The final WordFest event for 2023 will honor veterans and their sacrifices to our nation on Tuesday, November 14, 6:00-8:00 pm, at St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church, 1428 22nd Avenue in Longview.
Lilly Robbins Brock will read from her latest memoir/biography, Young Warrior: The Life & Times of a WWII Veteran. Marion Robert Shipe was underage when the United States entered the war. On his eighteenth birthday, he stepped up to serve his country, trading his fishing pole for a Browning Automatic Rifle. As in her previous WWII memoir/biographies, Lilly tells this veteran’s story against a well-researched backdrop of the times, blending the Big Picture with the ground-level saga of one soldier.
From the battle of the Ruhr to joining Patton’s Third Army as it pushed southward to destroy the final Nazi stronghold, Lilly and Robert Shipe take us into that place of life and death called war.
Lilly was born in Olympia, Washington, where her pioneer family homesteaded in the late 1800s. She loves history and one of her passions has been researching her family genealogy, inspiring her to write her historical fiction novel series, Intrepid Journey. Lilly has also written four memoir/biographies honoring members of the Greatest Generation who served our country during World War II: Wooden Boats & Iron Men, Ever a Soldier, and Victory on the Home Front. Young Warrior is her most recent book, telling the story of Robert Shipe who turns ninety-eight on December 30.
Robert Griffin has been writing poetry before he even knew what it was. He began writing at the age of 6 years old. Many times when unable to sleep, he would quietly creep into the dining room where he would write at the table whatever spirit moved him to express. His readings will reflect Love, Hope, Thankfulness, Rebirth, with a few surprises mixed in.
Retired Longview librarian Hans Schaufus has been including short fictional stories into his annual holiday letters since 1996. He will read several of his humorous Christmas tales including one set in North Dakota, about a rising star badminton player and a one-armed woman mountain climber who meet under unexpected circumstances.
An open mic will follow the presentations.
The monthly gathering of readers and writers meets the second Tuesday of each month, 6:00-8:00 PM, in the fellowship hall of St. Stephen’s Episcopal Church. The events are free and open to the public.