An Interview with Cassie & Patrick Garber
Cassie & Patrick Garber are partners in their life and their creative work. As an active military family, they share their love of reading and their pups in their latest book, The Littlest Hound.
MilspoFAN: Tell us a little about yourself, your journey as a military couple, and where you are today.
Cassie & Patrick: Patrick is originally from southwest Colorado and holds degrees in Transportation Management and Human Resource Management. He enlisted in the Air Force in 2004. He spent five years in the role of an Air Force First Sergeant before returning to his primary career field in the Logistics Readiness Squadrons in 2021. His passions include camping, skiing, hunting, fishing, and helping people.
Cassie grew up in Pennsylvania and has a Bachelors in Mass Communication / Marketing from King’s College. Most recently, she obtained a graduate certificate in Nutrition Science for Communications Professionals from Tufts University. Currently, she provides marketing services and creative consulting to businesses via her company: Open Door Content Creation. She completed yoga teacher training in '12, and has taught at gyms and on installations across the country — as well as offered “storytime yoga” to military children. In her free time, she loves to ski, garden, cook, and hike.
We met in '06 when Patrick was returning from a deployment. He was stationed with my cousin in Alaska, and their return flight from overseas had a stopover in Baltimore, so our family went to BWI to welcome them back to the states. We hit it off almost immediately, and though we didn't start dating right away, there were a ton of phone calls, MySpace messages, and plane tickets that followed...
The summer after Cassie finished undergrad, we drove together from Alaska to Florida to "test out" our relationship while living together in the same timezone. Fortunately, it worked out -- and a year later, we got married on one of Eglin AFB's beautiful beaches surrounded by family and friends. Since Florida, we've been stationed in Arizona, North Dakota, and Idaho.
Lola, Our Muse
Cassie & Patrick: One month after our wedding and just two days before Patrick's deployment, we welcomed a sweet Italian Greyhound named "Lola the Showgirl" into our lives. Over the years, she brought immeasurable joy, love, and laughter to our family, especially during the saddest and loneliest times. Sadly, this past December, we said goodbye to Lola at the age of 15. We are forever grateful for her kind soul, which inspired us to write "The Littlest Hound" to celebrate her life and the profound impact she had on ours. Through our children's book, we hope to keep her spirit alive and inspire readers with her limitless devotion and steadfast compassion.
MilspoFAN: What made you want to collaborate on writing a children's book?
Cassie & Patrick: Since our kids were in the womb, we've surrounded them with books. As toddlers, they'd often request the same stories repeatedly, and Patrick would playfully alter them to test their attention (spoiler: they always caught on). I also observed their newfound interest in HIS stories. We'd discussed writing a book about Lola for over a decade, and with my passion for creation and writing, it all came together. This culmination of events motivated us to finally put pen to paper, hire an illustrator, and hit the "Publish Now" button on Amazon.
MilspoFAN: What's next for you?
Cassie & Patrick: We've been fortunate to have two beautiful children who've adjusted well to military life. We juggle forest school and homeschool -- keeping us fully engaged. One of our dreams includes hitting the road in our camper for a year after the Air Force (before settling down). Despite losing Lola in December and Mia in March (Mia was our other [senior] dog mentioned in our book), our hearts are gradually healing; we're fostering a happy Yellow Lab, while also diving into edits for our next book...
MilspoFAN: What is the most practical piece of advice that you would give to other artists?
Cassie & Patrick: Just as you trust your instincts when you create, trust your heart to guide you through life. Block out the noise of negativity, and let tenderness and passion fuel you.
Find Cassie & Patrick online at:
WEB: www.thelittlesthound.com
INSTAGRAM: instagram.com/thelittlesthound
FEATURES / ARTICLES / LINKS: linktr.ee/thelittlesthound