When I was 9 years old, the world as I knew it changed.  I suddenly became aware that there were child predators out there that could just take you.  My life-long fascination with the genre of True Crime started with a 13-year-old girl, Melissa Benoit, who went missing. She had been abducted in Kingston, some 30 minutes drive from my own small working-class town. 

I never forgot her name. 

It altered my perception of the world; forever I'd be searching for answers, signs, warnings.

My child-mind seemed to think that if I was prepared enough, it would not happen to me.

My adult-mind now knows that you could be as careful as you wanted, but it could still happen to me.

That is how I look at True Crime.

Not just the facts of it, the who, what, and where of it.

I wanted to know everything that happened.

Especially the "why" of it.

Why Melissa? 

For me, having that knowledge feels like a protective shield against danger.

It all started with one eighth-grader on a Saturday afternoon, in the early fall sun of Massachusetts.

"Pink Ribbons" tells the story of the 13-year-old girl that forever changed my life.

Do not let Melissa Benoit be forgotten.

Remember Her Name. 

...and watch out for your neighbors.

"Rest Stop" tells the story of thirty-year-old Ally Zapp, who was brutally murdered in a Bridgewater, Massachusetts Burger King bathroom. On July 18, 2001, her path collided unexpectedly with a dangerous repeat sexual offender. Her family went on to devote the remainder of their lives to change legislation, both in Massachusetts and nationwide.  

Do not let Alexandra Zapp be forgotten.

Remember Her Name. 

...and watch out for your neighbors.