By JAMES BELL
Hays Post
In an effort to encourage children in foster homes, a Fort Hays State University alum is currently raising funds to publish his second book – aimed at foster children – to put a positive spin on their experiences.
“What I wanted to do was find how a foster child could succeed in life, when statistics suggest they will fail,” said Dr. Jamie Schwandt, author of “Finding Your Hero,” in publishing his doctoral work on foster care.
Since he earned that degree, he has already published one book on the topic, but wanted to do something different with this one.
“What I wanted to do was something to similar to ‘Succeeding as a Foster Child,’ but I wanted to make it a children’s book,” he said.
With help from supporters on Kickstarter, Schwandt hopes to give foster children examples of people in their lives they can emulate to grow into successful adults.
“I wanted foster children to see their foster parent, their teacher, their coach and their social worker as the good guys, as their heroes,” he said. And the book focuses on that topic.
“The book is centered around little Jamie, so kind of a little me, going from his biological family, where he goes through trauma and tragedy, into a foster family,” Schwandt said. “As he gets into this community, he starts to realize he can dream big, think positive and take action.”
While the book focuses on foster families, community is also important to Schwandt, who has kept the team working on publication local.
“I am working with a small publisher and a team in Hays,” he said allowing for more control and to bring people up with him from a small town.
The book’s illustrator is a FHSU student Emily Hendricks.
Even with keeping the publishing team local and using Kickstarter to raise money to publish, Schwandt has already raised his initial fundraising goal, but still encourages donations to allow for donations of the book to local organizations and any funds not used for this run will help with future projects.
Contributions to the publication are accepted here.
Contributors will help get the book into the community and contributors receive rewards for the contribution, for any amount over $10, which can also be found on the campaign page.
For potential contributors, Schwandt has a simple message: “I want to push this positive message. Help me get this book funded. Help me make this a reality.”
The book will be distributed through Amazon, Barnes and Noble and Kastle Books, the local publisher.
Read Schwandt’s bio HERE.