Today we’d like to introduce you to Martez Layton and Woodrina Layton.
Martez and Woodrina, can you briefly walk us through your story – how you started and how you got to where you are today.
We met in September of 1989 in Norfolk, VA, which is my hometown and we immediately starting dating. Martez was stationed on the USS John F Kennedy CV-67 and by the time he went out to sea in December, we were in love and committed to making our relationship one that would last for a lifetime. After Martez returned from serving in Desert Storm Desert Shield, we were married on May 4, 1991.
In 1995, while I was stationed overseas in the Republic of Panama waiting on Woodrina and our children to arrive, I had an extra-marital affair which lasted for about 4-6 weeks. I hid the affair from Woodrina because I knew that if she found out she would have left me and taken our kids back to the States. Growing up without a father and having to relive that with my children would have been a living nightmare for me.I prayed and asked God to forgive me for committing infidelity and to heal my heart and my marriage. In spite of my secret, we had some of the best years of our marriage. After I got out of the U S Navy in 2001, Woodrina and I started our own business – Quality Cleaners of Pensacola, FL a professional full service dry cleaners. We ran the business for six years and in 2007, we decided to sell the dry cleaners and move to Olive Branch, MS which is right outside of Memphis, TN.
During this time, Martez was making several major financial decisions without consulting me or considering the outcome of his decisions. Due to his lack of knowledge in real estate investing, plus being schemed along with the housing market crashing, he ended up losing everything we owned. In May of 2007, I connected with an old high school friend. An emotional affair began in which a few months later became physical. In August of that year, Martez confronted me about the affair and I confessed. During that conversation, he told me about the affair that he had while stationed overseas. We both decided to fight for our marriage and began searching for a Christian counselor or coach who had overcome infidelity in their own marriage. We could not find anyone so in 2008, Martez attended the International Coaching Academy and graduated with the certification as a Certified Life and Marriage Coach. After receiving my Master’s degree in Education from Regent University 2009, I went on to pursue my Master’s degree in Counseling. I am now a Licensed Professional Counselor in the state of GA. Together, we provide marriage coaching, relationship coaching, life coaching, premarital counseling, marriage enrichment counseling and coaching, affair recovery coaching and counseling plus individual and couples counseling.
We published our first book in 2012, A Blessed Affair; Be Careful What You Curse, Your Curse Could Be Your Blessing!. We have been featured on OWN’s series, Unfaithful Stories of Betrayal, the 700 Club, and Atlanta Live. In addition, we have been interviewed by Sheen Magazine and radio hosts all over the country.
Recently, we started a non-profit organization, Healing Hearts Healing Homes, Inc. which is a Georgia faith based 501(c)(3) that focuses on the importance and the awareness of mental health counseling as well as marriage coaching and life coaching for children, teens, couples, and families. We held our first annual Married 4 Life Walk in Marietta which focuses on never letting the hand go that you are holding. It was truly an amazing event and we are looking forward to next year. It was truly an honor and a blessing to have legendary R & B singer Ronnie DeVoe of New Edition and Bell Biv DeVoe and his multi-talented singer and actress wife Shamari DeVoe partner with us.
Here is the video of the feature story that the 700 Club did on our personal story of overcoming infidelity through prayer, forgiveness and pursuit of destiny. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Pri7CFUjTkg&t=23s
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
We have faced several obstacles and challenges. First of all, overcoming infidelity within itself takes a toll on you both emotionally and spiritually. Starting the business by ourselves with no prior business experience created several struggles. The stress of moving with our family to a new city, getting our kids into the right school while building a business from the ground up was very challenging. Writing our own business plan, which took about 6 months and being being turned down pretty much by every bank in Pensacola, FL made it seem impossible to stay encouraged and determined.
Another huge obstacle was moving from Virginia Beach, VA to Atlanta, GA and starting all over with a business in a whole different industry. For years we were accustomed to the military communities and more of the small city feel; therefore, Atlanta created all sorts of new stressors in our lives. Graduating from Regent University in Virginia Beach, VA then deciding to move to Georgia was going to require Woodrina to have to wait 3 years on her professional license to operate on her own as a licensed mental health therapist. We also faced many challenges when we were first trying to get our book published. We have had several challenges and obstacles to overcome. We could write another book on overcoming your challenges and obstacles in pursuit of your dreams and destiny.
Alright – so let’s talk business. Tell us about Dream Builders Professional Coaching – what should we know?
At Dream Builders Professional Coaching we provide life coaching, relationship coaching, premarital counseling and coaching, marriage enrichment coaching and counseling and overcoming infidelity coaching and counseling. We also offer group coaching, workshops, webinars, and we both do public speaking and motivational speaking.
We specialize in affair recovery coaching and counseling, rebuilding trust, and improving communication. We are known for helping couples to restore their marriage, rebuild love and trust and discover how to move forward from infidelity or emotional brokenness. As a professional Coaching and Counseling marriage team we help couples achieve their marital goals and get back to a healthy place in their marriage. We are passionate about helping couples who are engaged avoid falling into marital traps by providing them with the tools and knowledge necessary to face and overcome any challenge or obstacle they may face during their marital journey so they can be married 4 life.
As a company, we are most proud of the fact that we get to work together doing something that brings us joy and passion. We get to strengthen, heal, encourage, educate, and empower marriages and families so that they can be healthy and impact the next generation. We get to strengthen communities and schools because when a marriage is stronger the community, churches and schools become stronger.
The one thing that sets Woodrina and I apart is that we have both experienced overcoming infidelity and are willing to be transparent with other couples so that they do not have to go through the painful ordeal in their marriage. Also, we bring two different perspectives as a professional life and marriage coach and a licensed therapist. When working with the both of us you get to work with a husband and a wife who are both not only passionate but skilled and trained to do the job. We work as a team, Woodrina as the therapist and myself as the coach. One of the many things that sets us apart is the fact that we provide clients professional coaching and counseling. Also, we both have been on both sides of infidelity so you know you are working with a couple who is transparent and whose marriage has been tried. We don’t teach and coach on what we were only taught in school, but what we have learned through our 28 years of marriage and being together.
Is there a characteristic or quality that you feel is essential to success?
We believe that never giving up, never allowing our circumstances to dictate the outcome and focusing on impacting the lives of others is crucial to success. Our success is determined by how many people we help succeed and maximize their potential.
Contact Info:
- Address: 1ooo Parkwood Circle SE Suite 900
Atlanta, GA 30339 - Website: www.dreambuilderscoaching.net
- Phone: 678-453-6501
- Email: info@dreambuilderscoaching.net
- Instagram: https://web.stagram.com/coachmartez
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/DreamBuildersCoaching/
- Twitter: https://twitter.com/martezlayton?lang=en
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/dream-builders-professional-coaching-atlanta
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