Married on September 13, 1980 in St. Louis County, Mo.
Laura Jean Maurer and James M. Didion
Laura Jean Maurer, b. 1956, St. Louis, Mo.
She married James Michael Didion on September 13, 1980 in St. Louis
County, Mo.

Their children are:

1. Julie Marie Didion, b. 1981, St. Charles County, Mo.

2. Mark Maurer Didion, b. 1982, St. Charles County, Mo.

3. Lisa Anne Didion, b. 1985, St. Charles County, Mo.
My sister Laura J. Maurer worked at General American Insurance and for Ralston
Purina.  Her husband Jim Didion is part owner of Kadean Construction.   He
graduated from the University of Missouri at Columbia.  All three of their children
have followed in their father's footsteps going to Mizzou.

Laura stayed at home with the three children and was very active as a volunteer at
their school, she also served on their School Board.  She worked seven years at a
Pre School while her children were in school.  Laura plans to be a volunteer for her
daughter Lisa next year when she becomes a Special Ed Teacher.

Her first daughter Julie Didion graduated from Mizzou with her Masters degree in
Accounting in May 2005.  She had been working for Price Waterhouse in Los
Angeles as a Senior Associate.  She passed all of her CPA tests before she
graduated and now after working for a year she has her CPA License.  In fall 2007
she works for Zooey Clothing line by Alice Heller.

Laura and Jim's son Mark Maurer Didion graduated from Mizzou with a Business
degree in May 2005.  He is now working at CB Richard Elliz in Commercial Real
Estate in Los Angeles.

Their youngest, Lisa Didion graduated from Mizzou in May 2007 with a teaching
degree in Special Education.  She is now attending the M.Ed. program
in Special Education at Peabody College of  Vanderbilt University in the Fall of
2007.
Laura is another (mom, John III,  his wife Pam, and Teri) family
member who worked at Ralston-Purina.  What Anheuser-Busch
was to previous generations, Ralston-Purina became for our
generation.
Laura also work for GenAmerica Financial and General American
Life are wholly owned subsidiaries of MetLife, Inc., one of the
world's largest financial services companies.
James Didion (had been Vice President of Business Development and Real Estate Services)

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Didion
French: from a pet form of Didier.
Didier
French: from the personal name (Latin Desiderius, a derivative of
desiderium ‘desire’, ‘longing’, given either to a longed-for child
as an expression or the Christian’s spiritual longing for God).
The name was borne by a 3rd-century bishop of Langres and a
6th-century bishop of Vienne in the Dauphiné, both of whom were
locally venerated as saints.
Jim Didion, and now all three of his children are
graduates of the University of Missouri-Columbia.
Jim Didion grew up in the St. Charles area, and that is where he and Laura have raised
their children.

Situated a short drive northwest of St. Louis is the city of St. Charles which traces its
history to the late 18th century. Founded in 1769 by Louis Blanchette, a French Canadian
fur trader and hunter, as a post along the Missouri River, St. Charles is the first European
settlement along this waterway. Blanchette named the settlement Les Petit Cotes (The
Little Hills) and served as its civil and military Governor until his death in 1793. In 1791 the
population of the settlement had grown to around 225 and a second Catholic church was
built and dedicated to San Carlos Borromeo, the patron saint of King Charles IV of Spain.
On the day this church was dedicated the settlement’s name was changed to San Carlos,
shortened from the church’s name to also honor King Charles IV.

The first American settlers began arriving in the 1790's. Daniel Boone, the famous
frontiersman, became one of the first settlers in St. Charles County by building a home in
nearby Defiance in 1799. Boone moved to the region after he lost title to his land claims
when Kentucky became a state in 1792 after hearing from his son, Daniel M., and other
hunters of the great abundance of game and fertile country. In 1800, Boone was appointed
magistrate of the Femme Osage District in St. Charles County and received a large tract of
land for his services. Boone again lost his land after the United States took control after the
Louisiana Purchase but was later granted a tract of land by a special act of Congress in
1814.

In 1804, when the Louisiana Purchase was finalized, the settlement’s name was
Anglicized to St. Charles from San Carlos. On May 16, 1804, William Clark arrived in St.
Charles, still at the time a predominately French community, with the main body of the
Corps of Discovery to await the arrival of Meriwether Lewis who was still attending
business in St. Louis. While in St. Charles, the expedition rearranged the goods in their
boats, bought additional supplies, and enjoyed the hospitality of the town. Lewis arrived
from St. Louis on May 20, and the expedition resumed their epic journey up the Missouri the
next day. St. Charles has been designated as a Lewis and Clark site on the Lewis and
Clark National Historic Trail and is the home of the  Lewis & Clark Boat House and Nature
Center that is the home base for the replica boats (a keelboat and two pirogues) of the
Discovery Expedition of St. Charles. An impressive new Lewis and Clark monument
featuring Lewis, Clark, and Seaman can be found in Frontier Park along the banks of the
Missouri River and the annual Frontier Days in May commemorates the Expedition's
departure from St. Charles on their great adventure.

St. Charles served as the territorial capitol of Missouri and as it’s first state capitol from
June 4, 1821 until October 1, 1826 when the state capitol was moved to its permanent
location in Jefferson City. The second floor of two adjoining Federal-style brick buildings on
Main Street owned by local merchants provided office and meeting space for both
legislatures and the governor. This building (photo right,) recently restored as a  State
Historic Site with a interpretive center, is open to the public and operated by the Missouri
Department of Natural Resources.

St. Charles saw its population and economic base expand as a result of the western
expansion and German immigration. Its inclusion in the railway and bridge building
networks helped St. Charles make a successful transition from a primarily river town. One
of its newest industries is tourism and the success that St. Charles is experiencing in this
new endeavor is evident along Main Street. This district is on the National Historic Register
and contains over 30 notable structures that now house a variety of restaurants, shops,
and other businesses. Friendly and informative people who help visitors with brochures,
directions, and answers to questions staff a centrally located Visitors Center. St. Charles'
newest attraction is the Foundry Art Centre. This new facility has 5,000 square feet of
exhibition space in four galleries that features an on-going rotation of special touring
exhibitions, curated exhibits and juried competitions. 21 studios for artists have been built
on the mezzanine level of the building that allows visitors to see and talk with the artists as
they work. The wide variety of special events that occur throughout the year make St.
Charles an interesting stop along the Great River Road or as a destination in itself. Its easy
driving distance from St. Louis also makes St. Charles a great short distance getaway for
people of metropolitan St. Louis.
Didion
Laura attended and graduated from Mehlville High School.
Jim Didion attended and graduated from DeSmet Jesuit High School.

De Smet Jesuit High School is a Catholic, college preparatory community whose
members work together to build a challenging, academic environment set in the context
of the life and sprit of Jesus Christ. While members are constantly encouraged to
develop strong personal values and convictions, they achieve success by realizing their
leadership potentials through positively impacting the lives of those around them.  They
also learn and live the values of St. Ignatius by being intellectually competent, open to
growth, religious, loving, and committed to doing justice in generous service to the
people of God.
Mark, Julie and Lisa all attended
and graduated from St. Charles and
Lisa all attended Charles, Mo.and
graduated
Over 200 years ago, Don Manuel Perez visited the village of Les Petites Cotes,or the "Little Hills." As the
Spanish lieutenant governor of Upper Louisiana, Perez signed a petition granting inhabitants of the village
permission to build a church. According to area historical records, the meeting took place at the home of
French-Canadian fur trapper Louis Blanchette, who founded the village in 1769. The church Perez
authorized was San Carlos Borromeo, later anglicized to St. Charles Borromeo.

When Perez dedicated the church on November 7, 1791, he named it after the Cardinal of Milan, Charles
Borromeo. At the same time, he changed the name of the village to San Carlos, which then became St.
Charles in 1803.

St. Charles Borromeo in St. Charles, Missouri is the third oldest parish in the St. Louis Archdiocese,
behind Ste. Genevieve and the Old Cathedral in downtown St. Louis. Several buildings have served the
parish since the original church, a typical French log church with a vertical post, was erected at South Main
and Jackson Streets. In 1828, a second Borromeo Church was built at North Second and Decatur Streets.
The tremendous growth of the Catholic community necessitated yet a new church, which was built in
1869 at the present site of St. Charles Borromeo. On July 7, 1915, a wind storm destroyed the main body
of the brick church. The church was reconstructed, and the cornerstone for the fourth and existing church
was laid on April 16, 1916 by Archbishop John Glennon.

This church is in the Saint Charles historical district, which is well worth visiting. The architecture here is
similar to that found in Quebec and New Orleans. The church is across the street from the Shrine of Saint
Rose Philippine Duchesne, which contains the tomb of the Saint.
Saint Rose Philippine Duchesne, pioneer educator and missionary to
the Indians, and Religious of the Society of the Sacred Heart. She
founded the first free school west of the Mississippi River.
Jim Didion
Principal of the company for developing new office, industrial, retail and healthcare in St. Louis and
Kansas City.

Trammell Crow Company, founded in 1948, is one of the nation’s leading developers and investors
in real estate. Our team is dedicated to building value for all of our clients through creative solutions
and highly skilled, locally connected professionals in major cities in the U.S., Canada and India.
Trammell Crow Company is known for creating world class facilities for it clients. We serve users of,
and investors in, office, industrial, retail, healthcare, student housing, on-airport distribution, multi-
family residential and mixed use projects.

As of September 30, 2006, Trammell Crow Company had over $5 billion of development and new
investments in process and nearly $3 billion of additional projects in the pipeline. Trammell Crow
Company has experienced market leaders in 28 major cities and, as an independently operated
subsidiary of CB Richard Ellis, has access to over 20,000 professionals within the world’s largest
real estate services firm.
Laura and Jim Didion, John and Pam Maurer
Maurer