Drury, Sir E.J. 1947- (Eaudore J. Drury, II)

PERSONAL:

Born March 31, 1947, in St. Louis, MO; son of Eaudore Drury and Viola Gutjahr Spelman; married Valerie Vandiver (an educator), June 12, 1982; children: Jesse, Arin. Ethnicity: "English/German." Politics: Democrat. Religion: Roman Catholic. Hobbies and other interests: Gardening.

ADDRESSES:

Home—St. Louis, MO.

CAREER:

Building inspector. City of Richmond Heights, Richmond Heights, MO, building inspector, 1989—. Military service: U.S. Navy, 1967-69.

MEMBER:

Veterans for Peace, PMA Independent Book Publishers Association, St. Louis Publishers Association.

WRITINGS:

Close Encounters of a Very Special Kind, Rivendell Books (Richmond Heights, MO), 2000.

A Different Kind of Sentinel: The Strange Case of Sir Eodor and She Who Must Be Obeyed (memoir), 2nd edition, Rivendell Books (Richmond Heights, MO), 2008.

SIDELIGHTS:

Sir E.J. Drury II is an American building inspector whose memoir, A Different Kind of Sentinel: The Strange Case of Sir Eodor and She Who Must Be Obeyed was published in 2008. In his memoir Drury details his life, starting with his growing up with the mental, emotional, and physical abuse he suffered from his biological father and his stepfather. Drury's biological father was schizophrenic, which took a toll on Drury's emotional stability. Years later, he was subjected to the alcoholic rages of his stepfather, who physically handicapped Drury while he was still a child. Drury had difficulties with his self identity and, in his memoir, describes an accidental soul-searching event that occurred. At that time he took a long hard look at himself in a mirror and saw a woman staring back at him. At first the image startled him, but he was drawn to face her again—what he would call his soul. Looking in the mirror further, he saw a knight dressed in white. The woman, or his soul, encouraged Drury to accept the knight, as a means to help him reconnect with his soul.

Drury later went on to serve in the U.S. Navy from 1967 to 1969. While serving, however, he distanced himself from the culture of the military, wary of losing his humanity and returning to violence. Drury explains his obsession with sex and his struggles to overcome his beastly side. He worked a number of jobs throughout his life, and has served as a building inspector for the City of Richmond Heights since 1989. He also married Valerie Vandiver, a teacher, and had two children, Jesse and Arin. Drury became involved with several book publisher associations as well as Veterans for Peace.

Drury told CA: "My primary motivation for writing is the search for truth of the beastly side of nature, and ultimately a union with soul that transgresses all duality. I was greatly influenced by the writings of the monk Thomas Merton, the psychoanalyst Carl Jung, and the pacifist Mahatma Gandhi. I write down what my senses feed my intellect and which my soul finds to be intuitively true via personifications of these faculties. I write with the hope that others might join the fray to save humanity from itself and the destructive side of its animal nature."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

BOOKS

Drury, Sir E.J., II, A Different Kind of Sentinel: The Strange Case of Sir Eodor and She Who Must Be Obeyed, 2nd edition, Rivendell Books (Richmond Heights, MO), 2008.