Linda Collison: “Star-Crossed”

Posted August 11, 2009

For a larger image click here: http://twitpic.com/dhez8

Linda Collison’s - my Westminster High School Class of 1971 classmate - first novel, Star-Crossed (Knopf; 06) was chosen by the New York Public Library to be among the Books for the Teen Age -- 2007. For more information: http://www.lindacollison.com/

According to published materials:

“The novel was inspired by the three weeks she spent aboard the HM Bark Endeavour, a replica of Captain James Cook's 18th century ship. Linda is a mother and grandmother, and at long last chatelaine of her castle…

“Linda Collison is a jack of all trades and master of none, just as her mother feared she would become.

“Linda has managed to kluge a composite career, making a living as a registered nurse, skydiving instructor, waitress and shoemaker, to name a few of her occupations.

“She has published in a wide and sundry assortment of publications, from literary magazines to Ladies Home Journal.

“In 1992 her life changed dramatically (again!) when she married fellow skydiver Bob Russell. With Bob she wrote two guidebooks, Rocky Mountain Wineries; a travel guide to the wayside vineyards and Colorado Kids; a statewide family outdoor adventure guide (both books by Pruett Publishing.)”

20090810 sdosm Linda Collison Star Crossed

http://twitpic.com/dhez8 “Star-Crossed” a novel by Linda Collison: more http://tinyurl.com/kvtsmr Full http://www.lindacollison.com/

http://kevindayhoff.blogspot.com/2009/08/linda-collison-star-crossed.html

*****

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Annual Random House Carroll Community College Book Fair article by Bob Allen

New chapter for books, community college By Bob Allen

Random House Book Fair also includes movies

Posted on http://explorecarroll.com on 3/04/09

Steven Wantz, executive director of the Carroll Community College Foundation, describes the Random House Book Fair, held on the Westminster college campus for the past 11 years, as both a fund-raising and a friend-raising event.

"Over the past 12 years, it has raised over $200,000," Wantz said of the fair, which takes place Friday, March 6 and Saturday, March 7.

Proceeds from the two-day fair provide scholarships and financial aid to the college's students. In recent years, the fair has drawn about 3,500 people to the campus.

"It's an opportunity for people who have never been on our campus -- or who don't get here very often — to come out and get a peek at an institution that our county commissioners have described as 'the gem of Carroll County,' " Wantz said.

"People can come out and see what's changed and what's new here," he added. "Elements of the book fair (see related article "Books are back in town" for full schedule) are spread throughout the campus, so they get to see what's going on around the college."

Wantz said that in the past five or six years, he and his colleagues at the foundation have gone to great lengths to make the fair a family-oriented event. The Saturday schedule, for example, features a children's activities area ($2), and free events including story times, science presentations and even free children's books, while supplies last.

The emphasis, he said, is "creating a passion for reading in young people."

"There are so many activities this year for young families that you'll need at least a couple of hours to experience the whole thing," he added.

"We're hoping that at this point of the winter, people are fed up with being stuck at home and will come spend the day with us," Wantz said.

In recent years, one of the fair's most successful draws is the Friday night movie at the college's Scott Theater. This year, the Walt Disney movie "Bolt," will be featured — twice.

"We actually sold out and had to turn people away from the movie for the past two years," Wantz recalled. "So this year, we're having two showings, one at 4 p.m. and another at 7 p.m.

"Also, 'Bolt' isn't out yet on DVD, so you can come out to the college and still see it on the big screen," he added.

Wantz said it's yet another barometer of the book fair's appeal that many authors and vendors return year after year.

One of these is John Hoffert, a Hanover, Pa., resident who has written several thrillers, including "The Zero Factor," "Aphrodite's Redemption" and "The Time of Reckoning" — part of what he calls "The Lion" Series.

Hoffert has rented a table and been selling and signing copies of his books at the fair every year for the past five, and he'll be back again this year.

"It's a really good venue, and ... they don't charge vendors an exorbitant up-front fee," said Hoffert, who hopes to finish the latest novel in the Lion Series, "Pyrrhic Victory: The Lion's Wrath," later this year. (For an excerpt, visit www.JohnHoffert.com.)

"As book fairs go, it's just the right size," he added. "I was at a really big book fair in Philadelphia not too long ago, and there were hoards of people, but most of them had come to see the big-name writers. Independents like me really did get lost in the shuffle.

"It's definitely much friendlier — and much more manageable," he said.

20090304 Random House Book Fair article by Bob Allen
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Westminster's sacred places are shrines of community life

My Sunday Carroll Eagle column is up…

Westminster's sacred places are shrines of community life

EAGLE ARCHIVE By Kevin Dayhoff Posted on www.explorecarroll.com on 7/25/08

Since this is a Sunday column, I do hope it's fitting to talk about sacred places.

Not necessarily houses of worship, mind you, though those are most often considered sacred places.

I'm thinking of the sacred public places as described in a 1981 book by Dr. Ira Zepp [pictured here in a 1996 file photo] and Marty Lanham, "Sacred Spaces of Westminster."

I thought of the book as I sat in a recent Common Council meeting at Westminster City Hall -- a building that many consider one of the true sacred places in Carroll County.

At the beginning of the meeting, Mayor Tom Ferguson read a proclamation recognizing July as Recreation and Parks Month, and paid tribute to the city's recreation and parks director Ron Schroers, as well as other employees who work tirelessly for our benefit.

One of the recreational facilities that Schroers oversees is the popular Westminster playground in the heart of the city.

The playground is one the first pictures, taken by Lanham, in that 1981 book.

Moreover, toward the end of the book, the authors discuss one of the overlooked sacred landmarks in Westminster: the Memorial Gateway to the Westminster playground off of Center Street.

Zepp and Lanham explain that the "gateway was given to the city by H. Peyton Gorsuch in 1937. Its primary purpose was to acknowledge the community's debt to Carroll Countians who had served in the nation's wars."

The book goes on to highlight public places such as Belle Grove Square, various other parks, gardens, memorials and monuments.

Read the entire column here: Westminster's sacred places are shrines of community life

When he is not watching the ducks at the Westminster Community Pond, Kevin Dayhoff can be reached at kdayhoff@carr.org. Please don't feed the ducks ... or the Dayhoff.

20080725 Westminster's sacred places are shrines of community life

Labels and related: People Carroll County Zepp – Dr. Ira Zepp, Religion Dayhoff articles and essays, Art The Library, Art The Library Carroll County, History Westminster, Dayhoff Art writing essays and articles,

Westminster Dept Recreation and Parks Westminster Playground, Westminster Dept Recreation and Parks Dir Ron Schroers, Westminster Mayor 200505 to 2009 Thomas K. Ferguson