Author Description

You Wake Me Each Morning That is what listeners around the world have said to Connie for years, as they heard her radio broadcasts in this country and around the world. The first time she heard the phrase was from Sam Lewis, America's long - time Ambassador to Israel. Some listeners have called the voice sexy, authoritative, funny, snobby, or sophisticated. Connie tries to incorporate it all, as she tells the stories that make the news or change history. Of the many compliments she has received, the most important came from Nelson Mandela. The former South African President said he listened to her broadcasts for years while in prison. He told her, during a Washington news conference, "You Gave My People Hope." Then he went onto say, "You are not as big as I thought you were!" In her autobiography, Connie tells of the struggles of a one-woman news bureau. She recounts such events as the unrest in Washington in 1968; the killing of Robert Kennedy (she had one of the last interviews with him); the Invasion of Czechoslovakia, where she stayed for six months; a brief kidnapping in Lebanon in l982, and White House coverage of Presidents from Lyndon Johnson to Barack Obama and beyond. Connie received the Lifetime Achievement Award for Excellence in Journalism from the New Zealand National Press Club at the New Zealand Parliament on August 15, 2006. On May 10, 2012, Connie was presented the insignia of an Honorary Officer of the New Zealand Order of Merit at the command of Queen Elizabeth the Second. This is a book for people of all ages, but especially those who are working the hardest to find themselves. To all the message is - never give up, be different from the crowd, and have fun!