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Dad's Christmas present for daughter now benefits Kids Street

Ryan and Megan Biricocchi

Ryan and Megan Biricocchi

The gift that Megan Biricocchi received on Christmas Eve 2012 wasn’t the season’s hot gadget but the manuscript of her dad’s first book.

After nearly eight months of writing and two years of work to get it published, Ryan Biricocchi’s “Holy Ever After: The King, the Crown and the Looking Glass,” debuted Sept. 6 at The Booksmark Festival in Winston-Salem.

Triad members can buy the Christian fairy tale from Ryan before and after the contemporary and traditional worship services Dec. 7 and Dec. 14 in the Media Center for $8. All profits go to Triad’s Kids Street Children’s Ministry.

Megan, now 8, and her beloved “Teddy” bear are featured characters in the tale which uses encounters with the Fairy of Pleasure, the Genie of Prosperity, and the Wizard of Power to teach Christian truths—Ryan’s main goal.

“My motivation for writing the story was to counter the shallowness of the typical fairy-tale storyline,” he said. “I want my daughter to grow up knowing that she is a ‘Princess’ not because of her looks but because she is the daughter of The King. I want her to know that righteousness and faithful stewardship are far more eternal than worldly wealth and power.

“From Satan’s temptation of Adam and Eve in the garden to Jesus in the desert, the same counterfeit treasures of pleasure, prosperity, and power described in the book continue to touch, and challenge, every human heart.”

The Biricocchis—Ryan and his wife, Charlanne, and Megan—moved to Kernersville in 2011 from Alamogordo, N.M.

Trained as a physical therapist at the University of Pittsburg, Ryan added a masters in Christian ministry degree from Southern Christian University while in New Mexico and also served a small church as teaching and preaching pastor for more than eight years.

A Bible study he attended at a co-worker’s urging led to a deepening of his faith and his adult confession of Jesus Christ as Lord and baptism. It also helped lay the groundwork for the book project which grew out of evenings reading with Megan.

“We have read together every night since she was born, and I knew she liked fairy tales,” he said.

Ryan began writing the book early in 2012, mostly early in the morning and in the evenings when he had quiet time with God and his computer. The hardest part wasn’t writing but finding a publisher. He tried self-publishing first but searched for other avenues when the company folded.

Cover of the book Holy Ever After:he 

King, the Crown and the Looking Glass

Biricocchi's book will be available Dec. 7 and Dec. 14 in the Media Center for $8 in a benefit for Triad’s Kids Street Children’s Ministry.

Eventually, the search led him to Second Wind Publishing in Winston-Salem which read and accepted his manuscript.

“Our God is a God of redemption, and so ‘Second Wind’ seems an appropriate title for a second chance at publication,” Ryan said. “So far, the book has done well within our immediate circle of friends, family, and colleagues. I look forward to sharing it with our church family.”

The Biricocchis first visited Triad last April on Easter Sunday, and officially became members in August. Megan was baptized in October.

“We needed a place where we could be fed by the Word, and serve as a family,” Ryan said. “We respect and admire Pastor Rob (Decker) and his heart of ministry, and have enjoyed serving in AWANA and Middle School Sunday class.”

While he won’t divulge the ending, Ryan said the book’s close is his favorite. With Megan, it’s that she and Teddy are main characters.

“Writing involves a lot of commitment—of time, of energy, of emotion,” Ryan said. “There may be another story for me somewhere and sometime, but, as with every good thing, it will be in God’s time and by His grace.

“What I enjoy most about the book is knowing that Megan will have a lasting piece of me through its pages, and a reminder that I will love and cherish her always.”

Editor’s note: The book is available at Amazon.com and from Second Wind at www.secondwindpublishing.com. A companion Bible study is available at www.holyeverafter.com.

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