Always Sam

Always Sam is a contemporary fairytale with deep themes of diversity, kindness, friendship, inclusion and compassion. Readers identify with this sweet child who has a loving family and a devoted dog. But how do he and his family cope when he is treated badly by other children, for differences beyond his control? The story takes twists and turns, including visiting a zoo, learning about chameleons, and encountering magical rainbows! Readers are asked to search for five hidden chameleons and given thought- provoking questions posed at the end of the book. Always Samcame out of Joan's deep study on the topic of racism. She had been invited to join a zoom based study group during Covid. It was led by a friend of hers who is a psychiatrist and included other social scientists and artists. The reading was provocative and frankly, upsetting. Joan would go to bed after the sessions, thinking about how she might help to make our world kinder, more inclusive and more compassionate. One night she experienced a vivid Always Sam is the result of that dream, and it took over three years for Joan to bring Sam's story to life.

Who wouldn't love Sam? He's a sweet 8 year old boy who loves his family, his friends and his dog. But what happens when his skin changes colors and he turns the purple of his shirt or the orangey-red of his tomato soup? His color differences make life difficult -- some kids are nice but some won't play with him. Bullying escales. Enter chameleons and a sprinkle of magic. See what happens!

Always Sam weaves together Joan's love for children and social justice with story, art and magic. Her career and life bridge corporate and community work. For decades she thrived as a manager of training, then global marketing for companies including Apple, Intel, 3Com and several start-ups. Her love of empowering people led to her career consultancy, Greatin8Coaching.com and from that work she wrote two books, Great in 8 Job Seeking Skills and Building Blocks for the New Retirement. She named that later stage of life ReVitalment (tm). During Joan's ReVitalment she created and leads a literacy and art program for children called Joan of Art.

Joan earned a bachelor's degree in Psychology,with honors, from the University of Pennsylvania and a master's degree in Instructional Technology from the University of London. Joan and her husband David live in Santa Rosa, California, just an hour north of San Francisco where their adult son, Daniel, lives. They enjoy life with their two sweet dogs, Zoe and Makena.