Tampa lights up for World Down Syndrome Day, families seek to shatter stereotypes

TAMPA - For the first time, downtown Tampa is lit up in yellow and blue for World Down Syndrome Day.

"When I walked up, I actually started crying. It’s emotional to me to see our community come together like this," said Becca Rouco with F.R.I.E.N.D.S.

This year's theme is all about shattering stereotypes.

"They have so many more capabilities. The limitations that they put on her when she at birth, obviously didn't stick because they said she wouldn't live past one," said Erica Iglesias, her daughter Alessandra Estes is now 20.

Iglesias said doctors also said her daughter wouldn’t be able to walk.

"I love to do dancing," said Allessandra.

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Every single family gathered on Thursday night, can tell you a story of how their extraordinary child is defying limits set by others.

"This year with my son, he goes to a Montessori school where he's fully integrated with other kiddos so he doesn't have to attend a special education classroom," said Ashley Odom, the President of F.R.I.E.N.D.S.

"We were told that Cooper probably wouldn't walk till he was four years old, and he was walking at 18 months," said Rouco.

Defying limitations is also the message of a viral campaign by the National Down Syndrome Society, about assumptions becoming reality.

The empowering video features a young woman with Down Syndrome proving that she can do things people assume she can’t like drink a margarita, live on her own, learn Shakespeare.

The message, "Assume that I can, so that maybe, I will."

"Because you need to always assume competence because people with Down Syndrome can do anything and everything that we can," said Odom.

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Families are writing a new story, as their children change the narrative.

Craig Woodard Sr., is the executive director of Down Syndrome Association of Tampa Bay, and he wrote a book about his experience to help other families understand the gift they have.

"It's called Down Syndrome: Blessed with disability. And what it's for is for those parents to find out that they're going to have a child with Down Syndrome. And we hand this book to them so they can see it's going to be okay. You know, that extra chromosome is a chromosome of love," said Woodard.

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