About Cheryl

About Cheryl Saban

Cheryl Saban is a writer and social commentator who holds a Ph.D. in psychology. She is well known for her philanthropic endeavors and respected for her dedication to pediatric medical research, foster care education sponsorship, mind-body wellness for all ages, and ubiquitous, affordable health care. Dr. Saban has written numerous articles about women, children, marriage, parenting, and socio-political issues, and is a regular blogger for HuffingtonPost.com. Her other books include Miracle Child, Sins of the Mother, Griffin’s Play Group,50 Ways to Save our Children, Recipe for a Good Marriage, and Recipe for Good Parenting.

Her focus on chronic illness in children and families helped fuel her interest in women’s health and well-being issues, not only for women and families in her city of residence, but for women all over the globe who face challenges. Her first-hand experience working with chronically ill children and their parents — primarily mothers — was instrumental in her decision to write about a woman’s worth; she observed the dedication, multi-tasking, and endless devotion required of the moms, and the difficulties and road-blocks many of them faced.

Dedication to the well-being of other women aside, the author’s personal experiences supply ample input for this book. Dr. Saban was raped when she was 18; married for the first time at 20, a mother at 21, again at 23, and divorced for the first time at 25. She struggled with the concept of her own worth as a consequence of many of her experiences, and brings that emotion and knowledge to the forefront in her work. Her life has been cluttered with ups and downs, roadblocks and difficulties, and eventually with personal epiphanies and triumphs. After a second failed marriage, she eventually met and married Haim Saban, CEO of Saban Capital, with whom she had two more children, and has been happily married for 20 years.

Dr. Saban’s personal experience as a wife, mother of four, and grandmother of four, creates a camaraderie with her readers. She is at once a teacher, a counselor, and a student, for she knows from experience that there are few absolutes — that life is about change and adaptation. She does not shy away from disclosing her own foibles, tragedies and triumphs in order to send a message of hope and possibility to others.

Born and raised in San Diego, California, Dr. Saban attended San Diego State College before moving on to Marin. Eventually relocating to Los Angeles, she gained wisdom in the “school of life” before going on to earn her Ph.D. in Psychology in 2005. A member of the American Psychological Association, Dr. Saban is also on the board of Trustees of Childrens Hospital Los Angeles, The Los Angeles Free Clinic, and The Marc & Jane Nathanson Mental Health Resource Center at UCLA. Other affiliations include, The Everychild Foundation, The Los Angeles Rape Center, Plan International, Women for Women International, Women’s Funding Network, PeaceKeeper Cosmetics, and the Saban Center for Middle East Studies at the Brookings Institution.

A frequent keynote speaker, Dr. Saban and her husband host numerous political and charitable salons and functions each year, and believe in giving back to the community. One of her charitable endeavors is the non-profit organization, 50 Ways to Save our Children, and the Web site, 50ways.org. Set up as a component and compliment to her book of the same name, 50ways.org is a database rich with information about organizations that benefit children, and their families.