CLEAR LAKE, Iowa - This year’s World Down Syndrome Day has a special meaning to some area moms.
Sarah Rich would tell you her twin boys are very different from one another.
“Liam is go-go-go. He's very much (the) more high energy climber of the two. Landon is much more of my ham,” Rich said.
Landon and Liam are almost 2 years old. Rich adopted them, and would tell you her journey of having sons with Down syndrome is one she never saw coming. But, she said, the journey has prompted her to ask people to be a part of "Jeans for Genes" -- a fundraiser through Down Syndrome Diagnosis Network (DSDN).
Wearing my crazy socks for #WorldDownSyndromeDay �� what a special day celebrating differences and remembering loved ones like my Aunt Jill! #WDSD18 pic.twitter.com/HY0YwaMRCw
— Calyn Thompson (@CalynTReports) March 21, 2018
“It's an opportunity to connect with the world around us and our community to provide awareness and education about Down syndrome and showing that those individuals with Down syndrome are more alike than they are different,” Rich said.
Beside her own group of co-workers, she's asked several others to wear jeans Wednesday and make a small donation to her cause.
“It's just extremely touching and heartwarming to know that I have the support of my personal family, but professional family as well,” Rich said.
Once Lauren McWhorter found out she was going to have a boy born with Down syndrome, she knew she had to get educated.
“It was a way for me to connect with other moms going through exactly what I was going through,” McWhorter said.
Two-year-old Grayson is determined to let no one get in his way. McWhorter has the same mindset when it comes to raising donations for DSDN, a non-profit organization that has her connecting daily with families just like hers. She said the donations she's raising will go toward educating doctors, parents, and friends about Down syndrome.
“It's just getting parents informed and getting the correct information,” McWhorter said.
