Deb was born in Schenectady, NY on February 27, 1965. In December 1976 at age 11, following the death of her mother Donna in a driver-only car accident, her maternal grandparents became her guardians and she went to live with them and their two youngest children (her Aunt Carole and Uncle Mark, only 3 and 2 years older than her, respectively) in Port Washington, Long Island NY. In 1979, the family relocated to Hudson Falls, NY where Deb was enrolled in Hudson Falls Central High School and later graduated with the Class of 1983.
After helping her grandparents move to Seminole, FL for their retirement, Deb enlisted in the United States Marine Corps in May 1984. She completed Air Traffic Control School in February 1985, but switched gears and completed the Basic Postal Clerk Course in March 1986. She held a position as a Postal Clerk for the next two and a half years.
During this time, she earned her Rifle Marksman badge and a Good Conduct Medal. In March 1988, only six weeks shy of fulfilling her initial four-year enlistment, Deb was honorably discharged with the rank of Lance Corporal after suffering a rare form of cancer in her left inner ear. Her entire internal hearing mechanism was surgically removed, leaving her completely deaf on the left side and without the bottom half of her left ear.
Deb refused any cosmetic repair or prosthesis. A tough, proud gal at the young age of 23, she insisted she would present herself to the world just as she was -- with an honesty that came.
