About the author

Dawn Fanshawe lives in Nottingham, England where she grew up and lived until she was 19. She then worked for two years in Germany as an Au Pair, before doing a degree in Education and Art in London. For 15 years Dawn was an Early Years Teacher / Foundation-Stage Manager in London. Dawn remains passionate about education and families, and was a School Governor for over 20 years and a County Governor for the NHS in Nottinghamshire.

As a student, she worked as a care assistant in many Elderly & Mentally Infirm homes across London, and in 2006 she brought her mother – who was at the time living on a remote island in the Orkney Isles and had early onset Alzheimer’s Disease – to live with her in her new family home in Nottingham. At this point Dawn became her mother’s full-time carer.

Contact with mental illness has been integral to Dawn’s life and relationships; as a child she suffered abuse at the hands of her parents and this had long-reaching implications for herself. Dealing with the challenge of caring for her mother as she became more and more incapacitated by dementia has been a big part of her own journey of healing, forgiveness and self-discovery.

Dawn ran her own photography business in Nottingham for a few years, as she loves photography. 

She is a trustee for a Nottinghamshire charity looking to help disadvantaged families and children in her neighbourhood, is an active member of local church and community involvements and an active member of AA.

Mostly her weeks consist of promoting the last book, Lost Down Memory Lane and writing the second book (working title – ‘Finding Suzie’s Voice’), managing a charity shop part-time and voluntary work, in the community, with all ages from the babies to the elderly. Another pleasure is enjoying quality time with her sons, grandchildren, family and friends.

A key part of Dawn’s life is her Christian faith and her active involvement within her local church community. Dawn’s other passions include learning and speaking languages, travelling, reading, writing, photography and gardening. Dawn’s mission is to become fully the person she was created to be and feels she is on a life-time adventure of healing, loving and seeking to become the change she wants to see in the world. She feels blessed with her family, friends and the community around her.

To buy ‘Lost Down Memory Lane’

If anybody wants to purchase a paper copy of the book, they can either message me on here, or email me at dawn@fanshawe.org. You can also order one from Waterstones or major book outlets and from the library. (All Nottingham libraries stock copies) Alternatively, buy a signed copy directly from me on eBay. Do message me an inscription you wish me to write and sign in the inside cover.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/194473374074

It is also available from the publisher –

https://www.westbowpress.com/en/bookstore/bookdetails/709945-Lost-Down-Memory-Lane-Caring-For-Alzheimer-s

Other writing/recording developments:

Dawn also now has a You Tube Channel as a forum for sharing audio books. She began by reading of the whole book of 1 Corinthians, (a translation by Colin Urquhart) and illustrating it with a slide show of ancient images of the Apostle Paul, his journeys and the city of Corinth itself.

There are currently 18 videos created for my channel, including readings of Guy de Maupassant’s delightful short stories, recitals of my own poems and more New Testament Bible readings. Please listen, Subscribe, like and comment.

POEMS

Most of my poems I have now included in my blog posts and can be found in the ‘poem’ category of the archives. Some poems are also now recited and created as videos on YouTube. One is a live recital. More of these will follow.

All poems Copyright of dawnfanshawe, unless otherwise stated.