Joseph Michael is a social worker and writer from Brooklyn, NY. Born into a Sicilian immigrant Catholic family, he attended parochial school throughout his childhood. He studied Journalism at Arizona State University and completed a Culinary Arts degree through Le Cordon Bleu, working for over a decade in restaurants and country clubs throughout California, New York and Wisconsin. He then earned an M.A. in Pastoral Counseling at Fordham University followed by a Master of Social Work degree from New Mexico State University. A writer since high school, his work has focused primarily on faith-based and political commentary. He has worked extensively in the mental health field, providing therapy in residential treatment facilities, behavioral health hospitals and clinics and now works as a crisis interventionist in correctional healthcare. He and his wife, also a social worker, reside in Arizona. Joseph is a Knight of Columbus and has strong devotions to Our Lady, St. Padre Pio and St. Michael. He plays ice hockey, watches baseball, cooks and does martial arts in his free time. Feel free to contact him at jdimarius@fordham.edu.