Mary spent her formative years in the north woods near the Canadian border in north eastern Minnesota. Those years had a deep impact on her and connect strongly to her retirement years living in the Black Hills of south western South Dakota.
She spent the first half of her professional life as an elementary school teacher in the Twin Cities area, and after receiving her Masters degree she worked as a school counselor and also conducted seminars, ran small groups and did some private practice work.
Mary retired to the Black Hills of South Dakota in 1998 to live off the grid with her husband, Robert Lee.
Presently she is a writer and is active in community and environmental causes. She does some editing and has published three books. Her first one, A (not so) Simple Life: Our Return to Rustic Roots contains reflections about her life off the grid together with memoirs of growing up in the north woods of Minnesota. Her writings, contemplating the many changes during her lifetime, also strongly mirror the similarities to her past experiences of her developmental years in rural America.
Cascade of Flames emerged after a wildfire on 7-7-7 burned the book she was working on and she decided to interview some firefighters and evacuees of that wildfire that destroyed 30 homes, including the author's fire resistant home. This fire raged out of control in the urban interface south of Hot Springs, SD, burning two firefighters and killing one homeowner. Any reader who has experienced any type of trauma in his/her lifetime will respond to the similar emotions of these individuals who fought or fled this inferno which changed their lives forever.
Reveille in Hot Springs: The Battle to Save our VA, her third book is a series of interviews of veterans from all conflicts from WWII through the present who use the VA in Hot Springs, SD and want it to remain in the peaceful, rural setting that is most conducive to the treatment of veterans suffering from PTSD and other emotional issues. The stories of these veterans are powerful and, at times, heart wrenching. They make the case for retaining this very special VA. It is the very least our government can do for these men and women who once served their country and now feel that this government is ignoring their needs.
Re: Cascade of Flames... after reading this you will never view a natural disaster in the same way: the individual stories of those directly involved make you realize the scope and full dimensions of these events. They are very personal... from all acounts. A good read.
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