Host: Don Helin

Guest: Mary Donaldson-Evans

Description: This podcast transcript features an interview with Mary Donaldson-Evans, a resident of Willow Valley and a former French professor. She shares her life story, beginning with her childhood in Minnesota and her formative year working as a nanny in Paris. The conversation highlights a significant discovery of hundreds of wartime letters exchanged between her parents during World War II. These letters inspired her to research her father’s service in the 10th Mountain Division and eventually led her to Italy to meet a family he had befriended decades earlier. This historical journey resulted in her book, "Behind the Lines," which preserves her parents' experiences for future generations. Donaldson-Evans also discusses her most recent work, which offers humorous reflections on the aging process.