Mary Edwards Wertsch (born Mary Brightwell Edwards on July 23, 1951) is an author, journalist, independent publisher, and expert on the subculture of American
military brats. She wrote the book ''Military Brats: Legacies of Childhood Inside the Fortress''. This book is considered the seminal piece of literature dealing with the effects of growing up as a
military brat
A military brat (colloquial or military slang) is a child of serving or retired military personnel. Military brats are associated with a unique subcultureDavid C. Pollock, Ruth E. van Reken. ''Third Culture Kids: Growing Up Among Worlds'', Revise ...
. In writing the book, Wertsch, a reporter by training, interviewed over 80 military brats and documented the patterns she found in the ways military children are raised, and the ways they continue to be affected, both positively and negatively, well into adulthood.
Early life
Born into a career Army family, Mary Brightwell Edwards, as she was then named, lived in 20 houses and attended 12 schools by the time she was 18. She has one brother, David, born in 1940. Their father. David Lincoln Edwards (USMA, 1936), took the family overseas on assignments to West Germany in the early 1950s and to France in the early 1960s, where Mary attended a French school for two years (the Lycee Internationale, also known as SHAPE School, then in St. Germain-en-Laye, France). Bases where she lived growing up include Ft. Myer, Virginia; Ft. Bragg, North Carolina; and Ft. Monroe, Virginia. She graduated from the College of William & Mary in 1973 with a B.A. in philosophy, and began a career in journalism. She worked for two newspapers in Virginia, doing investigative reporting, feature writing, and a column, before moving to San Francisco and Chicago to pursue other projects. In 1985 she married James V. Wertsch, Ph.D. They have two sons.
Wertsch now lives in
St. Louis
St. Louis ( , sometimes referred to as St. Louis City, Saint Louis or STL) is an independent city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It lies near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a populatio ...
, where her husband is on the faculty of
Washington University in St. Louis
Washington University in St. Louis (WashU) is a private research university in St. Louis, Missouri, United States. Founded in 1853 by a group of civic leaders and named for George Washington, the university spans 355 acres across its Danforth ...
. She is routinely interviewed and invited to speak on the subject of military brats. She collaborates with Marc Curtis of the Military Brat Registry to present workshops for military brats around the country and on annual cruises. She is the founder and president of Brightwell Publishing, the first publishing house dedicated to books and films that explore and strengthen military brat cultural identity, and writes The Military Brat Blog.
Book and Other Writing
Wertsch wrote the book ''Military Brats: Legacies of Growing Up Inside the Fortress'' (1991) that studied and analyzed the lives of 80
American military brats. Through this process, her book identifies military brats as a hidden American
subculture
A subculture is a group of people within a culture, cultural society that differentiates itself from the values of the conservative, standard or dominant culture to which it belongs, often maintaining some of its founding principles. Subcultures ...
, and details patterns in this population along sociological and psychological lines.
Wertsch is currently writing a second book that also discusses military brats, but includes discussion of other types of
third culture children as well. She has stated that the new book will focus on third culture children and the experience of "belonging" as this relates to outsider feelings held widely by this population.
Operation Footlocker
Wertsch, along with Reta Jones Nicholson and Gene Moser, was also behind the inspiration fo
Operation Footlocker Operation Footlocker is a mobile monument for military brats, and is currently managed by the Museum of the American Military Family in Albuquerque, New Mexico. There have been as many as three
footlockers that travel around the country to brat organizations and gatherings. At each location, people are allowed to view the
mementos other brats have contributed, and they are encouraged to place a memento or a written anecdote of their own brat childhood in the footlocker. When the locker is filled, it is emptied and the contents are safely stored in the MAMF museum archives, and brought out for exhibits honoring the millions of children who have been and will be shaped by this unique way of life.
Documentary
In 2006, Army brat and filmmaker
Donna Musil
Donna Lynn Musil (born April 15, 1960) is an American documentary filmmaker, writer, and activist exploring the subculture of Military brat (U.S. subculture), U.S. military brats.
She wrote and directed the 2006 documentary ''Brats: Our Journey H ...
completed a documentary film based largely on the research and analysis presented in Wertsch's book, and funded by small monetary and in-kind contributions from military brats to her non-profit organization, Brats without Borders. Musil's film, ''Brats: Our Journey Home'', has been enthusiastically received by military brats nationwide, and is considered a major boost to the military brat cultural identity movement.
Brightwell Publishing
Wertsch is also the founder and CEO of a small publishing house, Brightwell Publishing, that focuses on publishing the works of
military brat
A military brat (colloquial or military slang) is a child of serving or retired military personnel. Military brats are associated with a unique subcultureDavid C. Pollock, Ruth E. van Reken. ''Third Culture Kids: Growing Up Among Worlds'', Revise ...
authors.
See also
*
Camp follower
*
Global nomad
A global nomad is a person who is living a mobile and international lifestyle. Global nomads aim to live location-independently, seeking detachment from particular geographical locations and the idea of territorial belonging.
Origins and use of ...
*
Third culture children, also called "third culture kids"
*
Military brat (US subculture)
In the United States, a military brat (also known by various "brat" derivatives) is the child of a parent or parents serving full-time in the United States Armed Forces, whether current or former. The term ''military brat'' can also refer to the ...
*
Military brat
A military brat (colloquial or military slang) is a child of serving or retired military personnel. Military brats are associated with a unique subcultureDavid C. Pollock, Ruth E. van Reken. ''Third Culture Kids: Growing Up Among Worlds'', Revise ...
, international scope, describes military brat subcultures in several English speaking nations
*
Military history
Military history is the study of War, armed conflict in the Human history, history of humanity, and its impact on the societies, cultures and economies thereof, as well as the resulting changes to Politics, local and international relationship ...
*
Military slang
Military slang is an array of colloquial terminology used commonly by military personnel, including slang which is unique to or originates with the armed forces. In English-speaking countries, it often takes the form of abbreviations/acronyms or d ...
*
Military sociology
*
Nomads
Nomads are communities without fixed habitation who regularly move to and from areas. Such groups include hunter-gatherers, Nomadic pastoralism, pastoral nomads (owning livestock), tinkers and Merchant, trader nomads. In the twentieth century, ...
, includes modern nomadic subcultures
*
Social psychology
Social psychology is the methodical study of how thoughts, feelings, and behaviors are influenced by the actual, imagined, or implied presence of others. Although studying many of the same substantive topics as its counterpart in the field ...
*''
The Great Santini'', film about American Marine brats
*
War Child
References
*TCKWorl
Interview with Mary Wertsch*Armed Forces Press Service
*Armed Forces Press Service
*Mary Edwards Wertsch (1991). ''Military Brats: Legacies of Childhood Inside the Fortress'', New York, New York: Harmony Books. . Also, softcover edition, Saint Louis, Missouri: Brightwell Publishing, 2006. .
*Brightwell Publishin
*The Military Brat Blo
*Military Brats Registr
*Brats without Border
External links
Brats Without Borders501c3 Nonprofit organization, promotes awareness and support for Military Brats and Third Culture Children.
"Brats: Our Journey Home"Award winning documentary produced by Nonprofit organization about military brats, based significantly on research by Wertsch, also includes extensive interviews of Wertsch.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wertsch, Mary Edwards
American women journalists
Living people
1951 births