LISTEN TO YOUR MOTHER TWIN CITIES 2016
PHOTOGRAPHY CREDIT -- GRATEFULLY -- TO GLIMPSES OF SOUL PHOTOGRAPHY
LISTEN TO YOUR MOTHER TWIN CITIES
2016 CAST
Luci J. Byrne
An engineer by education, Luci Byrne has only recently started to write again after taking a nearly 20 year hiatus from that hobby. Prior to motherhood, she was a project leader and an expert at Powerpoint presentations. Now, she considers herself lucky if she gets more than 5 minutes of “alone time” to put coherent thoughts together. She currently fills her time wrangling two precocious boys, volunteering to lead science projects, and looking for missing socks.
Junita L. Flowers
Junita Flowers is a blogger, speaker, entrepreneur and a mom. Her goal is to inspire others on camera, on paper, with a microphone and, of course, with cookies. Junita is the owner and founder of Favorable Treats, a cookie company that produces frozen cookie dough using scratch-made family recipes. Junita recently started a blog, She Laughed She Cried She Inspired, about finding inspiration through adversity. When trying to successfully juggle the demands of entrepreneurship, motherhood and life, Junita lives by her personal vision statement: faith is my foundation, family is my motivation, business is my determination. Junita is blessed to be a mom to her daughter Shelby, and her son, Jonathan, both of whom inspire her to be her best self.
Cherish Sonja Gibson
Cherish Sonja Gibson is a perpetual poet and occasional essayist whose art is grounded in her Liberian-American identity. She been published in the Minnesota Women’s Press, Minneapolis Star Tribune and Saint Paul Pioneer Press and was a 2015 Givens Foundation Emerging Writers’ Mentor Program fellow. Cherish was born and raised in South Minneapolis by her fantastic Liberian mother and enjoys laughing, puppies and well-seasoned food.
Kate Anne Gjerde
Kate Gjerde, the author of the award-winning memoir, Given Away, was written under her pen name, Kate Anne Kang. When Kate is not writing she can be found on the pickleball courts; playing Chinese mahjong (for the last twenty years); or tending to her numerous and much beloved houseplants. By day she teaches English to language learners at both the high school and elementary level. She is blessed with two lovely twenty-something children. She lives in the Twin Cities with her husband, her best friend. Connect with Kate at: www.kimchivoodoo.com.
Hawona Sullivan Janzen
Hawona Sullivan Janzen is a Saint Paul based visual arts curator, poet and singer. Co-founder of the Witness Creative Writing Program at the University of Minnesota’s Robert J. Jones Urban Research and Outreach-Engagement Center (UROC), Hawona has recently done commissioned work for the St. Paul River Stewards corporation and Silverwood Park. When she is not home with her family, she can be found performing across the Twin Cities with her fellow musicians and poets in the Sonoglyph Music and Poetry Collective.
Andrea Mullenmeister
Andrea Mullenmeister loves gardening, traveling, making art, writing, and playing. She is passionate about advocating for her son and herself. Her articles about prematurity and parenting a child with extra needs have been published on The Huffington Post, The Mighty, You and Me Medical Magazine, BlogHer, and Preemie Babies 101. She’s a stay-at-home-mom to her warrior son, Jaxson, who was born prematurely at only twenty-three weeks gestation. Being such an early preemie, he has faced a number of obstacles including a three month NICU stay, multiple surgeries, a developmental delay, ADHD, and a brain tumor. He is a hilarious and curious preschooler who recently learned to say “Hey, watch THIS!” You can find Andrea at An Early Start where she writes about her family’s story of love, hope, and survival.
Sally K. Sexton
Sally K. Sexton is a mother, teacher, and essayist. She lives in South Minneapolis with her husband and two children. Sally writes to find meaning in the day-to-day events of caregiving across the lifespan. You can find her running along Minnehaha Creek as well as down trails of inspiration to the place where life and art intersect.
Liz Sjaastad
Lizabeth Fiedorow Sjaastad came to creative writing later in life after two decades working in organization development with startup businesses and social entrepreneurs. Following her exhilarating LTYM experience she changed her focus to writing. Her essays have appeared in Sun Magazine and Motherwell Magazine. A chapter from her memoir-in-progress was a finalist in the Midwest Review Writing Contest, 2021. She was honored to receive the 2021/2022 The Loft Literary Center’s Mentor Series Fellowship for creative non-fiction. She writes to process pain and that which she doesn't understand, typically involving her family of origin and motherhood.
Heather Strommen
Heather Strommen is a passionate, straight-from-the-heart storyteller. Her debut novel, VELVET, is out now (insert her jumping up and down with excitement here)! In addition to writing a whole freaking novel, Heather is an interior designer who loves making a house a home, always designing and refining the world around her. Founder of the popular Instagram, @sweetshadylane, Heather is married to her high school sweetheart. They call their four adult children "their very best friends." Heather has a simple mantra that keeps her happy: Write. Decorate. Repeat. She's thrilled to share the LTYM stage once again.
Hillary Wentworth
Born and raised in New England, Hillary Wentworth now lives, writes, and wanders in South Minneapolis. She earned an MFA in creative writing from the University of North Carolina at Wilmington, and her work has appeared in publications such as Black Warrior Review, The Fourth River, and Minnesota’s own mnartists.org. She currently serves as a prose editor for Storyscape Journal. You can find her online at hillarywentworth.com.
Sally Koering Zimney
Sally Koering Zimney is a presentation coach and consultant, an award-winning speaker and a writer whose mission is to create talks that move their audiences and the world. She has 15+ years of experience coaching speakers and creating impactful experiences that open minds and hearts. Sally is also the host of This Moved Me, a podcast and blog about the art of public speaking, interviewing beloved TED speakers like Julian Treasure – storytelling experts like Michael Margolis and LTYM’s Ann Imig – and brilliant undiscovered talent – sharing insight and inspiration so that our talks can move the world.
EMCEE: COLLEEN KRUSE
Alumni, LTYM TWIN CITIES 2013
Colleen Kruse is a longtime stand up comedian and writer. She has performed on Comedy Central, the Independent Film Channel, and MTV. Her work has appeared in the Minneapolis Star Tribune, the Minnesota Womens Press and the Rake Magazine. Colleen currently lives in Minneapolis with her sexy man friend and three cats.
