Edmonds Beacon - Your Hometown News Source

Editor's note: "This Smile is for Everyone Else" (steepstairspress.com) is the eighth collection of true stories written by students at Scriber Lake High School in Edmonds. It is available online, as well as in print at the Edmonds Bookshop.

Marjie Bowker, an English teacher at Scriber, is the editor of the series. Here she remembers a man who was an enthusiastic supporter of the school's writing program.

"By choosing to reveal their hidden circumstances – abuse, poverty, addiction, abandonment – these teenagers use writing to effect positive change in their lives," Bowker said.

"As on...