About Do You Know Us?
There is a strong possibility that you do not, so we would like to introduce ourselves as the two new co-editors of NAMI Line.
I am Sharon Thiese. I live in Wheaton. My husband and I have been members of NAMI for several years. We recently completed the NAMI walk with our son David who is mentally ill. I volunteer at the NAMI office every other Friday and work on the NAMI newsletter with Kristine Johnson.
I am also an instructor at Lewis University and have presented at a number of statewide and local conferences and workshops. I am co-author of Reading and Writing Across Content Areas 2nd Edition (2007) Calif: Corwin Press; and Building
Content Literacy: Strategies for the Adolescent Learner (2010) Calif: Corwin Press.
During my free time, I enjoy reading, biking, going to Chicago, travelling, and spending time with my family and friends. I have three grown sons; the oldest is married and has a daughter, Claire. Now for my partner in editing...
I am Kristine (Kris for short) Johnson, wife of Yaser Aldaas and mother of three boys-Tariq (age 13), Emran (12), and Haroun (8). We have lived in Lombard for 20 years. In my life before children, I worked as a nurse at Hines V.A. Hospital. Right now I am enjoying many volunteer activities such as holding the office of Library Board Trustee in Lombard, being a member of the West Suburban Faith-based Peace Coalition, helping elect Ben Lowe for U.S. Representative, leading a book discussion group, working with PADS, and participating in various church functions. I love trying new things like archery and going on adventures such as Chinatown. Yoga and ayurvedic practices, complementary medicine, and the prevention of childhood obesity interest me. I would also like to learn more about the prevention of mental illness.
I answered the ad for the newsletter editor because my children are spending a year in Syria with their relatives learning Arabic and many other things and I felt I had some extra time to help out an organization that had helped me (and continues to help many others) out. My father suffered from paranoid schizophrenia for most of his life, having died just a year ago from lung cancer.
Sharon and I have some cool ideas for the newsletter, but we need to hear from you, too. Send us your suggestions, book reviews, poems, sketches, cartoons, memories of NAMI DuPage, recipes, etc.
Please include a few lines about yourself and your connection to NAMI. Thanks!
By Kris Johnson and Sharon Thiese