Rachel Urrutia, a former Bolivar native, recently joined the book publishing team at Abound Publishing, based in Alma, Arkansas where she currently lives.
New to the writing world, Urrutia is getting ready for the release of her first children’s book Daisy Donkey, a story about a donkey who is mocked for her loud bray. Due to Daisy's shame, she resides in the safety of silence until she is faced with a situation that begs the question: should she stay silent or speak up?
“The heart of it is to help children embrace their differences and step into God’s purpose for their lives. That’s what I hope they take away from reading Daisy Donkey,” Urrutia states.
Her journey toward becoming an author got its start when, as Urrutia says, she crossed paths with the president of Abound Publishing, Jessica Jernigan, at a popup event in a boutique. When Urrutia finished her draft of Daisy Donkey, she sent it to the company, marking the beginning of an exciting new partnership.
Urrutia gives credit to God for orchestrating that chance encounter that would present an opportunity for her to live out her passion for writing.
She says she feels blessed to be working with Abound Publishing, so that she can “share God’s love and give back to the community.”
“I’m so thankful that Jessica Jernigan gave me the chance to work with Abound, and I plan to continue writing Daisy Donkey books. I’ve already started drafting additional books, and I can't wait to share those as well,” Urrutia says.
While Urrutia is thrilled to have this new opportunity in her small Arkansas town, she remains appreciative of her Missouri roots.
“Bolivar is a wonderful community, because it is close-knit. The school district is wonderful. The town is smaller and safer, and you can make wonderful relationships,” she says. “Alma is very similar to Bolivar where I grew up.”
Urrutia attended Missouri Southern State University, where she met her husband. Together, they have a three-year-old daughter, Winnie, and are expecting another girl, named Opal. Her daughters are named after characters in her two favorite children’s books, Tuck Everlasting and Because of Winn-Dixie.
Aside from her family life and hobbies, she also spends time in the classroom as an elementary teacher.
Before she decided to become a teacher, she worked as a cardiac nurse. Having graduated with a bachelor’s degree in nursing, Urrutia soon found that she didn’t want to continue working in the medical field.
“After I graduated, I was not happy with my career choice. Many nurses are overworked, and it was a stressful job. I realized that I was not able to foster relationships with patients because I was so busy. The patient-to-nurse ratio was outrageous,” Urrutia says.
She turned to a different profession where she could still serve in a nurturing and caretaking role: teaching. After earning her master’s degree in education, she realized that her job as a teacher afforded her more time to develop relationships with her students in order to see the progression and impact that she was making in their lives. This, in turn, also led to her to become a children’s author.
“The reason I chose to write a book for children is that I work for them all day, and I have a three-year-old daughter at home,” she explains.
With children surrounding her in her everyday life, she knows that she can educate and make a positive influence in the lives of young people not only in the classroom but also through her love for writing.
Urrutia’s book Daisy Donkey will be available for pre-order later this week.
