After receiving her master’s degree in journalism from Northwestern University in Evanston, Illinois, she worked for United Press International, where she met Frank, and for the Chicago Tribune. Sel lived in LaSalle country for 27 years and served on the boards of Illinois Valley Community College as well as the Ottawa Elementary School Board. During the 1970s, while raising three children, Sel became active in local politics as well as civic and charitable organizations in central Illinois. Ten years after her husband’s suicide, she returned to Chicago to work in the travel business and became involved in mental health issues. On the boards of international groups, Sel continues to write, organize tours to Turkey, and lecture at support groups.