Dear ##firstname[Friend]##,

Hello, I'm the new Bob!

Actually, I'm Erik Bergstrom, but I thought long and hard, and couldn't come up with a better ice breaker than that. As you might know, after 28 years with Reiman Publications and the past few on tasteofhome.com, Community Manager Bob Ottum (love2cook) has retired. Bob's contributions to tasteofhome.com cannot be understated, and his passion for this company will be missed.

I'm overjoyed to be taking Bob's place and look forward to working with you. Your participation with the magazine and Web site makes Taste of Home the success that it is, and we'll continue to offer more on-line features for Field Editors.

So that you can start getting to know me, here's a brief snapshot of my background…

I grew up in a farming community of 800 people in western Illinois and spent countless hours on my grandparents' farm. There was always a copy of Country Woman in the living room and something delectable cooking in the kitchen. In addition to my grandmother's cooking, my mother was a Registered Dietitian and managed food service for a hospital, so I've been around food for as long as I can remember. Those two women are the bedrock of my love for food. Today, I cook as often as possible and get my daughters involved whenever I can.

I spent the past 15 years with a Milwaukee-area publisher of hobby-related magazines and books, but I jumped at the opportunity to work for Taste of Home. There are few things that can bring people of differing backgrounds together like cooking does. Most everyone loves food, and at some point in life, you're faced with the responsibility of making meals for yourself (if not for others). The sharing of recipes between otherwise complete strangers is a powerful concept that excites me beyond words. In the beginning, the magazine served that purpose; now tasteofhome.com has joined the magazine to serve cooks around the world and around the clock. It's an exciting organization to be a part of, and I can't wait to get to know all of our Field Editors on-line.

If you have questions or comments about the community or the Field Editor Forum, feel free to contact me at erik_bergstrom@rd.com or via a Private Message (PM) in the community to ErikB

Looking for Mom's Best

Is your mom a super cook? Did she make you a special birthday dinner when you were growing up? Or a memorable meal that reflected her heritage? Maybe she's a great bread baker or pie maker.

We're looking for moms to spotlight in our “Mom's Best” feature. If you think your mom's cooking is the best, please share a short story about her and her cooking along with 5 or 6 recipes for us to consider. Please submit to fieldeditors@tasteofhome.com.

Get Involved!

Let us know how you’re ”getting involved” with Taste of Home in your area, and we'll share it here. Don't forget to post it in the Field Editor Forum too! Here's what some of our Field Editors have been up to:

• Joan Hallford (MarineMom_Texas) was recently on a local morning TV show in Dallas. On air, she prepared Mexican Layered Salad and showed her entire Cinco de Mayo meal from the April/May issue of Taste of Home.
• Marsha Manley was invited to help out at the TOH Cooking School when it came to Sebring, Florida in March. “My mother and I had a wonderful time,” she said. “I loved going on stage and felt honored to be a part of the show.”
• LaDonna Reed (candykisses_Oklahoma) raved about her Cooking School experience in Ponca City May 7. “I was lucky enough to be called on stage to help Jamie (Jamie Dunn, culinary specialist) with a dish. She made me so comfortable. I had an absolute blast.”
• Also helping out at spring Cooking Schools were Mary Anne Thygesen (Maryannet) of Portland, Oregon and Jackie Riley of Holland, Michigan. Both helped a culinary specialist make a recipe on stage.

Great American Pie Show

The Taste of Home Cooking School and Branson (Missouri) Chamber of Commerce joined forces to present the first Great American Pie Show April 24-25. The two-day event featured two Cooking Schools, celebrity appearances, judging of the national pie contest (led by Al Roker of NBC's Today show) and lots more.

Eight Field Editors from the area were invited to attend the event and participate in the Ozark Mountain Spring Culinary Media Tour.

• “It was fun, educational and created a totally new impression of Branson for me,” said Betty Hartman of Fayetteville, Arkansas.
• Awynne Thurstenson (Awynne) of Siloam Springs, Arkansas, whose friend was a finalist in the pie contest, wrote: “I was very pleased to represent our fine magazine in Branson. I was told over and over what a great publication we have and how our readers love it.”
• “It was fun to watch the finalists bake their winning entries…and I loved the Cooking School,” Sonja Blow of Nixa, Missouri told us. “It was a four-star event; what a thrill it was to be invited.”

For winning pie recipes, visit http://www.tasteofhome.com/pieshow

More Field Editor Fun

• Amy Short of Lesage, West Virginia took home the first-place trophy in her community's annual Chili Cook-off.

June's in Bloom!

The June issue is on its way, if you don't already have it. The scrumptious pizza on the cover is to die for…as are the other wonderful tomato contest winners.

Also check out the Field Editors list (pgs. 71-72). You'll see that we're starting to include on-line screen names. If we don't have your screen name listed next to your name, pleaselet us know. Send it to fieldeditors@tasteofhome.com

DON'T FORGET! If you move, change your name/screen name or change your E-mail address, you need to contact Jane Stasik to update your file. Contact Jane at Jane_Stasik@rd.com

*****

See you next month!
Barbara Schuetz, Managing Editor
Erik Bergstrom, Web Community Manager