Main Street St. Charles, MO: A Walk Through History

Valerie Battle Kienzle is a native of Nashville, Tennessee, and is a graduate of the University of Missouri's School of Journalism in Columbia, Missouri. She spent the last 40+ years employed in various writing-related positions -- newspaper reporter, corporate public affairs manager, advertising account representative, school district communications writer, freelance writer, and author.

Valerie is a member of The State Historical Society of Missouri, the St. Charles County (MO) Historical Society; Missouri History Museum, St. Louis; the St. Louis chapter of Fashion Group International, Inc.; Daughters of the American Revolution; Foundation for the Restoration of Ste. Genevieve; and The Wednesday Club of Saint Louis. She has been a speaker for the Missouri Humanities Council's "Show Me Missouri" Speakers' Bureau and an instructor for OASIS, St. Louis's older adult enrichment program. Her interests include reading (history, non-fiction), music (any and all types), gardening, travel, and genealogical research. An animal lover, she shares her home with a dog and two cats, and her yard with a herd of deer.

Valerie credits her grandmothers with instilling in her a lifelong love of history. The stories and photographs they shared made her want to learn more about the past.