11-year-old B.C. advice book author marks birthday with fundraiser for late sister
Before we can appreciate what Felix Townsin is hoping to get for his upcoming 12th birthday, we need to go back to the home video showing the then-five-year-old opening a box-full of books.
“(It’s) not just any book,” the boy says with a smile, pulling the hardcover out for the camera to see. “(It’s) my book!”
Felix was a published advice author at five years old.
“My parents would give me topics,” the now-11-year-old explains about the writing process. “And I’d just put all the advice from that topic in the book.”
It’s titled Don’t Floss Your Toes (Before You Floss Your Teeth) and features pages filled with pre-school advice ranging from, “People will still like you if your socks don’t match,” to “Don’t climb up buildings unless you are inside,” to, “Eat your toast upside down — the toppings taste better when they touch your tongue.”
“He had a very unique and crazy perspective on life,” recalls Felix’s mom Cheryl-Lynn Townsin.
Her son also had big admiration for his little sister Lexi.
“She had a spirit that wanted to make the world a better place,” Cheryl-Lynn says.
Felix was Lexi’s biggest fan.
When the girl recorded a video to Santa saying she didn’t need him to bring her a present (“It’s good for you to take a break so you can relax”) – that she only wanted relief from the ultra-rare Blau Syndrome that was causing her debilitating and excruciating inflammation throughout her body – Felix committed to helping find a cure.
“He wanted to make everything better,” Cheryl-Lynn says. “And he had no way of doing that.”
Until, that is, he wrote that advice book as a fundraiser.
But then — two years ago — Lexi died unexpectedly.
Now, the boy is offering his book again to help others living with Blau.
“Felix is my hero,” Cheryl-Lynn says, fighting back tears. “He has shown me that I can live after a loss that I didn’t think I could live through.”
Through his website, Felix is using his book to try and raise $10,000 before his 12th birthday next week.
“I hope (Lexi) is up there and really proud of our work,” Felix says.
The website also includes a video of Lexi sitting at a piano singing, “The sun will come out tomorrow.” Felix is hoping, like the lyrics to the song, his efforts can help another family find their happy ending just “a day away.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Northern Ont. lawyer who abandoned clients in child protection cases disbarred
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Maple Leafs fall to Bruins in Game 3, trail series 2-1
Brad Marchand scored twice, including the winner in the third period, and added an assist as the Boston Bruins downed the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-2 to take a 2-1 lead in their first-round playoff series Wednesday
Cuban government apologizes to Montreal-area family after delivering wrong body
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
New Indigenous loan guarantee program a 'really big deal,' Freeland says at Toronto conference
Canada's Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland was among the 1,700 delegates attending the two-day First Nations Major Projects Coalition (FNMPC) conference that concluded Tuesday in Toronto.
'Life was not fair to him': Daughter of N.B. man exonerated of murder remembers him as a kind soul
The daughter of a New Brunswick man recently exonerated from murder, is remembering her father as somebody who, despite a wrongful conviction, never became bitter or angry.