Exciting new things are happening with the Books for Bedsides Program! We are looking to partner with 3 different non-profit organizations that work within the foster care system and children’s hospitals to bring

the inspiring story of “Sam” to disadvantaged kids. Generosity is in abundance and we recently had our first donation of 10 books from Karen at the Village Book Exchange in San Clemente! If you are interested in donating a soft cover to be given as a gift to these youngsters, pleas

e email me and I will show you how and where. The cost of a book is $14.95. The book will be signed by the author, as well as include a little personalized message from you to a child in need of some love. Thanks for all your support!

Also, the fabulous Miss Linda Lyons, assistant director for Missio

n Lutheran Preschool and mentor teacher, sent us a glowing recommendation after visiting her classes:

The children at our school thoroughly enjoyed Sharon reading her book and performing songs from Jumping the Grate. Sharon read her books using story boards, which were particularly appropriate since we serve children aged thre to six years. The big pictures made the story very easy to see and understand. Sharon’s gentle , easy going demeanor appealed t the children, and she easily engaged them. During her presentation, the children were active participants in reading the book and she led them in movement to her songs. Afterwards, she signed books to the children who pre-ordered them.

This was a special event, and the children, staff, and parents were very pleased and delighted to be able to hear and see a real live author in person.  I would heartily recommend Sharon Ray to any preschool, church or elementary school. The message of her book, Jumping the Grate, is one of perseverance, believing in yourself and following your dreams. Truly inspirational, and a message that everyone can use!

A letter or recommendation from Suzan Knowles, Foster Elementary School, Compton, CA:

I had Jaime Becktel come to my school in Compton, CA and do a book talk for us on Jumping the Grate. Jaime is the presentation specialist and an illustrator for Ray of Light Books with Music for Children. The students thoroughly enjoyed her presentation. She read the story and then opened it up for questions, and the students loved knowing that they might be future authors. They loved having an illustrator come and talk to them about what she does and how the process happens. I can’t wait until the next book comes out so that we can have her come again.

A wise little lady once said, “If you follow your heart, you will land smack dab in the middle of your mission.” I believe she was on to something! Books for Bedsides is moving forward Beee-u-tifully! It’s not official, but B4B is looking to partner with the Peace, Mind and Body Club at Golden West College, a student run collective of amazing young people to support us in our efforts of receiving book donations. As far as book recipients, we are excited to work alongside Discovery Arts, an awesome organization that brings art, creativity and joy to children in hospitals dealing with severe medical challenges, and CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocates), an organization that supports children in the court and child welfare system. We couldn’t be happier. It’s all coming together.

Check out these organizations:
www.nationalcasa.org
www.discoveryarts.org
www.goldenwestcollege.edu/peacemindbody

Last Tuesday and Wednesday we visited Mission Lutheran Preschool in Laguna Niguel, CA and BOY was it a fun time! The teachers brought all the little ones into the main chapel for storytime and music and the kids were all ready and raring to hear the second half of Jumping the Grate. Whenever Sharon read the word “Grate,” all the kids chimed in like little birds to yell it out. The music was  a big hit, with everyone circling around holding hands and doing all of the fun movements to “Jump” and “From Joy I Came.” Sharon ended the day with a book signing session and everyone went home happy!

Another successful school presentation and some very satisfied preschoolers!

During the weeks of November 30th thru December 11th, author Sharon Ray will be on tour in Southern California doing storytelling and music presentations at local elementary schools.

She will be sharing “Jumping the Grate” as part of a school fundraising effort, so if you are a teacher

or a parent in the Orange County area and you think your child’s school might be interested in having Sharon visit, please contact Jaime at 949-315-0123 or email her at jaime@sharonraybooks.com.

A letter of recommendation from teacher Karen Spurney of St. Martin of Tours School in Los Angeles:

“This past year I was privileged to get to know and work with Sharon Ray. St. Martin of Tours is where I teach music to children grades K-5. I came to know Sharon earlier this year, and when she discovered that I am the music teacher for St. Martin’s she donated a copy of her book, Jumping the Grate, to our school’s music department. Jumping the Grate is well written, beautifully

illustrated, and the accompanying CD was perfectly appropriate for my students. From one story alone, I had St. Martin’s students do an entire unit, combining music, art, and vocabulary (there are vocabulary words at the end of the book). The students even played their own improvisations on the recorder along with songs from the story.

Sharon graciously visited us at the end of our unit. With her experience from years of teaching, she captivated all grades, K-5. She challenged each individual class in their understanding of the themes behind the story. On top of this, she

performed the music with the children on her guitar. One of the most exciting parts of Sharon’s visit was when she shared with the older students tales of her story-writing, and how she came to be her own publisher. The students  learned about soy-based inks, the cost of recycled paper, and the importance of independence and determination.

It was such an experience to have Sharon come to St. Martin of Tours, and I can honestly say that the students will remember it as a highlight of their year, as it was mine. I think any school should take advantage of the opportunity to have an author, songwriter and publisher come to their school, especially someone as talented and charismatic as Sharon Ray.”

Jumping the Grate is the story of Sam, the Kokanee Salmon. He doesn’t want to swim back upstream with his friends. He has heard that his true home is downstream in the Ocean of Sparkling Waters. The only way to get there is to jump the tall grate that obstructs his way, and just one other salmon has ever made it over before.

Enter this humorously illustrated tale about perseverance and the pursuit of dreams come true, and find out if Sam safely makes it over the grate. If he does, what challenges must he face on his journey to his true home? Who is waiting to receive him in the Ocean of Sparkling Waters?

At the end of this exciting story children are invited to come on a Follow-Up Adventure where they tell or even write their own sequel to Sam’s journey, and learn to use some words from the story that may be new to them. They will be given some great web sites on the amazing life cycle of salmon and the environmental challenges they face.

Jumping the Grate is accompanied by its hand-clappin’, dancin’ theme songs, “Jump!” and “From Joy I Came,” written and sung by the author, with guitar, fiddle and vocal harmonies performed by The Band of Light, included on CD.

You can purchase Jumping the Grate at www.sharonraybooks.com.

Julia Butterfly Hill and “Luna”

When Sharon Ray Books and Ray of Light Books and Music for Children first stepped out into the world as a publishing company committed to inspiring the heart and connecting to nature, a daunting task lay before us: how to walk the talk environmentally in an industry where the norm is to get things done fast and cheap. After some deliberation, we put the stake in the ground and made the declaration that our books were going to be printed 100% GREEN. We weren’t sure how, but that was our final word in the matter. Two years later and our first book, Jumping the Grate is in print, and we are immensely proud to be a member of The Green Press Initiative. Our books are printed on 100% recycled paper, using vegetable-based inks and not a single new tree was felled in the printing process.

Yesterday we received a testament to our hard work in the form of a little recycled card sent by Miss Julia Butterfly Hill, acknowledging us for our efforts in being a Green publishing company. Receiving this card from Julia, a lifelong environmentalist best known for her  two years living in a giant California Redwood in protest of the logging of old growth forests, was like getting a huge thumbs up from the universe, saying, “Keep going! You’re on the right track!”

Sharon Ray Books and Ray of Light Books with Music for Children are excited about multiple new projects in the works, including a program called “Books for Bedsides” and school outreach programs where we will bring the message of “Sam the Salmon” out into the world to inspire young people to “Jump the Grate” and follow their dreams!

It is my great pleasure to send you Ray of Light Books with Music for Children’s very first book, Jumping the Grate. As a writer and a musician, the author Sharon Ray, was interested in bringing inspiration and joy to children through this story and its accompanying music. Jumping the Grate contains elements that make it very unique: vivid illustrations, a CD of two lively theme songs written by the author and performed by her “Band of Light”, “Follow-Up” adventures in language arts and science, coloring pages, song lyrics with guitar chords, and printed on environmentally friendly paper in vibrant soy-based inks. Having been a public school teacher for 10 years, Sharon Ray is very proud of the educational value of her books On the first page of Jumping the Grate you will find a formal recommendation from the former director of the Center for Teacher Excellence, in New Mexico: Amalya Nattiv.

Jumping the Grate, the story of Sam the Kokanee Salmon, is an exciting adventure for children. Kokanee salmon are land-locked, lake dwelling salmon, but it has been documented that a handful of this species do actually migrate to the ocean. What does it take to break away from the same old routine of how things are done? That is, to “jump the grate” and go downstream instead of upstream with everyone else? Sam is an example of doing what it takes to overcome the obstacles of life to make our dreams come true. The humorous and vibrant illustrations by Shan Wells were inspired by the topography of Durango, Colorado and the surrounding areas. Shan has illustrated four books for Ray of Light Books with Music for Children and his work elicits a powerfully enthusiastic response from those who view it.

Jumping the Grate is the first of six books by Sharon Ray to be in print. The other five books are illustrated and ready for print, and with the opening of effective sales channels through wholesale and retail distributors, Ray of Light Books with Music for Children will have all six titles in print soon.

Please visit the Ray of Light Books with Music for Children website to view the illustrations for upcoming titles, hear sound bytes of all twelve theme songs and to read the synopsis of each story. (www.sharonraybooks.com). Likely, the next book to be printed is My Mother is a Mountain, which celebrates our relationship to the natural world, as well as cultural diversity.

I am very excited about the future of Ray of Light Books with Music for Children, and I hope that you find Jumping the Grate to be a top-of-the-line, highly desirable children’s book. I look forward to being in contact with you, and hope to build a strong sales network for Ray of Light Books with Music for Children.

Thank you so much,

Jaime Becktel

Illustrator, Presentation Specialist and Distribution Manager