Liza Farrow-Gillespie is an attorney, musician, sailor, author, and two-time cancer survivor. She and her husband Alan (a/k/a “the redhead”) were born and raised in Temple, Texas. They now call Dallas their home.
After Liza’s bout with breast cancer in mid-career, the couple began taking steps to alter the course of their life. They started putting fifty cents of every after-tax dollar into a sailing kitty. When they reached their savings goal, Liza quit her job with a Dallas law firm, and Alan closed his medical practice. They sold their possessions, bought a sailboat, and spent six years circumnavigating the globe.
The book A Voyage of Heart and Song tells the tale of their adventures on the high seas.
Liza has been a breast cancer survivor since 1991. In August 2018, she was diagnosed with stage four ovarian cancer. Her forthcoming book Ovarian Barbarian chronicles that journey. Her blog Liza on Leave keeps family and friends updated on her status.
During the sailing circumnavigation, Liza published articles in national and international sailing magazines, including Ocean Navigator, Cruising World, and Blue Water Sailing. An accomplished sailor, she held a U.S. Coast Guard private captain’s license while living aboard.
Upon returning to land life after the sailing circumnavigation, the author co-founded what is now one of the largest woman-owned law firms in Texas: Farrow-Gillespie Heath Witter LLP. Before law school, Liza was a professional musician and studio singer in Austin and Los Angeles. She still sings in local jazz dives from time to time.
Liza has been married since 1984 to Alan Farrow-Gillespie, M.D., who is a pediatric anesthesiologist. Liza and Alan live in uptown Dallas in a highrise flat from which in fine weather they can always see the horizon.