And Kiera had a question of her own for her mom. “What did you think of me when I came into your world?” she asked.
“When you came into my world? Well I didn't know a whole lot yet, so it was unknown and you kind of are fearful of things you don't know,” said Kathy.
“This is what this place helps people with. You come here and you're not alone anymore. You're with other moms and dads and they help you and your child is special.”
And that, says Gianni, is the point.
“I think the most important thing that people need to understand about Down syndrome is the potential in that person,” she said.
“That's what keeps me going everyday. I can look into the eyes of -- whether it be a child or one of our adults with Down syndrome and I see nothing but untapped potential.”
“I wanted to walk, have them walk in somewhere where they feel celebration. Where they feel the warmth, where they feel the love,” said Gianni. “I wanted them to be able to just walk in and know they belonged.”
And it has worked. The organization has been so successful that they’ve expanded, with 16 locations across the United States and Mexico, and six more set to open in 2014.
GiGi’s Playhouse offers free services to people with Down syndrome – from private tutoring to art and music and life skills classes for young adults.
A program called LMNOP (Language, Music, ‘N Our Peeps) uses song and dance to teach the youngest students language and movement. It looks like any preschool class, but the skills they teach are even more important.
“Kids with Down syndrome have low muscle tone,” explained Gianni. “That's what we're fighting all the time, which is why all of our programs are therapeutic in nature.”
So when a 4-year-old named Katelyn blows bubbles, she’s doing more than lighting up the room with her smile. She is strengthening facial muscles.
“Our kids have a diagnosis they wear on their face. So that's the first barrier for children to get over,” Katelyn's mother, Kristin Malek, explained.
She says she is grateful to Gianni for creating a place where Katelyn can succeed.
“She's changing lives day by day. And making things happen and swinging doors open for all of us just to walk through.”
The new facility also features a store called “Hugs and Mugs,” that will be up and running in January 2014. Students will make the mugs themselves and also staff the store, teaching them occupational skills that will help them live independently.
“I can sell mugs. I can do my drawings. I can do anything,” said Christine Maxwell, one of the program’s stars. She lives on her own, has worked for more than a decade at her local movie theater, and serves as a mentor to other students.
Nightly News' National Correspondent Kate Snow first learned about GiGi’s Playhouse through her family. Her sister-in-law, Kiera, was born 32 years ago with Down syndrome, but at the time, there was nothing quite like Gianni's organization.
“I wished I had had more support,” said Kiera's mom, Kathy, who lives near GiGi’s Playhouse, and has participated in the group’s annual 5K fundraising walks with her daughter. “I know people who have been here from day one and that’s when you need it the most.”
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Nancy Gianni with her daughter, Gigi.
Photo: www.dailyherald.com
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