Since adolescence, medicine has appealed to me as a tool to impact my fellow man in their most crucial sector of life, their health.  Being the 11th of 13 children to Elder Roy and Dorothy Jackson, I found myself after high school working three jobs and contributing significantly to the wellbeing of my mother and the family home. After entering and graduating from college, I married my post-high school sweetheart Vanessa and moved to Tallahassee, Florida to enroll in Pharmacy School. It was there that the seed of becoming a doctor was sown and upon graduation, commencement in medical school took root.

While in medical school, my mother developed hypertension and I began mentorship research program under the tutelage of Dr. Otelio Randall, a seasoned scholar, researcher, professor, and cardiologist. My father developed a valvular heart disorder while enrolled in an internship and residency at the medical college of Virginia hospitals in Richmond, Virginia. In an attempt to learn and comprehend my dad’s illness, I began and completed a fellowship in cardiovascular diseases. In Richmond, Virginia a major transformational change took place in my life. I gave my life to Jesus Christ, which forever altered the course of my future. My first real job as a practicing cardiologist was in Little Rock, Arkansas. I was dedicated and very active in the local church there, as well as to the cardiologist practice I was a part of.