Member Profile

Almost 75 years ago, I was born in Rockford, Essex, England, during a German air raid. My mother, an English lass, and my father, an American GI, had been stationed at the same base during World War II, fell in love and here I am. At the conclusion of the war, in 1945, my father returned to his hometown in southeastern Iowa, in order to build a house for his new family who remained in England. In 1946, my mother and I took the month-long boat journey to New York City in order to rejoin my father. We did not enter through Ellis Island as this was considered a military reunification and also because I was suffering from severe pneumonia. We lingered another month in New York City as I was hospitalized and once given the OK, we traveled to New Sharon, Iowa, where we settled in with my paternal grandparents until my father finished building our home. I was a very precocious child and was doted upon by my parents and family given my special birth status. However, this was not always the case. I was told by my mother that she and I were not made to feel welcome by everyone in this small farming community and considered as “foreigners.” My mother was able to link up with other war brides in the area which greatly helped. My childhood was rather unremarkable but I had loving parents and two siblings. My brother, Jim, continues to live in New Sharon. My sister, Linda, died at the age of 40 from complications of juvenile diabetes.

After high school, I attended a small Quaker college near my home by the name of William Penn. I was in the honor society and also worked as editor of the school newspaper and literary journal. I earned a BA degree in English and also got my teaching certification. I also met my first husband at Penn and together as teachers, taught in both Iowa and Michigan. I taught high school English and also facilitated the extracurricular speech department and the school plays. This career was a short one and upon our move back to Iowa, I became interested in social work. I worked with Seniors needing financial assistance both in their homes and in nursing care. After 8 years, we moved to Illinois where I eventually became employed by the Department of Children and Family Services in Chicago. During my 30 year tenure with them, I worked as an investigator of child abuse,neglect and sexual abuse cases, working closely with Juvenile Court and other private agencies. As a supervisor, I also worked with brand-new workers in the offering of services to intact families on the West side of Chicago and delivery of services to difficult to place teens who were about to age out of the department. I also acted as the department liaison to private agencies in efforts to improve communication and service delivery. I also received my Masters in Social Work degree while working at DCFS.

It was at DCFS that I met Robert Lund, my future husband and the love of my life. Our combined family consists of one daughter, Christina, who lives in St. Charles,Ill., a son, Jason, who resides currently in Janesville, Wisconsin, but who with his family, will be moving to London, in early 2019, and our youngest son, Erik, who lives in LaGrange, Il. We are blessed with 5 grandchildren and 1 great-granddaughter. They are Julian, aged 26, Jordan, 24, Brandon and Hunter, twins almost 9, Gillian, aged 6 and Aubrey, aged 3. One of our family’s highlights is an annual family retreat which has been happening now for 19 years.

I first became acquainted with ZLMC many years ago when Bob attended services at the house on Humphrey. I also attended his jukai there. I was quite attracted to the sense of serenity, inner peace and humility that I felt there and still do feel at ZLMC. Sharing with this community is very important as it has been difficult in the past for me to feel comfortable enough to talk about myself and feel safe. The concept of not-knowing has become important to me; the realization that I don’t have to have a set answer for everything is quite freeing. And I also feel so indebted to this community and its leadership, especially Robert and June, for giving me space to share my interests
in creative writing and rituals honoring the earth. ZLMC is a safe space to share what’s important to me. Meditation and koans are practices I hope to spend more time with. Will I be successful?

Success is just a word, a word with many interpretations and limits attached. Now, I am thankful for the Three Jewels in my life and start from there.