Meet the Staff

Megan St. Marie

President and Co-owner

I have served as president of Modern Memoirs, Inc. since 2019, when my husband, Sean St. Marie, and I purchased the business from founder Kitty Axelson-Berry. With degrees from Smith College and Simmons University, I bring to my work a passion for the written word, a love of fine bookmaking, and a fascination with history.

Books have always been at the center of my professional life. Before coming to Modern Memoirs, I worked in independent bookstores, museums, libraries, and academia, with adjunct and contract faculty positions at Simmons University, Mount Holyoke College, Boston University, and several other colleges in New England. While I continue to deliver guest lectures, keynote talks, and professional development training on a freelance basis, I am returning to the classroom part-time in the fall of 2025, not as a professor, but as a PhD student. My doctoral studies in Religion and Philosophy, with a concentration in Women’s Spirituality, will take place through the California Institute of Integral Studies, and I am excited to see how this new path will enrich and inform my work at Modern Memoirs.

Under my birth name, Megan Dowd Lambert, I am a published author of more than a dozen trade books for children and adults, as well as many essays and book reviews. While reading with my seven children inspired much of that work, my father’s extensive genealogy research into our family history fuels my current writing projects about my Irish- and Franco-American roots and my faith and spirituality.

Helping my father publish his memoir soon after Sean and I became owners of Modern Memoirs was one of the most meaningful experiences of my life. This work built on my earlier editing of his brother’s self-published memoir several years before I considered making publishing my professional focus. Both experiences taught me a great deal about our family and affirmed the value of life-review writing and intergenerational storytelling as means of self-discovery and deepening familial connections. It is an honor and a thrill to help authors at Modern Memoirs publish their books to share with family, friends, and other readers, and I am profoundly grateful for the outstanding team working with me on our clients’ projects.

Sean St. Marie

Vice President and Co-owner

I was a forty-something, never-wed bachelor with no kids when Megan and I met in 2013. We married the next year, and I became stepfather to her five children. We’ve since welcomed two more sons into the world, and the seven children were aged 1-22 at the time of our purchase of Modern Memoirs. This moment marked the bittersweet end of my three-year stint as a stay-at-home dad—the most rewarding and demanding role I’ve ever had. Today I am happy to help Megan run the business, which has grown and flourished in the years since we became co-owners.

I’m a book-lover like Megan, which led me to complete a minor in English Literature along with my BS in Business Management from Westfield State University. I earned an MS in Library and Information Science with an Archives Management concentration from Simmons University. During my graduate studies I completed archival organization and exhibition projects for family collections at Special Collections and University Archives, UMass Amherst Libraries and the Jones Library Special Collections in Amherst, Massachusetts.

While my separate role as the Administrative Coordinator for the Emily Dickinson Museum is my full-time job, my archivist training positions me to support Modern Memoirs client projects, particularly in the areas of Genealogical Research and Family History Preservation. This sort of work took on special meaning for me when my mother, Ann Sheridan St. Marie, passed away in 2019. She was a consummate storyteller and the beloved matriarch of our extended family, and our family’s greatest comfort in the wake of her loss arises from the surety we have in her lasting impact on our lives. She and my father, Terry St. Marie, a U.S. Navy veteran with passions for photography and history that he passed on to me, celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary in 2018, and we all treasure our memories of my mother and are determined to preserve them and pass them on to the next generations. Because I know how important this is to my family and me, I am eager to help others research and preserve their own personal and family histories.

Alison "Ali" de Groot

Director of Publishing

I am proud to work with Modern Memoirs since 2003. I hold a bachelor’s degree in anthropology from Tufts University, and a master’s in teaching from the School for International Training. For 15 years prior to discovering Modern Memoirs, I taught English, ESOL, and writing at the university level, both in the U.S. and abroad, including at Boston University, Middlesex and Greenfield community colleges (MA), and Accademia Britannica in Rome, Italy.

I have always felt passionate about writing and met Kitty Axelson-Berry in 1997 at a workshop she was leading on Bereavement Book writing. The first and most arduous project I undertook was a Bereavement Book/memoir of my late mother, entitled Learning to Speak (1999). Throughout the process, I learned the far-reaching, therapeutic benefits of writing and bookmaking. Through Axelson-Berry and her non-profit American Tribute Center (ATC), I volunteered to create a Tribute Book for the bereaved family of a 9/11 victim. This book, entitled Sands of Pearl, was published by ATC (2004) and given pro-bono to the family as a gift. One thing led to the next, and it was clear to me that working at Modern Memoirs was a true calling.

To the job, I bring my cultural awareness, compassion, and undivided attention to clients. I have a deep respect for the healing and transformative properties of writing as well as the incomparable value of memoirs and family histories that last for generations. The details of production enthrall me, from finding appropriate and beautiful interior papers to helping clients choose cover materials, foil stamp colors, fancy endsheets, and satin ribbon markers.

To encourage others and to keep my own craft alive, I hosted First Person! First Night!, a monthly public reading event for memoirists, held here at the Modern Memoirs office for over 13 years. Modern Memoirs published my anthology of these writers, entitled The Reader's Chair (2018). In 2025, collaborating with an artist, I created a poetry/art book entitled The Deep Dark Light (Modern Memoirs, Inc.).

When not at work, I’m usually practicing qigong, swimming, writing, or dancing—currently modern dance, Kazdance, jazz, Sevillanas, and improvisational movement.

Liz Sonnenberg

Genealogist

It’s fair to say that I’ve had a lifelong passion for genealogy. I was born in Iowa and grew up mainly in Wisconsin. My grandfathers died before I was born, and the fact that I never had the chance to meet them created a void inside me. I wanted to learn everything I could about them, and so I endlessly interviewed my grandmothers about their husbands’ lives. That led to all kinds of questions about their own lives, too. Soon I had notebooks filled with charts and facts. I continued to gather all of the information I could over the years and developed systems for organizing and writing about it.

At the University of Wisconsin in Madison, I earned a BA in journalism and linguistics. After I graduated, I moved to New England to pursue a career in journalism, working at two newspaper companies in Maine. Then I moved to Massachusetts, where I worked for 25 years in operations management at a publishing company. All along, I tried to learn more about my family history, and with the advent of the internet, I began researching my family’s deeper roots in New England and French Canada. And that’s when my efforts went awry! Though the internet has made huge volumes of information available to the lay family historian, it has also made the perpetuation of inaccuracies very easy to do. One time, I found myself enthusiastically announcing a major, but undocumented, claim to my parents and brother, only to have to retract it with great embarrassment a little while later.

From then on, I dedicated myself to doing genealogy “right” by rigorously evaluating evidence and documenting sources. This pursuit of best practices culminated with my completion of a Certificate in Genealogical Research from Boston University, which emphasizes professionalism and adherence to the Genealogical Proof Standard.

 As a professional genealogist, I bring to my work at Modern Memoirs the conviction that one of the most important things you can do for your loved ones is to share your genealogical discoveries with them. After all, your experience with the people and events in your family history is unique and irreplaceable. Documenting memories and information that can flesh out names and dates with actual stories of the lives they represent is a gift that will enrich the lives of many, while opening up the possibility for ongoing research and collaboration across generations. I will wholeheartedly work with you to research your ancestry, document and organize your findings, and help you preserve and craft your family story so that those who come after you will know those who came before you.

Nicole Miller

Book Designer

My interest in books was cultivated in my early childhood when, from the age of four, I regularly accompanied my mother to the public library for her shifts as a volunteer. I spent many happy hours there, marveling at picture books and listening to storytellers bring illustrations to life.

These early experiences inspired my passion and talent for drawing, tapping into the artistic nature I inherited from my mother’s side of the family. My grandmother was a painter and singer and would perform at local venues with my grandfather, who played the piano. Following in their footsteps, I continued my artistic pursuits throughout my school years and moved to the Boston area for college. I studied art, with a concentration in graphic design and business, and earned a BS in Business Management from Lesley College. I started my career as an illustrator and graphic designer for a media company, where I spent fourteen years in advertising. My creative roles later evolved into leadership roles in marketing with various organizations in the Boston area, Providence, Rhode Island, and eventually Western Massachusetts.

Meanwhile, I’ve continued with my own creative pursuits. I am currently illustrating and designing a children’s book entitled Chopsticks Goes to New York, written by my late uncle. It’s a true story from childhood about our Siamese cat who made her way inside my visiting uncle’s sleeping bag and then unwittingly took a business trip to New York City. In recent years, I’ve also designed children’s books, poetry volumes, and journals. I take immense pleasure in working with authors to help them navigate the process of bringing books to fruition. When I’m not engaged in design and illustration, I can be found hiking, canoeing, rummaging flea markets, and exploring with my daughter.

Stories connect us with the world and help us understand others. Everyone has a story to tell, and it’s my great pleasure to help Modern Memoirs clients tell theirs through thoughtful, beautiful book design.

Cecelia Allentuck

Publishing intern, summer 2025

It’s hard to envision a time when I was not in love with reading and writing. From an early age I loved to talk, and as soon as I learned the alphabet, talking quickly turned into writing. I was fortunate enough to pursue my passion and enhance my skills through creative writing projects in classes at and writing stories at home.

My mother and father let my creativity run wild and supported me every step of the way. As writers themselves, they knew how far a love of words could take me and wanted to help me reach my goals. My mom, a cancer survivor with a memoir of her own, taught me how to channel my emotions into beauty through writing; my father, the youngest brother of four and a former comedian, was always there to talk through stories or build whole new worlds. Between the three of us, and my older brother whose creativity is channeled into the STEM fields, our house has always been full of bright colors, messy crafts, and many adventures.

Through the years, I have worked as a Writing Center Tutor and Literary Magazine Editor at my high school, and in 2024 I self-published my own poetry collection. My love of words and adventure then carried me to Scotland to study Modern Languages at the University of St. Andrews, where I will serve as the President of the Inklight Creative Writing Society when I return to campus this fall. During my first year at St. Andrews, I met people from various parts of the world and connected with them over a shared love of writing. I stayed passionate about reading and writing, adapting and becoming more flexible in my newfound independence as I explored historical landmarks and wondered about the lives of the people who lived there.

All of these experiences led me to Modern Memoirs, eager to learn more about publishing and editing as I follow my passions into the professional world. Since I often ask my family members questions about our late loved ones and our genealogy, I am particularly inspired by the company’s deep focus on family history. I have always believed that one of the greatest ways to connect with others is through writing, and I am excited to be a part of the Modern Memoirs team that helps make those connections possible.

Kitty Axelson-Berry

Founder and Consultant

I founded MODERN MEMOIRS, Inc. in 1994, following twenty years as a writer for and editor of award-winning print newsmedia and public radio commentary. My mother was my inspiration. I wanted to understand and document her personal history. In part, it was a way to honor her and those who came before her. In part, it was a way to ensure that future generations would know and remember her and those who came before her. In doing so, I found I'd hit a chord that reverberated for many other people as well. They wanted to gather and preserve their own or a loved one's personal history.

Since then, my small company has self-published over 200 memoirs and family histories for clients in the U.S., England, France, Israel, Colombia, Spain, and other countries. I am grateful for the opportunity to serve so many people in this profound way.

When I left the newspaper world to start this business, it was a new idea. I decided to bring together like-minded personal historians so that we could share cutting-edge theories and technologies concerning memoirs, the nature of memory, the best technologies, papers, contracts, and so on. I founded the Association of Personal Historians (1995), an international trade association. After the APH and my own business were established, I co-founded the American Tribute Center (2001), a non-profit that specialized in pro bono writing and private publishing of Tribute Books for bereaved families of 9/11.

Born and raised in West Hempstead, New York, I graduated from Smith College in 1971 with a major in religious studies and a minor in music. The next step in my personal journey was an exploration of the differences between needs and choices, going back-to-the-land without electricity or water for several years. At some point, my name morphed from Cathy Marsha Lebow to Kitty Axelson-Berry.

I became certified in conflict transformation by the Conflict Transformation Across Cultures (CONTACT) graduate program at the School for International Training, Brattleboro, Vermont (2013); this included solo travel in Rwanda, South Korea, and the Middle East to understand more about peace, truth, justice, reconciliation, and non-violent activism.

Photograph by Julie Moran, Eyestory Photography (2016)

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And in memoriam: Arthur McLean, proofreader extraordinaire, gentle soul, who once wrote:

“I want you know that I’ve never had a better job than Modern Memoirs and I’ll be at the front of the line of those ready to help it grow (and I offer much more than major-league proofreading experience at The Wall Street Journal, Modern Memoirs, and the Advocate newspapers). Mostly, though, I can’t think of a better place to be than at Modern Memoirs.”