If you think back to the pandemic days for a moment, it was a dark time packed with confusion and isolation. Local author, and Military wife, Melissa Cannioto, knows that feeling all too well. Through her own deployment experiences, she’s seen first hand the effect on young people. That being said, she decided to fill a void in the book world, and write a children’s book of her own. ‘The Bear and The Hug,’ circles around the story of a bear who wakes up from hybrination to find that the outside world is not how he left it. It’s the charming tale of friendship, rediscovering touch, and overcoming isolation.

GDC had the chance to sit down with Melissa, to learn more about her life, her experience as a military wife, and what ultimately pushed her to author this book!

To learn more, click here.