THUNDER BAY – Silas Fitzgerald may only be seven, but the youngster’s got a heart of gold, especially when it comes to his younger brother Darius.
Silas, a student at St. Martin School, decided it would be fun to do something to honour Darius, who was born with Down Syndrome.
After some careful research online, he decided, with the help of his mother Danielle and her colleagues at the south-side school, to host Rock Your Socks Off, a dance-a-thon that raised more than $1,000 which will be donated the Canadian Down Syndrome Society for educational purposes.
“Everybody wears different kinds of socks, or three pairs of socks – or they could wear colourful socks,” Silas said.
“I wanted to do this for him and for other people.”
Seeing all his school mates dancing in the gymnasium as a result made it all worthwhile.
“It made me happy that they appreciate people who have Down Syndrome,” the Grade 2 student said.
Silas had plenty of help with his endeavour, thanks mainly to Eden Bryson, whose younger sister Hope also has Down Syndrome.
She said she wanted to do something nice for her sister for World Down Syndrome Day.
“I thought that people could have a little extra love,” she said. “Some people don’t know a lot about Down Syndrome and I want them to know about it so then they won’t have to be scared of it,” she said.
Seeing the wild and crazy socks tearing up the dance floor brought a smile to her face.
“It makes me very happy because they’re supporting my sister,” Eden said.
Down Syndrome affects about 15.8 of every thousand babies born in Canada. People with Down Syndrome are often born with an extra copy of the 21st chromosome which can lead to intellectual disabilities and differing physical traits, including low muscle tone, small stature, an upward slant to the eyes, and a single deep crease across the centre of the palm.
