Judi Majewski can help you express what you’d like to say in writing. (photo by Pat Johnson)
Want to write your thoughts down but you’re not so good with words? Need to write a difficult letter? Want to record some memories? If you need a ghostwriter to help you express what you need to say – no matter what it is – a volunteer is ready and willing.
Judi Majewski has been offering the free service at the Isaac Waldman Jewish Public Library since the summer. She hopes readers of the Independent might know someone who can use her help.
“I thought, I know people struggle with this, so I would love to help people,” said the former public school teacher. Writing comes easy for her, she said, something she knows is not the case for everyone.
People for whom English is not a first language might benefit from her help, Majewski said, but she’s excited to help anyone.
“I think anybody, really, who wants to tell a story, who wants to record a memory, record their family history, write a eulogy. And anybody who struggles with putting things down on paper – I think there are a lot of people like that,” she said.
Publishing has never been a desire for her, she said, she just enjoys writing as a way of communicating feelings and thoughts.
“I have written the occasional difficult letter,” she said. “Sometimes your emotions are so involved and sometimes I think people can use help.”
She knows her challenge is to capture the voice of the person for whom she is writing.
“I want it to be in their voice. I think that’s going to be the interesting challenge for me, to see if I can do that, to see if it speaks for them,” she said. “That’s very important.”
Her husband told her she could make a business out of it, but she doesn’t want to go into business. She’s just happy to help, she said.
He offered some other advice, too.
“My husband says I express myself much better in the written word,” she said laughing. “Sometimes we think maybe we should just write to each other.”
To contact Majewski, visit her at the Waldman Library, in the Jewish Community Centre of Greater Vancouver, until Dec. 11, where she will be every other Wednesday, at 1:30 p.m., or email her directly at [email protected].