A voice today means a future tomorrow
This Down Syndrome Awareness Month you can help give Kiwi kids with Down syndrome the gift of speech!
UpsideDowns provides speech and language therapy to children and young people with Down syndrome, empowering them to learn to speak, read, write, and communicate. We currently support more than 350 children throughout New Zealand, with 12 families on our waitlist.
UpsideDowns is a registered charity, all donations are eligible for a 33.33% tax credit
Meet Joshua
This is 11-year-old Joshua giving a talk about his speech and language therapy journey to a crowd of hundreds!
In Year 7 at school, Joshua loves playing games, doing sports, and performing on stage. He was recently in a production of Finding Nemo – he played Nemo! He speaks with confidence, clarity, and more than a little humour, but it hasn’t always been that way:
“I started speech therapy when I was a baby. Mum said I didn’t cry and I didn’t babble, so she was a bit worried. It took me a long time to make sounds and then a longer time to make words and then a very long time to make sentences.
“Mum didn’t need to worry though, I’m speaking lots and lots now. And sometimes mum and dad tell me to be quiet because I talk too much!”
That wasn’t an issue when he delivered his speech at our Share the Dream Gala this year; the crowd couldn’t get enough of Joshua. He had them laughing heartily and applauding enthusiastically.
Joshua is an amazing example of what Kiwi kids with Down syndrome can achieve when properly supported with speech and language therapy. Help us support hundreds of kids just like Joshua to learn to speak, read, write and live their best lives – donate today!
“Thank you UpsideDowns for helping me and all people with Down syndrome get better at speaking.”
