Betty Mae Hodges- The Red Can, by Clay County native Betty Mae Hodges, is a collection of family stories that span four generations. The setting is rural Clay County and provides a glimpse into many of the Appalachian family practices that were prevalent during the past seventy-five years.   The stories share one common bond; these are the stories of family members who made such an impression on a poor young woman that she placed a picture, an object, or a simple gift in her red tin can for safe keeping until the appointed time.   When the appointed time came, the “Keeper” of the red can shared the stories once more with her daughter so these stories could be placed on paper and therefore never be lost.  The “Keeper” knew then the stories would be shared with her children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren and anyone who could learn from others’ mistakes.  She needed to know future generations could learn a life lesson from each story that she had held deep within her heart for an entire lifetime.  So the contents of a simple red tin can explain the hardships, courage, and love displayed by one woman and how her love, generosity, and determination broke a cycle of poverty and set an entire family on a path of “true riches.” In December of 1945, Callie Isom Reynolds ordered a fruitcake from the Sears & Roebuck catalog.  The cake came in a beautiful red tin can.  Its lid had the imprint of a candle light.  Over the next sixty-two years the red can became a cherished possession. The can itself had no value. Yet the can’s contents and the significance of each item to its Keeper and the lives of her family can only be explained through the stories told numerous times throughout those sixty-two years—stories that needed to be heard not only by the Keeper’s children but by anyone who believes that every one has at least one story important enough to leave behind.   Betty Mae Reynolds Hodges did not intend to write a book.  She and her mother began a project of writing their family stories so they could be saved and shared with the immediate family.  The project was going to continue for many years; it ended in four months with the unexpected death of her mother.  Betty Mae’s desire is this book will inspire others to write the stories of their families—sharing the reality, the hope, and life lessons for future generations.  She encourages all those who have family stories that need to be written to not wait—there is no better time than now.  About the Author-Betty Mae Reynolds Hodges, a wife, mother,  and recently-retired elementary school principal, wrote The Red Can to preserve family stories that were dear to her mother. The book was a gift for her children and her sisters.  Encouraged by everyone who read the book, Hodges decided to publish the book as a way to honor her mother and to challenge others to write the stories of their families.  Hodges  lives in London, Kentucky.