By Donna Beth Weilenman
Staff Reporter
As a child, Benicia resident Kimberli Haris-George listened to her mother tell adventure stories of the tooth fairy.
Now Haris-George has taken the tales and turned them into a book.
Adopted as a baby by Martha Haris in 1970, Haris-George grew up in Lafayette listening to tales of Fairyella, the tooth fairy, that opened the young girl’s eyes “to a world of fantasy,” she said.
In 2006, Martha was diagnosed with a rare type of breast cancer that already had reached Stage 4. During her treatment, she began writing rhyming stories about Fairyella, and introduced a new character, Dragonfly Floyd, who is “Fairyella’s goofy companion,” Kimberli said.
Writing the stories brought joy both to Martha and her daughter. Learning of An Elderly Wish Foundation, which grants wishes to terminally ill seniors, Martha wrote to ask for help getting the stories illustrated and published.
“This was a very different type of wish for AEWF,” Kimberli said. “But the director, Mary Chapman, took it on.”
The collaboration lasted about 18 months, with a series of artists providing the illustrations, and others working on the publishing end.
In 2010, Kimberli lost her mother. The wish, unfortunately, wasn’t completed at the time — but determined to get her mother’s book published, Kimberli found a work-for-hire artist to complete the illustrations and self-published the stories in one book.
The work, a compilation of seven illustrated stories, was finished last year and was self-published with AEWF and support from friends and family members who donated to get the project completed.
The book is available on Kimberli’s website, fairyella.com, and other Internet sites. For each book sold through Kimberli’s site she will donate a dollar to the St. Jude Research Hospital for children.
In May she also has donated 50 copies of the book to the children of Raphael House in San Francisco. As Kimberli says, “Watch out Tinkerbell — there is a new Fairy in town!”
Peter Bray says
OUTSTANDING! Go for it!–pb
Valeria Kisiday says
What a wonderful story how the book came about.
You are a lovely Fairyella Kimberly. I will like to send
the book to my little friends in Canada. I’m sure, they do not
have anything like it!
Kimberli says
Thank you for all your support! Love you
Mary Chapman says
Kimberli,
What a wonderful tribute to your mom. She is smiling down on you today as you share your story. Love the picture!
Mary Chapman
An Elderly Wish Foundation
Jill Shepherd says
I absolutely LOVE it and I know that children love it even more! It is SO unique and a fairytale in itself. Well done!