Meeting Helen

 Post by Doris McCraw

writing fiction as Angela Raines

photo (c) by the author

I became acquainted with Helen when she was asked to appear as the special guest host for a Victorian Tea at the Old Colorado City History Center, located at 1 S 24th Street, Colorado Springs, CO. It was sometime in the late 1990s. 

I was aware of "Ramona", but little else. I had heard her niece speak in the late 1970s, but my interest was more in history than Helen. 

That tea and the quick and intense research into Helen's life was a turning point. Here was a woman who in her own way defied convention. That initial 'meeting of the minds' led to a continuing look into her life. She is most remembered for her work on behalf of the Indians, but as my time with her grew, I learned she was so much more.

Photo (c) by the author

During that tea, which in retrospect was probably something Helen would not have done, I spent time engaging with the guests, as Helen. That short introduction allowed me to talk about her early life on the East Coast, but the focus, as if Helen were speaking through me, was on the plight of the Indians. 

As I continue to document the years I've spent with Helen, the imagined conversations we've had, perhaps those who knew little about her will come to also admire the courage and discipline she displayed as she followed her path as a writer and what we would now probably call an activist.

Doris Gardner-McCraw -

Author, Speaker, Historian-specializing in
Colorado and Women's History

Western Writers of America,

Colorado Author League,

Women Writing the West

Angela Raines - author: Telling Stories Where Love & History Meet

Books: Angela Raines Books

(c) Doris McCraw 2021