Woman rekindles love for children’s books 30 years after retiring
By Olivia Tyler
Click here for updates on this story
MARSHALLTOWN, Iowa (KCCI) — At Glenwood Place, an assisted living facility in Marshalltown, Shirley Sternola, a long-time educator, read a children’s book to local home-schooled kids 30 years after retiring, thanks to the facility’s Dare to Dream program.
Sternola’s caretaker, Angie Wilson with Iowa River Hospice, comes to Glenwood Place to do life reviews with her. There, Sternola shared that her passion is children’s literature. She once owned a bookstore while living in Colorado called Bo Peep Books, a play off her maiden name, Lamb.
So Wilson got an idea. “I’ve had the opportunity to work with Glenwood with so many different patients through the years, and we just got to thinking about how this would be a great opportunity for one of the wish-granting that they do,” she said.
Glenwood Place threw Sternola a surprise book club party. She got to sign and read a children’s book that an old friend dedicated to her. Her friend even called in via Zoom for the celebration.
Sternola’s family was also in attendance. Her brother, Ken Lamb, says Sternola is “a great human being, and she’s a hard worker, and she’s very exact about what she does.”
Sternola turns 91 next week, but this year her wish came true early. Wilson said, “She will talk about this every single visit moving forward, and the joy that you saw on her face will continue.”
This story was provided to CNN Wire by an affiliate partner and does not contain original CNN reporting.
Please note: This content carries a strict local market embargo. If you share the same market as the contributor of this article, you may not use it on any platform.