Stephanie Cassatly
When Stephanie Cassatly was 18, her mother was shot and killed in a store robbery in New Orleans. Twenty years later, she found her mother’s killer and forgave him while he served a life sentence in the notorious Angola State Penitentiary. It was then that she realized that she had been as much of a prisoner as he was. Her memoir, Notice of Release, was published by eLectio Publishing in 2017.
Stephanie contributes to The Forgiveness Project, a storytelling project that explores the boundaries, possibilities and universal nature of forgiveness through individual narratives.
She speaks publicly on forgiveness and restorative justice, in concert with teachings by renowned peacemakers such as Martin Luther King, Mahatma Gandhi, Simon Wiesenthal and Desmond Tutu. She also teaches writing at Palm Beach Atlantic University and Endicott College.
Stephanie holds a Master’s in Writing from Vermont College of Fine Arts. Her work has also appeared in journals and anthologies.