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Lana LaFortune
About the AuthorLana LaFortune started life as Lana Nagy. When she was eleven, two things occurred that would impact the rest of her life. First she decided she wanted to write nov...view moreAbout the AuthorLana LaFortune started life as Lana Nagy. When she was eleven, two things occurred that would impact the rest of her life. First she decided she wanted to write novels. But what did an 11-year old from the Detroit suburbs have to write about? Second, she was told that her inherited eye disease could result in a detached retina, an irreversible condition in those days, which would leave her permanently blind. With those two influences, she decided on a course of action that would become an engrained part of her personality: to see, to experience, to remember, and to understand as much of life as she could.In 1986, with a Masters degree in clinical Social Work, she began serving the military community in Vicenza, Italy. Europe, a visual paradise, was at her fingertips. By accident more than design, she was able to combine four loves: travel, photography, writing, and the military community.After three years she left Vicenza and spent the next seven years stateside, with one significant trip back to Europe. In 1993 during the Bosnian war, armed with fifty stuffed animals donated by her Rotary Club, she flew first to Croatia, and then on to Bosnia-Herzegovina. Before entering the conflict area, she and her translator stopped at the UN headquarters to identify the ever-changing frontline. Their destinations were collective centers for the refugees. What she encountered and was able to document, was the most moving experience of her life. The pictures she took of the plight of these desperate people were turned into a slide presentation used in her speaking engagements at Rotary and Kiwanis clubs in the Greater Detroit and Windsor areas. Moved by her verbal and visual descriptions, these generous organizations donated over $25,000 to help those who had lost so much.In 1996 she returned to Italy, this time to work with the Air Force at Aviano AFB. She took every opportunity, over the next eight years, to travel throughout Europe to both new and familiar places. In addition to her work to increase the mental health and reduce the stress of the AF community, the social worker also helped American servicemen and women adopt children, mostly from third-world countries. Her service came to the attention of the Consulate General at the US Embassy in Moscow. As a guest of the Embassy, she spent a week interviewing and working with American families who wanted to adopt Russian children. That trip resulted in five of the seventeen children, she helped, find families in American homes.During her career, the author has visited 5 continents, 33 countries, and 45 states. With camera never far from hand, she has created a visual diary of her adventures and welcomes you to explore a bit of it at her website:http://LaFortunePoeticImages.weebly.comview less