This is Who We Once Were Here – is the title of my current research project. At least one book and several articles are planned, all based on 100+ WWII era family letters my grandmother kept.

These letters provide details and insights into what life was like during WWII when my grandmother kept the home fires burning while my grandfather, a Manhattan Project engineer, traveled from Boston to Oak Ridge and back each week, my uncle was 10th Mountain Division member training in Colorardo and my father, who started working on Manhattan Project related work as a teenager and continued into his late twenties but which he rarely talked about.

• The Green BoxMarch 2, 2022
  Our grandmother would pull out the green box where she kept the letters and photos she treasured.
• Interview with Tammy PasterickNovember 11, 2021
  Author of Beneath the Veil of Smoke and Ash Check out the Dead Darlings blog to read my interview with Tammy Pasterick on her debut novel that is set against the grim backdrop of Western Pennsylvania’s steel mills and coal mines, Beneath the Veil of Smoke and Ash,  is a riveting story of immigrant grit and … Continue reading Interview with Tammy Pasterick
• The oregano and the white roseAugust 6, 2021
  My mother’s love of gardening passed on to her children, including me. In my mind’s eye, I could see the trash heap at the back door of our new home transformed into an herb garden. To be fair, the rock that stuck up at the back door might lead many to think it was unusable. … Continue reading The oregano and the white rose