Meet Helen Lingscheit Heavirland, as she reads from her new book, Surviving the Sand, about farming with her family during the Columbia Basin Project’s early years. Like many others, the Lingscheit’s lives are full of arduous work and incredibly tough times, but also love and laughter.

Growing up, Helen Lingscheit Heavirland listened—utterly captivated—as her father read stories aloud. The characters his expressive voice brought to life transported her to imagined adventures and helped motivate her to overcome her shyness and dream big. She earned a B. S. in Nursing from Walla Walla University and provided wellness checks, critical care, and everything in between for patients young and old, eventually serving as a director of nursing. Heavirland also worked with her husband in his business, and travelled internationally to help build new schools and assist with free medical clinics. Through it all, she learned to face life with optimism. In her spare time she enjoys hiking, biking, birding, and skiing, and is apt to discover a life lesson hidden in almost every situation—whether she’s weeding her own garden or flying over Victoria Falls in an ultralight.

The First Draft Writers’ Series brings authors and poets of note to the Pendleton stage to share new work. On the third Thursday of each month people who love the written word gather at the PCA’s Pearson Auditorium to hear featured authors as well as 3-5 minute open mic readings by local emerging writers. The program will also be available to attendees over Zoom. Contact the Pendleton Center for the Arts for details.

This program is made possible in part by a grant from Oregon Humanities (OH), a statement nonprofit organization and an independent affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities, which funds OH’s grant program. The National Endowment for the Humanities: Democracy demands wisdom.