Meet Monique Norington

For twelve years, Monique Norington followed a single question:

Who were the people whose lives made mine possible?

What began with a DNA test became an extraordinary journey through forgotten cemeteries, mountain communities, census records, family Bibles, archives, and thousands of historical documents. Along the way, she connected with more than 100 newly discovered relatives and traced eight generations of her family back to the Appalachian frontier of Virginia and Kentucky.

Those discoveries became the foundation of her debut memoir, This Well Runs Deep: The Untold Legacy of an Appalachian Bloodline—a story that explores ancestry, identity, legacy, and the generations of people whose lives continue to shape us today.

But genealogy was never the destination.

For Monique, the research became an invitation to ask deeper questions about family, belonging, resilience, motherhood, and what quietly flows through one generation to the next.

An award-winning author, strategic communications executive, speaker, and community leader, Monique has spent more than 25 years helping organizations, brands, and communities tell stories that build trust, preserve history, and inspire action.

She began her career as a communications executive in the Fortune 500 energy industry, leading marketing, public relations, and strategic communications initiatives for nationally recognized companies. She later built a successful career as a publicist and communications consultant, representing notable leaders, organizations, and public figures while helping them build authentic brands and share meaningful stories.

Since 2008, Monique has dedicated her career to public service, nonprofit leadership, community engagement, and education, working to strengthen communities through strategic partnerships, storytelling, and civic engagement.

She holds a Master of Public Administration from DePaul University and is an award-winning children’s author, speaker, and lifelong advocate for women, children, literacy, and maternal health. She is the founder of Urban Mommy, a nonprofit organization committed to strengthening families through education, advocacy, and community engagement.

For more than four years, Monique has also hosted the This Well Runs Deep Podcast, where she explores genealogy, family history, culture, identity, and the powerful stories that connect generations. The podcast became an extension of the very questions that ultimately inspired this memoir.

She believes every family carries a well—filled with stories, sacrifices, traditions, unanswered questions, faith, and extraordinary resilience. Sometimes those stories are celebrated. Sometimes they are forgotten. And sometimes they are simply waiting for someone willing to uncover them.

Through her writing, speaking, podcast, and advocacy, Monique invites readers to discover not only where they come from, but what has been flowing through their bloodline for generations—and what legacy they will leave for those who come next.

Because every family has a story.

And every story deserves to be remembered.