Veronica's Voice Opens Magdalene Manor to Help Women Escape Prostitution!

"I'll never forget the dark pit God reached into and pulled me out of. Even after I was out, my heart still pained for my sisters that were still lost, trapped, tricked, or caught-up in "the life". So I started VERONICA'S Voice to be a light for these wonderful women still surviving in the darkness."

-Kristy Childs - Survivor, Foundress VERONICA'S Voice

The KC Star reported on the opening of Magdalene Manor and I was encouraged to learn of the ministry to women by Veronica's Voice. Below is an excerpt:

The first residents will move into the house, called Magdalene Manor, at an undisclosed location in Kansas City. The home will augment the existing Veronica’s Voice safe center, where clients receive services and support, Childs said.

Childs believes there is only one other similar residential facility in the country for victims of the commercial sex trade, and Veronica’s Voice is only one of a handful of organizations like it in the country.

The persistent perception that prostitution is a victimless crime is belied by the lives of the 8,000 women and girls she has spoken to since founding Veronica’s Voice in 2000, Childs said.

The organization is named for one of those victims — Veronica Neverdusky — a friend of Childs’ who was 21 in 1993 when she was strangled and dumped in Kansas City’s Penn Valley Park.

Kristy Childs is an inspirational woman and its wonderful to know that Kansas City has a place of refuge for victims of sexual abuse and exploitation.

Happy New Year 2011!

Some of my favorite posts from 2010!!

1) A Conversation with President George W. Bush in Kansas City!!

2) Lunch with Condoleeza Rice!

3) 2010 Election Victories!

4) Women in the Civil War!

5) Ronald Reagan's Faith

6) I Heart Paul McRyan!!

7) Two Rock Star Republican Governors!!

8) Inspirational Woman #1--Liz Bohannon!

9) 2010 Clay County Republican Lincoln Days!

10) Winning America Back with Sarah Palin, JC Watts and Fred Thompson!! and the Pics

11) A Review of "I Am Nujood, Age 10 and Divorced"

12) Taking Our Country Back w/ Sean Hannity and Karl Rove in KC!

13) Sudan--Global Day of Prayer!

14) Remarkable Women Profile #1--The Iron Lady--Margaret Thatcher!

15) Scott Brown makes history-wins U.S. Senate Seat in MA 52% to 47%


Previous Posts:
2009
2007

Horrific Flogging of Woman in Sudan!

Via Gateway Pundit:

Societies that treat women badly, are dangerous societies.~~Condoleeza Rice

I have been outspoken about human rights abuses in other countries, especially against women. Sudan is plagued by genocide in Darfur and their human rights' abuses are atrocious. Sudan is run by Omar al-Bashir, who was listed as the world's 2nd worst dictator by Parade Magazine last year.

Sudan needs our prayer, and the women in the Middle East and other countries need our help and prayers as well.

Friday Night Lights!

Friday Night Lights is my latest addiction! It is a great show!!

My 2010 Book List!

I am finishing up my books on Women in the Civil War. I have loved learning about the courage and bravery of these amazing women.

As soon as I am done with my latest book, I am going to embark on Bush's book. I am looking forward to it.

Below I have my final list for 2010. 

Here are the books that I have read:

1) Going Rogue: An American Life~~Sarah Palin
2) 365 Ways to Live Cheap!~~Trent Hamm
3) Sarah~~Kaylene Johnson
4) Margaret Thatcher, Britain's "Iron Lady"~~Doris Faber
5) Madam Prime Minister~~Libby Huges
6) Margaret Thatcher~~Bernard Garfinkel
7) Praying God's Word~~Beth Moore
8) Finding Peace in Life's Storms~~Charles Spurgeon
9) I am Nujood, Age 10 and Divorced~~Nujood Ali w/Delphine Minoui
10) The Girl Friend's Bible~~Cathy Hamilton
11) Wit and Wisdom of the American Presidents~~Joslyn Pine
12) Our Presidents...At a Glance~~Rolf Benj. Vinmont
13) Clarence Thomas~~Vicki Cox
14) Uncle Bert~~Hulda Hoover McLean
15) The Power of Prayer in a Believer's Life~~Charles Spurgeon
16) The First World War~~Paul Dowswell
17) Tad Lincoln~~John D. Weaver
18) Uncharted Territori~~Tori Spelling
19) The Official Record of the Oklahoma City Bombing~~Oklahoma Today
20) Finger Lickin Fifteen~~Janet Evanovich
21) A Pictorial Biography Ike~~William F. Longgood
22) Women in the First World War~~Neil Storey and Molly Housego
23) First Ladies of the White House~~Nancy Skarmeas
24) Plum Spooky~~Janet Evanovich
25) Fields of Fury~~James McPherson
26) Harriet Beecher Stowe~~Henry Elliot
27) I'll Pass For Your Comrade~~Anita Silvey
28) Women at the Front~~Jean F. Blashfield
29) Spies! Women in the Civil War~~Penny Colman
30) Dr. Mary Edwards Walker~~Bonnie Goldsmith
31) Women in the Civil War~~Larry G. Eggleston
32) The Practice of Praise~~Charles Spurgeon

Here are the books on CD that I've listened too:

1) Feminist Fantasies~~Phyllis Schafly
2) Blue Skies, No Fences: A Memoir of Childhood and Family~~Lynne Cheney
3) The Downing Street Years~~Margaret Thatcher
4) Roots~~Alex Haley
5) Hand of Providence~~Mary Beth Brown
6) The Long Road to Gettysburg~~Jim Murphy
7) U is for Undertow~~Sue Grafton

Previously:
Book List 1
Book List 2

Stephanie Plum's 12 Days of Christmas!!

Its time for a little levity!! You won't get the significance of the video unless you are a fan of Janet Evanovich's book series about Stephanie Plum.

Its a great series that is similar to Sue Grafton and Mary Higgins Clarks' books. Yet, Evanovich throws in some great comedy and romance. I literally laugh out loud every time I read one.

I will issue a warning though, there is a lot of language and some "adult" issues that are discussed in the books.

A Conversation with President George W. Bush in Kansas City!!

The best word to describe last night's event is that it was AMAZING!! Rainy Day Books sponsored an interview with President George W. Bush at Unity Temple on the Plaza about his memoirs, Decision Points. Tickets for the event sold out last Monday, and the extra autographed copies sold out last Tuesday. Unity Temple was filled to capacity with over 1200 people. My friends and I arrived at 4:00 and were in the doors by 5:00. So, I missed the lame protesters, according to news media outlets, there were 18 of them.

As I was listening to Bush talk, and taking notes, I was struck by how he was even more real, down to earth, likable, charming and funny in person. He also exuded confidence, but was not arrogant, and the way he described his faith was inspiring! It was a very memorable experience. It is hard to imagine why anyone would hate him.

Below is a summary of my notes and observations of the event:

He was interviewed by Vivien Jennings, Founder & President of Rainy Day Books. He started off with some self-deprecating humor, by saying that most people didn't think he could read a book, let alone write one. He also said that Laura and Jenna had been invited by Rainy Day Books first, and now he finally got invited.

Jennings asked him what question would he liked to have been asked, that had not been asked so far. He joked that it would be, "Why did you trade Sammy Sosa?" He then went on to say, "Why did you spend tax money to help the people of Africa?" His answer was:

1) The enemy can only recruit when it has hopeless people
2) It is in the moral interests of a nation. He quoted the old adage, of whom much is given, much is required.

He talked about how important it is to have genuine friends. Harry Truman said, "If you want a friend in Washington, get a dog." According to Bush, a friend in Washington is one that you had, before, you came to Washington.

He gave a passionate monologue on how life is full of risks. He took a big risk to run for president. He risked either being called "a pathetic candidate" or if he got elected, "a pathetic president." Yet, he didn't want to be sitting in a corner as an old man drooling, saying he could've been a great president, but he never ran. He got huge applause after this, as he did after many of his lines.

He described himself as a "half-glass full guy" and someone who has a passion for history. As someone who would describe myself exactly the same way, it was music to my ears. He said it was fascinating to be making history and reading it, at the same time.

He talked about a time that he bragged about how Laura was the greatest first lady ever, and then realized he was mentioning this in front of his mother. That would be a unique problem no one has had to deal with, since John Quincy Adams. He also mentioned Laura being the first, first lady to give the Radio Address, where she spoke to the women of Afghanistan. I would have to imagine that meant something to quite a few women in Afghanistan, who had virtually no rights before the war.

He mentioned that he was upset with Jenna and her husband, because there are no grandchildren yet. She says she is young, but Bush says he isn't. There was another nice round of applause after this too.

He defended his pick of Dick Cheney as Vice-President. He said he wanted someone who was capable of becoming president and who had Washington and Foreign policy experience. He also didn't want someone who wanted to be his successor. I remember when I first heard that Cheney was his pick for VP, I was like who is Dick Cheney? Yet, I couldn't have been happier with Cheney as VP. I'm with Bush in that I think he was the perfect choice.

One thing Bush didn't understand was the endless, childish name calling, and he refused to engage in it. Many of us wished he would've defended himself more against those attacks, but he didn't want to lower the office of the presidency. He reminded us of the names that Lincoln was called. I remember being struck by that when I visited the Lincoln Museum. He was called a tyrant, a hick and a stupid baboon and yet, today he is regarded by most as our greatest president.

When asked about his faith, I was struck by how genuine and humble Bush was as he responded. He said prayer is key and success in your Christian walk is accepting your place with the risen Lord by surrendering, which is a continual process. The White House was joyous because of his relationship with the Lord. One of his favorite verses is Matthew 7:5-"...first take the plank out of your own eye, and then you will see clearly to remove the speck from your brother's eye." He said its a good verse for all politicians.

Yet, he was quick to reiterate that what makes the United States great is the fact that we have freedom of religion. The contrast is that we face an enemy that kills you, if you don't believe in the right religion.

As I mentioned, it was so much more amazing to see him in person than on TV. I came away with even more admiration for him.

The media was only allowed to stay for a short amount of time. Below are links to their short coverage:
--KSHB
--Fox 4
--KC Star
--KMBC

George W. Bush Coming to KC on November 22nd!

While at the Condi Event, they announced that Bush was coming on November 22nd:

What: Former President George W. Bush will be in conversation with Vivien Jennings, Founder & President of Rainy Day Books, and discuss his new Book and his life. The program will last approximately one Hour.

When: Monday, November 22, 2010, 7:00 PM

Where: A Rainy Day Books Author Event at Unity Temple on The Plaza, Sanctuary, 707 W 47th Street, Kansas City, Missouri 64112

It was a good thing I bought my tickets right away, because it sold out yesterday. I purposely waited to buy a copy of his book hoping that he would come to KC, and the event includes an autographed copy of his book! Stay tuned for a post on the event!

Lunch with Condoleezza Rice!

"Today's headlines and history's judgment are rarely the same."~~Condi Rice

I mentioned last week that I was going to the KMBZ Business Forum to hear Condi Rice speak. It was pouring down rain, and my friend and I narrowly avoided an 8 car pile up, but we arrived in time. I had to laugh when I saw 2 loony protesters standing in the rain, across the street, with their signs. So, I made their day by taking their picture.

The place was packed as you can see by my pictures. The interview was amazing and I was struck by the similarity between Rice and Antonin Scalia. Rice and Scalia are both such experts in their fields and extremely intelligent that you are surprised at how witty they are too. Rice told several, great stories that had everyone either laughing or clapping.

She began by saying that it was nice for her to start off her day by not having to read terrorist reports with her morning coffee anymore. Below are some of the questions she was asked and summaries of her answers. Neither the questions nor the answers are direct quotes.

How has race been an issue?
~~She said it hadn't been an issue as Secretary of State because no one wanted to make her mad :-). Yet, she did share a story from her school years of a counselor not expecting much of her. She quoted her former boss, Bush's phrase, "the soft bigotry of low expectations".

What was her response to the Bush/Kanye West incident?
~~She said that Bush cared deeply about minority children and that the incident was hurtful. She said that we have to be very careful how we talk about race because the conversation ends once you call someone a racist.

How do you stay so optimistic?
~~She mentioned that she is a minister's daughter and that her faith plays a big part in her optimism. She also makes sure she exercises and tries to take some time to rest.

How has religion played a role in your life?
~~She talked about how you can't really separate religion from her life, its just a part of who she is. Prayer is a huge part of it, her prayers and then she was often overwhelmed at how many people would tell her that they were praying for her.

Why have you decided not to criticize the current administration?
~~She said she figured they have enough people chirping at them and besides if she wants to give them advice she can call them instead of telling the NY Times (that got a lot of applause).

She talked about 9/11, Iran and Iraq and about encouraging young people to pursue what they are passionate about and love to do.


We also got autographed copies of her book, Extraordinary People, Ordinary People as part of the ticket price. It was a great time!

George W. Bush talks to Oprah and O'Reilly!

To see the rest of the interview with Oprah, go here!

I love that Bush chose to use his book as a time to defend all the decisions he made. I'm also glad that while he seems to take most criticism in stride, he admits that being called a racist was beyond the pale. So many people seem so willing to play the "race card" and I find it disgusting.

As Bush says, this shows how awful the political discourse has gotten that if you don't agree with someone you think its okay to say some of the most hurtful and evil things.

Politik Ditto has the video of Kanye West apologizing to Bush over his hurtful comments about him regarding race. As GG says, it might be more impressive had it come much earlier.

Bush often didn't defend himself while President (when many of us wish he would've) and he hasn't criticized the current President (when many of us wish he would). Yet, he is a better man for it, and the chasm between him and Obama is deep. Since, Obama hasn't stopped blaming Bush for all the country's ills.


To see the rest of the interview with O'Reilly, go here!