Gloria Whelan: Hello, my name is Gloria Whelan. If you have been taught to sound out your words, don't do it with my name. W-H-E-L-A-N is pronounced WHELAN, the Irish way, because my husband's family were Irish. Sometimes you have to look beyond the rules.

Before I was married, my name was Gloria Rewoldt. My grandparents came from Germany. Rewoldt could be translated from the German as fawn forest. I liked the idea of being called Gloria Fawnforest. It seemed to fit, because for over 30 years, I lived in a cabin in the woods on a little lake, where I would often see deer and their fawns come down to the lake and drink. Call me what you like, Gloria Whelan, or Gloria Fawnforest.