My Uncle Mikey | Guest Blogger from GiGi’s Syracuse

Here’s an excerpt from a blog by our friends at GiGi’s Playhouse in Syracuse that we had to share.

I struggle to think of the perfect way to start. There are so many things I could say. Let’s start with the beginning ….

November 1, 1972, Michael Edward was born into a world that was not accepting of him. A world that was full of ignorance and hate.  A world with a complete lack of understanding of the beauty, love and compassion that came along with his extra chromosome.

My friend Julie calls it the Love Chromosome.  Now at almost 42 years old, Mikey can share that love.

Thankfully he was born to an amazing woman, Eleanor, who began an endeavor to make sure the world accepted and loved her son.  Of course, that did not come without challenges. It breaks my heart as I think of the ways in which my uncle struggled early in life. After all, there was no GiGi’s Playhouse then!

While his mom is no longer with us, her legacy lives on within her son.   

There were no Down syndrome awareness groups, there were no service agencies, and there were no teen groups, music classes, or even social inclusion. There were only special class rooms filled with those students who were considered unequal – my Uncle Mikey being one of those students. 

However his spirits never dampened. He grew, he loved, he struggled and he persevered. He graduated high school.

I can remember Mikey going to “work” – a place in which he made very little money to sit around and perform menial tasks.  It was all my grandmother had for her son and for her to promote acceptance and awareness in any way possible. Thankfully, things began to get better for individuals with developmental disabilities, but they were far from perfect. The struggle lived on, and yet Mikey smiled through it.

And then – GiGi’s Playhouse happened.  I think Mikey would agree that it is pretty darn close to perfection there. His life has been forever changed.

He walked in the door to hugs, to smiles, to warmth, and to genuine love. He was accepted. He was loved. He was included. He was treated equally. I remember the first time Uncle Mikey joined me at GiGi’s Playhouse – he just smiled, and smiled, and smiled some more.

He asked for the ice cream he was promised – because GiGi’s Playhouse throws some rocking ice cream parties – and he smiled some more. He met Sonny – a young man who gave him perhaps the biggest hug ever. Mikey became like a big brother to Sonny -, it seemed they had known each other their whole lives. That was the moment I cried. That was the moment I knew my Uncle had found the thing he had missed out on during his childhood. He met Julie – who has the warmest smile.  He met Jessica and Grace – who he thought were just too cute.

My Uncle now had a whole new network of friends and people who loved him all thanks to GiGi’s.

GiGi’s Playhouse is not solely about programs for small children, or about teaching children and adults to cook, dance, or sing. It is about spreading HAPPINESS! I cannot recall a time I left there unhappy.

It is about LOVE.  It is about ACCEPTANCE.  It is about NEVER FORGETTING that we are more alike than we are different. 

We at GiGi’s Playhouse could not have said it better ourselves.  Thank you, Mikey is very lucky to have a special niece like you.

 “Acceptance. It is the true thing everyone longs for. The one thing everyone craves. To walk in a room and be greeted by everyone with hugs and smiles, in that small passing moment, you truly know you’re loved, needed, and accepted.” – Rena Harmon

Note: Original blog edited for space.