Jeanette Gray FinneganJeanette Gray Finnegan Jr., (Jaye) was named for her mother, and came from a family who traces their linage on Cape Hatteras Island, to the first English settlers on this strip of land thirty miles into the Atlantic ocean. Born in 1939 in the back rom of the existing Weather Station, and delivered by a midwife, she grew up "island style", playing on dirt roads, attending school with three grades in one room, and living off the land, sea and water. She was educated in a school where her mother was a teacher, her grandfather the principal, and her tutors were her mother's friends. Life on the island was marked by church activities, fishing, hunting and the barter system. Santa Claus came by way of the church where he delivered all the Christmas presents. The men of the community made certain that no matter what the economy was, every child on the island had a present hanging on that huge tree freshly cut from the woods. Her grandfather being one of the only college graduates on the island made sure all his children went off island to be educated beginning with grade nine. Jaye spent her high school years at Norview High School in Norfolk, Virginia. Here she was captain of the cheerleaders, Azalea princess in the NATO celebrations, active in the local church, and on the basketball and track teams. College was at the University of East Carolina, and here she was a member of the Alpha Delta Pi sorority and president of the Pan Hellenic Society governing all sororities on campus. She was also voted Sweetheart by Lambda Chi fraternity and served as a school Marshall. With a double major in English and Social Sciences, she went on to teach school in Virginia Beach, Virginia. Here after teaching many subjects reflecting her majors she ended her thirty years teaching Advanced Placement Government. After studying for her masters in Photography, she photographed and scripted an award winning calendar depicting Cape Hatteras Island life, from bridge to ferry, (one end to the other) complete with a fishing guide. Her printing company, Teagle and Little, won an award for the piece. At one point, she took a break and opened a sub & pizza shop in her home village of Buxton, and lived island life once more. Wanting her only son to go to high school off island as her grandfather had required, she returned to teaching, and finished her career. Jaye moved back to the island with her husband Ted Torok, an accomplished restaurateur, and they opened a gourmet restaurant, the Dolphin Den. Finally with fewer responsibilities she began to research the history of the island. The research lasted ten years, and included all books, magazines, (including National Geographic), periodicals, face to face interviews with island locals, and personal knowledge of the subject. This resulted in the set of historical fiction novels presented as The Lighthouse Kids. Read More Read Less