Lots to update here, clearly.  So stay tuned for more photos and tidbits…

Love,

The White-Stern Girls

Ashley, Sarah and Camille said farewell to their beloved grandfather, Irving B. Stern, last Tuesday, February 23.  He passed away peacefully in his Medina, WA home.  Ashley was in attendance and Sarah and Camille arrived shortly thereafter.  He was a remarkable man and a fabulous grandparent.  His obituary can be read in the Seattle Times.

But, for all that sadness, lots of good news too!

Camille has been accepted to a study abroad program for next fall and so will spend the first half of her junior year in Paris, as her father did, decades ago.  Yay, Camille!!!

AAAANNNNDDDD…. now that it is MARCH, it is officially the month that Sarah’s episodes of 24 begin to air!  Look for her playing Susan, the President’s Aide, starting March 22 on your local Fox channel.  So exciting!!!

Till our next update… xoxo

- The White-Stern Girls

Camille is on break from college, gallivanting about Boston.  She spent a week in Los Angeles visiting Sarah, and they celebrated Christmas together.  She’s been singing lots in the house, which is a total treat, and is hoping to get a few more songs recorded so that we’ll have more content for this site. 

Sarah is working hard and working well.  She’s booked a total of six episodes for a TV series that should start airing February or March.  Deets to come when she let’s me release them!

I (Ashley) have moved 3,000 miles away from my comfortable life in California.  I have taken over the third floor of my parent’s home in snow-laden Boston.  I’m reconnecting with my New England roots, and, despite needing to adjust to the levels of friction that only family can impose, am really loving being home and getting to reconnect with my folks and with Cammy. 

So to all of our lovely readers out there, we thank you for checking us out in ’09.  Keep stopping by in 2010 — we have faith it will be a big year for the three of us!

Lots of love,

The White-Stern Girls

Sarah has been shooting a third episode of a very popular television show — which we can’t wait to tell you more about but won’t publicize till closer to the airing date. YAY!!!

Camille has been struggling with her desire to transfer from Gallatin to Tisch and study music professionally.  It’s a difficult decision and one that has exposed a lot of conflicted thinking in the family.

THANK YOU and MUCH LOVE,

~ Ashley Paige, Sarah Hollis, and Camille Elizabeth

“I looked at Camille’s website, and I saw something, it just made me so upset, I was so disturbed, I couldn’t sleep all night,” she said to me yesterday.

Oh no!  What, mom?  Was there some terrible ad that found its way onto our site?  We paid for no advertising!  Was there a nasty comment that someone posted?

“I saw under Camille’s page that her concentration is Music Performance.  I didn’t sleep a wink that night.”

Oh dear.  Our mother is worried that if we follow our dreams and fulfill ourselves as artists and creators, that we won’t have enough money to live on.  No parent wants to see their child suffer or starve.

We three have been given incredible amounts of privilege and really stellar educations.  We’re bright, motivated, thirsty for life.  We’re working on living our lives in fulfilling ways.

Thank you, mama, for loving us, even when it makes you afraid for us.  We know how much you and our father have sacrificed for us, and we don’t take it lightly. We might not become doctors, we might not work in finance, but we do promise to be successful.  We promise to always be there for each other as we grow into ourselves and into this wild world.  Don’t worry!  We’re just beginning…

Love, Ashley (and Sarah and Camille)

How we were

Isn’t this awesome?

1.   Hello! How are you doing today?

Ashley: To  be honest, I’m a little tired.  In a good way, but still.

Sarah: Today is one of those days where it feels like I didn’t get enough accomplished!

Camille: I’m feeling great today, I got a goodnight’s sleep (which I haven’t been getting recently) and I just babysat an adorable 5 month old baby who just loves to be held–and who doesn’t love holding little babies?? I’m looking forward to going out with my friends tonight and having a fun but restful weekend.

2.  Well, what is a recent accomplishment you are particularly proud of?

Ashley: Little things, mostly. I’ve made a decision to move to San Francisco from Oakland after waffling on this for the past year.  Also, I’ve been doing this daily meditation practice for the last 25 days, and I’m proud of myself for staying committed, even though can feel either tough or mundane.

Sarah: I think my proudest accomplishment right now would be something that is ongoing; I am finally taking control of my life and pursuing the GOALS (not just dreams) I’ve had since I was a little girl.

Camille: A recent accomplishment I’m proud of is the CD I’ve been working on. I started writing and recording my own original songs this summer and I’ve been loving every second of it. Look out for some of my songs from the CD, they’ll be available for everyone to listen to on my page soon!

3.  Tell us someone you admire greatly.  Tell us why you do.

Ashley: It’s all about Socrates for me right now.  I’m reading Phaedrus and The Symposium and stuff, and this man is totally wild.  He’s like a pariah — speaking his own truth and acting in accordance to his own soul.  You can see why he’d be a threat to society: no wonder they put him to death!  In so many ways, I’ve been raised to sublimate my voice and my desires to “social norms.”  Now, I don’t want to be irresponsible or a bad citizen, but I’m working hard at age twenty-seven to speak more of my inner truth with less regard to consequences.  Becoming less afraid to “offend” others.  Trying to be more like Socrates in this respect.

Sarah: In my field?  Cate Blanchett.  I think she is the epitome of what an actor should be, with every role she has ever done she disappears within the character so much, that I find myself forgetting what movies she has been in.  I aspire to be just as great as she.

Camille: Someone I admire (in music) is my friend and mentor Rob Knox. He’s an amazing music producer and has worked with and created songs for countless talented artists. He’s become like a big brother to me and always gives me advice on everything from music and friends. I admire that he has really accomplished (or is well on his way to accomplishing) his life goals, and he always tells me not to give up. He always says “just do it”. So that’s what I’m going to do.

4.  Is there something that is particularly challenging to you at the moment?  How are you rising to meet that challenge?

Ashley: Frankly, I’m having a mini-life crisis: I have no idea what I want to “be” career-wise.  I know who I am, and I know what I love to do: I write, I read, I see friends, I bake bread, I go to art and music shows, I investigate the world.  It’s actually a very full life.  But in terms of profession there’s like this blank wall in front of me.  It’s frustrating to continue to find these paths of empty success.  Meaning, I keep discovering things I am good at but I haven’t found anything I want to build a career around.   To meet this challenge, I am trying to achieve a balance of action and non-action: doing a lot of exploring of my options, but also letting go and seeing what comes to me.  It might sound cool but actually it can be a painful and difficult process…

Sarah: I feel like with acting, challenges are met every day.  One in particular is how to stay motivated and wanting.  To me, there is no real way to “meet” this challenge other than to remember why I love acting so much in the first place–acting feeds my soul.

Camille: One thing that’s difficult for me right now is fusing my passion and goals for music with my school life. I have to stay focused in school while at the same time put a lot of effort and energy into song writing. Juggling those two parts of my life can be tricky, but I’m trying to take more music-based classes that I can actually apply to my music.

5.  What is the next trip you are planning to take?

Ashley: Well, I have a flight booked for 3 weeks on the east coast December – January to see my parents — I haven’t seen my father in over a year, if you can believe it.

Sarah: The next trip I plan on taking is either one of two places: Seattle to visit my amazing grandparents or to Aspen to go see some great friends!!

Camille: The next trip I’m planning to take is to LA to see my sisters over winter break. I don’t get to see Sarah and Ashley that much and I miss them so much! I’m really looking forward to getting some sun and seeing my big sisters. And then in February we’re all planning on going to Italy together! Which will be sooo amazing and an unforgettable experience. Can’t wait for that trip!

Baby Camille back in the 90's on our Dad's shoulders as we three still are

Our Dad is a pretty amazing individual.  At age 15, as a boy in Wilmington, Delaware, he decided he was going to attend Yale University.  Mind you, neither of his parents had attended college.  He left his home and moved in with his grandparents, who were living in New Haven, CT at the time.  He attended Hill House High School, worked his behind off, and, three years later, became a Bulldog.

As children, on the morning drive to school, our Dad gave us many, many mantras.  He would repeat them, three or four times (or more!), until we would exclaim “Daaaaad, we get it!” in an effort for him to stop.  Of course, all that repetition meant that they became ingrained in our minds.  Here is some of Ronald Bruce White’s wisdom:

“Success is a result of who you are; what you know; and who you know.”

“Discipline, discipline, discipline.”

“Honor the ancestors.”

Thanks, Dad, for giving us such a solid foundation.

Love, The White-Stern Girls

Ashley Paige is the oldest (center of photo).  She lives in the Bay Area now and is going through a Big Life Change.  It’s overwhelming, but also very exciting.

Sarah Hollis is the next oldest (left of Ashley).  She lives in LA.  Her big news recently is that she’s signed with an acting agency and is getting really great work (we’re not going to get into details just yet).

Camille Elizabeth is the youngest (on the right).  She lives in Manhattan.  Her concentration at NYU is Music Performance.

On this site we plan to consolidate our projects and info on our work (Ashley’s writing, Sarah’s performances, Cammy’s music).  There will be useful links to things like our Facebook pages and Twitter feeds (check our individual pages for now).  This will also be a place where you can just stop by and see how three sisters are growing up, growing together, and making sense of our lives.