Amelia: Saying that out loud, it’s sounding a little creepy. [laughs] I take it back.
Jynx: No, stop!
Amelia: But, yeah, I listened to you while traveling the country all alone in my van, rooting for the survivors all the way, in every story.
Jynx: A true badass Vixen in front of me, babe.
Amelia: Thanks.
Jynx: Now you’ve been on the road, living in a van, all this time, alone? Just to escape the stigma and the judgment you got from your local community after your father snapped?
Amelia: More or less. There were more reasons than just that, but, yeah, escaping the reminders of the incident and judgement over it was a big reason. I’ve finally settled down somewhere though, just recently. I’m done being a nomad for the time being, and my time in hiding is over.
Jynx: And what have you been doing to support yourself all these years? You didn’t evenhave a social media profile until the day you published that article so you’re clearly not an influencer living off of income from van life videos.
Amelia: [laughs] Definitely not. I write code, I’m a programmer.
Jynx: We love a baddie in STEM! What kind of programming do you do?
Amelia: Web apps mostly.
Jynx: Say less! Let’s talk after the show, I might have a project for you.
Amelia: For sure!
Jynx: So tell me what you’re passionate about, Amelia. What is your message for other Vixens?
Amelia: Mostly I’m just trying to do whatever is possible to prevent crimes from taking place, especially ones that change dozens of lives in an instant. Look, do I think bringing awareness to the effects of actions like my dad’s is going to actually stop them from happening? Odds are that it won’t, but I’m not going tonottry to do what I can about it after what my family and I have been through.
Jynx: [claps] And there’s a charity you’re helping gain some time in the spotlight, isn’t that right?
Amelia: That’s right, the link will be in the podcast description if anyone wants to donate to help the victims’ families. I’ve been donating to it for years, but even fifteen years later countless lives are still affected daily by the tragedy, and many never recover. Even small donations add up.
Jynx: Is it okay with you if I make an announcement?
Amelia: Um, yeah, I mean, it’s your show. [nervous chuckle]
Jynx: Because of Amelia’s story making waves, how brave she’s been coming out and speaking up, changing the lens of how we look at modern true crime,Vengeful Vixensis creating a non-profit, Vengeance for Victims, geared toward helping survivors and families of victims who have been affected by tragedies like the ones we discuss on the show. More than just killer entertainment, we want to be a force for good.
Amelia: [gasp] No shit!
Jynx: Zero shit, babe. And moving forward, every sponsor who wants to work with our show will be making a mandatory, sizeable contribution as part of their sponsorship. We’re also doing an outreach program to various media organizations, corporations, and other entities who profit off of the true crime industry and shows like ours, encouragingthem to make meaningful donations as well. And listeners, if you’d like to participate, the link is in the episode description.
Amelia: [sniffles] I don’t know what to say, I have no words.
Jynx: That doesn’t really go over well on a podcast, babe.
[both women laugh]
Jynx: Tell me about this place you found to settle down in! What finally got you off the road for good?
[end of transcript excerpt]
It’s some sort of cosmic irony that my podcast with Jynx is airing the same day of the grand opening of Downtown Smoky Heights. New beginnings all around, my favorite.
“Mom!” I wave, standing on my tiptoes in the crowd, trying to flag her attention.
Damn these genes she gave me that only let me grow to five feet tall.
