Facing Fear

Facing Fear depicts the true story of Evelyn (Billie) Frechette, the beloved companion of John Dillinger. The unyielding violence that ravaged the Native American Race made survival extremely dangerous. As society fought to overcome the Great Depression, Evelyn tried to make ends meet by taking work wherever it presented itself.

Evelyn, like many young Native Americans, was forcibly taken to an Indian Boarding School in South Dakota. She spent much of the next ten years learning Christianity. Western Culture believed it was necessary to civilize the Indians, thereby saving the man inside.

Evelyn's only relative that did not live on the reservation at the time was her sister Anna, who lived in Chicago, Illinois. On the trip from South Dakota, traveling alone, hitchhiking when possible, she was brutally attacked and raped.

In the aftermath of the forcible violation, doctors informed Evelyn she was pregnant. At twenty-one, she gave birth to a baby boy who was severely handicapped because of a syphilis infection. The deformities left him impaired, forcing Evelyn to leave him in the care of the Brooks Baby Farm. Authorities later suspected that Brooks let poor babies die or even had them killed, that he buried them in the woods behind the main house. One of the graves held the remains of Evelyn's baby boy, hence the nickname Billie.

One evening while out with her girlfriends 'cabereting, ' she met a man named Jack Harris. The relationship grew into something incredible, but in the end, Evelyn served time for harboring a criminal. After her release, she wrote a booklet about her experience. It sold for twenty-five cents. Facing Fear reveals the hidden life of Evelyn Frechette, John Dillinger's girlfriend. An incredible woman who faced the unthinkable.

M y journey writing Facing Fear started in the mid-80s. During that time, my career took me on a daily drive from Milwaukee to Green Bay. The trip was like watching paint dry after a few months. I needed something to keep my mind occupied on the drive. So, one afternoon a short time later, I stopped at a local gas station for fuel and stretch my legs. It happed to be on the Menominee Indian Reservation. While filling up the truck, some local kids ran up to me asking if I knew Evelyn Frechette. It seemed odd at the time, I had no idea who she was or why they would be asking. They proceeded to tell me she was John Dillinger's girlfriend and was born on the reservation. Since, I had lived in Wisconsin most of my life and spent time in that area of the county, the Dillinger name is fairly common. However, that was the extent of my knowledge. The interaction left me curious and I started researching this person born in the early 1900s. Needless to say, her story got my attention. The thirty-year research project has finally come to fruition. But before going any further, naming the book of Evelyn's story must be told first. At night, I would go downstairs to the basement to work on my research. Our house was three stories with the basement half underground, in a remote location along the edge of the woods. Back then, we did not have computers so all my research was written in notebooks or on index cards. I had gone downstairs after dinner to write, while my wife went about her nightly routine. A short time later, sitting at my desk the only light on in the room was the small desk lamp. It was quiet and dark; I could see the faint house lights illuminating across the edge of the woods through the window above my desk. Shortly thereafter, I heard a voice echo 360 degrees around the room. At first, I thought it was my wife coming downstairs. But when I realized there were no footsteps, I leaped from my chair scanning the room, when I heard it again. The voice was clear, a quiet but firm tone. It echoed, Facing Fear. In the few seconds, I stood there it repeated several more times. The incident almost scared me to death, I took off across the darkroom, nearly breaking my leg running upstairs. My wife heard me charging across the house, as I entered the bedroom. She looked shocked to see me panting, as the sweat poured off my face. I have always been very active, an athlete. In my youth, I competed in speed skating and cycling. So, to see me out of breath was unusual. Once I started to relax and explained what happened, she did not seem surprised or even alarmed. She just simply said, "I guess Evelyn is trying to tell you something." The title was perfect; the occurrence connected me with her on a spiritual level, unlike anything I had ever experienced. So, in essence, Evelyn named her own book. As I have learned, she faced fear every day of her life. I am not sure why Evelyn sought me out to tell her story to the world, but I am honored to have been the one she chose.