By MIKE COURSON
Great Bend Post
Tuesday's Barton County Commission meeting fell on a chilly Halloween morning. Fittingly, local author E.D. Coles presented the commission with an original poem titled "First Frost." Afterward, she was joined by several local authors with a proclamation declaring Nov. 1 as National Author's Day.
"Since man has been putting handprints on cave walls, we've had the need to pass on our knowledge to others," Coles said. "We do that by writing. There are all different forms of writing. National Author's Day is grander and bigger, I think, than many of us realize because there are all different types of authors."
The commission also heard from Hoisington's Gene Manweiler, who wrote a book about his family and time as owner of Manweiler Chevrolet. Local massage therapist Dorian Howton also spoke of the importance of writing. Becky Gillette turned a series of newspaper columns into the Christian book "Jessie's Corner" that was released in July. She applauded all authors in the room.
"There is something special about putting yourself on the paper that cannot be denied," she said, "whether it's journaling, whether it's writing doctor's reports, whether it's putting together fabulous articles for radio, print, or TV. We're all authors in some way or another."
A women's club in Illinois first hatched the idea of a National Author's Day in 1928. The U.S. Department of Commerce officially acknowledged the day in 1949.