Lois Bouton

• One piece of advice I like to give is: I don’t always give advice, but I used to send words of wisdom that I read on Red Rose tea bags to various people.

• My greatest accomplishment while in the Coast Guard was: being able to vacuum the entire 12 floor stairway without unplugging the vacuum cleaner. It was hard to do, and none of the other women were able to do it but me.

• One thing that would get us closer to a perfect world is: More love!

• The best compliment I’ve ever received is: being called “The Coast Guard Lady.”

• One thing I would change about my past is: I’m pretty satisfied with my past. I would change nothing.

• Two books that have had the biggest impact on my life are: “Dewey” by Vicki Myron and “Roots” by Alex Haley.

• The thing that I’m most grateful for in my life are: friends.

• The person who has had the biggest impact on my life is: Pauline Lasister for all the help she has done for me.

• Three words to describe me are: friendly, passionate, kind.

• One thing I would like to learn is: I’m still learning — there are so many more things I need to learn, especially getting used to my new home.

• The one question I get asked most often is: “How and why do I write so many letters?”

• The way I measure success is: in the letters people receive from me, and I’m told that it made their day.