| From New Mexico to New Hampshire, from blue states to red states, from small towns to big cities… America’s Children Speak Out! Beckham Publications Group releases Dear President Obama, a landmark collection of letters and drawings from nearly 200 of the nation’s youngest citizens, with a Foreword by Linda Ellerbee |
- NEW YORK — As the world continues to marvel at
America’s historic 44th presidency, Beckham
Publications Group is proud to announce the release of
Dear President Obama: Letters of Hope from Children
Across America, an inspiring and visually vibrant
collection of nearly 200 letters and drawings to
President Barack Obama from children in 29 states, and
every region of the country.
Compiled and edited by writer-journalists Bruce Kluger
(USA Today, National Public Radio) and David Tabatsky
(Chicken Soup for the Soul: The Cancer Book), this
unprecedented collection is the culmination of a four-
month effort in which the young contributors, ages 4
through 18, not only wrote heartfelt letters to the
President, but also collaborated with editors on the
graphic presentation of their correspondences. In her
thoughtful Foreword to the book, veteran journalist and
producer-host of Nickelodeon’s long-running Nick News,
Linda Ellerbee, praises the collection for both its
passion and authenticity.
- “Kids get it, they really get it,” writes Ellerbee, “and after getting it, they often want to change it.
They believe they can change their world…They understand that citizenship doesn’t start
when you’re 18; it starts the day you’re born. They are passionate and they want to
participate. And that is the kind of honesty you will find in this book.”
To the surprise—and delight—of its creators, Dear President Obama’s evolution reflected the
same kind of infectious enthusiasm that fueled the Obama campaign itself. On the day after
the November election, Kluger and Tabatsky had a simple idea: to recapture the exhilarating
spirit of the 2008 presidential race from the perspective of our nation’s youngest citizens. They
emailed a handful of friends, inquiring if their children had something they wanted to say to the
President-elect. Those friends forwarded the email to their friends—and within six weeks,
Kluger and Tabatsky had received nearly one thousand submissions. Suddenly, their little
experiment had become a nationwide, grass-roots project.
The 179 children ultimately selected for Dear President Obama represent a wide spectrum of
socio-economic backgrounds—from the seventh-grader in a Manhattan private school, to a
classroom of children in one of the poorest communities in Lincoln, Nebraska. Yet despite their
differences, their letters are uniformly inspirational, as the young correspondents enunciate
their hopes, fears and dreams about the world they live in, and their boundless excitement
about the historic election that took place during their young lives.
“I want my children’s children to see
polar bears!” writes ten-year-old New
Yorker Paola Wernick, about the
environment. “Please do not forget
Darfur,” pleads Tasha Slavin, 11,
from Missouri. “Talk carefully on the
radio,” warns San Franciscan Ashley
Wu, 7, “and don’t talk too fast because
you’re going to mess up if you do.”
And this from 14-year-old Casey Mack
from Connecticut: “I was happy to see
that someone who looks like me can be
President of the United States of America.
The kids at school have been saying some
mean things about people who look like us. Now
I believe we can change their negative points of view.”
As the nation faces the daunting challenges that lie ahead, Dear President Obama: Letters of
Hope From Children Across America is an uplifting reminder of the unwavering optimism of
our national spirit, and a testament to the great promise to be found in our future generations.
About the Creative Team
Bruce Kluger (www.brucekluger.com) is a writer, columnist and commentator whose work
appears nationwide in newspapers and magazines and on the Internet. A member of the
Board of Contributors of USA Today, Bruce is also a regular contributor to Parenting
magazine, National Public Radio, The Los Angeles Times and The Huffington Post. He has
written about current events, family and the popular culture for, among others, The New
York Times, The Chicago Tribune, The Boston Globe, Newsweek, Time.com, Salon.com,
Alternet.org, NickJr.com and the Sesame Street Workshop. He co-edited the books The Right
Words at the Right Time, Vol. 2: Your Turn! (Atria Books) and Thanks & Giving: All Year Long
(Simon and Schuster Children's Publishing), both by Marlo Thomas, and was co-author, with
David Slavin, of the 2008 satirical memoir, Young Dick Cheney: Great American (AlterNet
Books). Bruce lives in Manhattan with his wife and two daughters.
David Tabatsky (www.tabatsky.com) is the co-author of Chicken Soup for the Soul: The
Cancer Book: 101 Stories of Courage, Support & Love (Chicken Soup for the Soul Publishing,
March 2009). He was Consulting Editor for Marlo Thomas’s bestselling book, The Right Words
at the Right Time, Volume 2: Your Turn! (Atria Books). David wrote and published two editions
of What’s Cool Berlin, a comic travel guide to Germany’s capital, and has written about family
and culture for, among others, The Forward, Parenting magazine and Sesame Street Parent.
He has worked professionally in theatre and circus as an actor, clown and juggler, and has
taught and directed for The American School of London, die Etage in Berlin, the Big Apple
Circus School and the United Nations International School. He is on the theatre faculty at
Adelphi University and is a teaching artist for The Henry Street Settlement. David lives in New
York City with his children, Max and Stella.
Linda Ellerbee (www.ldp.com) is an outspoken journalist, award-winning television producer,
best-selling author, breast cancer survivor, mom, grandmother and one of the most sought-
after speakers in America. Ellerbee began her career at CBS, and then moved to NBC News
where she pioneered the late-night news program NBC News Overnight, which she wrote and
anchored. In 1986, Ellerbee moved to ABC News to anchor and write Our World, a weekly
primetime historical series. Her work on Our World won her an Emmy. In 1987, Ellerbee and
Rolfe Tessem, her partner, quit network news to start Lucky Duck Productions, first producing
documentaries for PBS. In 1991, Lucky Duck began producing Nick News for Nickelodeon,
with Ellerbee writing and hosting. Eighteen years later, Nick News is watched by more children
than watch all other television news shows put together, and has earned honors traditionally
associated with adult programming. Known for the respectful and direct way it speaks to
children about the important issues of our time, Nick News has collected three Peabody
Awards, a duPont Columbia Award and six Emmys.
The Beckham Publications Group, Inc. (www.beckhamhouse.com) is the Internet's
foremost source of multi-cultural and cutting-edge titles, as well as a leader in joint-venture
publishing and self-publishing assistance. Founder Barry Beckham is also an acclaimed writer,
whose books include the novels Will You Be Mine?, Runner Mack and My Main Mother, as
well as Double Dunk, an innovative autobiography of Manhattan schoolyard basketball legend
Earl (“The Goat”) Manigault. Beckham lives and works in Silver Spring, Maryland.
- DEAR PRESIDENT OBAMA
Letters of Hope from Children Across America
By Bruce Kluger and David Tabatsky
Foreword by Linda Ellerbee
Published by the Beckham Publications Group, Inc.
Price: $19.95; 120 pages, full color, paperback
ISBN: 978-0-9823876-1-0
- CONTRIBUTORS
Samantha Abelson, 10, California
Jack Adams, 4, Ohio
Ellie Adams, 6, Texas
Keane Alavi, 12, Virginia
Samir Al-Salimawi, 7, Nebraska
Matthew Anderson, 13, Virginia
Rebecca Atkins, 17, New Mexico
Shelby Auerbach, 8, Illinois
Nicole Azmoudeh, 13, Virginia
Emma Baker, 13, Maryland
Vergil Bandini, 12, Maryland
Andie Barber, 11, Michigan
Moli Becker, 13, Virginia
William Beimers, 11, Minnesota
Dillon Beliveau, 14, Vermont
Liam Beliveau, 10, Vermont
Helene Bergmann, 7, Illinois
Malia Berner, 13, Virginia
Hannah Blockis, 13, New Hampshire
Anna Bloomfield, 12, New Jersey
Emily Bloomfield, 8, New Jersey
Terrance Brockman, , Kansas
Juliet Bruce, 6, New York
Zachary Brunn, 8, Hawaii
Nathan Brunner, 13, Kansas
Robby Byrne, 14, Virginia
Brendan Cafferky, 13, Virginia
Daniel Cavazos, 7, Nebraska
Tiffany Chang, 7, California
Reid Charbonnet, 12, Virginia
Jefferson Choi, 13, Maryland
Theodore Colbert IV, 8, New Jersey
Cameron Cole, 13, Maryland
Evan Covey, 7, New York
Rachel Covey, 10, New York
Anish Dalal, 13, Maryland
Nicole Kathleen Dancz, 15, Georgia
Corinna Davis, 8, New Jersey
Jenna Dean, 14, Virginia
Amanti Debelo , 5, Nebraska
Nicholas R. DeHaan, 12, Kansas
Nyagaak Deng, 5, Nebraska
Caitlin Dillon, 8, Montana
Zoey Dillon Levine, 7, New York
Mackenzie Donahue, 11, Massachusetts
Carson Donnelly-Fine, 8, New Jersey
Damon Duchai Jr., 8, New Jersey
Hannah Engler, 14, Virginia
Kyle Fairfax, 13, Kansas
Jeremy Farmer, 13, Kansas
Aimee Faulkner, 13, Maryland
Cole Forrer, 13, Virginia
Rachel Franklin, 13, Kansas
Ashley Fulton, 7, Ohio
Larry Fulton, 11, Ohio
Cody Gibson, 12, Kansas
Samuel Goidel, 6, New Jersey
Alvaro Gonzalez, 12, Kansas
Anna Layne Goolsby, 8, Wisconsin
Jessica M. Goolsby, 15, Wisconsin
Allyson Rose Gordon, 8, Illinois
Naomi Grant, 11, Kansas
Mitch Halliday, 17, Washington
Taymour Hashemzadeh, 13, Virginia
Jamie Haughton, 10, California
Trace Hefner, 7, Illinois
Charlotte Heinrich, 7, Illinois
Eleanor Heinrich, 13, Illinois
Harrison Heinrich, 10, Illinois
Camille Heubner, 13, Alaska
Maya Heubner, 13, Alaska
Mr. Hiler’s Class, Illinois
Kara Hirschman, 12, Maryland
Gabriel Hoffman, 7, New Jersey
Rukiya Holland-Thomas, 5, New Jersey
Tara Hosseini, 13, Virginia
Rachel House, 5, New Jersey
Gabrielle Husko, 8, New Jersey
Tyler Jewell, 14, Kansas
Ashley Leah Johnson, 13, Virginia
Lauryn K. Johnson, 13, Virginia
Shannon Keene, 13, Virginia
Connor Kelley, 13, Kansas
James Clayton Kennedy, 13, Virginia
Matthew Kirchner, 5, Ohio
Emily Kluger, 11, California
Audrey Kluger, 9, New York
Bridgette Kluger, 13, New York
Trevor Kosa, 9, New Jersey
Nyir Kuek, 9, Nebraska
Hannah Lammin, 8, New Jersey
Justin Lee, 7, California
Taylor Lengel, 7, Nebraska
Hannah Levine, 12, New York
James Liebenson, 15, Illinois
Hender Lin, 7, California
Julian Lopez-Castillo, 8, New York
Mateo Lopez-Castillo, 12, New York
Devin Ly, 7, California
Casey Mack, 14, Connecticut
Ryan Mack, 8, Illinois
Angelica Majorczyk, 8, New Jersey
Devon Maloney, 14, Virginia
Eden Mandell, 7, Illinois
Kate McCarty, 16, New Jersey
Brooke McDonough, 13, Virgina
Alexa Mikk, 13, Maryland
Sophie Millar, 9, New York
Emily Mitnick, 13, Maryland
Jacey Moriguchi, 8, Hawaii
Matthew S. Morris, 13, Maryland
Clairice Mortenson, 11, Utah
Edgar L. Mortera, 13, Kansas
Garrett Mould, 12, Kansas
Aaron Muzer, 9, New Jersey
Rachel Myers, 12, Virginia
Chris Negiz, 14, Virginia
Dora Neiden, 7, New York
Evan Neiden, 9, New York
Emily Ng, 8, New Jersey
Anthony Nguyen, 7, Nebraska
Tommy A. Nguyen, 9, Nebraska
Alix Nyden, 12, Virginia
Isaac Pagano-Toub, 8, New York
Tara Pagano-Toub, 10, New York
Adam Pardo, 13, Virginia
Jalen Parker, 13, Pennsylvania
Naya Patel, 13, Virginia
Jason Phan, 5, Nebraska
Cole Pietsch, 7, Colorado
Crystal Raines, 8, New Jersey
Hamzah Raza, 12, Maryland
Caroline Reames, 9, Florida
Chloë Reames, 12, Florida
Zoë Reames, 15, Florida
Eric Steven Rhum, 8, Illinois
Cori Ritchey, 12, Virginia
Julian Rosenblum, 12, New York
Nathan Rupp, 14, Kansas
Jenny Ryoo, 14, Virginia
Waleed Saifan, 13, Kansas
Smith Sarah, 13, North Carolina
Ashwin Sekar, 12, Maryland
Madeline Sheridan, 4, Virginia
Hania Sienkiewicz, 7, Illinois
Kylie Skelton, 13, Kansas
Tasha Slavin, 11, Missouri
Cecilia Smith, 13, Kansas
David L. Smith, 14, Maryland
Patrick W. Smith, 12, Maryland
Timothy Paul Smith, 9, Texas
Allie Soto, 14, Kansas
Ainsley Stadler, 7, Texas
Carsten Stadler, 9, Texas
Jawann Stennis, 13, Kansas
Josh Sternberg, 17, Massachusetts
Addie Straus, 13, Maryland
Katja Stroke-Adolphe, 10, New York
Camille Sullivan , 8, Nebraska
Stella Lemper Tabatsky, 12, New York
Michael Talley, 13, Maryland
Nathaniel Janus Teng, 7, California
Zach Thomas, 12, Maryland
Nolan Eliza Tobin, 6, New Jersey
Vreeland Tobin, 8, New Jersey
Wyatt Clyde Tobin, 4, New Jersey
Katharine Tobler, 13, Maryland
Judy Truong, 9, Nebraska
Connor Welsh, 14, Virginia
Luca Wernick, 7, New York
Paola Wernick, 10, New York
Meredith Wheelock, 13, Maryland
Joshua Winston, 9, New Jersey
Jackson Woodard, 9, North Carolina
Ashley Wu, 8, California
Erina Yamamoto, 13, Hawaii
Kyla Yamashita, 8, Hawaii
Hunter Zimmerman, 8, New Jersey
Ever Emilio Zuniga, 9, Nebraska
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |