{"id":458921,"date":"2021-07-02T11:55:53","date_gmt":"2021-07-02T15:55:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/gigisplayhouse.org\/newyork\/?p=458921"},"modified":"2021-07-02T11:55:53","modified_gmt":"2021-07-02T15:55:53","slug":"participant-spotlight-viola-trentalange","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/gigisplayhouse.org\/newyork\/participant-spotlight-viola-trentalange\/","title":{"rendered":"Participant Spotlight: Viola Trentalange"},"content":{"rendered":"

This week, as part of our Participant Spotlight Blog Series, we are pleased to feature Viola Trentalange. Viola is a kind friend and talented artist and singer. We hope you enjoy getting to know Viola as much as we enjoy having her as a part of our community!<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a><\/i><\/b><\/p>\n

When did you join the\u00a0GiGi\u2019s\u00a0NYC community?\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

I\u00a0joined\u00a0GiGi\u2019s\u00a0NYC around one year ago.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

How old are you?\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

I am 23 years old.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

What\u00a0GiGi\u2019s\u00a0NYC programs do you attend?\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

I attend\u00a0Monthly Magic Mondays, Community\u00a0Chorus,\u00a0TeenTastic,\u00a0TeenTastic\u00a0Night Out, Best Buddies with Columbia University,\u00a0and the\u00a0Speech Clinic with NYU. I also participated in the T21 Photoshoot, the Sports Clinic\u00a0at Marymount, the Halloween Party in Central Park, and the\u00a0Fashion\u00a0Show.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Which programs have meant the most to you and why?<\/span><\/i><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

I love all of them. I enjoy singing in\u00a0the Community\u00a0Chorus very much. Andy is\u00a0a great\u00a0TeenTastic\u00a0leader. I enjoy laughing with everybody and listening to their stories. They\u00a0are all so much fun. I loved\u00a0modeling in the\u00a0Fashion\u00a0Show and the photoshoot\u00a0we had in preparation for the show\u00a0was awesome. I’ve always wanted to\u00a0be in a photoshoot and Fashion Show.\u00a0The\u00a0Speech\u00a0Clinic is\u00a0also\u00a0very important to me\u00a0because it helps\u00a0with my stutter.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

What does\u00a0GiGi\u2019s\u00a0NYC mean to you?<\/span><\/i><\/b>\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

The programs are fun, interesting,\u00a0and very helpful, especially\u00a0the\u00a0Speech\u00a0Clinic and\u00a0TeenTastic.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

What have you gained from our programs?\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

I\u00a0have\u00a0met new friends and they are very nice to me and to each other.\u00a0I like that. I like that it’s okay for me to stutter and that there is\u00a0always\u00a0someone\u00a0there\u00a0to help me.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

What do you look forward to doing at the Playhouse once we can safely gather there again?<\/span><\/i><\/b>\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

I want to see and meet everybody. I want to talk to them in-person. I want to go out with them.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

How do you enjoy spending your free time?\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

I love to draw a lot using my stencils. I also listen and sing to my music\u00a0on\u00a0Spotify. I dance\u00a0to\u00a0music videos\u00a0on\u00a0YouTube\u00a0and\u00a0watch shows\u00a0on my computer. I am a huge Jojo Siwa fan too. Sometimes I watch\u00a0<\/span>NCIS,<\/span><\/i>\u00a0<\/span>The Property Brothers<\/span><\/i>,<\/span>\u00a0The\u00a0Food Network<\/span><\/i>,\u00a0<\/span>Say\u00a0Yes to the Dress,\u00a0<\/span><\/i>and\u00a0my old DVD movies.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

What achievements are\u00a0you are proud of?\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

I am proud of my jobs. I used to bag at the grocery store. I stocked in Burlington Coat Factory and a game store. I worked at a recycling place in Connecticut. I prepared and delivered foods as a part of Meals on Wheels. Before COVID, I volunteered restocking books at several libraries.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

What do you want the\u00a0GiGi\u2019s\u00a0NYC community to know?\u00a0<\/span><\/i><\/b>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

I want people to know I love\u00a0having\u00a0Down\u00a0syndrome. It’s my life. I enjoy myself a lot. I can do what other girls do too. I\u00a0can\u00a0sing and dance, go to parties, shop,\u00a0and\u00a0have my hair and nails done. I want to be an artist\u00a0and\u00a0a fashion blogger.\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

What would you like to see from\u00a0GiGi\u2019s\u00a0NYC in the future? Do you have any ideas for new programs or special events?<\/span><\/i><\/b>\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Maybe we can do arts and crafts\u00a0and\u00a0then\u00a0sell what we make so we can have a job.\u00a0We can\u00a0also\u00a0make coffee and bake some goodies to sell too.\u00a0Maybe\u00a0we can have a Down\u00a0syndrome shop too. My mom can help with that.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

Viola, we are\u00a0incredibly\u00a0inspired by\u00a0your\u00a0beautiful words and aspirations. You can achieve\u00a0anything\u00a0you set your mind to and we are so proud of all your\u00a0accomplishments\u00a0and job experiences. We\u00a0are\u00a0truly\u00a0fortunate to have you as a member of our community.\u00a0Keep up all the great work!<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

This week, as part of our Participant Spotlight Blog Series, we are pleased to feature Viola Trentalange. Viola is a kind friend and talented artist and singer. We hope you enjoy getting to know Viola as much as we enjoy having her as a part of our community!\u00a0 When did you join the\u00a0GiGi\u2019s\u00a0NYC community?\u00a0\u00a0 I\u00a0joined\u00a0GiGi\u2019s\u00a0NYC…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":288,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"wpo365_audiences":[],"wpo365_private":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1085,9],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-458921","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-participant-spotlight","category-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/gigisplayhouse.org\/newyork\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/458921","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/gigisplayhouse.org\/newyork\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/gigisplayhouse.org\/newyork\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gigisplayhouse.org\/newyork\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/288"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gigisplayhouse.org\/newyork\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=458921"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/gigisplayhouse.org\/newyork\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/458921\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/gigisplayhouse.org\/newyork\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=458921"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gigisplayhouse.org\/newyork\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=458921"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/gigisplayhouse.org\/newyork\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=458921"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}