A McDonough local is advancing in efforts to bring comfort to children and families across the globe.
Annette Bentley-Smith is the CEO and founder of AnneCorp Literary Works, a company that dedicates itself to create wellness and comfort plush toys for children and families. The company launched in 2005 “as part of a granddaughter’s wish to hear a bedtime story,” Bentley-Smith said.
“She was a product of divorce and she didn’t get to see me often due to that,” Bentley-Smith said. “So at the time, she was around 4 years old and we were sitting with my plush toys, because I love them too, and she told me ‘I wish you could read to me every night,’ and I said maybe someone could create something so I can. Little did I know years later, it would be me.”
Since then, the company has blossomed into a business that has bridged the gaps between children and their loved ones.
“(It’s) a business that bridges families and ignites the imaginations of children through a variety of plush toys and story-time innovations,” Bentley-Smith said.
I am thrilled to introduce Kobe's Story-time Plush-Tales, a remarkable and heartwarming gift that truly keeps on giving....
Posted by AnneCorp Literary Works on Sunday, December 3, 2023
In January, Bentley-Smith launched a new addition to the 19-year project. Her new innovative comfort toy, known as Kobe’s Story-Time Plush-Tales, is a koala bear plush toy that promises to bring comfort, learning and imagination to children impacted by extended families.
“The toy impacts various segments of society, including children of deployed parents, children in extended hospital stays, Alzheimer’s care centers, and more,” Bentley-Smith said.
Kobe’s Story-Time Plush-Tales is available for purchase on the AnneCorp Literary Works website at www.mrsanniebooks.com. The new plush toy offers learning opportunities in addition to comfort.
“In a world increasingly dominated by electronic devices and games, plush toys, coupled with children’s books, play a vital role in nurturing young minds,” Bentley-Smith said. “These cuddly companions aid in infant development, offering emotional security, while the interactive books, played through the plush toy, encourage children to unleash their creativity and embark on imaginative journeys.”
This is what helps to make Kobe’s Story-Time Plush-Tales different from any other plush toy, Bentley-Smith added.
“Designed with a patent-pending electronic module, Kobe can hold and play messages and stories, becoming a personal keepsake that offers emotional security and a sense of connection,” Bentley-Smith said, “It is an interactive companion for children and a comfort to families, especially those facing long separations.”
It is a product that mirrors Bentley-Smith’s personal goals to inspire, comfort and educate those around her. Prior to launching her own company, Bentley-Smith created story-time bed sheets and a children’s book.
“(I specialized) in fiction and realistic stories for kids ages 6 to12-years,”Bentley-Smith said.
One book in particular highlights a conversation she had with her son about his racial background.
“My first son — who is now 35 — had an incident when he was in day care. He and his Caucasian friend were coloring each other and his friend took a black crayon to color his face,” Bentley-Smith said. “And (my son) took that literally. When I picked him up from day care that day he said ‘Mom, I am not black, I am brown.’ That was a lesson in color and race that stuck with me for a long time, so when I took up a writing class my instructor encouraged me to write that story, and it brought on my passion to continue to write.”
Her efforts now combine her talent to write and her love of plush toys to generate something even more worthwhile for children to bond with their families.
Credit: Henry Herald
Credit: Henry Herald
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