Commemorate World Down Syndrome Day

Today is World Down Syndrome Day. Maybe you don’t commemorate it or feel like you have a reason to do so, but I know a woman who’d like to try to change your mind about that.

This same woman had no trouble at all persuading me to wear orange these last few weeks to celebrate Developmental Disabilities Inclusion Month.

Spend a few minutes in pleasant conversation with her and you may find it difficult to ever overlook Down syndrome again.

I am absolutely biased on this topic; the woman in question is my youngest sibling, Kathleen. But I have yet to meet a person who, upon having been introduced to her, has walked away from that meeting feeling cold, lonely or unloved.

“Special” is often used to describe people like her — sometimes thoughtfully, sometimes nonchalantly and sometimes derogatorily. Yet, “special” most accurately describes the way she makes other people feel.

If Down syndrome were considered a commercial brand, to say that she ought to be its official spokeswoman would be to undercut her vast potential. Far more than that, she’s a universal ambassador for kindness.

Sure, I’m bragging on my baby sister — and she has 10 other older siblings who are right there with me on this. But she’s unquestionably earned it.

She has scars that the rest of her family doesn’t have — surgical marks where doctors opened her tiny frame to fix dangerous leaks in her heart over and over during the first couple years of her life.

She’s overcome challenges that weren’t blocking the rest of our paths — more than 40 years’ worth of conquering physical, mental, social and emotional obstacles.

The world has given her more than enough reason to feel hurt and jaded.

What does she do instead? She greets every sunrise with a heart full of love.

Don’t think for a moment that she doesn’t have difficult days, but don’t ever feel sorry for her.

She’s a community volunteer through the BraVo! program at United Disability Services and an indispensable helper at home as a caregiver to our parents. They toiled for so long to help Kathleen gain mobility and find her footing — but now, as their advancing age depletes what once seemed like superhuman reserves of parental energy, Kathleen lovingly looks after whatever needs she can fulfill for them.

I want to be like her. I want everyone to be like her, or at least try.

If there are people with Down syndrome in your orbit, I hope you take the

If there are people with Down syndrome in your orbit, I hope you take the time to learn their names and to tell them yours.

time to learn their names and to tell them yours. I hope you endeavor to find out exactly what it is about them that makes them truly special.

It turns out this type of friendship is surprisingly easy to strike up.

Let me give you an example.

There was a particular young man who went to high school with Kathleen; she was in the graduating class a year ahead of his.

Even though he towered above her, he always made her feel seen and appreciated.

She would come home from school and talk about how he would greet her with “Good morning, Miss Thomas” or “Hello, Miss Kathleen.”

Nobody told him to do this, it was just his way. And he made her feel over the moon with hugs and high-fives as they would pass each other in the busy hallways.

This young man’s simple act of attention and caring is something anyone can emulate. He was just a kid from Akron, after all.

But I think LeBron James would agree with me that this is not his story, it’s Kathleen’s.

This day belongs to Kathleen — as well as Angela, Todd, Michael, Christopher, Andy and so many more people with Down syndrome whom I’ve been fortunate to know. It’s also a day to fondly remember people like Jere, Luke and other friends who did not get to walk among us nearly long enough.

It’s a day of courage and hope. A day for the worldwide Down syndrome family to take stock of remarkable journeys. This community grows every time a new advocate is won over to the cause.

Kathleen would like you to etch March 21 in your heart, and to remember every day in between World Down Syndrome Days that you are a special person, too.