Childhood memories fill the pages of “A Girl of the Gulf” a book dedicated to the life of Van Buren resident Shirley Marie Curtis. 

Book author Scarlett Hancock says her first book was inspired by a 50-page memoir discovered after her grandmother’s passing. 

“This book is based on my grandmother’s memories when she was growing up in Rocky River,” said Hancock. “Before she passed away in 2000, she wrote about 50 pages in her own handwriting.”

Curtis was born June 12, 1913 in Van Buren County. She married Worth Moses Curtis.

Hancock said more than a decade passed before she began to read what her grandmother had written.

“I grabbed them one day and sat down. I was floored. It follows her childhood. She had a brother named Bryan and a sister named Barbara. Both of them died really young. She always talked about them and how much she loved them. She would get tears in her eyes and tell us stories about them. It was very touching.”

Bryan was born April 5, 1910 and died Aug. 28, 1927 at the age of 17. Barbara was born May 28, 1915 and died Dec. 24, 1929 at the age of 14.

“She wrote one poem about the loss of her sister,” said Hancock. “I was inspired. I decided to write about how I saw her as my grandmother and how I think her childhood shaped her into the grandmother she became.”

Who was she?

“She was everything,” said Hancock. “She was a seamstress, she was a gardener, she was loving, she was fun, she was delightful and she was playful. She would tell us stories when we got settled down for bed. She had fun with that. If it was a scary one, she’s include sound effects like scratching on the door. If it was Christmas, she delighted in watching us open presents. She made all of our doll clothes. She was wonderful. She raised five children. She never drove a car. She walked everywhere.”

Grandmothers are the ones who love, encourage and provides fond memories and is always there.

“I think this is a story that everybody can relate to,” said Hancock. “Grandmothers are the greatest.”

The Woodlee home still exists in Van Buren County. 

“A Girl of the Gulf” can be purchased at https://getmynewbook.com/product/ a-girl-of-the-gulf/ and is available in paperback and eBook.