Exciting announcement! I had the opportunity to share my story on Redraw Your Path, a podcast hosted by Lynn Debilzen! We talk about how dreaming big helped inspire and transform us all!
Dream Big About What Could Be | Franke James
We covered a lot of territory in the interview. From my being an artist and activist to becoming a disability rights advocate for my sister. We talked about how defending Teresa caused me to redraw my path in a BIG way. And we talked about overcoming obstacles and finding the strength to withstand group pressure.
And we also chatted about the reality that ethical decisions can sometimes come between ourselves and family relationships.
I’m sure you’ve redrawn your OWN path many times over the years. Let me know how you’ve done it and what resonated with you on hearing about my experiences!
#redrawyourpath #freeingteresa
Tune in to Redraw your Path
Find it on YouTube or Spotify!
I invite you to listen to my episode. You’ll learn more about my personal story and the turns I’ve taken on my unique path. You’ll also hear some of my messiness: the fear, and reframing will give you a real glimpse into each turn.
Franke James on Life, Awards, Books and Speaking Up!
“Nobody really knows what life will throw at them. And how they’ll change as a result,” says Franke James. She is an activist, an artist and an author. She’s fought City Hall to build a green driveway (and won). Been blacklisted by the Canadian Government for her climate change art—and turned the government’s silencing into international news. Her latest book, Freeing Teresa, is about choosing her sister’s freedom over her family. Franke helped her younger sister get out of a nursing home. Then all hell broke loose. They had to stand together—against their siblings, the medical system, and the police—to defend the right to be free.
Franke and her husband, Billiam James, helped Teresa regain her decision-making rights and get a public apology from the Ontario Minister of Health. Midwest Book Review said, “The result is more than a memoir: it’s a testimony to how ‘tickets to freedom’ are gained through fighting and love.”
The memoir has received ten international awards from the Human Relations Indie Book Awards, the NABE Pinnacle Book Awards, and the Firebird Book Awards, including the Judges’ Pick prize.
In 2015, Franke won PEN Canada’s Ken Filkow Prize for her “tenacity in uncovering an abuse of power” and BCCLA’s Liberty Award for Excellence in the Arts in 2014.
For Franke, the diverse issues in her books Freeing Teresa, Banned on the Hill, Bothered by My Green Conscience, and Dear Office-Politics are all connected by the need to speak up and take action. She lives in Vancouver, BC, with her husband and her sister, Teresa.
#redrawyourpath #freeingteresa