We did it! We won Gold in the IAN Awards!
And all the wins add up to eighteen awards and prizes for Freeing Teresa. Each one is a victory! Because this story has been burning inside me since 2013. Finally, in 2023, on the 10th anniversary of Teresa’s rescue, we published “Freeing Teresa: A True Story about My Sister and Me.”
Teresa’s story exposes the flaws of “forced care” as she was wrongly declared incapable.
Eleven years ago, a small team (my Dad, my husband and myself), helped Teresa Heartchild escape an involuntary placement in a Toronto nursing home. Her future had been written off when a social worker ticked a box saying she was “not capable.” During the assessment, Teresa, who has Down syndrome, objected to the incorrect health information. But, she was ignored and admitted as a long-term resident. Teresa was trapped in a system that would not listen to her voice.
We got Teresa free, but then all hell broke loose. The next book, Escape to Lotusland, will show Teresa Heartchild raising her voice to have the Ontario Government “say sorry.” (The sequel is to be published in 2025.)
At first, it seemed like Teresa was the rare one to experience being put in a nursing home at 49. But I soon found out that it’s happening across Canada, in the USA, and around the world.
Read the book, which is available in all formats.
Three awards for the Audiobook
Three of the eighteen awards are for the audiobook. Meet the cast who brought my memoir to life! The audiobook stars Jackie Blackmore (as me), Lauren Potter (as Teresa Heartchild), and Dayleigh Nelson (as Billiam James), with a great supporting cast of Cynthia Potvin, Bill Mackie, Paula Hoffmann, Rob Cottingham, Sidika Larbes, Geoff Sugiyama, Laurel Bailey, Divina Soriano-Leacock, Justin Smallbridge, and Roshni Kashyap. Hurray! 👏
If you’re curious to see the eighteen award details please read below.
EIGHTEEN INTERNATIONAL AWARDS
NYC Big Book Award, 2024
Winner, Social/Political Change
Winner, Audiobook Nonfiction
IAN Book of the Year Awards (2024)
Nonfiction: “Outstanding True Story,” Book of the Year
eLit Awards (2024)
Audiobook, Autobiography/Biography, Silver
Literary Titan (Q4 2024)
Nonfiction, Gold
BookFest Awards, Fall 2024
Silver Winner, Memoir, Personal Nonfiction
Silver Winner, Audiobook, Overall Presentation, Nonfiction
Silver Winner, Human Rights & Political Movements
Human Relations Indie Book Award Winner, 2024
Gold Award, Family Challenges
Gold Award, Special Needs (Disability Rights)
Silver Award, Leadership
Silver Award, Inspirational
Firebird Book Awards, Q2, 2024
Judges’ Pick
1st place, Social/Political Change
1st place, Special Needs (Disability Rights)
2nd place, Leadership
2nd place, Inspiration
Pinnacle Book Achievement Awards, Summer 2024
1st Place, Inspiration