Thanks to the Kansas SCBWI

Several months ago, I posted the news that I had won the inaugural 2012 Clare Vanderpool Work of Promise Scholarship, awarded by the Kansas chapter of the Society of Children’s Books Writers and Illustrators.  I was very excited about the award, and looked forward to attending the KS SCBWI conference in October.

Things do not always go as we plan or wish.  We have had an ongoing family emergency for several months.  The day before the conference the situation worsened, and by the next day became alarming.  I emailed Colleen Ryckert Cook, the KS SCBWI regional advisor, and told her I could not attend.  She sent me a kind and gracious email telling me I could keep the award I was so proud of, even though I could not make it to the conference.

The next day, the emergency situation deepened into what I most feared and we suffered an incalculable loss, but I was here at home where I was needed and where I wanted to be.

Thank you to Colleen and the KS SCBWI for giving me a little light in a dark and terrible time.