Frequently Asked Questions

Q: How do you say “Shea Leigh,” the name of the girl in Boo Boo Bear’s Mission?
A: Shea rhymes with “play.” Leigh rhymes with “see.”

Q: When did this story happen? How old was Shea Leigh?
A: Boo Boo went to visit Shea Leigh's dad in February of 2007. Shea Leigh was twelve.

Q: Does Shea Leigh still have Boo Boo Bear?
A: Oh yes! However, most of the time he stays at my house so he is always ready to go meet new friends.

Q: How old is Boo Boo?
A: Boo Boo is four months older than Shea Leigh, who was born April 14, 1994 He was a Christmas gift from her grandpa and me before she was even born!

Q: What is Boo Boo Bear doing these days?
A: Boo Boo likes to meet people at book readings and signings. He is happy when people pat him and call him a veteran. He is proud that he served his country by helping his family stay connected while Dad was far away.

Q: Did Boo Boo Bear go back to Iraq?
A: No. He and Shea Leigh thought once was enough.

Q: Is Shea Leigh's dad still in the Air National Guard?
A: Yes. He and his team do their work at the guard base in Duluth, MN.

Q: Will Shea's dad have to go back to Iraq?
A: We don't know that right now. If he does, he will remember how Boo Boo helped him feel less lonely. And maybe Shea Leigh will think up a new way to help the family stay connected!

Q: What things does Shea Leigh like to do? How old is she now? What grade is she in?
A: She likes to hang out with her friends, listen to music, and go places with her family. Other favorite activities are four-wheeling, jet skiing, and managing the JV football team. She also has three little nephews she loves to play with. When Boo Boo Bear’s Mission was published in June 2009 Shea Leigh was 15 and going into 10th grade.

Q: How did you get the ideas for the story?
A: Shea Leigh’s mom, Karri, called to tell me that she, Shea, and her big sisters, April and Brittanie, had packed a care package to send to Iraq. While they were deciding what to put in the box, Shea Leigh got the idea to send Boo Boo to keep her dad company. When the box arrived in Iraq, Shea Leigh’s dad, who is my son, emailed me and told me how proud he was of his daughter for sharing her very special teddy bear to help him feel less lonely. I was so proud that I had tears in my eyes. Then I thought what a good story it would be to share with other families who have to say goodbye when someone they love has to go away for a while. When Ron, Shea’s dad, came back from Iraq, the family talked a lot about what happened while Boo Boo Bear lived on the base with Ron. We talked about how the bear cheered up lots of people. We talked about the feelings families have when someone they love is deployed. Everybody in our family thought the story was a good idea, so I started writing!

Q: How long did it take to write Boo Boo Bear's Mission?
A: I worked on it for about two years and wrote 13 drafts before I got it the way I wanted it! We had some family meetings to review how the story was developing and to see if anybody had new ideas. It was hard work and it was fun.

Q: How did you get the pictures for the book ?
A: We sent an invitation to Air National Guard kids and other kids in the Duluth area, inviting them to come to an Illustrators’ Day to draw the pictures to go with the words. They listened to the story twice, chose a page they wanted to illustrate, and then drew their ideas on special art paper using colored art pencils. Later, we had a committee that selected the drawings that went best with the words, filled up a lot of the page, and also used color well. There were a lot of great drawings, so it was difficult to chose which ones to put in the book! Thirty eight kids participated in two Illustrators’ Days. More than half of the kids were from Air National Guard families.

Q: Was it hard to make a rhyming story?
A: Some rhymes were easy; some were very hard. I wanted the rhymes to flow easily with the story without sounding fake or awkward. My editor was a big help for this part.

Q: How long was Shea Leigh's dad deployed? Where did he go?
A: Shea Leigh's dad was deployed to Iraq three different times for a total of six months.