THE BUTTON
Photo : Mortensen Portrait Design
MAKING THE DIFFERENCE
Kids see themselves in alumna ’ s creations .
BY SAVANNAH MUNOZ ’ 20
A BIG BROWN BOX ARRIVES from New Berlin , Wisconsin , addressed to a child just back from the hospital , or in between regular doctor visits . The child doesn ’ t know who sent it , but what ’ s inside they recognize at once — herself , a doll that looks just like her . The doll might be sewn with a missing limb , bear the markings of a skin condition or have a plastic feeding tube attached to its stomach . Each doll is different , but all are instantly beloved to the child who holds them , and all of them are made on the dining room table of Amy Jandrisevits ’ 95 .
“ I make dolls for kids who will never see themselves on a store shelf ,” Jandrisevits says about her nonprofit organization , A Doll Like Me . Over the last four years she has handcrafted nontraditional dolls for children with disabilities — more than 350 dolls in all , reflecting limb differences , surgical scars and pediatric afflictions of children across the world . When a recent online crowdfunding campaign for A Doll Like Me went viral , millions of people saw her work , and were thus introduced to the spectrum of differences that make each child , and doll , unique .
“ The degree of exposure was definitely unexpected ,” Jandrisevits says , “ but I saw it as an opportunity to change the narrative for these kids . In some cases , it ’ s the first time people will learn about some of these conditions . And the narrative then becomes how these kids deserve a seat at the table — not an obligatory one , and not in a condescending way . Then there ’ s the individual aspect as well , how these kids are seeing themselves in the face of a doll , and that ’ s just as it should be .”
While her love of dolls has lasted since she was a child , Jandrisevits says UC San Diego ’ s Muir College was where she truly developed her sense of service and the
48 TRITON | FALL 2019