Jerilyn Marler

Jerilyn Marler is a writer, editor, and publisher in Beaverton, Oregon, and the author of books to help military families cope with deployment.

LILY HATES GOODBYES

"Lily Hates Goodbyes" is a storybook for young children (ages 2-7) coping with separation from a loved one. It's available in two versions: Navy Version (daddy wears a Navy uniform) and All Military Version (daddy wears generic BDUs).

In March 2012 "Lily Hates Goodbyes" was named among the best in family-friendly media, products and services by the Mom's Choice Awards®!

Portland Book Review gives "Lily Hates Goodbyes" a five-star rating (the highest possible). "The book is filled with ideas that can help any child with an absent loved one. Nathan Stoltenberg’s beautiful illustrations warm the heart. An especially important message that Marler subtly highlights is how important the at-home parent/family are when helping a child cope with their feelings. Marler has created a special book that is guaranteed to help the families of the men and women who bravely and selflessly serve our country."

In 2010, when her Navy officer son was on deployment and her 4-year-old granddaughter was distraught by his absence, Jerilyn wrote "Lily Hates Goodbyes." It began as a Word document with personal photos intended just for Lily. The book helped Lily talk about her feelings, develop healthy ways to cope with those feelings, feel connected to her daddy despite the distance between them, be reminded that her mommy was steadfastly beside her, and that a joyful hello was coming. The book helped Lily so much that Jerilyn decided to publish it for all young children who suffer through long separations from a loved one. She hired Nathan Stoltenberg, a Seattle-based graphic artist and illustrator. "Lily Hates Goodbyes" was first released in January 2011. A new version was released in August 2011 through Jerilyn's publishing company, Quincy Companion Books, an imprint of Wyatt-MacKenzie Publishing.

HELPING YOUR YOUNG CHILD COPE WITH A PARENT'S DEPLOYMENT

This handbook helps military parents understand the challenges their children face before and during deployment. It also offers 22 fun, easy ways to help children feel connected with the away parent. At the end of the book is a handy alphabetized list of resources that every military family should keep nearby. "Helping Your Young Child Cope with a Parent's Deployment" is available in paperback, Kindle, Nook, and iBook formats.

JERILYN MARLER

Jerilyn's 30-year creative path has led through writing educational materials for Alaska elementary schools; writing three books about WordPerfect for an imprint of Henry Holt Publishers; editing dozens of books for technical publishers; editing a children's book, a medical text book, and a book on divorce at the same time; and writing/editing end user documentation for more products than she can count.

Jerilyn has worked in major high technology companies and tiny start-ups; she's been a real estate agent, programmer, project manager, program manager, and user interface designer. Her name is on three patents held by Intel Corporation, where she worked for nearly 15 years. The persistent thread through all of her work has been communication: it always comes back to words.

From sixth grade through her junior year of high school Jerilyn attended Kodaikanal International School, a boarding school in the mountains of southern India. Memories of her long, painful separations from her parents helped her relate to Lily's experience 46 years later. For years after leaving Kodaikanal Jerilyn still considered India her home, much to the confusion of college classmates. A year in Madrid, Spain followed a few years later. Jerilyn has circled the globe many times since that first trip to India and she relishes travel whenever she has the opportunity.

Jerilyn's son is a Navy officer stationed in South Carolina. His daughter Lily is the inspiration for "Lily Hates Goodbyes." Jerilyn lives in Beaverton, just a few miles from Portland, Oregon, with Dan, her husband, and their two tabby cats.