Tatiana’s story: Celebrating Isaiah
**This story was submitted via our #MyDsStory submissions Written by our guest writer, Tatiana Desiree Mendez My name is Tatiana, and I’m the mother of Isaiah who is 6 years old. We found out about the Trisomy 21 diagnosis when I was 11 weeks pregnant. When Isaiah was born, he...
The Power of a Playhouse
Nervous glances. Long stares. Muffled laughter. When people with disabilities, especially those with Down syndrome, enter public spaces, they’re often greeted with a mixed reception. Whether it’s at a school, restaurant, or grocery store, many members of the neurotypical population aren’t used to seeing individuals with disabilities, and because...
GiGi’s Playhouse – Fort Wayne is Serving up Lemonade (and Acceptance)!
At GiGi’s, our Playhouses offer purposeful, FREE programs that change our participants' lives. We also offer programs designed to take our participants outside of our Playhouse walls and into their communities. These programs don’t just help our participants; they help community members with no ties to Down syndrome gain exposure,...
Teeing it High and Letting it Fly: National/Hoffman Estates Playhouse partners with Inverness Golf Club
At GiGi’s, our Playhouses offer purposeful, FREE programs that change our participants' lives. We also offer programs designed to take our participants outside of our Playhouse walls and into their communities. These programs don’t just help our participants; they help community members with no ties to Down syndrome gain exposure,...
MYTHBUSTING: Can People with Down syndrome drink alcohol?
(“Myth-busting” is a new multi-part blog series where we tackle all things Down syndrome: misconceptions, half-truths, and fabrications. We’re setting the record straight, once and for all.) Can People with Down syndrome drink alcohol? Age is a tricky thing. Sure, in polite society, it’s often considered rude to ask someone’s...
GiGi’s Kitchen is Serving up Independence
And we’re doing it with help from a generous donor At GiGi’s Playhouse, we don’t lack ambition. Our mission is not only to change how the world views Down syndrome, but also to completely change the world, making it more accepting for EVERYONE! It’s a big job. One we work...
June is Alzheimer’s and Brain Awareness Month
Alzheimer’s is scary. We all know that. Though there’s so much awareness surrounding Alzheimer’s, there’s still many misconceptions about the disease. When people picture Alzheimer’s, the image of an elderly person comes to mind, but age is not the only link to Alzheimer’s. Far from it. Despite being excluded from...
It Takes a Village (Green): National Playhouse GFAC Wrap up!
Children were everywhere. It was 11 a.m. on Saturday, June 15 at NOW Arena/Village Green, and the competition was on! It was time for the Kids Dash for Down syndrome as part of our National/Hoffman Estates Playhouse’s GiGiFIT Acceptance Challenge (GFAC). GFAC raises awareness to support challenges in the Down...
Belting Through Challenges: GiGi’s Moment of Resilience
If you blinked, you might have missed it. This past weekend, GiGi Gianni, the namesake of GiGi’s Playhouse, the only network of Down Syndrome Achievement Centers, hit the stage for Down Country, an Awareness to Acceptance Concert for individuals with Down syndrome. Before country stars Conner Smith, Cooper Alan, Joe...
Continued Learning for All with GiGi’s Summer Programming
The Summertime: often associated with sun, sand and so much fun, but also a time where those amazing educational milestones reached during the school year can take a turn towards regression. GiGi’s Playhouse programming can help with that!!!! Shared by GiGi's Playhouse El Paso Over the Summer, our network of...
GiGi’s Fitness Frontier
GiGi’s Playhouse advances with the latest research on Down syndrome health Research. Data. Medical studies. ...try not to yawn. We know all the above sounds a little boring (or a lot boring), but at GiGi’s, research and medical findings are imperative to what we do. Our programming is rooted in...
Cheryl’s story: Embracing a beautiful journey of motherhood
**This special Mother’s Day story was submitted via #MyDsStory Written by our guest writer, Cheryl Sewell My son Cruz’s diagnosis was a total surprise to us when I gave birth. When he was born, he looked me right in the eyes and I immediately felt an energy and connection that...
