People with Down syndrome

Evidence of the varied interests and skills of people with Down syndrome continues to stream in from the media. While it will be wonderful to reach the time when this is not 'news', it is important that such knowledge builds in the community by continuous exposure, as does the less welcome news of barriers to inclusion, safety and respect.

Meet the Sydneysiders with Down syndrome giving back to their community

Ehsan Knopf, 9News, 23 March 2016
Members of a Sydney-based social group for people with Down syndrome say they’re delighted to be given the chance to pay it forward ... In the last year, the organisation has prepared and served meals to children at the Ronald McDonald House and Bear Cottage, a palliative care facility for children with terminal illnesses ...

Learning difficulties won't stop them acting Shakespeare
Channel 4 News (UK), 23 March 2016
Meet the actors with Down’s Syndrome and other learning difficulties challenging expectations by performing Shakespeare.

Sister of former NRL player Craig Wing set to hit Sydney’s airwaves on Eastside Community Radio
Jenny Galbraith, Wentworth Courier, 27 March 2016
A radio program in Sydney’s east is giving a voice to those in the community who are rarely heard. Kirsty Wing, 26, who lives with Down syndrome, will host her own show on Eastside Community Radio on March 29 as part of a project by disability service provider The Windgap Foundation ...

‘Bachelor pad’ offers independence for seven men with Down syndrome
Gene Warner , The Buffalo News, 23 March 2016
Talk about a cool bachelor pad. Seven young men, most in their late 20s, live together in a seven-bedroom house in Eggertsville, complete with a pool table, in a setting described as “flat-screen TV heaven.” ...

Jessica Parsons Offers Inclusive Yoga for All

Carolina Starin, Santa Barbara Independent, 29 March 2016
“Yoga makes me feel powerful,” says a bubbly Jessica Parsons as she readies for instructing her weekly Inclusive Yoga for All Abilities class at Santa Barbara's Carrillo Rec Center. Parsons connects deeply with her students through her own yoga accomplishment — possibly being the first and only person in the country with Down syndrome to become a certified yoga instructor.

Corrie's Bairstow: 'amazing to be considered a role model'

BBC, 21 March 2016
Coronation Street's Liam Bairstow says it's an honour to be considered a role model for people with Down’s Syndrome. Speaking to Coronation Street fan Grace Stockdale for Down's Sydrome Awareness Week, Bairstow said he feels it's a "great honour" to speak up for those with Down's Syndrome and offered advice for those looking to follow his path into acting ...