By Sherri Blevins
“Each one of us can make a difference starting with ourselves and our own mindsets and how we model them in our homes.” This is a quote from Ider’s own children’s author, Lisa Lancaster. It gives a hint as to why in July of 2018, she published a book she authored entitled, “Who We Are: Celebrating Culture Week”. Lancaster is an office manager of 130-acre farm where she lives with her husband. She also enjoys writing devotional blogs. She is trying to do her part to make a difference in the lives of children.
According to Google Books, this new children’s book follows a little boy named Blake and his friends as they learn about different cultures at school. On their journey, they discover the diverse nationalities of people that make our nation great. The students research their ancestry and family traditions in order to share their finding with their classmates. Through the experience the children learn the importance of knowing people for who they are on the inside and not only for their race.
On her website, www.whowearelisalancaster.com, Lancaster shares her reasons for writing her book with readers. She states, “Being the grandmother of a bi-racial grandson, who is one of the greatest joys of my life, I’ve experienced quite a bit of the pain of racial prejudice and rejection not from outsiders, but mostly from loved ones inside my own family. However, my husband and I have stood firmly beside our daughter, son-in-law, and grandson through this season of pain. The theme of the book is “racial acceptance”. It is to teach children to be compassionate and accepting of others regardless of their race or what they may look like on the outside, to strike a curiosity in children about discovering their own ancestry and genealogy, about discovering the racial diversity in our own lives as well as respecting and accepting each other for who we are as people, and not shunning those of another race or descendance just because they’re of a different culture. When we take the time to get to know others, we find we have a lot in common.”
Lancaster has attended book signings for the book at Henagar Library on October 6 and 8 and will present her testimonial and sign books for the Henagar Book Readers Club on October 11, 2018 at 4:00PM. You may purchase the book online from Barns & Noble, Amazon, Books-A-Million, or Indie Bound. To read more about Lancaster and her life’s journey, visit her website.