Members of the Hope Lions Club learned heard presentations from local author Ken McLemore about a book he released recently and books yet to come.  Hempstead County 4-H member Emma Johnson also spoke during Monday's meeting about the importance of farming.  A report on this past Thursday’s Fish Fry was also heard.

Lions President James Bradford shared results from the annual Charitable Christian Medical Clinic fundraiser. “We had a good day yesterday,” Bradford said. “Took in $2,765 on the baking auction and $8,026 on the fish fry.  Total is $10,791. It's around 550 plates.”

The meeting's featured program was presented by McLemore, former writer and editor-in-chief of the Hope Star as well as former communications instructor at Hope High School and author of what he is calling the Destiny, Arkansas novel series.

Introducing McLemore, Lion Richard Reed discussed the meaning of the Louisiana term “lagniappe,” commonly defined as an unexpected gift or bonus, noting the word serves as the title of the first novel in McLemore's series.

McLemore said the unusual spelling and French derivation of the word first captured his attention, but the concept itself also became central to the novel.  “After 14 years, ex-military sniper Brock Beckett meets Cissy Nelson, a daughter he believes is dead,” McLemore said. “Beckett pursues a new life gaining Cissy’s trust while teaching literature in small town Destiny, Arkansas, but a sniper-style murder shocks Destiny and pits Beckett against his past.”

McLemore explained that Destiny, Arkansas, serves as the setting for all eight books in the series. “Destiny, Arkansas, is located fictitiously in Ouachita County,” he said. “It's bigger than Emmet, but smaller than Prescott.”

He said each book explores a different central theme. “The theme, obviously, in the first novel, Lagniappe, is personal redemption,” McLemore said.

Subsequent books will examine topics including betrayal, ambition, truth, irony, retribution, reputation, offense and family. The title of his next book, which will be published in the next few months, McLemore said, is Gravitas.  They will be available on Amazon.

“Like any author, I'm seeking, if you will, to present not only ideas but the reflections of life as I know it, and as I've seen it,” he said.

McLemore said the events he describes in his fictional works are not based on people or events from his newspaper years. “The book and the series is not about anybody or anything that has to do with my career in journalism in Hope, Arkansas,” he said. “That's not the point.”

McLemore noted during the question and answer period that literature plays a major role in the series because Beckett returns to teaching high school literature.  “The first book in Lagniappe that his class studies in Sissy's junior American Literature class is Gone With the Wind,” he said.

Works ranging from Hemingway's later novel, To Have and Have Not to Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby, as well as plays including A Man for All Seasons and Inherit the Wind, also appear throughout the series.

When asked whether he had always wanted to write novels, McLemore said the interest began during childhood.  “Actually, I began writing when I was a kid,” he said. “I wrote a story when I was about 10, 12 years old called ‘The Floating Knife.’ It was a mystery. It's always just been in my blood, I guess.”

Earlier in the meeting, Hempstead County 4-H Coordinator Betty Wingfield introduced Emma Johnson, who will compete next week in public speaking competition during District O-Rama in Malvern.

Wingfield explained that public speaking differs from many other 4-H contests because participants are not allowed to introduce themselves or answer questions afterward. Instead, speeches are designed to be informative, persuasive or motivational.

Johnson's presentation focused on the importance of small farms and their impact on individuals, communities and the nation. “Really, small farms are the heart of America,” Johnson said.

Using personal experiences from her family's farming operation, Johnson discussed the connection agriculture provides between families and their food sources.  “Growing up with small farms, I know where my food comes from and the work that goes into having that beef in the grocery store,” she said.

Johnson cited statistics showing family-operated farms account for the overwhelming majority of farms in the United States and described how agriculture has created opportunities for generations of farm families.

She also made clear the economic impact small farms have on local communities through purchases made from area feed stores, veterinarians and agricultural suppliers. “I know many other small farm families that make those same stops, and I would feel safe saying that my community benefits from small farmers,” Johnson said.

Concluding her remarks, Johnson pointed to the role small farms play in food production and sustaining rural economies.

“As we have seen, small farms have big impacts,” she said.

Club members applauded Johnson's presentation, with Bradford telling those present to “tell Eric how good you did.” Eric is her father.