Mile High Magazine 11/10/2024 Global Down Syndrome Foundation

Guest: Michelle Sie Whitten, Co-Founder, President & CEO

Michelle started Global Down Syndrome Foundation because when she was pregnant with her daughter, she discovered that Down syndrome was the least funded genetic condition by our National Institutes of Health.  People with Down syndrome are born with three copies of chromosome 21, they're really highly at risk for certain disease, like Alzheimer's and autoimmune disease.  They're highly protected and it is very rare for a person with Down syndrome to get a solid tumor cancer or certain kinds of heart attack and stroke.  Global Down Syndrome Foundation is an international non-profit and one of their biggest successes has been the lobbying in Washington D.C.  They work with three affiliates, one being the C Center for Down syndrome Children's Hospital Colorado. They also support over 200 scientists between Anschutz Medical Campus and the University of Colorado Boulder through our Crnic Institute.  Coming up is the Be Beautiful Be Yourself Fashion show.  This year they are giving away two Quincy Jones exceptional Advocacy awards, one to Sophia Sanchez, she was in the prequel to the Hunger Games and the other is Woody Harrelson for his work in Champions.  The local ambassador this year is Zaya Biel.  The event is on November 16^th at the Sheraton Denver Downtown Hotel.

 https://bebeautifulbeyourself.org/

Mile High Magazine takes a look at the issues and people shaping Colorado. Presented by the public affairs department of Bonneville Denver.