LETTERS From CAMP Rehoboth |
Fay Jacobs - Her Stories, Our Lives, Honored. |
by Stefani Deoul |
It's funny how when you know someone like Fay Jacobswarm, witty, a mover and a shaker and seemingly always and graciously accessibleyou sort of take for granted their talent.
It's a pretty safe bet that a whole lot of people reading this article own the two books Fay wrote, (As I Lay Frying and Fried & True) and probably everyone reading this article has had a good chuckle or two or even three from Fay's regular Letters column. But the truth is we all see Fay and Bonnie here and about and we don't spend a whole lot of time thinking, "Gee, there goes that famous author." Nope. We all say hi and we think about Main Street and CAMP Rehoboth and pavers and parking and our latest complaint or (if it's a lucky day for Fay) our latest compliment. Well it's time to put on our rethinking hat. On Tuesday, April 29, 2008 The Delaware Press Association, held a banquet and announced their prestigious awards. First Place for Non-Fiction Book: Humor went to Fried & TrueTales From Rehoboth Beach by none other than the aforementioned woman we know and think of simply as our good friend, Fay Jacobs. And that, it turns out was only the beginning of an enchanted evening. Before heading home to savor this honor, Fay had two individual columns also singled out for awards. There was a 3rd Place win for Personal Columns: "Film, FINALLY at 11" which you may remember as her tale of the television that took over her living room. She also received an Honorable Mention for Specialty Columns on Social Issues: "Moon Over the Military or Naked Gun, Too," taking Joint Chief General Peter Pace to task for calling gays immoral. So in true Fay style, what began as a triumphant creative hour just for Fay, morphed into not only her victory, but one for our hometown magazine, Letters from CAMP Rehoboth. This award from the Delaware Press Association is open to all professional communicators in Delaware and encourages and rewards excellence in communication. Since 1977, it is a network of journalists, broadcasters, public relations specialists, graphic designers, photojournalists, educators, authors, poets and freelancers who are dedicated to the highest standards of excellence in communication and to protecting First Amendment Freedom. The awards themselves are judged by out-of-state communication professionals to ensure impartiality. Or, in other words, these were not friends of Fay's. They were a panel of judges with submissions from every writer from every walk of life who calls Delaware home. This unwitting, alien group of unknown commodity simply read her book and recognized that which we all knowFay knows pathos. Fay can take one of life's little moments and give us more than the truth, she can either give us the laughter behind the tears or the tears that true laughter can bring. As CAMP Rehoboth Executive Director Steve Elkins stated, "Fay's win means that the Delaware Press Association now recognizes what we've known all alongthat Fay has her funny bone firmly anchored on the pulse of our whole community. Her humorous commentary on life in Rehoboth Beach unites us allmen, women, gay, straight, young and oldwhich is, after all, the reason we started CAMP Rehoboth in the first place." Humorists are a rare breed indeed. They take little daily mundane moments of life and allow us all to laugh from shared recognition. Erma Bombeck and Andy Rooney are two such gifted people. We laugh at their truth because it's our truth. By rewarding Fay's work, the Delaware Press Association rewarded us all. Because by doing what Fay does best, she allows her voice, her stories, to echo our own and rather than wallowing in our own frustrations, we sit and we laugh about Fay's adventuresand our own. And as we share a Letters chuckle, so we are invited to share this glee and reflect on how we are all winners. Her StoriesOur LivesFirst Place. Stephani Deoul, a writer and television producer, lives in Rehoboth Beach, Delaware. |
LETTERS From CAMP Rehoboth, Vol. 18, No. 04 May 02, 2008 |