May 2014. National Indie Excellence Book Awards - Finalist in
Parenting & Family. May 2014. Eric Hoffer Awards - Honorable
Mention in Memoir; Finalist for Grand Prize & Montaigne Medal.
March 2014. Beverly Hills Book Awards - Finalist in Parenting &
Family. December, 2013 - Named to Kirkus Reviews and IndieReader
'Best of 2013.' June 1, 2013 - LOVING ANDREW won second place in
the non-fiction category of the IndieReader Discovery Awards, which
were announced at BookExpo America, a major trade show in New York
City. The book was awarded five stars out of five-see IndieReader
Review May 13, 2013.
A mother recounts how the birth of Andrew with Down syndrome,
and the loss to cancer of a second baby start a family's journey
through the maze of parenthood. With the support of a loving
father, mother, and two younger siblings, Andrew mastered the
skills of life and became a contributing member of society. In
spite of coping with schizophrenia in his later years, Andrew
remained active, happy, and full of love until Alzheimer's stole
his memory and brought his life to a close at the age of
fifty-two.
In spite of being told that their firstborn son would have many
limitations in life, his parents were amazed at what Andrew
achieved. He learned to read and write, ride a bicycle - sometimes
too far from home - play the piano, swim almost as well as his
siblings, ride horseback and perform dressage, graduate in special
education from high school, take classes at a community college,
travel alone on Chicago's public transportation system, hold a job
in a regular supermarket for 25 years, win ribbons and medals in
Special Olympics events, and serve as the lead acolyte in his
church. Andrew's ability to describe the demons of his paranoid
schizophrenia that plagued his later years provides a picture of a
little-known ailment among the Down syndrome population.
This book is aimed at a broad audience in order to help all
people understand the humanity and value of a person with a
disability. This is especially important as medical technology
continues to improve prenatal testing for abnormalities, and
parents are faced with the heart-wrenching decision to terminate a
pregnancy or risk having a less-than-perfect baby. The number of
children born with Down syndrome is being drastically reduced, just
as opportunities for them to be accepted into the mainstream of
life have never been better, and their development has improved
exponentially. Life is a game of chance and we should not expect to
play God. No embryo selection or prenatal test can guarantee a
flawless product or rule out unexpected calamities such as the
death to cancer of our second baby.
Interwoven in the story of Andrew are: half a century of
changing attitudes toward the developmentally disabled; improved
educational opportunities; and discussions on pre-natal testing and
abortion. Examples from the stories of two other children with Down
syndrome, born 21 and 35 years after Andrew, help to illustrate the
services that became available after passage of the law "Education
for All Handicapped Children" in 1975, and underline the challenges
that we faced without such services.
Excerpt from the Foreword by Brian Chicoine, MD: "As the medical
director of the Adult Down Syndrome Center... I always appreciate
any occasion to get a more in-depth look into the lives of those
individuals and their families. This book is one such
opportunity... It is about the hope of that journey, and is told
through the life of an amazing, delightful, loving, fun, and caring
man. Each person has a story. Andrew certainly had his. In this
book, you will get to know Andrew, learn his story, appreciate him,
and love him. Perhaps you, too, will experience the journey, the
hope, and the casting aside of preconceived notions."
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