At Kingsmuir Press we are very fortunate to have some of the greatest talents in the world working for us.  Today we would like you to meet one of our newest authors Jean Marie Stanberry, author of “Laying Low in Hollywood”,  “One World United”, “The Illusion of Order” and coming soon, “Blood, Sweat and Fears.  First, how about a little quiz?

Before she started writing for us she:

A. Owned her own Old Time photo Studio

B. Was a professional figure skater

C. Was engaged to a British nobleman

D.  All of the above

If you guessed all of the above, you are absolutely correct!  Jean is definitely one of those people who has tried just about everything, at least once.  As a child she loved reading, writing, dance and gymnastics, but she was a natural figure skater.  Jean skated both competitively and professionally as a pairs skater with her longtime partner Jack Adams, most notably with Europe’s “Holiday on Ice”.

When her skating career was cut short by a life altering car accident that took the life of her fiancee Marc  and left Jean fighting for her own life, she was told she would never skate again.   Jean struggled to overcome her multiple injuries and start over.  Jean traveled to Scotland and took classes at St. Andrews University, writing short stories and articles for their quarterly review.  After a much publicized, failed engagement to English nobel Christian Arthur Hadringham, she returned to the states and graduated with her Bachelors Degree in Business from Southern Illinois University.

After working a number of years in Finance, she returned to college to pursue a degree in nursing, eventually getting her BSN from Webster University in St. Louis.  After working in a wide variety of nursing positions Jean has settled in the surgery department where she has been working the last nine years.

Jean never got to return to competitive skating but did go on to function as a coach, judge and choreographer for multiple venues including “Holiday on Ice” and “Disney on Ice”.  Jean has been married to her husband Gary for nearly twenty four years and they have two grown children, Ryan and Lauren.  Jean’s entire family is as adventure orientated as she is, the entire family worked at their old time photo business in historic Kimmswick, Missouri and they have traveled extensively.  Their biggest adventure by far was moving the entire family cross country from Missouri to Montana.

Since they moved to Montana the family has been enjoying the benefits of a slower paced life.  They have also made strides to become more self sufficient and lead healthier lifestyles.  Jean is proud that both her grown children have embraced the healthy lifestyle, staying active, avoiding processed foods and eating more fruits and vegetables.  Jean is also proud of her garden and orchard which fills her pantry and freezer for the winter months.  She is also planning a new project this spring which will hopefully only improve her garden, bee keeping.  We will keep you up to date how this works out.  You can find out more about Jean and all her projects past and present at  jeanstanberry.com or follow her on twitter @jeanstanberry