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Obits
From Eureka Springs Tourist to Resident
Dan Ellis, Author and Publisher
by Buzz Dougherty -- 2010
�Really, my life is no different now than it was,� Ellis states rather matter-of-factly. �You can�t be a survivor if you�re not positive.�
Being a survivor is what led him to Eureka Springs after losing everything he owned in Hurricane Katrina. �Didn�t have enough insurance� is how he sums up that experience.
Born in Buck Town, La., Ellis lived in New Orleans and attended Tulane University. �Actually, I was dating a girl about four days a week at the time instead of studying, and the resources I was devoting to my social agenda left me little time for academic pursuits,� he ruefully admits. He left Tulane and eventually graduated from Southeast Louisiana University with a bachelor�s of art degree and Loyola University with a master of education. Over the years, he has been an author, school teacher and founder of computer technology institutes.
Ellis was told about Eureka Springs by an acquaintance while he was trying to find a place to live after Katrina. Initially, he had remained on the Gulf Coast and spent the first two months after the storm assisting with locating displaced persons; but eventually, he determined that the damage was much greater and the rebuilding process was going to take far longer than anyone had thought and decided that he would just move on.
�I had never been to Eureka Springs before,� Ellis stated, �but I have found this city has a greater sensitivity in its people than I had been used to.�
After his move, Ellis founded and continues to head-up the annual Eureka Springs Mardi Gras Festival, the St. Patrick�s Day Parade, and still writes and publishes in his spare time. He also has active websites at DanEllis.Net and PassChristian.Net in addition to Ureeka.Org for local info and EurekaSpringsHistory.Com for everything historical.