Chicken Soup for the Woman's Soul Part 26

1105 South D Street

Fairfield, Iowa 52556

Tel: 515-472-7136 * Fax: 515-469-6908

Who Is Marci s.h.i.+moff?

Marci s.h.i.+moff is a professional speaker and trainer who has inspired thousands of people around the world with her message of personal and professional growth. Over the last 16 years she has delivered seminars and keynote addresses on self-esteem, stress management, communication skills and peak performance.

As a top-rated trainer for Fortune 500 companies, Marci has worked with such clients as AT&T, General Motors, Sears, Amoco, Western Union and Bristol-Myers Squibb. She has also been a featured speaker for numerous professional organizations, universities and women's a.s.sociations, where she is known for her lively humor and dynamic delivery.

Marci combines her energetic style with a strong knowledge base. She earned her M.B.A. from UCLA; she also studied for one year in the United States and Europe to earn an advanced certificate as a stress management consultant.

In 1983, Marci coauth.o.r.ed a highly acclaimed study of the 50 top businesswomen in America. Since that time, she has specialized in addressing women's audiences, focusing on helping women discover the extraordinary within themselves. Along with her business partner, Jennifer Hawthorne, she is co-founder of The Esteem Group, a company that specializes in self-esteem and inspirational programs for women.

Since 1989, Marci has studied self-esteem with Jack Canfield and has a.s.sisted in his annual Training of Trainers program for professionals. In the last few years, she has been delivering keynote addresses based on the Chicken Soup for the Soul message, in a.s.sociation with Jack Canfield and Mark Victor Hansen.

Because of her extensive experience in addressing women's audiences and her background with Chicken Soup, Marci has teamed up with Jennifer, Jack and Mark to coauthor Chicken Soup for the Woman's Soul.

Of all the projects Marci has worked on in her career, none have been as fulfilling as creating Chicken Soup for the Woman's Soul. She is thrilled at the opportunity to help touch the hearts and rekindle the spirits of millions of women throughout the world through the stories in this book.

For further information about Marci's speaking schedule or consulting work, you can reach her at: The Esteem Group

191 Bay view Drive

San Rafael, CA 94901

phone: 415-789-1300 * fax: 415-789-1309

Contributors

Melody Arnett sees everyone as her teacher. Her two daughters and many friends are among her greatest blessings. She works with homeless and second-language students in a cla.s.sroom that radiates life and learning. As an advocate to victims of domestic violence, she believes in helping them empower themselves. Melody enjoys practicing the arts of storytelling and writing; this is her first national publication. You can contact Melody at PO Box 692, Gra.s.s Valley, CA 95945.

Marsha Arons is a freelance writer and speaker. Her areas of interest include women's issues, child-parent relations.h.i.+ps, Christian-Jewish relations, and focusing on the positive aspects of life. She is delighted to contribute to the Chicken Soup books including Chicken Soup for the Woman's Soul. In addition, Marsha's stories, essays and articles have appeared in Good Housekeeping, Red book, Woman's Day, Woman's World and Reader's Digest. She is currently working on a collection of stories about parenting and a novel for young adults. She can be reached for writing and speaking a.s.signments at her e-mail address: [email protected] or by calling 847-329-0280.

Sue Augustine is recognized internationally as a speaker people remember. She presents over 100 high-energy keynotes and seminars annually, focusing on change management, stress survival and time effectiveness for professionals, as well as positive risk-taking and confidence building for women. Sue has produced programs on tape and is the author of With Wings, There Are No Barriers, the book that tells the rest of her story. She can be reached at Sue Augustine Seminars, P.O. Box 2194, Niagara Falls, NY 14302 or to order products, call 1-888-WINGS-35.

Beverly M. Bartlett, a native of San Francisco, now resides in Cleveland with her husband, after living in Germany for several years. Though she had traveled to and even studied in Europe before living in its hub, her time in Germany was an eye-opening experience. Meeting others, including refugees, and learning their languages and cultures will long be treasured. She owns a customized trading card business. Beverly can be reached at 2215 Overlook Road, Apt. 8, Cleveland, OH 44106, or call 216-791-3726.

Barbara K. Ba.s.sett is a freelance writer who is working on several children's books. Her poem, "Angela's Word," is based on a personal experience. She can be reached at 573-443-4343.

Joan Beck writes an opinion page column for The Chicago Tribune, which is distributed nationally by the Knight Ridder Tribune News Service. At the Tribune, she has been a feature writer, creator and editor of the Tempo section and a member of the editorial board. She has bachelor's and master's degrees from Northwestern University's Medill School of Journalism. She is the author of four books about mental development in early childhood and has won numerous awards for journalism and for service to children. She and her late husband have two children and two grandchildren.

K. Bernard has recently added a master's degree in professional writing to her extensive background in theater and religious studies. She has published a number of articles in local and regional publications, and has written and designed web pages for the Internet. She likes all kinds of writing, but her heart belongs to poetry.

Edgar Bledsoe was born on a farm in northeastern Missouri. He was one of the "Okies" who went to California in the 1930s, when the Depression interrupted his studies at Texas Tech. He had a successful sales career with Kaiser Aluminum Company and is now retired and living with his wife, Marian, in Green Valley, Arizona.

Jean Bole, R.N., B.A., is Restorative/Rehabilitation certified and a CNA Instructor. She is currently adjunct faculty at several colleges, instructing nursing a.s.sistants and patient care a.s.sociates, as well as a Restraint Alternative and Restraint Reduction consultant to long-term care facilities. She is a published freelance writer/poet. You can reach her by writing to PO Box 11, Crete, IL 60417.

Melissa Masters Bowers is a minister, writer and speaker. After seven years in a West Coast ministry, she relocated with her family to the Midwest to pursue her favorite career-being a mom! A columnist for New Perspectives magazine, a freelance writer and a guest lecturer, Melissa specializes in topics that promote wholeness and compa.s.sion. She can be reached at 511 N. Main St., Lee's Summit, MO 64063, or call 816-246-5799.

Rita Bresnahan has been an educator for the past 40 years, a psychotherapist for over 25 years and a writer for almost 12 months. Her story, "Walking One Another Home" (written while she spent the summer of '95 back in Illinois country in order to enjoy unrushed time with her mother), will be the lead story/t.i.tle of her upcoming book. Rita offers workshops and presentations on topics dear to her heart: conscious aging, community and the spirituality of the human journey. Rita can be reached at 500 Wall St. #319, Seattle, WA 98121, or call 206-728-5819.

William Canty's cartoons have appeared in many national magazines, including Sat.u.r.day Evening Post, Better Homes and Gardens, Woman's World, National Review and Medical Economics. His syndicated feature All About Town runs in 40 newspapers.

Fran Capo is a stand-up comic, lecturer and author and is in the Guinness Book of World Records as the fastest-talking female. She has appeared on over 76 television shows and 248 radio shows. Fran both entertains and educates her audiences with her high energy and rapidly paced delivery in her lectures, "How to Get Publicity Without a Publicist" and "Humor and Business Speaking." She can be reached at PO Box 580272, Flus.h.i.+ng, NY 11358, or call 718-657-8055, or e-mail [email protected]

Dave Carpenter has been a full-time cartoonist and humorous ill.u.s.trator since 1981. His cartoons have appeared in The Wall Street Journal, Forbes, Better Homes and Gardens, Good Housekeeping, Woman's World, First, The Sat.u.r.day Evening Post and numerous other publications. Dave can be reached at P.O. Box 520, Emmetsburg, IA 50536 or by calling 712-852-3725.

Fr. Brian Cavanaugh, T.O.R., began collecting quotations, anecdotes and stories as a form of journal-writing therapy. Over the years he has compiled more than 40 handwritten journals. Drawing upon this collection, he writes Apple Seeds, a monthly quote letter of motivation and inspiration. These journals have also resulted in four books published by Paulist Press: The Sower's Seeds: One Hundred Inspiring Stories for Preaching, Teaching and Public Speaking; More Sower's Seeds: Second Planting; Fresh Packet of Sower's Seeds: Third Planting and Sower's Seeds Aplenty:Fourth Planting. Fr. Brian is a storytelling motivational/inspirational lecturer. He can be contacted at Franciscan University, Steubenville, OH 43952. Philip Sutton Chard is a psychotherapist, business trainer and award-winning newspaper columnist for the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. He is the author of The Healing Earth: Nature's Medicine for the Troubled Soul (NorthWord Press, 1994), a groundbreaking work in eco-psychology. Philip's storytelling mastery won him two excellence-in-teaching awards at Michigan State University. He can be reached at NEAS, Inc., 20700 Swenson Dr., #200, Waukesha, WI 53186 or by calling 414-547-3986.

Rebecca Christian is a playwright, travel writer, speaker and columnist raised in Dubuque, Iowa. Her work has appeared in over 100 magazines and newspapers. She can be reached at 641 Alta Vista St., Dubuque, IA 52001, or call 319-582-9193. Dan Clark is the international amba.s.sador of "the art of being alive." He has spoken to over 2 million people in all 50 states, Canada, Europe, Asia and Russia. Dan is an actor, songwriter, recording artist, video producer and award-winning athlete. He is the well-known author of six books, including Getting High-How to Really Do It, One Minute Messages and The Art of Being Alive. He can be reached at PO Box 8689, Salt Lake City, UT 84108, or call 801-485-5755.

Sharon Nicola Cramer is part grunt soldier, navigator, medic and commanding officer, and she believes that motherhood, not the Army, is the hardest job you'll ever love. She is addressing Mother Love, a quarterly newsletter of humor and inspiration, to other mothers on the "senior tour." Her witty presentations to children, adults and those in recovery combine her storytellling talents and life experiences "in the trenches." You can contact her at 221 West Main Street, Cary, IL 60013, or call 847-516-3691.

Lillian K. Darr worked briefly for the author Ben Hecht and for the editor of the Sat.u.r.day Review of Literature, Norman Cousins. She has two girls and two boys and has lived in New York, California, Hawaii and Fairfield, Iowa, where she now resides. She is a faithful pract.i.tioner of the Transcendental Meditation program, with incalculable benefits. Five-and-a-half years ago she met the love of her life, Bill Darr.

Mary Ann Detzler is a wife, mother and Unity minister who specializes in teaching meditation, prosperity and self-awareness. She loves to lead women's retreats. As administrator for a spiritual education organization, she often travels internationally, a.s.sisting her husband in teaching spiritual healing. She can be reached at Spiritual Response Center, 727 245th PL NE, Redmond, WA 98053, or call 206-868-3643.

Cathy Downs is a reading specialist at East Burke Middle School in Icard, North Carolina. She enjoys each day in the cla.s.sroom working with students who have reading difficulties. At the beginning of each year she shares her father's story with her students. She can be reached at P.O. Box 1231, Valdese, NC 28690.

Linda Ellerbee is an award-winning television producer, bestselling author and one of the most sought-after speakers in the country. Over the past 25 years, she has earned a reputation as a highly respected and outspoken journalist, while winning all of television's highest honors. Linda's company, Lucky Duck Productions, is rounding out a decade of producing ground-breaking television. Her first bestseller, And So It Goes, is recognized as the most candid portrayal of television news ever written. She can be reached c/o LRB Services, Inc., 96 Morton Street, New York, NY 10014, or call 212-463-0029.

Betty Aboussie Ellis specializes in the design, development and presentation of customized training programs. She and her husband/business partner, Peter, devote their efforts to connecting training with the real work people do every day, setting up training for large service centers in the U.S. and Great Britain. Betty is a founding member of The Outsource Alliance. She reports she is in excellent health and can be reached at 8410 Hall, Lenexa, KS 66219, or call 913-541-9267.

Sandy Ezrine is an author, trainer and management consultant. For 20 years she has worked with foundations, universities, federal agencies and private corporations. Sandy specializes in organizational development, employee motivation and problem-solving. She is currently writing a new book, 1001 Ways to Organize Anything. She can be reached at PO Box 658, Cornville, AZ 86325, or call 520-639-3311.

Dave Farrell is an award-winning investigative journalist and syndicated columnist. During his 20 years as a daily newspaper reporter, he won numerous state and national awards, including the Professional Journalism Society's National Investigative Reporting Award. In 1992, he received the prestigious Mike Wallace Investigative Fellows.h.i.+p at the University of Michigan. His column, Roadside Attractions Along the Information Highway, is syndicated by Universal Press Syndicate and appears in more than 30 newspapers in the U.S., Canada and j.a.pan.

Joan Fountain is a powerful and engaging speaker who owns the training and consulting firm Joan Fountain & a.s.sociates. A sought-after motivational keynote speaker, Joan has appeared on the nationally syndicated television talk shows of Oprah Winfrey, Phil Donahue, Sally Jesse Rafael and Montel Williams. Look for her inspirational book, Nothing Bad Happens-Ever. Joan can be reached at 3104 0 Street, Suite 220, Sacramento, CA 95816, or call 916454-5412, or e-mail [email protected]

Beverly Gemigniani is a certified teacher and a four-time gold medal winner in the Senior Olympics. The Dancin' Grannies have four exercise videos that have been a recommended buy for libraries and by Consumer Digest. The D.G.'s have been on Donahue, The Today Show and a.r.s.enio Hall, and have danced in the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. They also performed at the White House. They dance, entertain and teach unique sitting exercises across the USA. Call 602-895-7052.

Rosemarie Giessinger is a columnist, speaker and psychic counselor who channels past-life information, spiritual lessons, angels and guides for her clients. She can be reached at PO Box 2024, Albany, OR 97321.

Randy Glasbergen's humorous cartoons are featured in more than 25 countries. His cartoon panel, The Better Half, is syndicated daily and Sunday by King Features Syndicate to newspapers worldwide. He has created humorous ill.u.s.trations for Hallmark, IDG Books, NAPA Auto Parts, Golf Digest, Woman's World, American Airlines and many, many more. His books include Getting Started Drawing and Selling Cartoons,How to Be a Successful Cartoonist and Attack of the Zit Monster and Other Teenage Terrors. Randy lives and works in a big old and creaky three-story Victorian house, in a very small town in rural New York State. For more information or samples, please call or fax 607674-9492.

Diana Golden is a world-cla.s.s speaker, writer and Olympic gold medalist. She lost her leg to cancer at the age of 12, and went on to take the ski racing world by storm. Winning an Olympic gold medal and 29 golds in World and National champions.h.i.+ps, Diana became the most successful ski racer in American history (Skiing Magazine). This articulate and humorous Dartmouth College graduate addresses such issues as creating opportunity out of change, weaving strong individuals into a powerful team, and the many faces of courage. Her electrifying presentations inspire audiences worldwide to break through their fears, pursue their dreams and never, never give up.

Elinor Daily Hall is a member of the Chicken Soup for the Woman's Soul team. She also is in business with her husband, Ron. Their company, Global Coherence, Inc., markets products that enhance home and office environments by conditioning electricity and electrical devices. She can be reached at 800871-0078.

Patty Hansen has her priorities straight-being Mom is number one. As the other half of the "Mark/Patty Team," she divides her time between being chief financial officer and troubleshooter at M.V. Hansen & a.s.sociates, Inc., and serving as full-time driver, caretaker and homework a.s.sistant to their two daughters, Elisabeth and Melanie. She also loves to squeeze in some time to garden, raise chickens and play on the beach. She is coauthor of Condensed Chicken Soup for the Soul. She can be reached at 711 W. 17th St. D2, Costa Mesa, CA 92627. Call 714-759-9304 or from outside California, 800-433-2314.

Jean Harper is a pilot with United Airlines. She is married to another United Airlines pilot and is the mother of two children. She is a writer and public speaker whose favorite subjects are aviation, Christianity, interpersonal communication and inspirational/motivational topics. She can be reached at 8529 E. Nichols Ave., Englewood, CO 80112-2734.

Christine Harris-Amos has a history of formal art training. Her art has always had a sense of love, happiness and whimsy to it. She currently restricts her art shows to her home, which also serves as her gallery. Christine met Wally "Famous" Amos on a flight in which she was a flight attendant. They fell in love, and their common love of chocolate chip cookies became legendary. Christine created two cookie dolls named CHIP and COOKIE and travels with Wally and her daughter, Sarah, to promote them. Christine is a very happy mother, homemaker and artist residing on Oahu, watching the palm trees sway in the cool trade winds.

Jacqueline Hickey is a freelance writer living in Rockport, Ma.s.sachusetts with her husband and three children. She works as an office manager at the beautiful Seaward Inn in Rockport, and is currently working on her first novel. Jacqueline can be contacted a 61/2 Rear Parker Street, Rockport, MA 01966.

Barbara Haines Howett's novel of interrelated stories about culture shock in Indonesia, Ladies of the Borabudur, is being circulated by her agent. She received her M.A. in Creative Writing from Antioch University, has been adjunct professor at Northampton Community College, and conducts time management workshops geared to the writing life at writers' conferences.

Linda E. Jessup is founder and director of the Parent Encouragement Program, Inc., a family education center in Kensington, Maryland. She has helped to raise seven children, three of whom are adopted. The author speaks widely and has been a guest on radio.

Teri Johnson serves as a United Methodist minister in the Dakotas conference, where she currently co-pastors the First United Methodist Church of Brookings, South Dakota. Teri loves preaching, writing and teaching, and is always looking for tips on how to juggle her 1,100-member "church family" and her seven-member immediate family. She and her husband, Marty, are the parents of five children: Taylor, Alyssa, Alec, Emily and Elliot. She can be reached at 625 5th St., Brookings, SD 57006, or call 605-692-4345.

Carol Kline is a parenting skills instructor. She teaches a course called "Redirecting Children's Behavior" and is a self-esteem facilitator who works with both children and adults. Carol writes articles for local papers and loves to help others write their stories. She can be reached at P.O. Box 1262, Fairfield, IA 52556.

Christy Carter Koski grew up in Weatherford, Texas. She earned her degree from the University of Maryland Asian Division in Misawa, j.a.pan, where she and her husband lived for three years. They currently reside in New Mexico, where she continues to write poems and stories. She considers herself a life explorer, eagerly antic.i.p.ating each new adventure and all of the puzzling questions along the way. She can be reached by calling 505-356-6967.

Liah Kraft-Kristaine is a philosopher who devotes her life to the subject of human potential. A former practicing attorney and CNN broadcaster, she now speaks worldwide on self-esteem, stress management and soul growth. Author of six books, including A Course in Becoming and the bestselling 30 Days to Happiness, she has appeared on numerous radio and television shows, including Oprah. She is the host of a PBS television special, The Myths of Happiness. She can be reached at PO Box 1505043, Nashville, TN 37215, or call 800-4277982. Lois Krueger is a full-time mother and friend to three boys. She is also a part-time floral designer and is active in bereavement and support for families as a hospice volunteer. She is currently considering working toward a degree in nursing. Lois resides with her husband, George, in Franklin Park, Illinois.

Alison Lambert is a member of the cla.s.s of 2000 at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia. She is a certified emergency medical technician (EMT) with the Newton Square Volunteer Fire Company No. 1 in Newton Square, Pennsylvania. Ali is also an ocean lifeguard in Long Beach Towns.h.i.+p, New Jersey.

Page Lambert has written the Pulitzer-nominated book In Search of Kins.h.i.+p: Modern Pioneering on the Western Landscape (Fulcrum Publis.h.i.+ng 800-9922908). The book, from which her story is excerpted, is about Page's life with Hondo and the other animals on her small Wyoming ranch. Page's upcoming book s.h.i.+fting Stars, a novel about the West set in 1850s Wyoming, will be available in summer 1997 from Forge Books. Page is available for workshops and speaking engagements, and can be contacted at P.O. Box 5, Sundance, WY 82729 or by calling 307-283-2530.

Jeanne Marie Laskas writes a weekly column, Uncommon Sense, for the Was.h.i.+ngton Post magazine. She is the author of The Balloon Lady and Other People I Know, a collection of essays. Her work has appeared in dozens of national magazines, including GQ, Life, Allure, Health, Red book, Glamour and Reader's Digest. She can be reached via e-mail at [email protected], or write to 1701 Benedum Trees Building, Pittsburgh, PA 15222.

Suzanne Thomas Lawlor has written hundreds of magazine articles and is the former senior editor of Cameron and Company, publishers of the Above San Francisco series. She has taught more than 500 people Transcendental Meditation over the past 24 years and lives with her husband, Tony, a noted architect and author, in Fairfield, Iowa. An avid gardener, she owns a dried floral business specializing in wreaths. Suzanne can be reached at 515-472-3159.

Bobbie Jensen Lippman is a prolific human-interest writer whose work has appeared in national and international publications. She hosts a radio program called "Bobbie's Beat on the Air," which is broadcast locally and in the Midwest. Bobbie is involved with the visually impaired and is also very active in hospice work. She may be reached at 13650 South Coast Hwy., South Beach, OR 97366, or call 541-867-3805.

Diana Loomans is a dynamic speaker and bestselling author who speaks internationally on the topics of self-esteem, communication and the power of laughter and play. She has written eight books including Full Esteem Ahead:100WaystoBuild Esteem in Children& Adults,The Laughing Cla.s.sroom, The Lovables in the Kingdom of Self-Esteem, Positively Mother Goose, and Today I Am Lovable. She is a frequent guest on national radio and television. She can be reached at Global Learning, P.O. Box 1203, Solana Beach, CA 92075 or by calling 619-944-9842 or by faxing 619-942-5260.

Patricia Lorenz is an inspirational/humor writer of books, articles and columns. Her first two books, Stuff That Matters for Single Parents and A Hug a Day for Single Parents (365 daily devotionals) are published by Servant Publications in Ann Arbor, Michigan. Over 400 of her non-fiction articles have appeared in 70 publications, including Reader's Digest, Guideposts, Working Mother and Single-Parent Family. You can write to her at 7457 S. Pennsylvania Ave., Oak Creek, WI 53154.

Mary Miller is a marketing communications manager at a Fortune 500 company and the mother of six children. She writes for local publications and frequently delivers speeches to business groups.

Stacey Nasalroad was born in Fresno, California, and grew up in Modesto, California. She presently lives in Zimbabwe, where her husband is running a building company. She helps her husband with the business while enjoying life in a foreign country along with her daughter, Jessica, and her son, Adam. Although living in Africa is a benefit to her and her family in many ways, America will always be her home.

Sheryl Nicholson is an international professional speaker of 14 years. Whether speaking on leaders.h.i.+p, sales or balancing our choices in life, Sheryl continues to spice up her workshops with real-life examples like the one in this book. She has auth.o.r.ed several books, audiotapes and a computer-based training course for companies on a.s.sertive communication. You can reach Sheryl at 1404 Corner Oaks Drive, Brandon, FL 33510, or call 800-245-3735.

Lynn Rogers Petrak is a freelance writer and journalism teacher who lives in La Grange, Illinois, with her husband, Michael. She has written for the Chicago Tribune, Chicago Magazine and Romantic Homes Magazine, among other publications. Her submission is written in memory of her mother and great friend, Carol Rogers, who died in 1994 after a courageous nine-year fight with breast cancer. Lynn can be reached at 708-354-2854.

Debra Halperin Poneman, president of YES! to Success Seminars, is a celebrated speaker on the subject of success and how to achieve it. Debra's warm yet professional style blends nuts-and-bolts practicality with deep and inspiring spiritual insight, making her a popular guest on radio and TV talk shows and a sought-after speaker for corporations and organizations nationwide. Her seminars have been taught in every major U.S. city and many foreign countries. Debra can be reached at 1520 Forest Ave., Evanston, IL 60201, or by calling 847-491-1823.

Carol Price has been a speaker/motivator throughout Australia, Europe and the United States. She has produced laughter, tears and energy for over 20 years. Her specialties include health care, stress management, real self-esteem, stopping difficult people, a.s.sertiveness and making life count. She is published on tape on many of these topics. She can be reached at P.O. Box 8731, Madeira Beach, FL 33738, or call 813-397-9111, or fax 813-397-3661.

Maureen Read was born in England in 1924. Her career includes four and a half years with the British Broadcasting Corporation and a year in Budapest, Hungary, with the United Nations Relief and Rehabilitation Administration. There, she met and married her GI husband and came to the United States. Widowed almost immediately, she later remarried, and she and her husband of 42 years raised three daughters, one of whom coauth.o.r.ed this book! She is an avid tennis player and, at 72, continues to play in USTA and other senior tennis tournaments. She resides in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

Elaine Reese is a freelance writer in Spring Green, Wisconsin. Most of her articles are reminiscent of families, holidays, the country and the nitty-gritty of everyday life. She can be reached at 608-588-2284.

Lynn Robertson resides in a northwest suburb of Chicago with her husband and two sons. She co-owns an industrial design and contracting business with her husband, Doug, and enjoys interior design.

Jennifer Rosenfeld is currently writing Building Your Yellow Brick Road: Real Women Create Extraordinary Career Paths. She would love to hear more inspiring career profiles and can be reached at 212-794-6050.

Gina Barrett Schlesinger is president of Speaker Services, Inc., a professional speakers bureau located in the Philadelphia suburb of Springfield, Pennsylvania. A dynamic speaker herself, Gina gives speeches and seminars on the topics of powerful presentation skills and life leaders.h.i.+p time management. She can be reached at Speaker Services, Inc., 491 Baltimore Pike, Springfield, PA 19064, or call 610-544-8899.

Harley L. Schwadron is a former newspaper reporter and public relations writer who lives and works in Ann Arbor, Michigan. He has been a full-time cartoonist since 1985, specializing in business, health and topical cartoons. His freelance cartoons appear in magazines around the world, and his op-ed work can be seen in such papers as The Was.h.i.+ngton Post, The Was.h.i.+ngton Times, The Dayton Daily News, The Los Angeles Times and The Des Moines Register. For many years his work was regularly featured in England's Punch magazine.

Ann Winterton Seely is a nationally known professional quiltmaker. She and her sister, Joyce Stewart, teach quiltmaking workshops and have coauth.o.r.ed two books. Ann lives in Taylorsville, Utah, and can be reached at 4890 S. 1575 W., Taylorsville, UT 84123, or call 801-262-1553, or e-mail [email protected]

Pat Bonney Shepherd is the mother of two. She is the coauthor of the book Know Your Dreams, Know Yourself and has recently opened an office supply store/desktop printing service, The Write Stuff, in a thriving East Texas town. She can be reached at PO Box 1173, Pittsburg, TX 75686, or call 903-856-6924, or e-mail

Louise s.h.i.+moff has been happily married to her husband, Marcus, for 53 years and is the mother of three children and grandmother of four. She enjoys golf, volunteer work and world travel. Throughout her life, she has been an avid reader and has pa.s.sed on her love of language to her children, one of whom is coauthor of Chicken Soup for the Woman's Soul. Louise has enjoyed helping her daughter, Marci, with this book.

Andrea (Andy) Skidmore resides in Cleveland, Tennessee. She is a wife of 28 years and the mother of two sons. She has been employed by the Cleveland City School System for 13 years, where she is presently the princ.i.p.al's secretary at Cleveland High School. She has spoken at her church several times on Ladies' Day and writes about the one thing on earth she loves the most, her family.

Charles Slack has been a business reporter and feature writer for the Richmond, Virginia Times Dispatch since 1986. He has written articles for Reader's Digest, Men's Journal and Historic Preservation. A 1983 graduate of Harvard, he lives in Richmond with his wife, Barbara, and daughter, Natalie.

Grazina Smith began her writing career after raising seven children. She has read her works in appearances sponsored by the University of Chicago, the Chicago Public Library and the Feminist Writers Guild. Her work appears in Prairie Hearts-Women's Writings on the Midwest, Outrider Press, 1004 East Steger Road, Crete, IL 60417 ($14.95 plus $2.25 s.h.i.+pping).