Our region is hosting a combined dual celebration of Jane Austen at 250 with our region's 40th Anniversary!

On November 16th (Sunday), we'll gather at the Hillsboro Brookwood Public Library in the upper floor event room overlooking a scenic pond and walkway from 12 - 3 pm at 2850 NE Brookwood Pkwy, Hillsboro, OR 97124.

Registration is FREE to all, funded by a generous donator.  To reserve a seat, please register by sending an email titled "Birthday Celebration" to <[email protected]>. 

All 3 of our founders will participate with Frank McClanahan serving as Master of Ceremonies. Mary Margaret Benson will provide a brief history of JASNA and our region's founding History. Frank will facilitate a look back at our region with reminisces from the membership about memorable activities and events including our region hosting the Portland AGM in 2010.  Paula Stepankowsky will toast Jane Austen.

Then independent scholar and regional member, Arnie Perlstein will lead an interactive presentation on "40 Years of Jane Austen Scholarship in Persuasions."

Harp music will be provided by local harpist, AnnaLee Driscoll.

The afternoon will include buffet potluck dining. If attending, please bring a treat, either savory or sweet or both for the tea table. Tea, bottled water, and cranberry punch will be provided along with a sheet cake (from Mary Margaret Benson).

Other specialty buffet selections include cucumber sandwiches and madeleine cookies reminiscent of our first meeting, also lavender shortbread cookies in honor of Kim Higgins and in memory of the late Mary Thiras-Benjamin.

Additionally, we'll have a gallery viewing of photos of those no longer with us, relocated, or unable to attend as they are also a part of our celebration.

Regency themed costumes are encouraged but not required!

Come early and take a walk around the pond or afterwards, stroll the walkway.

See you there!

Meet our July speaker, Paula Stepankowsky!
by Vonnie Alto, Regional Coordinator

Once again for our July meeting, co-founder  Paula Stepankowsky will present and this time at her lovely home in Longview, WA!
 
Paula is a native of Spokane, Washington, where she attended Marycliff High School and earned a B.A. Degree in English Literature from Fort Wright College. She then earned an M.A. Degree in Journalism from the University of Missouri at Columbia before moving to Longview, Wash., where she was a reporter for The Daily News for 15 years, most of that time as business/industry reporter.

After returning to the University of Missouri as a Davenport Fellow in Economic and Business Reporting, she became the Pacific Northwest correspondent for Dow Jones NewsWires, and later a Pacific Northwest reporter for The Wall Street Journal and Dow Jones NewsWires.

In a career shift in 2008, Paula returned to graduate school and earned a MA in Teaching from the University of Portland. For the next 14 years, she taught Language Arts to Middle School students at St. Rose School in Longview, where she continues to teach Art Appreciation as a volunteer.

As a volunteer, Paula has worked with many groups and organizations. She has been on the board of LifeWorks of Cowlitz County since 2014.  She is the Cowlitz County representative on the board of the ARC of Washington and is a volunteer for the Special Olympics. She is a volunteer for Child Advocates of Cowlitz County, and she is also on the board of Trustees of the Longview Public Library. 

Paula is a co-founder of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Catholic High School in Vancouver, Washington, as well as a co-founder of The Burney Society, an international literary society dedicated to the study of Frances Burney d’Arblay, Jane Austen’s literary predecessor. 

Paula is also one of our region's founding members. Paula read about JASNA in the New York Times in about 1983 or soon after it was founded. She wrote to the JASNA President and asked if there were other JASNA members near her. The JASNA President gave her the name of Mary Margaret Benson of Linfield, OR. Paul contacted Mary Margaret Benson to see about forming a region in Oregon/SW Washington.

They held the first Oregon & SW Washington meeting at Mary Margaret's house in Linfield in 1984. Frank McClanahan (Mary's husband) was there and a few others. Paula also helped to set up the reading groups and spoke at many of the early meetings in the 1980's and early 1990's.

Additionally, Paula was the editor of JASNA News for seven years from 1990-1997, and also served as an ex-officio member of the board of the Jane Austen Society of North America during that time.

Paula served on the organizing committee for the 2010 Portland AGM. Her chief involvement was to set up the Lit Chicks exhibit at Multnomah County Library. The display of caricatures, books and manuscript letters was all from her collection and that of her sister and her husband, who own the Jane Austen first editions displayed there. They subsequently have acquired first editions of all of Jane Austen's novels.

In 2017, our region honored Paula as a Tribute Grant Honoree for her contributions to our region, and also because she was instrumental in the success of the 2010 Portland AGM, and for promoting great literature.

At our July meeting, Paula will speak again on Jane Austen And The Sisterhood of the Pen. This will be the first time that she has given this presentation. 

Paula's presentation will include over 50 first editions by contemporary women writers of Jane Austen which Paula owns as she is a serious collector of antique books.  We'll see first editions from such authors as  Frances Burney, Ann Radcliff, Maria Edgeworth, Charlotte Smith, Lady Caroline Lamb, Mary Brunton, Hannah More, Jane West, Elizabeth Inchbald, the Porter Sisters, etc.  

Additionally, Paula also has more than 70 original Gillray and Rowlandsom cartoons, quite a few of them hanging, that members will see. 

As a bonus, we'll also tour Paula's curated rose garden of 82 rose bushes.

What a wondrous time we'll have with Paula!

Thank you Paula!

Behind the Scenes:
The Novel Life Of Jane Austen: A Graphic Biography 
by Janine Barchas, illustrated by Isabelle Greenwood
Speaker: Janine Barchas
by Vonnie Alto, Regional Coordinator
Part 3.

Our region gathered with our guest, Janeite and multi-published author and professor, Janine Barchas, on June 15th for a special anniversary event in celebration of Jane Austen's 250th birthday.

Janine gave a a behind the scenes presentation of her new book, The Novel Life of Jane Austen: A Graphic Biography, illustrated by Isabelle Greenwood.

Our new regional member, Cindy Filer, hosted us at her beautiful home in NE Portland.

It was an intricately timed meeting as our guest and her friend arrived directly from the airport. Our Regional Coordinator, Vonnie Alto greeted Janine and her friend when they arrived. The author thoughtfully brought hostess gifts for our hostess Cindy and our RC, Vonnie for all the work they did to make this event happen amid a Father's Day weekend. The dish towels are a fun take on Austen with "Greetings from Austin Texas." What a special souvenir in remembrance of our speaker, Janine Barchas from the University of Texas at Austin! 

Here our regional members converse with Janine Barchas and her friend and dine on all sorts of culinary delights while sipping cooling refreshments during Portland's 74 degree temperature.

After mingling inside, we adjourned onto Cindy's beautiful white octagon deck. There, Janine gave her laptop presentation titled, "Behind the Scenes: The Novel Life of Jane Austen: A Graphic Biography."  After a fascinating Q&A and more mingling, Janine and her friend were off and sped away.

Thank you to Janine Barchas for visiting our region and giving such an intriguing and insightful presentation on Jane Austen! We all are eager to purchase your book: The Novel Life of Jane Austen: A Graphic Biography.   

Behind the Scenes:
The Novel Life Of Jane Austen: A Graphic Biography 
by Janine Barchas, illustrated by Isabelle Greenwood
Speaker: Janine Barchas
by Vonnie Alto, Regional Coordinator
Part 2.

Here, our region prepares for our Jane and Janine June Meeting. On June 15th (Father's Day) we welcomed multi-published author and Janeite, Janine Barchas, for a special anniversary event in celebration of Jane Austen's 250th birthday. Janine gave a engrossing presentation of her new book, The Novel Life of Jane Austen: A Graphic Biography, illustrated by Isabelle Greenwood.

Our new regional member, Cindy Filer, hosted us at her beautiful home in NE Portland where we gathered on her spacious white octagon deck with an arboretum forest in the background to hear and see Janine's unique presentation. 

Here, Cindy Filer and Vonnie Alto (Regional Coordinator) prepare for this special event. 

Behind the Scenes:
The Novel Life Of Jane Austen: A Graphic Biography 
by Janine Barchas, illustrated by Isabelle Greenwood
Speaker: Janine Barchas
by Vonnie Alto, Regional Coordinator
Part 1.

Our region welcomed multi-published author and Janeite, Janine Barchas, on June 15th for a special anniversary event in celebration of Jane Austen's 250th birthday.

Our new regional member, Cindy Filer, hosted us at her beautiful home in NE Portland where we gathered on her spacious white octagon deck with an arboretum forest in the background to hear Janine speak. 

Janine is the author of The Lost Books of Jane Austen. Janine gave a a behind the scenes presentation of her new book, The Novel Life of Jane Austen: A Graphic Biography, illustrated by Isabelle Greenwood.

Janine accompanied her presentation with a handout. See attached file.

We learned that graphic novels are a hot new genre flooding libraries and bookstores. The Novel Life of Jane Austen: A Graphic Biography is a novel about a female author (Jane Austen) written by a female scholar (Janine)

We got a first hand behind the scenes look at the The Novel Life of Jane Austen: A Graphic Biography. This is Janine's second scholarly book since writing The Lost Books of Jane Austen.

The Novel Life of Jane Austen is a dual creation with Janine providing the text and research (the how, what, and when) and Isabelle the illustrations. It is the first graphic novel written about Jane Austen and her life. It took 3 years for Janine to write the book.

Janine selected 3 phases of Jane Austen's life to document and told Austen's life 3 parts:

• Part 1: Budding Writer 1796-1797 (The promise of Jane Austen in her twenties)
  
• Part 2: Struggling Artist 1801-1809 (The genteel poverty of Jane Austen in her early thirties)
  
• Part 3: Published Author 1811 - 1817 (Jane Austen's final years at Chawton House)   
  

The book celebrates Jane Austen's life while focusing on Austen's relationship with her sister and family. Cleverly, the author uses a matted color palette and portrays Austen wearing a yellow dress in the cartoon panels for the reader to identify her which explodes into a bright reds of maroon, magenta, fuchsia, and pink to show Austen writing or imagining her stories.   

Janine inserted new information from her research about Austen. Everything presented in the graphic novel is based on fact and history with authentic engravings and newsletter images and maps integrated into the artwork. As one member noted, the book becomes a tour guide for readers to reminisce about their travels to England.

Both the author, Janine, and the illustrator, Isabelle, conducted many site visits over the course of a  year to document Jane Austen's travels to such places as Netalee Abbey, Farleligh Castle, the village of Chawton, and the Jane Austen House Museum.

Janine found herself challenged on how to recreate 3 distinct eras in Austen's time. She used Austen's spectacles to denote the 3rd section of the book or Jane's final years at Chawton. Isabelle also added age lines to Austen's face to age her.  

We also discussed the world of Jane Austen and what attracts readers to Jane Austen's writings.  

Based on Janine's classroom experience as a teacher, Janine noted that young people live in a world of too much choice and multiple social media platforms that everything is acceptable.

One of our members, Cynthia Eckersley noted that young people really crave a world that is calm with a right/wrong way to behave as compared to a lack of formality and chaos that exists in today's society. Hence the appeal of Jane Austen to youthful readers.

Cynthia insightfully noted that during the 18th-19th century of Jane Austen, women couldn't hold a job or own land; in today's world, there's too much freedom. The pandemic turned the world upside down. As a result, people today are moving towards the past for entertainment and history (such as re-enactments, including the annual Jane Austen Festival in Bath and the Versailles Masked Ball).  

Regional Coordinator, Vonnie Alto asked, "Why write a graphic novel?" Janine answered that words and images in a graphic novel work in unison. Janine's previous book, The Lost books of Jane Austen shows that pictures illustrated how Austen became popular--but words together with pictures better reveal Austen's life.

Vonnie asked a follow up question: "Why read a graphic novel?" Janine responded by stating that Austen's fans crave other ways to experience Austen. A graphic novel provides a unique medium to recount Austen.

Graphic novels are also a way of creating a visual dynamic based on research with images. Words and images work together to transport the reader back in time into the era and life of Jane Austen. Janine compared the effect to screenwriting.  The visuals and words come together. It's rich and brings it alive.

Janine noted that Austen pulled from her ordinary life and put it into her novels which the graphic novel explores.

Since the The Novel Life of Jane Austen is a different medium, Janine is waiting to see how readers react to it. She said that a visual sense is needed to appreciate a graphic novel. 

Janine had such a positive experience writing The Novel Life of Jane Austen that she would like to write another one to continue Austen's life story--as none of us wants a good story to end. Janine noted that the movie, Clueless is based almost word for word on Jane Austen's Emma. It opened a door into graphic novels. Janine stepped through that door by writing The Novel Life of Jane Austen: A Graphic Biography.    

Thank you, Janine Barchas, for visiting our region and showing us how your created The Novel Life of Jane Austen: A Graphic Biography.  And thank you to our host, Cindy Filer for hosting our region at her lovely home!

Interviewed by Vonnie Alto, Regional Coordinator

Cindy Filer, our newest member, joined JASNA and our region on April 27, 2025 and a few days later, attended our Spring Tea.
 
Cindy was born in western Pennsylvania and moved to Oregon at the age of 23. She has a B.A. Degree in Accounting from Youngstown State Ohio and worked for 41 years at the Portland post office--performing a variety of jobs including delivering mail, providing customer service at the window, but mostly sorting mail on large machines. 
 
When Cindy first moved to Portland, her first friend belonged to the Society for Creative Anachronism (SCA) so Cincy joined SCA too and had a lot of fun playing knights, lords, and ladies. Her dear friend also introduced Cindy to contra dance which became a lifelong interest. 
 
In midlife, Cindy discovered vintage waltzing and ballroom dancing at Norse Hall.  Round and round she went, twirling in the elegant ballroom which led to learning smooth ballroom dance as dance became her life. 
 
Then Covid struck and the music stopped. Cindy was now lost without dancing as a pastime. Having never been much of a television watcher, she sought out the library and began reading English and French history--subjects sorely neglected in her college business curriculum. 
 
Cindy had always loved books but now narrowed her focus to Jane Austen and the Regency era. 

Cindy found our region when she started thinking about what she wants to do as she heads towards retirement and realized that she needs friends like Jane Austen. 

A few months ago, she researched Jane Austen on Wikipedia to learn more about Jane. The films adapted from Austen's books are her favorites and she watches them over and over again. As she scrolled down through the entries, she discovered JASNA.  

When she saw our Spring Tea advertised on our website, she thought that it would be a fun and inviting occasion to meet the Janeites. That's when she contacted our region with the most charming subject heading in her email, "Perhaps I want to join." As I read her email, I knew she was a devout Janite.

Cynthia attended our Spring Tea on May 3rd at the Good Shepherd of the Valley Lutheran Church in Beaverton where Collins Hemingway spoke to our region.  She had a delightful time meeting our Janeites and said they are all so lovely and interesting! She also enjoyed our buffet potluck, particularly the delicious treats. She loved the beautiful centerpiece flowers and the live piano music from the 2005 motion picture of Pride and Prejudice which transported Cindy into Jane Austen's Regency era.

She kindly volunteered to host our upcoming meeting. 

Now that Cindy is in her later midlife, she finds that much of today's world no longer appeals to her.  She savors the gentleness of partner dancing, beautiful music, sensitive films, the feel of quality paper in a book or letter, fine words, lovely fabrics. And, of course, the company of thoughtful, like minded new friends like us Janeites.  
Cindy also loves gardening, horses, cats, and dogs. She hopes to someday knit and would like to do more skiing, kayaking, and horseback riding. She still also enjoys contra dancing and smooth ballroom dance.

In her dreams, Cindy is a cowgirl at heart, and now, also a Janeite! 

By Vonnie Alto, Regional Coordinator

Multi-published Janeite, Janine Barchas will give a presentation to our region on June 15th (Sunday) in celebration of Jane Austen's 250th Birthday!  

Janine is a professor of English who has published several non-fiction books on Jane Austen. Janine is from the Netherlands and lives in the U.S. Since 2002 she has been a Professor of English at the University of Texas at Austin.  

Janine has published the following books: 

• Paper Jane: 250 Years Of Jane Austen  (October 2025)
• The Novel Life of Jane Austen: A Graphic Biography (April 2025)
• A Boyhood Under Nazi Occupation: The Personal Story of Jan Duijvestein (translation, 2020)
• The Lost Books of Jane Austen (2019)
• Matters of Fact in Jane Austen: History, Location, And Celebrity (2013)
• Graphic Design, Print Culture, And the Eighteenth-Century Novel (2008)

Janine was a breakout speaker several times at JASNA AGM's and a plenary speaker twice (2013 and 2019).

She has curated Jane Austen exhibits including the famous Will and Jane Exhibit at the Folger Shakespeare Library for the 2016 AGM in Washington DC and also gave tours.

Janine has also created the online digital project: What Jane Saw <www.whatjanesaw.org> 

Her current online exhibit is titled, The Art of Cassandra at Jane Austen's House <https://janeaustens.house/display/the-art-of-cassandra/>

This Fall her upcoming exhibit is titled Paper Jane at the Grolier Club in NYC (which opens December 4th) to coincide with the October publication of her Paper Jane book. 

Janine's June presentation will focus on her new release: The Novel Life of Jane Austen: A Graphic Biography which is a transatlantic collaboration between Janine in Austen, Textas and the graphic novelist Isabel Greenberg in London. It centers on the relationship between the Austen sisters. One review hailed it as "Truly delightful, charming, and funny." 

Janine will provide a behind the scenes look at the book's creative process and share favorite scenes and moments from the book in celebration of its publication and Jane Austen's 250th Birthday.  

Additionally, Janine will answer questions about her new book and address questions about her other books, including her upcoming Fall release, and her exhibits.  
 
No preparation is necessary!

This year, our Spring Tea will be held at the Shepherd of the Valley of the Lutheran Church. Here are highlights of our upcoming Spring Tea:

• Independent scholar and published author, Collins Hemingway will speak on his new book, Jane Austen and the Creation of Modern Fiction: Six Novels in a "Style Entirely New."
• An onsite book signing with Collins Hemingway for his newly published book and his Jane Austen Trilogy. 
• An emporium tag sale of Regency era and historical related items including books (fiction and nonfiction).
• The opportunity to dress in Regency attire although not required.
• Buffet dining with tea and real lemonade.

By Cynthia Eckersley, Tribute Grant 2023 Recipient

Here is Part 3 of our 2023 Tribute Grant Award Recipient, Cynthia Eckersley's account of her Denver AGM experience told in 3 parts:

It was a rocky road to the Gaylord Hotel in Aurora, Colorado  for the Jane Austen Society’s AGM.  After the plane landed on the tarmac, and the passengers debarked, I immediately bumped into a Portland couple-- friendly JASNA faces that recognized me and offered to share a cab.  A light in the darkness, a path forward, a friendly human connection.  As I fumbled with my luggage, it made a difference that my new friends offered to help. We journeyed to the hotel together and arrived all in one piece. 

The Gaylord Hotel loomed up out of the scrub grass and sandy soil as if a giant spaceship had landed and sprouted wings. According to the website, it had its own solar system of at least 7 restaurants.  What would be my home for the next 7 days consisted of a universe unto itself!

At the check-in counter, my voice trembled and tears sprung to my eyes when I shared that my husband wasn’t able to travel to the conference with me as we had planned. A few hours later, to my surprise, there was a knock on the door of my hotel room. A woman handed me a note with a basket of spa supplies as well as chocolates from the front desk!  What a generous and sweet gift to console my sadness! 

Already Jane Austen was working her magic! Never in all my travels had I been given anything by a front desk concierge in a hotel to boost my morale.  While JASNA “strives to ensure that all are welcome and feel valued in its meetings, events, and community spaces,” the hotel clerk went above and beyond to start off my JASNA AGM experience with a bountiful blessing.   

To accommodate the 800 JASNA attendees, we were scattered across several floors and hallways. My room was on the 9th floor of the East wing and had a clear view overlooking the front of the hotel.  It was soundproof and extremely clean. Apparently, the housekeeping service works until late into the night and was always available for any of my needs as they worked their way through the massive number of rooms. Outside, paths meandered around the hotel.  I explored them on my first day there. I had a lot of time on my hands as I had arrived on Wednesday and the conference officially started on Friday.

There was a pool inside and a pool outside, with a chute that carries inner tubes and swimmers across the desert. By Friday morning, I had acclimated to the area by swimming in the pool, walking to a grocery store (a 5 mile walk for the day) and trying out some of the food options at the hotel which included a marketplace self-service restaurant. The outdoor Jacuzzi was luxurious and the saltwater pool was heavenly.  While I couldn’t see the night stars, I mostly had the pool to myself. I floated around while staring into the night sky imagining that I was circling the planet. 

I looked forward to the plenary session as I anticipated that the AGM conference would be stimulating. The keynote lecturer, Claudia L. Johnson, a Murray Professor of English at Princeton University is “renowned for her works on Jane Austen and Mary Wollstonecraft.” I listened attentively to her talk on “Austen Escape.”  It was detailed, a bit meandering, and food for thought regarding the idea that reading Austen’s novels provided an escape that legitimately served a purpose.  Not familiar with Wollstonecraft's works, I got the sense that Ms. Johnson was known for her feminism in writing and that she is a highly valued scholar. 

The 2nd plenary speaker on Saturday, Janet Todd (known for her work on women’s writing and feminism) was lovely and raised many issues regarding the “enduring fascination of Darcy’s famous home,” Pemberley.  In “To Dream of Pemberley,” she discussed the great estates that were used in creating a sense of escape in films depicting Austen’s writings. Her scholarly background was impressive, to say the least. 

There were many breakout sessions. Of course, I could not attend them all. However two of the breakout sessions I attended were on music.  The first (“Mary Bennet and the Rocky Road to Accomplishment”) was historical, and well thought out, but the acoustics were not working for part of her presentation which was a disappointment.  The second presentation titled “Pride and Prejudice and the Piano” had a different slant on Jane Austen’s music. The speaker never mentioned that most all of Austen’s music is available online through South Hampton University archives.  This was a little disturbing as the speaker is rewriting some of the music. However, it provided fodder for a lengthy conversation with another professor over brunch.   

Another breakout session I was “A Heart Full of Wonder: Pride and Prejudice” by Collins Hemingway since he lives in Oregon, and I was curious about him. It was stimulating, thoughtful, and well researched. Collins “examined the way Austen delves deeply, for the first time, into the heart and mind of a heroine.” Afterward, he explained his love for Austen and literature.

A highlight was the first timer's session where I met a young woman from Manhattan.  We were both alone and finding our way.  She, an old soul, had just graduated from college after writing a thesis on Jane Austen.  I, a young soul, had retired from social work and was able to reach out.  We met somewhere in the middle.  The bouncing ball seemed to evade us, so we were able to dodge the questions while laughing at whoever caught the ball as they stumbled to search for an answer.  Whew! I was so glad that I didn’t have to be put on the spot regarding my knowledge of Austen, as I was still forging a path through her novels. 

By the way, if I had to pick the best of Austen’s beaus, fictional or otherwise, I would have said Mr. Darcy like most of the ladies present at the AGM. Tom Lefroy might have been familiar with the laws of Gretna Green, but he wasn’t able to marry Jane and might not have been such a great catch anyway.  Most of the lawyers I had dated worked long hours, were self-obsessed, and ended up divorced.  By contrast, my Mr. Darcy was home recuperating.

My new friend accompanied me to the banquet and the ball. We had a lovely evening, as she joined our Portland group at the banquet table. It was the highlight of my evening, as I traipsed and curtsied across the stage in my red Regency gown during the promenade on a full stomach of roast beef, potatoes and vegetables topped off with a chocolate cake brownie dessert.   

Afterwards, we skipped most of the ball to attend the play, Being Mr. Wickham which was phenomenal! 

Another ticketed performance was  the premiere of “The Jane Austen Playlist: Pride and Prejudice” by Syrie James. JASNA scholars, Devoney Looser, James Nagle, and Janet Todd were just three of the brave souls who blitzed through “Jane Austen in 48 Minutes: 6 Rocky Romances”.  The stage lit up with their laughter and literacy. The play presented Jane’s novels in 8 minutes each, funny and brilliantly acted out by them. We all applauded and were charmed by the wit and satirical comments of these scholarly actors.

I attended the Sunday morning book signing and had an inspiring conversation with Devoney Looser about her book, Sister Novelists: The Trailblazing Porter Sisters, Who Paved the Way For Austen and the Brontes. I had read her book for my region’s bi-monthly meeting and was delighted to talk to her.
 
The Sunday Plenary session and brunch ended my JASNA AGM adventure. “Solving the Male Mystery:  The Bennet Sisters as Detective Heroines” by Francine Mathews was enthralling!  While I had not read her mystery series, I now had a new goal of reading them all when I returned to Oregon. 

I also have another possible venue to pursue: Chawton House and the Residency grant given my interest in music and the newly discovered music notebook containing Jane Austen’s music with her signature titled, Select Collection of Choice Music for the Harpsichord or Piano Forte by Domenico Corri (1790).

Oh, so many things to explore! So little time! I said good-bye to my newfound friends, with promises to text, a head full of Austen and a heart full of love.

What a very special experience attending the AGM as a Tribute Grant Award Recipient! Thank you so much to the Oregon-SW Washington Region! I had a wonderful time at the 2023 JASNA Denver AGM! Everyone was welcoming! When I returned home, I expressed my appreciation in my thank you notes to the honorees, Bill Boyd and Marna Tisdel. I also co-presented at our March regional meeting on Jane Austen at Home: A Biography by Lucy Worsley.

By Cynthia Eckersley, Tribute Grant 2023 Recipient

Here is Part 2 of our 2023 Tribute Grant Award Recipient, Cynthia Eckersley's account of her  Denver AGM experience told in 3 parts:

My rocky road to the Denver JASNA AGM was paved with good intentions.  My husband offered to go with me to the JASNA 2023 AGM to support me in my adventure.  We looked at the conference website, navigated through registration, and in June registered for a member and companion attendance.

The many options for extra activities along with multiple workshops were dazzling.  The possibilities included side trips to the Rocky Mountains, Pikes Peak, and the Denver Art Museum. Workshops included Dancing English Country style or more sedate activities such as embroidery and bonnet making.  While the numerous  side trips seemed exciting, they all came with a price tag.  Given that my husband and I had just spent almost $4,000.00 to travel in Quebec Provence for two weeks while practicing our French, I was reluctant to pay for extra events.  We planned to rent a car instead of paying $350.00 to ride in a van with others. My husband also had a friend in Rocky Ford whom he wanted to see. Since there was no shuttle to the hotel, renting a car made sense. 

We knew the weather could be dicey at that time of year (November) but given the El Nino predictions for winter, we thought we would take the chance. To economize, we would look on U-Tube for dancing lessons, or perhaps take advantage of a local dance troupe to learn ballroom steps. We had plenty of time to prepare as November seemed like a long way off from June.

On to the dress for the ball.  What did those Regency gals wear?  After studying 18th century clothing [https://fashion-era.com/fashion-history/regency/regency-fashion] and watching several versions of Pride and Prejudice, Sense and Sensibility and Emma I felt certain of what a Regency era dress looked like, but a ball gown?  Could I make one?  This was a little ambitious and perhaps out of my league as a sewer.  I ordered a Regency era dress pattern from a historical sewing website I had used in the past [https://historicalsewing.com]. A Laughing Moon pattern for a Regency gown seemed doable with several versions. I cut out my first attempt from a sheet of Egyptian cotton that was off white, with a small pattern of lines running through it.  It looked authentic. If I messed up, there would not be a huge cost involved. I used a king sized sheet to cut out the pattern. The advantage of using a king size sheet to cut out a pattern is that it is wide enough for multiple pieces to easily fit.  My husband, trying to be helpful, bought me a Serger sewing machine with air threading for easier sewing. 

Summer lumbered on.  The sewing project seemed daunting, but I had plenty of time. I procrastinated sewing my gown and instead distracted myself by gardening and all the activities that summer gardening entailed (canning making applesauce, pruning flowers and picking tomatoes) as well as trying to stay in shape by walking, swimming and exercising.

Meanwhile, I looked at the many breakout and special sessions for the AGM. The many scholarly talks that were available ranged from a myriad of topics including marriage in Gretna Green, Music of the Mary Bennet variety, Divorce in the age of Austen, and so forth.  How could one possibly choose?  They all sounded fascinating.  Recognizing a few names from the books I had read, I tried to narrow down my choices.  Although the 2023 JASNA offered many workshops, sewing a Regency gown was not one of them.  Also, I was disappointed that my husband was not eligible to attend any of the plenary sessions or workshops until the final morning.  It confused both of us and was hard to believe since the companion fare was almost as much as the member fee. I emailed the director for clarification. As we processed the information together, my husband's frustration mounted.  Mr. Darcy wasn’t too excited about dancing, as his hip pain made it difficult to navigate.  His commitment to supporting me wavered with the realization that he was not going to be able to attend anything the entire weekend until Sunday!  This truth was acknowledged, but it didn’t set well. 

Also, my dress project was lagging. By October (a month before the AGM), I realized that I would need to either go to the ball in my nightgown or find something else to wear.  I looked on Ebay and Amazon for a dress, but the cheesy polyester fabric of most of the gowns did not excite me as they were not historically accurate.  Polyester and zippers did not exist during the Regency era.  However, I took a chance on a Regency era red gown with gold trim that looked authentic and bid $60.00 on a handmade gown on Ebay. It matched a pair of velvet gloves with gold embellishment that a friend had given me for Christmas, and a shawl I had made from cutting up a velvet dress I no longer wore.  My gold boots would work for shoes, as they were quite flexible and perfect for dancing. The dress came in the mail within a few days. After trying it on it needed to be altered.  A typical Regency gown has ribbon trim on the bodice, which I could easily add.  A trip to Josephine’s Dry Goods a few blocks from my house produced a beautiful antique trim to add to the bodice. The alterations required taking apart the inner seems to remove a dart, as well as hemming the entire dress by hand so that I wouldn’t trip when promenading, but all of this could be done easily.  My ensemble was complete.  

Meanwhile, My Mr. Darcy, was having more hip pain and his cough was worse, no matter how much cough syrup he drank. Thus, he was not feeling well, requiring a trip to the doctor where my husband made known that his pain was unbearable two days before we were supposed to leave!  He informed me that he couldn’t possibly board an airplane or stay in a hotel for a week. Therefore, he would not be making the trip which shattered my self-confidence.

We had purchased trip insurance, but try as he might he could not get the rental car transferred to me, and the conference fee was non-refundable at such a late date.  Our airfare had also been purchased months in advance with no flex option.  It was too late to get a roommate, and purchasing tickets to any of the extra events was now out of the question.  My Mr. Darcy wasn’t coming to the ball, and a meltdown ensued with tears, words of anguish, and lots and lots of Kleenex.  Nothing I said could change his mind.  It was either go alone, or stay home and be miserable. But I had committed to going to Denver and my region expected me to show up. They had faith in me.  I had won the Tribute Grant and they elected me as Secretary. Although I was crushed and heartbroken that my husband couldn’t travel with me, I asked myself, what would Jane Austen have done? 

The Austen family were frugal.  It seems that they had little extra money.  They sewed and planted and entertained themselves with music, literature, art and family games.  Jane rarely went on dates and spent her entire life as a single woman.  She had few opportunities to travel outside of her small social circle, and rarely alone.  Perhaps she hired a carriage to go to London once she was a published author, but for most of her life she depended on family escorts to take her places. 

I resolved to be like Jane. I had an incredible opportunity that I could not refuse. My husband drove me to the airport in silence. We parted with a hug and a kiss on the cheek with unspoken words laying like boulders between us.  No words could express what I felt in my heart, that giant disappointment of feeling let down when I needed him most.  The celebratory atmosphere of winning the Tribute Grant had been extinguished and while I understood that his pain made it physically difficult for him to travel, my own emotional pain and stress was off the charts. 

I checked my luggage at the curb and walked into PDX airport with its iconic carpet, alone but determined to enjoy the JASNA Denver AGM.