• Name: Kami Butler, 60
• Place: Tempe, Ariz.

I got left behind.

I was a small custom home builder in the North Texas market, and I built hundreds of homes since 1984. I was never too aggressive and always kept my inventory low, (two homes max on the ground at any given time), to guard against any possible downturn that could occur. In 2007 I had just put the finishing touches on two beautiful custom homes in a secluded gated community.

I had high hopes and both homes were showing well. Then, the subprime mortgage fiasco broke and my life would never be the same. Almost overnight, people stopped visiting my subdivision. It's not too difficult to imagine the financial path I was forced to walk down next.

I couldn't sell the homes, and my bank was in no mood to work anything out. The bank foreclosed on both of them.

My personal residence was next. I gave up and filed for chapter 7 bankruptcy protection. I walked away from my home and began a new life in Arizona in the summer of 2011. I now work part-time selling lumber at Lowe's and barely make ends meet.

Our country begs us to start small businesses. The problem is when our businesses fail, our country will not be there with any safety net. I had to stomach everyone else getting stimulus and unemployment checks while I received nothing because of my self employment.

NEXT: 'One of the fortunate ones'