Dr. Maya Angelou, a noted civil rights activist, actress, and award-winning poet and writer, died Wednesday morning at her home in Winston Salem, North Carolina. The 86-year-old, born Marguerite Annie Johnson, suffered from heart problems her literary agent, Helen Brann, told the New York Times. Less than a week ago, Angelou said she would not be attending the 2014 MLB Beacon Awards luncheon, indicating it was for "health reasons." Angelou was born in St. Louis, Missouri. However, she was sent along with her brother to live with their grandmother in Stamps, Arkansas, after their parents' divorce. Angelou did not have an easy upbringing, as she faced racial discrimination at Stamps. At the age of seven, she was sexually molested by her mother's boyfriend while he was visiting Chicago. Angelou was overcome with guilt when she discovered that an uncle had killed her attacker. She remained silent for five years. He began speaking again at age 13, joining his mother in San Francisco. She later attended Mission High School and won a scholarship to study dance and theater at the Labor School in San Francisco. Although it was short-lived, Angelou dropped out of school. During her senior year she became pregnant but still managed to graduate high school before giving birth to her son, Guy Johnson. A single mother, who left home in her late teens, she supported her son by working as a waitress and cook, but never once neglected her passion for dance, music, entertainment and poetry. In 1952, Angelou married Greek sailor Anastasios Angelopulos. . When she began her career as a nightclub singer, she called herself Maya Angelou, "Maya" was the name her brother Bailey gave her after reading a book about...... middle of paper......993, read his poem, "On the Pulse of the Morning," during former President Bill Clinton's first inauguration, which was broadcast live and around the world. Angelou faced many obstacles but was still able to accomplish many things. Did you ever think that she would come this far, leaving an impact on the lives of many people, such as Oprah Winfrey, President Obama, former President Bill Clinton, and the general public in general? Maybe she knew. When she was in her 20s, the public icon met Billie Holiday, who told her: “You're going to be famous. But it won't be for singing." Angelou is a three-time Grammy winner and was also nominated for a Tony, a Pulitzer and an Emmy for her role in the 1977 miniseries "roots." The 86-year-old Renaissance woman had a son, Guy Johnson, and lived in North Carolina in an 18-room house and taught American studies at Wake Forest University.