An early celebration of a very important day, World Down Syndrome Day! By: Board Member, Mandi Rios

What is #generationG? Generation G is a national campaign started by GiGi’s Playhouse to encourage everyone everywhere to Be Accepting, Be Generous and Be Kind. Not just for people with Down Syndrome, but for everyone. It’s such a simple thing to do, and makes a huge impact. Not just in the DS community, but for our world. Today I witnessed Generation G in action. It was beautiful. Families come to GiGi’s Playhouse because they need GiGi’s. They need to feel part of a community where they belong and can network with other families experiencing the same things. They need math and literacy tutoring to help their child be more successful and confident. They need social programs where their child or adult child can make friends, be social and practice everyday life skills. They need our Playhouse. But here’s the great thing.. here’s Generation G in action…
It’s NOT just families in the DS community who love coming to GiGi’s. Our site coordinator, she is amazing, she works extremely hard and she leads with passion and her huge heart, but she has no one in her family who has DS. Many of our volunteers and Board Members do not have anyone in their family with DS. We celebrated World Down Syndrome Day early at our Playhouse and we had a huge turnout! The individuals who donated the cake, their professional services face painting, making balloon animals, and DJ’ing do not have anyone in their family who has DS. So why were they there?? Because they, whether they realize it or not, have already pledged to live Generation G. They accept our GiGi’s families as part of their community. They are generous with their time and talents. They are kind. To everyone…people like them and people different than them. Generation G is a world changing campaign and it is beautiful to witness in person. Everyone worked hard and came together today to give our entire Playhouse family an early celebration of a very important day, World Down Syndrome Day! Today was a great day! 💛💙

To see akk photo’s from the day, checkout our Facebook  https://www.facebook.com/GiGis-Playhouse-McHenry-County-358936998235/