MINNEAPOLIS, Mn, May 7, 2019 – Bismarck, North Dakota-native Patrick Atkinson has been awarded the prestigious 2019 National Gold Medal by the Independent Book Publisher Association (IBPA), it was recently announced.

Atkinson won in the Gift, Specialty, and Journal division for his 2018 book, The Powerful You!. The awards, now in their 23rd year, recognize independent authors worldwide and attempt to showcase the best from among the nearly one million books published each year.

 

A panel of publishing-industry experts judge nominated books on the quality of content, originality, design and production. Known within the publishing industry as IPPY Awards, it has evolved into a much sought-after contest to win.

 

Atkinson’s The Powerful You!, published by Beavers Pond Press, is an empowering book that emphasizes self-responsibility for children, teenagers, and young adults.

 

The book was colorfully illustrated by his son, Ernesto Atkinson, a Guatemala native and Bismarck, ND resident prior to his 2007 graduation from North Dakota State University and subsequent graduate studies at the Art Institute of Chicago. Ernesto Atkinson is a successful professional artist with art currently on display in galleries in the United States, Central America, and Europe. He is a licensed family therapist helping victims of trauma in Milwaukee.

 

Author Patrick Atkinson is the founder and international executive director of the Bismarck-based charity, The God’s Child Project, and a prolific international author. His 2012 book, A Message for My Child’, was a three-time National Christian Choice Award winner, and subsequently translated into 11 languages.

 

Patrick Atkinson said he was grateful to see his book, The Powerful You!, selected to receive the 2019 National Gold Medal from the Independent Book Publisher Association because the book emphasizes “the power that people have to determine how they will live their life.”

 

“Each year I give presentations across our hemisphere to empower our children and teenagers to take charge of their lives,” Atkinson said. “This is their life, their world. The Powerful You! lays that out in a very straight-forward fashion. It’s the perfect graduation or moving out gift for teenagers and young adults.”

 

The Independent Book Publisher Association will present gold medals to both Atkinsons at an awards dinner in New York City later this month.

 

Atkinson is currently collaborating on his eighth book, a teenage survival guide titled, And We Are… Kids, with Minneapolis-based youth advocate Jordan Ericksen. His son Ernesto Atkinson will also be the illustrator for this book.

 

Separately, Ernesto is writing his first full-length book, entitled Integration Art which will be marketed to counselors, art therapists, and psychologists.

 

The Powerful You! can be purchased from booksellers everywhere and found online at www.GodsChild.org/shop. All profits from the sale of The Powerful You! are used to provide academic scholarships for homeless youth through The God’s Child Project.