At 17, Laura Guilfoyle's older brother was diagnosed with schizophrenia. At 31, she had lost both her younger brother and sister to suicide. She turned to the National Alliance on Mental Illness to find answers. This is the story of her journey to understand why she was spared the devastating brain illnesses which destroyed her family.
About the Author: Ever since 1972, when she won her first writing contests in eighth grade, Laura Guilfoyle has wanted to be a writer. She thought she was well on her way to achieving her goal when she received a full scholarship to the prestigious Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University. Then life intervened when her older brother was diagnosed with schizophrenia in 1976. After completing her BSJ degree in 1980, she chose to use her communication skills to help improve the lives of persons with serious mental illnesses and their families. Losing her younger brother at the age of 24 and her younger sister at the age of 27 to suicide only strengthened her resolve. For the past 37 years she has served as an administrator and/or board member at local and national levels with the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI). As a professional writer, she has written and edited newsletters, grant proposals, press releases, brochures, and annual reports. In 1989, as executive director of NAMI Greater Chicago, she was presented with the Beatrice Foundation Award for Excellence in nonprofit management. Upon moving to Dublin in 1991, she consulted with the Schizophrenia Association of Ireland and other mental health organizations while studying Anglo-Irish Literature with the prolific poet, Brendan Kennelly, at Trinity College Dublin. She joined the Dublin Writers Workshop and for five years successfully marketed the network of Independent Holiday Hostels of Ireland. Returning to Chicago in 1999, she created her own tourism promotion company, representing holiday hostels and other tourism clients around the country. When the tragic events of 9/11 made international travel a risky proposition, so she decided teaching would be a rewarding profession. While earning her Master's in Education from Governors State University, she taught language arts and literature to junior high students. Her students inspired her to write novels.