Main Character Monday: Grace Bauer - Rose Harbor - Heather Greer | Heather Greer, Stories of faith, life, and love

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Main Character Monday: Grace Bauer – Rose Harbor

Monday, October 11th, 2021 by Heather Greer Start the Conversation

Welcome to Main Character Monday. Today’s guest is Grace Bauer from Rose Harbor by Pamela S. Meyers. Thank you for joining me. Let’s get right into the interview.

If you could visit any place in the world, where would you go?

I’m happy to be here, Heather. Thanks for having me.

Since I was a young girl and my dad took me up in his small plane, I yearned to not only see more of the United States but to see the world. That realization sparked my dream to become a pilot and eventually work for a commercial airline. Of course, during the infant beginnings of plane travel, the pilots were always male. But that didn’t stop me from my dream.

The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. Which of these traits do you find easiest to display in your life? Which of them is the hardest to display?

Since I first surrendered my heart to the Lord He’s been working on me to grow in the fruits that are hardest for me to display. Faithfulness has always been the easiest. I have always been faithful to my family and my family’s heritage and to being the best representative of my family I can be. I worked hard to be faithful to God and my promise to follow him. By the time you step into my story as portrayed in Rose Harbor, I am struggling with that fruit quite a bit.

It does, at times, take hard life lessons in those areas that are difficult to make them come a little more naturally. What is your favorite story from the Old Testament?

There are so many to choose from. The one that has resonated with me a lot is the story about Hagar, Sarah’s maidservant. After she’d done as Sarah had asked of her, Sarah mistreated her terribly and Hagar and her son ended up being banished from the household. I love how after God came to her in the desert, she gave God a special name, El Roi, which means the God who sees me. I’m reminded of that a lot when going through tough times.

I, too, find that story a great reminder. Isn’t it wonderful to know that God sees us? What is your favorite book in the New Testament?

I can relate a lot to Peter, especially when after Jesus was crucified and Peter and the other disciples were mourning their loss, Peter and the disciples went fishing. Peter was still an emotional wreck after he’d denied Christ three times and Jesus showed up on the shore. He asked Peter three times if he loved Him. As many times as Peter had denied knowing Him! Peter said yes three times and Jesus asked him to “feed My sheep.” Wow! I love that even when we mess up big time, Jesus still loves us and after we repent, we are forgives and still given a job to do for Him.

It is a great comfort knowing while we want to be godly, God doesn’t proclaim us useless when we mess up. If you could leave us with one message, what would you want us to know?

If God gives you a dream, you can trust Him to fulfill that dream. It may not look exactly like how you imagined, but you can be sure it will be God’s best for you.

I love that thought. Now for a few more lighthearted questions. If you could have one exotic pet, what would you choose?

I’m really not into exotic animals. I’ve become rather attached to a couple of the chickens that Mac’s family has on their farm. He’s the hero in my story, by the way. When I was stationed in Texas and flying B-17s, an armadillo starting hanging out near our bunk house. He was a strange little creature. Marge, one of the other pilots, took a liking to him and collected insects to feed him. I’ll take a dog or cat any day.

Nothing wrong with that. And here are a few rapid fire questions. Just give me the first answer that pops into your head.

Sunrise or sunset? Sunrise. There’s nothing like being up before dawn and heading out on Geneva Lake to see it rise over the treetops.

Pie or Cake? Pie – especially cherry

Tulip or Iris? Can I say Lilacs? They’re only around for a short while in the spring. But their fragrance is intoxicating.

Chocolate or Vanilla? Chocolate, hands down.

What three words would you use to describe Pamela S. Meyers?

Persistent, demanding, and faithful. In the middle of the pandemic, she disappeared. Not because she was sick, but because her muse stopped working. I wasn’t sure how I was going to get out of the predicament she left me in, but eventually she returned and with some help from some great editors finished my story.

Thank you Grace for visiting with me today. And thank you to Pamela S. Meyers for joining us. Here is a little more about Rose Harbor and Pamela S. Meyers.

About Rose Harbor, book 4 of the Newport of the West Series:

All Grace Bauer has wanted to do since she was a child was to fly airplanes. When the Women Airforce Service Pilots (WASP) organizes for female pilots to ferry new bomber aircraft to stateside military bases, Grace applies. She never tires of flying B-17s and other aircraft, and dreams of being one of the first females to pilot a commercial airliner after the war. A life-threatening illness clips her wings, and she finds herself back home in Wisconsin, thinking that God is punishing her for a past sin. Bored, she joins a ladies bowling league and meets Mac McAlister, a widowed school teacher who helps out at the bowling alley on league nights. He offers to help her restore the old family lakeshore estate, Safe Refuge—now called Rose Harbor and lost during the Crash of 1929—back to the family. She’s happy to have a good friend like Mac to help. But despite her efforts to keep their relationship platonic, Grace’s feelings for him grow. Before the relationship can move to the next level, she must tell him her secret, and when he hears it, he’ll want nothing more to do with her. She should end the relationship, but can’t imagine life without him. It is only with God’s blessing that she’ll be free to love Mac. But after what she’s done, she doubts God is willing to forgive her.

About Pamela Meyers, author of the Newport of the West Series, a 4-book historical series set in her hometown.

Pam grew up in Lake Geneva, Wisconsin. She’s lived on both coasts of the U.S. After seven years in Southern California, she returned to the Midwest. She now lives with her two rescue cats, Jack and Meggie (who are named after the characters in one of her books) in northeastern Illinois. She’s only about an hour’s drive away from Lake Geneva, where she can often be found nosing around for story ideas and enjoying a Friday night fish fry.