A Story of Resilience, Healing, and Hope
Born to parents whose lives were riddled with addiction and self-medicated mental illness, Stephanie was thrust into a role of responsibility at five years old. When a fortuitous fire burns down her family trailer, 12 year old Stephanie finds herself on a journey of healing. With the love and patience of her Aunt and Uncle along with the help of a kind therapist, Stephanie learns tools to cope with and overcome the damage of her early childhood. Ketchup Sandwiches is an incredible coming of age story.
Tell the story behind the work.
Stephanie Tobola grew up in Temple Texas. In 2001 Stephanie was removed from an untenable living situation and placed into the care of her aunt and uncle. Having a safe place to grow allowed Stephanie to develop her interest in running, singing, and writing. Growing up Stephanie always enjoyed writing and even entertained the idea of heading to Nashville and becoming a singer/songwriter. Her love of writing took a back seat to responsibility as she entered college and found her way into adulthood.
In college Stephanie met her now husband, Nick Tobola. Nick is a proud member of the United States Air Force. They married in 2012 and welcomed their first child in 2016 while stationed at Little Rock AFB. Two years later, in 2018, while stationed at Hill AFB they welcomed their second child.
For the past twelve years Stephanie has juggled military life, raising her children, her professional life as first as a teacher and now as medical coder, all while continuing to care for her family back home in Texas. In 2022 Stephanie and her family moved the Nellis AFB where they currently reside. While settling into life in Las Vegas Stephanie took the fresh start as an opportunity to focus on herself more. Still juggling family, a career, and the challenges of military life, Stephanie began writing again.
The inspiration for Stephanie’s debut book Ketchup Sandwiches is pulled from her life experiences growing up in home where the parent child role was reversed more times than not. Stephanie wrote Ketchup Sandwiches to shine a light on the insidious nature of childhood physical, sexual, and emotional abuse and neglect. In Ketchup Sandwiches Stephanie takes the reader on a first-person ride through pivotal moments of her life from twelve years old through nineteen to show how she was able to heal with the help of family, therapy, and faith.
At a glance
- Author of Ketchup Sandwiches
- Co-host of "Not in a Bubble"
- Mother of two beatutiful children
- Storyteller focused on meaningful impact
The themes that shape Stephanie’s voice
From faith and healing to resilience and growth, these are the ideas woven through Stephanie’s story—on the page, on stage, and in conversation.
Faith & hope
“The sun has risen over the hills and is hitting the pavement just right so that whatever it is in pavement that reflects the sunlight makes the road look like it is sprinkled with glitter. Mornings like this, surrounded by the glory of God, it is difficult to see how anyone could deny His presence.”
Resilience
“A self-satisfied smile plays at the corner of my lips. I feel pretty good about having used what I have learned from Maxine to bring myself back from the brink of anger. In the past, I would have stayed in my feelings and when things became too much, I would have lashed out, causing more damage. In this moment, I feel like I may be able to be ‘normal’ one day, and that makes me smile.”
Leadership
“How can my kids learn grace and forgiveness if I don’t teach them? Secondly, while I will never excuse my mother’s constant neglect, I do acknowledge that, in many ways, my mother was a victim of limited knowledge and resources.”
Stephanie Tobola — Author, Speaker, Advocate
Stephanie Tobola is an author, speaker, and advocate focused on child abuse prevention, mental health, and addiction awareness. Through storytelling and faith-based insight, she equips audiences to recognize, respond, and protect.
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Looking to host a meaningful, impactful conversation? Stephanie Tobola brings a powerful voice to topics surrounding child abuse prevention, trauma, mental health, and addiction. Her message is honest, faith-grounded, and rooted in real-life experience—creating conversations that inform, challenge, and inspire change.
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