I get so many questions about my background that it’s impossible to answer all of them. So I will put it here. I’m from Harlan County, Ky…known to most as bloody Harlan because of the moonshine troubles and the union problems in the coal mines. We were probably no worse or no better than most small towns back then, but we quickly gained a bad reputation. I was born in 1944 and will soon celebrate my 80th birthday. We were very poor, not the poorest but we were close to it. My dad fought in WWII and was wounded twice. He suffered from shell shock or PTSD as it is known now. He took his own life. I left home when I was eighteen and came back to live fifteen years ago. I have three daughters. My husband was killed in a car accident twenty-one years ago. I live in a 100 year old stone church. I am a writer. My name is Shirley Noe Swiesz. I grew up to be self sufficient and to know how to defend myself. I can be tough as nails when necessary for I am a hardworking woman, daughter of this land…
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