Inspiring Women Magazine November 2023

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Bridgerton and Beyond
Cynthia Holden, AWC Central Scotland, shares how she went from studying
English Literature in South Florida to reenacting British Renaissance
dramas in Scotland.
I
grew up in South Florida, where my
mother owned a childcare center that
helped inner-city families. I grew up
inspired to help and be very active in and about
my community. Each holiday we would have a
big family dinner but, before we could eat, we
had to serve dinner to the less fortunate and
that’s us being grateful for being blessed and
lucky enough to have a dinner.
After finishing university at the University of
South Florida, where I studied English literature
and Italian civilization, I moved to Italy. I lived in
Rome for two years and then spent six months
in Corfu translating Italian and Greek for
tourists. I moved back to the United States, living
in Atlanta. After 10 years I moved back to Florida
where I opened a seafood restaurant on St.
George Island.
I then moved to Dallas/Fort Worth and met my
Scottish husband online. We met on April 1 and
were married on July 23, just five days after
meeting physically. I moved to Scotland in 2004,
and we adopted two beautiful children. I started
my own successful training company in 2007,
but COVID-19 closed us down and I retired.
What preparations, if any, did you make
before moving to your new country?
I made no preparations at all; I just went all
Cynthia Holden
in. Fortunately for me, it was an
English-speaking country.
Nevertheless, the people of Cynthia at the
Scotland can have a strong
AWC Central
dialect. When I arrived I knew Scotland birthday
bash in Edinburgh
at the Waldorf
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