Darien Woman Teaches Others to Open Their Hearts to People With Disabilities

The first day of school is a universally nerve-wracking milestone. But when Bridget Brown started kindergarten at Mark DeLay Elementary School nearly 20 years ago, it was a first not only for her but for the school, too.

Brown, who turns 25 next week, was the first student with Down syndrome to be integrated into District 61. That monumental day was just the beginning of what has become her life’s work—paving the way for people with disabilities through both her actions and words.

This Darien native's message of hope and perseverance resonated with Hollywood. She was tapped last year for a featured role in LOL, a soon-to-be-released movie starring Miley Cyrus.

But Brown began fighting for the rights of people with disabilities long before her big-screen role.

With her mom, Nancy, Brown founded the consulting service Butterflies for Change that helps schools integrate people with disabilities into classrooms. 

Brown’s a regular on the national speaking circuit, giving the keynote address this past fall at the National Association for Down Syndrome annual conference in Chicago, as well as at a recent medical conference in Texas on Down syndrome in the 21st century. 

She also serves as a global messenger with the Special Olympics, traveling the country teaching people about its opportunities and programs.

“I was blessed with a clear voice, so I have to speak for those who don’t,” Brown said.

Children are born with Down syndrome when they have an extra copy of their DNA’s 21st chromosome, according to the National Down Syndrome Society.

Some serious medical conditions, such as heart defects and Alzheimer’s disease, are more common in people with Down syndrome, according to the society. People with the disability also experience some cognitive delays.

But, in Brown’s words, Down syndrome is not something that she suffers with. 

“I love my life,” Brown said.

In addition to her advocacy efforts, Brown works as an assistant in her father’s dental practice and interns as a children’s dental health educator at the University of Illinois-Chicago dental school. An active athlete, she participates in gymnastics, track, cheerleading, hockey and basketball through Special Olympics.

Finding her voice

Brown's mother, Nancy, realized the power her daughter’s story could have to educate others when the pair traveled to Springfield to deliver a letter to former Gov. George Ryan about disability inclusion.

By coincidence, former Elmhurst Rep. Lee Daniels’ daughter, who also has a disability, spoke to the Illinois House that day advocating for disability services.

“I left there thinking, ‘Oh my gosh,’” Nancy said. “You know how the representatives are always talking when other people are talking—but all of them were quiet when she spoke.”

Until that point, Nancy had been telling her 14-year-old daughter’s story. But she said the experience helped her realize Brown could use her voice. 

“You find a lot of people talking about disabilities, when people with disabilities can talk about themselves,” Nancy said.

Brown has a special way of connecting with people that helps them understand something most know little about, said Cheryl Crosby, a consultant with Project CHOICES. Project CHOICES is an Illinois State Board of Education program that helps integrate students with disabilities into classrooms. Brown frequently speaks through the group.

“Some may come to her presentation with a preconceived notion about what is possible,” Crosby said. “Bridget blows up those paradigms, allowing space for a new way of thinking about educating people with disabilities.”

Brown’s story is central to her speeches as well as the workshops on disability inclusion she runs with Nancy through their consulting service, Butterflies for Change.

From the time Brown was ready for preschool, Nancy advocated for her daughter’s place in the classroom.

In a testament to Darien’s spirit, Nancy said the community embraced Brown at Mark DeLay, and later Lace Elementary School and Hinsdale South. 

“People have helped open doors for her in an amazing way,” Nancy said.

The other children treated Brown kindly, Nancy said, just as the schools’ administrators opened their hearts to her.

And so, using those experiences as a roadmap, Brown teaches educators in schools from South Carolina to Kansas about including students with Down syndrome in their schools.

“The focus is on how they should include them instead of why,” Brown says.

Spreading her wings

A whole new audience will get a chance to open their hearts to Brown when the movie LOL opens this spring.

In the film, scheduled for an April release, Brown plays a daughter in a French family hosting American foreign exchange students.

One of the male students initially treats Brown’s character, Lily, disrespectfully. Later in the film, he undergoes a moral transformation with Lily’s help.

Brown’s a regular on local stages, recently playing the lead in Oliver at the Lyons Township High School Performing Arts Center.

But with LOL, she’s hitting the big time. Her co-stars include Miley Cyrus, Demi Moore and Twilight’s Ashley Greene.

“(Brown’s) part is a rainbow in the storm,” Nancy said of the coming-of-age story.

Just as she initiates a revelation for that exchange student in the film, speech-by-speech and workshop-by-workshop, Brown is helping transform the perceptions and practices of those she meets.

“Because of you,” Brown tells her audiences, “people like me can dwell in the possibilities.”