"What is a doll? The dictionary says a doll is 'a small scale figure, a toy,' but to me it is much, much more. A doll can be your baby or your friend. I always say, 'You can tell your dolly your secrets and you may be sure she will keep them.'

"A doll is an introduction to the past, a living history of different people and distant lands. Each one tells us so much about themselves. They speak in a voice all their own.

"Dolls are full of adventure. They have crossed oceans and settled new lands. Why, once, during the Civil War, dolls smuggled medicine to the wounded soldiers.

"Dolls live in all times, in all lands, but most of all, dolls live in the hearts of children. That is where they truly come alive."