Shirley DicKard, Author and Community Activist

Host Brian Buckley brings us an inside look at a local treasure—author and Camptonville leading citizen Shirley DicKard. Shirley’s father was a physician, mother was a nurse. At the time, becoming a doctor wasn’t encouraged for women, but the nurse route was. Degrees from UC Davis and UCSF involved meeting husband, Dick, who became a dentist. From early experiences as a childbirth educator, practicing on a Navajo reservation and working in Florence Italy, emerged a desire to settle into a congenial environment and community. A dental practice in Nevada City helped the young couple discover their ultimate home with compatible folks in Camptonville. Work as a school nurse brought insight into the need for community support for children’s health, and the founding of a community health initiative which resulted in measurably less violence in both the school and community. She is the editor of Camptonville Courier, and author of the novel, Heartwood, which has won several awards including a national prize for visionary fiction.