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by The_Bliss_Report from Metro Detroit

Last Post 42 days, 11 hours Ago


FROM ROMANCE AUTHOR TO MISSIONARY, WATERFORD GRANDMOTHER FINDS HER BLISS
Jun 18, 2008 | 1:25 PM
Category: News
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When I first met Anne Eames at a local Romance Writers of America meeting, she was talking about how sultry actress Sharon Stone was reviewing one of her books to possibly make a movie about it.

Next thing I heard, Anne and her husband were moving to South Africa to work as missionaries!

First, the now-63-year-old grandmother from Waterford was finding her bliss as the author of steamy stories for Harlequin. But suddenly her life purpose and passion shifted to helping others live a better life in a poverty- and AIDS-plagued section of the world — far, far away from Metro Detroit.

It all started when she and Bill, 62, took a two-week trip to South Africa through Kensington Community Church in Troy.

“I came away thinking how happy and content the very poorest of poor were, how they sang and smiled and laughed at the smallest things,” Anne says. “When we got home… we realized how excessive we lived… and how our money could be spent better on what really matters. This started a restlessness in us that continued through the next four years and two return visits to South Africa… it was time to take a leap of faith and act.”

So they did, on Labor Day, 2004. Now they’re helping people in Cape Town who are poor and living with HIV and AIDS. Anne and Bill run African Hope Crafts, where men and women create jewelry that they sell worldwide on a website. Profits from the necklaces, bracelets and other items help support the South Africans’ families and medical needs. You can visit their online jewelry site at http://www.africanhopecrafts.org/Crafts/Crafts.html>

From romance writer to missionary, Anne has followed her heart and her calling around the globe.

So do they miss Metro Detroit? Well, they come home every Christmas to visit with their four grown children and six grandkids. And she says they miss Home Depot, Office Max and football, along with Thanksgiving.

But Bill and Anne are loving life — by finding their bliss in helping others to live better lives.

You can email Anne and Bill at baeames@iafrica.com.
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The_Bliss_Report

Tired of bad news? Send me a good news story and I'll publish it in The Bliss Report. I’m a former Fox 2 news writer and a bestselling author. A Michigan native and downtown Detroiter, I’m an exercise and healthy eating enthusiast—after celebrating a 100-pound weight loss on Oprah! As an expert on interracial families and biracial people, I was a guest on Montel with my first book, White Chocolate.

Member Since: 4/17/2008


 

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