Martha Ann's Page

My name is Martha Ann Dellacamera. I'm the Reviews Secretary for Sime~Gen.

I was born in October 1940, in Ft. Wayne, Indiana. My brother, Daniel, was born in March of 1942. We lived in Garrett, Indiana, until my parents divorced, then moved to Auburn Indiana. Mother remarried in 1948, and we moved to Cleveland, Ohio. After the Korean War started and my step-father enlisted, we lived in Tennessee, Georgia and Ft. Bragg, North Carolina.

When my Step-Dad was sent overseas, we moved to Lakewood, CA, living there until he died. We then moved to Rialto, and later San Bernardino. I attended schools in Lakewood, Compton, Rialto, and San Bernardino, CA, and college in San Bernardino.

In May of 1960, I married Dominic DellaCamera, and we lived in La Crescenta, CA. I worked in LA for Pacific Mutual Life Insurance until my first daughter, Julia Anne, was born in 1964. My son, Michael Dominic, came along in 1965, and we moved to Sunland, CA, where I had another girl, Laura Kathleen, in 1968. I stayed home with my children until Laura began school, then I went to work full-time for the Sunland/Tujunga Chamber of Commerce and part-time for a florist. When the florist needed a manager for another store, he trained me and sent me to FTD and Teleflora work shops. I worked for him until 1978. We then moved to Twentynine Palms, CA, and opened our own floral shop.

My husband became ill and we lost our shop in 1995. I got a job on the 29 Palms Marine Corps base, working nights at the Temporary Lodging Facility. I had surgery in 1999, but continued to work until July of 2000. My husband and I moved to the Phoenix, AZ, area to be near our eldest, Julie, now a new mother herself. My husband got to see Julie's new daughter grow. During this time, I worked for PageNet for a year, then for Homestore.com for another year. By that time my husband had grown very ill, so I stayed home and took care of him until we were forced to put him into a Rest Home, in January 2003. When he died, my daughter and son-in-law moved me back to 29 Palms.

I now live near my daughter Julia, in Banning, CA. My son, Michael, lives in Las Vegas and my youngest daughter, Laura. lives near St. Louis, MO, with her husband, son and daughter.

It was while I was recuperating from an operation in 1999, that I first started reviewing for Sime~Gen. I became Reviews Secretary in 2003.

My job includes screening all incoming emails, answering all requests for review, and sending answers to the requests (with copies to our Reviews Coordinator). I also handle recording all new books, authors, publishers in the database; recording books the reviewers choose, how they are handled and occasionally sending them a letter as to how they are being handled. I forward all emails that have to do with Sime~Gen to the appropriate persons. I still enjoy reviewing books when I can. I also helped transfer old reviews to the new server.