxfst!up!joevdf! spontaneous smiles. "Little did I know that when I gave qfpqmf!uif!pxfst-!boe!J!tbx!uif!hsbujuvef! on their faces light up, that I would see Scarlett's light again," Holly says. "I found her light." The Middletons' home in St. Petersburg !uif!stu!uifzwf!pxofe!tjodf!Bbspo! joined the Corps- needed a lot of help. Military Makeover worked to make it a place of healing and solace for this deserving military family. As the cherry on top, the show donated b!zfbst!xpsui!pg!pxfst!up!Tdbsmfuut! Sunshine. "It feels like a miracle," Holly tbje-!xifo!qsftfoufe!xjui!uif!pxfst/ Which brought a smile to Montel's face. That's the miracle of Montel's life, which mirrors the lives of all U.S. veterans.

Montel Williams has interviewed face-to-face, sitting beside him, over 19,000 people.

COURTESY OF BRANDSTAR

From left: Montel Williams with Holly and Aaron Middleton, who lost their 5-year-old daughter Scarlett, and began a foundation in her honor, "Scarlett's Sunshine."