Other articles by Kimberly Matas:

He was the king of coins — bank on itHarold Ray Nelson: Chaplain died as he lived - true to his profession Mount Lemmon fixture left a legacy of pie, hospitality Owner of Summerhaven's Mount Lemmon Café diesFred Grove: Western novelist lived life he depicted Rabbits were all ears for woman who seemed to cast spell on them Pinto beans, mandolin music among gifts to community Renaissance man could throw a punch Lifelong athlete and prankster wanted to be remembered as just a regular guy Official boots observer over ballot-count queries

Driver/Transportation
DRIVERS Administrative & Professional
KNIGHT PIESOLD
PART-TIME OFFICE ASSISTANT Construction
ROR Construction
Residential Framing Carpenters Health Care
RLM Services, Inc
Pharmacist Health Care
PAINTED HILLS PEDIATRICS
LPN, RN, MA Health Care
ALLIANCE IMAGING
PRN MRI TECH Health Care
CD Therapist
CD Therapist

Barbara Lantz was a romance writer.

Not the bodice-ripping, Fabio-loving, heroine-in-need-of-rescue type of romance writer. Turns out the slender pulp paperbacks with swooning women and muscular men on their covers were more the fantasy of the men who published them than the women who wrote them.

Lantz wrote sweet, believable American tales about capable women who, in the course of their lives' adventures, met honorable men worthy of their love.

She wrote from experience. Lantz was married to the love of her life, Rex Lantz, for 59 years.

Lantz traveled with her husband, a now-retired Navy lieutenant commander, on his military assignments, raised two sons and, along the way, developed a passion for writing.

She belonged to a California chapter of Romance Writers of America before she and her husband moved to Tucson in 2004. Missing the camaraderie of fellow scribes, Lantz started a chapter in Tucson. She recruited members from other writing groups, plus anyone she met who was reading a romance novel. The Tucson Saguaro Romance Writers chapter Lantz started is now nearly 80 members strong.

"Her leadership and her establishing a strong teaching chapter ... was her dream, and we're doing it," Tucson President Linda Reed said.

Reed is confident the chapter will continue to grow because of Lantz's efforts, even without its founder. Lantz died June 5 as a result of complications from a kidney ailment. She was 81.

"She was such a romance fan," Reed said. "The stories are designed these days to be empowering to women. The basic tenet of a romance (novel) is, you have a happily-ever-after ending."

Lantz found a lifetime of romance with her husband.

"Theirs was a love story. Theirs truly was a romance. He was her hero," Reed said.

Author Maureen Caudill, of North Carolina, knew Lantz for more than 15 years. She made a trip to Tucson last summer to visit Barbara and Rex.

"It was so clear that Rex was the love of her life. He was her knight in shining armor. She absolutely adored him," Caudill said. "Every time I would hear Barbara talk about Rex, it would warm my heart and remind me that kind of permanent love existed. She sort of lived her love story."

It was Lantz's love for her husband and sons that motivated her to write about romance.

"I think she believed very strongly that romance is the literature of the family. Love within families and among families is really what ties our society together at a very fundamental level, and I think she recognized that," Caudill said.

Members of the Saguaro Romance Writers agree the genre has gotten a bad rap over the years, mostly due to silly marketing ploys and cheesy book covers. In reality, they say, romance is a respected, well-read and lucrative genre.

"It's the most feminist of all literature because it's the only form of literature where women are guaranteed to win and come out with an emotionally satisfying finish," Caudill said.

Lantz's stories were more sweet than sexy. Caudill described them as character-driven "contemporary women's fiction with a strong romantic theme."

Standing just a little over 5 feet tall, Lantz was "a little-bitty sprite of a woman, very pragmatic and down-to-earth, with a youthful energy and vitality," Caudill said. "She was a peppery, smart, witty, real, forceful dynamo of a person."

Though a couple of Lantz's manuscripts had been read — and rejected — by major publishing houses, a recent manuscript was generating interest.

"The voice that Barbara could convey when she was in that character's point of view would just pull you right in," said Caudill, a published author. "This was an incredibly good story. It saddens me that it hasn't been published."

Still, Lantz's lack of professional success hadn't dampened her enthusiasm for the genre and for other writers.

Alison Hentges and a few other women were meeting informally to talk about romance writing when Lantz moved to Tucson. She tracked down the group, joined in a meeting and, by the end of the get-together, had persuaded them to form a local Romance Writers chapter.

"Barbara was a can-do person, and she could charm anything out of you," Hentges said. "Half the time you didn't know it was happening until you committed.

"We didn't want to do the work to start one (a chapter) in Tucson. We all just looked at her and said, 'That's a lot of work.' In the end, two of us agreed to be her vice presidents. That's what Barbara was like."

Liz McClure, of San Diego, knew Lantz from the California chapter. Even though McClure lived in Tucson only briefly, Lantz persuaded her to co-found the Tucson chapter.

"The real secret of Barbara, in the nicest way, she was probably the best arm-twister," McClure said. "She went around Tucson to the other writers groups — formal and informal — to introduce herself and tell them she was starting this chapter. She met so many people that way. She brought so many new members to the chapter."

Wherever she went, Lantz was on the lookout for prospective members. She was at a hospital one day having some tests run when she called McClure.

"She said, 'I think I've got a new member for the chapter.' (Lantz) dragged her off a hospital gurney. No kidding," McClure said.

Lantz used the California chapters as a template when she organized the Saguaro Romance Writers. It's a formula the thriving chapter continues to use: day-long writing workshops one Saturday a month.

"This chapter is on its way," Vice President Marilyn Johnson said. "We're getting recognized far and wide for what we are doing here. We are pulling in speakers who are New York Times bestsellers. We are pulling in two agents to speak. I have learned so much more in the three years since joining."

Much of what she learned came from Lantz, who had been a mentor for her.

"I adored this woman. She had such an appreciation for a good laugh," Johnson said. "When I first saw her at the meeting, I thought, 'This woman is so much more than she appears to be.'

"If you have a model for the kind of lady you want to be when you get to that age, she's it. I want to be like her."

Said Caudill: "She was a strong woman. She was a loving and kind woman, but she was strong. A lot of people go through life without making their mark on it, and she left her mark wherever she went. She made a difference."