One day in early 2019, I got a letter from the lead detective in the investigation of my best friend’s murder in 1981. I had changed my name and moved to southern New Mexico, but thanks to the World Wide Web, she tracked me down.
Kay wanted to write a book about the Janice Starr “case.” I wanted to tell the story of my friend’s life, not just her death. As I started to write, I realized I couldn’t tell Janice’s story without telling my own. That’s when I discovered that I was writing a memoir.
I was born in Augsburg, Germany to an American soldier and a German Fräulein. I came to the United States at the age of three and was raised as an Army brat. I lived in Minnesota, Georgia, Colorado, Maryland, New Mexico, and New Jersey and returned to Germany for two three-year tours.
At the age of nineteen, I joined the Army myself. I met Janice Starr in the spring of 1978 when she was assigned as my roommate in the barracks of the Eighth Army Headquarters in Seoul, Korea. That’s where my memoir begins. Learn more about my memoir here.
After I graduated from college and law school, I worked in the legal field for many years. My passion for social justice and helping the underdog led me to work in the nonprofit sector, where I became a manager and advocate focusing on affordable housing. Eventually, I started an independent consulting practice working with a variety of nonprofits and as a grant reviewer for the federal government.
When I relocated to New Mexico, the land of my paternal ancestors, I became passionate about genealogy. I have written articles for genealogy journals and held several offices in our local genealogy society.
Now that I am a published memoir writer, I support others in telling their own stories.
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