Her Story

Above all else, Heather loved her daughter, Charlotte. Charlotte was her world—the person she loved most deeply, celebrated most fiercely, and held closest to her heart.

Heather had a remarkable ability to be many things at once: a devoted mother, a much-loved family member and friend, a generous colleague and teacher, a healer, a writer, and, in every sense, a rock star.

Born in Rochester, Michigan, Heather attended Michigan State University and later built an accomplished career in nursing and pain management. Her professional credentials included PhD, FNP-BC, AP-PMN, and FAIPM. She was Faculty Chair and Assistant Professor at the College of Nursing in Phoenix, a Lenke Nursing Scholar, and a mentor whose students and colleagues valued her knowledge, encouragement, and fierce support.

Long before that, she was the front woman, songwriter, singer, guitarist, and mandolin player for Half-Looking. The band recorded three albums in the 1990s, and music remained one of the great creative threads of her life.

In recent years, Heather became a published author, bringing the same imagination and energy to a children’s book, a novel, and several books on recreation and relationships. She had many more stories and projects underway—more ideas, more plans, more of herself still reaching out into the world.

Heather was friendly, supportive, and deeply connected. She built a wide network of friends across the country, and was loved by her family, friends, colleagues, and students. Her love, her work, her music, and the mark she made on the people around her will remain.