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About the Authors

Stephen J. Oddo

..was born in Guadalajara, Mexico, the youngest of five siblings, and currently resides in San Diego. Avalanche: Lessons of Love, which he co-wrote with his sister, Kris Ochoa-Keane, is his first published work. The book was a labor of love fifteen years in the making.

Steve grew up in San Diego. He attended University of San Diego High School where he lettered in multiple sports and was president of the Associated Student Body. He earned his Bachelor of Arts degree at Santa Clara University, with a major in English and a minor in Spanish. He also earned his Masters of Science degree in Journalism from the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University, before working for several years as a newspaper reporter. Steve later served as Press Secretary to U.S. Representative, Robert T. Matsui (D-Cal).

Steve earned his law degree from the University of San Diego School of Law. During law school, he served as intern for the Honorable Eugene Lynch, U.S. District Judge in the Northern District of California. For the past eleven years, Steve has worked as an attorney specializing in securities class actions, most recently with the law firm of Robbins Umeda LLP.

Kris Ochoa-Keane

…was born in Washington D.C., the first of five siblings. Kris is mother of six, step-mother of three and grandmother of eight and currently resides in San Diego. Avalanche: Lessons of Love, which she co-wrote with her brother, Stephen J. Oddo, is her first published work. The book was a labor of love fifteen years in the making.

After spending three years in Guadalajara, Mexico, where her father taught political science at a local university, the family settled in San Diego, where Kris graduated from Our Lady of Peace Academy. After attending the University of San Diego, Kris worked as a flight attendant for Western Airlines.

During a summer in Guadalajara, Kris met her husband-to-be, Mexican businessman Alfonso Ochoa, whom she married on November 11, 1973. Kris and Alfonso immediately started a family in Guadalajara, and welcomed sons Alfonso Jr., Carleric, Christofer, Jonathan and Nicholas, before finally adding daughter Annette to the mix. In addition to raising her children, Kris devoted herself to charity work, including the Organization for Infantile Nutrition (ONI), which fed 5,000 babies from very poor families four formula bottles a day in the perimeters of Guadalajara.

Alfonso was killed on March 12, 1991, in an avalanche while heli-skiing in British Columbia, Canada. Kris and her children relocated to San Diego, where the children finished their schooling. She met Dick Keane at a high school football game and after a brief courtship, married him in December 1996. After several wonderful years together, Dick died in October 2002 after suffering a stroke and battling pancreatic cancer.
Since 1997, Kris has worked as a bilingual Spanish interpreter, and currently operates V & K Interpreting in San Diego. She was also actively involved with her daughter Annette in National Charity League, a mother-daughter national philanthropic organization.

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10 Comments for About the Authors

Barbara Cunningham, Psy.D., MFT | October 29, 2011 at 5:24 am

Dear Kris,
Congratulations! This is resilience.
Warm regards,
Barbara Cunningham

Ciara Gomez Ibarra | November 7, 2011 at 5:13 am

CONGRATULATIONS!!!!!!!!!!!! LOVED IT!!!!

Lisa Brusseau | November 8, 2011 at 3:56 pm

I admire your strength. Thank you fo sharing your captivating story! I have kissed my husband a few extra times today!

Ilenia Gomez Ibarra | February 12, 2012 at 7:16 pm

Wow!!! Thank u for sharing a part of your life!! I really admire u!!

Luv u ile :D

Rachel Esguerra | February 16, 2012 at 4:19 pm

I work for the San Diego Public Library as the Exhibit Assistant for the annual San Diego Local Authors Exhibit. I am interested in obtaining your contact information, particularly an e-mail address, to add to our database. You may contact either me or the Library Programming Director, Marc Chery, at 619.236.5817 or mchery@sandiego.gov. Also, please visit the San Diego Public Library’s Local Authors webpage at http://sandiego.communityguides.com/localauthors – thanks so much!

Ida | March 14, 2012 at 8:22 pm

What a great blog

Gwyn Rice | March 24, 2012 at 5:29 pm

Loved the book! Great story about loss and betrayal being overcome by friendship, love and faith!!!!! Kris’s story is a reminder of how in life we need to persevere.

Kristin vom Austria, St. Anton a. Arlberg | April 18, 2012 at 2:08 am

Dear Kris,

Irene and me would like to thank you so much for sending the books over.
We look forward to reading it and we do admire you already!

Love, best regards to Ross
Kristin

Irene | May 11, 2012 at 1:13 am

Dear Kris, thank you so much for sending us your book. Congratulations! It was lovely meeting you and I am looking forward to seeing you again next winter! Cannot wait to read the book now…lots of time..it is very quiet here in St. Anton. Love Irene

Patty Pastore | May 11, 2012 at 6:20 pm

Hello Kris! You were my neighbor for a while. I learned about your book and I have just started reading it. It is an amazing story! I can’t wait to get back to reading it. I just felt like I had to make a contact with you.
I belong to a book club and would like to recommend your book to the group. Do you ever speak to small groups? You are an inspiration! I am sorry I was not able to get to know you better when you were a neighbor. Thanks for sharing your story of courage and inspiration! Happy Mothers’ Day! PKP

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