( ENSPIRE Books ) The Mother Turned Author Hopes to Empower Girls With the Rare Condition
ENSPIRE Contributor: Natalie Wong
April Fore is a mother and author of “The Adventures of E.G.G.” The children’s book series is based on her late daughter Emma Grace Godwins, who was diagnosed with Turner Syndrome. Fore is an incredible woman and who is dedicated to spreading awareness about Turner Syndrome and is empowering young girls to honor her daughter’s memory.
In an exclusive interview with ENSPIRE Magazine, Fore talks about motherhood, how Emma Grace inspired her to write “The Adventures of E.G.G” and what’s next for her as an author.
In 2014, at a routine 9-week prenatal screening, Fore received news that her child had a cystic hygroma on her neck and there were indications of chromosomal abnormalities. After taking a karyotype test and waiting for two long weeks, it was determined that her daughter had Turner Syndrome. A few weeks later, Fore received the devastating news that her daughter Emma Grace passed away. Fore shared some words of encouragement to parents dealing with loss, “Allow yourself to feel your pain and grieve. Don’t rush the grieving process, allow God to heal your heart in his time.”
It was not until they diagnosed her daughter with Turner Syndrome that Fore had even heard of the rare condition. “It’s such a rare condition that many haven’t heard of it. 1 in every 2500-4000 girls are diagnosed with Turner Syndrome,” Fore said. Turner syndrome affects only females and results when one of the X chromosomes is missing or partially missing and can cause a variety of medical and developmental problems.
A class assignment planted a seed in Fore to write her children’s book series. She realized that writing the series was both cathartic and therapeutic when dealing with her loss. Fore found solace in her stories, “Writing the series makes me feel closer to Emma Grace, it’s like we are spending time together when I write. These are adventures I imagine her partaking in throughout her life.”
Besides remembering her daughter’s memory, Fore wanted to uplift resilient, and beautiful butterflies—girls with Turner Syndrome are called butterflies. “I believe the more cases and the more early detection this will start people learning more about it. I want my books to spark the interest in Turner Syndrome that will make people want to do more research on the subject,” Fore said.
When she’s not writing EGG’s newest adventure, she is a full-time mom to the very outgoing Tahlia Simone. “I actually get a lot of inspiration from my daughter Tahlia Simone, I think Emma Grace would have been outgoing just like her,” Fore gets ideas from her family and is gearing up for future projects. “I see writing more children’s books on different subjects, and my other daughter says she wants a book series as well.”
The Adventures of E.G.G. is getting love from parents and children. “A friend of mine is a school counselor, and she sent me a picture of one of her students reading my book. She said the student picked the book because E.G.G. looked like her.” The story, illustrations, and message of the series have certainly resonated with audiences.
Fore lives by the motto “if you don’t see it, create it.” Fore didn’t find any children’s books about Turner Syndrome, so she created them. The Adventures of E.G.G. showcases the beauty in being unique and her motto reigns true in her personal and professional life—She is an outstanding mom and a beloved author.
Find out more about April on Instagram and Facebook.
