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VIEWPOINT Bonnie D. Stone Vote could kill tourism dollars By voting to allow development around the Prime Desert Woodland, the Lancaster City Council shortsightedly voted to kill potential tourism. The area is on the verge of attracting tourists to all the sites in the Antelope Valley. The annual Poppy Festival has a built-in audience. Once the shopping center is built on the land formerly used for excess parking, the city will have to find another place. Even more important is the fact that people who are attracted to the poppies would also be interested in seeing the unique Joshua trees and other native plants saved in the Prime Desert Woodland. By linking the two, tourists could be enticed to stay over and explore. If this park is allowed to die, so too dies the link with tourist dollars. Lancaster could play a pivotal role in planning for the future. Too many travelers just pass through the Antelope Valley on their way to northern California or Nevada, never stopping, never aware of all the extraordinary places to explore within the region. There's so much to see including the airplanes built, flown and tested; exotic animals such as tortoises, ostriches and endangered felines; the largest producer of wind energy in the world; the only poppy reserve in the state as well as other unique flora; sites of hundreds of movies shot on location; extraordinary deposits of minerals including the largest open pit mine in the state, and places to explore to learn about the early Native Americans including the largest concentration of petroglyphs in the western hemisphere. To properly sell the area to tourists, it will take a coordinated effort of two counties and cities including Palmdale, Lancaster, Mojave, Boron and Ridgecrest. An AEROSPACE TRAIL map, for example, is sorely needed. This self-guided map would include all the places to see and learn about airplanes built, tested and flown here. The map might include a listing of restaurants, coffee shops and motels. From Palmdale to Lancaster. Mojave, Boron and Ridgecrest, the trail would include: BLACKBIRD PARK in Palmdale, on the corner of Avenue P and 25th Street East, holds the world's only display of a Lockheed SR-71 "Blackbird" alongside an A-12, a D-21 drone and a U-2 spy plane. PLANT 42 HERITAGE AIRPARK, 2001 East Palmdale Boulevard between 20th Street East and 25th Street East on the north side of Avenue P, Palmdale, commemorates the myriad aircraft built at Plant 42. Displays include F-86, F- F-100, F-104, T-38, F-105, A-4, A-7 and a scale model of the B-2 Stealth bomber. B.J.'s CORNER, Avenue N and Sierra Highway, is a premier spot for close ups of aircraft as they take off and land on the main runway for Plant 42. AEROSPACE WALK OF HONOR on Lancaster Boulevard between Sierra Highway and 10th Street West incorporates displays of some 65 granite markers saluting pilots honored for their "imagination, reason and skill." APOLLO PARK, on Avenue G near 40th Street West, just east of Fox Field in Lancaster, features the Apollo 11 command module trainer on display. THE MILESTONES OF FLIGHT AIR MUSEUM, sandwiched between Apollo Park and General William J. Fox Airfield, holds a display of airplanes including a German World War II observation airplane and home-builts including a Cessna 120, a C-97 and an F-102. FOX FIELD is an excellent place to view the super tankers when they're fighting fires, take offs and landings of smaller aircraft, and to explore vintage, WWII aircraft when they visit. EDWARDS AIR FORCE BASE not only hosts an annual air show open to the public but also bi-monthly tours that include the AIR FORCE FLIGHT TEST CENTER MUSEUM, which is a must see for all flight enthusiasts who want to learn more about the evolution of flight and flight testing at Edwards AFB, and the NASA DRYDEN FLIGHT RESEARCH FACILITY. Additionally, there is an annual Pancho Barnes Days in September. MOJAVE AIRPORT is home to the National Test Pilot School, the nation's only civilian test pilot school, and Burt Rutan's Scaled Composites that developed the Voyager and SpaceShipOne. A visitor cannot tour those facilities but can arrange a tour of the BONEYARD, an impressive storage area for large commercial airplanes. COLONEL VERNON P. SAXON JR. AEROSPACE MUSEUM in Boron includes Boeing and Lockheed Martin displays, history of Edwards, Air Force Flight Test Center, NASA Dryden and the Air Force Propulsion Directorate, a Pancho Barnes display. The U.S. NAVAL MUSEUM OF ARMAMENT AND TECHNOLOGY in China Lake, Ridgecrest, features a major collection of tactical air weaponry including guided missiles from WWII to the present. But there's so much more. For those who want to experience animals up close, one brochure might include all that this region offers including the ostriches at the Indian Point Ostrich Ranch in Tehachapi, the desert tortoises found in the Desert Tortoise Natural Area in California City, The Exotic Feline Breeding Compound in Rosamond, the lamas at Pitchfork Ranch in Leona Valley, and for adults only, the monthly tours of Tippy Hedren's Shambala preserve in Acton. There could be separate flyers for the: History buffs might want to learn more about the four distinct groups of Native Americans by touring the Antelope Valley Indian Musuem (currently closed for earthquake retrofitting), spring and fall hikes to Tomo Kani and China Lake to view the largest collection of petroglyphs in the western hemisphere. A movie map could direct movie goers to places where the films were made. Engineering marvels could include the Tehachapi Loop, Wind Farm and Rio Tinto Minerals in Boron. A listing of museums would include Antelope Valley Indian Museum, Edwards Air Force Flight Test Museum, Lancaster Museum, Maturango Museum, Milestone of Flight Museum, Mojave River Valley Museum, Randsburg Desert Museum, Route 66 Mother Road Museum, Tehachapi Museum, Twenty Mule Team Museum, Western America Railroad Museum, the U.S. Naval Museum of Armament and Technology and the Western Hotel Museum. And of course, a self-guided geology map featuring places to see the mighty San Andreas Fault including the world's only drive through fault on the 14 freeway, Vasquez Rocks and the Devil's Punchbowl. Bonnie D. Stone is the author of San Andreas Ain't no Fault of Mine, a guide to the Antelope Valley. Her Web site is www.bonniedstone.com Reprinted with permission from the Antelope Valley Press, Thursday, January 25, 2007.
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Guide’s packed with facts By Vern Lawson
Nature abhors a vacuum.
Despite the natural beauty of Antelope Valley and its remarkable projects and amazing achievements, for many years there was no single place to find all-encompassing information about this region. Now, Bonnie D. Stone has filled that information-age vacuum by publishing “San Andreas Ain’t No Fault of Mine — Fun and Fact-Filled Guide to the Antelope Valley.”
The 122-page book provides a concise but comprehensive history of the region from the time that local residents included just four groups of Native Americans through the first half decade of the 21st century.
Padre Francisco Garces visited the area in 1775 and 1776, the year the Declaration of Independence was born.
Stone quotes John C. Fremont, a member of the elite Army Corps of Topographical Engineers, who rode into the Valley on April 15,1844, and noted in his journal that “we me among the fields of flowers which consisted of the rich orange-colored poppy, mingled with other flowers of brighter tint. ... Several antelopes were seen among the hills and some large hares.”
The first land yacht was built in 1902 and was used r sailing across the flat surfaces of what is now Rogers Dry Lake.
The history section of the book concludes with the winning of the Ansari X-Prize by the team that built and flew Burt Rutan’s SpaceShipOne in late 2004. The ship became “the first private manned spacecraft to exceed an altitude of 328,000 feet twice within the span of a 14-day period.”
The book contains a lengthy list of places to see and things to do in the greater Antelope Valley. It’s the perfect answer for local residents who have visitors come, hoping to see some of the local landmarks and attend community events.
Stone includes in her list ‘The world’s longest-running festival— the Wind Festival which begins Jan. l and ends Dec.31 each year.”
Information on local Joshua trees, tumbleweeds and the legendary jackalopes is included.
The book has a compendium of milestone flights at Edwards Air Force Base and an alphabetical list of movies that were shot on location here. Perhaps the first movie filmed in the Valley was “Whither Thou Goest” in 1914. Maps are provided to locate various tourist attractions.
Stone has written a number of books and articles and has taught writing classes. She founded the Antelope Valley Writers in 1986.
The AV guidebooks are available at Burns Pharmacy, the Whole Wheatery and the museum/art gallery, all in Lancaster; Charlie Brown Farms in Littlerock; the Apple Shed in Tehachapi; and local Barnes & Noble and Waldenbook stores.
Reprinted with permission from the Antelope Valley Press, Sunday, January 14, 2007.
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Reprinted with permission from the Antelope Valley Press - Sunday, October 22, 2006.
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Area Author Masters MarketingBy TINA FORDE LANCASTER - After Bonnie D. Stone finished her new guide to the Antelope Valley, "San Andreas Ain't No Fault Of Mine," came the hard part: selling it. Major publishers said the book was "too regional." Stone's husband, at first, also was skeptical as to the book's broader appeal. "He didn't think it would go beyond friends and family," Stone said. Her husband, a retired Army flight test program computer specialist, came around. After all, he had volunteered to help her investigate the day trips in the book, checking out the accuracy of directions and other conditions so people would not end up lost in the desert, stranded without a clue. After being rejected by publishers, Stone considered the idea of self-marketing. " 'What do you think?' I said to him," said Stone, 65. "My husband's response was, 'Let's go for it. That'll keep her off the street.' " She decided to self-publish under her own company name, Fawlty Press. "I did networking among my friends for the layout, page design and typesetting," Stone said. Lisa Wysocky of Nashville designed the book and typeset, providing the page proofs in several weeks. Stone proofed Wysocky's PDF files. "Files went back and forth by e-mail," Stone said. The author said Cynthia Kincaid, who teaches multimedia design and production at Antelope Valley College, "did the glorious cover. Her design is nothing like what I had in mind." With its photo of California poppies on a rolling hillside, hot air balloons and an iconic Joshua tree on a backdrop of blue sky and clouds, "the book stands out," Stone said. The catchy title, she said, helps sell the book. The original title was an uninspiring "Guidebook to the Antelope Valley," until one night at 2 a.m., Stone had an epiphany. "I woke up and the name was there. This was so vivid. Then I thought, 'Oh, no, I'll have to do another rewrite to lighten up the book to match the title.' " Which she did. She contracted with DeHART's Printing Corporation of Santa Clara to print 500 copies. The book, made in the paperback form called "trade," was 220 pages with a color cover of heavy paper stock. The printing cost a bit more than $2,000. Twelve boxes of books hot off the press arrived at the Stones' Lancaster home on Oct. 26 ready to be sold. From then on, it was one call at a time, one store at a time, one museum at a time. She took "baby steps," she said, learning "how to market and who to market to." In the beginning, she said, "We had one outlet - Reagan's Hallmark in Lancaster." The outlets expanded to Burns Pharmacy, Edwards Air Force Base Flight Test Museum and Marie Callender's and is featured by the Antelope Valley Chambers of Commerce. Some locations bought 10 books at a time; others 24 at a time. She ordered a second printing in mid-December. "I had to learn to do cold calls," Stone said. "I would say, 'I am … I have this book … Would you be interested?' " She eventually engaged the help of a book marketing expert, then a distributor, Partners West from Renton, Wash., that supplies bookstores in the western states. Stone is ready for the fifth printing - a total of 2,500 books printed. Outlets carrying the book include stores, gift shops, wineries and museums in the greater Antelope Valley area and beyond. The guidebook also is available at Barnes & Noble Booksellers, Waldenbooks, Borders, other bookstores and through Amazon.com. "San Andreas Ain't No Fault of Mine" retails for $14.95 plus tax, which is a 40% markup for the retailer. Stone wholesales the volume for $8.97. Stone said she had a lot to learn when she launched her sales program. "First I had to learn to work with government agencies and corporations, how to bill them." To master the mysteries of the program Excel, she said, "a dear friend mentored me." Her Web site, www.bonniedstone.com, is a wealth of information and links to the museums and stores that sell her book. The site was created by Gina Cresse. Stone does not sell the book from her Web site. "We found the PayPal system to be too cumbersome," she said. "But the Web site is linked to Amazon.com, and they take credit cards." When she began cold calling, she said, she did not bat a thousand, but "the ones that felt it was appropriate for them, it's been almost 100%." "I seem to be fitting into the travel sections well. With the gas prices, people are doing day trips (as described in the book.)" Stone has written other books - "Aloha Cowboy," "Campfollowing," "Uncle Sam's Brides" and "Civil War in Paradise" from the Alex Mack series - and founded the Antelope Valley Writers in 1986. For details, visit www.bonniedstone.com. Reprinted with permission from the Antelope Valley Press - Saturday, September 30, 2006. ************************
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What's New In Books... By Robert C. "RC" Goodman JR. Staff Writer
San Andreas Ain't No Fault Of Mine
All I can say is that it's ABOUT TIME someone took the initiative to write a fun and fact-filled guide for local residents regarding the Antelope Valley. As for the contents of this marvelous title, credit is due—to Bonnie Stone for writing an interesting and informative book that gives unique insight on places to visit and see within our own little part of the world.
If it's adventure you're looking for, believe me the author went to extremes to bring out the best that the Antelope Valley has to offer. San Andreas Ain't No Fault Of Mine is not just the usual travel guide you'll find on an obscure book or magazine stand at a local grocery store or gas station. This book is a history buff's cup-of-tea.
Information and travel secrets within this book will keep you and your family occupied for weekends to follow. Or maybe a trip with a friend is in order; anyway you look at it this book is a must-have for anyone bored with weekend garden work or sitcoms followed by more sitcoms.
As a train buff, I was amazed to read about how and when the railroad came to Lancaster. In 1876, the Southern Pacific started the town (settlement) as a watering hole for their steam locomotives. The name, Lancaster was officially given to the township by the railroad. And NO, the town was not named after the famous, but dearly departed actor… Burt Lancaster!
It's the trivia throughout the book that first catches your attention. Earlier, when I mentioned that this book is a fact-filled guide—what an understatement. You'll spend hours browsing through pages of surprising facts that few people know about. For instance, did you know that Frances Gumm and her two sisters regularly performed at the Valley Theater on Sierra Highway? Of course, no one knows who Frances Gumm is, or was. Her stage name was, Judy Garland.
Another tidbit of information came to my attention while reading this title. Marion Morrison rode a skinny, ugly horse to and from Lancaster Grammar School a few years after the Titanic sunk in 1912. In reality, Marion Michael Morrison would grow up to be, The Duke, John Wayne.
Rosamond residents will be happy to know that their town is also mentioned throughout the book. In addition to Willow Springs International Raceway, a wonderful chapter on the history of the Tropico Gold Mine is included.
Ah yes, the author did not forget to bring out an important fact that Edwards Air Force Base is within the Antelope Valley realm. After the Wright Brothers, the history of flight, especially military aircraft became a reality because of testing at Edwards Air Force Base. Today, the base is still the U.S. Government's number-one test facility in the world.
It's impossible to bring out all the details this book has to offer, nor can all the intriguing vacation spots be highlighted. So, if you're looking for a great book on facts and trivia, and a guidebook that definitely can open your mind to travel, San Andreas Ain't No Fault Of Mine, by Bonnie D. Stone—is just what the doctor ordered! A top-notch title, I suggest that you get your copy while quantities last.
A note to Antelope Valley Authors: May I suggest that all of us support Bonnie in her new venture as the author of, San Andreas Ain't No Fault Of Mine. A giving individual, her steadfast support of all Antelope Valley writers has been, in several cases the determining factor of success over failure. We owe her a lot, and this author is supporting her wholeheartedly!
Robert C. "RC" Goodman Jr. is the author of several nationally published books including his latest, Through The Eyes Of Santa, available at bookstores nationwide. Mr. Goodman is also a syndicated columnist. His book reviews and commentary articles appear in dozens of newspapers and magazines coast to coast.
Reprinted with permission from the Rosamond Tribune - June 2006
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Big attractions, fun facts all in one new book By Charles F. Bostwick • Staff Writer
LANCASTER
“San Andreas Ain’t No Fault of Mine” — which she thinks is the first-ever guidebook entirely about the Antelope Valley — lists festivals, sights and day trips, plus tidbits like milestone Edwards Air Force Base test flights and famous former residents like John Wayne and Judy Garland, who lived in Lancaster as children.
“I had a blast writing it,” Stone, a Lancaster resident, said.
The 200-page-plus book contains directions, maps, phone numbers and details on things to do and see around the valley, as well as information on local history.
Stone said she was surprised by some of the facts she unearthed during her research.
She found out the rows of wind turbines topping brushy mountain ridges west of Mojave form the largest wind-energy area in the world. The twisted rock strata visible to motorists driving the Antelope Valley Freeway near Lake Palmdale are the work of the San Andreas Fault. The Navy’s China Lake testing center contains the largest petroglyph concentration in the Americas.
“Every time we tuned around it seemed like we’d find another gem,” Stone said.
A former newspaper reporter who has written five other books, Stone worked at papers from Hawaii to the East Coast as she accompanied her husband in his Navy career and raised a family.
Growing up in Los Angeles, her only contact with the Antelope Valley was when her parents brought her to St. Andrew’s Abbey’s Fall Festival, which she found astonishingly hot. But she moved to Lancaster when her husband went to work at Edwards Air Force Base.
This book started out as an Antelope Valley history. But Stone decided there were enough local history books. Then she thought of places to take her grandchildren, and turned the book into a guide for the valley’s thousands of newcomers.
After she had the research done, she and her husband spent last summer driving through the valley checking directions and mileage.
The title came to her in the middle of one night. It’s humorous but also a reminder of the San Andreas earthquake fault’s presence along the valley’s southern rim, she said.
“I’m afraid a lot of newcomers don’t know how close we live,” Stone said.
“San Andreas Ain’t No Fault of Mine” can be purchased at locations including the Lancaster Museum/Art Gallery, 44801 Sierra Highway; Antelope Valley Winery, 42041 20th St. W., Lancaster; Reagan’s Hallmark, 2050 W. Ave. J, Lancaster; Burns Pharmacy, 866W. Lancaster Blvd., Lancaster, and the Air Force Flight Test Center Museum at Edwards. List price is $14.95.
Charles F. Bostwick, (661) 267-5742 chuck.bostwick@dailynews.com
Reprinted with permission from the Daily News, Monday, December 19, 2005
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A guide to fun in the Valley
New book written for high desert
newcomers By PENNY SORLAGAS Valley Press Correspondent
It was this realization, plus an interest in history including the history of the Antelope Valley, that prompted Stone to write her latest of six books.
“San Andreas Ain’t No Fault of Mine: Fun and Fact-Filled Guide to the Antelope Valley” is just that — a guide to the many spots for fun and historical interest in the Valley and other nearby areas. Under listings such “A Blast into the Past,” “Can You Dig It” and “Lights, Camera, Action,” the table of contents hints at what the reader will find inside this 220-page discovery guide.
Although many of the tedious hours that went into the creation of this book were spent on research, the most enjoyable hours that went into the creation of the book were also spent on research, the kind of research that took Stone and her husband, Leighton, down dirt roads, up and up on narrow foot-paths and out into remote desert areas.
“After I finished the research and was proofing it, I wasn’t comfortable with some of what I was finding. So I asked my husband, as a favor, to go with me on some day trips.”
To her surprise, Leighton was a very willing participant.
Originally hired by a publishing company to write a book on the Antelope Valley, Stone began her research seven years ago. , But the company went bankrupt and Stone’s notes went into a box.
Two years later, the box went with her when her husband was transferred to a job in Alabama. When they returned to California, Stone still had the box and decided not to toss out the history research. She had discovered that she not only loved history, she loved doing research as well.
In writing the guidebook from her research notes and day trips with her husband, Stone said she did a lot of rewriting and lightening up. The book includes just enough history to jog a reader’s interest, so Stone added notes to direct readers where to go to find additional information on selected topics.
“I tried to do this book from the perspective of a newcomer,” she said, hoping that the information will make it easy for newcomers to find their way around the vast desert and mountain areas, including spots in Tehachapi, Lone Pine, Death Valley and the Poppy Reserve.
“You’ve heard the saying, ‘It takes a village to raise a child.’ Well, this book took a village to write,” said Stone, citing the help she received from friend Isabelle Michaels, Lancaster librarian Bill Thomas and Cynthia Kincaid, who designed the colorful book cover.
Inside the cover, in Chapter 22, titled “Guide to Movie Locations,” Stone wrote, If you look around the Antelope Valley and have a sense of déjà vu, it’s because at one time or the other, so many places have been used for filming. It would be fun to rent the movies and TV shows listed (“Quantum Leap,’ “I SPY,” Columbo and others) and see if you can spot the Antelope Valley as a stand-in for other states, nations and even alien territory.
Ski resorts, golf courses, museums, gold mines and aerospace sites are just a few of the listings that encourage discovery and exploration, not just by visitors or newcomer but by old-time Valley residents.
Reprinted with permission from the Antelope Valley Press, Wednesday, November 9, 2005
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Ridge Writers on Books ‘San
Andreas Ain’t No Fault of Mine’ By DONNA McCROHAN ROSENTHAL
The book’s scope extends from the world’s largest wind energy producer to the biggest concentration of petroglyphs in the Western Hemisphere right in our own backyard to the world’s longest-running festival, the Wind Festival that begins Jan. 1 and ends Dec. 31 each year. Award-winning journalist Bonnie D. Stone devotes each chapter to an aspect of historical interest — Native Americans, famous explorers, legendary outlaws, borax, gold, camels, stagecoaches, the railroad, Hollywood’s back lot, pioneers of flight from the earliest to SpaceshipOne and so on -- combining narrative discussions with driving directions and museum information for folks who want to know more so they can plan their own adventures. She includes such obvious, not-to-be-missed entries as the Antelope Valley Poppy Preserve and Lancaster’s two-day California Poppy Festival in April as well as many spots that some of us never realized existed. Among them, the Swiss chalet-style Antelope Valley Indian Museum on Avenue M in Lancaster has appeared in “Bonanza,” “The Magnificent Seven,” “The Avengers” and “Remington Steele.” Stone covers organized attractions such as the William S. Hart County Park and Museum that frequently screens silent movies for the public. Located in Newhall, this 22-room mansion formerly belonged to cinema’s first cowboy superstar. She also suggests less structured activities, such as investigating the San Andreas Fault or visiting Robber’s Roost. According to the author, this site was named for the bandit Tiburcio Vasquez after remnants of his campfire were found there. Stone clearly enjoys local lore of every sort. She cites John C. Fremont’s description of the Joshua as “the most repulsive tree in the vegetable kingdom.” Elsewhere she tells us that old-timers talk about “cabbits” — the offspring of cats who bred with rabbits — but this must go unsubstantiated because there are no cute cabbits running around today to verify this story.” Stone concludes with an extensive A-Z listing of places to go, a month-by-month roster of festivals and special events, a chronology and maps. All in all, this light-hearted yet well-researched volume serves up exactly what its subtitle promises, a “fun and fact-filled guide to the Antelope Valley.” “San Andreas Ain’t No Fault of Mine” is now on sale in the Maturango Museum Store. This weekly column is presented by the Ridge Writers, the East Sierra Branch of the California Writers Club. Meetings are held the first Wednesday evening of each month at the Ridgecrest Branch Library, and free programs are offered throughout the year. Visit www.ridgenet.net/~curtdan/ridgewriters for information. Reprinted with permission from the News Review, Wednesday, February 22nd, 2006 *****************
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New book explores history of tourism in Eastern Kern County
By Lucinda Sue Crosby
Looking at her experiences and field trips with humor caused Stone to see many of the attractions in an entirely different — “and more fun” — light.
Reprinted with permission from The Daily Independent, Tuesday February 28, 2006.
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San Andreas Ain’t No Fault of Mine By KATIE CORBETT
The discovery that there was no guidebook of the Antelope Valley inspired award-winning author Bonnie D. Stone to write her sixth book --- the newly published 200-page “San Andreas Ain’t No Fault of Mine: Fun and Fact-Filled Guide to the Antelope Valley.”
During her research Stone said she was surprised by what she discovered. “Did you know that the Valley has the largest concentration of petroglyphs in the Western Hemisphere and the world’s oddest trees, Joshua trees? Did you know that the rows of wind turbines topping the Tehachapi Mountains near Mojave make up the largest wind-energy area in the world?”
Referring to another amazing
fact, the San Andreas Fault inspired the title of the book. The title is
humorous and eye-catching, but also is a reminder that the San Andreas
earthquake’s fault runs through the Valley’s southern end. The book points out that the fault is very evident along the Antelope Valley Freeway where twisted rock strata greets freeway drivers just north of Lake Palmdale.
After she finished her tedious hours of research, she said, “I wasn’t comfortable with some of what I was finding. So I asked my husband to go with me on some day trips to confirm some of the facts.”
As a result, she and her husband Leighton Stone spent last summer visiting places and checking directions and mileage to various sites.
After drafting the book from her
research notes and day trips with her husband, she did a lot of rewriting
and lightening up the copy. The book contains just enough history to peak
the reader’s interest.
“I did this book from the
perspective of newcomers,’ she said, “to make it easier for them to find
their way around the area.” Originally the book started out seven years ago as a history project for a publisher who asked Stone to write about the Valley’s history. She began her research and was interrupted when the publishing company went bankrupt and her husband was transferred to a job in Alabama.
When the couple returned to
California, she decided to use her history research for a book that
eventually evolved into a guidebook for newcomers, children and families.
Growing up in Los Angeles, Stone
said that she knew nothing about the Antelope Valley except when her parents
dragged her to St. Andrew’s Abbey’s fall festival in Valyermo.
She recalled the desert was
HOTTER THAN HADES in the summertime.
Her next exposure to the Valley
was when she and her husband Leighton moved to Lancaster after he retired
from the Navy and took a job at Edwards Air Force Base.
A journalism graduate of
Marquette University in Milwaukee, Wis., Stone worked at newspapers from
Hawaii to the East Coast as she accompanied her husband in his Navy career
and raised their family of three sons. She edited three newspapers in
Hawaii: Ka Nupepa, the Mililani Town Newspaper; the Caducean, Tripler Army
Medical Center; and The Shopper. Then she was the family section editor for Lakeland Publishers’ five weekly newspapers based in Grayslake, Illinois, and the Angeles Mesa News Advertiser, Los Angeles.
Other positions she held included
deputy public affairs officer for Tripler Army Medical Center, Hawaii; and
public relations director for American Diabetes Association, Hawaii Chapter.
When her three sons were young,
she freelanced for magazines specializing in writing about the family for
numerous publications.
Between 1988 and 1991 Stone
authored four non-fiction books: “When Husbands Come Out of the Closet,”
(Haworth Press, 1989); “Aloha Cowboy,” (University of Hawaii Press, 1988,
with Virginia Smith); “Uncle Sam’s Brides” (Walker Press, 1990); and
“Campfollowing, History of the Military Wives,” (Praeger Press, 1991). In
1998, she wrote a children’s fiction “Civil War in Paradise”
(Archway/Minstrel).
Her awards include Who’s Who of
American Women, and American Women Writers; four Galley Awards for
excellence in writing from International Association of Business
Communicators! Hawah; Tad Quattlebaum Award, South Carolina, for best
state-wide feature story; South Carolina Press Association state-wide first
place awards for newspaper page layout, article writing and photography; and
three National Federation of Press Women awards for newspaper articles.
To find local places where “San Andreas Ain’t
No Fault of Mine” can be purchased or to order the book contact
http://www.bonniedstone.com Reprinted with permission from A V Woman Magazine.
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