Category: Archive

On Monday, June 13, the Alzheimer Society of Ottawa and Renfrew County (www.alzheimer-ottawa-rc.org ) held its annual event in appreciation of the efforts of all its volunteers. JC gave a brief introduction to the play and the storybook. She then presented “What My Grandma Means to Say,”  the play, to volunteers, Board members and staff of ASORC. (In the photo, taken by Debbie Seto: left to right – Kelly Lumley-Leger, JC and Caitlin Brydges.) Afterwards, she had an opportunity to chat with many guests and received a very positive response to the reading. Among those honoured that afternoon were people who had volunteered with the organization for over twenty years. JC salutes all the volunteers who assist families and persons living with Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias.

JC wrote poems for a loonie or toonie as part of the ARC Poetry Factory at ArtsPark in Hintonburg on May 29. To read the story in the Ottawa West EMC, go to:http://www.emcottawawest.ca/20110602/news/Residents+turn+out+in+support+of+ArtsPark. And see this about a poem for the foodies twosome:http://www.foodieprints.com/item/3735?pending=1#pending. And this link to Pearl’s photos:http://www.flickr.com/photos/pearlpirie/5771522555/in/pool-20543830@N00

JC appeared on Rogers TV for an interview about “What My Grandma Means to Say,” the storybook just launched at the Ottawa International Writers Festival. JC divulged first-hand what drove her to write about Jake and his grandmother, how the story emerged first as a play, and how it evolved  in storybook form.

JC is a member of the Ottawa CAA poetry circle, Licence to Quill, which launched its first chapbook, Tangled Strands, at Collected Works last Sunday. The subtitle, “Combing the Muse,” says it all: every poem has something to say about hair ! Contributing poets are: Carol A. Stephen, Lesley Strutt, JC Sulzenko, Rona Shaffran, Laura Etherden, Donald Officer, Elise Hynes. JC’s poems,”Joy Waiting” and “En route,” appear in the collection. Copies of Tangled Strands are available at Collected Works, 1242 Wellington at Holland, in Ottawa or from JC.

Here’s another chance to meet JC and buy a signed copy of What My Grandma Means to Say. JC will be at Collected Works Bookstore 1242 Wellington at Holland on Sunday, June 5, from 1:30-2:30 PM to talk about and sign copies of What My Grandma Means to Say. Come by and chat with JC.

On May 25, JC drove to beautiful Brockville on the St. Lawrence River and spoke at the Wedgewood Authors Series about her experience with What My Grandma Means to Say. She described how she came to write the one-act, ten-minute play for children and how that experience led her to writing the storybook adaptation of the play. She also explained how the play and book are valuable educational tools for families and children. She gave interviews for local media through Series organizer Doreen Barnes and met representatives from the Alzheimer Society of Leeds-Grenville and from public libraries in the area. The Alzheimer Society has purchased copies of What My Grandma Means to Say for each library in the region. “Making copies available at libraries and in schools is exactly the kind of response I hoped the book would receive, ” JC commented. “I am most grateful for the interest shown by the Alzheimer Society in the book and the play.”

The Ottawa International Writers Festival Spring Edition www.writersfestival.org featured the launch of  “What My Grandma Means to Say”  at Collected Works Bookstore on Sunday, May 1.  JC spoke of how she came first to write the one-act play about eleven year-old Jake and his grandmother who is living with Alzheimer’s disease and then of the journey that led her to  capture Jake’s whole story in the book and to seek funding for a video production of the play for use in schools and by community groups. Check out interviews in The Orleans Star http://www.orleansstar.ca/News/Local/2011-05-04/article-2477816/Explaining-Alzheimer%26rsquo%3Bs-in-a-storybook/1?action=sendToFriend, Metroland’s Ottawa This Week http://www.yourottawaregion.com/news/article/999686–children-s-book-sheds-light-on-mystery-of-alzheimer-s and on Nightcap on EZ ROCK  (99.7 FM) at http://www.ezrock.com/NightCap.aspx.

My article, Children Need to Know, on talking with kids about Alzheimer’s is on page A 19 of the March 28  National Post.

http://www.nationalpost.com/news/Children+need+know/4513023/story.html

“What My Grandma Means to Say” explores how relationships change when someone in the family is living with Alzheimer’s disease. Videographer Kate Morgan and sound guru Hollis Morgan of Constant Sound Studio caught JC’s reading at a branch of the Ottawa Public Library on video, which is now posted on YouTube.

Get a taste of how the play led to the storybook and hear how the book captures the story of Jake and his grandma. Listen to JC talk about writing.  She also explains why it’s important that children, who are often are drawn into the role of caregivers, gain the chance to understand what is happening when a health issue affects someone they love, so that they can develop their own strategies for supporting that person and their family.

At the happy launch of the CD on March 20, JC was thrilled to read “Seasoning” and  “Hummingbird Rest”  from Fat poems Tall poems Long poems Small. “Hummingbird Rest,” with original background music by Claude Naubert, is the only poem on  “Dancing Kites,” which features performances by 17 other Canadian artists. The Ottawa group, Grammas for Ambuyas, compiled the CD to raise funds for the Stephen Lewis Foundation. Copies can be ordered from www.indiepool.com/GTA111. Artists who donated their work to the project include Charlotte Diamond, Raffi, Valdy and Connie Kalder. Ted Harrison provided artwork for the CD’s cover.

JC was delighted to share the stage with performers Maggie G. and Razzmatazz at the launch. She also performed a new work, “A garden and a tree and a giant and me.”