A Forum to Share Her Story

NDSS & The My Great Story Campaign join together to raise awareness for Down syndrome in celebration of Mother’s Day.

Today, Mother’s Day 2011, the National Down Syndrome Society (NDSS) will celebrate the accomplishments and achievements being made by people with Down syndrome by honoring their mothers. The My Great Story (MGS) public awareness campaign seeks to ignite a new way of thinking about people with Down syndrome by collecting inspirational stories told by people with Down syndrome and their family members, friends, colleagues, and many others. NDSS has added a new section in honor of Mother’s Day. Participants share a story about their mothers, grandmothers, sisters, aunts, cousins or friends who have a son or daughter with Down syndrome. Anyone can comment or vote on the stories already in the collection. NDSS invites you to cover the MGS campaign, post, tweet and blog about it, and promote reposting, retweeting and more sharing amongst your audience.

NDSS also invites you to watch the two MGS Celebrity PSAsthat star TV Hosts Meredith Vieira and Nancy O’Dell and post them to your media outlet’s website. Vieira’s dedication to the MGS campaign stems from her relationship with her son, who has worked as a camp counselor for people with Down syndrome, and O’Dell was drawn to campaign through her fond memories of her mother’s sister, who had Down syndrome. Both Vieira and O’Dell have also submitted stories to the campaign that speak to their experiences.

Down syndrome is the most commonly occurring genetic condition, in which the individual has a third copy of the twenty-first chromosome. One in every 691live births is a baby born with Down syndrome, and it is the most commonly occurring chromosomal condition. People with Down syndrome attend school, work, participate in decisions that affect them, and contribute to society in many wonderful ways.

People with Down syndrome are living longer than ever before. The life expectancy of individuals with Down syndrome has increased dramatically in recent decades – from 25 in 1983 to 60 today. Children with Down syndrome are often fully included in social and educational settings and increasingly go on to graduate high school and attend postsecondary education programs. While placement in the workforce remains a struggle, the situation has improved and adults with Down syndrome have attained a variety of positions, bringing enthusiasm, reliability and dedication to their jobs.

We encourage you to get involved and help NDSS and mothers of people with Down syndrome everywhere to raise awareness for people with Down syndrome.

About My Great Story

MGS was created pro-bono by NY based Ad Agency, Pedone. After 14 months of market analysis the Pedone team developed a campaign in an effort to shape the future for all people with Down syndrome. The online story book was developed by CT based Interactive Agency York and Chapel, who spent over 12 months developing the user friendly technology, sophisticated design and esthetics, and incorporation of the spectacular print ads shot by Zachary Scott. To date, over $5 million has been donated in national and regional ad space and services. The campaign has been seen by over 175 million people across the country and featured in media outlets such as Allure, Fortune, Golf Digest, The New Yorker, Newsweek, Time, Vogue and Wired, among other noteworthy outlets. To learn more, visit www.ndss.org/stories. 

About NDSS

The National Down Syndrome Society is a nonprofit organization representing the more than 400,000 Americans with Down syndrome. The mission of NDSS is to be the national advocate for the value, acceptance and inclusion of people with Down syndrome. The National Down Syndrome Society envisions a world in which all people with Down syndrome have the opportunity enhance their quality of life, realize their life aspirations, and become valued members of welcoming community. NDSS has over 350 affiliates nationwide. To learn more, visit www.ndss.org.