Does this picture of me and my suitcases look familiar?
That’s because I’m on the road again—-this time to Brookings, South Dakota for the South Dakota Festival of Books (SDFB).
This is my second trip to the festival. I was first invited as an author presenter in 2019 to speak about my newest book, Beauty & Grace. It was part of a two-fold honor that year, which included the September selection of Beauty & Grace by the South Dakota Women’s Prison Book Club.
The women’s meeting took place a few days before the festival, so I was able to coordinate my travels and receive permission from then-Prison Warden, Wanda Markland, to be part of their discussion. The impact of that extraordinary experience continues to influence my life.
This year, I am once again taking a short side trip before the festival begins, stopping first in Sioux Falls. It is a detour that will reunite me with a woman I have only met once, yet who has become a strong presence in my life and my heart.
Vonnie Shields is best described as a force of nature. She is a devoted wife, mother, and grandmother. She is also an exemplary community volunteer having served as a member of the South Dakota Capital, Pierre’s Historic Preservation Committee and the Pierre/St. Pierre Exchange Club, to name just two.
Most essentially however, Vonnie is a book lover, a passion that has truly guided her life. In addition to being a voracious reader (at one time belonging to three book clubs) she has shared her love of literature across South Dakota as a 15-year member and Board Chair of the South Dakota Humanities Council.
Her council work involved coordinating authors and scholars for council events and discussions including the Festival of Books, and promoting the“One Book SD” Program, where state residents are encouraged to read a selected novel or memoir throughout the year. As the Board Chair she advanced the reach and vision of the humanities council with her creative ideas and foresight.
In 2013, she was awarded the Distinguished Achievement in the Humanities Award for her wide-ranging contributions to literature in South Dakota.
Independently, Vonnie promoted numerous book events in Pierre and established and administered the South Dakota Women’s Prison Book Club, which is how we met.
After reading Beauty & Grace, Vonnie reached out and asked if she could purchase 12 copies for the club. Then, she went to work behind the scenes to facilitate my invitation to the book festival—-not just as an author, but as a presenter.
Though her support and influence, she raised my author's profile to a national level and promoted my work as worthy of such respect. To this day she continues to promote my writing in ways large and small.
In the many interviews and newpaper articles written about Vonnie, I found a quote that she shared about her love of books.
“Five years from now you’ll be the same person that you are now except for the people you met and the books you read.”
I have to agree Vonnie. For the rest of the years of my life, I will be forever changed by meeting you and my book that you read.