It's Been Wondrous

Book excerpt: "It's Been Wondrous!" - A Centenarian's Memoir (1916-2016) is the life story of Julia Welles Hawkins. The story starts with a boat trip downriver from Chicago to Louisiana as the Welles family relocated to Ponchatoula. It is a love story that spans seven decades, beginning on her first day at LSU when she met Murray "Buddy" Hawkins and including their 70th wedding anniversary. It is a tale of struggles during the war while her brother was in a German concentration camp and her fianc� at Pearl Harbor when it was bombed. It tells of a tragic fire, teaching in Hondouras, and marriage by telephone. It is a family story of four children raised in a counter-culture environment that included scads of pets, outdoor adventures, reading, family games and a focus on creativity. It is the story of a woman who has been twice cited in Sports Illustrated as she continues to compete in the Senior Olympics in biking and running at age 100. It is the story of a wife, mother, grandmother and friend who has been an inspiration to hundreds.