by Len Lear

Brenda Lange won a second place award for “Best Feature Article, 2019” among all newspapers in the state in our circulation category from the Pennsylvania Newsmedia Association for her article in the Local, “Magical works of art created: Mt. Airy program a lifeline for blind participants.”

Also the author of eight young adult biographies and historical non-fiction and former editor of several consumer and institutional magazines, including the Chestnut Hill College (CHC) alumni magazine, Lange will go to (almost) any length to bring authenticity to engaging articles.

For example, while working on various articles, she has learned how to fly fish, gone soaring in a glider, hobnobbed with accomplished painters and photographers, become somewhat of an expert in organic gardening and midwifery (not for the same piece!), donned a hardhat and muddied her shoes on construction sites and gotten teary-eyed over difficult lives made whole again (an occupational hazard).

“I’ve always been curious about people and loved to read and keep a journal,” said Lange, “but I really didn’t have clear career aspirations growing up. But my mom did name me after 'Brenda Starr, Girl Reporter,' the comic book character. True story. She still would call me 'my Brenda star' regularly, even when I was grown, embarrassing me to no end, until she was very sick. Then I loved hearing her say it. So maybe she had a premonition.”

Lange, 60, grew up mostly in New Jersey, Somerville and then Washington. She lived in Doylestown for 20 years before moving to Philadelphia. Her mother was an executive secretary, and her father was a regional manager for a liquor company. Her dad died in 1987, and her mom died in 2018.

Lange attended Clarion State College (now University) from 1978 to '79 but quit after one year, got a job and was married. She proceeded to have three children before becoming a full-time student at Temple University, where she graduated summa cum laude in 1995 with a B.A. in Communications.

It has to be quite difficult to go to college and raise three small children at the same time, but Lange obviously managed it quite well. How was she able to do it? “I had a lot of love and support from my family, and I was blessed with amazing kids who have always enriched my life. In my last semester, I interned at KYW-TV and Newsradio. I was 35 at the time and may have been the only intern who sometimes drove her minivan (with car seat) to work. Almost everyone around me was at least 10 years younger than I was.

“I usually took the train from Doylestown after dropping my youngest at pre-school and got off at what was then Market East station. I then walked down Market Street to work at the corner of 5th and Market. Every single time I felt such joy and privilege that I got to pass the Liberty Bell and Independence Hall on my way to work. This was pre-9/11, and the Liberty Bell was situated close to the street, visible from the sidewalk along Market Street.”

Starting in 2011, Lange had a succession of full-time jobs at Villanova University, Moravian College and then CHC. “Brenda is an exceptional writer and editor and an excellent project manager,” said Kristin Floyd, President, Communication First, LLC. “During her time at CHC, she juggled multiple roles as the editor and layout manager for the college magazine ... She is a prolific writer who can always find a new perspective on a topic, no matter how many times she is asked to write about it!”

Regarding Lange's eight books, her favorites were “The Triangle Shirtwaist Factory Fire” and “The Stock Market Crash of 1929.” She began writing books after attended a meeting at The Writers’ Room in Doylestown in 2002 to hear an editor from Chelsea House Publishers speak. “After the presentation, I introduced myself, and a few days later was offered an assignment. 'Genghis Khan' was my first book for them. Last summer, I visited my son in Washington, D.C., and we went to the Library of Congress, where all eight of my books can be found. That was an emotional visit for both of us!”

Not many interview subjects insist that the article include comments about their siblings, but that is what Lange did. “I need to include my brother Mike in my story somewhere. He is 2.5 years younger, and we’ve always been close. He’s always had my back, and my life wouldn’t be nearly as rich or as fun if I hadn’t had him in it. I also have a sister, Kim, who is 11 years younger. We were estranged for years but over the past decade have gradually built a solid relationship. I even drove cross-country with her 18 months ago to help her move from Baltimore to San Diego. I love them both very much. My story would be incomplete without my siblings in it.”
Lange's children are Jennifer, 38, a middle school English teacher in New Jersey; Vincent, 35, a Captain in the U.S. Air Force; and Elizabeth, 29, who earned her MSW from Temple in 2019 and lives in Conshohocken. All are married.

Lange left CHC in June, 2018, after four years there, then for six months at Montgomery County Community College and has been a full-time freelancer since then. She plans to move to the Jersey shore, where she has wanted to return for about 25 years, but “when things settle down, I want to buy a camper van and travel around the country, working remotely as I go.”

For more information, visit brendalange.com. Len Lear can be reached at lenlear@chestnuthilllocal.com