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If you’re wondering why you should give your hard earned money to DSAMn:

Your Support Matters

Who We Are:

The Down Syndrome Association of Minnesota is a statewide nonprofit organization with the mission to empower individuals and families, create community, and celebrate the abilities of people with Down syndrome. Our vision is for all people with Down syndrome to have the opportunity and access to live their best life in and accepting and inclusive society. Membership is free and open to all. Most of our programming is free or heavily subsidized, all made possible because of generous individuals, corporations, and foundations like you.

What We Do:

The Association provides programming to serve individuals with Down syndrome, their families, their educators, providers and supporters across the state of Minnesota and in border communities in our neighboring states. Our programs and services include:

Information & Outreach:

Information for new and expectant parents, medical professionals, early intervention teams, and the broader community to better understand Down syndrome.

Conferences, webinars, and educational programming for individuals with Down syndrome, their parents, grandparents, and caregivers.

Webinars, workshops, and resource for educators.

Outreach and support to educators, potential employers, and the medical community to provide accurate information and resources.

Parent & Family Support:

New & expectant parent line - open 365 days a year.

Parents First Call program supports families from diagnosis to age three.

Family Connectors help families navigate county services, healthcare referrals, IEPs and more.

Transition to Adulthood program to help families navigate the late teen and early adult years.

Financial Assistance Fund to assist with DSAMn families facing financial hardship.

Parent support groups in 19 communities plus additional age-based, multicultural, and diagnosis-based support groups.

WDSD Day Celebrations and Summer Community Picnics in 10 communities reaching more than 2,500 people.

Individual Support:

Over 50 hours a month of direct programming for youth, teens and adults to build skills and create social opportunities.

Additional programming for teens and adults to promote self-advocacy and independence; and to improve social and job skills.

Retreat style conferences for teens and adults with workshops on health & safety, job skills, social & emotional skills, and self-advocacy.

Advocacy & Awareness:

World Down Syndrome Day Classroom Kits, serving more than 33,000 students in 1,000 classrooms in 2024.

Disability Day @ The Capital in partnership with other advocacy organizations.

Annual Step Up for Down Syndrome Walk in St. Paul and Duluth which attracts more than 5,000 individuals from across the state to connect and celebrate.

October Down Syndrome Awareness month activities.

Ongoing advocacy and awareness efforts with government offices and agencies whose actions and policies affect our members.

How far your money goes:

$25 - supports families through our community parent groups

$50 - funds a World Down Syndrome Day classroom kit to spread awareness, kindness and inclusion.

$100 - supports a family through our financial assistance program

$250 - fully funds a scholarship for bike camp

$500 - supports our employment and self-advocate programming

$1,000 - covers the cost of our new and expectant parent text & talk help line - open 365 days a year

It's Walk Wednesday! Step Up for Down Syndrome 2024 Weekly Update

Welcome to our Step Up for Down syndrome weekly update email! We have raised $442,247 towards our $600,000. This Sunday we will celebrate in Saint Paul there is still time to donate. Registration is closed but On-Site registration will open at 9:30am This year we are also offering a suggested donation for those interested in attending the famous Laurie Berkner concert.

For those of you that are new to Step Up or the Down Syndrome Association of Minnesota - Step Up for Down Syndrome is our signature fundraising and community building event. Our statewide walk is held every year on the fourth Sunday of September in St. Paul as a kickoff to Down Syndrome Awareness Month. In 2022, we added a second event, Step Up North in Duluth on the third Sunday of September.

All registered participants will receive a KNOW BEFORE YOU GO email Thursday.

Each year, nearly 5,000 people join us in St. Paul and 500 in Duluth to celebrate our amazing community, to raise awareness about issues facing individuals with Down syndrome, and to raise funds to further our mission. Everyone is invited and registration is accessible to all at just $7 per walker.

Sometimes how organizations raise their money is at odds with their inclusive mission. Step Up is the opposite. Step Up truly gives us the platform to live out our mission to
EMPOWER. CONNECT. CELEBRATE.

Ella-gators Team Page for the DSAMN Step Up for Down Syndrome Welcome to our Step Up for Down Syndrome team fundraising page! We are walking to show our support for Ella and more than 400,000 other individuals with Down syndrome in the U.S. Every dollar we raise brings us one step closer to ensuring that our child and every individual will have the opportunity...

The big day is almost here! Please plan to join us on September 22 at Como Park for Step Up for Down Syndrome! We are excited to share this day of celebration and advocacy with you, and we appreciate your support of The Down Syndrome Association of Minnesota.

Online Registration (which includes a free t-shirt) closes TONIGHT at MIDNIGHT. Register here: https://www.ds-stride.org/stepupminnesota

Onsite registration is available the day of the walk, but does not include a shirt. At this point they do not expect to have extra shirts to sell. If you aren’t able to join us for the walk, please consider donating to this amazing organization!!!

We hope to see you next Sunday at Step Up for Down Syndrome!

DSAMN Step Up for Down Syndrome Join the Down Syndrome Association of Minnesota as we unite for a common cause and raise funds at the 2024 Step Up for Down Syndrome. Whether you have Down syndrome, know someone who does, or just want to show your support, take the first step and donate or register today! Help us spread the word; ...

We are less than a month away from the walk and, while we are so thankful to all of you who have donated already, we still have quite a ways to go to reach our goal! Please consider helping us reach $5,000 to support DSAMn and help Ella win some amazing prizes!!! Every dollar helps!!! 💙💛💙💛💙THANK YOU!!!!!!💙💛💙💛💙

💙💛💙💛💙💛💙💛💙💛💙💛💙💛💙💛

Ella-gators Team Page for the DSAMN Step Up for Down Syndrome Welcome to our Step Up for Down Syndrome team fundraising page! We are walking to show our support for Ella and more than 400,000 other individuals with Down syndrome in the U.S. Every dollar we raise brings us one step closer to ensuring that our child and every individual will have the opportunity...

It's Walk Wednesday - Step Up for Down Syndrome 2024 Weekly Update

Why do we Step Up? Step Up for Down Syndrome is DSAMn's signature fundraising and community building event. Our statewide walk is held every year on the fourth Sunday of September in St. Paul as a kickoff to Down Syndrome Awareness Month. In 2022, we added Step Up North (Duluth) on the third Sunday to make the event more accessible to families in that area.

Each year, nearly 5,000 people join us in St. Paul and 500 in Duluth to celebrate our amazing community, to raise awareness about issues facing individuals with Down syndrome, and to raise funds to further our mission. Everyone is invited and registration is accessible to all at just $7 per walker.

Sometimes how organizations raise their money is at odds with their inclusive mission. Step Up is the opposite. Step Up truly gives us the platform to live out our mission to EMPOWER. CONNECT. CELEBRATE.

Please consider donating to our team the Ella-Gators and help us reach our goal and raise money for this amazing organization!!!

Ella-gators Team Page for the DSAMN Step Up for Down Syndrome Welcome to our Step Up for Down Syndrome team fundraising page! We are walking to show our support for Ella and more than 400,000 other individuals with Down syndrome in the U.S. Every dollar we raise brings us one step closer to ensuring that our child and every individual will have the opportunity...

We had a late start this year for the walk but we still have a month and a half left to reach our fundraising goal! Please consider donating to this amazing organization and help Ella and her team win some amazing prizes, one of which is a billboard with her picture on it!!! And if you’re free on September 22nd please join us at Como
Park for fun, dancing, great food and awesome entertainment! Afterwards you can take a stroll through the Como Zoo and make it a family fun day! We’d love to see you all there!!!

Ella-gators Team Page for the DSAMN Step Up for Down Syndrome Welcome to our Step Up for Down Syndrome team fundraising page! We are walking to show our support for Ella and more than 400,000 other individuals with Down syndrome in the U.S. Every dollar we raise brings us one step closer to ensuring that our child and every individual will have the opportunity...

Only 2 days left to get your last minute shopping in!! Don’t have time to stop by? Let me know if you see something you like and I’ll set it aside for you!

There’s still time to stop in to The Loft and grab those last minute gifts! Open 10:00-2:00 today!!!

Some of the amazing items for sale!!!

There has been a change of plans for today’s pop-up. Due to the bad weather coming our way we have decided to cancel the event. However, you will get a chance to check out all the great items for sale because we will have them displayed in the salon until Christmas! So, stop in any time and get some Christmas shopping done!!