Greg Stanmar was born in 1946 in Chicago, graduating in 1968 from Southern Illinois University-Carbondale with a degree in journalism.
Shortly after graduation, he was drafted and served nearly three years as a combat reporter/photographer with the Army 25th Infantry Division in South Vietnam. He was awarded a Purple Heart and Bronze Star for his service.
After leaving the Army and getting married in 1970, he worked for the Rockford Register Star for six years before graduate school. He worked for three years for Kiwanis International Magazine in Chicago. Later he worked as an independent contractor for the Bloomington Pantagraph, retiring two years ago.
Greg and his wife Janice live in Peru. They have three daughters and six grandchildren.