Publisher's Synopsis
WHAT THIS BOOK IS ABOUT
This book is about the challenges and triumphs of growing up as the fourteenth child in a rural community in the south. It describes the hardships my parents faced in trying to provide for such a large family during the depression, war years and beyond. The book describes the hard work of farming and the never-ending chores that had to be done to maintain a household. I have always loved books, so the book also details the influence reading had on my life from a very young age to now. The book recounts many of the hair-raising, funny stories I have heard all my life told by siblings and parents. While much is lost in my re-telling, it is my hope that this book will preserve the unique history of the Smith family and will be a resource for future family authors.
Helen Stackhouse was born in Keeling, Virginia. She attended Virginia State University in Petersburg, Virginia where she received her bachelor's degree in Business Education. She taught business subjects at Southside High School in Blairs, Virginia for one year before moving to Washington, DC to work for the Library of Congress. She worked there for one year, married and moved to Germany where she lived for three years. She entered federal service and worked 34 years for the government in various positions, retiring as an upper level manager from the Department of Housing and Urban Development. She spends her time traveling with her husband, writing, staying fit, and gardening. She has two children, Shannon and Courtney, and a granddaughter, Gabriella.
