Ralph Leonard holds a copy of his book, "Against the Stream," which details his brother's life and disappearance.

Local author writes novel on brother's disappearance

"I will never see my 50th birthday," was a comment made on a regular basis by Don Leonard, a man's whose younger brother describes him as a free-spirited individual. In 1993, on the eve of his 50th birthday, Don Leonard disappeared. According to brother and part-time Sparta resident author Ralph Leonard, Don's boat was found abandoned and adrift off the coast of Florida.

Following the disappearance of his brother, Ralph Leonard began work on "Against The Stream," a book that tells the tale of his brother's life and the mystery that still surrounds Don's disappearance after 13 years.

"He was very intelligent," Ralph Leonard said of his brother. "He attended the Naval Academy, as well as the University of Florida, and received a degree from Florida Atlantic University. Shortly thereafter, Don Leonard moved to the Bahamas, where he resided for a number of years.

"He lived off the barter system," Ralph Leonard said. "He was a very skilled diver and would sell fish and lobster to hotels, to people over there in big boats and would teach people's kids and other adults how to dive."

According to his brother, Don became very knowledgeable of the waters on which he lived, and he evolved into "quite a character." "He was the kind of person people were attracted to," he said.

Why Write a Book?

"I wrote the book while living here in the mountains in the hopes of getting some closure," Ralph Leonard said. "The thoughts were just racing around in my mind. I never wrote it with the intention of publishing it."

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