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The six of us met Freshmen year in college. It was Septemeber of 1975 and we were all from different backgrounds and locations. We did have a common bond,we were all studying to be Physical Therapists. Perhaps being together working towards the same goal resulted in the close friendship that we developed.
After graduation we went on a weekend getaway. It was the week before our dear friend-Marie's wedding to her high school sweetheart Pat. Marie would later be known as the mother of the year. She was the first at marriage,having children,buying a home and sending kids off to college. My time with her was early Sunday morning,before everyone got up. We would have our coffee,cream no sugar, and discuss our "issues". She was someone we looked to for advice.
After that weekend we vowed that we would make this a tradition. For the next thirty-three years we got together every summer for a weekend reunion. We always had good food,good laughs and good fun.
We kept a diary of our adventures and read it to each other each year. Over the years we depended on each other to fill in the blanks when we would discuss the diary entries in more detail. Sometimes the story would be different as remembered through the minds of two seperate people.
We have gone through lifes changes with each other. The good,the bad and the ugly. We have supported each other in ways that were comfortable to each of us. We have gone through three decades of life and still remain friends.
This is the thirty-fourth year. We are having trouble with the date. We can not seem to pull a time together that works for everyone. Sadly Marie passed away last year after a long brave battle with cancer. We want to go on,but the planning seems difficult. Somehow we need to keep the promise that we made to each other the week before Marie's wedding. Somehow I will need to get up that Sunday morning,drink my coffee and remember the friend we all lost too soon.
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| (189) Sivan Thu, 16 July 2009 02:23:36 +0000 |
I also read this book for summer book club with some new friends I have made since moving from Chicago to LA 4 years ago. At 28, I closely keep in touch with a few girls I have known since age 5 and 14, and there truly is something special about a lifelong friend that knows you to the core and who you were as a young child.
Now that my friends and I are getting married, having children,and many with careers taking off, I am starting to see where life is headed, and part of me is sad to say goodbye to the old days and there is also the thrill of the future experiences to come. I can see myself and my friends in many of the dynamic gals from Ames. And I'm proud to say that I actually drove to Ames in 2005 to visit one of my close friends going to vet school there (through tornadoes and storms) and made it for a wonderful weekend!
I understand what it's like to be touched by breast cancer, as my aunt and grandmother both had it, and my mother and I both (me very recently) underwent prophylactic mastectomies and reconstruction (looks great too) to prevent getting this aggressive cancer ourselves, due to our risk. This experience is one that bonds women in unimaginable ways. Kelly and Angela are in my thoughts.
I never write responses to books, so this must have been a great one!
Now that my friends and I are getting married, having children,and many with careers taking off, I am starting to see where life is headed, and part of me is sad to say goodbye to the old days and there is also the thrill of the future experiences to come. I can see myself and my friends in many of the dynamic gals from Ames. And I'm proud to say that I actually drove to Ames in 2005 to visit one of my close friends going to vet school there (through tornadoes and storms) and made it for a wonderful weekend!
I understand what it's like to be touched by breast cancer, as my aunt and grandmother both had it, and my mother and I both (me very recently) underwent prophylactic mastectomies and reconstruction (looks great too) to prevent getting this aggressive cancer ourselves, due to our risk. This experience is one that bonds women in unimaginable ways. Kelly and Angela are in my thoughts.
I never write responses to books, so this must have been a great one!
| (188) Mary Kay Hogan Tue, 14 July 2009 18:43:23 +0000 |
My 19 year old daughter is a student at Drake University in Des Moines. She came home and kept talking about this book ' "The girls from Ames" so I bought it and she let me read it first. Now, for starters, I graduated from HS in 1978, so I was so familiar with lots of the things I read about ( I liked Rick Springfield and Rod Stewart too. .. ). The pictorial images of the girls growing up could have been lifted from my own yearbooks and I really enjoyed that part of the book. But. . .the surprise came when I found myself so involved in their growing friendship and how it evolved as they reached their 40's. I could not put it down. I surprised myself by crying as I read the final pages on a plane ride home from Boston. I was so deeply touched. I want all my friends to read this. But my main reason for writing you today is to thank the 'girls' and the author. I will treasure Kelly's words in the last of the book. . .about enjoying who you are right now - self perceived flaws and all - because it can all change in an instant. I have lost a brother and a sister and another sister had breast cancer last year. Last week, I just got my 'all clear' letter on my most recent mammogram and I told myslef, "Okay, God willing, you won't have to worry about waiting for this letter for another year so go out there and enjoy this year you have been given. Live it." I will no longer worry that I am showing signs of aging and not exactly looking as great as I would like - I will enjoy my healthy functional body and I won't wish for more. Thank you Kelly for this. Thank you all for sharing. You will never know how much it means.
| (187) Wilma Ervin Tue, 14 July 2009 17:58:02 +0000 |
dvtkg
The book was great! However it could not express the magic that a group of long-time friends (Sisters of the Heart) hold for the ones of us who have been so blessed.
We were 10 from about 4th or 5th grade, but had been groups of 2 or 3 since pre-school. We will begin to turn 73 in September and are only 9 as of Feb. 2008 when we lost one to lung cancer. We only lost her body as she is still very much in our hearts.
We ar all still married to our first husbands-except me who am a widow. We have 24 children among us. We live in 5 different states and now try to get together about once a year.
We did not see each other often as we were in our child raising years but kept in touch through our parents if not through letters. (We were pre e-mail girls!)
Small town Tennessee where we grew up taught us the same values the Ames Girls learned in the midwest but we were a whole generation back. However, time does not change the wonders of a Friendship bond like we have. It is a gift, a blessing and a miracle that not everyone gets to have. I thank God that my Angel Sisters have been in my life.
For the record--we are the Zig Zaggers--we were always zigging when we should have zagged.
The book was great! However it could not express the magic that a group of long-time friends (Sisters of the Heart) hold for the ones of us who have been so blessed.
We were 10 from about 4th or 5th grade, but had been groups of 2 or 3 since pre-school. We will begin to turn 73 in September and are only 9 as of Feb. 2008 when we lost one to lung cancer. We only lost her body as she is still very much in our hearts.
We ar all still married to our first husbands-except me who am a widow. We have 24 children among us. We live in 5 different states and now try to get together about once a year.
We did not see each other often as we were in our child raising years but kept in touch through our parents if not through letters. (We were pre e-mail girls!)
Small town Tennessee where we grew up taught us the same values the Ames Girls learned in the midwest but we were a whole generation back. However, time does not change the wonders of a Friendship bond like we have. It is a gift, a blessing and a miracle that not everyone gets to have. I thank God that my Angel Sisters have been in my life.
For the record--we are the Zig Zaggers--we were always zigging when we should have zagged.
| (186) Gay Isis Tue, 14 July 2009 17:22:42 +0000 |
I recently bought the book as a birhtday gift for my girlfriend who is from Ames. She moved to Colorado wtih her friend from Iowa in 1980 and we have been friends ever since. I actually read the book (am still waiting to give it to her) because I am intriged by the concept of the importance of female friendship, especially the longevity.
As I am reading the book my thougts keep going back to not my girlfriends so much as my cousins. I was born July 19, 1954 the baby of "The Crop of 54" as deemed by our famimlies. 4 girls were born that year starting on Valentine's Day, then March, June and then myself in July. Our family history is intriging in that my paternal grandmother died in childbirth (rumor has it the child died too) and my father was left to raise 4 children on his own in rural Ohio.
The 4 of us grew up very close, active in family activities and reunions even though one of the cousins lived in Western PA. she always came in for summer church camp. As we grew older we moved in different directions, chose different careers but when we turned 40 we decided that we would reconnect every 5th birthday. Our 40th we celebrated in Vail, then 2 years in Hawaii (one of the cousins was a professor at the University of Hawaii) and this year we have to push back to next year but are going to pick another great place. 2 are married, 2 are not and we are lucky in the fact that only 1 of us has lost both parents and one of us has lost her father. We have a special bond that our other family members are quite envious of ( I've been told). We always shared those special secrets and moments as described in your book of the Ames girls. I know that our special bond will never go away and hope that we will be able to celebrate our birthdays into our 90'S. Thank you for helping me recognize and be grateful for the fact that the "Crop of 54" truly do have a special female bond!
As I am reading the book my thougts keep going back to not my girlfriends so much as my cousins. I was born July 19, 1954 the baby of "The Crop of 54" as deemed by our famimlies. 4 girls were born that year starting on Valentine's Day, then March, June and then myself in July. Our family history is intriging in that my paternal grandmother died in childbirth (rumor has it the child died too) and my father was left to raise 4 children on his own in rural Ohio.
The 4 of us grew up very close, active in family activities and reunions even though one of the cousins lived in Western PA. she always came in for summer church camp. As we grew older we moved in different directions, chose different careers but when we turned 40 we decided that we would reconnect every 5th birthday. Our 40th we celebrated in Vail, then 2 years in Hawaii (one of the cousins was a professor at the University of Hawaii) and this year we have to push back to next year but are going to pick another great place. 2 are married, 2 are not and we are lucky in the fact that only 1 of us has lost both parents and one of us has lost her father. We have a special bond that our other family members are quite envious of ( I've been told). We always shared those special secrets and moments as described in your book of the Ames girls. I know that our special bond will never go away and hope that we will be able to celebrate our birthdays into our 90'S. Thank you for helping me recognize and be grateful for the fact that the "Crop of 54" truly do have a special female bond!
| (185) Marcie Ryan Adams Tue, 14 July 2009 17:16:25 +0000 |
July 14, 2009
My book club, which is made up of "new" friends made in my adult life chose this book as our summer selection. It inspired me to write to some friends from childhood and ask for their email addresses, hoping that maybe we will be better at communicating that way. I have heard back from one so far and we have already shared several emails. It makes me very happy.
My book club, which is made up of "new" friends made in my adult life chose this book as our summer selection. It inspired me to write to some friends from childhood and ask for their email addresses, hoping that maybe we will be better at communicating that way. I have heard back from one so far and we have already shared several emails. It makes me very happy.
| (184) Debora Fiore Mon, 13 July 2009 23:26:05 +0000 |
The six of us met Freshmen year in college. It was Septemeber of 1975 and we were all from different backgrounds and locations. We did have a common bond,we were all studying to be Physical Therapists. Perhaps being together working towards the same goal resulted in the close friendship that we developed.
After graduation we went on a weekend getaway. It was the week before our dear friend-Marie's wedding to her high school sweetheart Pat. Marie would later be known as the mother of the year. She was the first at marriage,having children,buying a home and sending kids off to college. My time with her was early Sunday morning,before everyone got up. We would have our coffee,cream no sugar, and discuss our "issues". She was someone we looked to for advice.
After that weekend we vowed that we would make this a tradition. For the next thirty-three years we got together every summer for a weekend reunion. We always had good food,good laughs and good fun.
We kept a diary of our adventures and read it to each other each year. Over the years we depended on each other to fill in the blanks when we would discuss the diary entries in more detail. Sometimes the story would be different as remembered through the minds of two seperate people.
We have gone through lifes changes with each other. The good,the bad and the ugly. We have supported each other in ways that were comfortable to each of us. We have gone through three decades of life and still remain friends.
This is the thirty-fourth year. We are having trouble with the date. We can not seem to pull a time together that works for everyone. Sadly Marie passed away last year after a long brave battle with cancer. We want to go on,but the planning seems difficult. Somehow we need to keep the promise that we made to each other the week before Marie's wedding. Somehow I will need to get up that Sunday morning,drink my coffee and remember the friend we all lost too soon.
| (183) Stephanie Mon, 13 July 2009 20:37:51 +0000 |
I am a proud girl from Ames who will always refer fondly to Ames as "home."
My great-great-great-great-great Grandmother Cynthia Olive Duff, owned the ground at one time that Ames was built upon, selling it back to the railroad in the name of progress. Duff and Kellogg Streets bare her married and maiden names.
I was born in Ames in the early 70's, to young parents who had called Ames home for nearly their entire lives, whose parents had also called Ames home for longer.
Ames was a place where I knew every street, every home on that street, nearly every tree and every leaf.
St. Cecilia's served as the school my father was educated in, aunts and uncles before I entered its doors in the mid-70's. It was off to Central Junior High after that.
I remember Boyd's Dairy, walking there weekly to purchase milk in glass bottles and walking home, with an ice cream cone in hand.
I remember the friendships I treasured in that small little town. Angela, Jessica, Dionne, Kris, Stephanie, and me. The trips to Carr's Pool by bike and the stops at my uncle's house for pop from the garage refridgerator.
But most of all, I remembered the day that I had to move away. My 14th birthday, with a Snicker's bar and a candle in it, serving as a makeshift birthday cake, while we followed the moving truck to Sioux City, Iowa.
The Ames friends sadly faded, and new ones emerged to take their place.
Always, always, always, I will fondly remember my days in Ames and the stories that are left to be told from the memories.
My great-great-great-great-great Grandmother Cynthia Olive Duff, owned the ground at one time that Ames was built upon, selling it back to the railroad in the name of progress. Duff and Kellogg Streets bare her married and maiden names.
I was born in Ames in the early 70's, to young parents who had called Ames home for nearly their entire lives, whose parents had also called Ames home for longer.
Ames was a place where I knew every street, every home on that street, nearly every tree and every leaf.
St. Cecilia's served as the school my father was educated in, aunts and uncles before I entered its doors in the mid-70's. It was off to Central Junior High after that.
I remember Boyd's Dairy, walking there weekly to purchase milk in glass bottles and walking home, with an ice cream cone in hand.
I remember the friendships I treasured in that small little town. Angela, Jessica, Dionne, Kris, Stephanie, and me. The trips to Carr's Pool by bike and the stops at my uncle's house for pop from the garage refridgerator.
But most of all, I remembered the day that I had to move away. My 14th birthday, with a Snicker's bar and a candle in it, serving as a makeshift birthday cake, while we followed the moving truck to Sioux City, Iowa.
The Ames friends sadly faded, and new ones emerged to take their place.
Always, always, always, I will fondly remember my days in Ames and the stories that are left to be told from the memories.
| (182) Cathy Orr Mon, 13 July 2009 14:53:10 +0000 |
I cannot wait to read this book! I am part of a large group of girlfriends that we affectionately call "The Weekenders Ladies Club." We've been friends for years, some old friends, some newer friends, and try to get together as often as possible. We plan trips - this fall we are going to Vegas!!!! It's so important to have close, lasting friendships, and someone that you can tell everything to. It is rare to find such close groups of women, but it's wonderful!!!
| (181) peggy davis Sun, 12 July 2009 22:54:10 +0000 |
After reading The Girls From Ames, I feel that I should tell you about some friendships from the 1940s that still exist today.This friendship took place at a small private school in Michigan - Hillsdale College.We were all initiated into the same sorority Chi Omega This was the foundation for friendships which have lasted more that 62 years. We have attended each others weddings, welcomed new children into the world. admired each others accomplishments and have always been there for each other in time of need.We meet yearly for a Reunion. We have met in Michigan,New York, San Diego,Mexico and various cruises. As we are aging, long ago retired, we look forward to our annual excursions in nostolgia. We have become less mobil and death has taken many of our husbands.Where we go, what we see, what we do is of little consequence-being together is what really matters.Many of us have turned 80. As with any family, when we lose sisters, we will mourn, but we will continue to celebrate friendship. How enriched all of our lives have been with these cherished friendships!
| (180) peggy davis Sun, 12 July 2009 22:54:09 +0000 |
After reading The Girls From Ames, I feel that I should tell you about some friendships from the 1940s that still exist today.This friendship took place at a small private school in Michigan - Hillsdale College.We were all initiated into the same sorority Chi Omega This was the foundation for friendships which have lasted more that 62 years. We have attended each others weddings, welcomed new children into the world. admired each others accomplishments and have always been there for each other in time of need.We meet yearly for a Reunion. We have met in Michigan,New York, San Diego,Mexico and various cruises. As we are aging, long ago retired, we look forward to our annual excursions in nostolgia. We have become less mobil and death has taken many of our husbands.Where we go, what we see, what we do is of little consequence-being together is what really matters.Many of us have turned 80. As with any family, when we lose sisters, we will mourn, but we will continue to celebrate friendship. How enriched all of our lives have been with these cherished friendships!
| (179) Lauren Sun, 12 July 2009 20:17:01 +0000 |
I don't have any friends. Well, Girl friends anyway. Being a 22 year old female you'd think my life would be full of girl friends, but its not. I don't know why-- I come from a nice, accepting, big family (I"˜m one of 12). My mother taught me right: how to share, how to keep a decent conversation in progress, when to wear white, always smile ("even when you're showing too much cleavage" ), and most importantly how to treat people. I've very content and lucky to have my boyfriend, Travis, who I can tell anything to. Even though he's my best friend, I still wish I had that group of spunky, fun girls to get rowdy and take cute pictures with.
I look forward to reading the Girls of Ames. Within the next I'm planning on picking up my life here, in Missouri, and move to Ames where I will attend Iowa State University. I'm hoping this book with give me the motivation and confidence I need for my new beginning. I look forward to new things to come. Most importantly, I look forward to new friends to come.
I look forward to reading the Girls of Ames. Within the next I'm planning on picking up my life here, in Missouri, and move to Ames where I will attend Iowa State University. I'm hoping this book with give me the motivation and confidence I need for my new beginning. I look forward to new things to come. Most importantly, I look forward to new friends to come.
| (178) Leslie Hope Sun, 12 July 2009 06:19:38 +0000 |
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In early October I'll be celebrating our 65th birthdays with a group of my girl friends from Sunny Hills High School in Orange County CA.We were in the first graduating class and all were involved in student government. We're renting a beach house near San Diego that belongs to a cousin of one of the girls. We also got together to celebrate our 60th birthdays--spent four days in Cambria. Some of us have been together since grade school. I was a relative latecomer, having met everyone in freshman year of high school. Our occupations are doctor, lawyer, professor, rancher, economist (retired), arts administrator, heir (works part time in a bank for health insurance). Some are married, some divorced; some have children (and grandchildren), others don't. Three of us graduated from UCLA, one from Cal, one from USC, one from University of Colorado and one from a CSU. We've done remarkably well considering we didn't have the benefit of title 9. It's amazing what we learned about each other's family situations once we grew up and started talking to one another about the things we concealed in high school. Oh, and we're not all on facebook either, but we've somehow managed to stay connected. None of us live in Orange County anymore, and a couple of us live out of state.
| (177) mary ann montgomery Sun, 12 July 2009 02:38:11 +0000 |
I wanted to send you our picture. We are from St Paul,MN & we have grown up together since Kindergarten. We went to Kindergarten in 1952. Girls have come & gone but we remain friends. we got together recently because one of us had a stroke & we all wanted to connect & encourage & help. We decided to start a book club even tho most of us were already in a book club. The girl who had the stroke chose The Girls From Ames for our book. So, we are now reading your book & plan to have a pajama party at my cabin (where we all grew up hanging out at, learning to water ski, chasing the local boys)for our book club discussion. So Thanks for giving us a jump start with The Girls From Ames. From, The Girls From St Paul!
| (176) Susan Fri, 10 July 2009 03:01:49 +0000 |
Loved the book and have recommended it to my Grove Girls.(Yes, we still call ourselves girls.) We started out as a group of six and grew to a group of ten by the end of high school. That was 42 years ago. Most of us have stayed in touch via Christmas cards and class reunions and three of us live in the same town. We reconnected by way of the internet after our 40th class reunion when one of our group was in a battle with cancer. Later that year we had a weekend slumber party right before Christmas. We have shared college, marriages, children, and wonderful grandchildren. We love and support each other and share in each other's happiness and sadness. When one of the group is facing a hard day we wear red shoes and yellow LiveStrong wrist bands to keep the good vibes going. We are reaching the milestone of our 60th birthday this year but we are still "girls" to each other.
| (175) Cheyenne Fri, 10 July 2009 01:31:59 +0000 |
Hi,
WOW! I just happen upon this book and so thankful i did. Many parts of this book brought tears to my eyes. I could not out it down. I am 25 years old yet i was able to relate to so many parts of this book. Karla mostly as i too lost my daughter. Reading about her pain and how she has been so strong has been so encouraging and strenthing. Reading this book has really made me think about the kind of friend i am to my girl friends. I found myself wishing i knew them and could call upon them for advice....I dont know them, still they have impacted my life by sharing their stories.
So thank you! Thank you for letting millions of strangers in on things you have all shared together.
WOW! I just happen upon this book and so thankful i did. Many parts of this book brought tears to my eyes. I could not out it down. I am 25 years old yet i was able to relate to so many parts of this book. Karla mostly as i too lost my daughter. Reading about her pain and how she has been so strong has been so encouraging and strenthing. Reading this book has really made me think about the kind of friend i am to my girl friends. I found myself wishing i knew them and could call upon them for advice....I dont know them, still they have impacted my life by sharing their stories.
So thank you! Thank you for letting millions of strangers in on things you have all shared together.
