Sarsaparilla and Me

For author Lenora Parkins, the memories she has experienced through the course of her life have reminded her of blessings she has been given. They are memories of what she has learned while growing up, experiencing married life and motherhood, and even having a job taking care of the house of the late Las Vegas performers Siegfried and Roy.


Her new memoir, Sasaparilla and Me, describes the various experiences she had from childhood through to adulthood, encompassed in a collection of individual, personal stories. Named for the drink that Lenora liked most at her family's grocery store, she begins her book describing what it was like living above the grocery store and the fun times spent there roller-skating and having great slumber parties with friends.


Lenora also shares about the wealth of friendships she has had over the years, amazing places she has lived, and the family she is thankful to call her own. Among her unique jobs that she recounts is also when she was briefly the housekeeper for Las Vegas performers Siegfried and Roy, sharing memories of meeting the tigers and how the late showmen still remembered even years after she was no longer working for them.


The inspiration to write down on paper these amazing stories from her life came about as Lenora, and millions of other people, grappled with the lockdown of the global pandemic. Always having a longing to write her memoir, the pandemic brought the time and encouragement to write something positive during a trying time.


The hope is that anyone reading these stories of Lenora's life will share in the joy she felt revisiting these treasured adventures and find the courage to write their own stories down on paper for all to enjoy.
Lenora 'Lennie' Pfister Parkins was raised in Great Falls, Montana. During her life, she had many exciting activities in the past and present. After high school, college was next for four years in Bozeman, MT at Montana State University. She was in many clubs and lived in the AOPi Sorority House. During the four years, she received some awards and was an outstanding student and on the honor roll. After college, Lenora taught school in Cut Bank, MT, where it was below zero all winter. She decided the next year to go back to Great Falls to continue teaching, and she married her high school sweetheart and started a family. They had two boys and a girl. She opened a crepe restaurant in Great Falls, and the whole family helped work there. It was a highlight in that small city. After a few years, she and her husband managed a Best Western Hotel near Yellowstone Park. As the years went on, she had some fascinating jobs and traveled the world. Then, she decided it was time to write a book!