Lori Chapman Longfritz

My name is Lori Longfritz and I am married with children ... and grandchildren. My husband, Kenny, came into my life after my brother, John, gave his life for team and country (chronicled in Alone at Dawn). He was John's First Sergeant but I didn't meet him until after John's death. I have a daughter who is married with two kids, and Kenny and I have a son, John, who is currently torturing us with early teen years. John was named after my brother and he loves that honor.

I am a long-time lover of the written word. Having grown up in a small New England town, reading was the picture window that allowed me to see times and worlds outside of my little bubble and I continue to enjoy many genres of books. Read! Read to yourself, read to your children, even read to your dog if you want; but read! Instill a love of reading in your kids and grandkids. Reading truly is fundamental.

Throughout school, I loved writing short stories and poems (and even dreamed of writing a book), and once did a project about Poetry Therapy. Writing poems about a difficult incident or great loss can help heal your soul. I am still writing poems today and I encourage everyone to give it a try! They don't have to be perfect, they just have to be from the heart. After my brother gave his life, I wanted to write about him so people would know he lived his life as he died ... on his terms. John died in 2002, a clear indication of how long it took me to get to the point of being ready emotionally. I started and stopped several times over the years, but couldn't seem to get it off the ground. Finally so many years later, Alone at Dawn tells of John and his Air Force career field, Combat Control. Now that my first book is about to be released, I am currently working on a second, a biographical memoir about John.  It's what I had intended to write before I paired with Dan for Alone at Dawn. I have ideas for at least two fiction works, but ... one project at a time!

I also love photography. I consider myself an experienced amateur with nature photos and a struggling amateur with photos of people. Grab a camera and start clicking away! You might surprise yourself by what you capture.

Sewing is another hobby of mine that brings me satisfaction and joy (unless my machine starts eating the needle). It started with Halloween costumes for my two children (and now for my two grandchildren). I find it exciting when the project is done and I can do the final reveal. I also make Christmas stockings, window treatments and other fun projects when I have the time. Aside from occasionally wrestling with my sewing machine, creating something beautiful from pieces of fabric is soothing and makes me happy.

So, what is the LoLo Project? In keeping with the current fun of creating nicknames from parts of our first and last names, I have adopted "LoLo".  I call it a project because I intend to continue writing, with each literary work being my next "project".