The person who had the greatest impact on my life was Stephen Ailes. I was 21 when I went to work at the law firm of Steptoe & Johnson, where he was a senior partner. I was quick to realize that working for a senior partner gave one not only more responsibility but also more prestige with the firm.

Mr. Ailes always treated me like a member of the family. I was both a personal and a legal secretary. I paid his bills, balanced his checkbook, took his boys to special events when he or his wife were unavailable. I also worked on the many legal aspects of the job. He was one of the few lawyers who invited their secretary and spouse to dinner. Mr. Ailes gave nicknames to the people he cared about. Hence, I was always Marilino to him.

He and his wife owned a 350-acre farm in Martinsburg, West Virginia. It was named Waterfall Farm due to the natural waterfall which you could stand under and cool off in the summertime. They were always kind enough to allow me to take my children up to the farm on the weekends when they weren’t using it. They also owned Flash, a lovely white horse that I was allowed to ride while I was there.

I worked for this gentleman off and on for over 25 years. When I needed to leave due to pregnancy or divorce, the job was always there when I needed to return. While I worked for him, he was the Secretary of the Army under Lyndon Johnson. This placed me at the Pentagon during the Vietnam War. Later, he was President of the Railroad Association. Working for him led to many interesting experiences. He took me with him when he argued before the Supreme Court, presented the Army’s budget before Congress, and visited the troops in Puerto Rico and Panama. Little did I expect when I took that job that it would have such an impact on my life.