LONG BEACH ISLAND – Donna Cavanagh is a multi-published author and humorist and she recently published a children’s book called “Ramo to the Rescue.”
Her first children’s story is based on a real lifeguard from Long Beach Island. She said “the point of the book is to teach children about the wonders of the beach but that is important to listen to the lifeguards who keep them safe.”
She noted that while the story is fictional, “the message is not. This book has been embraced by Long Beach Township Beach Patrol, Long Beach Township Administration and many towns that dot the Jersey Shore.”
The early reader book, which is written in rhyme, offers toddlers and young children an adventure that highlights the heroic deeds lifeguards perform every day, she said.
Cavanagh said she has always vacationed at the Jersey Shore. The book came to be through a chance meeting at a tavern in Beach Haven followed by a beach rescue the next day.
“We were eating dinner at Tuckers Tavern, and Ramo was our server. He was so kind to my then two-year-old grandson, Owen, who because of COVID, had not been in a restaurant since he was an infant. Ramo was just wonderful with him, so my family and I naturally took note of his name,” Cavanagh explained.
“The next day as we were on the beach, the entire rescue team complete with jet skis and boats headed into the water after receiving a call about a downed plane in Long Beach Township in the Spray Beach area. We saw Ramo on the jet ski, and Owen recognized him. Later that day, I said to my family that I should write a book for kids, Ramo to the Rescue,” the author added.
A former journalist and syndicated humorist, Cavanagh, who has vacationed on LBI and the Jersey Shore since she was a child, tinkered with the idea of the children’s book for several months. Life got busy with the arrival of a new grandson, Ben, plus writing and editing projects, but the story of Ramo remained in her mind.
In November, Cavanagh decided to put her thoughts to paper. She wrote the book in rhyme because she thought it would help her young target audience enjoy the story, characters and the all-important lesson that lifeguards are heroes.
“After I had the first draft of the story written, I consulted poetry experts who helped me make sure the rhyme scheme was correct,” she noted. “I just wanted this book to be as perfect as possible.”
Her next move was to contact Long Beach Township Beach Patrol Supervisor Tracey Schmidt and told her of the plan to bring “Ramo to the Rescue” to life.
“Tracey laughed and told me what a great guy the real Ramo was, and this made me so happy. Although the story is fictional, I still wanted to have their okay every step of the way for this book, so she put me in touch with Ramo Kline,” Cavanagh remarked.
She said, “I sent Tracey and Ramo the text of the book, and they gave their approval along with the township administrator, so I brought in Hannah Farr as my illustrator.”
According to Cavanagh, the Township, lifeguards and especially Ramo have been wonderful. “Ramo was and is an inspiration, and I am so grateful to him for allowing me to use his name to talk to young children about the work of lifeguards and how important it is to be safe at the beach.”
Cavanagh is founder of online humor magazine, HumorOutcasts.com (HO) and the partner publishing company, HumorOutcasts Press which now includes the labels Shorehouse Books and Corner Office Books (HOPress-Shorehousebooks.com).
She launched HumorOutcasts as an outlet for writers to showcase their work in a world that offered few avenues for humor. HumorOutcasts now features the creative talents of more than 100 aspiring, accomplished and Emmy-award winning writers and producers as well as comics and authors from all over the world. Known for its eclectic content, HumorOutcasts has something for everyone.
The ex-journalist made an unscheduled stop into humor more than two decades ago. Her syndicated columns helped her gain a national audience when her work landed in the pages of First Magazine, USA Today and other national media.
She has taught the how-to lessons of humor, blogging and publishing at The Philadelphia Writers’ Conference and the Erma Bombeck Writer’s Workshop. A once-named Humor Writer of the Month by the Erma Bombeck Writers’ Workshop, Cavanagh has penned five humor books “Reality: Fantasy’s Evil Twin,” “Try and Avoid the Speed Bumps,” “A Canine’s Guide to the Good Life” which she wrote with her dogs Frankie and Lulu, USA Books Contest finalist “Life on the Off Ramp” and “How to Write and Share Humor: Techniques to Tickle Funny Bones and Win Fans.”
For more information you can reach out to Cavanagh through Humoroutcasts.com and HOPress-ShorehouseBooks.com and Corner Office Books
