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UUA to Honor Author Kate Braestrup for Here if You Need Me

April 11, 2008

The Unitarian Universalist Association’s (UUA’s) 2008 Melcher Book Award will be presented to Kate Braestrup for her memoir, Here If You Need Me. Named one of the "top ten" non-fiction books for 2007 by Time Magazine, the book chronicles the unlikely path that led Braestrup to her calling as a Unitarian Universalist chaplain serving those injured and lost in the wilds of Maine. Here If You Need Me is a heartfelt and deeply grounded memoir of a path toward healing that led a young widow with four little children into a series of "search and rescue" expeditions to reclaim her spirit, God, love, hope, and lost souls in the Maine woods.

The award ceremony, followed by a reading and conversation with Braestrup, will be hosted by the UUA’s headquarters at 25 Beacon Street on Wednesday, April 16, from 4:00 - 6:00 p.m. The presentation will be followed by a book signing by the author. This special event is free and open to the public and press.

Melcher Book Award Committee member David Blanchard said, “For the first time in decades, the recipient of the Melcher Book Award is a Unitarian Universalist minister. For the first time ever, the author is also a Chaplain for the Maine Warden Service. Her stories, insights and wisdom do Unitarian Universalism proud. The Melcher Book Award Committee is delighted to recognize and honor this compelling narrative.”

Established in 1964, the Frederic G. Melcher Book Award is given annually by the UUA to a work published in the United States during the past calendar year judged to be the most significant contribution to religious liberalism. Previous recipients include James Carroll, Richard Rodriguez, Toni Morrison, Dorothy Day, and Joseph Campbell.

For more details, please visit the Melcher Award website.

For additional information please contact:

Shelby Meyerhoff, Public Witness Specialist
(617) 948-6103
pw_specialist @ uua.org

Last updated on Friday, April 11, 2008.