Grave Dangers, Interview of the Heroine

GRAVE DANGERS, Interview by Myrna Ericksen

Question:  Pamela, what made you leave your comfortable home in the Silicon Valley to go to the hills of Vermont?

Answer:  My husband was on a business trip for General Electric and he had an opportunity to take the family with him for a year.

Question: Did you always go on business trips with your husband?

Answer:  Only when it was in the U.S. and if it was for a school year.

Question: Did you mind taking the children out of school?

Answer:  Oh No. I felt that they were gaining more by living in new places than they could by staying home.

Question:  Did you feel that way after going to Vermont for a year?

Answer:  Well, what happened in Vermont was a very unusual set of circumstances.

Question:  Why?

Answer:  Well, my son could have been killed by a very dangerous man.

Question:  That would be a great deterrent for anybody, Pamela.

Answer:  I wouldn’t ever want to experience something like that again.

Question: Did you live in a dangerous area?

Answer:  Actually if it had been more peaceful I think I would have been floating on air.

Question:  I always think of Vermont and colors.

Answer:  The color of the leaves in the Fall, and the falling snow in the Winter, combined with the rivers and creeks were so desirable.

Question:  How did it happen that your son was almost killed in such a peaceful setting?

Answer:  He met a young man who had witnessed the murder of his mother and had been hiding in the woods for five years.

Question: How did he happen to meet him?

Answer: My son  was attacked by some mountain men while he was riding his dirt bike, and the young man came to his rescue.

Question: Did the young man tell you who killed his mother?

Answer:  Well, eventually we got the whole story and decided to bring the criminal to justice.

Question:  How did you do that?

Answer:  Our next door neighbor, a former monk, joined forces with us and we set a trap for him.

Question:  If you set a trap how did your son get involved.

Answer: The murderer arrived early and saw us. He kidnapped my son before we could do anything.

Question:  So after your trap backfired what happened.

Answer: We called the police and my husband rushed home. In the meantime my neighbor and I chased up the mountain after him.

Question: Did you catch him?

Answer: No.  We had everyone on the mountain looking for them.

Question: That must have been so frightening for you, Pamela. 

Answer:  When you’re fighting to save your son you don’t have time to be afraid. My mind was racing like a train to outwit this killer. 

Question:  What did the monk do to help you?

Answer: He was driving. He knew everyone on the mountain and where they lived, but there were many boarded up vacation cabins and we couldn’t search them all.

Question:  Well, you wouldn’t be here talking to me if you hadn’t saved your son.

Answer:  It wasn’t that easy but I have to leave you here.

Question:  Did you ever bring the criminal to justice???

Myrna Ericksen

Myrna’s Bio:

I was born in the Panama Canal Zone and traveled back and forth to the U.S. until I graduated from High School. I then attended nursing school in San Jose, California, and graduated from our local college with medicine as my background.

I married my husband of 55 years and we had six children, three boys and three girls.  While they were growing up I taught Great Books in their school, was a den mother, 4-H leader, organized and led a teen club, was a museum docent, helped in food kitchens, taught religious education, entertained on stage, and generally volunteered where needed. 

When my children were all in or out of college I began my book writing career. Prior to this I had free-lanced articles and poetry to various publications. My first book, “Onward Peregrinos,” launched my career as an author of books.  I went on to write 7 more books in many different genre’s, including two mysteries, "Grave Dangers," and "Murder in Southport." 

My husband and I moved to the Sacramento area when our home became too big for the two of us.  We enjoy visiting our children and grandchildren who are now scattered across four states.