The Women’s Contact Society of Williams Lake is gearing up to launch a brand new book, Gumption & Grit: Women of the Cariboo Chilcotin, published this fall by Caitlin Press of Half Moon Bay.

A celebratory book launch is this Sunday, Nov. 8, at the Seniors’ Activity Centre from 1 to 4 p.m.

Gumption & Grit, edited by Sage Birchwater, contains the work of 23 authors telling the tales of 39 women in the region stretching from Williams Lake, Horsefly and Big Lake to Dog Creek, Big Creek, Tatlayoko Valley, Anahim Lake and Bella Coola.

Nearly a dozen women tell their own stories, but most are told by others.

Some accounts stretch back to the late 1800s or early 1900s recalling the perseverance required to brave hardships in a raw, untamed land.

Others tell of more modern exploits demanding unusual courage.

Included in the 216 pages are the stories of Doreen Armes, Veera Bonner, Gerry Bracewell, Emily Ekks, Lena Jack, Maddy Jack; the Grand Dame of Williams Lake, Hazel Huckvale, Molly Walker of Bella Coola, Marilyn Berwin, Joy Graham and Eve Chignell of Tatla Lake, Ingeborg Hansen of Clearwater Lake, Jen King of Bluff Lake, Helen Schuk of Tatlayoko, Linda-Lou Howarth of Riske Creek, Dinah Belleau of Alkali Lake, Jessie Frink of Big Lake, Pam Mahon, Sheila Westwick and Olive MacKenzie of Miocene, and Velma Derrick of Okanagan Falls.

Some in the book have long departed such as Jessie and Violet Moon of Riske Creek, and Chiwid, the Tsilhqot’in recluse who lived outside in the Chilcotin for 50 years. Others such as Liz Robertson, Win Bennie and Sarah Spring Stump, have more recently passed, but left a lasting legacy.

Others in the book, both seniors and younger women, are still contributing to the vibrancy of the community.

These include Diana French, Audrey MacLise, Biddy Jones, Sheila Gruenwald, Diane Walters, Josephine Gregg, Debra McNei, Heather Fraser, Irene Stangoe, Kelcy Slocombe, Maree Benoit and Marie Fletcher.

The book had its beginnings in 2005 when Jenny DeReis, acting executive director of the Women’s Contact Society, hired student Erinn Brown to work for the summer to collect the stories of women who made a difference in the community. By summer’s end, Erinn had collected some two dozen written accounts in various stages of completion. She felt the project was only half finished, and anticipated continuing her work the following summer, but funding didn’t materialize. So the project sat dormant for three years.

Then last winter, Tribune staff writer Sage Birchwater accepted a referral from fellow writer Gaeil Farrar to edit the book.

Birchwater says he found some of the stories so powerful they demanded to be put in print, and questioned whether other stories of abuse and shattered lives should be in the book at all.

But after speaking with some of the authors, he says it became clear that these hard-hitting narratives had immense value, as teaching tools and part of a profound healing journey.

“I’m pleased with the results,” Birchwater says. “One woman’s victory over insurmountable odds gives hope and inspiration to others.”

Once the stories accumulated were edited, Birchwater realized there weren’t enough for a book and that there were no stories about First Nations women.

Thanks to the Williams Lake Tribune archives and the good will of publisher Lorne Doerkson, Birchwater and Farrar were able to access stories and photographs previously published in the newspaper and in the Tribune’s annual award-winning supplement Casual Country. A dozen more stories were added to complete the book.

“It’s not perfect,” Birchwater admits. “There are many other stories of incredible women of this region that weren’t included simply because those stories haven’t been written yet. At the same time Gumption & Grit has a wonderful sense of wholeness to it. We are delighted how it turned out.”

Literally the day before Birchwater was going to have a friend lay out Gumption & Grit as a self-published effort by the Women’s Contact Society, Caitlin Press publisher, Vici Johnstone, heard about the project and told him to hold the press until she had time to look over the manuscript.

Johnstone liked what she saw, and over the next six months she worked with Birchwater to produce a polished and professional literary work with appeal beyond the local region.

Johnstone says Gumption & Grit is the first volume in a new series Extraordinary Women by Caitlin Press, which will showcase women’s stories, their lives, their successes, their history.

“Reading this book is like having a heart-to-heart conversation with some good friends,” Johnstone says. “These women were mothers, grandmothers, schoolteachers, outfitters, ranchers, homesteaders, volunteers, survivors and business owners that made their communities tick. It’s high time they were celebrated in print.”

Women’s Contact Society director Karen Kuenzel and Child Care Resource and Referral and Kid Care Daycare director Cindy Fairburn are pleased with the project and that the women’s society will receive some royalties from the book sales.

“Women writing and telling their stories will be helping other women, so it is kind of neat how it is coming full circle,” Fairburn says. She says everyone featured in the book and the writers will all receive a free copy.

“We are really happy to see the project coming to life and really appreciate everyone who has been involved. Women of the Cariboo are strong women in many ways,” Kuenzel says.

Johnstone adds Gumption and Grit is an important book that will resonate with all women. “It’s a sign that our society is ready to celebrate and value women’s history. This book speaks to personal triumphs against all odds—and it’s a great read.”

Authors who contributed stories to the book are Barbara Coupe, Linda-Lou Howarth, Gerry Bracewell, Sage Birchwater, Marie Fletcher, Gloria Atamanenko, Pam Mahon, Rebecca Aldous, Clint Thompson, Liz Twan, Maree Benoit, Gaeil Farrar, Jessie Frink, Karen Longwell, Kelcy Slocombe, Erinn Brown, Sheila Greunwald, Heather Fraser, Debra McNei, Diane Walters, Audrey MacLise, Viv Lee and Diana French.