We want to hear about your employment or entrepreneurial success story! NDSS is featuring stories from across the country from the perspective of employees and entrepreneurs with Down syndrome. Please complete the form below and submit a picture of a self-advocate in action!
Nellie takes part in her local Transition Internship Program for young adults with disabilities. Nellie is 20 years old and has been interning with LendKey for over a year now and graduates from Sycamore High School this year.
As soon as Nellie arrives at work, she knows exactly what she needs to do. Her responsibilities include restocking the snack shelves and entering information from business cards into a spreadsheet that is used for company recruiting. She will use these skills for the rest of her life in her professional career!
Nellie promotes a fun, loving, and supportive workplace environment which resonates with her colleagues at LendKey. Her presence at LendKey means more to the company than just the tasks she completes. Her internship represents the need to recognize neurodiversity in and out of the workplace.
After her internship at LendKey, Nellie hopes to continue to work with authentic companies who support the neurodiverse community
My name is Stephanie and I am proud to be the owner of 4 Leaf Coffee selling Dreamers Coffee, tea, hot chocolate, and gifts to help bring awareness to the fact that people with disabilities can work, lead normal lives, and achieve their dreams. I am a college student learning about business and now I have the great opportunity to share my dream with others and allow people to enjoy the great taste of our products!
Our daughter, Stephanie, is 42 years old. She has been employed by Old Navy for twenty years. Stephanie has always wanted to work in the clothing industry. She loves going to work and helping customers. Her boss says she lights up the store!
Hi, everyone! I am so happy to tell you about working. Please follow me @tristathebartista. I have 30,000 followers and I love to make all of them smile and be happy. I make my followers smile AND I show them what all of us with Down syndrome can do. We can work. We can dance hip hop. We can be a good friend. We can have boyfriends. We can be amazing baristas. We can be funny. We can workout at Crossfit. We can be preschool teacher assistants. I show all of that on my Instagram and people are learning a lot and smiling and being happy.
I love to work. I just love it so much. I had my first job when I was 16. My mom and dad helped me make a binder with letters of recommendation from my coaches, teachers and places I volunteer at and I went to the interview with my binder. It helped me tell them what I could do and I got the job at Palmetto Grande Regal Cinemas. I loved it. I got paid and I got free movie passes.
I also got a job at On the Border. It was so much fun and I hung out with the other people who worked there. I also had a job at Harris Teeter. I loved that, too. I had three jobs at one time. My Mom said it was too much and I could only have two jobs. I had those jobs for three years.
I wanted to do something else and my sweet friend Sandy saw I was good with children. Sandy talked to the people at East Cooper Christian Pre-school and they hired me as a teacher assistant. I worked there from 2012-2017. It was awesome. I play with the children and I taught some lessons and I did crafts with them. In 2015, Robin the director of child education at my church asked me to work at BLAST a preschool at my church, too. I worked at both pre-schools. I loved it so much and I love the kids so much.
In 2017, A friend told me about a coffee shop coming to town called Bitty and Beaus and I got excited about being a barista and making coffee and working a cash register. I sent a video interview to Amy Wright the owner and I was the first barista hired at the new Charleston Bitty and Beaus. My mom said I had to give up working at one pre-school. That was hard to do, but I knew being a barista was going to take a lot of my time. So now I work at one pre-school and at Bitty and Beaus. I write happy messages on little cards and give one to every customer. They like it and they keep them in their wallet. I just love working and I love to make my own money. I LOVE my co-workers and hanging out with them after work
Hello friends! I am an artist. A painter. I have a studio where I paint. I paint shapes. I paint my imagination. I take art classes and watch art videos (I love my online art teacher, Nancy). I sell my work at shows and online and in two galleries. I like to do live painting with my microphone and speaker! Check me out on Instagram @justcharliefrench and cheer me on! Thanks!
Jordan has worked at AMC theater for 3 years. She started in high school when all her other friends were starting part-time jobs as well. She helps to clean the theaters, stocks the beverage supplies and picks up the atrium areas. Movies are the best part of her job as she gets to see all of them for free! The staff says that Jordan is a hard worker and it is a pleasure to have her as an employee!
Colton has been working since he was 14 years old! He had to get a special work permit from the Board of Education to work at such a young age. He started at a cafe a few blocks from his school. He would walk down twice a week and work with the barista. He also bused tables and he served as a host. He held this job four years and only resigned because he was leaving for college. The restaurant is the Square Cafe; however, he tells his boss/owner on a regular basis that he will be buying it and changing it to Colton’s Cafe.
He then got a union job working at a grocery store Giant Eagle. He kept his job at the cafe the whole time. He worked 4 days a week at the store and worked one day a week at the cafe all while going to school. He paid union dues and was a full member. Colton worked at the grocery store for a year.
Colton has always wanted to work with kids! So he went to his former elementary school and got hired to work in their cafeteria. He worked there for two years and kept his cafe job. During the summer he worked at the schools ESY (Extended School Year). The younger kids at the school got to see a kid who had qualified and participated in ESY come and work and serve as a role model for them.
This summer Colton had the opportunity to work on the set of a commercial being filmed as a Production Assistant
Faith-Christina works at the local Chick Fil A in her hometown of Saint Cloud, Florida. Faith-Christina has been a team member at Chick Fila A over three years! She loves her job and is always learning new things. She been featured on their Facebook page numerous times. She has also been Team Member Tuesday! Faith-Christina works in the dining room and is a condiment bar expert. She is always willing to help the guest and brings a smile and laughter to them. They have loved her so much and she loves being a part of their Team. Her infectious, bubbly personality makes being around her and working along-side of her such a joy!
I am excited to celebrate one year as an equipment team member with the NBA basketball team, The New Orleans Pelicans.
I had worked for 18 years at a grocery store and a year and a half ago, I decided it was time for me to change from a job to a career that I really would enjoy. As an NDSS SAAB board member I was advocating for #DSWORKS® so I needed to practice what I preached and go for my dream job.
I had experience with the sports equipment team during junior and high school. I applied for a position with the Pelicans, had an interview and on 9/5/17 joined the staff of the Pelicans. Every day, I look forward to a new adventure with the Pelicans. I work with equipment, stock team and staff lockers, wash towels and, the best part, do shootarounds with the Pelican team. What a dream come true. I am treated exactly the same as other staff members. I appreciate the opportunity the NOLA Pelicans have given me and I work really hard to demonstrate ability.
Gabi Angelini has been instrumental in the growth of the business she co-founded with her mom, Gabi’s: Powered by Special Abilities, which focuses on empowering those with intellectual and developmental disabilities like herself to find their place in the world and enjoy fulfillment in everything they do. In 2022, Gabi’s - Powered by Special Abilities (Gabi’s) more than doubled its workforce, adding 25 new workers.
Today, the nonprofit employs 45 people with special abilities who help with packaging, assembling, labeling, and shipping for various companies, such as Endure Beauty, Furbish, Murphy’s Naturals, Nice Cannabis, and Wild Organic. And this account roster has continued to grow – most recently, Gabi’s entered into an exclusive contract with Peter Millar to reprice designer clothing. The company has also added more warehouse storage space for client drop shipping.
My name is Shannon Dieriex. I work as an actress in Los Angeles and Orange County, I am a member of SAG-AFTRA (Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television & Radio Artists). I have done a lot of background work on TV and Film, I was a cast member of Best Buddies the Hip Hop Musical performed at the Fringe Festival in Hollywood., which won sevaral awards. I played the role of Rebecca in the short film called Check Mate which won Best Film for Easterseals Disability Film Challenge. Currently I am working background for a Netflix future episodic, rehearsing for Elf Jr. with The Peformer’s Academy and opening bi-weekly for the Sound of Musical at Second City Hollywood with some of my friends from Best Buddies the Hip Hop Musical. I have gotten a lot of work lately and I love it. I get to meet a lot of new people and sometimes celebrities. I also have done music videos and commercials…look for me…I may appear on your TV
I have been working for the Winston Salem Dash baseball team for 5 years. I give out the programs and make people smile! In 2009 I got to throw out the first pitch!