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Grannie Annie News — 2015/2016, Vol. 11

Ohio Students Honored in Local Newspaper

Two fourth-grade students from northwest Ohio who were published in Grannie Annie, Vol. 11, were honored in The Mirror. The students' historical family stories were included in the article, which means even more people were able to read and appreciate them. Thank you, Mirror!

Missouri Students Receive Recognition

Grannie Annie, Vol. 11, authors from the St. Louis area were recently honored in their schools' publications: Westminster Christian Academy; Crestview Middle School, Rockwood School District; and Wydown Middle School, School District of Clayton. Westminster Christian Academy students were also honored in WEST Newsmagazine and the Town and Country–Manchester Patch.

Published Students from North Carolina Honored

Four Grannie Annie, Vol. 11, published authors from North Carolina were honored recently in two local publications, The Pilot and SandhillsKids. Thank you to the O'Neal School for this photo that accompanied the articles.

Alabama Published Author Noted

The Advent Episcopal School, in Birmingham, Alabama, has honored its fifth-grade student whose historical family story was published in Grannie Annie, Vol. 11. The Grannie Annie adds its congratulations!

Family Stories Festival on YouTube

The video recording of the 2016 Family Stories Festival is now available to be viewed on YouTube. The time at which each student's presentation begins is identified in the description of the recording — just below the viewing window — so you can easily hop to the presentations that you want to view. In order to protect the privacy and safety of the artists and authors, individual students' names are not included; presentations are identified by story title.

The easiest way to find the recording is to click on the link given above. You can also search YouTube with "The Grannie Annie 2016." The channel name is "The Grannie FSC." Enjoy!

6/18/16

Family Stories Festival on Facebook

Photographs of the 2016 Family Stories Festival are now posted on Facebook. The collection includes a group photo of the thirteen students who participated, individual and small-group author and artist photos, family groups, teacher-student groups, and photographs of the Stories Circles discussion groups. Enjoy!

Selected photos from the Festival will be added to this website soon, and the video recording of the event is being processed for posting on YouTube.

6/12/16

Grannie Annie, Vol. 11 is here!

This year's collection of historical family stories is now available! Grannie Annie, Vol. 11, includes thirty-six stories that were chosen to represent the 555 stories shared with The Grannie Annie this year. Twelve of the stories are illustrated by students in the same age group — and two of those illustrations are by the author of the story.

We hope you are making plans to join us for the next part of the 2015/2016 celebration: the Family Stories Festival on Sunday, June 5th, at the Missouri History Museum in St. Louis. All students who participated this year, as well as authors and artists published in Echoes from World War II, are invited to take part in the program: Please reserve your place in the program — before Friday, May 27th.

5/16/16

The Selected Illustrations!

Congratulations to the 12 young artists whose illustrations will be published and exhibited by The Grannie Annie during the upcoming year! Special congratulations to Braden White, whose illustration for "Henrik" will be featured on the cover of Grannie Annie, Vol. 11.

Check back often in the days and weeks ahead — more details about the ongoing celebration will be posted as they become available. And please make plans now to join us for the Family Stories Festival on June 5th at the Missouri History Museum! All students who participated in The Grannie Annie during this school year, plus the authors and illustrators published in Echoes from World War II: You are invited to reserve your place in the Festival program now!

4/26/16

The Grannie Annie Travels to Colorado

The Longmont Public Library in Longmont, Colorado, is currently hosting The Grannie Annie's traveling art and story exhibit. This is the first time the exhibit has traveled outside of the state of Missouri. You can see photos of the exhibit on The Grannie Annie's Facebook page. Better yet — stop by the Longmont Library if you can. You may even meet one of the artists while you're there!

4/22/16

The All-New Family Stories Festival

All participating and soon-to-be-published storykeepers: Please keep an eye on the "Family Stories Festival" page. (You can find a link to this page at the top left of The Grannie Annie's home page.) Plans are underway for a June 5th, all-new celebration of every family's stories, to again be held at the Missouri History Museum in St. Louis. The event will honor and include all Grannie Annie storykeepers, and will feature special recognition of and participation by authors and illustrators of Grannie Annie, Vol. 11 and of Echoes from World War II: Young Writers Sharing Family Stories, released recently in honor of The Grannie Annie's 10th anniversary. Details will be added to the "Family Stories Festival" page as the plans proceed.

Please plan to check this page often, as well — news will be added here as this year's celebration unfolds. You'll be able to sneak a peak at Volume 11, see which stories will be illustrated, learn about The Grannie Annie Exhibit 2016, and more!

3/13/16

The Selected Stories

Sincere congratulations to the 36 young authors whose historical family stories will be published this year, in Grannie Annie, Vol. 11! These soon-to-be-published authors can be very proud of this honor, as The Grannie Annie again received more stories than in any previous year — 555, to be exact — and each story touched our volunteer readers in its own special way.

Two editions will be published this year — an eBook edition and a PDF edition. The 36 stories in Grannie Annie, Vol. 11, will also be published on this website.

3/13/16

Celebrate the Stories!

From Colorado to New York, and from Minnesota to Alabama — Grannie Annie stories have arrived!

Through the upcoming weeks, the submitted stories will be read and appreciated, then read and reread as the Selection Committee decides which stories will be published in Grannie Annie, Vol. 11. The titles of the stories chosen for publication and the names of their authors will be announced on this website page in early March. The names of illustrators whose work is chosen for publication will be announced here in mid-April. You can also follow the news on the Grannie Annie Facebook page.

For now, let the celebration continue! What does your Grannie Annie celebration include? Visit "The Grannie Annie Extension Activities" for inspiration, or send us your ideas to be added to the page.

Will you be reading your story to an audience? This Resource for Enrichment may be helpful as you prepare: "Reading Your Grannie Annie Story Aloud."

2/5/16

The Stories are Arriving!

Grannie Annie Storykeepers from the states marked on the map below have saved a story from their family's history and shared it with The Grannie Annie. Thank you, students, for submitting your story, and congratulations on honoring your family through The Grannie Annie!

Be sure to check back often; the information below will be updated as the stories continue to arrive.

This year's stories are arriving . . . from across the country and around the world!

Please check back to see the home countries and U.S. states of students whose stories have been received.

Submission Deadline: February 1

Are you busy polishing your Grannie Annie story, or are you just planning your Grannie Annie interview? See the Resources page of this website for story ideas and for help with the writing process. For more inspiration, read some published Grannie Annie stories.

The Grannie Annie annual story submission deadline is February 1. Mailed story submissions must be postmarked on or before this date to be considered for publication in this year's book. E-mailed story submissions must be sent on or before this date.

You (or someone else who meets the grade/age requirements of The Grannie Annie) may submit a drawing that illustrates your story. The annual illustration submission deadline is March 1. Illustration submissions must be postmarked on or before this date. Illustrations must be mailed rather than e-mailed.

See the Submit Stories page for more information and also for links to the required Submission Forms and Guidelines.

1/23/16

Listen Now, to The Grannie Annie on the Radio

You can listen now to the Grannie Annie interview program that aired live on December 16, on St. Louis's National Public Radio affiliate, KWMU (90.7 FM). Hear a Grannie Annie author published in Echoes from World War II read her family story and talk about her "Grannie Annie experience." Hear Jody Sowell, Director of Exhibitions and Research, Missouri History Museum, talk about the historical and personal value of family stories. Following the "listen now" link above will take you to the archived program and also to a written summary of the program accompanied by photos of the participants.

12/18/15

Join The Grannie Annie on the Radio on Wednesday, Dec. 16

For the eleventh consecutive year, The Grannie Annie will be on St. Louis on the Air on KWMU (90.7 FM), St. Louis's National Public Radio affiliate, inspiring people to discover, preserve, and share their family stories.

This year's program will focus on The Grannie Annie's newly released 10th Anniversary edition: Echoes from World War II: Young Writers Sharing Family Stories. Guests will include Jody Sowell, Director of Exhibitions and Research, Missouri History Museum, and a Grannie Annie author whose family story is one of the 46 stories in the book. The program will air live at 12:00 noon CST on Wednesday, December 16, and will be rebroadcast at 10:00 p.m. that night. You can also listen online.

We invite you to phone or e-mail KWMU during the show to share a family story or to let listeners know what you think is important about sharing family stories. Contact information will be provided during the show.

When the link to the archived program becomes available it will be provided on this web page.

12/12/15

Celebrating The Grannie Annie's 10th Anniversary

This newly released special collection of family stories about World War II celebrates the tenth anniversary of The Grannie Annie. The stories included in this book are among those published by The Grannie Annie over the past ten years. All of the stories that have been published by The Grannie Annie, and many of the illustrations, appear on this website. Orders can be placed here.

The Grannie Annie mission—to inspire young people to discover, write, illustrate, and share historical family stories—springs from a belief in the transformative power of “story.” As the family stories in this book vividly depict challenges faced during World War II, they can help us summon our own courage to meet today’s challenges. Sharing these stories of hardship and triumph sends echoes of inspiration, strength, and courage throughout the world.

Welcome to the 11th Year of The Grannie Annie Family Story Celebration!

The family stories discovered and shared this year are sure to be remarkable! We hope you will join in the adventure. Here are some links to help you get started:

• Allow yourself to be inspired by reading some previously published Grannie Annie stories.
• Find answers to your questions about submitting stories to The Grannie Annie for possible publication.
• Read over the Guidelines and required Submission Forms.
• Begin to plan your Grannie Annie interview.
• Explore the Resources page for help with interviewing, writing, revising, and being published. There are resources to help teachers and parents, too.
• Make a tax-deductible donation so that more students can participate in The Grannie Annie!