In Remembrance: Sarah Dreher

Author: Edit Team

April 3, 2012

Lambda Literary is sad to report the passing of Sarah Dreher, a Lambda Literary Award winning author and playwright. Dreher was “best known for her award-winning lesbian mystery series featuring amateur sleuth Stoner McTavish.” Dreher was born in Hanover, Pennsylvania in 1937 and died April 2, 2012 in Amherst, Massachusetts.

Dreher completed her undergraduate at Wellesley College and attended graduate school for psychology at Purdue University. Dreher moved to Amherst, MA, in 1965, where she was an active participant in the women’s movement.

Scholar Bonnie Zimmerman noted that Dreher’s writing reflected, “the anguish of lesbian relationships beginning, ending or mending. Dreher’s lesbian protagonists are modern heroes searching for integrity and identity…”

Dreher’s novels include: Stoner McTavish (1985), Something Shady (1986), Gray Magic (1987), Otherworld (1993), and Bad Company (1995).

In addition to writing, Dreher was a clinical psychologist, specializing in women’s issues and dream analysis. Dreher was also a co-founder of Sunrise-Amanecer, Inc., a local nonprofit organization focused on improving the quality of life for Springfield Massachusetts’s most disadvantaged population. She served as president and clinical director at Sunrise-Amanecer for the past seven years.

Donations may be made in Dreher’s memory to Sunrise-Amanacer, Inc.; contact 413-781-3727 for more information.

(via The Republican)