Inspirational restauranteur Tim Harris to get reality show

by Regina Ruiz from KOAT ABC:
ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. —Tim Harris, the owner of Tim's Place restaurant, will be getting his own reality show, and the show is casting.

Harris, who was born with Down Syndrome, has made several TV appearances, including a recent trip to "The View." Harris lives by this famous Walt Disney quote: "If you can dream it, you can do it."
The show, "Everybody Loves Tim," will explore the life of Harris who achieved his dream of opening a restaurant in the Duke City.
Tim's Place is known for its signature friendly service, which often includes free hugs from the owner himself.
The show is looking for people seeking to live a more confident and inspired life, who are willing to work alongside Tim.

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Zoe Perryman, opens up on TV about her quest for love

By Anna Young from Kent Online:
A young woman proved all you need is love when she found happiness on a TV dating show for people with disabilities.
Self-confessed hopeless romantic Zoe Perryman, from Maidstone, has Down’s syndrome. She has two engagements under her belt but her failed relationships only make her more determined to find ‘the one’.
More than a million viewers tuned in to Channel 4 last Thursday to watch the 24-year-old take a chance on The Undateables.

The series follows a group of hopefuls with learning or physical difficulties on their quest for romance.

Zoe was set-up with 32-year-old Nsimba Lupepe, from Ashford.

The pair’s first date was at Chessington World of Adventures in Surrey and their second meeting was at Embankments, formerly the Barge, which floats on the River Medway in Maidstone. And five months after the episodes were filmed in September, the couple are still together. Zoe said: “It’s going really well. I go to see him and he comes to see me. I’ve met his family and he’s met my parents and some of my friends. He’s really nice. We’re very happy and just seeing how things go.”

Down Syndrome is Discussed in New "Leading Edge" Segment with Host Jimmy Johnson

from PRWeb:
Each year, approximately 6,000 children are born with one of the most challenging and unique diagnoses; Down syndrome. On average 400,000 Americans live with Down syndrome is the United States. There are three different types of Down syndrome, Trisomy 21, Mosaicism, and Translocation. Although they each have a separate chemistry, each form of Down syndrome possess abnormal characteristics of chromosome 21.
There is not a specific criteria for Down syndrome. People of all ethnic backgrounds and economic classes may give birth to a child with Down syndrome. NDSS also states that the older women become the more likely they are to give birth to a child with Down syndrome.
Leading Edge, with host Jimmy Johnson, will be creating a segment featuring the organizations that are providing crucial services in both well-being and social engagement. This segment is going to be crucial in bringing awareness to Down syndrome. Leading Edge will help educate many people to find support and encourage those with Down syndrome. You do not want to miss Jimmy Johnson and his intake on this serious diagnosis. This segment will serve as educational inspiration for those hoping to make a difference.
The Leading Edge series is distributed to Public Television stations throughout the United States and is not distributed through PBS. Please visit the Leading Edge website at http://www.leadingedgeseries.com or email the producers at info@leadingedgeseries.com for more information.

German TV host Kai Pflaume is on a mission - he wants to raise awareness for people with trisomy 21

from DW:
An estimated 50,000 people live with Down syndrome in Germany, and many of them feel marginalized in their everyday lives. Now a famous German TV host is working to raise awareness for them.

German TV host Kai Pflaume is on a mission - he wants to raise awareness for people with trisomy 21, or Down syndrome. In a new four-part TV series to be broadcast in June on Germany's main network ARD, he visits people living with Down syndrome and provides insight into their everyday lives. Called "Show Me Your World," the project aims to show how people with Down syndrome can live very normal lives.
Happy in their own world
Down syndrome is a genetic disorder caused by the presence of all or part of a third copy of chromosome 21, hence the name trisomy 21. Since the strength of this disability can vary, many people with Down syndrome live completely normal lives with their families, while others need more help.
Support is provided for them and their relatives by the German Down Syndrome Network, whose chairman is Heinz Joachim Schmitz. He often notices how people without a disability react when they meet someone with trisomy 21. "At first, they're a little afraid," he said. "They take two steps back, then three steps forward - once they've made contact with them."
That's because people with Down syndrome are often noticeably cheerful, with fewer hang-ups than others. "They have their own world, and are settled and happy inside it," said Schmitz, who thinks it's a shame that so many have such a stand-offish initial reaction. "People with Down syndrome belong to our society, and should not be marginalized."

Was the Glee school shooting episode offensive to people with Down syndrome?

by Sonya Sorich from the Ledger-Enquirer
Warning: This post contains some spoilers about the April 11 episode of "Glee." If you haven't seen the show and want to avoid spoilers, stop reading now. Thanks.The April 11 episode of "Glee," which featured a high school shooting, sparked a debate on Twitter about the Fox show's treatment of a character with Down syndrome.
SPOILER ALERT: Becky, a student with Down syndrome, brought her father's gun to school. Earlier in the episode, she expressed fear about her life after high school. The gun fired accidentally and Becky's classmates don't know what really happened because cheerleading coach Sue Sylvester took the blame. As a result, Sue was fired from the school.
That's the short summary. Read Entertainment Weekly's full recap here.
Anyway, as I monitored Twitter throughout the show, I noticed a growing pool of tweets from people who shared an opinion: By making Becky the one with the gun, "Glee" reinforced a belief that people with Down syndrome aren't normal. Some sample tweets:

• "Thank you Glee for setting Down Syndrome awareness and acceptance back light years. Some people now see our kids in an even worse light." (@T21ASDMommy)
• "I shouldn't feel the need to be making the distinction to people that having Down Syndrome is not code for 'mentally unstable.' Thanks, Glee" (@KaitlynLauren14)
• "Really, #glee, I heard you had the girl with Down Syndrome become a high school gun shooter. So much for comedy, this is just sad. #rude" (@Leaayo)

Lauren Potter, the actress who plays Becky, talked to the Huffington Post about the controversy surrounding her role on the episode. The plot didn't make her appear less human, the actress suggests.
"Whether she has Down syndrome or not, it doesn't matter ... Why wouldn't it be somebody with Down syndrome because she's a kid. She's a teenager. She makes stupid decisions just like other teenagers do," she told the Huffington Post.

Creativity Best of 2012: A New Way to Look at Down Syndrome and More

from Advertising Age:
Until New Year's Creativity will be counting down 2012's best moves in brand creativity.

Coming in at No. 5 in the television category is this heartwarming campaign for Coor Down, the Italian national association for people with Down Syndrome, who marked UN World Down Syndrome Day by focusing on treating those with the condition in the same way as those without it. The project, by Saatchi & Saatchi, programmed alternative versions of well-known commercials and television shows. In collaboration with brands like Carrefour, Toyota and illy coffee, regularly scheduled ads featured characters with Down Syndrome -- doing exactly the same thing as the characters in regular ads would.

Nurse’s intervention helps obese child with Down syndrome

from Nurse.com by Lois Gerber, RN, BSN, MPH:

The nurse practitioner at the health department handed me a new referral. "Evan’s a healthy 6-year-old with Down syndrome," she said. "No cardiac problems. He’s short with a body mass index at the 90th percentile. Can you make a home visit?"

Two days later I was sitting in the family’s apartment talking with Leslie, Evan’s mother, a stocky middle-aged woman wearing khaki slacks and a white T-shirt.

Dressed in a navy sweatsuit, Evan sat in the corner of the room in an oversized children’s rocking chair watching Sesame Street on television. A box of Cheez-Its sat on the table beside him.

Piles of men and women’s clothes were stacked on top of a sewing machine by the back wall. "I alter people’s clothes," Leslie said. "I have to work. We need the extra money."

I smiled at her. "Let’s talk a bit."

"There’s nothing a nurse can help with," she said. "Evan’s doing OK. So what if he has a little baby fat?"

"He’s really not a baby anymore," I said.

Leslie swallowed hard. "You don’t know what it’s like. I’m here every afternoon with him. Mornings, too, when he doesn’t go to school." She sighed. "Evan sits watching television while I sew. He loves to rock and eat. I know it’s bad for him but … ." Tears filled her eyes.

I learned Leslie and her husband, Sam, felt overwhelmed with caring for their son even though they’d adjusted to the fact that he would always have developmental challenges. Sam worked long hours as a security guard and was emotionally detached from the family.

Although toilet trained, Evan had poor muscle tone and a lumbering gait and was prone to upper respiratory infections. His tongue protruded slightly. Developmentally, he functioned as a 3-year-old.

On another home visit, I said, "Obese children tend to have weight problems all their lives."

Leslie smoothed her T-shirt over her stomach. "What else can I do?"

"Let’s write down some ideas," I said. "You first — something you think could help."

"Not giving him Snickers bars after supper."

"Good idea," I said.

Together, we developed the care plan. She agreed to complete a three-day food diary, including snacks, which showed the family’s regular meals contained too much bread and dairy and not enough fruits and vegetables.

I tailored my teaching to the family’s food preferences and eating style. The goals were for Evan to maintain his present weight until it fell within the normal range for his age and to eat foods daily from each of the major food groups.

Leslie agreed to a referral for food stamps, allowing her to purchase more fresh fruits and vegetables. I taught her healthier food choices using pamphlets with heart-healthy recipes. She prepared more low-calorie, low-fat meals with fruits, vegetables and whole grains.

To encourage Evan’s physical activity, Leslie enrolled him in an afternoon playgroup for developmentally delayed children. On Saturdays, the family shopped for groceries together. The parents compared food labels and let Evan participate in the final selections. Leslie declined referrals to a nutritionist and the National Association for Down Syndrome, but agreed to save the phone numbers for future reference.

On my last visit, a smiling Evan met me at the door. Leslie had limited his television watching to two hours a day and replaced his candy and cookie snacks with granola bars or small dishes of dry cereal and raisins. Instead of buying milkshakes at fast food restaurants, she prepared them at home with skim milk and fruit juice.

"Sam and I are losing weight," Leslie said proudly. "We have more energy and feel more like a family now."

Nurses must be creative and look beyond the obvious to find long-term solutions to complex health problems. Referrals to community resources broaden the family’s base of support and increase the likelihood that care plan goals will be met and maintained.