"I am who am" article

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Gianni

[Photo by Mark Randazzo]

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Grace

[Photo by Mark Randazzo]

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Molly

[Photo by Mark Randazzo]

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Holly Simon and her son, Nate

[Photo by Mark Randazzo]

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Michael

[Photo by Mark Randazzo]

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Henry

[Photo by Mark Randazzo]

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Clare

[Photo by Mark Randazzo]

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Todd Hollis holds Alina, Anne holds Meg, with Noah and Caleb in between

[Photo by Mark Randazzo]

Gianni

I am who I am

When her son Nate was born with Down syndrome, Holly Simon wanted to change how the world saw him and other children like him.
Frustrated that she couldn't change the world on her own despite years of trying, she has now set her sights on something closer to home. Teaming up with photographer Mark Randazzo, the pair photographed children who do not fit, as Simon says, "in the box" for a photo exhibition.
"I want to raise awareness that it is not OK to ever call a child the R word," she says. "I may not ever be able to change the world, but I can make a difference one person at a time."
The photo exhibition is part of Simon's long-standing Holly Days fundraiser, held every year around Nate's birthday, for the National Association of Down Syndrome.
"We all fit," Simon says about the children with Down syndrome and the other children in the exhibition who have unique personalities. "I just want them to be looked at like you look at your own child."