A Lifelong Journey to Good-bye: Memoir Captures the Bond Between Grandmother and Granddaughter

ROSEBORO, N.C., June 29 /PRNewswire/ -- Despite having raised 17 children of her own, Lubertha Strickland Monk didn't hesitate to take in her four grandchildren, raising them as her own. Through the unconditional love of their grandmother, those grandchildren grew to become strong adults. One of them, Mary, would later become an Air Force colonel; this is her story.

The debut book from Colonel Mary M. Gillam, I Never Said Good-bye (published by AuthorHouse), invites you into the life of a military officer who suffered the death of her grandmother while assigned overseas. As her sole legal guardian, the loss was devastating for a young lieutenant trying to cope while stationed half a world away in Korea.

"We are blessed with people who are true heroes," said Gillam. "My grandmother was such a person. Despite the fact that she didn't have many material things, she gave my siblings and I what she had an abundance of...love."

While focusing on the sudden passing of her grandmother, I Never Said Good-bye is also an inspirational account of how Gillam was able to overcome her poverty to achieve the kind of outstanding accomplishments that serve as standing memorials to the woman who played such an incredible role in her life.

I Never Said Good-bye is a book that will resonate with anyone who has ever lost someone close to them without having the opportunity to properly say good-bye, helping one to reach the kind of finality that often times seems distant and out of reach.

Mary M. Gillam, Col, USAF, Ph.D. is a 28-year veteran of the United States Air Force. An experienced and seasoned leader, she has commanded several organizations with assignments at the Pentagon, including Joint Staff Directorate of Intelligence, Secretary of the Air Force Inspector General and Office of the Secretary of Defense. Gillam is a graduate of the Air Command and Staff College at Montgomery, Alabama; the Naval War College in Newport, Rhode Island; and the Legislative Studies Certificate Program at Georgetown. She holds a Ph.D. in Management Information Systems Technology, three master's degrees and a Bachelor of Science degree in Chemistry. Gillam will be retiring from active service in September 2010.

AuthorHouse is the premier book publisher for emerging, self-published authors. For more information, please visit http://www.authorhouse.com.

This press release was issued through eReleases(R).  For more information, visit eReleases Press Release Distribution at http://www.ereleases.com.

SOURCE AuthorHouse