Sherrill Bodine has lived a big life.
And, seven decades in, she’s only just getting started.
Her journey started quietly in a small, central Indiana farming town in the mid-century. Sherrill’s mother was developmentally disabled from birth, a condition which left her unable to read, write, or reason. From the young age of 5, Sherrill began to care for her mother and make decisions on her behalf. The movies were where the two escaped their complicated reality.
In the darkness of her hometown theater, life’s possibilities were revealed to Sherrill. She saw examples of gumption, courage, and wit modeled for her by the silver screen’s leading ladies. She was exposed to exotic far-away places and witnessed dynamic interpersonal relationships that challenged her. The combination of the movies, and the extraordinary relationship that she shared with her mother, set the stage for Sherrill’s life. She knew that she would design a life without limits. And she did.
Armed with her love for adventure, her sense of courage, and the compass of her conscience, Sherrill has stayed true to this approach to limitless living; reinventing herself decade after decade. First as a wife and mother, and then as a successful author of romance novels, a fashionista, a philanthropist, an international travel writer, a neighborhood pub owner, and a socialite whose goings-on are often splashed about the city’s social pages. Sherrill shares her time and talents with Service Club of Chicago ( The oldest Philanthropic Organization in the city), The Guild of the Chicago History Museum and The Costume Council of the Chicago History Museum
Sherrill has designed this high-energy life for herself with her personal philosophy of Big. Bigger. Biggest.
“To me, it’s all about embracing life.”
Don’t settle for big. Ask for bigger! Then, go for biggest! Life can be limitless if you let it.”Her approach to living is echoed in the heroines that she writes in her novels. “The heroine always faces adversity with strength and courage and comes out more complete in the end. So I say: Go ahead! Be nervous! Be afraid! But do it anyway. When the dust settles, you’ll still be standing, and you’ll have created a new life for yourself that you love even more.”
Debi Catenacci has been from the Banking Boardroom to the bakery
And it shows in her love and passion for Italian culture, preserving old-world practices and traditions of baking authentic biscotti.
In her book “Divine Biscotti,” Debi shares her storytelling charm on how she has turned her grandmother’s old-world biscotti recipes into gourmet seasonal delights. Love is wrapped in each enchanting bite of the gourmet biscotti.
Debi has held baking demonstrations at Williams-Sonoma and has a special Divine Biscotti recipe featured in “The Pastry Chef’s Little Black Book Volume II.”
Debi Catenacci received her BA in Business from DePaul University and was a member of the delegation representing DePaul University at the Sustainable Development NGO conference at the United Nations, in New York. She resides in Chicago with her husband.
If you are curious about Divine Biscotti baking you can go to divinebiscotti.com
You can follow Debi on Instagram @debicatenacci
