T. Louise Freeman-Toole (1957-2016) was born in Gardena, California to Marguerite "Peggy" and Peter Freeman, the fifth of seven children. For most of her childhood, the Freeman family resided in Redondo Beach, Calif., but for a few years in Bethesda, Maryland. After graduating from Redondo Union High School, she attended California State University, Dominguez Hills, where she met Richard Toole, her future husband.
She received her bachelor of arts degree from the University of California, Santa Cruz, with a degree in creative writing. In 1979, she and Richard married in Santa Cruz, where their sons Emlyn and Ambrose were born. True to her dedication to family, the Freeman-Tooles moved to the Northwest in 1988 to join Louise's sister Ingrid and her husband Rick, beginning her powerful love of the Palouse.
Though she worked primarily as a librarian, her true calling was writing; her award-winning book "Standing Up to the Rock" chronicled her connection with Idaho and the Snake River. As a freelance writer, her work was published in numerous anthologies and magazines, including Alaska Magazine. Moving the family to Illinois, she received her master's degree from Illinois State while her husband pursued his doctorate before they returned to Pullman for several years. She received several fellowships and awards for her writing, including the John Steinbeck Fellowship. When she moved to Alaska to pursue future writing opportunities, she spent several years in the "bush," where she left a piece of her heart in the adventure of living off the grid in Eagle, Alaska.
