A Hoot and a Happy Mother's Day Contest

This contest is closed. Congratulations to our winner, Diane Braddock!  Check your e-mail, Diane. A $25 Amazon.com gift card is waiting for you. 

Today’s post is written by my friend, Rhonda Schrock. Our first connection was online, but we met in person this spring when I was in Indiana, Rhonda’s stomping grounds. Our first face-to-face meeting was at Das Dutchman Essenhaus. I was there to help host the Tenth Annual Cooking Show. She was sitting in the audience.

While onstage, I introduced her to the crowd as a new contributing writer for “Cooking & Such” magazine adding, “But you all know her as Rhonda Schrock, columnist and writer of ‘Grounds for Insanity’ for The Goshen News.” She humbly stood and waved. Applause boomed across the building. Later, she told me she was astonished at the reception. I wasn’t. I wouldn’t have expected anything less.

I read her column. As a matter of fact, I read everything I can get my hands on that she’s written. I had filled my quota of writers for “Cooking & Such,” but in getting to know Rhonda through her column, I knew she was a keeper, and I wasn’t about to let her get away.

She shines. She sparkles. And it’s not just women that adore her writing, either. This winter, her name came up in conversation when I was hosting 14 Amish friends in my home in Pinecraft. One man, a farmer, said, “If I could meet one person, it would be Rhonda Schrock. You know what makes her different? She writes without looking over her shoulder.” And just a few days ago, I listened to a message on my voicemail from an Old Order Amish fellow in Shipshewana, Indiana. He said, “If you haven’t already, make sure you read Rhonda Shrock’s column in The Goshen News this week. She’s a hoot!” I second that.

Now, for a Contest! For a chance to win an Amazon.com Gift card (think brand new books!) leave a comment after this post. I’ll draw one winner’s name and announce it here, on Sunday.