March 2007 Spotlight on...

NTRWA Remembers Charter Member           

      KAYE-ROSE MILLER
           by Gina Lee Nelson

During our 25th Anniversary celebration, NT would like to honor Kaye-Rose Miller, one of the founding members of our chapter.

Good afternoon, Kaye-Rose. I understand that you were one of our charter members.

Yes, I was. In 1983, June Harvey -- she's now deceased -- Floydene White, and myself organized our chapter.

Tell me about that first meeting.

We held the very first meeting in the Euless library.  Seventy-two people attended, though I think it was closer to eighty. We also attended the first RWA^® National Conference in Houston that year. They expected two hundred people, but eight hundred of us showed up.

I'd love to hear how you came to Dallas.

Well, I went off to college at nineteen years old to Buena Vista College in Storm Lake, Iowa. I got my degree in liberal arts with a major in English and a minor in history. I was going to be a school teacher but it was too difficult. That was the early 1950's.  There were no teacher unions and the dress code was very strict. I moved in March of 1957 to Dallas and began working at Harris Department Store, which later became Sanger Harris and then Foley's. I still live tin the home I made with my brother in the Oak Cliff area of Dallas. I never married, but I have traveled a great deal.

What do you remember about those early NT meetings?

Well, June Harvey did most of the organizing, and she never billed for her long distance.  We always met on the third Saturday. We would meet at the Euless library and have lunch at the Winchester cafeteria afterwards.

What do you write?

I wrote historical romances originally. In 1999, my brother Lyle had a heart attack. Until he died in January of 2003, I went with him every time he went to the doctor. I didn't have time to write. The historical romances I wrote back then couldn't be rewritten for today's market.

Then my nephew asked me to write the family history, my memoirs. I still remember my reaction to the news of the attack on Pearl Harbor. I remember how we celebrated Memorial Day in our small town of eighteen hundred people in Northwest Iowa when I was a child.

What do you enjoy reading? Who is your favorite author?

I have quite a few non-fiction books in my house I'm reading before I get rid of them. I enjoy Westerns and my favorite author is Tony Hillerman. My brother and I once went on a tour of the area where Hillerman's Jim Chee stories are set. I like Steeple Hill novels. As a history minor, I found The Da Vinci Code to be very interesting. I like a variety of authors.

What would you like to do in the future?

I'm looking to travel more, and I'm looking for a new story. 

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Gina Lee Nelson recently completed her first tender romance, PLAY IT LOUD. She’s currently working on a Young Adult Fantasy.