Update, July 23, 2014 / The 2014 luncheon is slated to begin at 12:30PM Sun., Sept. 28 at Sullivan’s. Save the date to meet local Pulitzer Prize-winning local author, Luis Alberto Urrea. Complete details will be coming soon.
2013 Post / DuPage-Will Hadassah will host a luncheon with Elizabeth Berg, a nationally acclaimed author, at 12:30PM Sun., Sept. 29, at Sullivan’s Steak House.
As a writer of more than 20 books, Berg’s novel, Open House, received the honor of being one of Oprah’s Book Club selections. Her latest book, Tapestry of Fortunes, recently was released by Random House.
Born in St. Paul, Minnesota in 1948, her father was in the Army, so she spent much of her growing up years moving around. She went to three schools in a single academic year.
She loved books and reading from the time her mother began reading to her. She recalls submitting her first poem to American Girl magazine when she was nine years old. It was rejected and it took her 25 years before she submitted anything again. She entered a contest in a magazine and won. She wrote for magazines for ten years and then moved into novels. She usually writes a book a year.
Before she became a writer, she was a registered nurse for ten years, and that was her “school” for writing.
“Taking care of patients taught me a lot about human nature, about hope and fear and love and loss and regret and triumph and especially about relationships – all things that I tend to focus on in my work,” she said.
She has also worked as a waitress, and sang in a rock band.
Married for over twenty years, Berg is now divorced. She has two daughters and two grandchildren. Today she lives with her partner Bill and her dog Homer outside of Chicago and in Wisconsin.
The cost of the luncheon is $36 per person. A check to Carole Kerr, 305 Elmwood Drive, Naperville, IL 60540 will hold your reservation. The monies raised will be given to the Sarah Wetsman Davidson Tower Hospital in Israel.
Sarah Wetsman Davidson Tower Hospital
The Sarah Wetsman Davidson Tower was dedicated last year with 500 beds, 20 operating rooms, 60 intensive care bed and an ultra modern Heart Institute. Hadassah hospitals do trailblazing research into stem cell treatment, cancer, multiple sclerosis, Parkinsons’ disease and Alzheimers. The hospital treats Jews, Arabs and Muslims. Hadassah is a volunteer women’s organization, 330,000 strong, which has a partnership with the land and people of Israel. Besides supporting Israel, Hadassah makes a difference locally with health education programs, activism on issues through advocacy and community projects.
For information about this luncheon or Hadassah, contact Jan Strauss at jds1899@wowway.com or (630) 983-1899.
