Author Sherrill Bodine speaks from the heart in taking Ann Coulter to task

She writes in the Chicago Sun-Times about her mother, who was "labeled 'retarded' from birth."

Chicago author and Service Club member Sherrill Bodine tells a compelling story in today's Chicago Sun-Times.

In a guest column, she criticizes a “well-known commenter” for calling the president of the United States “a retard.” She was referring to political pundit Ann Coulter.

Ms. Bodine, who writes romance novels with a Chicago twist, tells her own story in the Sun-Times — that she is the daughter of a woman who was “labeled 'retarded' from birth.”

Ms. Bodine's grandparents gave their daughter (Ms. Bodine's mom) all the opportunities they could at a time when children with Down's syndrome were often hidden, she explains.

“When my grandparents discovered she was pregnant (the male progenitor unknown), they made another decision: They chose to allow Gwen to give birth. Also unknown: the possible mental condition of the child. Me," she writes in the Sun-Times.

Ms. Bodine goes on to talk about life growing up with her mom. “From the time I was five years old, I became not only my mother's playmate but the keeper of her secrets and her protector,” she writes. “I helped make thousands of choices for her which shaped her world and set the course of our lives.”