HGAR Staff Dish Cooking, Poetry, Humor and International Intrigue in New Books
John Jordan | July 19, 2018
WHITE PLAINS—While their respective talents and expertise are much different, four staff members—Leon Cameron, Mary Prenon, Emily Jackson and Lisa Andrade—have one thing in common they can each put on their resumes—Author.
The four HGAR staff professionals have authored books that showcase their individual talents and passions outside of their roles at HGAR. The publications offer: tips on cooking, a light-hearted look at weight loss, poetry and a fictional tale of international intrigue.
HGAR Education Coordinator Lisa Andrade’s namesake book “I Am…Lisa M. Andrade Award Winning Poetess” recently became available on lulu.com and amazon.com.
“Writing has been a passion of mine ever since I was a young girl. I’ve always dreamed of writing a book and believe my creativity and fun personality shines through in ‘I Am… Lisa M. Andrade Award-Winning Poetess,’ which also highlights my love and passion for the dogs and cats at the Putnam Humane Society in Carmel. It is this legacy that I am proud to pass along this book to my daughter (Maria) and grandson (Rylan) to enjoy for many years to come.”
Andrade, who will be celebrating 20 years with the association this December, said she dedicated the book to longtime Realtor and 2017 HGAR President Dorothy Botsoe. Andrade described Botsoe as “an influential person who has helped so many on a personal and business level. I want to walk in her footsteps by leaving a legacy that people will always remember me for: a woman with a heart of gold insistent on making her dreams come true as well as assisting others in making their dreams come true.”
She says that when writing a story or a poem, she morphs into a character, similar to an actress taking on a role in a film or play. By doing so, the process helps to bring the story to life, she said. “If I, the writer, can convey the sentiments of my poetry so that the reader can really feel the emotions, then I have succeeded as a gifted writer and great storyteller,” Andrade said.
Emily Jackson, information and member service coordinator and LockBox manager, White Plains, penned the cookbook “Emily’s Heavenly Delites Vol. No. 1” in 2013. She said that cooking has been a passion for her ever since she took some cooking classes in her senior year of high school.
The Georgia native said her recipes are geared at creating attractive and delicious meals. She also emulates her grandmother, who always cooked healthy foods from the garden.
There are more than 25 recipes in Jackson’s book that run the gamut of delectable chicken, lamb, fish and beef meals as well as desserts.
Jackson, who has worked at the association more than 11 years, is currently working on Volume 2 that will include the recipes from her first book as well as a bunch of new ones.
“I have been cooking since I was 16,” Jackson said and ever since cooking has been a passion. She credited HGAR’s Lisa Andrade with helping her put the book together and submit it to a publisher.
Mary Prenon, director of communications and sales director, Real Estate In- Depth, uses her sharp sense of humor in her recently published book “I’m Lazy and I Love to Eat,” which humorously chronicles her 19-year battle to lose 50 pounds.
Prenon, who has previously worked in the public relations, newspaper and radio fields, said, “It is a true-life comedy about my own struggles to lose 50 pounds and it took 19 years.”
The book offers some tips that worked for her, what she did after suffering setbacks, as well as her thoughts on body image, etc.
“A lot of the books and videos out there are geared for people in their 20s and 30s and they are doing all these acrobatics and when you get to be 50 and you are trying to lose weight, who do you turn to—a 25-year-old doing jumping jacks?” Prenon said. “Or do you turn to somebody (near your age) who has done it and you see how it works.”
Prenon said one of the keys to her eventual success in losing the weight was finding the right gym. “I spent a lot of money in the wrong gyms,” she noted. Prenon said the large gyms did not work for her. “I was a ‘Before’ in a sea of ‘After’s,’” she quipped.
Leon Cameron, director of legal services and professional standards administrator, recently penned his first book—the novel “The Greatest Humans”—which he described as a “commercial pop thriller that doesn’t take itself too seriously.” The mystery suspense tale includes cameo appearances from public figures and delivers on both action, as well as laughs, he related.
He added that the inspiration for the book arose from the tremendous debt that came to the fore from the 2008 housing crisis and postulated that a fictitious secret clique, which he called “The Conglomerate,” was propping up the global economy to the detriment of all others.
Cameron descried “The Conglomerate” as “a clandestine force that was controlling everyone’s lives without them realizing it.”
He said the self-published book took him almost all of 2017 to complete and that paperback and digital copies are both available at amazon.
Cameron said he was pleased with his first book and plans to author at least two more books as part of “The Greatest Humans” series.
Editor, Real Estate In-Depth