Meet Pamela
I grew up in the small town of Parkville, which is located on the outskirts of Kansas City. I never realized how picturesque the area was until years later. Now, when we go back and see the town tucked away in the hills, I wish that I had taken the beauty of it in more as a child.
I was the oldest of three children. It didn’t always seem fair that they got to do things sooner than I did! I guess you can say that I paved the way for my sisters. We enjoyed family trips. Somehow the five of us squeezed in the car (that was before wearing seatbelts) and traveled to many states. Several times we camped. It was definitely not my favorite way of traveling but we had some interesting experiences. I’m thankful to have had the opportunity to learn so much history and to take in the beauty of our great country. There were many memories along the way.
I met my husband Michael in college. We currently live in Wichita, Kansas and are fortunate that our three grown children and their families live in Wichita too. That means family time―holidays, water balloon fights, pumpkin carving, cookie decorating, travels, and so much more. These special times have given me many ideas for the stories that I write.
A New Chapter of Writing
At an early age I knew that I wanted to be a teacher. I definitely owe that to my fourth grade teacher, Mrs. Petty. She was creative, read chapter books to us, and we put on several plays. (I can still remember my lines!). She made learning fun!
Surprisingly, I became an elementary teacher and language arts was my favorite subject to teach. I loved reading chapter books with my students, we performed reading theatre’s and even wrote scripts for our own class plays. I started a writing project for my 3rd graders. Each child learned about the writing process and then wrote and illustrated their own stories. Of course, there were a lot of complaints-”I don’t know how. I can’t write.” By the time they were finished the complaints were replaced with big smiles on their faces. And. . .a big smile appears on my face when I see former students and the first thing they talk about is writing a book and our classroom plays.
When I retired from teaching, Mike asked me what I planned to do. “You’ve had your students write stories, have you thought about writing?” “Hmmm. . .I really hadn’t thought much about writing my own story. I definitely had plenty of ideas.”
So, that’s when I started a new chapter in my life. It didn’t take me long to realize that you can write a story, but there are a lot of steps to getting a book published. Fortunately, I met people along the way through conferences, writing groups and writing courses that guided me and encouraged me through the process. Besides writing my own stories I enjoy reading to students and I continue to work with students on writing and illustrating their own stories.
I always told my students to take each opportunity that comes along and that’s exactly what I did. And guess what? I’m not finished yet―I have more stories to tell!
Pamela Wegeng
Book Collection