Next Sunday, if I’m still able to stand after the Lewis County chapter of the American Association of University Women (AAUW) Evening with Authors and the Southwest Washington Writers Conference, I hope to join others in Toledo for the Esther Borte Ninth Annual Day in the Park.
The annual event honors a lifelong Toledo resident, Esther (Kalista) Borte, a wonderful woman I met at St. Francis Xavier Mission northeast of town. Esther, a master at quilting who was a Scouts and 4-H leader, worked at the Toledo Post Office and, for two decades, woke up early the second Saturday of each month to prepare homemade biscuits and gravy for grateful people visiting the Toledo Senior Center.
Her daughter, Christine Borte Mershon, shared on Facebook how, in 2016, Esther developed the idea of the Walk in the Park to raise money for improvements at Kemp Olson Memorial Park. She found a “Walk in the Park” pattern, sewed it into a beautiful quilt and sold raffle tickets as a fundraiser for the city park.
Although ill health kept her from walking that September, she attended the inaugural Walk in the Park that bears her name. Esther, a granddaughter of early Toledo pioneers and the third of 17 children born to Ed and Edna (Knab) Kalista, died only three months later, on Dec. 21, 2016, at the age of 90.
“Mom was intrigued with the idea of a splash pad type water feature in the park,” Mershon wrote. “She wanted something that all ages could enjoy. But these types of systems are expensive to build and maintain.”
After her death, the family established the Esther Borte Memorial Waterpark Fund. With help from in-kind donations, Toledo now has a simple splash pad near the Veterans’ Memorial Wall in the park.
Esther’s legacy lives on in the six children she had with her husband, Tony Borte, great-great-grandson of Simon Plamondon, the first white man to settle in the Northwest. Her husband died in 1971, and she worked several jobs to finish raising their children. She’s also remembered by her many grandchildren, great-grandchildren, nieces, nephews, people she mentored and friends who remember her fondly.
She’s also honored by the annual Day in the Park, which includes a walk, raffle, vendors, music and family-friendly activities. It runs from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.
“I’m sure Mom would be delighted to see that her original Walk in the Park is being continued,” Mershon wrote.
ACFW Chapter Forms
On Saturday, I attended a meeting at The Potter’s House in Centralia with two Christian writers — Elizabeth Goddard, the USA Today bestselling and Christy Award-winning author of more than 60 romantic suspense novels that have sold over 1.5 million copies, and Debby Lee, a Toledo native and member of the Yakama tribe who writes romance novels and novellas.
We connected via Zoom with a half-dozen other Christian writers to talk about forming a Northwest chapter of American Christian Fiction Writers (ACFW), known as The Voice of Christian Fiction with nearly 3,000 members worldwide.
Years ago, I attended ACFW Northwest meetings in Vancouver, Washington, but the group disbanded just before the COVID-19 pandemic because it didn’t have enough people willing to lead the chapter.
Now, Lee and Goddard are willing to resurrect the chapter serving members in Alaska, Idaho, Oregon and Washington. Lee, the instigator and chapter president, plans at least four meetings a year — one in the Vancouver and Portland area, two in the Centralia area and one in Olympia.
ACFW’s’ mission is to promote Christian fiction through developing writers’ skills, educating them in the market and advocating in the traditional publishing industry, according to its website. It has 30 local chapters in 22 states and a Beyond-the-Borders e-chapter. It holds an annual conference with publishers, agents and more than 700 conferees and runs three writer recognition awards programs — First Impressions, the Genesis Contest and the Carol Awards.
Members attending via Zoom included people living on the Oregon Coast, the Portland area, the Seattle area and near the Canadian border.
“I’d eventually like for our July meeting here in Centralia to be a one-day mini-conference — and I stress the word ‘mini,’” Lee said.
I sat on my hands, unwilling to tackle yet another writing conference, but Kathy Stuesser, of Stanwood, Washington, agreed to serve as secretary.
Meetings will be both in-person and via Zoom so those far away can participate. Dues will be $20 a year.
Anyone interested in the new chapter should contact Lee, Goddard or me via acfwnorthwest@gmail.com.
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Julie McDonald, a personal historian from Toledo, may be reached at memoirs@chaptersoflife.com.
