We are pleased to share the success of our annual Weiss Johnson Golf Classic on Tuesday, June 2nd. Despite the rainy weather our sold-out event was attended by a full course of almost all the 144 golfers and 8 sponsors. We generated a net total of just over $28,000 to support the programs and priorities of EDSS to serve our families of the Down syndrome community. Thank you to Mark and Dennis Johnson, and the CEO Scott McConaghy and all the Weiss Johnson and the Ranch Golf Resort staff teams for another wonderful event. This was now the 14th year of this event (no event in 2020) with total contributions exceeding $360,000! Thank you, Weiss Johnson, so much for your support!
The Walk for Down Syndrome is just one week away, and we are getting closer to our fundraising goal of $100,000. You can see our progress here. If you have not registered for the event, please register prior to Thursday so we can confirm our food quantity for the BBQ.
Last week we had the opportunity to meet with Minister Nicolaides policy advisors at EDSS office to share with the Minister of Education and Childcare our families’ priorities for a supportive and inclusive education. We shared the top priorities our Families request:
- Stable and adequately funded classroom supports
- Full-day access to education whenever possible
- Better training for school staff on disability and inclusion
- Earlier intervention and timely assessments
- Stronger collaboration between schools and families
- Meaningful inclusion and participation opportunities
- Improved transition planning for adulthood
- Consistency of supports across school divisions
We shared our recommendations to improve the quality of the education experience for children with Down syndrome, and we will continue to have meaningful dialogue with the department and the minister in the future. We will continue to share further updates on our advocacy strategy as we have more meetings in the weeks ahead.
Updates
I want to again thank and congratulate Meghan Shritt and Dustin Berube for their leadership and direction of another hugely successful Centre Stage Musical Theatre presentation on Saturday, May 23rd at the Stanley Milner Library. The event was attended by 190 guests and 42 participants and was a fantastic performance, of both live and video captured and produced for the show! The Great Centre Stage Heist was the story of the show that “almost” never was. We can’t wait for next year as this program will celebrate the 20th anniversary of Centre Stage in style! View the photos from the performance here.
This year's National AccessAbility Week theme is "Building a Strong, Accessible Canada." It invites all of us, including governments, businesses, organizations, and individuals, to take action to advance a barrier-free country. Significant progress has been made to eliminate and prevent barriers, and by continuing to work together, we can build a truly accessible, inclusive and equitable Canada.
National AccessAbility Week: May 31 to June 6, 2026 - Canada.ca
I had the opportunity to attend the Canadian Congress on Disability Inclusion 2026 to launch the National Accessibility Week. Some of the great takeaways from the panelists include recommending immersion of disability studies in the education system starting in the primary years. This important action would begin to make changes for every person in their formative years and help our children grow and develop with a different appreciation and understanding of disability and accessibility similar to learning a second language.
I also appreciated the concept of “Inclusion by design, but not inclusion after the fact”. This message was meant to encourage employers to impact future strategies for employment and growth with an economic impact on their business. Accessibility should not be compliance, but it is a strategy and a way to build resilience in the community, and a way to embrace people with diverse disabilities for their talents and as a valuable resource.
Last week I had the pleasure to meet Rick Hansen at my Rotary District Conference in Whitehorse Yukon. Rick’s keynote speech brought out an important message of resiliency and to “never give up”. I was inspired by his dedication to a vision of inclusion and accessibility for the future, and we all have a role to play to support this vision. What is your role?
| We are very excited to share the news that a huge donation from the PATTISON’s Elevating Voices Media Grant that has been awarded to EDSS. This grant is $100,000 in-kind for outdoor advertising with Pattison Outdoor Advertising. We are busy planning our marketing strategies, and you will soon learn more about the upcoming campaigns, or better yet... you will see us in billboards around the community! We appreciate and thank the Pattison Outdoor Advertising Group for this amazing gift. |  |
| This week I had the pleasure of receiving our donation from the Rotary Club of Edmonton Sunrise. With this donation, every participant in our summer camp will benefit as this $5,000 gift will help us reduce fees by $50 this year. Read more about our 2 new locations both north and south, our amazing themes and field trip plans for summer camp further in the newsletter. |  |
|
We are excited to share that this year’s Walk for Down Syndrome Grand Prize Draw will be two (2) Economy Class tickets, valid for travel to any Air Canada scheduled destination in North America (including Hawaii, Mexico, and the Caribbean), with an approximate value of $4,300. (Include the approved Air Canada Foundation logo). Every registered walker receives one entry into all draw prizes, and for every $100 raised, another prize draw entry is earned. If you have not yet registered and started your fundraising, please do so today. Register Now Here. |
 |
We are excited to share that we have secured new spaces for the full summer of Day Camp on both the north side and south side of Edmonton in partnership with the City of Edmonton. We will be offering full summer 8 weeks of summer Day Camp at the ACT centre on the North side, and the Meadows Recreation Centre on the south side. We will be fully staffed at both locations and registration is now open. We are thankful to the Rotary Club of Edmonton Sunrise who made a generous donation of $5,000 which will allow us to reduce the cost of day camp by $50 per person per week. This program will be eligible for FSCD billing if you have a contract as previous years. Register using the contact@edss.ca email as soon as possible to secure your space for camp.
Further to our member engagement session, I want to share some of the additional highlights we shared with our members during that event.
Advocacy Strategy Updates
When we asked, you shared these urgent priorities:
Health care and service navigation
Challenges accessing consistent, coordinated health care.
- Long wait times for assessments or specialist appointments
- Difficulty finding adult health care providers with Down syndrome expertise
- Support navigating medical systems
- Aging-related health needs
Our focus is to connect with our government and share the work we are doing and what we need their help with to further the voices and needs of our families and their children.
We will be encouraging support to provide better access to primary care for adults who do not have a dedicated medical clinic in the Edmonton region. We will share the research and advancements being made with our partners Global Down Syndrome Foundation and their second version of the medical guidelines for adults with Down syndrome: GLOBAL Medical Care Guidelines for Adults with Down Syndrome | Global Down Syndrome Foundation
50/50 draw for World Down Syndrome Day
Now live and will finish at the Walk for Down Syndrome on Sunday, June 14th. Tickets can be purchased here.
Did you know?
Through the Eye See…Eye Learn program, children in kindergarten are eligible to receive free glasses and frames. Be sure to ask your optometrist about it!
