Elizabeth Case

Elizabeth Case was born and grew up in Bremerton, Washington. Her father, Lowell Parnell, was a grade-school teacher and her mother Virginia was a talented creator of miniature furniture. Liz graduated in East High School's Class of 1975 and from Olympic College in '77; she went on to earn a bachelor's degree in Business Administration from Tacoma's University of Puget Sound.

When she married and moved to nearby Belfair, she began freelance work with the Belfair Herald weekly newspaper and eventually became their reporter and office manager. She always maintained that the very best stories walked right in the front door, so that's right where she put her desk.

One day an old man walked stiffly in the office door; it was Pearl Harbor survivor Don Green, who wanted to see about having his story published. He had served on the USS Pyro (AE-1), a ship which was not well known as having been at PH during the attacks. Liz was soon to leave the Herald, but she took the story of his service and expanded it into a book, which Don thankfully lived to see in print.

Don has since passed on, but Don Green's Story will carry a record of the Pyro's role in the fight, on into the future.