Jenna
Jenna, 18, is a classic rock fan and Special Olympics swimmer living in Tampa, Florida. Hobbies include horseback riding in an equine therapy program, paddleboarding, yoga, hiking on nature trails, and going out with her dad on the Buddy Bike, a two-person adaptive bicycle. “She just likes the open air," her mother Susan says.
At home, Jenna reads her favorite teen magazines and chapter books, works on her 1000-piece puzzles, and plays on her iPad. Favorite movies include “Frozen” and anything Disney, and her top tv shows are “American Ninja Warrior” and the Cooking Channel. She’s also a big fan of any show featuring restauranteur Guy Fieri!
Jenna’s musical tastes are just as varied— she’ll sing along to pop artists Ariana Grande and Taylor Swift as well as to rock bands Queen, Led Zeppelin, and the Grateful Dead. Too cool!
Jenna also has an excellent memory; “She remembers facts, places and details that surprise us all the time,” Susan says. When asked what surprised her about having a child with Down syndrome, she said that it’s “the lack of services there are for them and the low expectations society has for them. The way the school system operates, the lack of support for our kiddos.”
As we welcome more individuals with Down syndrome into this world, we can continually hope for and ask for better for them. We’re grateful to parents like Susan for advocating for not only their own loved ones with Down syndrome, but for ours too.
Susan’s advice to expectant parents is this: “Don’t compare! Your child is unique and beautiful, the exact way God intended to create them. Love, protect, but let them blossom; they are capable of doing way more than you may think. Don’t sweat the small stuff.”
“Be prepared,” she adds, “your life is about to change in a beautiful way.”
