Local author Walt McKinley’s journey to overcoming child abuse through writing
YUMA, Ariz. (KYMA, KECY) - Walt McKinley was born and raised for most of his life in Yuma, where during his entire childhood, he was victimized and abused by the hands of every single adult he had ever lived with.
Traumatic abuse by his father, stepfather, stepmother and foster parents shattered him into a million pieces and left him in a pit of despair, pain, shame and anger.
The anger resulted in McKinley lashing out at others, stealing and not caring if he lived or died during his teen years which left him one decision away from prison.
At almost 16-years-old, McKinley chose to fight for himself and created a plan with his hero, his aunt Dianna, to file a child abuse case and have his father arrested.
The path to healing Mckinley's trauma after did not happen overnight, but it showed him that one choice can dramatically change the outcome of the future and he realized where he started in life didn’t have to be where he finished.
Soon after joining the U.S. Navy, McKinley met his wife of 22-years and has two teenage daughters.
He retired as a Naval Intelligence Officer after 20 years of service to our country.
Once Mckinley retired from the Navy, he entered corporate America and became an executive in a Fortune 300 company within a couple of years.
In 2021, he reached a point where he knew he needed to follow the calling in his life.
He knew he needed to help reach millions of people with a message of healing and knew he could significantly impact humanity's mental health by focusing on helping others heal from their trauma.
So McKinley decided it was time to write his story as a memoir; Monsters In My House, A True Story.
He wrote this story to show everyone your history does not define your legacy and he knew that speaking his truth could help remove the stigma of trauma and give humanity the safe space to begin speaking theirs.
For children or adults here in Yuma, or anywhere else, he hopes his book can inspire people to heal and overcome child abuse, or any other struggle that defines them.
