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Arlene was born Christmas morning in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. She lived with her parents, three sisters and two brothers in Boundary Bay, a small community outside Vancouver and spent many long days building sandcastles on the beach with her siblings. Since that time she has lived in numerous beautiful communities throughout B.C. Currently she resides in Kelowna.
In addition to being a mother of two young men in their thirties, Aaron Douglas, an Actor and Chris Douglas, an Author, she is a grandmother to four grandsons and one granddaughter. In December, 2010, her granddaughter, Juno Bliss, came safely into the world in the front seat of a car at Kelowna airport on the way to the hospital. Juno may have her grandmother's love for adventure and travel.
Following a brush with cancer in 1998, Arlene re-prioritized her life, but it wasn't until after her sister's death in 2006 from colon cancer did she began writing. Not unlike other members of her family, Arlene had always been an intuitive child who often sensed the truth between imagination and tangible reality. However, she rarely spoke of her experiences for fear of ridicule or disapproval. She had never imagined writing a book relating to this topic until one night when a young girl spoke with her in a dream. From that encounter, the children's novel,
Power of Five The Celtic Stone, was born. For over a year, each time Arlene sat down to write, the little girl joined her and together they created the book.
To add more realism to her novel, Arlene based the five main characters on the personalities of her three grandsons, Taylor, Connor, and Jude, and two great nieces, Karrah and Aleighsha and also dedicated it to her late sister, Marge Parke, the girls' grandmother.
Arlene holds a Master of Arts Degree in Counselling Psychology and has over 25 years of experience working with traumatized children and their families. She has also worked and lived in First Nations' communities in Northern B.C. Many of her experiences in these villages are woven into her stories. Currently, she works as a counsellor at the B.C. Cancer Agency, public speaks, and writes in her spare time.
Please use the "Store tab" if you'd like to know more about Arlene's book.
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