[Freeport, Ill.] — Highland Community College’s Clarence Mitchell Library welcomes HCC retiree and author, Steve Simpson, for a program on his recently published book, “Boreal Odyssey: A Northwoods Vision Quest.” Simpson’s talk and book signing event will be at 3 p.m. on Thursday, November 19, in the Clarence Mitchell Library.
According to Reference Librarian and Director of Library Services, Laura Watson, the event will appeal to nature lovers, current and former HCC students, community members, colleagues, and anyone who wishes they could escape everything and take a trip to the Northwoods.
Sometime in his mid-teens, Steve Simpson decided he wanted to become a hermit. Socially awkward and athletically inept, he felt isolated from his classmates in a huge suburban high school. Simpson sought joy in nature and especially kayaking. His book describes his experiences as he paddled a Klepper kayak 3000 miles through Lakes Michigan and Superior and along the Canadian network of rivers, lakes, and portages commonly called the “Voyageurs Highway.” During his travels he experienced fear and triumph, depression and joy, profound loneliness, and the growth of true friendship. It became a defining experience of his life.
Steve was born in Aurora, Illinois and grew up in the Northwest suburbs of Chicago. The rocks and landforms he saw during his travels inspired a deep curiosity about the Earth, and he started taking classes at Oakton Community College in Skokie, IL. He ultimately earned a B.A. and M.S. in Geology and spent 30+ years teaching Earth Sciences at Highland Community College in Freeport. He retired in 2018 and currently lives in Wisconsin.
The event is free and open to the public. For more information on the program contact Laura Watson at 815-599-3456 or laura.watson@highland.edu.