At 13 years old Sandra Schnakenburg was hit by a
car traveling 100 mph while riding her bike. In addition to having her face
reconstructed, she suffered a traumatic brain injury long before such injuries
were widely understood. Her parents struggled to cope with her forgetfulness
and memory loss, and they gave up trying. Thus began her 10-year struggle with bulimia,
which shaped her in profound ways and deepened her appreciation for resilience
and healing.
Sandra Schnakenburg, a dual American/Australian
citizen, holds a BS in Finance and International Business from Arizona State
University and an MBA in Finance and Accounting from USC. After leaving a
corporate finance career in 2010, she pursued creative nonfiction through
courses at Writespace, Rice University, and The Writers University.
"Life has a way of
continually testing me. When I overcome one challenge, a bigger one often
appears. But I believe this is how our souls evolve—through adversity, we grow.
My faith is my anchor, even as it is constantly tested, and it keeps me
grounded through each trial."
In her interview, Sandra challenges the
listener to do the same.
For
fans of stranger-than-truth stories, Sandy Schnakenburg uncovers rattling and
unprecedented revelations in The Housekeeper’s Secret -- a powerful memoir of
love, secrets, and survival.
When Lee Metoyer is hired to be the new housekeeper, she has no idea that she’s
about to become the anchor to a family in an abusive patriarch's home, setting
a mystery in motion that will take decades to uncover. At the age of
seventy-two, Lee falls ill and, on her deathbed, asks Sandy to author her
story. The only problem is, Sandy doesn’t know the story.
What happened to Lee
was unimaginably horrific – nearly impossible to survive. Yet, she found a way
to reinvent herself, adopting a new name, birthdate, and even fabricating an
entire past. Forbidden from asking questions and often reprimanded for prying,
Sandy had little insight into Lee’s true history.
Embarking on a quest to honor Lee’s final wishes, Sandy takes an emotional and
thrilling journey, unveiling shocking truths not only about her beloved
housekeeper but also her own upbringing. As she digs further, she learns that
Lee came to her family’s sprawling estate in Barrington, IL, harboring a secret
past. For decades, she’s been in hiding. But Lee is not the only one with
secrets; Sandy’s quest forces her to grapple with her own family history as
well, and to finally confront the effects of the psychological abuse she
suffered as a child.
Both chilling and exciting, The Housekeeper’s Secret is a gripping tale of love and survival that illuminates the
resilience of the human spirit.
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