5 Darien People Who Inspired Us in 2011

Many adults wouldn’t have the presence of mind to give the Heimlich maneuver if they saw someone choking. Yet at 12-years-old, Cid Sumaydeng instinctively jumped to action when food became lodged in a classmate’s throat during lunch at . Cid saved his friend’s life and became a school-wide hero.

From the time she was a child, Bridget Brown has been breaking down barriers. In the early 90s, the 25-year-old was the first student with Down syndrome to attend District 61 schools. Today she travels the country giving a voice to people with disabilities through the Special Olympics and events such as the National Association for Down syndrome annual conference. In 2012, she will appear alongside Miley Cyrus in the feature film LOL.

She’s one of the most well known people in Darien – and it’s all because of her generous heart. Jennifer Giacalone clocked in a full day of work each day of DarienFest this year before heading straight to her shift as an employee at Dominick’s. Giacalone received an award at DarienFest this year from the Darien Chamber of Commerce, recognizing her for her years of service to the fair. “She deserved to be on that stage more than anyone,” said chamber President Clare Bongiovanni.

When Paula Evans’ daughter Ainsley was diagnosed with Angelman syndrome, the Darien mom was told there was no cure for the rare disorder. Evans refused to accept that and has worked tirelessly during the past four years to raise money for AS research. This year the Foundation for Angelman Syndrome Therapeutics won a $250,000 grant from the Vivint Gives Back Project — exactly how much researchers need to fund a clinical trial of a drug that has cured AS in mice.

Steve Stimac decided it was finally time to retire from the this year. But it wasn’t just any retirement. Stimac, who joined the park district 20 years ago, was 90-years-old when he left his job as a maintenance man in April. The self-professed “wild man” didn’t plan to take it too easy, however: He’d already been offered a position doing odd jobs at a retirement community in Oswego. Stimac, unsurprisingly, was considering the offer.