visionteachersonja

Photo of children’s picture book, Brandons Dream.

Our family just read your book and saw all the photos, what a compelling
story!–Texas

Have been meaning to say the beautiful book arrived. It’s quite
inspirational and the photos and text are great!–Washington

Blind Cinderella Boy Becomes a Prince

Gilroy, California – April 28, 2013 – New children’s picture book inspires others through the story of a blind young man achieving his dream to be an actor and opera singer.

Brandon’s Dream tells the compelling story of a blind boy who has a dream of acting and singing on stage and how he achieves his dream through hard work, perseverance, and the full support of his family. The beautiful photos by Atom Biggs reveal the life of a young boy born blind who grows up with hopes and dreams just like every other little boy and who is achieving his dreams one step at a time.

A native of Washington State, Brandon was born in Spokane, WA and grew up in the Walla Walla Valley where he attended Dixie Elementary, Walla Walla High School, and was homeschooled. His grandparents are Dick and Shirl Phillips, active members of the Walla Walla community through their volunteer service to Ft. Walla Walla Museum, the Rose Society, and 4-H. Brandon began his acting career in middle school when he debuted in The Frog Prince and won awards for his monologues in speech contests. He received his first role in community theater through the Touchet Valley Arts Council’s “Oliver” where he was cast as Noah Claypole, the cowardly teenage bully. He was cast in TVAC’s “Beauty and the Beast” as the Prince and in WWCC Foundation’s “Cinderella” as a guard. Since then, Brandon has had numerous roles in musical theater throughout the San Francisco Bay Area including Rolf in the Sound of Music, the Bishop in Les Miserables, and Ron Taylor in Bat Boy the Musical. Brandon has performed in two operas and one operetta, as well as numerous private vocal performances where he has delighted audiences with his beautiful bass-baritone voice. Brandon is currently pursuing a B.A. in Music with honors from California State University in Hayward, CA where he is studying vocal performance in opera. To find out more about Brandon you can visit www.brandonkeithbiggs.com and like his Facebook music page Brandon Keith Biggs.

Brandon’s mother, Sonja Biggs, is a native of Walla Walla graduating from Walla Walla High School in 1977. Sonja authored this delightful children’s picture book so others can be inspired by Brandon’s life and achievements in spite of the challenges he faces every day as a blind performer. “He is my inspiration and has pushed me to achieve in my own life,” says Mrs. Biggs. Sonja teaches other children who are blind and does independent evaluations throughout the state of California. You can find out more about Sonja at www.sonjabiggs.net or follow her blog at www.visionteachersonja.com. Brandon’s father, Atom Biggs, is a B.S.N Registered Nurse and professional photographer. While living in the Walla Walla Valley, he worked at Walla Walla General Hospital. His photographs in the San Francisco Bay Area show the action and beauty of the musical theater performances and provide quality headshots to the actors in the area. His photos can be viewed at www.atomsportraits.com.  Joshua Biggs, Brandon’s younger brother, attended Dixie Elementary and Pioneer Middle School, as well as being homeschooled. He recently completed high school in his Junior year and has been accepted at DigiPen Institute of Technology in Redmond, WA where he is excited to return to Washington to pursue a B.A. in Game Design.

Brandon Biggs was born with a rare retinal blindness called Leber’s Congenital Amaurosis (LCA). There are 18 known gene mutations that are affected and Brandon’s gene is the CRB-1 gene. Brandon’s parents, together with other parents whose children have CRB-1 blindness, have joined together to create a foundation that raises money to find a cure for LCA-CRB-1. The Curing Retinal Blindness Foundation (www.crb1.org) consists of several families that are hosting a variety of fundraisers and the dollars raised are given to organizations doing the research into finding a cure for this particular blindness. All the proceeds from this book are donated for this purpose.

To purchase a hardbound, autographed copy of Brandon’s Dream, please send a check for $38.00 to Sonja Biggs, 7483 Dornoch Ct., Gilroy, CA 95020. Shipping is already included.

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