CCC to host Author Showcase on March 5

CommunityHuman InterestEducationPress Release

Clinton Community College, one of the Eastern Iowa Community Colleges, is hosting the 2025 Author Showcase on Wednesday, March 5.  The event will be held at 11:30 in the CCC Library, 1000 Lincoln Blvd., Clinton, Iowa.  Authors at the event include Lance Meier, Staci Marcado, and Jodie Toohey. The authors will read excerpts of their books and share about their writing journeys.  The showcase can be viewed on Zoom at  https://eicc-edu.zoom.us/j/93663212292.  Light refreshments will be served by the CCC culinary students. 
 
The CCC Author Showcase will feature three esteemed authors:

  • Lance Meier graduated from Clinton Community College, May 2018 with an Associate in Science Degree.  He attended Preston High school. 
Lance Louis Meier is a new author, with only two books under his belt so far. However, he hopes that he’ll have many more to come. Reading books since a young age, Lance has a love for words and stories, so he became an author to share that love with others. His first book Thunderlizards was on a subject close to his heart: dinosaurs. His second book Timewarp: The West Rides Again was a fun romp through the olden days. Lance lives on a farm near Preston, Iowa with his parents, his dog, and his many, many cats
  • Staci Mercado has been an adjunct instructor for Clinton Community College for many many years at Central DeWitt High School.  She continues to teach English and Literature subject matter.
Staci Mercado won a Midwest Book Award for her historical fiction novel,  (Four Feathers Press, 2013). She has published work in , , and Litro. Staci is a professor for Southern New Hampshire University's MFA in Creative Writing program. She also teaches writing for Eastern Iowa Community Colleges and Central DeWitt High School. Staci was awarded the 2017 Outstanding Literary Arts Educator Award from the Midwest Writing Center and was a top-five finalist for The Iowa Department of Education's Iowa Teacher of the Year in 2022. She is the founder of  a nonprofit publication empowering individuals and communities to become environmental stewards.
  • Jodie (Foley) Toohey is a Camanche High School graduate.   
Jodie Toohey is the author of nine books - five fiction, three poetry, and one non-fiction - and the owner of Legacy Book Press LLC, a traditional publisher of personal stories told via non-fiction, fiction, or a combination. Professionally, Jodie also works on a very part-time basis as a freelance paralegal. When she’s not working, she enjoys hanging out with her three cats and one dog, traveling, and reading. She has two children in their 20s who’ve left her in her nest with said animals and her husband of 28 years. Learn more about Legacy Book Press LLC at legacyboookpress.com
 
CCC Registrar and member of the Diversity Committee Mardell Mommsen Flippen commented, “The Clinton Community College is excited to bring back our CCC Author Showcase.  This year we are focusing on three esteemed authors.  To top the event off, our culinary academy students will be serving light refreshments that they made for the event.  We are honored to have Lance, Staci, and Jodie share their expertise with our audience, hoping to inspire others to follow their dreams.”
 
For more information about the Author Showcase, contact Clinton Community College at 563-244-7001.

 

CCC to host Author Showcase on March 5