New Thing: Write a Letter to a Childhood Hero.
Inspiration: Isabel Wilner
Cost: $0.48
Time: About 20 mins.
Bottom Line: She was an inspiration to all and will truly be missed.
Reflection: When I was growing up, I was blessed to attend St. Peter's Episcopal Church in Tunkhannock, PA. The congregation had may wonderful people there who all helped me develop a relationship with God and a love of the church. One of the most inspiring member was a woman named Isabel Wilner. As a little girl, she seemed to me to know wisdom from far off places and tales of rich metaphor that could have been told for all time. When Isabel told a story, you knew you were in for a treat. She was also an author and wrote one of my favorite children's books, "B Is for Bethlehem."I still cherish my autographed copy and read it to Delia often.
A little over a month ago, I received an e-mail forwarded by my mother from St. Peter's telling us that Isabel was turning 91 and this was likely to be her last birthday. I kept putting off writing her until today when I sat down and put pen to paper to tell her what an inspiration she was to me and how much my own daughter loves her work. It was with a sincere heart that I thanked her for all that she had done. I mailed the letter hoping that my belated birthday greetings would still make her smile.
Sadly, when I began looking for her biography online for this post, I found out that she had passed away a few weeks ago. I was crestfallen and disappointed in myself for waiting so long to write to her. Yet, I was very happy to read that she had died peacefully in her sleep and am comforted knowing that she will have eternal rest. She was a light to all who were lucky enough to know her and I feel blessed to be one of them.
As a tribute to her, here is her obituary taken from the Time Leader:
Isabel Wilner died Wednesday at home in Tunkhannock.
Born Feb. 17, 1920, she was the daughter of the late Robert Franklin and Alpharetta Wilner. Isabel spent her childhood in China and in the Philippines, where her father was an Episcopal bishop. In the Philippines, she attended the Brent International School in Baguio. She came to America to attend college and graduated from William Smith College and Carnegie Library School. The job she loved most was at Lida Lee Tall School, the laboratory school for Towson University in Towson, Md., where she was a librarian for more than 30 years. It was there that she formed a poetry troupe to go from class to class to recite poems. For many years, she traveled back and forth from Maryland to Tunkhannock, a place of strong family roots, where she eventually made her home. Isabel was an author and a storyteller. At Towson University, she taught a course on storytelling. An acclaimed author, she wrote four books for children that received rave reviews: "The Poetry Troupe", "The Garden Alphabet", "B is for Bethlehem" and "The Baby's Game Book". She also published assorted poems in various magazines, including the Horn Book, Cricket, the Christian Science Monitor and the Nation. After retiring, she continued to volunteer in schools to bring poetry to children. She also joined writers groups, including the Dietrich Theater's Writers Group.
Lenten Meditation-
Prayed for: LH
Prayer Walk/Yoga-Walk with Ellyn in Bethlehem.
Journal Topic with Ken- An exercise called, "Where to Go?".
Music- Piano.
Fast- OK-not awesome-but OK. I did have another "first" at diner time. I tried caramelized goat cheeses which was very unique.
Daily Office- EP with the "Know Chocolate" Lenten Family Group.
I loved Miss Wilner. She was an amazing woman as was her mother. Her mother told me some amazing stories from the War. (I believe she may have even survived a prison camp)
ReplyDeleteShe was the oldest member at St Peters when the addition was added and helped to shovel some dirt. (I believe Craig Simmons was the youngest)