Spill the Tea - Bios

Leigh is a Jersey girl who was born in Lakewood, New Jersey, and who graduated from Cherry Hill High School West in New Jersey. She earned a B.A. in Business Administration and Marketing from Stockton University, New Jersey. Her favorite position was working at Harvard Law School for Professor Archibald Cox, former Watergate Special Prosecutor and who also was Solicitor General for President Kennedy.

For the majority of Leigh's career, she worked as a litigation legal assistant in Houston, Texas, and Ft. Lauderdale, Florida. She also has had several of her own businesses. She and her husband, Bob, have a daughter, son, and five precious grandchildren. When not working, they love traveling the world. When Leigh is not with her family, she loves to write. She has a blog, "The Senior Class," which is all about the journey of being a senior citizen. She writes children's books and also has written freelance articles for several publications. Leigh and her husband now reside in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. Click here for more.

William Cowell Duckworth was born into a military family in Long Beach, California, in 1959. Not long after his birth, his life suddenly and drastically changed. On the morning of January 11, 1960, he was traveling with his family, where his father was taking a new position at the Pentagon in Washington, D.C. Without warning, they were hit head-on by another driver who crossed over the center of the road. William and his sister were instantly orphaned. It was at this juncture that his life was changed forever. Relatives adopted the two siblings. From that point forward, William has lived a different and harder life than the average person. He has faced many obstacles that created quite a challenge for him. He's been knocked down, but he has always gotten back up and forged ahead. Now he is very happy and living the dream. William grew up and spent most of his life in Colorado. He has since relocated to the East Coast. He now resides in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, and is retired. He enjoys living a relaxing lifestyle and craves spending time at the beach, traveling, writing, and loving music. He is looking forward to publishing more books in the future.

Originally from Southern California, Alex Fogel is a world-traveled, award-winning author of adventure romance novels and middle-grade adventure tales. With a rewarding career in the high-technology industry coming to a close, Alex began writing adventure romance novels in 2013 and garnered immediate acclaim with his debut novel, His Daddy’s Car. In addition to his ten currently published novels, Alex Fogel has also been a contract writer of episodic programs for television in the UK, written and directed stage plays, and has done contract writing for several organizations. He is a member of the Alliance of Independent Authors, the Southeastern Writers Association, and Romance Writers of America, where he is listed in their Professional Author Network.

Retiring with his wife to the waterfront area of Myrtle Beach in 2019, when he isn’t writing, Alex is active in civic events and volunteering for multiple organizations including the South Carolina Guardian ad Litem program as an advocate for children in foster care. If you see him and his wife on their daily sunrise walk along the Myrtle Beach boardwalk, stop and say “Hello”. Click here for more.

Lisa Borne Graves is a speculative romance author, English Lecturer, wife, and supermom of one wild child. Originally from the Philadelphia area, she relocated to the Deep South and found her true place of inspiration. Her love for all literature led her to branch out from the academic arena to spin her own tales. Lisa has a voracious appetite for books, British television, and pizza. Her inability to sit still makes her enjoy life to its fullest, and she can be found at the beach, pool, on some crazy adventure. Click here for more.

Denny Hamann grew up in Albemarle, a small mill town in the Piedmont section of North Carolina. Southerners love a good story. He listened to every tale someone would take the time to tell. Denny started writing short stories that chronicled some of his childhood recollections. In 2015 he was bitten by the genealogy bug. In a few short months, he went from only knowing his grandparents on his maternal side to tracing his family tree back to his fourteenth great-grandparents. Of course, knowing the name of an ancestor who lived in the fifteenth century was nice, but his second great-grandfather, Henry Garner Aldridge, really got his attention. In 1862, at age forty-three, Aldridge was paid to enlist in the Confederate Army in place of another man. That story inspired Denny to write Cryin’s for Hungry Babies.

Denny graduated from Albemarle High School, class of 1968, and Stanly Community College. He is a member of the South Carolina Writers Association and North Myrtle Beach Writers Group. His other books include, Cottonville Road: A Dusty Path to Power, and its sequel, Cottonville Road II: The Rocky River Washed My Sins Away. Denny and his wife, Vickie, live in North Myrtle Beach. Click here for more.

George Hansen became a living organ donor in the fall of 2022.  Since donating his kidney, George’s passion to help those on the transplant waiting list has not diminished.  George hopes that by sharing his story alongside Yvette Kilgore, more people will be encouraged to donate. While the process to become a living donor can be challenging, the procedures have been built upon decades of experience and research.  George wants those in similar circumstances to understand they are not alone and hopes every reader asks throughout these stories, “If God has done it for him/her, then why wouldn’t He help me too?”  

Since donating in 2022, George has experienced a full recovery and enjoys the many activities he participated in before surgery. George continues to share his talents and giftings to help people remain encouraged in the goodness of God because he has been encouraged through his own blessings from God.  George has two wonderful, loving and creative daughters and currently lives in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. 

Evangeline Hayes is a 14-year-old homeschooler and aspiring author. They co-authored a trilogy back in 2022-2023, a solo novella in 2023, and are featured in an anthology of short stories, Once Upon a Wonder, which was published in the Fall of 2024. When they aren't writing, they can either be found at the community theater, petting one of their four cats, creating art, listening to music, surfing the internet, or playing inline roller hockey (sometimes more than one at a time!). They're currently working on finishing a science-fiction fantasy novel (working title Loyalties).

 Amelia (“Mia”) Hayes is a 12-year-old artist, author, and creator.   She contributed to the three-part fiction series, Between Wolf and Girl and the anthology, Once Upon a Wonder. She loves sewing, fashion, knitting, and crochet and her creative work has been exhibited in South Carolina’s Artfields Jr exhibition.  When she’s not creating, she can be found in one of two places: the hockey rink or the stage, as she’s an avid inline hockey player and is equally passionate about musical theater.

Jeff Hoenig spent most of his life in New Jersey, where he met his wife of forty years and raised three terrific kids. His job has always taken him on the road, including work as a driver and circulation manager for USA Today and Auto Trader magazine. After downsizing and moving to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, Jeff began driving for Uber and Lyft in 2018. Jeff views the joy and levity he brings to his riders as essential to his service. He is grateful for his work and that he can have the most fun out of any driver on the East Coast. Jeff has given 15,000 rides in the last six years. As an Uber and Lyft driver, Jeff strives to make people's lives a little brighter, starting when they step into the car with him. His book, Driving on The Sunny Side With 10,000 Strangers, includes side-splitting laughter, persistent kindness, and outright fun for readers of all ages. Jeff's excellent debut will deliver hope and levity to those looking for more in their next read. Click here for more.

Peggy Joyce Krobath was born in Baltimore, Maryland,in 1952 to her parents who were legally blind. She had an older two-year-old sister, Carolyn. Unfortunately, the difficulty of caring for a second child proved overwhelming; therefore, Peggy entered into the foster care system on her first birthday. For the next five years, she recalls memories of feeling loved and well-cared for. Unfortunately, she was reunited with her biological family and lived unhappy years with them in North Carolina and Philadelphia. The day after high school graduation, Peggy traveled to Baltimore where he older sister, Carolyn, lived.

Peggy raised her two children as a single mother and often reminisces. “They were the first family I ever really had.” To support her family, Peggy worked in the telephone and insurance industries, forfeiting her dreams of becoming a famous singer. She also owned and operated a successful antique business in Western Maryland. These days the author has lots to sing about. She feels blessed to have her children and her loving husband, Jim. The couple enjoys the warm weather where they live in Myrtle Beach, South Carolina. They are a happy family with Bella and Coco, their cat and dog, respectively. Peggy enjoys singing, writing, cooking, and making others smile.

Bobbie grew up in Aurora, Colorado, in a busy household with four siblings and a variety of pets. Her mom taught her to draw and paint, to appreciate nature, and especially to enjoy birds. Bobbie and her husband Jeff have four children. She was employed as a speech/language pathologist and public-school administrator for over thirty-five years. Bobbie retired in 2012 when she and Jeff moved to Myrtle Beach, South Carolina.

In March of 2020, while quarantined due to Covid-19 mandates, she discovered a letter from her mother that was postmarked March 12, 1969. It told the remarkable story of a cedar waxwing that collided with her parents' kitchen window and was brought indoors to recover. Can We Keep It? tells the true story of the cedar waxwing. The character Jeanne is Bobbie's younger sister. The character Mom is their actual Mom. In the same month but fifty-four years later, Bobbie was visited by a flock of approximately fifty cedar waxwings. The three hundred photos she took of them served as models for the illustrations she created for Can We Keep It? These days Bobbie and Jeff enjoy volunteering, exercising, traveling, gardening, reading, and spending time with friends, their four grown children, and their four granddaughters.

Darby-Jae Maxwell is a published author of 5 books and a featured artist for the past two years at Artfields in Lake City. An avid reader since the age of 4, she has carried her love of storytelling into her own works. Darby-Jae is passionate in all her endeavors from writing fictional tales, creating mixed media art, performing on stage with Pied Piper Youth Theatre, or hitting the pitch with her soccer team. She looks forward to sharing her experiences with everyone at Spill the Tea!

Gerrit S. Overeem is the author of the popular SciFantasy series The Second Life of Mr. Hunt. An IT professional by day, his passion for science fiction, RPGs, and the Star Wars universe fuels his creative endeavors. Gerrit is an active member of the 501st Legion Star Wars Costuming Group, where he brings characters like Boba Fett and various Stormtroopers to life at comic cons and charity events.

When he’s not writing or in costume, Gerrit enjoys playing Dungeons & Dragons and other tabletop games. He recently earned his scuba certification and is still learning the ropes. Gerrit also enjoys driving his Dodge Challenger and has studied various martial arts, including Nihon Goshin Aikido and Muay Thai. His unique experiences even include his five seconds of fame as an extra on TV shows like Ink Masters and Manifest. Click here for more details, stories, and updates on this projects.

Wendy Reed is an author, illustrator, educator, and photographer who weaves her life experiences - particularly those with family, faith, teaching, literacy, and photographing coastal wildlife - with her passion for sharing great stories! She has written and illustrated 40+ picture books for children and grown-ups, which include empowering messages, inspiration, unique animals, and even her own photographs of SC wading birds and alligators. Wendy leads professional learning experiences with teachers and also provides services for other writers, including mentoring, illustrating, editing, formatting, and publishing guidance, helping them bring their vision to life. You can find her books and learn more about Wendy here.

The Women of Abbey Plantation is a 150-year saga of women and girls who lived at Abbey Plantation in present-day Pawleys Island, SC. The women are of different races, ages, and life perspectives--a plantation mistress, an enslaved housekeeper, the plantation’s seer and teacher, a young mixed-race freed-woman, and a teenager from the 1950s. Some of the women know each other; others don’t. It’s not until the last few pages of the book that the reader learns that the women are unexplainably connected to each other by a small red chair.

It was tempting to title the book, The Enchanted Chair, but I resisted, Nancy says. I’d rather that my readers decide if the chair is enchanted or if the women, themselves, are the enchanted ones. Her passion for history is the result of having spent many years living on the remains of an 18th Century rice plantation in Pawleys Island, SC. She is a former biographer of the South Carolina Hall of Fame and is a former docent at Historic Columbia, in Columbia, SC, and Latta House, in Charlotte, NC. Click here for more.

Kathy Strauss

Kathy Strauss calls herself a Creationeer that sees the world like no other. As a creative connector, she puts her artistic eye and imagination together creating inspired and heartfelt art, photography and words. She is an international bestselling author and has published and illustrated numerous coloring books and several collaborative books. She is currently working on her solo book, Kaleidoscope: Redesigning Your Life. Tapping into Your Inner Artist for Healing and Inspiration. She was a founding artist at the Workhouse Arts Center and President of the Arches Gallery Artists in Lorton, VA. Currently she is an exhibiting artist at the Seacoast Artists Gallery, the Artists on 8th Ave in the William H. Miller Art Studio, and the Kaleidoscope Artisan Collective in Myrtle Beach, SC. In addition, she volunteers her time as a Board member for the Seacoast Artists Guild and is a Myrtle Beach Area Chamber of Commerce Ambassador. Click here for more.

David Sylvester

David Sylvester studied creative writing and literature at The University at Albany, the College of Saint Rose, the New York State Writers Institute, Coastal Carolina University and creative writing workshops too numerous to list. He published his first collection of short stories, I Would Tell You If I Could, in 2020, and followed up that debut collection with Still Life, in 2022. His first novel, Hung Be the Heavens with Scarlet, was released in the Fall of 2024.

Originally from The Bronx, he lived in New York’s Capital Region for many years. He now splits his time between the Capital District and Myrtle Beach, SC. He offers workshops in reading the short story through the Upper Hudson Library System in Troy, New York and the Chapin Memorial Library in Myrtle Beach, and in creative writing through the Osher Lifelong Learning Institute at Coastal Carolina University. Click here for more.

Marsha Tennant

Marsha is a retired educator who has written two children's pirate dog rescue adventures, Margaret and the Diamond Key Mystery and Margaret, Pirate Queen. The third one is scheduled for release June 2025. 

Jeff Thompson

Kelvin Waites

Tom W. Winslow

Tom Winslow is the author of the children’s book, Firefly Forest, and his recent publication, The Art of Law. Tom enjoys serving his clients and community through his law office, Winslow Law, located in Pawleys Island. When not a work, Tom has served as a Board of Director for the Winyah Auditorium, YMCA, SOS, Winyah Gym, Patriots Club, St. Francis Animal Center, Georgetown County Library, and the Tara Hall Home for Boys. He was appointed to the State Pilotage Commission, which governs all the state maritime pilots, and Tom is a major in the South Carolina State Guard JAG corps. He is a frequent guest speaker, presenter, and lecturer throughout the state. Tom enjoys the outdoors and spending time with his family. Click here for more.

Caleb Wygal