These squares are just delightful and a treat for the whole family! Perfect for a sweet tooth after a savory dinner.

INGREDIENTS:

2 cups Popping Sorghum, popped

1 cup shredded coconut (preferably unsweetened)

1½ cup Faux-reo Cookie Wafers – roughly crushed (recipe below)

1 cup confectioners sugar

4 rounded tablespoons powdered milk

6 oz  plain coconut oil

DIRECTIONS:

Lightly grease a 6” x 9” pan with butter

Mix together all dry ingredients in a bowl

Melt  coconut oil in a saucepan over gentle heat until a clear liquid

Pour melted coconut oil into dry ingredients and thoroughly mix together

Evenly spread mixture into pan and press down very firmly with the back of a large spoon

Place pan into fridge and leave until set firm. When set, cut into small squares and serve.

TIP: Store in fridge to retain firm texture. Squares will crumble and fall apart in temperatures above 70F   as the coconut oil starts to melt. Place back into fridge to re-harden.

Faux-reo Cookie Wafers Recipe

Makes 25 – 30 chocolate cookie wafers

INGREDIENTS:

1 ¼ cups sorghum flour

½ tablespoon corn or potato starch

½ cup unsweetened Dutch process cocoa

1 teaspoon baking soda

¼ teaspoon baking powder

¼ teaspoon salt

1 cup sugar

½ cup PLUS 2 tablespoons (1 ¼ sticks) room-temperature, unsalted butter

1 large egg

DIRECTIONS:

Set 2 racks in the middle of the oven. Preheat to 375F degrees.

In a food processor, or bowl of an electric mixer, thoroughly mix the sorghum flour, corn/potato starch, cocoa, baking soda and baking powder, salt, and sugar. While pulsing, or on low speed, add the butter, and then the egg. Continue processing or mixing until the dough comes together in a mass.

Take rounded teaspoons of batter and place on a parchment paper lined baking sheet approx 2 inches apart.  With moistened hands, slightly flatten the dough.

Bake for 9 minutes for a softer cookie or 13 minutes for a crunchier cookie, rotating once for even baking. Set baking sheets on a rack to cool.

Tina Turbin

www.GlutenFreeHelp.Info

k.m.

m.t.

Here is a very interesting article from Sasha Cagen:

Imagine there is a food additive that slowly poisons you and can even kill you. Now imagine you have no way of knowing whether it is in your foods. Three million American celiacs and I find ourselves in this situation. We have been patiently waiting for the FDA to pass a gluten labeling law while Brazil, the European Union, and Australia acted years ago.

On May 4, activists will be baking a 12-foot gluten-free cake in Washington, DC to get the FDA and Congress to take long-overdue action on this public health crisis. It’s high time the U.S. caught up with the rest of the world.

I’m a diagnosed celiac. My doctor’s orders are to strictly avoid gluten for the rest of my life. I cannot eat even a speck (say, a bread crumb). Celiacs who keep eating gluten have a sixfold higher risk of developing cancer and increased risks of osteoporosis and other autoimmune conditions. Gluten causes a celiac’s intestine to attack itself and destroy the villi, which are tiny hairs that reach out to absorb food. Over time, celiacs don’t absorb the benefits of food.

Gluten is a protein found in wheat, barley, rye and oats. The obvious no-no list includes beer, bread, cake, cookies, pies, and soy sauce. But it doesn’t stop there. Manufacturers may use gluten as a thickening agent in surprising foods like ice cream and salad dressing.

Food manufacturers are not required to disclose whether a product contains gluten.

The solution is simple.

A rule that would require manufacturers to tell us if a product contains gluten would eliminate thousands of accidental “glutenings.”

My Story: Fatigue and Anemia Point to Celiac

Last fall, I felt so depleted I could barely type an email. First my blood tests revealed iron-deficient anemia. Additional blood tests — and then a stomach biopsy — confirmed that I have celiac too. Celiac explained the anemia. (I wasn’t getting enough iron because my stomach couldn’t properly absorb food.)

I was relieved to get a diagnosis with a dietary solution. Being diagnosed as celiac is a huge life change that takes time to fully absorb. It’s changing how I cook, socialize, and travel. My energy is back. I believe I may have more energy than ever before once my body is fully healed. It’s boggling to think that I have been eating food for (who knows how long) but not receiving full nutritional benefit from it.

But it’s making me crazy to live in a country that is so far behind the curve on gluten safety. Every time I go to the supermarket I find myself questioning whether a product may be safe. I have already accidentally “glutenized” myself several times; when I get glutenized, I turn into a depleted zombie.

Three million (or one in 133 Americans) are celiac, and 18 million are gluten-intolerant. That’s 7% of the population. How can anyone host a dinner party or Thanksgiving without reliable product labels? Will my guests be able to eat safely? Without labeling, who knows?

Europe, Brazil, Argentina, Canada, and Australia all have labeling laws that standardize what “gluten-free” labeling means so consumers can trust that a food is safe to eat.

American food producers can slap “gluten-free” on a label and there is no process for verifying that it’s true or the food is safe. And what does “gluten-free” mean? Other nations have set standards for a safe amount. (It’s technically impossible to create many products with zero gluten.)

In the absence of a definition, each manufacturer decides what it thinks is safe. Some vendors are more deliberately deceptive. In North Carolina, a man took regular bread and labeled it gluten-free, sickening dozens.

There are many hidden sources of gluten. Last week my friend Agnes invited me over and sweetly offered me a plate of gluten-free food: dates, goat cheese, with roasted nuts on top. But there was no label on the nuts and sometimes nuts are roasted with a seasoning mixture containing gluten. Ditto for any product with “natural flavorings” in the ingredients list. Sometimes they contain gluten, sometimes not. There are so many gotcha moments for a celiac: Oh, %@#$@#! That’s why I can’t get out of bed!

What’s the Hold-Up?

Congress charged the FDA in August 2006 with the responsibility of issuing a rule defining “gluten-free” for food labeling. Congress required the FDA to issue a final rule no later than August 2008. Nearly three years later, the FDA still has not acted.

By contrast, Brazil passed a law requiring that food manufacturers disclose whether a product contains gluten in 1992.

The FDA makes the excuse that it has spent years reviewing scientific debate what gluten-free means. By now Europe and many governments elsewhere have decided the limit is 20 ppm (parts per million).

The longer the FDA lags, food producers put gluten-free on labels and benefit from sales without investing in procedures that ensure safety.

A new group called 1 in 133 is organizing a gluten-free summit May 4 in Washington, DC to push the FDA into action during Celiac Awareness Month. The summit is the brainchild of two gluten-free activists, John Forberger, 30, a triathlete who has been to the hospital 17 times due to accidental glutening, and Jules Shepard, 40, author of The First Year: Celiac Disease and Living Gluten-Free. John and Jules originally met via Twitter and have done all their organizing via social media and phone.

Not Just Any gluten Labeling Law, a Good One

As currently proposed, the FDA would establish a scientific definition for “gluten-free” but would still be entirely voluntary for producers of food to use this designation and there would be no certification process.

Shepard says it may better to go back to Congress before the FDA acts to push them to issue a more meaningful rule requiring manufacturers to disclose if gluten is present in a product (as they are required to do for allergens like peanuts, wheat, and shellfish according to the Food Allergen Labeling and Consumer Protection Act of 2004). Shepard and her fellow advocates are organizing briefings with members of Congress for May 4.

One possible solution is getting barley and rye added to FALCPA so that all sources of gluten are included.

“If you were to poll people to ask people what they think this FDA labeling provision means,” says Shepard, “most people would think it would create a labeling law similar to what we have for allergens. I don’t think most people understand we are just setting a standard for ‘gluten-free’ that manufacturers can choose to use or not.”

“Every year new data comes out showing that celiac, gluten intolerance, and other medical conditions requiring a gluten-free diet are more widespread than previously believed. That alone is a reason to go back to Congress,” says Shepard.

“This is a public health issue that is going to get a lot more attention as numbers are recognized. We are hoping our initiative will spur on Congress to take such action, so that the end result will not just be some kind of gluten-free labeling regulations, but rather, good gluten-free labeling regulations.”

To show your support for gluten labeling laws, sign a petition at 1 in 133.

Tina Turbin

www.GlutenFreeHelp.Info

k.m.

April 17th and 18th – The Wyndham Hotel, Lisle, Illinois

Some of the events to look forward are two days of GF cooking demonstrations by acclaimed authors, chefs, and nutritionists; printed recipes for you to refer; and learning how to prepare each dish (with taste-testing, too!). Admission to the vendor fair is included in your Expo registration, and Gourmet Gluten Free lunch is provided as well as a gift bag of gluten-free goodies.

To find out more and sign up, check out the link below!  For questions, contact Jen Cafferty at jen@gfreelife.com or 847-217-1317.   Some tables are still available for vendors if you’d like to sample or sell your products. http://gfreelife.com

Tina Turbin

Uli Mana is a successful company with nothing but positive energy in every handmade product, founded by single mom Theresa Green. My L.A. and Florida gluten-free test group and I had the wonderful opportunity to test these delectable little morsels of yum. Each and every product has the capability to tease one’s taste buds and offers a smooth taste. They are a delicious treat for anyone needing a gluten-free chocolate fix. Who doesn’t have one of those cravings now and then, especially us women! Sorry men, I don’t mean to leave you out of this but there are just those times of the month- “Hey honey, don’t you dare touch MY Uli Mana.”

Theresa Green started her career with Nirvana Manna (renamed later Maca Manna) after expected success with a home recipe passed to a friend at the Natural Foods Expo 2005. Word spread, and she could only grow and expand to incorporating UliMana. Her made-up name is semi-Huna—a Polynesian and Hawaiian science practiced by the aboriginals of those regions. It means asking the goddess Uli, the “Goddess of Serenity,” for the blessings of life force, energy, and vibrant health—“mana.”

All the chocolates used are raw as well as all of her ingredients, offering the raw food community the opportunity to take advantage of the many health benefits of raw chocolate, which reduces blood pressure, contains antioxidants, relaxes muscles (due to the mineral content), and increases insulin activity.

Theresa’s initial products were all sweetened with raw honey, and she featured many Cacao mixes. Two years ago she developed new products as a result of introducing agave into her test kitchen. The result was new versions of truffles, such as Goji Cherry Truffles, Dark Cacao Truffles, and her to-die-for Truffle Butter.

The new truffles were an immediate hit. As Theresa explains, they were an “eat-now” food and did not require any mixing or processing by the consumer except the process of hand-to-the-mouth-and-enjoy. Sales soared.

The  manufacturing facility is generously supplied by Blue Ridge Food Ventures, founded by Advantage West, funded by the State of North Carolina to help business. She has access to storage space, a loading dock, shipping and receiving, and even legal and accounting advice. She credits much of her ease in the business’s evolution to the opportunities her state offers through this facility, stating she’s never needed to take out a loan or sell shares of the business.

With the incorporation of UliMana strategically placed on a positive astrological day, Theresa continues to hire only positive people with positive energy, and all products continue to be raw and made by hand. I asked her what we can expect in the coming future, and she openly said a rice syrup version of new delectables to cater to the needs of the macrobiotic consumer, who will be very pleased, she’s sure.

We testers are still raving about Uli Mana and all the handmade treats which passed our palates.

Tina Turbin

This food company is given a thumbs up and is HIGHLY recommended by my entire team here at www.GlutenFreeHelp.info

Upon a change in diet, various developmental disorders have been documented to lessen in some cases. Some of the disorders the symptoms for which were relieved are autism, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), attention deficit disorder (ADD), non-verbal learning disorder (NLD), and pervasive development disorder (PDD).

These studies which link gluten intolerance to autism and other child mental disorders have noted that gluten-sensitive children will also display physical symptoms such as bloating, frequent gas, constipation, diarrhea, dark shadows under the eyes, excessive sweating, and pale skin. These physical problems can clue parents into whether their autistic or ADHD child may have a gluten allergy.

So what can you do if you suspect that your child has a gluten allergy? Thankfully, a gluten allergy can be confirmed with a simple blood test. Also, gluten can also be eliminated from the diet and then the child observed for improvement. It is important to check with your doctor before significantly changing the child’s diet.

Tina Turbin

Recent research is now indicating that there may be a link between Autism, Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD) and other developmental and child psychiatric disorders and an allergy or sensitivity to gluten. Gluten is a protein found in barley, rye, and wheat, and it is estimated that millions of Americans have a sensitivity or allergy to it. Gluten intolerance can affect the entire body, leading to a variety of troubling physical as well as mental symptoms.

Upon a change in diet, various developmental disorders have been documented to lessen in some cases. Some of the disorders the symptoms for which were relieved are autism, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD), attention deficit disorder (ADD), non-verbal learning disorder (NLD), and pervasive development disorder (PDD).

These studies which link gluten intolerance to autism and other child mental disorders have noted that gluten-sensitive children will also display physical symptoms such as bloating, frequent gas, constipation, diarrhea, dark shadows under the eyes, excessive sweating, and pale skin. These physical problems can clue parents into whether their autistic or ADHD child may have a gluten allergy.

So what can you do if you suspect that your child has a gluten allergy? Thankfully, a gluten allergy can be confirmed with a simple blood test. Also, gluten can also be eliminated from the diet and then the child observed for improvement. It is important to check with your doctor before significantly changing the child’s diet.

Tina Turbin

So how small is 10 mg? A dime weighs about 2,200 mg (2.2 g). Tricia Thompson, RD, a celiac disease authority, explains that a one-ounce slice of regular white bread has approximately 3,515 mg of gluten, or 351 times the maximum daily amount that’s safe for celiac children. That means even a crumb is too much!

Now, this doesn’t mean that you can cut a slice of bread into 350 little crumbs and feed your child one of them; even if your child’s diet is otherwise gluten-free, chances are good that he’s still getting some gluten daily. Regulations in most parts of the world allow a product to be labeled gluten-free if it contains up to 20 parts per million of gluten (equivalent to about 20 mg per kilo). Even a slice of gluten-free bread contains a little over 1/2 mg of gluten.

It can be a challenge saying no to your child when he wants “just a little” bit of a gluten-containing product, especially on special occasions. After all, that bite-size candy looks pretty small—how much gluten could it possibly contain? However, sticking to an entirely gluten-free diet is not only the best way, but the only way, to ensure your child’s gluten intake is at a safe level.

Tina Turbin

With this in mind, Dr. Ali Keshavarzian, vice chairman of medicine and gastroenterologist at Rush University Medical Center, has been looking into the effectiveness of mind/body techniques in the treatment of celiac disease.

Celiac patients who are enrolled into the celiac disease and mind/body study at Rush will be randomly assigned to two course assignments for a period of eight weeks. If you’d like to find out more information about the study or to enroll, you can contact Dr. Sunana Sohi at 312-942-1551 or Sunana_Sohi@rush.edu.

Tina Turbin

I am originating and authorizing Tina Turbin to share this story with you.

Maureen has generously offered to share her continued story as time progresses. Check back for Part 3 or sign up for the RSS feed on the right hand column.(this means you will get updates sent to you in case you are not familiar with this feature) Read Part 1

“Here is my first tip to anyone going through a difficult diagnosis: go with your instincts and find a doctor who you trust, who is kind, compassionate and willing to listen to you as a person. Switching doctors saved my life – I have no doubt in my mind.”

Everyone has a story to tell and my journey toward living a healthy, gluten-free lifestyle is a unique story, one of which I hope will give other people hope for living a “ full” filled life after years of frustrations, tests, diagnosis and acceptance. From my personal experience, I can understand why someone would not feel fulfilled and would almost feel deprived being thrown into a situation where they can no longer eat the foods they have grown to love and share with their family and friends, but when the order was given for me to go gluten free, I was willing to do anything to feel better and bring a sense of normalcy and peace back into my life and that of my family. My name is Dr. Maureen Ellis, and I have Systemic Lupus Erythemtosus (SLE), which is a chronic autoimmune connective tissue disease that can affect any part of the body where the immune system attacks the body’s cells and tissue, resulting in inflammation and tissue damage. Lupus has affected my central nervous system, gastrointestinal tract, biliary tract and pancreas. Please join me in my adaptation to a “full” filling gluten-free lifestyle.

After my children were born I decided to get my master’s degree. I fell in love with higher education and decided to pursue my Ph.D. I successfully defended my dissertation the month before I turned 41 and started my first tenure-track position two months later at a research institution. I felt like everything in my life had fallen into place and it was finally time to enjoy the fruits of my labor. We had a beautiful home, two great kids, my husband loved his job and we were starting to make our new environment feel like home. In April 2005, I went in for my annual exam and my doctor found a lump in my left breast. Without delay I had numerous tests and ended up in a surgeon’s office who immediately scheduled me for a lumpectomy to remove the tumor. He was 95% sure that my lump was cancerous. Believe it or not, the tumor was benign, but something went terribly wrong during surgery; it appeared as if my computer had decided not to reboot because when I woke up on May 7, 2005, nothing in my life would ever be the same. Now that I have been fully diagnosed, the doctors believe that Lupus had been a sleeping giant waiting to be woken up and we have been able to go through my childhood and realize that the symptoms of gluten intolerance and GI disorders have been a part of my life since I was a small child.

Following the lumpectomy, I couldn’t keep food down, had constant diarrhea and eventually became dehydrated so I was admitted back into the hospital. They hooked me up to an IV and some good drugs then sent me home to recuperate, only to find myself readmitted twice in the next couple of weeks. The doctors in the hospital said it was time to get to a specialist that there was definitely something strange going on inside. One doctor mentioned Crones Disease and Colitis so next step was making an appointment with a gastroenterologist. I went in expecting to get help and start feeling better soon as I was teaching summer school and it was tough when I didn’t have any energy. Right away he was positive it was Crones Disease, which is an inflammatory bowel disease or Celiac Sprue, which is an autoimmune disorder of the small intestine causing a mal-absorption syndrome from the ingestion of gluten-containing foods . I had the usual battery of tests like a sigmoidoscopy, upper GI, several blood and stool tests, all of which came back negative, except I had exceptionally fast transit and was trans-absorbing nutrients, which meant that my food was moving through my GI tract so fast that I wasn’t able to absorb any of the nutrients so I was suffering from malnutrition. Since I was continuing to lose weight from the chronic diarrhea and I was losing my appetite for food, I started pushing the doctor for answers, especially since we were already into early August and I wanted to be well before the new school year started. Looking back now, that was such an unrealistic goal as it took four years to get a complete diagnosis. In the meantime, the doctor suggested we start eliminating lactose to see if that helped and sadly enough, getting rid of my morning latte did help some with the gas and bloating but diarrhea was still running my life. I knew that as soon as I ate, within 20 minutes I would head straight to the bathroom with severe cramping and watery diarrhea. My life was literally revolving around what I ate, when I ate and then my distance to a bathroom. I started to feel isolated and was afraid to go out in public for fear there wouldn’t be a bathroom close enough when the trots came on. I had severe debilitating pain in my upper-right quadrant to the point I felt like I was being stabbed by a knife. One night I lay in bed planning my funeral because I was afraid to wake my husband and tell him I thought I was dying.

About a week before the fall semester began I prepared and had my colonoscopy and an endoscopy. And yes its true, the prep is far worse than the actual procedure because I remember nothing. The problem was that I never recovered and started becoming very, very sick. The results were basically inconclusive for everything. He took several biopsies and said he could rule out Crones for now, but it could be Celiac, but for now he would go with Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS). When I woke up, I about went insane because I knew in my heart of hearts this was something more serious than IBS. This was not stress related or because of something I ate, but something had gone terribly wrong with that surgery and I needed someone who would get to the bottom of it. I felt very alone and scared. Unfortunately at this point I didn’t have any energy to fight this doctor. By the end of the weekend, I was too weak to get out of bed so my husband called the doctor’s office and thankfully, he was on vacation. This gave my husband the idea to call our former landlord who was a Gastroenterologist. He explained what was going on and said, “Maureen is dying can you do anything for her”. My new doctor rode in on his white horse with his white hat on and very gently took over my case. Here is my first tip to anyone going through a difficult diagnosis: go with your instincts and find a doctor who you trust, who is kind, compassionate and willing to listen to you as a person. Switching doctors saved my life – I have no doubt in my mind.

My new doctor put me on some meds to get me through the weekend and I went in to see him the next Monday.  After looking at my medical history and test results, he said, I think I know what’s wrong with you but you’re going to have to trust me on this. And this is
the moment when my journey changed. The first step was to start pain killers for the abdominal pain, sleeping pills so I could get a decent night’s sleep because as he said, you can fight the pain when you are rested, and we started in with a new battery of tests to determine gallbladder function. After a trip to the ER and several tests later, in October my gallbladder became infected and inflamed, which had to be removed. After surgery I didn’t seem to improve and continued to decline in health. By this time my diet consisted of saltine crackers, soup and oatmeal. The doctor suspected I had developed Sphincter of Oddi Dysfunction, which affects the valves in the biliary tract. The sphincter of oddi is a muscular valve that controls the flow of bile and pancreatic juice through the bile tract (area from the liver, gallbladder and pancreas to the stomach) and flows into the first part of the small intestine. Sphincter of Oddi Dysfunction (SOD) happens when that valve doesn’t relax and causes severe spasms. This causes the bile juices to back up and causes episodes of severe abdominal pain.

Typically, doctors wait 90 days after gallbladder removal to perform an ERCP, which is a type of endoscopy, to measure sphincter pressure. Unfortunately, my body didn’t wait that long and the sphincter valve ruptured on its own sending me to the ER in excruciating pain. The doctor explained that that valve is held together with what appears to be rubber bands and I was feeling each rubber band snapping free. The doctor performed emergency surgery to repair the sphincter valve and pancreatic valve. Recovery went very slowly from the SOD surgery and the upper-right quadrant pain was still present, although not as bad as it was before the surgery. My gastrointestinal symptoms continued on through the spring and in early summer of 2006, my doctor repeated the ERCP to clean out scar tissue he thought was causing the continued pain. Since my GI symptoms failed to improve, he decided to do the capsule endoscopy to test for celiac damage. This procedure required me to swallow what looked like a capsule. There was a tiny camera implanted in the capsule so when I digested it, it took pictures of my digestive system. I also wore a contraption all day that logged the pictures being taken inside of me. I am a technology geek and I have to admit, I thought it was pretty high-tech and very interesting. Although the blood tests did not come back positive, the capsule endoscopy did indicate that I probably did have Celiac Disease or at least I had intestinal damage to support that diagnosis so he determined the best course of action would be to remove all gluten from my diet. Through elimination, we also determined it was best to eliminate lactose and egg yolks as well. Following the gallbladder surgery and Sphincter of Oddi surgery I have not been able to process much fat and by this time I had pretty much eliminated most meat and nuts because they caused too much pain and distress and my body just refused to digest them. With my new diet in hand; a trip or two to a registered dietician, in August 2006 I began my journey into living a fulfilled life without gluten, lactose, egg yolks, raw fruits and vegetables along with a low-fat diet.

To be continued….

Dr. Maureen Ellis, Ph.D.
Business and Information Technologies Education Department
East Carolina University

Thank you Mareen. Maureen has generously offered to share her continued story as time progresses. Check back for Part 2 or sign up for the RSS feed on the right hand column.(this means you will get updates sent to you in case you are not familiar with this feature)      Read Part 1

Tina Turbin

There are many ways we with celiac or gluten intolerance can help others. One way is to head a group. Jane is an exceptional woman with her story and running a group for many years now. Here is her story and a link to a news article about her and her experiences. Really worth reading. Janet has recently attended my GF taste testing party to assist in my Reviews. She is FUN!

Janet Heitler joined a pre-existing group (Tampa Bay celiac Support Group) in 1995 two weeks after she was discharged from the hospital with her celiac diagnosis. She had a long time of misdiagnosis and no diagnosis. Things did not look good up to that final day of being correctly diagnosed.

Two women initially founded the group and Janet ended up in the group after they resigned from being Co-chairs. A husband and wife team took it over and I wanted to contribute because everyone was so wonderful – so Janet said she would be the Treasurer, easy to do. Everything was fine until two months into their “reign” I got a call that they were moving to Nevada.  Bam – she got in 1998 and I has had it ever since.

The meeting calendar was all over the chart and the first thing she did was announce to meet on the second Saturday of every other month – Feb/Apr/Jun/Aug/Oct and Dec.  We meet at 1 – 3 PM at the Jimmy Keel Library on Bears Avenue in Tampa, unless a luncheon is arranged.

They have done 2 GF Beer and Pizza Parties, when Pei Wei first opened they had a luncheon, and a luncheon at Trang’s Viet-Nam Cuisine — 90% of the menu is GF – it is not a GF restaurant it just works out like that, she says.

There are 200 people on her mailing list, but the most she has ever had at meeting (Beer/Pizza luncheon) was 70 people yet normally there are 20-25 people attending.

According to Janet, a lot of times newbie’s come once and think they know everything there is then fall aside. Then she gets a call and they talk as they are in trouble. She reminds them of the meetings and she tells them the new things that are out there and having the emails has helped people to reconnect and stay connected.

Janet’s email –  jchtbc42@tampabay.rr.com

Janet’s latest article: http://www2.newsadvance.com/lna/lifestyles/food_cooking/article/sifting_through_the_options/4033/

Thank you Janet!       Tina Turbin