Jerri loves stories, reading them and writing them. She began writing children's books while she was a children's librarian in Manhattan, Kansas with her first Kansas tall tale, "Johnny Kaw - The Pioneer Spirit of Kansas." In addition to tall tales, she especially likes writing ghost stories and her YA ghost story and mystery, "The Secret of Whispering Springs" has been popular with readers from nine to ninety.

Jerri grew up in Manhattan, Kansas, earned a B.A. degree in English and psychology from the University of Kansas and an M.Ed. in educational technology from the University of Hawaii at Manoa. She married Peter W. Garretson, who became a military attorney and together they lived in several countries and states during his twenty-four-year army career. They had two sons.

Jerri has worked as a public affairs officer, a children's librarian and a reference librarian. She loves photography, computers, and traveling. She and her husband now live in Florida.