"It would be a blessing, especially the way I grew up," Willis
said, when asked what he would do with his riches. "It would help
me take care of those who helped me along the way and make sure
that if I have children they won't have to go through what I went
through."
...
The real-life nightmare began when his mother left home,
abandoning her four children and forcing them to fend for
themselves with an uninterested father. Willis was 4 years old.
Two years later, Willis was cooking meals for his siblings, and
by age 10, Willis was working in Tennessee's cotton fields with his
grandmother, earning $110 per week. The money went to his dad so he
could pay the family's bills.
As a teenager, the situation worsened. When Willis learned his
father was abusing his sister, Ernicka, he turned him in to child
services and suddenly, Willis and his siblings needed to find a new
family, one that would give them the love and respect they
deserved.
...
"My real-life experience taught me how to compete through
adversity," he said. "No matter what happens, if someone knocks
you down, you have to find a way to get up and get the job done.
That's what you have to do."
