My big brother “Joey” was there when I first opened my eyes, with his hand out to grab hold of mine. He said: “come on Val, let’s get going -- we have things to do.” When his friends asked -- “why did you bring a girl” -- his answer was: “she’s not a girl, she's my sister,” and somehow that made me feel very special. I am as grateful today for his love and loyalty as I was when I was a child.

He told me that whatever he could do, I could do it better, even though he was years older and stronger than I. He was generous and patient. He encouraged me to reach, believe, work and play hard -- and never, never to appeal to the lowest common denominator.

In return, I was his best friend and staunchest advocate. Most people know my brother as a public leader -- a US Senator for thirty-six years and Vice President of the United States for eight years.

But way back, he was once just a little boy with a very bad speech impediment -- he stuttered. He couldn’t string more than four words together at a time.

But he never let that stutter define him. He was a scrappy little kid with a healthy dose of gumption. He also had something extra -- an intangible element that he learned at the knee of our mother, Catherine Eugenia Finnegan Biden -- confidence.

With her gentle push and steely resolve, she helped him build a foundation, layer by layer, of courage and strength.

Mom told him that the reason he stuttered was because he was so smart he couldn’t get the words out fast enough.

She taught him that he was just as good as anybody else. Nobody was better than him, and he was no better than anyone else.

Because he had learned about bullies first hand, he developed a deep sense of compassion and empathy for their targets, along with a lifelong commitment to stopping them.

Today, he continues to fight against the abuse of power -- be it physical, emotional, or financial or psychological.

That is why he is running for President of the United States -- to restore the soul of America.

Valerie Biden-Owens