Born August 1, 1942, in Moscow, Idaho; raised in Pullman,
Washington, second of five siblings. Father was a food
science professor; mother was a homemaker and activist.
BA in music, Whitman College (Walla Walla, Washington),
1965.
MA in music theory and composition, Washington State
University (Pullman), 1967.
Married Melody James at Eastside Friends Meeting,
Bellevue, Washington, October 29, 1967. Four adult
children; six grandchildren.
career
Teaching assistant, music theory, Washington State
University (Pullman), 1968-69
Writer, 1970-present (see separate lists of books and reviews).
Reference librarian, Ashland (Oregon) Public Library,
1985-2002
Instructor, Young Writers' Workshop, Arts Council of
Southern Oregon, 1998-2000
Instructor, Young Writers' Workshop, Three Rivers School
District (Josephine County, Oregon), 2000
activities
Sierra Club, 1968-1996 (bylaws committee Inland Empire
Group, 1969; vice chair, Rogue Group, 1973-1975; editor,
Pacific Northwest Conifer, 1974-1978; vice chair, Oregon
Chapter, 1978-1980; secretary, Oregon Chapter, 1980-1984,
1988-1990. Resigned from the club in 1996 to protest
policy shift to advocating zero cut on federal lands.)
Red Buttes Wilderness Council, 1972-1984 (chairman,
1972-1982)
Ashland (Oregon) Folk Dancers, 1978-present (teaching
coordinator, 1986-1988)
Kalmiopsis (an international folk dance band), 1990-1996
Rogue Institute for Ecology and Economy, board member,
1996-2001
Peter Street (an Irish folk band), band leader and
arranger, 1996-2000
Society of Friends (Quakers)
awards and honors
Citation "In recognition of a notable contribution
to the documentation of life in the United States of
America," Colonial Dames of America, 1987 (for The
Late, Great Lakes).
Holly Jones Award, Oregon Chapter Sierra Club, 1988 (for
service to wilderness preservation in Oregon).
Oregon Book Award for Literary Nonfiction, 1999 (for The
Left Hand of Eden).
