Last Friday, May 6th 2016, was a magical night. It was so amazing, it’s taken me almost a week to digest it enough to be able to share it with you.
I finally became the official 2016 recipient of the Alice Curtis Desmond Award!
And if you remember me talking about it, I also was able to spend my evening in the company of two additional and very fabulous award winners…
Andy Chmar–The Patricia Adams Award
and
Salman Rushdie–The Hamilton Fish Award
After an hour of mingling and a fund-raising auction for the the Desmond-Fish Library, I was able to take a few pictures of the venue. Only a few because I was going to be the first speaker of the evening. And I won’t lie, I was more than a bit nervous giving my first acceptance speech to 250 people, with one of them being the iconic Salman Rushdie.
I arrived at my seat with my To Kill A Mockingbird Purse, perfect for the occasion, to find signed copies of two of Salman Rushdie’s books on my seat. <3
Everyone filing into The Roundhouse Beacon. Hard to believe this gorgeously renovated place was an old, run down factory when I was a kid.
Such a big crowd! I’ve never spoken in front of that many people before. *butterflies*
Here’s my seat!! I won’t be able to eat a think until I’m done. So glad I was going first, because the food was amazing and I eventually did get to enjoy it.
I don’t have pictures of me speaking–yet. My Mom was able to attend the event and took a few and there was a professional photographer at the event, so I’m hoping to be able to share a few more pictures at a later date. *fingers crossed*
Part of the awesomeness of the evening was having my extremely sweet husband introduce me and hand me my award. And while he may have interjected a small bit of teasing into his speech, he once again made me feel incredible. He’s not only my biggest fan when it comes to my writing, but he’s also makes me feel like an incredible human being. I felt so loved. I find myself thinking about his words every day. <3
Then, I not only survived my speech, but according to feedback–I nailed it! Which meant the hours I spent writing and practicing paid off. It also meant my insanely shaky hands and at one point, trembling body, didn’t effect my voice. *phew!*
And here was my reward…
I MUST get this framed!
And I was also presented with two of Alice Curtis Desmond’s books. I can’t wait to read them.
Each book has this moving bookplate inside. Whenever I have one of those inevitable crappy moments as an author, I’m going to pull one of those books out and read…
To
Kimberly Sabatini
in recognition of her distinctive contribution
to Children’s Literature
And then I’ll get back to work.
Here’s my only picture of Salman Rushdie as he was being interviewed by Hamilton Fish.
Mr. Rushdie was intelligent, funny, thoughtful and engaging. I could have listened to him all evening.
And the cherry on my sundae came later in the evening, when I had the privilege of speaking with Mr. Rushdie after the presentation of his award. He spent several minutes asking me about my publisher, my writing and my book. It was a surreal experience I won’t ever forget.
And if all of the above wasn’t humbling enough, I had the opportunity to look at the award winners who walked before me…
I’ve had the opportunity to stand on the shoulders of so many amazing writers who have come before me. Now my goal is to be worthy of boosting up those who will come after. It’s time to get back to work to ensure that the Alice Curtis Desmond Award is the first of many.
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