On Writing

Mar 4 2024

A reader says “The ‘Why’ Haunts Me”

My sister, (11 months/2 weeks older than I at 70,) has not spoken to me in over 2 years. Growing up we were not particularly close as she was an overachiever and I grew up in her shadow; but we always communicated through the years and she was active in my life especially after I had my children. She had a good relationship with my daughter. However, when it became ...
Mar 1 2024

New covers, new titles, for The Legacy of the Holocaust series!

Here are the links on Amazon to these three books: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0CQTN6PSJ?ref_=dbs_p_pwh_rwt_anx_b_lnk&storeType=ebooks
Mar 1 2024

Is It Night or Day? is now available as an audiobook!

  New cover, new Author's Note, and now available as an audio book! The photo on the cover shows some of the One Thousand Children, who fled Nazi Germany for America, as they first lay eyes on the Statue of Liberty!
Feb 25 2024

Statistics That Tell the Story of Family Estrangement

Researchers have largely ignored estrangement; one study quantifies the problem. Why does estrangement occur, how long does it usually last, and what do people truly desire from their close relationships? Here's what we know.
Feb 9 2024

Bored Panda features FSC

Here's an article that describes why family relationships are important and how to reconcile after estrangement.
Feb 2 2024

German publisher of Motherland mourns my mother, Edith Westerfeld Schumer

· The German publisher of Mutterland (Motherland) has posted this message on the homepage of its website: "We mourn Edith Westerfeld – the protagonist of our book Motherland... Beyond the Holocaust. A Mother/Daughter Journey to Reclaim the Past by her daughter, Fern Schumer Chapman." #HolocaustEducation #HolocaustRemembrance #memoir #bookclub
Jan 31 2024

40 Years of Estrangement – A reader confronts her toxic family’s abuse

A reader posted her story on my blog: I confronted my mother with her immensely controlling abusive behavior and sexualized attachment to me in 1986. I had to get away so desperately to find myself that I cut off everyone in the family. Lucky for me, my father corroborated my experience but since he too was utterly dependent on her he could not continue to be in contact with me. ...
Jan 31 2024

New York Times article features FSC

    Honored to be featured in this New York Times article!  
Jan 28 2024

Why siblings in Holocaust families struggle to get along

  Siblings respond differently to parents' Holocaust trauma, causing estrangement. KEY POINTS Children of Holocaust survivors either remain enmeshed with their families or alienated from them. Parents either exposed children to personal horror stories or said nothing about their experiences. Children of survivors became “parents” to their own parents, soothing their anxieties and allaying their fears. Genocidal trauma not only kills family members; it also ruptures the family for generations ...
Jan 22 2024

Stockstadt Evangelical Church’s heartfelt obituary for my mother

  The Stockstadt's Evangelical Church's most recent newsletter honestly recounts my mother's early life in Germany in its obit for her. In 2014, the Church apologized to my mother and me for not protecting her during the Holocaust. Here is the translation: Oldest Jewish woman from Stockstadt dies Edith Schumer-Westerfeld died on Sunday, January 14, 2024. Edith Therese Westerfeld was born in Stockstadt in 1925. Her parents were respected citizens. ...