SHE'S A BLUE CHIP; "YOU HAVE TO GIVE BACK WHAT YOU MAKE IN THE WORLD" SAYS SIKESTON AUTHOR MARGARET WOODS ALLEN, WHO, AT 82, IS AN EXPERT ON PLAYING THE STOCK MARKET AND WINNING.

Her days begin early, usually about 6 a.m. when the cat, (named "T" for trouble) awakens her. She'll read The Wall Street Journal and any other financial publication (there are many) that find their way into her home.

Later, she'll research material for her new book on the emotional ups and downs of playing the stock market.

But Margaret Woods Allen of Sikeston doesn't work on Wall Street; she's a widow who manages her own stock portfolio and has written a book on investing.

She's good at what she does, and she makes sure she's not the only one who benefits from her work.

"You have to give back what you make in the world," says Allen, who endows scholarships at three universities because "you can't get anywhere without an education."

She was born 82 years ago in Columbia. Her father was a farmer and teacher and her mother inherited land from her family.

Her father was also a postmaster off and on. "There were three Republicans in town and he was one of them," she said. "So, when one of the other Republicans were in office, he was the postmaster."

Growing up in a two-college town Columbia is home to the University of Missouri and Stephens College allowed Allen to experience two of her first loves art and music first-hand.

"There was so much opportunity there to experience the arts," she said. "It was a true advantage."

She later attended both universities, majoring in art and violin. She received her college education during the Depression, and she decided to make a change.

She found herself in St. Louis, a nursing major at the Washington University of Nursing, now Barnes Hospital School of Nursing.

"Even in the worst of times you could always get a job as a nurse," she said. She graduated, and continues to renew her nursing license each year.

She used her nursing skills professionally for only a few years, she said. Later, those skills helped her care for her ailing mother and husband.

When she speaks of her husband, Tom Allen, a cotton farmer who died in 1987, her eyes turn sad and she looks away. But when she talks about their life together, her eyes dance.

"Everybody loved Tom. He taught me how to live life to the fullest and never waste a minute of it. And he taught me the power of positive thinking. He didn't understand hate."

They were married for 38 years. During that time, Allen said, she was a "closet investor."

"I did the research for his stocks and managed his portfolio. That gave me the confidence to continue doing it on my own."

She said she learned much from her husband because they played the market together every day.

"I think that was one thing that made our marriage so happy," she said. "We were bonded by investing, and we talked with the broker together every day."

One of the most important aspects of being a successful investor, she said, is setting goals and sticking to them.

"You have to know what you want to do and follow through. You have to trust what you believe in. And you have to read every day."

Though Allen had market experience when her husband died, she knew that many widows were left without a clue about investments. So she decided to write a book to guide them in their investments.

"I knew there was a market there," she said. "So many people, especially women, know nothing about investments."

Her book, "Widow's Might: A Survival Guide to Investing," was published in 1990 by the Southeast Missouri State University Press.

She said to make sure the book was easy for someone who was not familiar with the market to understand, she had a friend, Ruth Vaughn, wife of writer Robert Vaughn, review the book chapter by chapter as she wrote it.

"If there was something she didn't understand, I'd rewrite it. That's why it's a good book for beginners."

Some of Allen's rules of investing are: invest in stocks that won't keep you awake at night; find a broker you can trust; select only blue chip stocks; and be disciplined.

Another hint for women is: "Remember, investing is still a man's world. And you have to work extra hard to be successful."

Although investing is a big part of her life, Allen insists she's a "Jack of all trades and a master of none."

She is a charter member of the Heartland Writer's Guild, which helps authors from the area get their work published. She still enjoys painting and loves to tinker in her garden.

She has many "special friends" at Southeast Missouri State University, where she has been a major contributor over the years.

In her home are pictures of herself with past presidents of the university Bill Stacy and Robert Foster and current President Kala Stroup.

Another picture is with former president Ronald Reagan, whom she met when he visited Southeast in 1988.

Allen endows four piano scholarships at Southeast and has contributed to the university's historic-preservation department. She has given nursing research awards, a gerontology library, and the regional history center. She donates all proceeds from her book to the university as well.

She is also a major contributor to the university's finance department.

A gift of $50,000, given in 1988 in honor of her late husband, funded a futures seminar that sends students to the Chicago Board of Trade and to the Chicago Mercantile so they can experience futures trading first-hand.

Another $50,000 gift enabled Southeast to become one of few schools in the country to offer a class on managing an investment portfolio. Students invest real money as part of the class and take a trip to the New York Stock Exchange.

Allen said the practical experience is vital to students of finance.

"Those kids have to get up there and know what it's all about. Some of them have never been out of Missouri."

Foster, now executive vice president of Southeast, said Allen's book has been praised by bankers and stockbrokers. He said she is "truly interested in the university and things that help our students."

Foster said: "She saw a need there. She wanted students to be able to experience these things and made sure they could do it. And, besides that, she's a delightful person."

She was named Southeast's "Friend of the University" in 1987, the highest honor given to a contributor.

Allen also endows scholarships at the University of Missouri and Stephens College. She said she wants everyone to be able to get a college education.

She's finished about six months of research for her new book, to be titled "The Psychological Impact of Investing." When will she finish it?

"Probably never," she said, though she works on it nearly every day.

She said knowing how to deal with the emotional ups and downs that accompany playing the stock market is something everyone needs to learn.

"There are some very tense times that go along with investing," she said. "But you have to understand that the market is not always down. You have to invest for the long term.

"Many people have to rearrange their emotions for investing. There is fear and greed and you have to know how to deal with it. You have to know what your goals are and you can't deviate."

Allen said she is content with her life. She wants to keep endowing scholarships because "you make your life by what you give."

She will keep investing. "It's like a full-time job, and I love it," she said.