Marcia Talley: Murder, She Wrote

It was a breezy, fall afternoon back in 2003 when I first interviewed librarian-turned-award-winning mystery writer Marcia Talley. We sat on the patio of her suburban Annapolis home, sipping hot coffee and talking about murder. Sixty-something Talley is not a serial killer, of course. Far from it. She has spent much of her adult life working as a librarian for the federal government, raising two daughters, and caring for Barry Talley, her college sweetheart, who recently retired after serving for 36 years as the Director of Musical Activities at the U.S. Naval Academy.

In 1999, her life changed when she landed a book contract with Dell Publishing, a division of Random House. The New York publisher commissioned her to write a three-book series about the capers of Hannah Ives, a smart, sassy, breast cancer-surviving sleuth. The first book, “Sing it to her Bones,” won Talley awards and accolades. The second, “Unbreathed Memories,” came out in 2000, winning more awards and more accolades. Part three, “Occasion of Revenge,” was published in August 200l.

This Christmas, she published book number seven in the Hannah Ives series, Dead Man Dancing her first hardback — this one published by Severn House Publishers — that will keep the royalty checks rolling and the fabulously brave and funny Ives alive and well.

A ROAD LESS TRAVELED Talley has not always been on the literary fast track. In 1993, Talley's life took a dramatic turn when she was diagnosed with cancer of the appendix. She had previously overcome b bout with breast cancer in 1983. This second illness made her realize it was time to make a change. A big one. "I was under tremendous stress at work, and the commute was terrible," she explains. "Barry and I had always talked about the fact that stress can contribute to illness, and I was walking proof. I figured I could die at any minute, so why go on living a life that wasn't making me totally happy?"

What would make her happy, she knew, was writing. At first, she thought she'd create literary pieces, stories that were elegant, traditional, and a tad highbrow. She tried it for a while but found these stories didn't sell easily. Friends at her writers group in Annapolis convinced her to write in a style she loved. For Talley, that was the mystery novel.

PRACTICE MAKES PERFECT Despite her penchant for mystery novels, Talley wasn't convinced she could write one herself. At least, not one that a publisher would buy. She wrote anyway, coming up with plots and characters, clues and twists whenever she could—while making that long commute, baking bread and folding laundry.

She fleshed out her stories in a 9-1/2 x 6-inch yellow executive notebook she always carries in her briefcase. Once the story line was complete, Talley headed to a makeshift office she assembled in the corner of her daughter's old bedroom. There, she transcribed her notes onto an old laptop so worn that some of the letters were gone from the keycaps. Her writer’s group friends got the first glimpse at the story, made suggestions, and she incorporated those suggestions before sending out the story to editors. It is a process she still follows today.

Back then, many of the stories met with rejection letters and were tucked away in her daughter's antique dresser that doubles as Talley's filing cabinet. But she didn't give up. Instead, Talley took to writing long, fantastic letters about her life and sending them via e-mail to long-time friends—including the late Sara Ann Freed, then executive editor for Mysterious Press, an imprint of Warner Books (now Grand Central, a division of Hachette Books).

"She'd send me these wonderful, hilarious vignettes about her life," recalls Freed, who met Talley at an American Library Association conference in 1980. “I told her she had to write a novel. She said she didn't have time, and I said stop writing e-mails to your friends, you'll have time. I think I bullied her into it." Figuring she had nothing to lose, Talley started writing her first book the next day. (Talley shares: "Sara Ann died tragically young, at 57, of leukemia. I miss her every day.")

GOING FOR BROKE Even before those words of encouragement, Talley had been kicking around an idea for a novel. Based on a real murder in 1970 in her husband's hometown in western Kentucky, the plot centered in the death of a high school student who had gotten pregnant by a farmer. He didn't want the baby and didn't want anyone to find that he was having an affair with a minor, so he sent the girl to see a friend who tried to give her an abortion. He botched the procedure and the girl bled to death.

Events went from bad to worse: the farmer tied cement blocks to the girl's legs and tossed her into a cistern on a nearby farm. She wasn't found for years. "The story made the front page of the local newspaper," recalls Talley. "I'll never forget seeing the photograph that ran in the paper of the girl's parents walking hunched over along the dirt path away from the cistern after identifying the body. The look on their faces always haunted me, and I never could get it out of my head."

She figured readers would be mesmerized, too. Wanting to get her hands on those old newspaper clips, Talley traveled to Kentucky and went straight to the local library to search through old records. She came up empty—until she asked the librarian for help. "The librarian told me she thought that someday someone might want to look at those old newspaper stories, so she clipped the articles and tucked them away in a filing cabinet," Talley explains, pulling copies from her own files. "I couldn't believe my good luck. I will forever be indebted to that woman."

SNEAK PEEK: DEAD MAN DANCING Driving a wedge between sister Ruth and her fiance Hutch is not what Hannah intends when she recommends J & K Dance Studios to her sister. Ruth is determined to shine on her wedding day, but when Kay Giannotti, the svelte, stunning half of J & K floats across the floor to greet Hutch with a kiss, it's clear this isn't the first time they've met. Setting jealousy aside, Ruth dazzles the instructors with her footwork, and Jay Giannotti charms the couple into auditioning for "Shall We Dance?," a TV talent show. Then Ruth is sidelined by a brutal attack, and Hutch is partnered with Melanie, whose deafness is no bar to success. The couple is waltzing to a win, until a ruthless killer turns the competition into a blood sport. Hannah steps in, and the dancing gets down and dirty. Jealous partners, pushy mothers, brats in rhinestones, hired thugs ... Will Hannah discover who is capable of murder before the final tango? Buy the book.

Episcopal Leader Urges Focus on Issues of Hunger, Disease, Poverty

I was honored to meet Bishop Katharine Schori yesterday at a National Press Club (NPC) luncheon that I was hired to write about for the club’s newsletter, The Record. Talk about a truly amazing woman. In addition to having a PhD in oceanography and being a semi-professional pilot, since November 2006 she has been the 26th Presiding Bishop and Primate of the Episcopal Church — the first woman to lead a national church in the 520-year history of Anglicanism.

She serves as chief pastor to the Episcopal Church's 2.4 million members in 16 countries and 10 dioceses, as well as the American representative to the worldwide Anglican Communion, a body of 38 provinces and 77 million worshippers. And like any truly amazing woman — she isn’t afraid to stand up for what she believes in. In fact, Schori took over just a few years after the General Convention of the Episcopal Church consecrated openly gay Bishop V. Gene Robinson of New Hampshire. After the affirmation was announced, 20 Episcopal bishops rose in protest.

"I will stand against the actions of the Convention with everything I have and everything I am," declared Bishop Robert Duncan of Pittsburgh. "I have not left, and will not leave, the Episcopal Church...it is this 74th General Convention that has left us, betrayed us, undone us."

Schori’s liberal ideas on homosexuality, same-sex partnerships, and other social issues have continued to frustrate some of the conservative members of the Episcopal Church. In her first national interview after being elected, she told CNN that she does not believe homosexuality is a sin:

"I believe that God creates us with different gifts. Each one of us comes into this world with a different collection of things that challenge us and things that give us joy and allow us to bless the world around us. And some people come into this world with affections ordered toward other people of the same gender and some people come into this world with affections directed at people of the other gender."

Just weeks ago — on December 3, 2008 — theological conservatives from the Episcopal Church announced they were founding their own rival denomination. Schori told large crowd that had gathered at the NPC yesterday that she and like-minded colleagues “tried hard to negotiate for a long time. But finally, when we couldn’t come to a consensus, we asked the courts to act.”
Throughout her speech, entitled “Religion in the Public Square,” Schori maintained that it is important for everyone be hopeful and fearless in their convictions.

“Perhaps the first role of religion in such times is to be a messenger, like one of those biblical angels, who starts out by saying, fear not,” Bishop Schori said. “Don’t be afraid; this whole thing is a lot bigger than you are. Yes, change is coming, and it will drive some people crazy, and at the same time not go far enough for others. In more secular language, we might say, don’t sweat the small stuff. And more of it is small stuff than you might expect. At the same time, the religious voice will remind you that how you deal with the small stuff does not affect you alone – your actions may have consequences beyond your wildest imagining.”
She concluded her speech, saying: “On two occasions in the last few days, leaders in my own church have said to me that the church only makes the front page if it’s about schism or sex – and in the current era, preferably both. The reality experienced by most Episcopalians, and indeed most faithful people, is of their congregations gathering for weekly worship, saying their prayers, and serving their neighbors, nearby and far away.”

“That service happens in remarkable and profound ways, building schools in Africa, clinics in Haiti, digging wells in the Philippines, as well as prodding our legislators to attend to issues of climate change, access to health care, and funding AIDS work in Africa. It is the rare few who are consumed by conflict, and they tend not to last, for intense and prolonged conflict is not life giving. “

“Help us tell the stories of transformation, of moving toward that hopeful future, for which the world hungers,” Bishop Schori said. “Help us tell the world that fear is not the answer.”

For the final question of the day, NPC President Sylvia Smith asked Jefferts Schori what she prays about privately that would surprise us. Jefferts Schori answered: “I pray for people who consider me their enemy. I believe that whenever we face an obstacle in our lives, praying for those who challenge us is a necessary part of our journey." As for whether that's a hard task: "No, not when it becomes a discipline.”

Traci Bisson, The Savvy Businesswoman Behind The Mom Entrepreneur

You just never know who you are going to be lucky enough to meet online. While surfing through the hundreds of reporter queries that I daily field for my clients at Inkandescent Public Relations, I saw a request for stories for a blog called "Lemons to Lemonade" for The Mom Entrepreneur. Its founder, Traci Bisson, posted my response as Feature #8. During the course of our conversation I got to know this Truly Amazing Woman.

Turns out Traci founded The Mom Entrepreneur last April — more as a hobby than a business venture. She's owned her own PR company, Bisson Barcelona, since 2000 when just a few weeks after having her first child Jacob (now 8, pictured above with Traci and her second son Lucas, 3) the company she'd worked for the past five years went out of business. "I tried doing my own thing and failed miserably," she shares. "After another year of working for two different companies I decided to try entrepreneurship again."

Although her husband Raymond is very supportive, Traci admits that raising two sons and growing her company has been challenging. "When you are heading up your own company and taking care of kids, the problems are much different than they are when you are a mom who works for someone else's company."

Traci figured she wasn't alone, and did a little research. "Statistics show there are about 10 million mom entrepreneurs in the U.S.," she says. "My guess is that we all feel the same way: stressed, alone, and looking for others to connect with who are in the same boat." So she started blogging about her thoughts and feelings and birthed The Mom Entrepreneur, an organization dedicated to offering tips, advice, and resources for balancing motherhood and running a company.

Following is some of her useful advice. And for more terrific insights, join her network of Mom Entrepreneurs.

Top 6 Tips for Being a Successful Mom Entrepreneur

1. Remember family comes first. In the saying mom entrepreneur, mom comes first. In order to make sure mom comes first, try not to mix family time and work time. Ensure that time spent with family is quality time. You will attract clients with the same philosophy enabling you to stay focused on the reasons why you became a mom entrepreneur in the first place.

2. Make time for mom. Me-time or mom-time is critical. So many women tell me how difficult it is for them to find quality time for themselves. This is just as important as eating, drinking and sleeping. No excuses – take 15-20 minutes if that is all you have and go for a walk, read, listen to music, exercise, etc.

3. Stay connected. The world is changing so fast and mom entrepreneurs need to stay connected to the pulse of their industry. Get connected through Twitter, LinkedIn, Facebook, Blogs or other social outlets that reach your target market.

4. Get a Blackberry. This tool is truly the best one I have found for allowing mom entrepreneurs to stay connected whenever and wherever. Being a mom means that you cannot always be readily available if clients need you. Without taking time away from your family, a Blackberry allows you to keep in touch as needed.

5. Ask for help. My family is a great support system and everyone lives close. My mom frequently watches the kids as does my brother. Don’t be afraid to ask for help. Mom entrepreneurs can do it all just not all at once.

6. Join a Support Group. The Mom Entrepreneur Online, for instance is a network with hundreds of women everyday. We share tips, advice and resources and discuss everything from potty training to how to use Twitter. For more information visit http://tinyurl.com/MomEntSG.

Suzanne Carbone Gives Thanks, Advocates for a Cure to Alzheimer's Disease

In support of Alzheimer's Disease Awareness Month (November) and in celebration of what it truly means to give thanks for your loved ones this Thanksgiving Day — we honor Suzanne Carbone, a caregiver and advocate for research into the prevention and cure of Alzheimer's disease. Last May 14 she testified before the U.S. Senate’s Special Committee on Aging on behalf of Bob Carbone, her husband of nearly 40 years who was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s in 2000.

Suzanne (pictured above with her husband Bob and their grandchildren Tessa and Sophie Sontheimer) told the Committee: “In many ways, his story is a classic American success story. He was born in Plentywood, Montana, where his immigrant father was a section foreman for the Great Northern Railroad and his mother was a homemaker. Relying on his sharp mind and love of learning, Bob earned a Masters degree from Emory University and PhD from the University of Chicago. He was the Special Assistant to President Fred Harrington at the University of Wisconsin, and before his diagnosis, was the Dean of the College of Education at the University of Maryland. Always interested in the political process, he ran for the Maryland State Legislature in 1982.”

“In January 2007 my husband moved into assisted living, when caring for him at home was no longer an option. I am just one of millions of caregivers who are faced with such a difficult decision. Every day, I meet another caregiver who needs help and doesn't know where to turn. Our country is not prepared for the emotional, physical, and financial impact of this disease.”

A LOVE STORY Suzanne admits her decision to move Bob into assisted living was one of the most difficult decisions she has ever made. She recalls the day, in the late 1960s, when she was studying to be a librarian at the University of Wisconsin and literally bumped into her future husband.

“It was pouring outside and we both happened to dash into the dry cleaners to get out of the rain and I bumped right into him,” she says. “I apologized and ran out, but he asked the owners what my name was. They gave him my number, and he called me every day until I agreed to go out on a date with him.”

The couple married in 1968. “It was a very memorable year, but also a time of great turmoil in the country. Bobby Kennedy was shot, and the Vietnam War was finally at an end. I feel that I was a product of that war. I had been dating a fighter pilot when I bumped in Bob, but I think our marriage was meant to be.”

In 1972, Suzanne and Bob moved to Washington, DC so he could take the deanship at the University of Maryland. Their first child, Angela, was born in December of 1968, and their son, Chris, in 1972.

THE ODYSSEY It was in the late 1990s that Bob started exhibiting signs of Alzheimer’s — although no one could pinpoint what the symptoms meant early on. “He had always been marvelous at giving speeches and never failed to tell the perfect joke. But one day he forgot the punch line. Other times he had difficulty finding the right words. Eventually, he couldn’t remember a neighbor’s name, and sometimes would pay the same bill twice.”

It was a dramatic contrast to the gregarious husband she’d loved for all those years, Suzanne explains. “When he ran the education department at the University of Maryland, he could recite the resume of everyone on his faculty. He was fun loving, and adored his children. He even ran for the state legislature in 1982. Bob was always an exciting person to be with. But these new lapses confused and frustrated Bob, and sometimes he’d lash out in anger.”

Initially, Suzanne says she thought there was something wrong in her marriage. “He’d get so mad at me, but eventually I realized that he was really frustrated with himself and couldn’t figure out what was happening.”

Thanks to the insight, advice and support her children provided, Suzanne began to suspect her husband was suffering from Alzheimer’s disease. So when the diagnosis finally came, she admits it was a relief for everyone. “One of the first things that Bob did was to tell all his friends and colleagues that he had it,” she says. “I think he was grateful to at last give the problem a name.”

Bob resigned his position as an educator and filled his days delivering food to the needy for Meals On Wheels. Within a few years, however, that also proved to be too difficult. “He had trouble finding the places to deliver the food, but it made it easier to tell people that what was happening was a problem going on inside his brain,” Suzanne notes, and says soon after she began looking for the best assisted living home she could find to care for her husband.

Today, Suzanne visits Bob almost daily and although he now remembers little about their life together, in her heart Suzanne knows that he still knows how special she was to him. “He may not be able to say my name, but he smiles when he sees me. I sit down next to him on the sofa and especially after I’ve had a hard day, he’ll put his arm around me. Even though the details may have faded, I believe our love still lives on.”

LESSONS LEARNED In addition to working as a librarian in Maryland, Suzanne provides regular support for anyone who suspects a loved one is suffering through the beginning phases of Alzheimer’s disease. She always suggests the following:

Keep a journal. “This has been a very strange, spiritual journey and I'm so glad that I started keeping a journal when Bob began exhibiting signs of Alzheimer’s. I looked at it last night, and what struck me most is how far we have all come. It is sometimes hard to remember just how terrible those early stages were, and I’m glad I have kept this journal because it helps me track my growth.”

Be resilient. “Gather your resources and develop circles of support. You’ll be inspired by others who managed what has happened to their lives, and in time you will become an inspiration for others, as well.”

Keep love at the center of everything you do. “People with Alzheimer’s live in the moment. And what’s so amazing is that when you really observe that, you realize it’s a beautiful way to be.”

For more information:
• Learn more about Alzheimer’s disease and please contribute to this worthwhile cause on the official website: www.alz.org.
• Read Suzanne Carbone’s May 14, 2008 testimony to the U.S. Senate’s Special Committee on Aging here.
• View the entire hearing here.

Gooseberry Patch Founders Jo Ann Martin and Vickie Hutchins are Cooking

Hot off the presses is the November issue of Costco Connection featuring (on pages 33-35) a profile of Jo Ann Martin and Vickie Hutchins, owners of Gooseberry Patch, a multimillion-dollar company with a country flair that publishes catalogs, comfort food-friendly cookbooks, calendars, and organizers.

Last year, the company published its 100th cookbook and shipped out more than 350,000 packages from its catalog of more than 500 items under $20—which includes a selection of wall and pocket-size calendars, night lights, mason jars, bowls, kitchen accessories, food items and kits, Christmas ornaments and soap pumps.

The company’s 100 employees are like family, say Hutchins and Martin—two entrepreneurs who didn’t expect to build an empire back in 1984. They were both stay-at-home moms looking for something to do after the kids went off to school. One morning the neighbors were chatting over their shared backyard fence in picturesque Delaware, Ohio and decided to start a catalog company.

Their concept was simple: They wanted to put the things they loved about the country into “a store that arrived in your mailbox.” They invested $5,000 each, and promised not to take a salary until they turned a profit. Within months, orders came pouring in. Into that first 96-page catalog went a few of their favorite country cooking recipes, “because everyone loves to try a good new recipe,” Hutchins says. She was right. By 1992, Hutchins and Martin received so much positive feedback from readers about those recipes that Gooseberry Patch began publishing its own line of cookbooks.

“Most of our good ideas come from our customers,” Martin says, proudly noting that today the company has more than 8 million cookbooks in print. A perennial hit, “Christmas All Through The House,” features dozens of holiday recipes and simple craft ideas and is for sale now at most Coscto stores. Other popular titles include, “Church Suppers,” “Harvest Country Cookbook,” and “Super Fast Slow Cooking.” Additional titles are in the works.

The co-founders share that there have been tough times. In 1998 their business grew dramatically, and they hadn’t quite mastered how to handle the demand.

“We were still working out of our homes and our products were here, there, and everywhere, so that was a logistical nightmare,” Martin shares. “Finally, we moved into a 53,000-square-foot building and put everything under one roof.” Then came the terrorist attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. The Anthrax scare made people afraid to use the post office, and their mail order business took a hit. It rebounded, but now in 2008 the nature of their business has changed once again due to the increased efficiency of the Internet. “We are feeling like we need to cut back on our space,” Hutchins tells The Costco Connection. “But it’s all part of the juggling act of running a business. We try to stay flexible.”

Through it all, Hutchins and Martin have managed to keep their friendship strong. “Our offices are still right next to each other,” Martin explains. “I’m in charge of the back end of operations, and Vickie works more on the creative side of things, so we don’t step on each other’s toes. We also escape now and then and do the one thing we both adore: going to antique flea markets. It’s a girlfriend type of thing.”

The ladies say the most important lesson they have learned is to stay true to who you are. “After you’ve had some success, it’s easy to go off your path and get into things you shouldn’t,” concludes Hutchins. “But it’s important to remember what brought you to the dance. We try to give our customers a little more than they expect, and if we can continue to build a company that provides nice surprises and gives people a little comfort when they need it, I think we’ll have succeeded.”

For more information visit: http://www2.gooseberrypatch.com.

Costco article by Hope Katz Gibbs, a freelance writer in Northern Virginia who received rave reviews from her family when she whipped up Hot Chicken Salad—a recipe by Lynne Davisson of Cable, OH, on page 343 of “Christmas All Through The House.”

Nardos King: 2008 Outstanding First-Year Principal Award

Earlier this year, beloved Fairfax County Public School educator Nardos King, the principal of Mount Vernon High School in Alexandria VA, took home one of the most prestigious FCPS awards: the 2008 Outstanding First-Year Principal Award.

Praised for her ability to motivate students, she set several goals when she became principal. The first was to have Mount Vernon become a positive focal point in the community. She also wanted to reach out to Hispanic parents who were underrepresented at the school.

And King was determined to improve instruction — and find a way to forge relationships among students and staff members. So she met with community members and parents and challenged them to become ambassadors for the school. Then she reached out to Hispanic parents, with the help of a neighborhood church, and ultimately established Hispanic Parent Council.

She also adjusted the bell schedule to facilitate student enrichment, mediation, and mentoring — and carved out a special 30-minute class period during which all students and teachers read silently. Students can also use part of the period to consult teachers for extra help, make up tests, or complete assignments.

Where no educator has gone before?

Then last year she did what few other educators might be willing to do: She promised to cut her hair into a Mohawk if students raised their SOL scores to 80% or higher in each of the four core areas. Not only did they accomplish that, but 28 students in the class of 2007 earned the International Baccalaureate (IB) diploma—the highest number in the school’s history.

Last November 20, King headed to the hairdresser to make good on her promise.

“I have a passion for finding ways to address and close the achievement gap between white and minority students,” says King, who grew up in Mount Holly, NJ. “My mom is from Ethiopia and my father is American, so I had a taste of what it meant to merge two cultures when I was a child.”

She deepened that understanding after graduating from Virginia University where she got a degree in Business Information Systems in 1986. Her husband — as a second lieutenant in the US Army — whisked her off to Germany soon after the wedding. King wanted to get her teaching degree, but worked as a substitute teacher and a bank teller instead.

In 1990, the couple moved again to Lawton, Oklahoma. “My dream to teach was still there but I had a baby and no time to go back to school,” she explains. “I was hired by the school system to be an instructional assistant, but the position ended after a year and I was transferred to a library assistant position in another school. I enjoyed that position, too, but soon after was transferred to a local high schools to become the finance secretary.”

When there’s a will there’s a way

In 1995, when her husband was transferred back to the Washington, DC area, King wasn't going to let anything keep her from finding work in the classroom. First, she found a job as the secretary to an elementary school principal. Six months later she was hired at Mount Vernon to be the school's finance officer.

“As luck would have it, the principal told me about a program at George Washington University which allowed me to get my Master's in Special Education,” she shares. “I entered the program and left my finance position to take an Instructional Assistant in the Special Education Department at Mount Vernon. After a year of school, I was eligible to teach on a provisional license and was hired to teach at Mount Vernon, where I taught math to the special education students for the next four years.”

King worked her way up the system, eventually becoming a sub-school Principal at Mount Vernon. In the summer of 2006, she landed her dream job. The awards that have come since — and there are several of them — are wonderful, King says, but what is most important to her is helping at-risk kids.

“Four adult volunteers, and myself are currently working with a group of students in a program we call the 30/30 club,” she explains. “Prior to entering the program, these students were all low performing and unmotivated, but we have been successful in getting the majority of them to turn around their grades, behavior and attendance ion school. I strongly believe that building relationships with at risk students in key to the success of the program.”

King is determined to continue to be a positive role model in the years to come. She is currently studying for her PhD in Education Leadership and Policy at Virginia Tech, and hopes to one day become Assistant Superintendent — and then Superintendent — of a large school district.

“I know that if I am truly running the show, I can make a difference on hundreds of thousands of children’s lives,” she says.

We’ll let you know when King lands that job.

To learn more about the work Nardos King is doing at her high school, visit http://www.fcps.edu/MtVernonHS.

Stephanie Cohen Hosts First Annual DC Health Summit: Oct. 29 at the Mandarin Hotel

Mark your calendar for Oct. 29 when award-winning entrepreneur Stephanie Cohen hosts the first annual DC Health Summit, a meeting that is bringing together 100 of the top minds in the health care industry on Oct. 29 from 11 am to 1 pm at the Mandarin Hotel in Washington, DC www.dchealthsummit.com.

This free, groundbreaking event is open to business leaders and health care professionals who want to learn more about workplace wellness and how it can not only potentially lower health insurance rates. Wellness expert Steven Aldana, CEO of Wellsteps, Inc. and author of "The Culprit and the Cure," will give the keynote speech: “The Truth About Return on Investment and Worksite Health Promotion Programs."

Representatives from the Barack Obama and John McCain campaigns will also be on hand to talk about each candidate's health care plans.

The moderator for the event is futurist Andy Hines of the global research and consulting firm Social Technologies, who will continue the discussion with a panel of leading-edge health care industry professionals: Virginia Senator George Barker, Kaiser Permanente's Director of Population Care Dr. Amy Compton-Phillips, UnitedHealthcare COO Dr. Sandford Cohen, Neurosurgeon Dr. James Melisi, the National Rehabilitation Hospital's VP Dr. Paul Rao, and Maryland's former Insurance Commissioner Al Redmer,

“The goal of the Summit is to get all of the players in the health care industry one room — from futurists like Andy Hines to insurance company executives, doctors, hospital administrators, pharmaceutical companies, and politicians,” says Cohen. “All these people have their own ideas, war stories, and agendas about what needs to be done to get health care insurance rates back in check — but never before have they sat down together and talked it through. The Summit is the first step to get this important conversation going.”

Since co-founding the Gaithersburg, MD health care benefits firm Golden & Cohen in 1992, CEO Stephanie Cohen has helped it grow into one of the largest among female-owned companies in the Washington metropolitan region with $70 million in sales last year.

With more than 15 years of experience in small group health insurance, disability programs and life insurance, she recently qualified to be a finalist for the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur of the Year Award. Stephanie also serves on the prestigious United HealthCare, Coventry, Aetna and Kaiser Broker Council, and is a member of the Womens’ President Organization, the District of Colombia Insurance Commissioner Advisory Council and The Greater Washington Health Underwriters.

Stephanie believes in giving back to her community, and has served on the board of Rebuilding Together, a non-profit group that rebuilds low-income homes. A native of Maryland, Stephanie received her BS in Marketing from University of Maryland in 1986. She has been married to Golden & Cohen co-founder and COO Scott for 15 years. They have two children.

For more information about this groundbreaking Summit, visit www.dchealthsummit.com. For details about Stephanie Cohen's firm, Golen & Cohen, log on to: www.golden-cohen.com.