Melissa Simonye

Melissa (McEndree) Simonye is a wife, mother, small business owner, and retired elementary school teacher of twenty-five years. She explored her love for writing in high school by expressing herself through poetry. She grew up in Ohio and graduated from college with a master’s degree in education. As an educator, her passion was inspiring her students to love reading by exposing them to authentic literature that spoke to her students’ individuality. Reading about courageous people also fascinated Melissa, especially strong women who made a mark in history. Melissa has lived in Colorado since 2003. She now works with her husband running their small business. Whenever she can escape her busy life, she exercises, travels, reads books, and writes at her kitchen table, surrounded by her two cats and two dogs. This is Melissa’s first novel, inspired by her extraordinary grandmother’s life experiences.