For my husband, Mark, who always believes in and encourages me to write, for Emma whose grasp of proper grammar has helped me more times than I can count, and for Erin, whose graphic design details are priceless.

Acknowledgments

This book couldn't have been written without the help of others.
Thank you to fellow writers and all-around terrific friends, Sandra Robbins, Janelle Mowery, Elizabeth Ludwig and Marcia Gruver for sharing their writing expertise, thoughtful critiques and wise advice.
To Tina James, editor extraordinaire, thank you for selecting this manuscript and giving me a chance to tell this story, I am thrilled to be working with and learning from you.
For technical details, I give credit to professionals who shared their time, patiently answering all my questions. Any errors in or liberties taken with the details are solely my doing.
Thank you to Taylor Woods, Program Supervisor/Recruiter for SUWS of the Carolinas, for sharing his expertise in wilderness counseling programs.
To Lieutenant Shaun McNally, Richlandtown Fire Co. #1, who gave of his time to help me understand the complexity of fighting fires, I say special thanks.
And most importantly, thank You, God, for my faith and for putting seemingly insurmountable challenges in my life to allow me to know without a doubt who is in charge of my life.