An interview with Michelle Theer: Her early life
Q. Do you practice any particular religion now?
A. I am studying now, yes. . . . Since December of 2003, I have been studying the Jehovah's Witnesses. . . .
Q. What drew you to the Jehovah's?
A. Love . . . Their expressons of love and the God that they have shown me is a very loving God. He is very forgiving, very loving, very warm, very nurturing, very fatherly.
Q. How long did you stay in Denver?
A. We ended up staying there permanently.
Q. That was 1986, is that right? I think that's what your mom told me.
A. She would know the exact year better. They ended up getting separated for a period of time and finally ended up getting a divorce.
Q. You described a period of your life, from first to third, from fourth to sixth grades. What was going on in seventh, eighth, ninth?
A. I would describe that as more of a chaotic time. High school was kind of chaotic because, you know, when we first moved to Denver, my dad was in and out, back and forth, I really didn't know if my parents were going to stay together or get divorced. There were a lot of times when I wished that they would just get it over with and get divorced. . . .
Q. Was his being away and his fights with your mom–how big an impact did that have on you?
A. I am sure it had a huge impact on me. . . I think my relationship with my dad fuels a lot of my relationships even now. I still even now struggle with my relationship with my dad.
Q. Does he come and see you?
A. He has not come and seen me here yet. He has written and sends me money, and he takes my phone calls. . . . He is completely 100 percent supportive of me. . . . My mom came out here; she's been out here twice. . .
Q. When you say your high school days were chaotic, how were they chaotic? Drugs?
A. Actually, I didn't go through any of that teenage stuff. I didn't experiment with drugs at all. . . . The first time I had ever gotten drunk [was] the week that I graduated from high school. When I say chaotic, I mean with my dad moving in and out of the house. My mom had to go to work full time. . . I had to stay home and take care of my brother and sister. . . . My freshman year in high school, I was a cheerleader, and I was on the volleyball team, and I was in the choir. But then my sophomore year, I had to drop out of all of that because I had to come home after school to watch my brother and sister. I had to cook dinner and fold the laundry. It was like I was a housewife, which I just hated. . . . They [her parents] were just separated. Actually, he went back to Korea for a year my sophomore year of high school. I think when he got back was when their divorce was final. . . .
Q. What was your mom doing then?
A. She was working in sales for the Wall Street Journal [in Denver]. . . .
Part 2: Marty–"He was really a nice guy"
advertisement
