Thursday, May 14, 2015

Writers United to Fight Cancer Cookbook

Margaret Turley and I both belong to American Night Writers Association (ANWA) a national LDS women's writers organization, and I've known about her involvement in Writers United to Fight Cancer (WUFC) for years. She's tireless in her efforts to spread awareness and raise money for cancer research.

As part of that effort, this last year, WUFC put out a cookbook. And yes, some of my recipes are in it.

I asked Margaret if I could feature her organization and the cookbook in a blog post. I'm tardy in getting it up, but if you want to get a great cookbook and support a worthy cause, you couldn't do better than this.

Now, here's my interview with Margaret Turley:


LIZ: First, tell me about Writers United to Fight Cancer. What was the genesis of the organization?

MARGARET: Writers Unite to Fight Cancer (WUFC) was started by a group of eight friends who took writing classes together from Pamela R. Goodfellow PhD over a period of two years. As we shared our manuscripts and life stories we discovered that each of us had been involved with cancer either personally, in our families or as caregivers.

When it came time to celebrate our writing accomplishments we desired to increase awareness about cancer and assist in the battle to fight this dreadful disease that affects one out of every two men and one in three women sometime in their lives. We organized a silent auction during our book launch in November of 2010 and donated the money to the American Association for Cancer Research.

We lost one of our members two months later to stage IV lung cancer. We felt compelled to continue our efforts to raise funds for Cancer Research. Our group has grown from the original eight members to over 140 authors and supporters.

LIZ: How do you get word out about WUFC?  

MARGARET: We use social media.
Twitter:           @WritersCanFight

LIZ: What kind of fundraising events do you have? Are there any dates that you should be aware of?

MARGARET: In an effort to include authors who do not live in Arizona, we evolved from holding multiple fundraising events and book-signings to holding an annual writing contest. Our last and largest fundraising event was in February 2012 at the Arizona Biltmore where over 40 authors participated along with guest speakers in addition to another silent auction. The money raised at that event was donated to the University of Arizona Cancer Research Program and the Southwest College of Naturopathic Medicine / Arizona State University Cancer Research Program.

LIZ: What made you decide to put out a cookbook? 

MARGARET:  Gayle Martin of Good Oak Press, a WUFC author and publisher of our first anthology: Courage to Thrive suggested we create a cookbook to raise funds for our organization. I had also noted that many authors will include recipes associated with their novels. One of our members wrote of her experience surviving Non-Hodgkins Lymphoma. In her book she shared recipes that she enjoyed while undergoing chemotherapy. 

I sent out a letter to our members and supporters and received an enthusiastic response. Many of the recipes submitted are from cancer survivors or health food experts. Other recipes are family favorites. Local flavors, and international specialties are mixed within categories that include appetizers, salads, soups, dressings and gravies, meats, main dishes & casseroles, vegetables and side dishes, beverages, candies, cookies, cakes, pies & pastries, deserts and snacks, breads, breakfast foods, remedies and more. Several recipes are gluten free and a few are dairy free for those who have allergies. 

Morgan Vanessa Harbinger donated color illustrations and the cover art. Each submitter has their picture and a bio. Authors were allowed to share a book cover and blurb for each recipe we printed. Over half the 190 recipes are represented with photographs of the finished product. We are privileged that you shared some of your award winning recipes with us.


LIZ: You are very kind. As I remember you were very patient with my deadline phobia. Where can someone get a copy of Cauldron of Love

MARGARET: The WUFC cookbook: Cauldron of Love can be purchased on our website for $24.95. 100% of the profits (proceeds above the cost of printing) will be donated to cancer research. You can buy using cash or check by calling Margaret Turley at 480-586-7902 or emailing writersunitetofightcancer@gmail.com.

LIZ: This hits close to me, too, because I lost my mom to Hodgkin's Lymphoma.Thanks, Margaret, for the interview and for the great things you're doing for cancer research. 

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