The Renfrow Story

The last week has been a whirlwind. A week ago I was feeling overwhelmed and daunted by all that was happening and needed to get done. Today, I stand in awe and gratitude.

I had set the Kickstarter launch for April 10, not remembering that it was the Monday after Easter weekend (we generally host a family gathering) and squeezed between two presentations I was doing on Edith. So it was my own fault that I was spread a bit thin. But, as with all things related to this project, the Edith magic helped everything fall in place in the end.

I recently make contact with a fellow Grinnell College alumni and author, Caroline Arnold ’66. When I talked with the college admin team about the book idea, the Alumni office offered to connect us. Caroline is an accomplished children’s book author who has written over 170 books! Over the last two weeks she has gently and deftly guided me through editing the text to make the story more engaging to young readers. I am extremely grateful for this help and excited about how it has made the story come alive.

I’m in almost daily contact with Erica, the illustrator. Yesterday, I ran around town sending her short videos of various places to give her a sense of what Grinnell looks like. I probably irritated a few people as I pulled along the side of the road and hopped out to do 30 second videos – this was Edith’s house, on a kind of hilly road, across the street from the cemetery – this is where Uncle Sam’s club was, there are railroad track across the street and the Spaulding plant – this is the area on campus where she spent most of her time, and don’t forget the railroad tracks that go through the middle of campus! It was a gorgeous spring day so it was kind of fun. And now Erica has a better sense of what Grinnell looks like. We’ve decided that this beautiful illustration she did should be the cover. She drafted it a few weeks backs, after her first conversation with Edith. When Edith saw the original, she thought the lips were too full, so Erica thinned them a bit as they are here. Isn’t it amazing to be working on a project where something like that can be done!

The presentation I did yesterday at the library was recorded and can now be seen on the Community Education Council Youtube channel here. It’s about 80 minutes long, which I know is quite a commitment. But if you are interested in learning about the deep roots of the Renfrow family in the Grinnell area, this is an option. Next week, my friend and fellow Renfrow enthusiast Tamara Beauboeuf, will do a program on Edith’s years growing up and going to school in Grinnell.

And did I mention the Kickstarter campaign that launched on Monday morning – and met the funding goal TODAY – only four days later! Seeing the support flow in one donation at a time – several of them generous beyond what I ever imagined – was pretty awesome.

I think I will sleep well tonight.