Kate Amatruda, MFT, CST-T, BCETS, EMT, DMAT, DSHR-DMH is a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapist, Board Certified Expert in Traumatic Stress - Diplomate, American Academy of Experts in Traumatic Stress, and a teaching member of the International Society for Sandplay Therapy. She is part of the Marin Medical Reserve Corps, of CAMFT's Trauma Response Network, a member of DMAT CA-6 and a licensed EMT. With the American Red Cross, she is a Disaster Service Mental Health volunteer, Disaster Action Team member and the Mental Health Lead for the Marin County Chapter. She's been to the Southeast Asia Tsunami, Hurricane Katrina, Florida Tornadoes, the San Diego wildfires, and many local disasters. She has a private practice in Novato.

Kate is a member of the Left Coast Writers, and is a member of the Marin Writers Salon. She’ll be attending the Squaw Valley Writers Workshop in August 2008. When she's not responding to disasters, seeing clients, or doing math homework with her son, she’s scrying for an agent for her novel, a salsa version of Pride and Prejudice with a gender twist.

Kate is really a mermaid masquerading as a human.