By most accounts Pete Likins has had a successful life. But his personal accomplishments are only the backdrop for the real story—the story of his family, whose trials and triumphs hold lessons for many American families in the twenty-first century.

This poignant but ultimately empowering memoir tells the story of Peter Likins, his wife Patricia, and the six children they adopted in the 1960s, building a family beset by challenges that ultimately strengthened all bonds. With issues such as inter-racial adoption, mental illness, drug addiction, unwed pregnancy, and homosexuality entwined in their lives, the Likins’ tale isn’t just a family memoir—it’s a story of the American experience, a memoir with a message. With circumstances of race, age, and health making all of their children virtually unadoptable by 1960s standards, Pat and Pete never strayed from the belief that loyalty and love could build a strong family.

Both Pete and Pat have served as teachers, and Pete’s long academic career—holding positions as a professor, dean, provost, and then president—illuminates more than just his personal success. Pete’s professional attainments produce a context for his family story, wherein high achievements in educational, athletic, and financial terms coexist with the joys and sorrows of this exceptional family.

With degrees from Stanford and MIT, Peter Likins served as an engineering professor at UCLA, a dean and then provost at Columbia University, president of Lehigh University, and then president of the University of Arizona. Retired now, he lives with his wife Pat in Tucson.

"At once a simple love story and family saga, the book traverses the Likins' history and, consequently, the history of America as it undergoes altering social changes."—Santa Cruz Sentinel

"Likins doesn't linger on tragedy, but celebrates a rich life."—Tucson Weekly