Two Dumbo Octopuses Are Helping Shine A Positive Light On Foster Youth
Steve Rios was determined to create a positive example for foster youth.
His answer: a children’s book featuring two Dumbo octopuses?
Yep. You read that correctly.
The Oly and Opi series stars the rare marine life navigating the troubles of the Atlantic Ocean with the assistance of their aunt—Tia Pinky—who raises them as her own after their mother abandons them.
Oly and Opi: The Curious Octopus Twins was released last November. Part two came out in late July and Oly and Opi: Please Let Me Talk is slated for a September release.
The books cater to kids between the ages of one and 11.
“I wrote Oly and Opi because it was so discouraging to me to know that so many teenagers don’t have the internal motivation to pursue something like a college degree,” Rios said. “So I thought to myself ‘What if we started getting to them much younger? ‘ ”
The characters’ personalities are a combination of various children Rios has worked with in the foster care system.
In the mid-90s, Rios led the development of the Extra Mile Learning Center, a tutoring facility based in Hialeah that focused on helping foster youth succeed academically. In 2013, he co-founded Florida Reach, a networking service for former foster youth attending college.
Since 2016, Rios has served as the senior director of Positive Pathways, a program funded by the Florida Department of Children and Families that helps former foster youth succeed in college. The project is an initiative of Educate Tomorrow, a non-profit program that helps students impacted by the foster care system or housing instability.
Shortly after part two of Oly and Opi: The Curious Octopus Twins was released, it was read to a small group of five to seven-year-old children at Global Field Academy.
The school, located in building 3 at North Campus, offers children alternative learning methods like workshops and field days in partnership with Educate Tomorrow.
“My favorite part was when the other fish took care of Oly and Opi when the mommy left,” said Caleb Rolle, a six-year-old student attending GFA.
The inspiration to cast the two main characters in Oly and Opi as octopi came after Rios attended a boat show in Miami. After he momentarily left his phone unattended and on record mode, it captured some gurgling sounds and possible marine life interactions.
The unique audio captivated Rios to create a ten-chapter novel about rich people with octopi. But after realizing the book would be too long, Rios switched gears and converted his novel into a children’s book.
Rios plans to expand the collection: part four, Oly and Opi: Numbers and Colors, will be released in the fall and he is currently working on part five: Oly and Opi and The Ghost Trap.
The Oly and Opi books are featured on Amazon and at Barnes & Noble. They are $13.99 each and are free for users with a Kindle Unlimited subscription.
“In the future, I look forward to Oly and Opi talking to Tia saying that they want to go to school,” Rios said.
Steve Rios will host a book signing event for Oly and Opi: The Curious Octopus Twins on Sept. 3 at the Barnes & Noble in Pembroke Gardens, 14572 SW 5th St., from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.
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