About Me
How I got here
If you would have asked me 30 years ago where I would see myself, a writer was not even a spark of a thought. In fact, English was my least favorite subject in high school. I had the same English teacher my freshman year and senior year of high school. Ironically enough, Mr. Giles was also the most influential teacher I can remember. He helped turn a failing freshman into a successful senior. I think of so many missed opportunities to read and the imaginary adventures I could have had, which is where I find myself today with a desire to write my own adventures. And, if I really think about it, it was there all along.
Roots all along
When I was in Fourth Grade, a Holocaust survivor came to speak at my school and, afterwards, the teacher asked us to write thank you cards. I didn't know what to say, so I wrote a poem. Later, my teacher received a letter from the Holocaust survivor. She was appreciative to the whole class but identified me by name and highlighted my poem; she was extremely moved by what I wrote. As a teenager, I also wrote lyrics. I didn't - and still don't - know how to write music, but it was something I thoroughly enjoyed.
The grateful road
I retired from the U.S. military in 2018, after 21+ indescribable years. I started out in public relations, where I worked in journalism and media/community relations. However, a majority of my career was conducting federal criminal and counterintelligence investigations. I have also been teaching in this field, in one form or another, since 2011. I feel so unbelievably fortunate to have completed one amazing career and now am jumping at the opportunity to experience a second one. Sometimes it is hard for me to grasp.