An Unstoppable Boy
By Diana Walker
You may have read about South Central High School student Teejay Hogan in The Oyen Echo when he and his education assistant, Miss Ann (Ann O’Connor), promoted the sale of Crazy Socks for World Down Syndrome Day on March 21. This was a campaign to raise funds and awareness about Down Syndrome.
This summer, Teejay has been assisting Miss Ann with her table at the Farmer's Market, selling Rock Art, Mustard, Driftwood Art and most recently their book.
Two weeks ago, they launched the sale of “The Unstoppable Boy with Down Syndrome.”
“Teejay and I started writing our story last fall initially for Language Arts,” says Ann. “Then we decided to turn our story into a book after Christmas break.”
The text and graphics invite you to join in on an enjoyable adventure where the reader spends the day at school with a fantastic Grade 9 boy with Down Syndrome. “Be prepared for giggles and wizard potion experiments, and learn how kindness improves everything,” says Ann.
In the book, Miss Ann asks Teejay, "What does Down Syndrome mean to you?" He did not hesitate to answer. “It is fun, it makes me happy, but I don’t run as fast as my friends.”
Ann and Teejay sent pictures of themselves to the publishing company. They did the graphics/illustrations to match the wording.
“Sales locally are going very well,” adds Ann. “We sold out at last week’s Farmers Market here in Oyen (60 books).”
The book is available internationally on Amazon and at Oyen Home Hardware. Books are printed as they are purchased, and thanks to today’s technology, they are printed worldwide - New Zealand, Canada, USA, England, Italy, France, to name a few countries. Ann says she has sold books to family and friends overseas.
When asked about their plans for the coming school year, Ann says, “We are both excited to continue working on our science projects/kits, as we still have a few to build.
“Teejay and I are both extremely pleased with the reaction we are receiving from those who have read our book,” says Ann. “What was supposed to be a school story will hopefully now be a story that helps others around the world who live with Down Syndrome. Teejay told me that I was a genius for putting our story into a book, but I think he is the genius!” she concludes.
About the Author:
Ann’s first book, IF WALLS COULD TALK, Don't let epilepsy control you! was written in 2010.
Her second book, LET'S TALK ABOUT EPILEPSY, Truly Inspiring Stories, followed in 2012.
“Being that I lived with and beat Epilepsy, I would love to do a children's book about my experience with Epilepsy in the same format that I did Teejay's book. I am thinking The UNSTOPPABLE Girl with EPILEPSY!”
She is also considering writing a book about another familiar topic, ADHD or Autism.