Kennett Square resident Joann Pfeifer, whose daughter Jessica Leigh Pfeifer died eight years ago from suicide at the age of 21, has published a book of letters she wrote to her child as she was growing up, writes Richard Gaw for the Chester County Press.

Published by Covenant Books, She Called Herself Jess is currently available on Amazon.

The 236-page love letter to the writer’s daughter documents the rich life she led and includes a number of her photographs. The letters portray a log of soccer games, recitals, gymnastics lessons, and a 12-year education in the Unionville-Chadds Ford School District.

“My intent is to take the issue of suicide out of the dark corners and talk about it,” said Pfeifer. “By putting this book out there, if one sentence helps a parent talk to their child or helps a child understand that suicide is a permanent result to a temporary feeling, then it fulfills my intentions for it.”

And since “Jessie never got to finish her story,” said Pfeifer, “this is my way to honor her.”

Read more about the book in the Chester County Press here.