First Piece of Press!

Today I received the wonderful news that the first piece of Bittersweet Memories press has been completed! This is so exciting for me! To see the article, please copy and paste the following link:
http://www.workingmother.com/web?service=direct/1/ViewBlogArchives/dlinkBlog&sp=S2091

I'm thrilled with the progress that the book is making. I learned today about the Association for Death Education and Counseling (ADEC). This is one of the oldest organizations in the field of death, dying, and bereavement. There are close to 2,000 members who are educators and mental health professionals. I have been doing research on the site and I am trying to find the best thanatologist. A thanatologist is professional in death, dying, and bereavement whose professional responsibilities include working with the dying and the grieving process. I am looking for an expert to weigh in on what cooking and food can do to help the grieving process. If you can recommend anyone, please contact me at emily@bittersweet-memories.com.

Have a great week!

Donations

Last night I went to an Advisory Board Meeting for the Robert H. Lurie Medical Research Center. The Center was established at Northwestern University in 1974. In 1991, it was dedicated as the Rovert H. Lurie Cancer Center of Northwestern University. This center is one of only 40 comprehensive cancer centers in the nation, as designated by the National Cancer Institute. Among the largest in the Midwest, the clinical enterprise treats more than 10,000 new cancer cases annually.
Dr. Steve Rosen, who is director of the center and was my mother's oncologist,is an incredible human being with the best bedside manner I have ever experienced. He is a brilliant doctor who treats his patients like the are family.
I have made a decision to give a portion of the proceeds from the book to Dr. Rosen and his team. I would also like to say something about the new Brain Tumor Institute that just opened at Northwestern. Dr. Jeffrey Raizer is the co-director of the center and was also my mom's doctor. He is a wonderful man who has dedicated his life to fighting this horrible disease. To learn more about Dr. Rosen, Dr. Raizer, and the cancer center, please go to the website at http://www.cancer.northwestern.edu/home/index.cfm
A Blending of Bittersweet Memories is for people who have lost loved ones due to all reasons, not just cancer. It is my personal preference to use the proceeds to fight cancer. Please help me fight one of the battles that affects so many people.

NEW WEBSITE

I am so excited to announce that my website has been completely reconstructed!! Lisa Mollo has rebuilt the site within 2 weeks!! She is the absolute best and could not have done this without her. Lisa does not just work 9-5 and she doesn't take sick days. She works 24 hours a day no matter what and I need to thank her for all of her hard and beautiful work. Please check it out at www.bittersweet-memories.com. Please sign the guestbook and let me know what you think!
I can't wait to get everyones recipes and stories. The holidays are a great time to remember our loved ones and happy memories.
We have lots to do this week! We are working on celebrity mailings and hope to get submissions in as soon as possible.
REMINDER*- Due date for submissions in January 31st, 2010!

It's Holiday Time!

I can't believe that it is already December. I hired a public relations company last month and since November 1st we have gotten so much accomplished! I took head shots, which was so much fun. I hired a website designer and she is absolutely incredible! She has completely transformed the site and it will be ready to launch by this weekend!! We have sent out mailings to grief groups, spoken to ghost writers, and come up with an adorable logo. Also, we are being featured in workingmother.com. The website reaches about 4.9 million people per month. Needless to say, all is going well on the PR side!
Now on the book side, I have spoken with a publisher and literary agent. They love the book idea and are so excited about moving forward. The literary agent says she wants the book to be more focussed on grief with a side bar on recipes. I need to do a lot more research on grief! It's so important to tell my story to publishers. I hope to have a proposal ready by January 1st.
That's all for now!

November 11 2009

WOW!! It has been an intense 2 weeks! Last week I hired a publicist. I am using Skirt PR and they are wonderful!! They are all so nice and such hard workers. They move at a fast pace, which I love! In the past week, I have gotten so much done! I hired an attorney who is drafting up releases for my submitters. We have been working on logo to represent "A Blending of Bittersweet Memories." Also, we have been working on my bio and taking head shots! It was so much fun! I went to a bunch of local stores and brought home many options to chose from. I can't wait to see the pictures and share them with you!
For the remainder of this month, we are working really hard to put together lists of people that we want to solicit! This is all amazing and making great progress. Now, all I need are 1,000 recipes by January 2010!!!! Please help me by submitting your memories and recipes today on www.bittersweet-memories.com. Thanks!!

P.S. Follow us on twitter @btrswtmemories. Also, become a fan on Facebook @www.bittersweet-memories.com

Welcome!

Welcome! This is my first blog. I am brand new to this so please try to be patient with me! ;)

A Blending of Bittersweet Memories is a book that is dedicated to all of those people that have lost their parent and/or loved one. For me, food is the trick for keeping their memory alive. This is a compilation of bittersweet memories in conjunction with a specific recipe. All of the traditional recipes that have departed with our loved ones, will now be remembered indefinitely.

Our Mission:

To give people a comforting way to manage the loss that is forever and keep memories/recipes alive. Please send us your stories and recipes today. Check out our website:

www.bittersweet-memories.com

Public Relations

Tomorrow, Friday October 23rd, I am meeting with two top Publicists. I am extremely excited to hear what they think of my idea and how they want to move it forward. I will keep you posted as to what happens. Wish me luck!

Submissions

We have already received 3 submissions!!! I am so excited about them. They are exactly what we are looking for. I can't wait to share them with all of you; they will just melt your heart.

We need many more submissions from people of all different backgrounds including racial, religious, financial, age, gender, ethnic etc. Please help us by telling your friends, co-workers, families about us! Thanks!

Facebook

We have just started a Facebook Fan Page. It is called www.bittersweet-memories.com.

Please go check it out and become a fan! Over the past 48 hours, we have grown from 1 fan (me :) to 190 fans! I am blown away by everyones extremely heartfelt comments. I am so excited about this book because I feel that it is so needed! Thank you to all of you who have been so supportive.

About why we are Writing this Tribute

A Blending of Bittersweet Memories

On January 23, 2006 Renée Israel, my mother, lost her life to a long, hard-fought battle against breast cancer. She lived her life with such class and devotion to her family and friends that she left us with huge shoes to fill.

During her lifetime, my mother with the help of her beloved family and friends, created two cookbooks entitled "Whip Me, Beat Me, Eat Me". The origin of Whip Me, Beat Me, Eat Me started in my mother's kitchen. She would cook dinner Monday through Thursday for just her family.

Each and every Sunday night my mother would prepare a multiple course home cooked meal for our "family". While our immediate family only consisted of five people, the Sunday "family" included at least fifteen and sometimes up to fifty people on any random Sunday. After our constant requests for her recipes, she together with her friends, compiled recipes and created the two cookbooks.

Thankfully my mother wrote all of her recipes down and now I can pass them along from generation to generation. But what are recipes without the Bittersweet Memories behind them?

"I was serving my husband "Monday Night Spaghetti" when it hit me like a ton of bricks: the delicious smell of spaghetti bolognese with a hint of sugar, the taste of the crispy topping and the old dish that my mother used to serve it in. My mother's presence was so strong through her recipes. I tasted, smelled, and saw Monday Night dinners at my childhood home". This is in honor of our loved ones, especially my mother, Renée.

-Emily