Wednesday's Woman: Inspiring Joyful Lives

"Somewhere between Hot Mess and Guru lies The Sisterhood"

The Sisterhood of the Sensible Moms

The Sisterhood of the Sensible Moms is two moms, Ellen and Erin, who are friends taking time out of their busy lives—with 7 children between them—to share their stories, give us advice and book reviews, and to ultimately remind us that even though this parenting business is very serious, it does not have to be humorless.  They are funny, intelligent, insightful and real.  They have been a steady resource of support, inspiration, and joy for me and are sure to be the same for you.

For today’s Wednesday’s Woman, Erin and Ellen have chosen to honor someone who is an inspiration in the true sense of the word.  Erin and Ellen describe her as someone ". . . you would want your daughter to grow up to be. . . ." and I agree.  She has been a victim and a survivor.  She now thrives.  She claims to be "Inspiring Joyful Lives" and she actually is.  Her name is Angela Shelton.

Wednesday's Woman: Angela Shelton

by The Sisterhood of the Sensible Moms

Angela Shelton (All Rights Reserved)

"I share ways for survivors of trauma to move on from fear, anger, rage, and resentment and find peace, healing and happiness.  I don’t believe in staying on the trauma and recovery train.  I fully support Moving On from trauma, but we all go at our own pace, so there are many steps in the process – living happily ever after is the most fun!" ~Angela Shelton 

We have “met” many amazing women online through our short time blogging, but one of them takes our collective breath away with the scope of her work and her indefatigable spirit: Angela Shelton. Strong, powerful, beautiful, charismatic and tireless, Angela is the woman you want your daughter to grow up to be, the chick you want to hang out with over coffee, and, quite frankly, the answer to the world’s energy crisis. A whirlwind of activity with boundless enthusiasm and limitless heart, Angela is the very definition of a role model.

The Adventures of
Tilda Pinkerton

Angela describes herself as an author, screenwriter, performer, public speaker, and filmmaker, but her list of attributes, jobs, and accomplishments goes on and on and on.  She even has authored a new book series for kids, The Adventures of Tilda Pinkerton, which we were happy to read and review. She is practically a superhero (We really wish we had been bitten by the same radioactive spider! She seems to have about 10 more hours in her day!), but she is also pretty darn funny and we like that here in The Sisterhood. We like women who get things done, but don’t take themselves too seriously, and Angela Shelton is just that kind of woman.

At the very heart of all her accomplishments, her tireless energy (seriously, the girl could power a small nation all by herself), and her passion is the thread that brings it all together: her work as an advocate for victims of abuse.  She has traveled the country, spoken to Congress, written books, guest-starred on television, authored screenplays, acted, modeled  and edited and produced her own movie, but in the end, it all comes back to this simple but important mission. We could go on and on (Angela’s enthusiasm and energy is infectious), but Angela has a great voice and spirit and we will let her speak for herself. We couldn't help asking her our burning questions and she couldn't help but answering them with sincerity and kindness. That’s probably why she makes such a great Wednesday’s Woman.

1. You are a multimedia whirlwind. What is the driving theme to your body of work?

My mission is to work on projects that inspire people to live happily ever after - no matter what they've been through. That includes healing from past traumas and moving on with our lives. 

That drive shows up in everything I do (hopefully) from my projects to inspire trauma survivors to heal to the books I'm writing to help teachers teach larger vocabulary and concepts. 

2. How does Tilda fit into your body of work?

By writing the Tilda series, I get to practice what I preach--- living happily ever after. I've had a dream to write books in a barn house for ages.  Now, the series has begun and the space for the house has been selected! I'm doing what I love to do, which is what I try to inspire others to do. 

Plus, Tilda is full of inspiring life lessons. The thing she is most insecure about happens to be what saves the planet and all her friends. There are many people out there sitting on a creative idea out of fear that it's not good enough when in fact it may just be their most beautiful contribution to the world. 

3. You are an advocate for children. How does Tilda promote your message?

A publisher told me that Tilda is like a modern Mary Poppins, and I think that fits beautifully. Pinkerton, like Poppins, arrives in all her fabulousness and teaches children to be as great as they possibly can be, despite any adversary - even if the opponents are their own fears, worries, and insecurities. She leaves the places she visits better off than when she arrived. 

Like the work I've done in the recovery community, it's not about me - it's about the person who hears the message. It's up to them to move from victim to survivor and then to thriver. I can only point out the pathways I took along the way. Tilda gives you a magical hat. It's up to you to wear it. 

I would love my children to have a teacher like Tilda - so I wrote her for them! 

Searching forAngela Shelton

We love the humility and humanity inherent in her answers. We love this honesty from a woman who has won a regional Emmy for her role as Safe Side Superchick which aims to keep kids healthy and safe. We love this outlook from the mind that created the Be Your Own Hero Workbooks which empowers people to move beyond their painful pasts into healthy, happy tomorrows.  We love this passion from the whirlwind behind Searching for Angela Shelton. This is what classy and powerful and determined looks like. This is what every Wednesday’s Woman should be. Ellen and I both have girls on the cusp of young adulthood, so we LOVE Sperk* for celebrating wonderful women for them to use as guideposts. Wednesday’s Woman is truly a special place to land on the web.

Wednesday's Woman is a weekly feature dedicated to spotlighting women who are role models for our daughters. . . and the world.

Photo Credit: CC by jhansensnaps