Picking Up Pieces

Born into a funeral home run by two parents who actively indulged in their addictions and seemingly overlooked the four children they created, Pritchard's anger and ill behavior resulted in him attending nine different schools by the time he quit at 15. At 11, he helped his dad clean up the bloody murder scene of an old family friend. A few months later, on his twelfth birthday, he started helping his dad occasionally on the morgue wagon picking up bodies and taking them to the morgue for storage and autopsy.

He also ran the streets, fighting on corners, stealing cars, breaking into things, and walking around wondering if today was the day it would all end. He just hoped when his time came he wouldn't have to lie dying in the cold outside during the winter - a simple wish, but an important one at the time. Then an older gay man took him into his home and gave him a safe place to stay while he changed his life around.

Pritchard eventually went on to graduate from Hobart College at 26. He started traveling around the country staying in places like Key Largo, FL, Seattle, WA, Thousand Islands, NY, Washington, D.C., Greensboro, NC, Las Vegas, NV, and his hometown of Buffalo, NY, among others. He served as a volunteer firefighter and once helped manage a 100+-bed emergency shelter for political refugees. Eventually, he became a senior branch manager for a large regional bank on the east coast before turning his efforts to writing and further travel.