Hometown: Crandon, Wisconsin

Current location: Whitefish Bay, Wisconsin

Best part of GiGi’s Playhouse Milwaukee? The best part of GiGi’s is the connections you can make with other families. My family has met so many new friends in the Down syndrome community through events and activities. Having people in your circle who get it is so important for families with new diagnoses and families who are further in their journey. Having a place where those connections are natural and encouraged is invaluable.

Favorite place to take a visitor in Milwaukee? It’s so difficult to choose! Milwaukee really does have something for everyone. I love to take visitors to the Milwaukee County Zoo, the Milwaukee Public Museum, and the Milwaukee Art Museum. The theater district is also so much fun with the Pabst Theater, Riverside Theater, Milwaukee Repertory Theater, and the Bradley Symphony Center. Not to mention sports teams and summer festivals! You can be busy literally every weekend!

How/Why did you get involved in GiGi’s Playhouse Milwaukee? I learned about the GiGi’s Playhouse organization when my daughter who has Down syndrome was just a baby. I was reviewing books for the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel from time to time, and I had interviewed an author who had just written a book about her son who was born with Down Syndrome. The author spoke about how she had become involved in GiGi’s Playhouse in New York City. When the interview and book review came out, one of the GiGi’s board members contacted me and told me that a GiGi’s Playhouse Milwaukee was in the works. And when it opened, I had to check it out. I’ve been bringing my children to events, my daughter has taken tutoring, and I have generally kept up with GiGi’s ever since.

Hobbies? Reading! Books are a big part of our home. My favorite genres are literary fiction, thrillers, mysteries, romance, and literary nonfiction. I have also developed a deep appreciation for young adult literature. Both of my children – 10-year-old girl with Ds and 13-year-old boy – still read books with me every night. I also love going to the theater – I’ve been a Milwaukee Repertory Theater subscriber for many years now.

Favorite comfort food? French food. The more butter the better. One of my favorite restaurants is Lake Park Bistro.

Favorite drink? I like to tell people I’m a hummingbird. It’s terrible for me, but I love a Coke every now and again.

What about you would surprise people? I owned two horses from ages 12-22 (not at the same time). In high school, my horse was boarded at a stable in northern Wisconsin that trained thoroughbreds for Sportsman’s Park and Arlington in Chicago. To help pay for the board, I would feed and water the horses in the evenings, and then in the summers, I would muck stalls and help to exercise the thoroughbreds. I never rode them (I didn’t have a death wish), but I did ride the calm quarter horse and led the thoroughbreds alongside on the stable’s racetrack. I still miss riding.