|
For Immediate Release: October 13, 2022
Adoption Vanguard Award Goes to Podcast Producer and Host, Damon L. Davis During National Adoption Awareness Month Austin, TX - Adoption Knowledge Affiliates (AKA) is honored to announce Damon L. Davis as the recipient of our Adoption Vanguard Award for 2022. Damon is an adoptee who, through his podcast Who Am I Really? helps adopted people explore their own feelings about their adoption, accept their desire to understand their own personal history, and decide whether reunification with biological relatives is right for them. In addition, the podcast aims to help non-adopted people understand some of what is in the minds of their friends, family members, or others who are adopted. Damon developed his podcast in 2017 after he reunited with his biological family and it has been a meaningful endeavor for both Damon and his thousands of listeners in the adoption community and far beyond. The award will be presented on November 4, 2022, 9:00 am at AKA’s “Pebbles to Pearls: 30 years of connection, education, & support” virtual conference, during National Adoption Awareness Month. The virtual event delivers two full days of content with three powerful conference keynotes, Patricia Martinez Dorner, Melissa Guida-Richards, and Lorraine Dusky. Surrounding the three keynotes are dynamic, afternoon presentations and workshops from local, state and national professionals, advocates, experts, and creatives - all connected to adoption and foster care. Evening programming includes a screening and Q&A with director Rebecca Sansome. This event offers professionals CEU earning opportunities. The target audience for the conference is the adoption and foster care community, adjacent communities of donor conceived individuals and people with DNA discoveries, therapeutic practitioners, social work professionals, and reform advocates. Attendees receive knowledge, skills, support, and networking opportunities. ### About Adoption Knowledge Affiliates Adoption Knowledge Affiliates (AKA) is a unique non-profit organization, serving Central Texas since 1992. AKA provides support and education to adopted people, birth / first families, prospective and current adoptive and foster parents, and adoption professionals. We offer peer support, search assistance, educational programs, resources, and an annual conference with top-tier adoption professionals. In 2020, we expanded our services to include those with unexpected commercial DNA results. Whether it be due to adoption, donor conception, or other circumstance, we are ready to provide the same level of support as we have for nearly thirty years. More about AKA's 2022 AVA winner...  Damon Davis is the host of the "Who Am I Really?" podcast (www.whoamireallypodcast.com) where adopted people share their stories of adoption and their attempt to find their birth families. He has interviewed nearly 200 adoptees from an array of life experiences from awful adoptions and amazing reunions to inspiring adoptions and unfortunate reunions.
In his autobiography, "Who Am I Really? - An Adoptee Memoir", Damon shares his journey to becoming an adoptive parent and his emotions over the birth of his son, Seth. He opens up about the heartbreak of grappling with his adoptive mother's mental illness while balancing the joy of locating his birth mother working nearby. His journey took a twist when he located his biological father via DNA testing.
0 Comments
|
AKA in Action!Visit this page often to find out what AKA is doing in the Austin community, as well as state and nationwide! Archives
September 2024
Categories |
RSS Feed