GO TO 2001 ESSAYS

2001 Great American Think-Off Finalist Biographies

Should assisted suicide be legal?

NO, Don’t Legalize Assisted Suicide

Charles Cox, a lifelong resident of Duluth, MN, read about the Think-Off five years ago in his local newspaper. He has followed it since that time, and entered an essay for the first time this year.

Cox graduated from UM-Duluth in 1973 where he double majored in English and German with a French minor. In 1986 he earned a BAA in Education in languages. He has partially completed work on an M.A. in English.

He is married (Jeanne) and has two sons, Samuel 12, and Victor 9. They are active members of the Glad Tidings Church, Duluth, which Cox says has been a big influence on his life values which he credits with providing him the insight to write his essay. Cox and his wife have been on ten mission trips to Mexico and Nicaragua through their church’s mission support of medical services. On these trips he serves as interpreter and spiritual leader. Cox’s wife and sons will be in the audience supporting him as he presents his essay and answers questions about his views.

William Matz is a California native whose only time away was when he was trained and served as a naval officer from 1971 to 1981. In 1981 and 1982 he graduated from the University of San Diego School of Law and earned his Master of Laws in Taxation. After practicing law for four years he returned to Santa Rosa to join his brother in a home building company where he diversified into the real estate lending business. He is now president of a mortgage brokerage.

Matz learned about the Think-Off while visiting relatives in Perham and New York Mills. He is active in his church at local, regional and national levels. His wife, Erica, and son, Phillip 5, will be at the Think-Off. His family history in Western Minnesota goes back over 100 years to the founding of Perham. Matz reason for entering this year’s contest was recent family experiences with dying and death which caused him to reflect on the issue of dealing with terminal illness.

YES, Assisted Suicide Should Be Legalized

Mary Fishler-Fisk is a self-employed Jill of All Trades. Her one-woman secretarial service has now grown to include paralegal services and computer training and consulting-Macintosh only (she doesn’t do Windows). With her brother, she is a partner in the operation of Tobey Farm, the Cape Cod homestead which has been in her mother’s family since 1678. Mary graduated from Rockford College in Illinois. She spent her junior year studying in Paris, France. She joined the Navy after graduation and served on active duty aboard the USS Simon Lake, a submarine tender. Mary enjoys reading—in fact, she enjoys it so much, she has written her first published short story.

Michael Ned Palmer is a poet, essayist, novelist, songwriter, and playwright who lives in Portland, Oregon. His poetry has appeared in a variety of well known journals including the UK journals, Orbis and Envoi. His short stories have appeared in a variety of fiction reviews and competitions. He was editor and publisher of Stylus, a review of music and books from 1988 to 1994, and was coordinator of the reading series, Rose City Prose from 1990 to 1992 and taught novel writing through PSU’s Extended Studies Program. He is currently in the process of finding a production company for his play about the Dreyfus Affair, An Officer of the Artillery, and is currently under representation with the SE Literary Agency for three of his novels.