An exciting new feature to this year’s Kerens Cotton Harvest Festival will be a “Book Signing” by Ivan R. Vernon.

The Kerens Library is happy to announce that Ivan has donated his stories to the library and the library paid for the expense to have the book, “101 Stories about Kerens, Elm Flat and Nearby Communities,” printed. Net proceeds, after deducting the cost of printing, will go to the library. Mr. Vernon has dedicated his book to the KHS Class of 1958.

Mr. Vernon was born on the Vernon place east of Kerens and has long family roots in the Kerens and Bazette communities. He graduated from Kerens High School as one of the greatest of the great, the Class of 1958. After three years in the army, he earned bachelors, masters, and doctoral degrees, and spent forty-two years teaching marketing and international business at Baylor Cleveland State Universities; retiring recently at the grand old age of seventy-six. While teaching at the university level, Mr. Vernon also served as an international business consultant, traveling extensively in Asia, Africa, and Europe. At present he and wife, Jocelyn, spend lots of time in their shared hobbies, gardening and photography. He also devotes attention to his interests in writing and military history. Mr. Vernon serves as a lay minister in his local Methodist church. Whatever he did and wherever he went, he credits any success he achieved to his upbringing and education in Kerens.

Copies of the book are now available for purchase at the Kerens Library. The cost is $35, plus $7 for shipping. The book will be available in the library for purchase or you may call the library and reserve your book and have it autographed by Mr. Vernon when he comes to the CHF. He will autographing his books for festival patrons from 9am-5pm in the Kerens Library. The library is able to take orders over the phone by using credit/debit card; just call 903-396-2665 and ask for John.

The number of books is limited, so call soon or drop by the library and purchase your book or books. They would make a nice gift.