JSU Writers Club Receives $1,500 Gift

Mrs. Marion Moersch, right, recently donated $1,500 in memory of her husband, Dr. Robert Moersch, to the JSU Writer's Club. Dr. Moersch, an avid storyteller, was a longtime Anniston physician who also maintained an office in Jacksonville.

By Sherry Kughn JSU News Bureau 25 February, 2005 — The Jacksonville State University Writers Club recently received $1,500 from the family of someone who loved storytelling—the late Dr. Robert U. Moersch. The club has earmarked the money for its annual fiction writing competition, which started only last year at the initiative of club president Randy Wilson. About fifteen to twenty members of the Writers’ Club meet weekly. Dr. Moersch was a longtime Anniston surgeon who also had an office in Jacksonville. He died in 2000. He imparted his love for words and stories to his granddaughter, Sarah Fuselli. She is a member of the Writers’ Club and is pursuing a bachelor’s degree in English at JSU. She proposed the idea of the memorial gift to her grandmother, Mrs. Marion Moersch of Jacksonville. “She was very excited,” said Miss Fuselli. “My grandfather was a big storyteller. He loved to tell the story of Robin Hood and stories by Hans Christian Andersen.” Because of the gift, the competition’s name has been renamed the Dr. Robert U. Moersch Short Fiction Writing Contest. “We greatly appreciate this gift,” said faculty adviser Dr. Pitt Harding. “Members of our club have a keen interest in creative writing, and this gift will further that interest. It also gives us the pleasant task of overseeing the selection of winners.” Miss Fuselli often sat with her grandfather during his final years. During their time together, he encouraged her writing habit, something she practiced even as a young child. “This would have meant a lot to him,” she said. All JSU students interested in joining are welcome to attend meetings at 4 p.m. each Thursday on the seventh floor of Houston Cole Library. They may visit the website at www.geocities.com/jsuwritersclub. Officers of the JSU Writer’s Club are president, Randy Wilson; vice president, Jeff Kretzschmar; secretary, Jennifer Bacchus; treasurer, Sarah Fuselli; publicist, Joshua Thoney. Submit items for news releases by using the request form at http://www.jsu.edu/news/requestform.html.