Chris and Carissa's Sweetheart Story

With Valentine’s Day right around the corner, we wanted to talk about one of the amazing couples we know through our organization, and crazily enough, who met because of First Downs and the Down Syndrome Guild! This prom King and Queen, Chris and Carissa, are in fact dating!

This is them.

Fairy tale couple right?

The beginning of their journey together reads like it’s right out of a storybook. Their first encounter was at our wine auction in 2012. Both of them were scheduled to talk about the Kansas City Down Syndrome Guild’s prom, which the proceeds of the wine auction go towards every year. When Chris first saw her, he was enamored. “When we first met, I was amazed how beautiful she looked and she took my breath away.”

Talk about Prince Charming! It wasn’t one sided though. Carissa was just as interested after spending the majority of the event talking with Chris. After the night was over, Carissa remembers telling her mom that “I had met the most wonderful man ever and hoped I would get to see him again!”

With a little help from Carissa’s mom and Chris’ sister, the couple got back in contact through Facebook. After a month of talking to each other, they set up their first date for dinner and a movie. Chris remembers working on conversation starters with his sister because he had the first date jitters. But when he got there, all the prep wasn’t necessary; with Carissa leading the way, they had an amazing first date night together!

Now, the couple is going on 4 years together. They love going to movies together, eating out at restaurants, bowling, going to dances, and as Carissa put it, “just being together.”  Another special something that brings them together is their shared love of sports.

Both of them participant in Special Olympics; Chris is an avid swimmer, often medaling in his swim events while Carissa participates in bowling, swimming, basketball, softball, track and field, tennis, and bocce. This Valentine’s Day, they’re planning their festivities around a basketball tournament. But they definitely have plans.

“We’re planning to go out for dinner and a dance,” said Carissa. “I want to take him out for dinner and give him a Valentine’s Day card.” Chris, or Mr. Wonderful as Carissa calls him, isn’t quite sure what to get his girlfriend quite yet. “Let’s just say I’m a sweet and perfect boyfriend. Just sometimes I don’t know what to get her!”

Wherever they decide to go and whatever Chris decides on for a present, we’re excited to see these two happy together! We hope the happy couple and all of the lovebirds out there will have a lovely Valentine’s Day.

Rachel Rings in the New Year

As the first month of the new year passes us by, we have more amazing individuals we wanted to spotlight. One of those would be Rachel, an adventurous young lady who is enjoying her new year and looking forward to achieving new goals in 2016. Rachel is one of the talented young ladies we work with at FDFDS. We talked to Rachel about what she did to celebrate her New Year’s and what her goals are for 2016.

Rachel and her good friend Anna with Big Red, the Hogs mascot

Returning to the place she was born, Rachel and her family went to Memphis for their New Year’s celebration, not only to see friends and family but to attend the Liberty Bowl. After spending her New Year’s with old friends, Rachel watched the Kansas State Wildcats and Arkansas Razorbacks battle it out. Being a huge Hogs fan, Rachel and co. were beyond thrilled when the Razorbacks beat the Wildcats a whopping 45-23.

Rachel, her friend Anna, and the Razorbacks cheerleaders

After kicking off 2016 with friends, family, and a team victory, Rachel returned home to Kansas City with exciting goals for the new year. Like any 16 year old, Rachel is starting to have college on the mind and with it, scholarships. One of her goals for the year is to start visiting colleges so she can narrow down her favorite choices over the next couple years of high school.

Another major goal that Rachel plans to achieve is to attend a mission trip and share her faith with others on an upcoming visit to New Orleans. Rachel is a devoted churchgoer at Blue Valley Baptist Church, with whom she’s going on her mission trip, and enjoys spending time with her congregation. “I like people to know about Jesus’ love. I love spending time with my friends from church. It [the mission trip] will be fun. I want to tell children about Jesus.”

Rachel and her parents at the Liberty Bowl

Rachel is dedicated to not only her faith and education, but also to her friends. During her spring break this year, Rachel has made plans to visit her friend Oksana who attends Vanderbilt. Because of their great program for young adult individuals with developmental disabilities, her friend’s college is on the list for schools Rachel wants to visit. Though the trip is still a couple months away, Rachel is already getting excited. “I love my friend Oksana and I have been wanting to visit her. I want to go to college so I’m visiting her school.”

We are so excited for all Rachel has planned for her 2016! There’s no doubt that a motivated young woman like her will achieve everything she sets out to do. We at FDFDS wish Rachel and her family all the best in the new year and we look forward to seeing her accomplishments!

New Year, New Goals

Happy 2016! With the holidays behind us and the new year ahead of us, we have so much to look forward to. Not only as an organization, with hopes to increase our outreach and support base, but also as a community of individuals who seek to better ourselves.

One of the individuals who enjoyed both his holiday and birthday gifts (thanks to a Christmas birthday!) as well as his opportunity to make the new year a new amazing chapter is Ander Vesce. Ander is one of the many awesome people we work with at FDFDS.

Ander is also a member of the Mission Project, an amazing service program we support that assists developmentally challenged adults to live and work with minimal support. Ander has been an amazing part of the program. One part that he loves in particular is his job at the Hen House in Fairway where he’s been working and supporting himself for the last 16 years. We decided to ask him what gifts he got and how he celebrated his New Year’s, as well as what goals he’s made for himself in 2016.

Ander during the holidays

Though Ander loved all his gifts from his 2015 celebration, which included DVD’s, CD’s, and four Target gift cards, his favorite gift was a plane ticket to Los Angeles to visit a close friend of his he made working at Hen House over the years. A hard worker like Ander deserves the vacation time!

Being a true Kansas City fan, Ander also got some other awesome gifts relating to his favorite local teams. He received a KC Royals World Series Championship t-shirt as well as a Chiefs jacket. Another favorite was the Jurassic World DVD he’d been wanting. Somewhat of a film buff, Ander has already started delving into his new collection. “I have watched my movies many times! I just love them.”

Ander kicked off his New Year with an exciting night. He and all the participants of both the Mission Project and Mission Project 2 met up for a New Year’s celebration at the Lucky Brewgrille, a restaurant located not far from the Mission Project center. Ander and his friends ate food and danced the night away to his favorite artist, Michael Jackson. After a night of fun, he returned home to finish his year watching one of his new movies.

Along with the new year, Ander made a New Year’s resolution to himself. His resolution was to keep a good habit of his, which is his routine of swimming an hour after work each day. We’re not saying Ander has webbed toes, BUT we will say he’s been an avid swimmer for many years! He’s even won a gold medal at the Special Olympics for his superior swimming skills. Every year, he recommits himself to practicing his sport and he shows no sign of slowing down.

We’re so happy to hear about Ander’s continued success in the Mission Project and his continued commitment to himself to continue his awesome swimming skills. Hopefully all of our 2016’s will start off just as amazing!

2015 Year in Review

As another year comes to an end, we’re reminded just how much we have to be grateful for in 2015 at our organization. This year has brought so many families in the Kansas City area together for one cause that helps so many. Throughout the year, we’ve come together as a group to raise not only funds to help us keep moving forward in making a difference, but also raise positive awareness for those with Down Syndrome.

12th Annual Wine Tasting and Auction

Our annual wine tasting and auction was held at Shook Hardy and Bacon LLP this year in April and couldn’t have been more fun! The event had a wonderful turnout of over 400 supporters. We enjoyed wine tasting and auctioned bottles of wine throughout the event and raised $291,000 through our efforts! Not a bad way to start off the year for FDFDS!

13th Annual Golf Classic and Huddle Time

The Annual Golf Classic and Huddle Time at the Shadow Glen Golf Club this September was a huge success! Between the golfers on the green and the auction participants, who bidded for items like signed Royals and Chiefs gear, we raised over $200,000! We are so thankful to have such amazing supporters turn out for fun events like these that involve everyone in the community.

20th Annual Step Up Walk

Our 20th Annual Step Up Walk was and is a big deal for FDFDS. Over 300 volunteers helped transform a cool, October Saturday into a fun-filled day for all ages. Rock walls, pony rides, and bounce houses were just a few of the fun activities we had going that day. Oh, and we can’t forget the pretty sweet danceoff that happened! The teams, families, and friends who all came out made a huge impact for our organization. We set our goal high in wanting to raise more than any other Step Up Walk in FDFDS history and we achieved it! With the help of hundreds of supporters, volunteers and teams, our event raised $513,000 this year that will go back to helping our community.

Giving Tuesday

This year as part of the spirit of Thanksgiving and the holiday season, we held a #GivingTuesday campaign throughout the end of November and December to encourage advocacy, whether it be financially or socially. Sharing the stories of the people and organizations intimately involved with FDFDS was a heartwarming reminder of why we do what we do.

Donation to DSG

All the fantastic people who have been involved with us this year and throughout the years will always be what allows us to raise awareness and make a change in our community for the better. We wouldn’t be where we are today without you. To show our appreciation and further help advocate for those with Down syndrome, we donated a record breaking amount of $500,000 to our partners at the Down Syndrome Guild of Greater Kansas City. Their work in the Kansas City area is so impactful and appreciated.

We want to thank each and every supporter of First Downs for Down Syndrome, past, present, and future. Without the continuous support from individuals like you, we wouldn’t be able to help the people and organizations that we do. We hope 2016 will bring with it even more awareness and support for those with Down Syndrome. Happy New Year!

Sam's Holiday Traditions

This February we introduced one of our friends Sam Rogers, who had won the Northman award at his high school, Shawnee Mission North. Fast forward to today, and Sam has moved on to even more fun and exciting achievements in his life since his high school graduation. Though he misses SMN and the wonderful, accepting atmosphere there, he has begun a new chapter of education at the Shawnee Mission Post-High Transition Program which is based out of the Shawnee Mission South High School.

Sam joined SM’s 3 year post-transition program which focuses on a variety of subjects all geared toward independent living, from keeping a checkbook to practicing professional writing. He also works at the Chuck E. Cheese every afternoon through the program to gain valuable work experience. He is eligible to attend this amazing post-high program for 3 years till he graduates at 21.

But that’s not all Sam has been up to! He is also attending Johnson County Community College’s CLEAR program. The College Learning Experiences, Activities and Resources, or CLEAR, is a program that provides adults with developmental disabilities experiences in continuing education in several different 7-week courses of their choice. At JCCC, Sam took a class on decision making and problem solving and a class on financial management. About his classes, Sam said,”I like going to JCCC and taking college classes. They are the best!!  I get to see other friends that went to other high schools at college.”

When Sam isn’t in class, he participates with the Down Syndrome Guild’s adult group, where he can attend activities and events with the friends he’s made over the years. He also still loves attending SM North football and basketball games with his family!

As much as he loves his programs and classes, Sam is ready for Christmas break! He says he’s looking forward to hanging out with his sister and brother-in-law, Jennifer and Brock, every day during break since they are both teachers and won’t be in session. One of the holiday traditions Sam loves is making pumpkin flavored puppy chow and bringing it to his granny’s every Christmas Eve. Sam and his family also have fun watching Christmas movies every year as well as doing their advent calendars to countdown the days till Christmas. This year, they have two; one on their fridge and one with treats for their dogs!

Christmas is one of Sam’s favorite times of the years. “I love everything about Christmas, all the decorations and driving around looking at Christmas lights on people's houses. This year I helped Mom put up a small tree in my room with Marvel and Star Wars ornaments on it!! I love it. I also have a [Shawnee Mission] North tree too that is red and black.  I also helped her put up our big tree and helped put ornaments on it too.”

We’re so happy to have an awesome kid like Sam as part of our family at FDFDS, and we can’t wait to see what’s next for him!

Thanksgiving with a First Downs Family

Thanksgiving is a wonderful time of year to reflect on our lives and what we are thankful for. At First Downs For Down Syndrome, we are so thankful for all the love and support we have received from the community for over 20 years. We have been able to help so many families in the Kansas City area through the generosity of our supporters. One of the people involved with FDFDS is Toni Harrison and her family. We asked her about what she’s thankful for this Thanksgiving and what a Thanksgiving day means to her.

• What does your family usually do for Thanksgiving?

When thinking about Thanksgiving our family looks at it as an extended holiday.  Along with Thanksgiving we usually have a birthday celebration. Eli, who will be 16 this year, was born on November 23. There has been a couple years where his birthday was on Thanksgiving.

So for the actual day we go to paternal side of the family for lunch and then the maternal side of the family for dinner. Extended family is at both gatherings. This year due to other relatives schedule we are going to do the maternal side on Saturday.  We are excited because we will actually be able to enjoy eating that meal. Usually we are so full, it is hard to enjoy eating the second meal. Both sides of the families’ parents live in Kansas City North so it makes it much easier to divide time between both families. Both meals are hosted by mom/grandma.

• What are some family favorite dishes?  

I make Raisin Cream Pie, which is always requested on the maternal side of the family. Family favorites depend on who you ask but would include turkey, dressing, mashed potatoes, deviled eggs, sweet potatoes and pie.  So basically the whole meal are favorites!

• Do you have any other traditions during the weekend having to do with Thanksgiving?

Thanksgiving week is full of traditions for us. Eli’s birthday is usually sometime that week so we celebrate it by going out to eat. Wednesday, Thanksgiving Eve we decorate the house for Christmas, which is usually a full day event! Friday after Thanksgiving, up to last year, we have gone to the Christmas tree farm, bundled up and went on a wagon ride to cut down a tree.

This was always such a fun outing, but ended after years of struggling getting the tree up. Then the year when the tree just got completely decorated, we went to another room and heard a crash and breaking glass.  We went into the room to see the over 8 foot tree laying on the floor with decorations broke everywhere.  

It was fun trying to put the tree up for a second time and tying it to the wall to keep it up right. So now we decorate our beautiful artificial Christmas tree on Friday, while drinking eggnog and the fire going!  Then we usually are excited to watch the Missouri Tigers and the Chiefs play football over the weekend.   

• What are you and your family thankful for?

We are so thankful for everyone being healthy and for family, friends and acquaintances that have touched our lives over the last year.

• Are there any Thanksgiving memories or stories you’d like to share?

Our favorite memory of Thanksgiving is in 1999, Tuesday late afternoon before Thanksgiving I went into labor. We preceded to the hospital and I got into a room.  I went into labor so fast that our doctor wasn’t able to get there because he was the only one on staff due to the Thanksgiving break.

I remember hearing over the hospital intercom that they needed a delivery doctor in my room STAT. The emergency room doctor was there shortly. Eli was born quickly and healthy at 7:09 pm!!  We both were released from the hospital late in the afternoon Thanksgiving Eve.  His first holiday gathering was Thanksgiving lunch with a huge group of people, when he was less than 48 hours old!

What a perfect time of year to be thankful for the best gift a parent can receive: a healthy new baby! Both Eli and his older brother Noah attended the Down Syndrome Guild Prom this spring and were part of the Step Up Walk this fall with their family. We’re so thankful to have amazing families like Toni’s who support and participate in First Downs for Down Syndrome events throughout the year.

During this time, don’t forget to celebrate #GivingTuesday throughout the holiday season! This day is dedicated to giving to those truly in need. Giving can mean three different things: advocating, donating, or volunteering.  We invite you to think about giving to those in need, whether it be a family member, friend, or an organization like ours that prospers from your support and involvement. Even if you can’t donate your time or money this season, we  invite you to share our #GivingTuesday campaign with friends and family to give FDFDS as much support as possible.

Have a happy Thanksgiving and thank you for your constant support!

20th Annual Step Up Walk

The 20th Annual Step Up Walk at the Berkley Riverfront Park for First Downs for Down Syndrome was an amazing success and our biggest turnout yet! Thanks to everyone who came out to support FDFDS, from the amazing teams of friends and family who walked for their loved ones to volunteers who made the day happen, we appreciate each and everyone one of you.

With your help, we raised over 500 thousand dollars, more than any other First Downs event in our organization’s history! With these contributions, we can help more families and their children in the area more than ever before. Watch the video below to see all the fun times we shared that day!

Though it was a brisk day, we had blue skies and a whole park full of exciting activities for everyone who came out! The fresh food, pony rides, pumpkin bowling and other pumpkin games were popular with the younger kids on the east side of the park with the beautiful Bond bridge on the horizon. On the west side of the park, we had delicious KFC catering, fun juggling and entertainment performances, trampolines, and the challenging rock wall to continue the fun.

And of course, in the middle right near the Step Up Walk’s starting line, we had tons of awesome bounce houses and stage where we had fun activities going on all day. The best part of the day was seeing all the tents filled with teams who turned out to support someone special in their lives who they chose to walk for that day.

On the behalf of everyone at FDFDS, we want to say thank you for the constant support for the Down Syndrome community in Kansas City. The events our organization puts together and the successes we achieve wouldn’t be possible without the support of this amazing community. Our goal to help families and raise positive awareness for all the incredible people in our lives and around the world with Down syndrome is made possible through you.

Check out the rest of the awesome photos from the walk on our Facebook! We can’t wait to see you again next year for an even bigger and better walk!