Powell O'Kelly's strict, narrow upbringing in Ireland was always with the expectation of a religious life in the ministry, so when his parents became suddenly ill and died, his world seemed to collapse. Nevertheless, just as he had been successful in his academic studies, he was equally effective at incorporating self-control and acceptable behavior as the primary traits of his character. In 1897, after the deaths of his parents, he left the ministry and Ireland for America. To his profound dismay, his lifelong friend pressured him to bring his motherless daughter to live with her uncle and aunt in Dallas. But when Powell left Ireland, he also left any thought of serving God. That choice ruled every other decision in his life, causing pain and tragedy to him and the ones he most loved. Left alone and devastated, he finally faced his own duplicity in denying God's place in his life. He knew the catastrophic pain he had suffered, as well as that inflicted on his only daughter and the woman he loved, was inexcusable. Why had he been able to love his precious daughter with all his heart, yet destroy her, her baby, and her marriage? Finding the answer to that question opened a whole world of love and happiness that heretofore had been a mystery to his closed mind.
