-
Why I Write Nonfiction – Real Life Stories of Connection
As I reach my ninth anniversary of the still-feeling-new chapter of my life as an author, once again I receive a reminder of why I love what I do. From the books I write, I find myself a connector of people who are tied in myriad ways to my main character, Oswald “Valdik” Holzer—my dad. …
-
New Year Optimism and a Mom in Spirit
Each New Year for me is a little bittersweet. I always yearn for great optimism and hope for the coming year, but a piece of that feeling fell away when seventeen years ago I lost my mother – Ruth Alice Lequear, known affectionately by many as “Chick” or to her grandchildren as “Chickie.” It was…
-
Voices Needed for Decency – Don’t Stay Silent
Voices Needed for Decency and Peace—Don’t Stay Silent I was moved today by this excellent Opinion Column in the Orlando Sentinel. Written by Pam Kancher, Executive Director of the Holocaust Memorial Resource and Education Center of Florida, her words share a timeless reminder that we each carry a voice that must speak up when we…
-
Celebrating Human Rights Day – December 10, 2016
For the past sixty-eight years, the world has celebrated the December 10th anniversary of the 1945 United Nations General Assembly’s adoption of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. With the fresh recognition of what humans can do to one another following the horrific evidence of the Holocaust, the historic UN act promoted the publicizing of…
-
Students learn of differences and similarities with others through family history research to “recognize the origins of old-new dangers.”
“Hopefully, education and knowledge of history linked together with pure compassion and humanity will let us recognize the origins of old-new dangers and tie down the demons of hatred and evil before they grow to overcome us again.” Vaclav Havel, First President of the Czech Republic As important today as ever, students can learn similarities…
-
Freedom for Cuba
With the passing of Fidel Castro, I’m reminded of a time in the early 1960s when my parents offered to house a Cuban refugee family just after their escape from the tyranny of Castro’s regime. In our home in Indialantic came a small, very sad family who spoke little English and wished only to gain…
-
Adventurers Against Their Will featured in Holocaust Education Book
‘Literature Can Help Bring Forward Every Aspect of Human Life.’ (from the book: Essentials of Holocaust Education: Fundamental Issues and Approaches) An author’s life is never dull. After almost nine years, I’ve nearly finished my second and third books (My Dear Boy and Steadfast Ink). As they go through final edits, I’ve entered the stage…
-
Use History as Your Guide
October 2016 It’s always important to use history as a guide. If we can learn from the past, we might have a chance to avoid future catastrophes. The following excerpt is from my upcoming book, My Dear Boy, the detailed story of my Czech-American father’s life before, during and just after WWII. The passage depicts…
Steadfast Ink: The Journey Within
MY DEAR BOY: A World War II Story of Escape, Exile, and Revelation
Adventurers Against Their Will
