My story is much like Katie's. Though I loved my mother dearly, she was not the best cook in the world. Even she would admit it. She also worked late most nights at her job and usually didn't get home until after 6:00 PM. So by the time she got home, it was more convenient to open a can or throw a frozen pizza or TV dinner in the oven than to make something from scratch.
I don't recall exactly when I started cooking, but as my mom told it, when I was about 10 I saw a cook on television (more than likely Julia Child) make a cheese souffle, and asked mom if I could try to do that. So she pulled out her unused copy of "Joy of Cooking" and gave it to me. I never did make the souffle, but I did learn to make a number of other recipes in that book.
By the time I was about 12, my brother and I were doing most of the cooking around the house.
So in a way, my mother was my influence... just not as a cook herself.
As for my own style, I think it might be best described these days as "healthy eclectic." I try to incorporate a lot of things I've learned from many different sources.