Marie Warder
Encyclopedia
Marie Warder is a journalist, novelist and activist best known for her activities raising awareness about hemochromatosis. Warder founded the Hemochromatosis Society of South Africa (HSSA), and the Canadian Hemochromatosis Society (CHS), and was founder and long-time President of the International Association of Hemochromatosis Societies (IAHS).
, South Africa
in 1927. She married bandleader Tom Warder and moved with him to Canada
. Tom Warder was diagnosed in 1975 with hemochromatosis, and her daughter was diagnosed with the same disease in 1979. These two events spurred Warder to become an activist, raising awareness of the disease within the medical community and the general public.
. The story behind the impulse to submit the Argus story is told in BC Bookworld. In 1944, by the time she was seventeen, she had had two stories published in the British magazine Everybody's and later wrote for several South African periodicals.
By 17, she was also the chief reporter for the Germiston Advocate. Judy Lloyd, writing in The Ficksburg News, and quoting The Journalist (a newsletter for journalists), claims that in this role, Warder was the youngest chief reporter in the world. During her career as a journalist Warder had the chance to interview, among others, Pat Boone
, Field Marshal "Jan Christiaan Smuts" and
"Frances Steloff", founder of New York’s renowned Gotham Bookmart in 1920, and which, during Steloff's proprietorship, served as a meeting place for many of the world’s published and unpublished writers who visited or lived in New York.]].
Now living in Canada, she is mostly remembered for her numerous pamphlets and articles on the subject of Hemochromatosis (iron overload). However, one of her most successful series of newspaper articles was titled “I am a piano,” which first appeared in the “Home Journal” of the Johannesburg “Sunday Express” on July 29, 1956. In this she provided hilarious impressions of what she saw from the vantage of the stage, while playing the piano at functions from weddings to banquets and staff parties.
and Afrikaans; three of which were used for some years as required reading in South African schools. Many of her stories take place in and around newspaper offices.
Warder was listed among South Africa’s top seven “favorite novelists” by Dagbreek-Boekkring, a South African book publisher. Mary Morrison Webster, book critic of the Johannesburg Sunday Times, recorded among her recommendations printed in the 1959 pre-Christmas edition of the paper, two books written “in time for Christmas—in two different languages.” Mrs. Warder’s biography is included in the Archives of the National Council of Women among “Notable Women of Johannesburg.”
Late in 2003, after years of activism (see below), Warder returned to novel writing. Storm Water and With no remorse… were released simultaneously less than a year later. In late 2010, Warder was working on her 23rd book: an updated version of Penny of the Morning Star, a novel she had originally written in South Africa in the 1960s as a part of a training course in English as a second language. Her latest book, April in Portugal, was released late in May 2011.
television. For more than 28 years after that, except for a series of travel articles, Warder devoted her literary efforts to works about hemochromatosis. During this time she wrote The Bronze Killer, the first devoted entirely to the subject of the genetic disorder hemochromatosis. The term "Bronze Killer" has been used, among others, in the Toronto Star
, in British newspapers, in the magazine supplement of the Johannesburg Sunday Express and in a Quebec French issue of the Reader's Digest
, where it is called “La tueuse au masque du bronze”. Hemochromatosis was referred to as "the bronze killer" in an editorial by Clement Finch
, Professor of Medicine Emeritus of the University of Washington
, in the Western Journal of Medicine, September 1990.
In that same editorial, Finch says: “A strong case can be made for incorporating measurements of the plasma iron, iron-binding capacity and ferritin into the routine blood screen. Without such a survey, there is little hope of recognizing hemochromatosis at a time when treatment has the greatest promise.” He also notes: “Lay Societies have been formed whose mission is to disseminate information about the “bronze killer”. . . Their information program is so effective that the people they reach are sometimes far better informed than their physicians.” The Bronze Killer is recommended by professionals around the world.
Warder went on to found hemochromatosis societies in her native South Africa and her adopted home of Canada.
Warder has also published more than 300 articles on the subject of hemochromatosis, and as well as patient literature for individuals, hospitals and other medical facilities. Her newsletters and brochures have gone out to more than 16 countries.
, South Africa; a musician, playing keyboards with her husband's band; and, late in life, a lay chaplain at the Delta Hospital in Ladner, British Columbia
.
Warder was awarded the Canada Volunteer Medal of Honour and Certificate of Honour in 1991 for her work, including her book The Bronze Killer.
Biography
Warder was born Marie van Zyl, in FicksburgFicksburg
Ficksburg is a town situated at the foot of the 450m high Imperani Mountain in Free State province, South Africa. The town was set up by General Johan Fick who won the territory in the Basotho Wars...
, South Africa
South Africa
The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans...
in 1927. She married bandleader Tom Warder and moved with him to Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. Tom Warder was diagnosed in 1975 with hemochromatosis, and her daughter was diagnosed with the same disease in 1979. These two events spurred Warder to become an activist, raising awareness of the disease within the medical community and the general public.
Journalism career
In February 1939, at age 11, Warder began writing stories for local newspapers, selling her first story to the Cape ArgusCape Argus
Founded in 1857 by Saul Solomon, the Cape Argus is a daily newspaper published by Independent News & Media in Cape Town, South Africa. It is commonly referred to simply as "The Argus"....
. The story behind the impulse to submit the Argus story is told in BC Bookworld. In 1944, by the time she was seventeen, she had had two stories published in the British magazine Everybody's and later wrote for several South African periodicals.
By 17, she was also the chief reporter for the Germiston Advocate. Judy Lloyd, writing in The Ficksburg News, and quoting The Journalist (a newsletter for journalists), claims that in this role, Warder was the youngest chief reporter in the world. During her career as a journalist Warder had the chance to interview, among others, Pat Boone
Pat Boone
Charles Eugene "Pat" Boone is an American singer, actor and writer who has been a successful pop singer in the United States during the 1950s and early 1960s. He covered black artists' songs and sold more copies than his black counterparts...
, Field Marshal "Jan Christiaan Smuts" and
"Frances Steloff", founder of New York’s renowned Gotham Bookmart in 1920, and which, during Steloff's proprietorship, served as a meeting place for many of the world’s published and unpublished writers who visited or lived in New York.]].
Now living in Canada, she is mostly remembered for her numerous pamphlets and articles on the subject of Hemochromatosis (iron overload). However, one of her most successful series of newspaper articles was titled “I am a piano,” which first appeared in the “Home Journal” of the Johannesburg “Sunday Express” on July 29, 1956. In this she provided hilarious impressions of what she saw from the vantage of the stage, while playing the piano at functions from weddings to banquets and staff parties.
Writing career
While still living in South Africa, Warder took to writing fiction. She is the author of twenty-four novels written in EnglishEnglish language
English is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
and Afrikaans; three of which were used for some years as required reading in South African schools. Many of her stories take place in and around newspaper offices.
Warder was listed among South Africa’s top seven “favorite novelists” by Dagbreek-Boekkring, a South African book publisher. Mary Morrison Webster, book critic of the Johannesburg Sunday Times, recorded among her recommendations printed in the 1959 pre-Christmas edition of the paper, two books written “in time for Christmas—in two different languages.” Mrs. Warder’s biography is included in the Archives of the National Council of Women among “Notable Women of Johannesburg.”
Late in 2003, after years of activism (see below), Warder returned to novel writing. Storm Water and With no remorse… were released simultaneously less than a year later. In late 2010, Warder was working on her 23rd book: an updated version of Penny of the Morning Star, a novel she had originally written in South Africa in the 1960s as a part of a training course in English as a second language. Her latest book, April in Portugal, was released late in May 2011.
Hemochromatosis activism
In 1975, Warder's husband, Frederick Abinger (Tom) Warder, who had been seriously ill for eight years, was finally diagnosed with hemochromatosis at the age of 50, and died later in 1992. In 1979 their daughter, then 32, was also diagnosed with hemochromatosis, Warder concluded that the disorder was hereditary and that much of what she had been told about it was incorrect: women could indeed develop hemochromatosis, and it was not only a disease of middle-age. Warder made it her mission to make the world aware of this disease, including an interview with Ida Clarkson on CHEKChek
Chek or CHEK may refer to:graffiti artist "chek larok/cheksta* Chek, Kyrgyzstan* CHEK-TV, a TV station in Victoria, British Columbia, Canada...
television. For more than 28 years after that, except for a series of travel articles, Warder devoted her literary efforts to works about hemochromatosis. During this time she wrote The Bronze Killer, the first devoted entirely to the subject of the genetic disorder hemochromatosis. The term "Bronze Killer" has been used, among others, in the Toronto Star
Toronto Star
The Toronto Star is Canada's highest-circulation newspaper, based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Its print edition is distributed almost entirely within the province of Ontario...
, in British newspapers, in the magazine supplement of the Johannesburg Sunday Express and in a Quebec French issue of the Reader's Digest
Reader's Digest
Reader's Digest is a general interest family magazine, published ten times annually. Formerly based in Chappaqua, New York, its headquarters is now in New York City. It was founded in 1922, by DeWitt Wallace and Lila Bell Wallace...
, where it is called “La tueuse au masque du bronze”. Hemochromatosis was referred to as "the bronze killer" in an editorial by Clement Finch
Clement Finch
Clement Alfred Finch often deemed “The Iron Man”, was a Physician specializing in Hematology whose research on iron metabolization in the bloodstream at the University of Washington led to significant advancements in accurately diagnosing and treating anemia during a time period in which little...
, Professor of Medicine Emeritus of the University of Washington
University of Washington
University of Washington is a public research university, founded in 1861 in Seattle, Washington, United States. The UW is the largest university in the Northwest and the oldest public university on the West Coast. The university has three campuses, with its largest campus in the University...
, in the Western Journal of Medicine, September 1990.
In that same editorial, Finch says: “A strong case can be made for incorporating measurements of the plasma iron, iron-binding capacity and ferritin into the routine blood screen. Without such a survey, there is little hope of recognizing hemochromatosis at a time when treatment has the greatest promise.” He also notes: “Lay Societies have been formed whose mission is to disseminate information about the “bronze killer”. . . Their information program is so effective that the people they reach are sometimes far better informed than their physicians.” The Bronze Killer is recommended by professionals around the world.
Warder went on to found hemochromatosis societies in her native South Africa and her adopted home of Canada.
Warder has also published more than 300 articles on the subject of hemochromatosis, and as well as patient literature for individuals, hospitals and other medical facilities. Her newsletters and brochures have gone out to more than 16 countries.
Other activities
In addition to her activities as a writer and activist, Warder has been an educator, founding and serving as the first principal of Windsor House Academy, a "dual-medium" school in Kempton ParkKempton Park, Gauteng
Kempton Park is a city on the East Rand in the Gauteng province, South Africa. Formerly an independent municipality in the Transvaal, Kempton Park no longer has its own municipal government, and has been part of the Ekurhuleni Metropolitan Municipality since 2000...
, South Africa; a musician, playing keyboards with her husband's band; and, late in life, a lay chaplain at the Delta Hospital in Ladner, British Columbia
Ladner, British Columbia
Ladner was created as a fishing village on the banks of the Fraser River. It is a part of the Municipality of Delta, British Columbia, Canada, and a suburb of Vancouver....
.
Recognition
For her efforts in founding the CHS, Warder was presented with a certificate of appreciation on April 11, 1988, by Mayor G.J. Blair, of Richmond, British Columbia "in recognition of her contribution to voluntary service" in that city, one year after he had been the first Mayor in Canada to proclaim an annual week of awareness for Hemochromatosis. During that first Awareness Week, 523 new cases of hemochromatosis were diagnosed. More recently, at the conclusion of the International BioIron Society Conference held in Vancouver, British Columbia May 22–26, 2011, she was presented with a lifetime achievement award. Some years ago, the Minister of Health for Canada declared May each year to be a month of National Awareness for the disorder. and it is now also observed by organizations in many countries – for instance the United StatesWarder was awarded the Canada Volunteer Medal of Honour and Certificate of Honour in 1991 for her work, including her book The Bronze Killer.