Arlinda handed me a manila envelope one day in 1995. I pulled out some modeling shots of Arlinda peering out from behind a telephone pole.

I asked her, "What are these?"

"I just wanted to have some shots for fun."

You can do that?

"I used to be a model." She told me about the time in 1970, when she entered into the first Miss Black Cleveland beauty pageant. She also did some modeling for Coca-Cola, Fanta, Fabergé, and other companies. She loved being in front of the camera. Sitting behind a desk for so many years, she missed looking into the lens.

From that moment, I thought this photo would make an excellent cover for her book. Later on, I added more photos of her life, and spent a long time with the graphic design, finding a way for the text to flow naturally on the cover.

I had a still of Arlinda dancing with Stevie Wonder on Upbeat. I asked David Spero who owned the copyright to it. His father produced the show, and he worked on the show as well. David let me know that Steve Popovich now owns all of the Upbeat archives. Steve graciously gave me permission to use the photo. I really appreciate David and Steve for their support in helping me get Arlinda's story out as completely as possible.