Virginia McCone does ”heart to heart” speaking as she shares her personal experiences, especially her mother’s Alzheimer’s story. She is the author of two books, Butterscotch Sundaes, My Mom’s Story of Alzheimer’s and Come Visit Me. Virginia and her husband Stan have been married 41 years and have five children and seven grandchildren. They live near Sanborn, Minnesota.
Virginia McCone was born in Colorado Springs, Colorado, and was raised on a farm in Wisconsin. She graduated from Wilmot High School in 1964. Her college years were spent in Wisconsin and Iowa, and she graduated from Morningside College, Sioux City, Iowa in 1968. Using her Bachelor of Arts degree, she taught high school English and Spanish in Iowa and Minnesota. Then she met Stan McCone “the love of her life,” and they were married in 1970. They raised five children, a daughter Christy and four sons, Benton, Charlie, Steve and Tom. Virginia was a stay at home mom, and after their children were out of the nest in 2001, she enjoyed sub-teaching and judging speech contests.
Since 1974, Stan and Virginia have lived by Sanborn, Minnesota, where they have a tourist site. www.sodhouse.org. From 1988 to 2007, the McCone’s offered the unique experience of staying overnight in a real sod house, Laura Ingalls style. Today, they offer daytime touring only. Retirement years for the McCone’s mean spoiling their seven grandchildren, Mariah, Jack, Carter, Maddie, Lilly, Emmie, and Julie.
In 2001, Virginia decided to go public with her mother’s story of Alzheimer’s disease. She wrote the book that she wished she would have had to enlighten, inspire and encourage her. Using her English degree, she self-published her book, Butterscotch Sundaes, My Mom’s Story of Alzheimer’s. The release date was May of 2003. Then in 2006, she released her second book, Come Visit Me, a handbook for visiting at a care center, memory cottage, assisted living, hospital or hospice. Convinced that people hesitate to visit such facilities because they feel awkward, Virginia wrote a book that has pages of practical suggestions of what to say and what to do. After her books were published, Virginia became a public speaker out of sheer demand, and she gladly responded to the call because she enjoys public speaking.
Publicity Information/Materials
Please use the following links to download images that may be used in publicity.
