People Connections

It started way back in 2000, when I was planning for my Appalachian Trail hike. I spent a lot of time reading trail journals online, and that's where I first came to know Deb. She was hiking the trail that year, and hers was one of the better journals so I followed her to the end. Her trail name was Ramkitten. She still uses that moniker online, much like I still use Shepherd of the Hills in various places.

I had left a comment on Deb's trail journal, and some time later I received an email from her. She'd written a book, and part of the publishing deal that was she had to pre-sell a certain number of copies. She was contacting everyone for whom she had an email address to make those sales. Of course I wanted to support a fellow hiker and her fledgling attempt at authorship, so I ordered a copy of her novel. I am pleased to have that book in my collection.

At some point, perhaps when she needed my address to send the book, and I was living in Ohio and wishing I could break away from the routine to do something different, we emailed briefly about her being a caretaker on a property in Pennsylvania. She encouraged me to try caretaking, and pointed me to Caretaker Gazette.

Through the Gazette, I found the position at the hot spring in Arizona, and that started my wandering life. Deb and I had no more contact until early 2009. In the meantime, I had written my book. The online company where it is printed sends helpful suggestions to its authors for ways to gain more exposure. One of those ways was Squidoo, a free platform for writing articles, essays, and short web pages. It looked like fun, so I joined up. Lo and behold, I found Deb writing there, too. Between the two of us, we dominate the Squidoo community for the Appalachian Trail and backpacking topics, and we promote each other's sites.

By this time, Deb was living in Arizona and writing her second novel. She's very active in Search & Rescue in the Flagstaff area and has a couple of related blogs. Because of her experience in Search & Rescue and her skill at writing, the founder of the only Search & Rescue squad in Nepal invited her to come meet his team and write a book about them. What an incredible opportunity! I was so excited for her when I heard. Her writing career is really taking off. (And I have a signed copy of her very first book!)

Nepal photo by Kogo

I can only imagine the expense of a trip to India. And she'll be there for three months with no income. In order to raise money for the trip and for promoting the book, Deb has set up an account at Kickstarter.com where people can pledge financial support. Each pledge level has an attached reward, like a copy of the book or other neat items. The thing is, if the funding goal isn't reached by a certain date, none of the pledges are collected.

The Hi-Tec company, maker of outdoor footwear, is supporting Deb by providing all the footwear she needs for that rough and rugged country. I've pledged $50 myself. But there is only a month left to reach her funding goal. I really want to see her get this funding so she can concentrate on getting the information she needs for her book, rather than worrying about money. I know what it's like to pinch pennies on an adventure -- you tend to pass up experiences you really shouldn't miss.

I've made a page at Squidoo to help get the word out about Deb's Kickstarter fund. You can read a bit about her and click through to learn more about her trip and the rescue team she will be writing about, and you can make your own pledge. (There are other projects on the page, too, but Deb's is at the top.) Help spread the word and get more people involved. Read it at Grassroots Funding.

Though we have much in common, and we've emailed, and we've been at times within a couple hundred miles of each other, Deb and I have never met in person. I sure do admire her talent, her generosity, and her courage, and I hope we get to meet some day.

Technorati Tags:
Writing, books, author, caretaker, Nepal, fundraising, AppalachianTrail, Hiking, Search and Rescue, Squidoo