PHOTOS BY CHARLENE MANN PHOTOGRAPHY
Titiana Bogar is a familiar face in Rochester Woman Online. We thought our readers should get to know her a little better, like we have had the pleasure of doing over the past year.
Like many, you’ve seen her on the runway with RWO, checked out her photos in our pages and even read some of her articles in “Something For the Sister’s”. But, that’s not all Titiana brings to the table.
She is an inspiration to others, and she has an inspiring story to tell. When she’s not with RWO Titiana is a customer service representative for the New York State at the Department of Health and a small business owner. She is also a representative for “Passion Through Love”.
She, like others, found herself with medical reasons to foster her change of career mid-life where she had spent twelve years in the medical field and then she had to come up with a back-up plan. Facing a crisis such as this is not an easy task. Even more so if you don’t have time to plan for it. But sometimes life does that and shoots you a curve ball veering to the left!
Titiana attended a friend’s party of highlighting the “Passion Through Love” products and the rest is history. Titiana especially liked the fact this company allowed her to help other women become open about their sexuality. So many women find themselves in a position at different times in their life where they lose themselves. The process to learn to become yourself again can be a tedious one.
Many women experience trauma in their upbringing. It can become the vehicle for self-destruction or the road to empowerment. Titiana used her obstacles to “find her rainbow” and share it with others to help them break the chains they find themselves bound by.
At age 14, Titiana was raped by someone close to her and then became pregnant. She overcame being physically, mentally, and emotionally abused by a man she loved. Her biggest obstacle was overcoming being in a place of losing herself and then teaching herself how to shine again. She shares this gift of peace and tranquility she has learned to achieve with others.
Titiana is very close with her family. Her children inspire her to “ keep going”. Her sisters Li-Tonya and Daisha were her first “ true loves” and were the first two people to help keep her focused when she lost everything. They are her best friends and have been there for her through it all. Titiana also credits her grandmother (Nana) Shirley ( may she rest in peace) as being her rock. She helped shape her into the fabulous woman she is today. Shirley, her heart and soul, passed away April 30, 2016.
The experience of losing someone who was very important to her, shattered Titiana’s world. Titiana indicates after her passing is when she lost herself. Shirley would listened without judgment or criticism and was the foundation in Titiana’s world. The person who always assured her “Everything will be ok”.
Titiana is not done yet. She has aspirations in the next five years to become a well-known real estate owner hoping to establish offices in Rochester, NY, Atlanta, Ga., New Brunswick, NJ., and most importantly Durban, South Africa where Titiana’s mother is from.
Titiana is also working on her second book and plans to be an honored publisher by that time. Which she is well on her way to achieving.
She started writing to help herself when suffering from depression. Her roots in writing launched from writing poetry and being an award-winning poet! She progressed to penning short stories and finally she published her first book.
Writing is a vehicle to aide Titiana in expressing her feelings. Feeling closed out is not a healthy place to be. Suffering from depression places you at times where you can feel and even think about ending your life.
Titiana’s first novel is a tell all fiction book. It is all about learning who she was as a person. This was done through the real struggles she experienced and most of all learning to overcome those hardships.
Despite there being, a multitude of books which were written surrounding these principles, Titiana hopes when reading her book, it assists others who find themselves where she was and gain strength to live again. She envisions her story as something which will help another to share their story.
Titiana shares her vision with our readers every month in Something For the Sister’s. She uses her column as a place where women can be themselves and prides her space on being focused on the principle of “Let’s talk about it”!
Her column, “Ask Titiana” also shares topics affecting women’s everyday lives. Hope you will read her column each month and find some great advice, inspiring stories and truly empowering statements of overcoming real life struggles.
