By Naomi Hatch Community service is not something new for Loni Shadle, having served with her late husband Dale as curator of the Stinson Museum for more than five years in the 1990s. Dale was a blacksmith and often gave demonstrations as part of the historic home tours. Loni was born in Jerome and grew up in northern Arizona. She lived in Phoenix, where she had a career in insurance and real estate. Now she is on a new quest. She has written three books and donated copies to the Snowflake-Taylor Public Library. She encourages other local authors to donate copies of their books to the library. Her hope is to get a section of local writers. Loni wrote her first book back in the days that you “typed stuff,” as she put it, thanks to the encouragement of her husband, who was a writer and editor for Back Woodsman magazine. She was writing letters to her family explaining why they moved to rural Arizona and lived on a 10-acre homestead east of Snowflake. Dale suggested she compile the letters into a book, so Tales from Cowplop Acres was written. The book tells in a humorous way many of their experiences as they put together the place they called Cowplop Acres. Dale drew cartoons to go with her stories. She has photographs of the events she wrote about, but loves the cartoons drawn for her book. Her second book, Catherine Miller Money, is the tale of a lady who traveled by wagon train on the Santa Fe Trail in 1832. She was looking for her brother, John Jacob Miller, and was followed by her 15-year-old son, causing her to change her plans. “I did it in calligraphy in a leather bound book,” she said. Because of the encouragement of family and friends, she had the book published. Catherine Miller Money is a novel, but Loni based it on research and fact, drawing from family experiences as she used a great-great-great-aunt as the main character. Her great-great-grandfather discovered gold in Prescott after traveling to Arizona, so she also used some of his experiences. A Cottonwood quilt class designed quilt squares and Loni made a quilt with those squares, taking second place with her quilt at the Navajo County Fair. Each chapter uses one of the squares. Often Shadle was asked, “What happened to Catherine?” So Shadle wrote The Ugly Quilt–Catherine Miller Money’s Life in Santa Fe 1832-1866. “Every time Catherine would get worried, she pulls out the quilt and quilts more designs on it,” Loni noted as she explained the title. “The quilt becomes her worry quilt.” This book covers Catherine’s life in Santa Fe, where she remained after learning that women in Mexico had rights and freedoms she had been denied in Illinois. The book covers 1832 to 1866 when Arizona was split off. “It was a very active time in history,” she said. Loni has had many adventures while selling real estate with Sundance Land and Development, and is writing a book on those experiences. She is working on a detective/murder mystery, and would like to write on her Hopi Cowplop neighbors, who are interesting people. “I would like people to read my books,” said Loni. You can check out a copy at the library or purchase a book from her by calling (928) 536-3714. Loni encourages other authors to donate a book to the library, and Librarian Cathie McDowell supports the idea, gladly accepting local authors books at the library.