Mom with beloved cat Mitzi. Photo taken by our family friend and photographer Joe Ratke in our apartment at 220 East 27th Street, where I was born. Dad got Mitzi before they met doing summer stock. She lived to be 18 years old.
![](http://ericaherd.com/wp-content/uploads/2013/11/mom-mitzi-624x482.jpg)
Mom with beloved cat Mitzi. Photo taken by our family friend and photographer Joe Ratke in our apartment at 220 East 27th Street, where I was born. Dad got Mitzi before they met doing summer stock. She lived to be 18 years old.