Nonagenarians write books about Greene Co. family
Cora Jewell, 91, of Ohio, recently wrote a biography of her father, Larry Jewell, who was a Greene County Methodist pastor. She will be signing copies of her book Monday at Eva K. Bowlby Library.
Jane Ross, 90, of Jefferson Township, self-published a book about the history of her Greene County Methodist family. Now, one year later, her older sister, Cora Jewell, has published a similar book about their father, Larry Jewell, and his religious journey.
Two Greene County sisters have recently published books about their Methodist family.
Cora Jewell, 91, and Jane Ross, 90, have, within a year of each other, published books with stories about their father, a local Methodist pastor, and what life was like growing up in Greene County in a family of seven.
Jewell, who lives in a retirement community in Ohio, will be in town this weekend to celebrate Ross’ 90th birthday, and she will have her first book signing from 11:45 a.m. to 1:15 p.m. Monday at Eva K. Bowlby Library – nearly a year after Ross had her first book signing March 19, 2016, at the Jefferson Community Center. Both nonagenarians said they started writing their books 10 years ago.
“I never dreamed a person going on 92 could be as busy as I’ve been,” Jewell said.
Jewell is the oldest of the five siblings, followed by Ross. The three younger ones are Nellie, Louis and Douglas. All but Louis are still alive.
While Ross’ self-published book, “The Life and Times of One Methodist Parsonage Family,” tells stories about their childhood and her own family after marriage, Jewell’s book, “Larry – ‘Hell-Bent’ Transformed to ‘Heaven-Sent,'” focuses on their father’s religious journey. It was published last month by Balboa Press.
“My book is based primarily on the changes in my father’s life, from a wild young man to a minister, with a deep commitment to help young men,” Jewell said.
Jewel said she had come across an old journal belonging to her father, Larry Jewell, and in it was a message that compelled her to write the book.
“It said, ‘After I’m gone, I hope if anyone finds this, they will know that the God who changed my life can change their life, too,'” she said.
She said her father was from Spring Creek and was known as “one of the five wild boys of Spring Creek,” before he became a Christian. She said his nickname was “Hell-Bent.”
“He lost his father at age 13,” Jewell said. “Then his mother remarried in six months, and he could not get along with his stepfamily.”
She said her book is about how he became a Christian and his ministry to young men through model airplanes.
“After he became a Christian, he wanted to tell other people about his experience,” she said. “He endeavored to work with young men because of his traumatic experiences as a young man. He would help them build model planes and enter them into contests.”
Although some family stories in each of the books are similar, Jewell said the books are very different and that hers is told from the perspective of being a teacher and an ordained minister.
For 18 years, Jewell taught at Waynesburg College, now Waynesburg University. She has a master’s degree in Spanish and also ministered to Hispanic inmates in area prisons.
Ross, who lives in Khedive, said she is proud of both books. She said that when they were young, they spent a lot of time together.
“I’m in awe,” she said. “I’m very admirable of both my sisters and my brother. I think I’ve lived a pretty successful life.”