St. Catherine Catholic Elementary/Junior High School
After 34 yrs, I recently had the opportunity to visit my elementary/Jr High School, St. Catherine’s, for a reading of my books. It was very moving to once again step into the classrooms and wander through the hallways & stairwells of a school that nurtured me and many other immigrant/refugee children, and where I formed so many lifelong friendships. I loved seeing the school still thriving w/ so many beautiful children of all ethnicity as it did over 30yrs ago. Of course, many of the things that were once there are no longer there, and this reminds me of the seasons of our lives and how blessed and grateful I am for this journey. Many thanks to the Canada Council for the Arts/Writers Union of Canada for making this happen.
Had no idea so many people would turn out for a book club event in small town Thorsby! I had such a lovely time visiting with them and discussing #TheDoll #GreePapayas #AGrainofRIce. Afterwards, these wonderful individuals even pooled together generous funds to gift to our newly resettled refugee family. Only in small town Alberta! So love!
So love reading Green Papayas to the kids at Corpus Christi Catholic School today, followed by an incredible dialogue w/ the children. One of the little girls asked if I was talking about ‘dementia’. Such a good reminder that we should never underestimate a children’s ability to understand tough subjects.