MARK YOUR CALENDERS!!!!!!

Ann Dee is going to be a "featured reader" at this conference. We should go! She would love our support.


AAUW Author's Reception with Caroylyn Jessop, Ann Dee Ellis & Klancy Clark De Nevers


Time: Wednesday, November 7, 2007 6:00 PM
Location: WELLS FARGO ATRIUM, 11th Floor, 299 South Main Street, Salt Lake City, UT 84102
Phone: 801-484-4015
Join us for an evening of selected readings and discussions by three local authors. The reception begins at 6 p.m. with hors d'oeuvres & drinks followed by the authors readings at 7 pm. Book signings will take place after the talks at approximately 8:15 p.m.

RESERVATIONS REQUIRED
PLEASE RESPOND BY NOVEMBER 2
$30 PER PERSON*
Your check, payable to AAUW, Wasatch Branch will secure your reservation.
Send to: Uma Khandkar
2116 S. Lakeline Drive
Salt Lake City, Utah 84109

*$15.00 is a tax deductible donation to the AAUW Educational Foundation. A donation receipt will be provided at check-in.


Escape(Hardcover (Cloth))
by Jessop, Carolyn, Palmer, Laura
Format: Hardcover (Cloth)
Price: $24.95
Published: Broadway Books, 2007
Inventory Status: On Our Shelves Now

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The dramatic first-person account of life inside an ultra-fundamentalist American religious sect, and one woman's courageous flight to freedom with her eight children.
When she was eighteen years old, Carolyn Jessop was coerced into an arranged marriage with a total stranger: a man thirty-two years her senior. Merril Jessop already had three wives. But arranged plural marriages were an integral part of Carolyn's heritage: She was born into and raised in the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (FLDS), the radical offshoot of the Mormon Church that had settled in small communities along the Arizona-Utah border. Over the next fifteen years, Carolyn had eight children and withstood her husband's psychological abuse and the watchful eyes of his other wives who were locked in a constant battle for supremacy.
Carolyn's every move was dictated by her husband's whims. He decided where she lived and how her children would be treated. He controlled the money she earned as a school teacher. He chose when they had sex; Carolyn could only refuse--at her peril. For in the FLDS, a wife's compliance with her husband determined how much status both she and her children held in the family. Carolyn was miserable for years and wanted out, but she knew that if she tried to leave and got caught, her children would be taken away from her. No woman in the country had ever escaped from the FLDS and managed to get her children out, too. But in 2003, Carolyn chose freedom over fear and fled her home with her eight children. She had $20 to her name.
"Escape" exposes a world tantamount to a prison camp, created by religious fanatics who, in the name of God, deprive theirfollowers the right to make choices, force women to be totally subservient to men, and brainwash children in church-run schools. Against this background, Carolyn Jessop's flight takes on an extraordinary, inspiring power. Not only did she manage a daring escape from a brutal environment, she became the first woman ever granted full custody of her children in a contested suit involving the FLDS. And in 2006, her reports to the Utah attorney general on church abuses formed a crucial part of the case that led to the arrest of their notorious leader, Warren Jeffs.
This Is What I Did(Hardcover (Cloth))
by Ellis, Ann Dee
Format: Hardcover (Cloth)
Price: $16.99
Published: Little, Brown Young Readers, 2007
Inventory Status: On Our Shelves Now

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Imagine if you had witnessed something horrific. Imagine if it had happened to your friend. And imagine if you hadn't done anything to help. That's what it's like to be Logan, an utterly frank, slightly awkward, and extremely loveable outcast enmeshed in a mysterious psychological drama. This story allows readers to piece together the sequence of events that has changed his life and changed his perspective on what it means to be a good friend and what it means to be a good person.
This is What I Did: is a powerful read with clever touches, such as palindrome notes, strewn throughout the story and incorporated into the unique design of the book.

The Colonel and the Pacifist: Karl Bendetsen-Perry Saito and the Incarceration of Japanese Americans During World War II(Trade Paperback)
by de Nevers, Klancy Clark
Format: Trade Paperback
Price: $21.95
Published: University of Utah Press, 2004
Inventory Status: On Our Shelves Now

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EXECUTIVE ORDER 9066. In February 1942, ten weeks after the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor, President Franklin D. Roosevelt put his signature to a piece of paper that allowed the forced removal of Americans of Japanese ancestry from their West Coast homes, and their incarceration in makeshift camps. Those are the facts. But two faces emerge from behind these facts: Karl R. Bendetsen, the Army major who was promoted to full colonel and placed in charge of the evacuation after formulating the concept of "military necessity," and who penned the order Roosevelt signed; and Perry H. Saito, a young college student, future Methodist minister, and former neighbor from Bendetsen's hometown of Aberdeen, Washington who was incarcerated in Tule Lake Relocation Camp. "The Colonel and the Pacifist tells the story of two men caught up in one of the most infamous episodes in American history. While they never met, Bendetsen and Saito's lives touched tangentially--from their common hometown to their eventual testimony during the 1981 hearings of the Commission on the Wartime Relocation and Internment of Civilians. In weaving together their stories, Klancy Clark de Nevers not only exposes unknown or little known aspects of World War II history, she also explores larger issues of racism and war that resonate through the years and ring eerily familiar to our post-9/11 ears.
<< Page Stegner returns to Salt Lake Judith Freeman returns to Salt Lake City >>

Down Syndrome Awareness Month

Dear family and friends,
How are you? We hope you are all well and happy. At the moment we are all well and happy. October is Down Syndrome Awareness month. In order to do our part, we would like to share some of the experiences we’ve had with our daughter Lacy with you.
Lacy was born on Aug.29th 2004. She was born with an extra 21 chromosome.
The Scientific name for this is Trisomy 21. It is one of 3 different types
of what is commonly called “Down Syndrome”. A scientist who did a lot of
research about these genetic variations’ last name is Down. So they named it after him. The exact causes of the syndrome and prevention of it are currently unknown. Down Syndrome is something an individual has, not something they are.

Having an extra 21st chromosome brings a lot of other extra’s along with it. In Lacy’s case, and about 30-50% of other babies born with Down Syndrome, she was born with an extra hole in her heart. This meant extra time spent in the hospital when she was born (just 2 weeks) and taking home some extra things with us to help take care of her before she could have it fixed. She was on oxygen 24 hrs. a day. She also had to learn to eat from a bottle which took some extra time. She was extra small and brought out extra love and concern in everyone around her. After extra Dr. appts. to make sure they understood her condition, her cardiologists and surgeon fixed her heart when she was 6 months old. This experience brought extra prayers and fasting and extra stress and comfort to everyone involved. Lacy is now doing well and only has to wear oxygen when sleeping to help with some high blood pressure in her lungs which we hope in time will go away.
She is one of approximately 5,000 babies who were born with Down Syndrome in the united states in 2004. This equals out to be about 1 in every 800-1,000 live births per year. We, and she now know extra wonderful, good and fun people just like her. We have also had extra help from people in the community who work with children who have physical and mental delays.
We have learned so much and appreciate all of the love, support and help we have had since she has come into our lives.

Lacy is extra friendly. She says “HI”, to everyone she sees. She is extra loving and wants almost everyone to hold her. She gives us extra kisses and sometimes extra headaches when we don’t have her full attention. She gets extra excited to go to nursery each Sunday and likes to make her mother, and brothers chase her through the halls a lot too. She is extra flexible because she has low muscle tone and is fun for her brothers to swing around.
She is extra bossy to her younger sister and extra attentive to her dad when he is trying to watch T.V. It will take Lacy extra time to become an independent person in this life, but she and all other people with Down Syndrome have his/her own unique personality, capabilities and talents.
Currently Lacy attends special needs pre-school at Shelly Elementary 2 times a week. She is also going to soon be joining a dance group called “Sparkly Pals”. It is a Utah County dance group for children with Down Syndrome.
We love all of the extra’s Lacy has brought into our lives. We love her
so much, and know that we still have a lot to learn about Down Syndrome, and everything else involved with raising our family. Thanks for letting us share!
To learn more about Down Syndrome go to www.udsf.org Love ya, Dan and Amy Knight



!DSPAM:47165233186172012015232!

Colleen

These are pictures that Jerry Sharp took of Colleen recently. They went on a trip to British Columbia and San Diego. I love how happy she looks in these pictures. The picture of her and the other two people was of her birthday party.

Colleen's obituary

I found this obituary. You can make comments or read what other people wrote about her.

I copied it in case the funeral home updates their site and removes obituaries. Here it is:

Colleen Weeks, our loving Sister, daughter, aunt, cousin, friend, and fellow-worker, passed quietly from complications associated with cancer on September 29, 2007 at Swedish Hospital in Seattle Washington.
Colleen was born March 14, 1953 in Cody Wyoming to Stanley Lynn and Katherine Olpin Weeks and later that year moved with her family to Walnut Creek California. She attended K-12 in Walnut Creek graduating from Del Valle High School in 1971. Colleen graduated with her bachelor degree from Brigham Young University in 1976.
Her life was an example of sacrifice and service to others, especially the lives of the developmentally disabled. She worked at C.A.R. in Palo Alto, California, in Seattle at Northwest Center Industries and most recently at Creative Living Services in Seattle, Washington.
Colleen was blessed with 6 brothers, and always wanted a sister. Her service in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, included serving in the Oakland and Seattle temples, as a primary teacher, full-time missionary in the Ohio Cleveland mission from 1978-1980 and twice as a Relief Society president 12 of the last 15 years of her life. Colleen lived the Relief Society motto “Charity Never Faileth.” Through her life of love and service Colleen influenced thousands of lives for good. She was a friendly, kind, loving and caring person who always put others first. We will miss her and we will try to be more like her.
Colleen is survived by her mother, brothers; Alan Weeks of Riverside, CA, Paul Weeks of Orangevale, CA, Mark Weeks of Carson City, NV, Jim Weeks of El Dorado Hills, CA, John Weeks of Kent, WA and David Weeks of Lodi, CA, and 30 favorite nieces and nephews.
Memorial services will be held Saturday, October 13, 2007 at 1:30 p.m. in the Seattle North Stake Center of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, 5701 8th Ave NE Seattle, WA 98105 [Map]. Friends and family are invited to attend and celebrate the life of Colleen Weeks.
Arrangements by Cook Family Funeral Home.

Colleen

It's kind of embarrassing. John Weeks left a message on my phone. He said Colleen wasn’t doing well. Some complications had interfered with her cancer treatment. He said the family was holding a fast for her and praying, "The Lord's will be done." Since that message I've found myself wiping tears off my cheeks at random moments. I have no warning of when they are going to start falling. I just know that I'm sad. I'm relieved. But I'm sad.

Colleen has always been in my life. I never remember life without her. She was in every way a big sister to me. I loved visiting her at 6 Deerfield Lane in Walnut Creek, Calif. She had her own room. There was a full-length mirror on the back of her door. Around the mirror she had pictures of her friends. I loved, LOVED, laying on her bed while she told me about the friend in each picture. She told me about their friendships, their lives, and families. These talks we shared taught me so much about acceptance, friendship, unconditional love.

It was always fun when we went to Walnut Creek to visit our cousins. You never knew what you would be doing once you got there. Sometimes we collected tadpoles and frogs. Sometimes we took cardboard up on the hill, sat on it, and rode through the golden straw at break neck speed. It was like sledding only it wasn't cold or wet. We always had Thanksgiving with the Weeks. It seemed like the turkey was never done on time. One Thanksgiving after waiting endless hours to eat, someone (probably one of our moms) suggested we go to a movie. We were promised that dinner would be ready when we got back. I do not remember a time when I laughed so hard for so long. It was an Elvis Presley movie. I think it was called TICKLE ME. I sat with Colleen and we laughed and laughed. This goes down as one of my favorite Thanksgivings ever.

Trips to San Francisco, (it was on one of these trips that Colleen explained to me what it meant when I saw two men kissing), the beach, Eichler Swim and Tennis Club, shopping, movies, Mark’s football games, a Primary Halloween party where they sang a scary song and at the end everyone yelled “BOO”. I threw up. Colleen helped me because it was in her ward. No one knew me and I was so embarrassed.

In 1973 (or so) due to the fact that our beloved dog, Teto, was having problems in California, we packed up and moved to Provo. Around that same time Colleen had finished up at Rick’s College and also moved to Provo. She was attending B.Y.U. She lived in the Elms apartments. I was in the middle of my sophomore year of high school when we moved. It was terrifying. The worst part of the day was lunch. I knew no one. I couldn’t risk walking into the cafeteria and having no one to sit with so I would walk around the block until the bell rang. One day I ran into Colleen. She asked me what I was doing. I explained the dilemma. She and I made a plan. We met at a little store on University, bought lunch and ate together. It wasn’t every day. But it was enough to help me get through a very tough time in my life.

Colleen often let me tag along with her and her college friends. We made many trips to Marie Calendars for pie in those days. It seemed like there was always some kind of college drama going on. There was a boy that had a huge crush on Colleen. His name was Randy. I also remember her friend, Candy. Sally, Mike Westover’s then girlfriend lived down the street from the Elms. We went over and visited her from time to time. I wouldn’t be surprised if Sally and Colleen were together right now overseeing this service.

Time marched on. I graduated in 1976. In August of that year I moved to Rexburg Idaho to attend college at Rick’s. It was that New Year’s Eve that Colleen and her friend were in an awful accident. Her friend was killed and Colleen was seriously hurt. That was a horrible phone call I received from my mom. It was so unbelievable and heart breaking. She was in Los Angeles and in a coma. We waited and waited to see if she would make it, and recover. Many, many prayers, fasts, and blessings were offered in her behalf. Finally she began to improve. It was slow at first. She had to relearn everything. But her strong will and determination brought her to the point that she was functioning and taking back her life.

She went on a mission to Ohio. While on her mission I got married. She scolded me for not waiting for her to get home. One day soon after she returned from her mission, she stopped by my grandma’s little house (where we lived) on 5th North. I was sprawled out on the living room floor feeling very sorry for myself. I was experiencing the insidious nausea associated with early pregnancy. She walked back to the kitchen and started laughing. Not one single clean dish was to be found. First she told me off, then she immediately went to work washing my dirty dishes. I begged her to stop but she washed them all.

In the early 90’s I flew up to Seattle to visit Colleen. This was before Aunt Katherine moved up there. We went to the temple, ate lunch in the Space Needle, visited numerous members of Colleen’s ward, dropped off handmade afghans at a home for AID’s patients, attended sacrament meeting, visited Colleen’s brother, Jim and his family. It was such a fun trip! So much like the old days when we were kids. Everything we did was centered on serving others. The truth that played over and over in my head was that everyone, EVERYONE, loved Colleen. She had the ability to make people feel comfortable, wanted, needed, important, smart, cute, funny, special, valued, and loved. She showed me tons and tons of pictures of her nieces and nephews. There were drawings, cards, notes, pictures, and all sorts of things from them. She showed me each one with pride. She loved them all so much. I felt a little more connected to the cousins I had grown up with but never saw anymore. They had grown into amazing men and were raising wonderful families. Families that were lucky enough to have Colleen in their lives.

Colleen was so supportive of us. She came to Utah often to be with us for family events. Several times she stayed at my house. One night Colleen, Ron, and I stayed up until 3:00 in the morning talking. I was impressed with the strong spirit that dwelled in our home that night. Colleen’s testimony was so evident, strong, and unwavering. She spoke so openly about her feelings for the gospel, her life, and the hereafter. This conversation and many others have helped me know that she is happy where she is now.

I had another opportunity to stay with Colleen (and this time Aunt Katherine too) in Seattle. My oldest daughter Holly was driving a van and trailer up to Vashon Island for an internship with Rick’s college.
Once Holly was settled and ready for the semester, I took the ferry back over to Seattle and spent some time with Colleen and Aunt Katherine. We had so much fun. Aunt Katherine took us to lunch at a small Italian restaurant across the water. We talked about our families, memories, stories about the mortuary, and stories about my parents. That night Colleen and I again talked late into the night. I treasure the memory of that visit.

The last memory I would like to share is that of how much my Uncle Stan adored Colleen. He teased her mercilessly. She always had great and clever comebacks. I can still see him tossing his head back as he laughed. I remember it like it was yesterday.

I’m going to miss Colleen. She was a source of bright light in my life. She has been an example to me. I am so thankful for the memories. The tears aren’t dripping down my cheeks as often but they still come. And they will for a very long time.

Coleen Weeks

I am sure you are all sad about the passing of our cousin and friend Coleen. While she attended school here is Utah she used to take Dan and I around all the time. We thought she was so cool. Mostly I remember her before her accident. I didn't spend as much time with her afterward. I remember one time she took Dan and I to the movie "Coma." We were very young and scared to death. Mom was ticked off, but I bet she would have taken us if we would have asked her. I am not sure if Dan even remembers all this.
sam