A Note from the Author
As a steadfast presence and central figure in this book, Eddie Melzer embodies truth. Even when faced with unbelievable challenges in the towing industry: gun toting customers, unethical policemen, cutthroat competitors, and insurance companies all pushing limits, he continues to hold his head high. Through it all, he and Gini always choose each other while building a home founded on love and support and especially expectations in which they too modeled for their children.
As the youngest of five, I didn’t fully understand what was happening at the time. But even as a child, I carried the sense that there was more to our story than what could be said out loud. For years, I felt pulled to uncover what happened and why. In my own way, writing Truth Teller is my attempt to tell that truth…honestly, completely, and with respect for the people who lived it.
My hope is that Truth Teller shows what it costs to do the right thing and what it reveals about an industry, a community, and the systems that decide who gets protected. Beyond this, it also demonstrates a family’s strength when absorbing daily shocks of violence and corruption all the while finding a way forward, together. Hope was always present.
What Readers Are Saying
"I absolutely devoured Tracy's book. In fact I read it all in almost one sitting Saturday. ...It is almost inconceivable what her dad endured—and even going to jail. Her brothers experienced violence like I have never seen, even growing up the south.
...Tracy's story is endearing, nostalgic and one of fortitude. Her dad was a true entrepreneur. His honesty, integrity and adaptability was awe inspiring. I also must say I enjoyed how he could take care of himself and his family due to his strength and courage. Amazing role model."
- Dr. Deborah Brazeal, PhD, Cal Poly Pomona, Professor, Management and Human Resources
"What stayed with me most, reading Truth Teller, was the love — for parents, for siblings, for a family bound together by more than blood. Tracy’s memory of those years is vivid and unflinching, but what truly moved me was her family’s moral courage: the clarity to know what was right, and the conviction to stand by it, even when the rest of the country looked the other way. This is a story about remembering — but more than that, it’s a story about the quiet, stubborn kind of love that refuses to compromise on justice."
- Mishael Ondieki, Serial Entrepreneur
"I can feel how much care, courage, research, and emotional labor went into bringing Truth Teller forward. This is not just a manuscript — it is family history, legacy, truth-telling, and love...The story of the whistle is the single moment containing the whole world of the book: love, protection, authority, danger, moral complexity, and the truth one would only fully understand years later."
- Petra Matern Russell, MSc, Pcc, Executive Coach & Leadership Development Consultant