With A Lot of Help From my Friends

A week ago last Tuesday, my friends showered me with love, words of encouragement,  prayers, and surprise gifts. Their generosity and thoughtfulness brought tears to my eyes and reminded me of the Beatle's melody, "I'll get by with a little help my friends," but for me it has been a lot of help from my friends!

When my sister Kathleen and I pulled into the parking lot of the Rendezvous Café I commented that Jack's truck wasn't there and said I hoped he wasn't sick. Jack is always at critique group, so I guess I should've known something was amiss.


Inside the restaurant, I got welcoming hugs from our always-smiling server, Kim, and fantastic cook, Sharon, who came out of the kitchen to greet me. Stephanie, the owner of Rendezvous, also gave me a welcoming hug. I was brought to tears at their moving gestures. But it couldn't compare with what awaited me when I entered our meeting room.

Kathleen, Linda, Pat, Lynn, Alice,

Donna, Tricia, Sarah, Jane, and Marcia

The back room of the Rendezvous Café was decorated with pink balloons and gifts, and many were dressed in pink. (I wore blue). The cake with the light pink breast cancer logo was lovely -- and delicious.

A little birdie later on told me Alice was the ringleader, with help from my sister Kathleen, who drove me to Rendezvous Café. And several others helped Alice plan the party.

Kathleen, Pat, Kim, Alice,

Donna, Jane, Tricia, and Marcia

I shed tears of joy when I saw the women gathered there. Besides our usual critique group ladies (Alice, Pat, Jane, Sarah, and Marcia), Linda, Tricia, and Lynn were there! I was told the guys were banished for the day. ;)

Others who couldn't come but sent gifts and/or cards were Berta, Sioux, Barbara, and Mary. I felt like a kid on Christmas morning opening the many thoughtful cards and presents.

Words can't express the gratitude in my heart for the kind gestures, generous gifts, and works of encouragement and support my friends have shown me throughout my breast cancer journey.

Without a doubt, I know that I'll get by with (more than) a little help from my friends! 

Sad News About an Inspiring Writer and A Special Friend, Bea Siros

I was shocked and saddened yesterday to hear about the passing of an inspiring woman and special writing friend -- Bea Siros.

E. Bernice Walker (Siros) Sotirocopoulos, known as Bea Siros, was one of the sweetest and most generous people I know. She genuinely cared about people, and her sweet smile could brighten the darkest day.

Bea had recently completed her memoir about growing up in North St. Louis. On Tuesday mornings at Coffee and Critique she read excerpts of her memoir and brought in photos to share. I loved listening to Bea reminisce about her family and friends. Bea had an amazing mind and a quick wit, but most of all she had a kind and generous heart.

At her 75th birthday party last June, she asked celebrants not bring gifts; instead, she made sure everyone there received a gift from her. Rather than dwelling on how much I will miss Bea, I thought I'd share these photos from her birthday celebration last year of Bea and her daughter.

A celebration of Bea's life will be held Tuesday, July 31, 2012 4-9 PM at The BAUE Funeral Home, 620 Jefferson Street, St. Charles, MO. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to the Humane Society of St. Charles, MO.

Spotlight On - Dianna Graveman and 2 Rivers Communications and Design

As a freelance writer, I'm happy when I am given assignments and get paid for what I love to do -- write. And I'm inspired when I hear about other freelancers who make the most of their writing gifts. 

Dianna Graveman is a dynamic writer and friend who has done just that. Her talent, enthusiasm, and energy are inspiring.

Dianna Graveman is a freelance writer, a teacher, a speaker, and an editor who recently established her own communications business: 2 Rivers Communications & Design. 

I've known Dianna for almost ten years through Saturday Writers, and for about eight years through the Missouri Writers' Guild. Over the past year we have become even better friends through In Vino Veritas (in wine there is truth), a small group of writing friends who get together each month. At IVV we exchange ideas, discuss writing, share stories, and talk about whatever else comes to mind --- oh, and we also toast our accomplishments with a glass of wine.

During a recent IVV dinner I was excited to learn about Dianna's latest venture: 2 Rivers Communications & Design. Her new enterprise specializes in offering business communications and editorial services for any size project. With Dianna's experience in writing, publishing, teaching, marketing, and corporate communications, she delivers high quality products and services.

What's so impressive to me is the wide-range of services Dianna provides from editing manuscripts, writing newsletters, producing brochures, speaking, even designing business cards and menus.

And I know from experience the quality of Dianna's services and her reliability to deliver more than what is expected.

Several years ago when I was President of the Missouri Writers' Guild and looking for a contest judge, I asked Dianna if she would help out. She did not hesitate and got her results to me earlier than the deadline. When I needed a speaker for Saturday Writers, Dianna and her husband Don talked to our group about the historic books they co-wrote. When I wanted to interview a published writer on my blog, she agreed and also has donated copies of her books as giveaways. I know for a fact that she has done the same to help other writers.

Dianna is the current editor for the Missouri Writers' Guild newsletter, and she has done a remarkable job with the design and content of the newsletter and has testimonials to prove it!

So, if you're looking for a talented writer to edit your manuscript, need a creative mind to design your blog or develop Power Point charts for a business presentation, or if you need help with any writing project, I highly recommend Dianna Graveman. She is a gifted writer with lots of creative ideas who delivers a quality product on time. If you'd like more info about Dianna or 2 Rivers Communications and Design, visit her website.

That's What Friends Are For

At critique group on Tuesday a couple writing friends shared some good news I thought I'd pass along.

Drum roll, please . . . ! ! !

Marcia Gaye (our very own famous Marcia Gaye, not the other one) had a poem of hers included in the Top Fifty contest in connection with Writer's Digest. The judge/blog master is their poetry columnist and editor of Poets Market. His April Poem a Day challenge received more than 5,000 poems with more than 1,000 making the cut to the final judges. From that group he chose the best 50, and Marcia was in that top 50. Although we don't critique poetry, we do encourage poets, and according to Marcia, "being in our group is such a good push for me."

Claudia Shelton received two major awards for her romance novels:

*Courage and Azaleas took First Place in Mainstream w/Romantic Elements from Finally A Bride Contest sponsored by OKRWA (Oklahoma Romance Writers of America).
*Please Be Careful was awarded Second Place in Romantic Mystery/Suspense Contemporary Series (Unpublished) for the Daphne Du Maurier Award sponsored by KOD (Kiss of Death Chapter, Romance Writers of America).

While announcing her good news on Tuesday, Claudia thanked our critique group for helping her improve her manuscripts. She also spoke about how encouraging our critique group has been to her and her writing.

Now, that's what friends are for!

To wrap up today's post, I welcome my newest follower, Conda V. Douglas I hope you will stop by often, Conda, and feel free to leave comments. Please check out her blog when you get a chance.

That's all for today. Hope you're staying cool in this hot July weather.

The Tornado in Joplin

My heart is heavy this morning thinking about all the Missourians in the Southwest corner of our state in Joplin who have been affected by the deadly tornado that hit yesterday. At bedtime, the news reported 24 dead, but this morning the count is up to 89. I get chills listening to audio reports and watching news footage of the devastation.

Except for thunderstorms that rumbled through early evening, our area was spared. The tornado sirens went off as the sky darkened last night, but the twister abated by the time it got to the Eastern part of the state.

I have the folks from Joplin in my prayers, especially my writing friends who live there. I got to know several writers from Joplin while I served on the board of the Missouri Writers' Guild and later when I served as the president of MWG. I was able to chat with a couple of them at the MWG conference last month.

The Joplin writers are such a talented and generous group. Each year at the MWG conference awards ceremony, the writers at their table have their names called in just about every category. They set the high standard for writers throughout the rest of the state.

While I'm praying for my writing friends and all the residents in Joplin, I realize that life goes on, and one way to work through times like this is to write. So, while my friends in Joplin are on my mind and in my prayers, I'm going to continue to do what I know--and write.