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By Gerald Haslam

"They inspire me to face my own challenges with the kind of resolve they' have shown. I hope and believe they will do the same for you." Silken Laumann

Here are thirteen stories about courage, perseverance, stubbornness and the will to live; they are not about famous people but about Heroes Next Door - extra-ordinary people who faced extra-ordinary challenges.

Each one of these thirteen stories describes people who met calamity without quitting. Each one of them fought back, then gave back, to family, friends, colleagues, strangers and the community where they live. Each one of these people were nominated for the Courage to Come Back Awards. These are their personal stories of struggle and triumphs.

Heroes Next Door is a celebration of the human spirit, proof positive that amidst the bad news in which we always seem awash that there are still lives to inspire and guide us.

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Living with Labels and Lies

By Carol Dauphinais 

Carol Dauphinais received the Courage To Come Back Award in 2000 in the Economic Adversity category. Carol was the fourth of ten children born to deep poverty on Vancouver Island. She learned to get her younger siblings out of the house to avoid beatings and drunken parties. She was sexually assaulted at home. She missed a great deal of school but secretly taught herself to read using a Grade 8 speller.

At age 16 she was apprehended by social services ministry and placed in a series of foster homes. Officially classified as a "low moron", she was labeled as incorrigible and sent to institutions, first the Willingdon Girls Industrial School and later Woodlands School (for people with a mental handicap). Finally, she escaped the labels and lies in her life and at the age of 21 began her life again. With the help of new friends and her own courage Carol has moved to better things in life.

"My book will be for other children - it is for their teachers, social workers, foster parents and non-harming parents. I want the children to know they can survive as I have. I want them to know that there are kind and loving people out there to help them. I want the adults to know what it is like from the child's side. I want them to see what the pain does. I want them to understand and look beneath the obvious. I write in the hope I can help stop child sexual abuse." Carol Dauphinais

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