Hometown Author Event
& Library Fundraiser
I am heading home between the Thanksgiving and Christmas holidays – home being the little Ohio town where I grew up. Dover might be a small community, but it is huge in heart and wears its dynamic spirit in the form of a swirling red and gray tornado…the high school mascot.
I left years ago, and have moved around a fair bit, settling in New England for the present time. My mother had always served as the anchor to my Midwestern roots, but it will soon be three years since her sad departure from my life, and I still feel a gravitational pull to my hometown. It is my good fortune to have remained closely connected to a number of friends from my youth. I’m convinced there is a magical element in the Ohio earth, in which the seeds of friendship sprouted and saplings took root, to have nurtured such strong bonds of friendship…for the connection we share is rare.
There is something uniquely special about relationships formed during those mostly fun yet very awkward years when we were stretching toward adulthood. We knew everything about each other. The houses where we grow up. Our parents, our siblings, our pets. The good boyfriends and the bad breakups. Our interesting 1970’s era style. (You can hear a collective groan as we peruse old photo albums, wondering who let us out of the house wearing skirts that short and what had we been thinking with those hair styles?)
And all of that is tightly woven into the soft, cozy yet durable fabric of whom each of us has become. Since those carefree days of our youth, we’ve stuck firmly together through all the good and all the bad. The birth of children and now grandchildren – yikes! Career changes and retirement. New loves and divorce. Health scares and the loss of loved ones.
Many of my friends from more recent years have not stayed in touch with their high school pals and are amazed – and just a little bit jealous – when I tell them about the reunions and gatherings my high school friends plan. It’s a testament to the small town values our parents passed on to us and to our role models – the teachers, librarians and school counselors, upperclassmen, volunteer organizations, our community leaders.
Just this past weekend, a text thread among a dozen of us called the Dover Divas (and not a Diva among us by the way) lasted through the second half of our hometown football rival game with one fantastic game commentator and the rest of us cheering on our old school team. Four overtimes later, those hard fighting Dover Tornadoes lost the game. The taste of defeat is so bitter at that young age. But if they are anything like our class, they will find the true win is in the friendships they enjoy now. And if they’re as lucky as we are, they will hold on to those friendships for a lifetime.
One friend asked, “Do you think we’ll be texting during the Dover-Phila game when we’re 80?” I certainly hope so! Or perhaps we’ll all be living together in the same older adult community, sipping pinkalicious martinis and laughing into the late hours of the night. Maybe even still raising a little hell.
Later this month I’ve been invited to speak as part of my hometown library’s Nights at the Round Table author series. It’s a lovely opportunity to talk about my book and my writing journey, but also it gives me yet another chance to spend time with my friends and reconnect with classmates. And those Dover Divas are going to be right at my side, supporting me and doing whatever they can to make it a special event.
Never do I forget how lucky I am!
Equally important to me, is the opportunity to help my hometown public library.
When I first set out on this writing journey, I didn’t know where it would lead. But it was important to me that some good come from this experience, and I began looking for ways to use my book to help others. During the past year the book raised over $1000 for some organizations that are dear to me, including the food pantry where for several years I served as an Executive Board member.
And in keeping with that philosophy, I’m going to try and help the Dover Public Library. During the entire month of November I will donate 50% of profits from my book sales on Amazon to the Time to Check Out Your Future Capital Campaign–to raise money to remodel the library: https://www.amazon.com/dp/0997788607 ~ 50% of profits from books sold the night of the event will also be donated.
The Dover Library is, after all, where my love of reading and all things books had its beginnings. If I can find a way to give back in just a small way the huge gift it has given me, I will be a happy writer.
