Becky Yates Spencer barely had time to catch her breath between flights. She arrived home from a six week mission trip in eSwatini, Africa, just in time to repack and hop on a plane to Murfreesboro, Tennessee for the AWSA (Advanced Writers and Speakers Association) Golden Scroll Awards Banquet August 25th.
Awards were given to authors in seventeen categories. The Memoir of the Year was awarded to Becky Yates Spencer for A Bruised Reed: Memoirs of African Orphans and Their Rescuers. (Grand Staff Publishing). AWSA consists of over 600 top women authors who both publish and speak nationally.
The Lifetime Achievement Award was presented to Michael W. Smith in honor of his 35th year in ministry. He has been honored with three Grammy Awards, 45 Dove Awards, and American Music Award. Smith ministered in song and participated in a question-and-answer session hosted by CTN host Monica Schmelter, who served as emcee for the event.
Spencer and her husband Tracy are decades-long residents of Buhler, Kansas, where they raised their eight children. They founded Grand Staff Ministries thirteen years ago, which facilitates their ministry to abandoned, vulnerable, and orphaned children in eSwatini, Africa. The stories of the children they’ve served there were the inspiration for A Bruised Reed, first in the Worth Fighting For Series.
Book Two, When God Comes Down Like Rain, is a book about life-changing faith. It will be available before the end of the year. “People often ask what I write and speak about. It’s always about things worth fighting for—things God cares about—like orphans and faith I’ve written about in these first two books, and also marriage, wayward children, purity, and more, which will be added to the book series in the future. Too often we give up, when getting our fight back would give us purpose.”
Copies of A Bruised Reed can be purchased at Grand Staff Thrift Boutique in downtown Buhler. The upscale resale shop has become a favorite shopping destination for people all over the state. And like the profits from the boutique, all proceeds from the sales of this award-winning book go directly to serve the children in eSwatini.
“Or,” Becky adds, “we’d love to see you at our booth in the Sunflower North Building at the Kansas State Fair, where you can purchase a book and shop some of our thrift boutique clothing. The thrill of the hunt is part of the fun, and it’s guilt-free when you know you’re making a life-changing difference for hurting children.”
You may contact Becky for speaking engagements: [email protected] or (620) 543-6518
