2025 Early Hearing Detection & Intervention Conference
March 9-11, 2025 • Pittsburgh, PA
Award Winner/Nominee Details 2024
Candace Lindow-Davies
We respectfully nominate Candace Lindow-Davies for the 2024 Antonia Brancia Maxon Award. Candace's unwavering dedication to parent-to-parent support, partnerships between parents and professionals, and her exceptional focus on children identified as Deaf/Hard of Hearing Plus epitomizes the spirit and legacy of Dr. Maxon, significantly contributing to the EHDI community.
Candace's nomination stems from a career spanning 25 years as a beacon of support, spearheading effective family support systems. Her impact, initially felt in Minnesota and later expanded through her roles at H&V Headquarters and the FL3 Center has been transformative. Her commitment to amplifying the parent voice, solidifying funding and infrastructure for parent-to-parent support, championing the DHH Plus experience, pioneering the Fostering Joy Project, and providing insightful, proactive support to territories and islands has been instrumental in propelling the EHDI system forward.
As the founder of Minnesota Hands & Voices, Candace laid the foundation for robust parent support long before the establishment of the chapter. Her visionary approach ensured sustainability by securing state legislative funding, setting a benchmark for other states to emulate in fostering enduring parent support.
Emily Burke, DHH Infusion CO-Director at the FL3 Center, beautifully encapsulates Candace's impact: "Candace's leadership through Minnesota H&V provided genuine parent-to-parent support that transformed our personal journey. Her wisdom, humility, and cheerful advocacy made her not just a leader but a cherished ally to the DHH community." Emily notes that DHH Parent Guides became available during Candace's leadership that positively impacts families navigating the early stages of their journey.
Lisa Kovacs, Director of Programs for Hands & Voices and the FL3 Center, acknowledges Candace's unparalleled empathy for families and her relentless pursuit of equitable support for all DHH children, including those who consider themselves "plus." Lisa underscores Candace's exceptional commitment to EHDI system improvement, citing her instrumental role in advocating for inclusive initiatives like the Fostering Joy Project, which was born out of a discussion after a conference session demonstrating Candace's innovative approach to positively supporting a family's strengths within EHDI.
Sara Kennedy, Editor of The Communicator, echoes the sentiment, emphasizing Candace's innovation. Her vision for a simple to navigate but meaningful resource during COVID led to the development of the Virtual Waiting Room, several strong EHDI P2P products, (including the practical Dads' Onboarding Checklist, the DHH Plus Community of Support and the Rural Living document) along with the Facebook groups for Fostering Joy and DHH Plus where all find actionable, positive strategies.
Candace has also nudged many parent leaders forward. Be careful if you sit next to Candace at the EHDI Conference. Janet DesGeorges adds, “Candace calls herself a 'reluctant leader.' I think that comes from her truly humble nature in wanting to uplift others. That is a true sign of a leader.”
We thank Candace for her character and a career showing us what is possible when we reach a true level of partnership. We hope she gets to spend lots of time traveling and meeting up with friends she has made through this work all over the world.