Welcome to the World, Baby Girl!

Celebrity Mail

Elmwood Springs, Missouri

1976

By now, Dena had long forgotten about her stay in Missouri, but they had not forgotten her. Dena’s secretary put a letter on her desk.

Dear Baby Girl,

I know you get so many requests and I hate to bother you but being a hometown girl, I thought maybe you would be willing to help us out.

I have been named Chairman of the “Revitalize Downtown Elmwood Springs” committee. We are an organization devoted to saving our downtown area. As you know, so many little towns all over the country have succumbed to the big shopping centers. Local merchants are finding it hard to compete with the big Kmarts and Wal-Marts that have opened, and so many little towns have just shut down and fallen into disrepair and now, our downtown stores are closing one by one. Macky’s hardware store, the Rexall, the barbershop, and the Trolley Car diner are all we have left. Everything else has closed. Since you were here last, Morgan Brothers department store and Victor the florist have closed. For so many of us who grew up here it is a heartbreaking sight to walk downtown and see all the places looking so empty. We are hoping to raise enough money to advertise nationally for small business owners who might be interested in relocating to the midwest. Which brings me to the point of this letter, Baby Girl; on June the 15th, the Lions Club and the Rotary Club are sponsoring an Elmwood Springs Day to be held in the park. We will have a fish fry, rides and booths, arts and crafts, and activities all day with local celebrities and at 6 o’clock we are having a big celebrity auction, and since you are our one and only real celebrity, I was wondering if you could send us something. I know it would bring a big price and it is for a good cause.

Anything you could send will be appreciated, an autographed photo, or maybe something you wore on television, a fountain pen, maybe an autographed script of one of your interviews, we will be thrilled with just anything you can send us. I hate to bother you when you are so busy, but it could have been worse. Some of my committee wanted to throw a “Dena Nordstrom Day,” have a parade and bring you in as the Grand Marshall. I put a nix on that. I told Macky, that’s all Baby Girl needs is to fly all the way here to ride one block.

Love,

Norma

P.S. Wayne Newton is sending us a pair of cuff links he wore on stage in Las Vegas, and Liberace, Phyllis Diller, and Debbie Reynolds have also promised to send something.