Joseph Michael Sepesy
About the Books
Word Dances: A Collection of Verses and Thoughts about Ballroom Dancing, by Joseph Michael Sepesy
Dance has been an important and transformative element in the life of author Joe Sepesy. Although he has had a love of music all his life, he only came to dance at 59, in 2009, as a step toward dealing with PTSD (Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder) and as something new and enjoyable in his life. That move dramatically changed his way of living, improving both his physical and mental health.
During this time, Joe began writing his thoughts about dancing in the form of verses and short stories. Now, in Word Dances, he shares those words, offering reflections on, and exploration of his dancing experiences, hoping to evoke similar memories for others. Aimed at beginners and seasoned dancers alike, this collection speaks to the impact that dance can have on our lives and wellness.
***** Reviews *****
FIVE STAR review posted on amazon.com: “If you are involved in ballroom dancing, this book is a unique and insightful glimpse, in short snapshot prose, into the feelings and emotions experienced in several dances. The author is very open about using ballroom dance to help with PTSD, which I found fascinating. If you like poetry, that evokes emotion, and you have a connection to ballroom dance, or would like to look at it through a new set of eyes, this book is for you.”
FIVE STAR review from amazon.com: “Inspiring…the Dance and the Book, too! Great book by a fabulous author!” –Mary Sunshine “Mary”, 28 June 2015.
Mr. Len Goodman, judge on ABC’s Dancing with the Stars, read Word Dances, loves it, and sent a letter to Joe.
American Dancer Magazine, national publication of USA Dance: A feature article discusses Joe’s journey through the world of ballroom dancing, his teacher, Lynda Amann of A Time to Dance, and the inspiration to write Word Dances. (See March/April 2015, edition.)
Youngstown Vindicator: 14 January 2015: A front-page, feature article about Joe and his teacher, Lynda Amann, and the book, Word Dances: A Collection of Verses and Thoughts about Ballroom Dancing.
To order books by Joe Sepesy, visit Lulu.com.
Word Dances II: Your Time to Dance by Joseph Michael Sepesy
This second book about social ballroom dancing is for anyone, regardless of age, wanting to learn social ballroom dancing; for any ballroom dancer, no matter the level of proficiency and experience; for any ballroom teacher wanting to reconnect with students; for anyone in search of a new approach to fitness and socializing, wanting to tap hidden potential and improve the quality of life, through music.
“Teachers and dance professionals will benefit from reading this insightful look into the novice dancer’s world. It’s easy to forget about those first, nervous days and weeks of lessons and experiences on the dance floor … precisely when our caring and compassion for students must be demonstrated. Joe’s ability to bring those new-dancer feelings and observations to life with his words is truly a gift for dancers of all levels.
It has been a privilege and pleasure to witness Joe’s transformation from 100% disabled, Vietnam veteran to frightened, beginning student, to confident and joyful dancer.”
—Lynda Amann, Dance Instructor
In Word Dances II: Your Time to Dance, author Joe Sepesy describes his continuing journey through the world of social ballroom dancing with observations and descriptions about the learning process, dance genres, and the beauty and joy of dancing. Word Dances II, the perfect companion to Joe’s first book, Word Dances, a Collection of Verses and Thoughts about Ballroom Dancing, will inspire, guide and ease, dancers onto the ballroom floors, and will introduce or reacquaint you with … your time to dance.
Word Dances III: Celebration, by Joe Sepesy
The author’s journey continues with more verses, thoughts and observations about the power and joy of dancing, genres of dance and the learning process, the ballroom and much more. Also, a bonus list of over three hundred songs with the best dance-ability for social dancing is included.
Are you still waiting, wondering about dancing and your own abilities? Are you feeling the call of the music to the ballroom floor? If so, let the celebration begin! Word Dances III will welcome and inspire dancers of all levels, from novice to professional, will charm and thrill, enlighten and entertain. Join the celebration—time to answer the music and explore the world of social ballroom dancing.
Word Dances III continues a new ballroom tradition begun by Joe Sepesy’s first two books, Word Dances: A Collection of Verses and Thoughts about Ballroom Dancing, and Word Dances II: Your Time to Dance. The bar has been raised by the author’s unique insight and perceptions about social ballroom dancing. Join the celebration—read and dance.
To order books by Joe Sepesy, visit Lulu.com.
Word Dances IV: The Romance of the Dance
by Joseph Michael Sepesy
When we dance nothing else matters, because in each other’s arms … is everything that does.
Without doubt, dancers have fallen in love on a ballroom floor, and some have lived that love together, for a lifetime. This premise inspired wonderment and is presented by the words of this fourth book in the Word Dances series about social ballroom dancing.
We dance because ballads and lyrics, their words of love, come to life on the dance floor.
We dance, touching our partners while enjoying fairytale moments in each other’s arms.
Word Dances IV connects dancing and romancing through verses and observations, descriptions and scenarios about relationships, music and lyrics, and the seductive ambiance of the ballroom.
We dance because it is gift-giving, renewed with every journey around the dance floor.
We dance to enjoy and express the motion of music, satisfying the need to be close.
Each chapter, enhanced by the delights of dance, music and lyrics, describes romance from first, serendipitous attraction, through anticipation and fantasy, to love, passion, and fulfillment.
We dance because we embody the rhythms of music and song, making love to music.
Ongoing book-series themes; genres of dance, the learning process, the beauty of lady dancers, and the effects of music, are continued. A preview of Word Dances V introduces the wondrous world of ballroom dancing in the fictional setting of the Clover Gazebo, a ballroom in the town of Journey’s End, Ohio.
So, fall in love again with the person you hold dearest in your own dance-world. Fall in love with the music and lyrics that carry both of you to your special places, both on and off the dance floor.
Joe’s first book, Word Dances: A Collection of Verses and Thoughts about Ballroom Dancing, describes the world of social ballroom dancing by exploring its dances, the ballroom and music, and learning processes. In Word Dances II: Your Time to Dance, beginning dancers are welcomed and eased onto the dance floor while seasoned dancers find themselves revitalizing their passion for dance. Then, ballroom dancing is celebrated with Word Dances III: Celebration.
Joe Sepesy was born in Youngstown, Ohio. He is a former musician, US Army helicopter pilot and disabled Vietnam veteran, and a retired teacher. In 2009, as part of his recovery from PTSD and physical injuries, Joe began ballroom dancing lessons from Lynda Amann, who continues to teach him today. He resides in northeast Ohio with his wife Linda.
To order books by Joe Sepesy, visit Lulu.com
Word Dances V: The World of Social Ballroom Dancing through Short Stories, Thoughts, and Verse
by Joseph Michael Sepesy
With Word Dances V, Joe Sepesy concludes his narration about social ballroom dancing—not competitive or professional dancing—but social ballroom dancing that can be mastered and enjoyed by anyone. Again, through anecdotes, prose, verse, and references, Sepesy reflects upon the genres of dance, the seductive music that beckons dancers to the floor, dance’s learning process, romance and humor, and the challenges he continues to face—both physical and mental, living with PTSD.
Many epigraphs, along with commentary and quotations, enhance each chapter. Their pertinent placement will inform and entertain the reader. Many will bring a smile and nod as the reader realizes their relevancy to his or her own dance status and experiences. No matter the level of one’s dance experience, Word Dances V will unlock memories to revisit, inspire and delight anew, and evoke emotions—all relevant to the reader’s own ballroom adventures.
Word Dances V also includes a list of over 400 songs with the best dance-ability—music that demands dancers take to the floor. Several short stories bring social ballroom dancing to life. Readers will feel the music and embrace its ambiance, finding themselves circling the dance floor along with the author’s memorable characters. Now, consider two of the author’s favorite thoughts.
“Beauty and the Dance”
The most beautiful reason for dancing … is in your arms.
“The Second Most Beautiful Reason for Dancing—Remembering”
When dancing and for later, be both moment maker and memory maker for you and your partner.
Joseph Michael Sepesy is a former musician, US Army helicopter pilot and Vietnam veteran, and teacher who began ballroom dancing and writing to deal with his physical injuries and pain, and PTSD. He resides in northeast Ohio, where he and his wife, Linda, continue to take lessons from Lynda Amann.
To order books by Joe Sepesy, visit Lulu.com
From battlefields to ballrooms, from pain and PTSD to American smooth and Latin rhythm
…
Nine major operations (lower back, neck and left shoulder), titanium implants, advancing nerve damage, drop foot, balance problem, chronic pain, leg braces and a cane, and severe PTSD–all overcome by the joy of ballroom dancing.
Read about Joe Sepesy and his dance teacher, Lynda Amann, in Joe’s Word Dances series of books about social ballroom dancing. Teachers, dance professionals, and students, can benefit from Joe’s insightful look into the world of ballroom dancing. Through observations and descriptions, short stories and humor, thoughts and verse, Joe’s ability to portray ballroom dancing and its learning process, its experiences and emotions, is truly a gift for dancers of all levels. Learn how a life of injury, pain, and Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder was transformed by social ballroom dancing.
For more information, please visit Lulu.com.
Once We Flew, Volume I: The Memoir of a US Army Helicopter Pilot in Vietnam and a Life with PTSD, by Joseph Michael Sepesy
In 1958, a helicopter flew across a cold, March sky, bringing wonderment to an eight-year-old boy watching from below. Ten years later, that wonderment became reality as that now, eighteen-year-old man enlisted in the US Army, completed helicopter flight training, then served three, combat tours of duty in Vietnam. Fifty years later, his story comes to life on the pages of his memoir.
The author, Joe Sepesy, straps the reader in his 1ST Air Cavalry, Huey helicopter to experience his accounts from know-nothing new guy to aircraft commander and flight leader, with vivid descriptions of missions drawn from his 2,200 combat flight hours, including hundreds of combat assaults and direct-support missions … and the horrors of war.
Meet the men of the “Bravo Good Deal” who served at the author’s side; those who had faith in him and taught him how to fly … and how to survive, as well as those, indifferent, less accommodating, and dangerous with their decision-making processes.
These young aviators comprised Sepesy’s brave band of brothers—warrant officers with big mustaches, Seiko watches, and bad attitudes, that earned the respect of their fellow soldiers. They were nineteen years old and going to live forever—youths who commanded aircrews, flying quarter-million-dollar aircraft at 120 knots, nap of the earth, in the face of a determined and skilled enemy. “Give me my helicopter, tell me what you want done, then get the hell out of my way ’cause I’ll do it.” And enjoy the unique and inherent humor of military life, and the lighter moments of youthful pilots goofing off, their shenanigans and devil-may-care attitudes.
Returning to civilian life, and no longer indestructible, Sepesy faced life’s new situations and responsibilities. But, the wounds and scars of war, the physical injuries and PTSD, along with memories and a still-present, military mindset presented new challenges and complicated every-day routines. Muddling through the more mundane obstacles presented by college and career, family and home, became troublesome and unnecessary struggles to overcome. During the next four decades, numerous operations plagued the author and the insidious ways of PTSD went undetected—a new journey of survival … and accomplishment, would begin.
Joe is a former musician, a guitarist in a band with his brothers. He graduated magna cum laude from Youngstown State University in 1977, with a BA in Education, and taught in the Youngstown City Schools for thirty years, retiring in 2009. Joe was inducted into the Ohio Military Hall of Fame for Valor in 2003, receiving the Ohio Medal of Valor. Joe met and proposed to his wife, Linda, on the dance floor. They were married in October 2019, and reside in northeast Ohio.
Joe’s books are available at Lulu.com.
Once We Flew, Volume II: Aftermath, The Memoir of a US Army Helicopter Pilot in Vietnam and a Life with PTSD by Joseph Michael Sepesy
Once We Flew, Volume II: Aftermath, continues where Once We Flew, Volume I: The Memoir of a US Army Helicopter Pilot and a Life with PTSD, ended in 1973.
Chief Warrant Officer 2 Joe Sepesy is no longer operating as an experienced, capable, and very lucky Huey Aircraft Commander and Flight Lead. At twenty, he was responsible for the lives of dozens of crewmen and soldiers, numerous aircraft, and the completion of combat missions. In Volume II: Aftermath, now, no longer indestructible, private citizen and veteran Sepesy, must face new situations and responsibilities. And so, begins Joe’s second war!
Sepesy leads the reader through monumental struggles and embarks down a new path to battle his injuries and scars of war, including PTSD. But, those effects of war, along with the military way of black-and-white, by-the-book thinking of live or die, and horrific memories, will present new challenges and complicate every-day routines. Sepesy must muddle through and overcome the more mundane obstacles of college, career, and home. Then, and more significantly, throughout his years of employment, he must deal with the repeated displays of hypocrisy, incompetence, and use of double standards practiced by others, including their lies, mischaracterizations, and vindictiveness that will threaten Joe’s security and future.
During the next five decades, many operations (6 spinal and more) will plague Joe, and the insidious ways of PTSD will go undetected for thirty-three years, until 2006—a new journey of survival … and accomplishment will begin.
Sepesy’s PTSD equation includes symptoms and triggers: survivor guilt and shame (traumatic guilt); anger, depression, stress and emotional numbing; mistrust of, and confrontation with authority; hypervigilance and hyperarousal; demon dreams and alarming reactions to unexpected noises; and the big one—sensitivity to injustice.
PTSD is sadness, guilt, loneliness, isolation, despair, anger, fear, pain, confusion—the list is different for everyone affected. What PTSD isn’t … is hopeless.
In Aftermath, the reader will find dozens of informative and useful epigraphs about PTSD from medical professionals, survivors, and veterans. These excerpts, stripped down to their essence, bring a basic understanding to the reader, and for some, a perspective into his or her own suspected PTSD, or those of family members and friends. But know; there is hope … and there can be happiness.
Joe is a former musician, a guitarist in a band with his brothers. He graduated magna cum laude from Youngstown State University in 1977, with a BA in Education, and taught in the Youngstown, Ohio, City Schools for thirty years, retiring in 2009. Joe was inducted into the Ohio Military Hall of Fame for Valor in 2003, receiving the Ohio Medal of Valor. Joe met and proposed to his wife, Linda, on the dance floor. They were married in October 2019 and reside in northeast Ohio.
To order books by Joe Sepesy, visit Lulu.com.
The Relic of Domremy
by Joseph Michael Sepesy
This historical novel depicts the horrors and randomness of war: who lives and who dies; how and why soldiers meet their demise; and for survivors, the aftermath of combat. In The Relic of Domremy, these fateful signatures of war are complicated by interpersonal clashes within command structures, but more so, by an unlikely alliance, and an intervention that can only be described as miraculous.
A story of conflict and survival, sacrifice and salvation, The Relic takes place during World War I, on November 10th, 1918, the day before the signing of the armistice to end the war of all wars. On this day, a battle, beyond logic, takes place in the southernmost sector of the Western Front, in the village of Domremy, France, the home of St. Joan of Arc and a place, no stranger to the atrocities of warfare.
The lives of two soldiers, American Lieutenant John Chaple, and German Captain Otto Dengler, intersect on this battlefield for a short, but defining and life-altering hour. In the rubble of Domremy’s ancient church, one discovers a scene of unspeakable carnage and a sacred relic. His path becomes entangled by visions, whose cryptic messages haunt and confuse, then inspire and challenge. The other officer is confronted by the inexplicable and mind-numbing—learning that his most private information is known by an enemy, a total stranger. With his life in the balance, he must decide to trust or not to trust.
The journeys of the relic and the officers weave their ways through New York’s Niagara Falls and Germany’s Black Forest, confronting the harsh realities of shell shock and survivor’s guilt; and the burgeoning presence of a new and hateful, political agenda taking root in post-war Germany. The officers’ journeys come full circle, as they revisit a familiar place, but with a different mission.
The author’s many, personal experiences involving combat and emotional scarring, provide for gritty and brutal, vivid and realistic descriptions of battle and the ways of the army, as well as the effects of Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder.
Joe Sepesy is a former musician, US Army helicopter pilot and disabled Vietnam veteran, and teacher who began ballroom dancing and writing to deal with his physical injuries and PTSD. He has written five books about social ballroom dancing: Word Dances: A Collection of Verses and Thoughts about Ballroom Dancing, Word Dances II: Your Time to Dance, Word Dances III: Celebration, Word Dances IV: The Romance of the Dance, and Word Dances V: The World of Social Ballroom Dancing through Short Stories, Thoughts, and Verse. Joe has also published: Once We Flew, Volume I: The Memoir of a US Army Helicopter Pilot in Vietnam and a Life with PTSD, and Once We Flew, Volume II: Aftermath, and two historical novels, The Relic of Domremy, and The Flight of St. Joan’s Cross: The Relic of Domremy, Part II.
To order books by Joe Sepesy, visit Lulu.com.
The Flight of St. Joan’s Cross: The Relic of Domremy, Part II
by Joseph Michael Sepesy
On 10 November 1918, the day before the signing of the armistice to end the Great War, Lieutenant John Chaple, US Army Signal Corps, died during one of that war’s most senseless and final battles. But John Chaple’s story was far from over—as was for German officer, Capitan Otto Dengler, whose life was saved by Chaple during that battle.
Twenty-three years later, Otto Dengler fulfills John Chaple’s dying request and visits his father Frank in Niagara Falls, to return John’s personal effects, including a silver ring that Frank had created. But Dengler would deliver much more, a mysterious artifact, the relic of St. Joan of Arc, and John’s journal, which contained an impossible-to-comprehend and miraculous account of John’s last mission … in 1920!
Then, in December 1941, just as John Chaple had answered the call to duty in 1918, another generation of Americans would meet a similar challenge and return to combat on European soil and in its skies. Among them is John’s youthful neighbor, now Captain Danny Windemere, US Army Air Force.
After learning about John Chaple’s inexplicable experiences at Domremy, France, St. Joan of Arc’s home, from Otto Dengler, Windemere commands a USAAF Bombardment Group. He and his crew have flown over twenty missions in their B-17, named St. Joan’s Cross. During each mission, Windemere carried John Chaple’s signal officer’s pouch, which held the relic of St. Joan. It is Danny’s hope to return the relic to the people of Domremy. But before doing so, he must survive twenty-five combat missions, including the raid on the ball-bearing factories in Schweinfurt, Germany, which would become known as the USAAF’s “Black Thursday.”
Joseph Michael Sepesy is a former musician, a guitarist and vocalist in a band. In 1968, he enlisted in the US Army and graduated from Warrant Officer Flight Training school. From March 1970 through February 1973, Joe served three combat tours of duty in Vietnam as a helicopter pilot. Joe graduated magna cum laude from Youngstown State University in 1977, with a BA in Education, and taught in the Youngstown City Schools for thirty years, retiring in 2009. Joe was inducted into the Ohio Military Hall of Fame for Valor in 2003, and received its Medal for Valor.
In 2009, to deal with his physical pain and PTSD, Joe began ballroom dancing and writing at fifty-nine. Since that time, he has authored and published the five-book Word Dances series about social ballroom dancing; his Vietnam memoir, titled Once We Flew, Volume I: The Memoir of a US Army Helicopter Pilot in Vietnam and a Life with PTSD; and Once We Flew, Volume II: Aftermath; and two historical novels set during World Wars I and II.
In 2018, Joe met and proposed to his wife, Linda, on the dance floor, and they were married in October 2019. They live in northeast Ohio, continue to dance and learn with the guidance of dance instructor, Lynda Amann.
To order books by Joe Sepesy, visit Lulu.com.
