Children’s book grew out of third-grade project on traveling bear
What started as her son Ryan’s elementary-school project has finally evolved into a published children’s book for Donna Breland, Travis – The Traveling Bear.
A Washington Township native who raised her children there, Breland wrote the book about 23 years ago. But without an illustrator, she put it on the back burner. Her Travis files went with her every time she moved. When she happened to come across them last November, she read the story to her older son – who now has a 1-year-old child – and to a friend.
They loved it. And that was all the motivation Breland needed to finish the book she wrote so long ago, including finding an illustrator in Italy.
Ryan’s project
It was a crisp September in 1999. Ryan Breland was 8 years old and entering third grade at Birches Elementary School. It was the beginning of a new century and the dawning of a fast-growing internet.
The third-graders were assigned a school project that would last the entire school year: A travel mate to help them learn about other parts of the world and their cultures.
“At that time, I made handmade teddy bears and shared my art of bear making with other ‘bear artists’ around the world through the new and exciting way of communicating, the internet,” Donna Breland recalled.
“As a mom of two young boys, I often looked for ways to make education a fun and interesting way to learn,” she added. “I shared with my son the idea of creating a special bear to see the world a little differently than most have experienced.”
So the author created hand-made teddy bears that were sold nationwide as Breland Bears, including Travis, who traveled the world. As he made his way to 34 destinations during the school year, Travis had sponsors who wrote about his trips.
Breland has the original journals that helped her contact about a dozen past participants, including children who were now adults, for her book.
In Salem, Oregon, Travis saw giant Redwood trees that grow up to 250 feet tall. He learned to fly a single-engine airplane during his visit in Overland Park, Kansas. In Toronto, he had his picture taken at the Hockey Hall of Fame and met some real Canadian geese.
During a visit in Tokyo, Travis visited the city’s highest tower of 1,092 feet and saw the Pokemon Center, where he collected game cards and souvenirs. He learned to swim in Queensland, Australia and experienced his first tropical storm in Singapore.
Breland said Travis captured the hearts of those he visited 23 years ago, and with her work, she is reviving that experience and introducing her creation to a new generation.
The book
Travis – The Traveling Bear is expected to be released in August. The book is dedicated to a grandson and to Ryan, who died seven years ago at 25.
“This book will give my grandson an opportunity to be part of something of my son’s … his uncle,” Breland explained. “The idea of the book, too, is to bring back the memories of so many that were a part of this successful story and teach children about the locations of the world.
“Both adults and children remember Travis, and I think it will delight many hearts again.”
Breland kept her original bears until Ryan’s passing.
“I originally kept everything for his children, but that did not happen,” she acknowledged. “The original bears were dirty and started to be very old, so I discarded them. I do have the original journals, along with some items that he actually received back then, along with a few photos.”
After the English version of her book is released, Breland wants to publish it in Spanish. She plans to continue educating children about Travis’ destinations, including with book signings and school visits.
“I feel teachers would love to read my story in their classrooms and make it part of their learning,” she noted. “I do have an author friend who I actually went to Birches Elementary School with. We reconnected within the last year, and he is helping me (to pursue) book signings locally and throughout other states.
“In my book, it ends with clouds of all the places he (Travis) visited,” Breland added. “My next book will focus on one of those places. So my story does not end here.”
For more information on the book, visit www.TravisTheTravelingBear.com
