“Dedicated to the Beauty of Cranbrook and within it, the Joy of Brookside which like a veritable “gate of dreams” opened wondrous worlds to me.”

These are the words of Patricia Hewlett (K.S. ’64) with regard to the publication of her first book of original fairy tales, The Gate of Dreams, through the Cranbrook Press (the first book to be published by the Cranbrook Press after two decades). Pat Hewlett is an alumna of both Brookside and Kingswood Schools. Her desire to write and illustrate for children was born during her year and a half at Brookside. It was during this same period that she made the acquaintance of Helen Southgate Williams, who became her literary mentor. While at Kingswood, Pat studied art with Glen Michaels at the Young People’s Art Center of the Cranbrook Academy of Art and later served as an apprentice to Mr. Michaels during several summer vacations.

After earning a bachelor of fine arts degree in painting and creative writing from the University of Michigan and a master’s degree in education from the University of Wisconsin, Pat, whose professional name is Lillian Somersaulter Moats, founded her film production company in 1973. She now has 19 animated films to her credit and is the recipient of over 40 international film festival awards. One of her eight best selling folk and fairy tale films for Simon and Schuster was selected by the American Library Association as a notable film in 1983. Other honors include a 1992 blue ribbon at the American Film and Video festival and inclusion in the permanent film collection of the Museum of Modern Art.

The story behind The Gate of Dreams story begins around 1991 when Ms. Moats, on a return visit to her family in Birmingham, Mich., called on her two close friends who had influenced her career. Helen Southgate Williams, consultant in children’s literature and frequent storyteller at Brookside and Glen Michaels an architectural sculptor. Both were enthusiastic about her latest pursuit – writing and illustrating three fairy tales.

The project evolved in three stages: First came the stories, which Ms. Moats had been working on for years and were never intended to be published. The concept of Cranbrook publishing The Gate of Dreams came second and the notion of providing an enriching experience to the Brookside children came third. The idea of having Cranbrook publish the stories was primarily the brainchild of Helen Southgate Williams. Mrs. Williams contacted her friend, Margot Snyder, former curator of the Museum of Cranbrook Academy of Art with the idea that Mrs. Snyder’s organizational skills along with Cranbrook’s resources and Ms. Moat’s creative effort could spell an exciting venture. Dan Behring, director of schools and vice president of Cranbrook Educational Community, was very supportive of the project. Honnie McClear, head of Brookside, was interested in using the publication of the book as a focal point for a yearlong teaching unit on writing and book publication.

Ms. Moats was enthusiastic about publishing The Gate of Dreams under Cranbrook’s auspices and volunteered her stories and illustrations as a contribution to the Brookside

student financial aid program. While Ms. Moats started the long process of creating illustrations for the book, Mrs. Snyder enlisted the approval and support of Cranbrook. A Community Outreach committee composed of Brookside and Cranbrook present and past parents, alumni and friends pooled ideas on how to promote the book locally and beyond. In addition there was a Faculty committee set up to coordinate activities at Brookside that related to the production and publishing of The Gate of Dreams. Finally, Raab and Associates directed a national review campaign in order to reach the library market, which had been very supportive of Ms. Moats’ films in the past.

The Gate of Dreams project not only revived the Cranbrook Press and helped financial aid students at Brookside, but it also served as a way to reach out to another group - those with dyslexia. At the age of 44, Ms. Moats was diagnosed with dyslexia, which translated literally means “trouble with words.” Although The Gate of Dreams was not written especially for dyslexic people, Ms. Moats hoped that by mentioning her dyslexia in interviews and articles that dyslexic children and adults would be encouraged by her words and what she has overcome. Ms. Moats applauds Brookside and other independent schools for their highly successful programs in teaching “learning differenced” students.

As of 30 Apr 1995, sales of The Gate of Dreams generated revenue of $10,000 for the Wallace Scripps Fund for financial aid at Brookside. The target goal for the project was $15,000 and was still expected to be reached.