A Gift of Thanks:

An inmate author does his best to save children from a life of crime.

An actress struggles to regain her life and livelihood after losing both legs in a crash.

The wife of a socially prominent attorney leaves her husband and children to marry a convicted murderer.

A wife-attorney defends her White House advisor-husband after he is photographed in the arms of another woman.

You met these remarkable people on the pages of Life & Style in 1996. Our writers and photographers took you into their worlds for a moment, to ponder their dilemmas and learn about what makes them tick.

And then, because the news is the news, they vanished from our view.

But their stories did not end once you had read about them. Here, we catch up with several of 1996’s most memorable people.

*

On Dec. 19, the one-year anniversary of the amputation of her legs, actress Stephani Victor delivered gifts to rescue workers who helped save her life and to the Hermosa Beach Comedy and Magic Club, which recently hosted a fund-raiser to help pay for her ongoing medical expenses.

Victor, 27, was standing on a sidewalk in Hermosa Beach last year when a driver lost control of his vehicle and struck her.

After delivering her gifts, Victor was honored at a fund-raiser for the Second Chance Foundation, which provides opportunities in the entertainment industry for those who have suffered tragic setbacks.

The foundation is attempting to provide Victor with resources to produce a documentary about her recovery. At the fund-raiser, Nissan presented Victor with keys to a 1997 Pathfinder, customized to fit her needs.

The day before the anniversary, Victor auditioned for a role on the soap “General Hospital.” It was her first audition since the accident.