Frederika Menezes

Frederika Menezes is a Goan author, poet and artist. She is best known for her book, Unforgotten (which was a love story for young adults, published in 2014). A poem of hers, The Different Normals, features in the Class X English textbook of the Goa Board of Secondary & Higher Secondary Education (GBSHSE).[1][2]

Frederika Menezes in 2016

Frederika is the daughter of two physicians, Jose Menezes and Angela Fonseca e Menezes and grew up in Altinho, Panjim. Diagnosed with cerebral palsy when she was one year old, she is a champion for the cause of the differently-abled.[3][4]

Frederika's entry into the world of writing poetry was when she was first encouraged by her teacher, for a class project. It was then that she found her passion in writing poems.[5] Frederika started by typing on a typewriter, and later, advances in technology helped her a lot. Now, she types with two fingers on her smartphone and is constantly using social media to interact with those she loves.[6]

Frederika's other literary works include The Portrait (a collection of poems, published in 1998), The Pepperns and Wars of the Mind (a fantasy novel, published in 2003) and Stories in Rhyme (which was a book of verse for children, released in 2014).[3] She is also a budding artist. She does her paintings digitally (on a tablet, smartphone or PC), using only one finger.[7] Some of her paintings include The Grieving Madonna, Tourada, Mother Sea and First Kiss.[4]

She was awarded the Yuva Srujan Puraskar Award in Literature in 2016.[7] Her first book received praise from the late Dr. Abdul Kalam, the then President of India. She was also given the opportunity to recite from her book of poems in the Goa Legislative Assembly, in front of him.[8] In 2019, Samraat Club, Panjim, felicitated her at her home on the occasion of International Women's Day.[9] Also in 2019, she was invited as the Chief Guest for an art exhibition of the Mouth and Foot Painting Artists Association (MFPA),[10] was chosen by the Election Commission of India to be the "disability voting icon" for North Goa district during the 2019 Indian general election[11] and even spoke at TEDxPanaji[12][13] on Optimism, Positivity and Determination

References
  1. Rodrigues, Jonathan (June 5, 2014). "Life lessons from a personal story of always seeing the bright side". The Times of India. Archived from the original on November 21, 2018. Retrieved November 21, 2018.
  2. "Goa Board to introduce new subject in psychology". Herald Goa. Dec 12, 2016. Archived from the original on 2018-11-13. Retrieved 2018-11-13.
  3. Narayan, Tara (Apr 1, 2017). "Frederika Menezes shows the way!". Goan Observer. Archived from the original on 2018-11-13. Retrieved 2018-11-13.
  4. Gutkin, Steven (Dec 17, 2018). "Frederika Menezes: Poetic Colours". GoaStreets.com. Retrieved 2019-04-29.
  5. "Special educators – the lifeline of resource rooms and special schools". The Navhind Times, Kurio City. Feb 26, 2016. Retrieved Nov 22, 2018.
  6. Das, Arti (29 May 2014). "Two books... from Frederika Menezes (in Goa, India)". The Navhind Times. Retrieved Nov 22, 2018.
  7. Gutkin, Steven (Oct 19, 2018). "The Triumphs of Frederika Menezes". Goa Streets. Archived from the original on 2018-11-13. Retrieved 2018-11-13.
  8. Pereira e Rebello, Charlane (Jan 28, 2016). "Frederika Menezes - Triumph of A Literary Spirit". Goa Streets. Archived from the original on 2018-11-13. Retrieved 2018-11-13.
  9. "Frederika Menezes felicitated at her home in unique initiative". The Goan. Mar 13, 2019. Retrieved 2019-04-29.
  10. "Art with a difference". The Navhind Times. Feb 22, 2019. Retrieved 2019-04-29.
  11. Kamat, Prakash (Apr 23, 2019). "Goa: Dedicated facilities for persons with disabilities draws more voters". The Hindu. ISSN 0971-751X. Retrieved 2019-04-29.
  12. "TEDx Panaji 2019 to unveil unique Goan ideas". Business Standard India. 2019-04-17. Retrieved 2019-04-29.
  13. "TEDxPanaji | TED". www.ted.com. Retrieved 2019-12-30.
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