Donate Through Cassandra’s 3/21 Pledge Page Here!

Hi there! I’m Cassandra Allred and this is our crazy team. I’m the voice and the clicks behind the photos I send out to the world via Instagram. Tessa Mae (the star of our family) is number four out of five blue-eyed babes. Tessa recently turned five years old, and she is loved fiercely by anyone who is lucky enough to know her.

Never in a million years did I think I would be dealt a “special needs” card. Tessa’s diagnosis at 20 weeks came as a heartbreaking shock. I was devastated and terrified; I knew nothing about Down syndrome. My saving grace during those long months of pregnancy was discovering families through social media and falling in love with one set of almond eyes after another.

Turns out that having a child with Down syndrome doesn’t mean your life is over. It might even mean that your life is very rich, and very beautiful, and very happy. Maybe even sweeter than you could have ever imagined. Turns out that Down syndrome just means you have an extra chromosome, and life goes on with the same typical ups and downs as most families experience. And turns out there’s actually MAGIC living in that bit of “extra” anyway, so you really just hit the lottery.

I often think of my past as “before + after” Down syndrome because it has changed me so completely. It has opened my eyes, my mind, and my world in a way that I could never go back. When you go through something like finding out that your newborn baby will have to face the world with a disability, it changes you. You want to climb the highest mountain and swim to the depths of the sea. Suddenly, you were meant to change stereotypes, to advocate for inclusion, to send every deserving capable human to college! You were born to change the world and everyone around you because this is YOUR kid!

Tessa has taught me to see my community and those around me in a completely different light. We are all struggling, we all have special needs, we are all human and we are all so very imperfect. Let’s rally together and soar. I don’t know what Tessa’s future holds, but if the first four years are any indication, we have an amazing ride ahead. Taking the 3/21 Pledge fills me with pride and optimism for Tessa’s future. Knowing that there’s an organization like Ruby’s Rainbow helping people with Down syndrome reach their dreams and their full potential means everything. I want to be right here yelling it from the rooftops: People with Down syndrome are worthy and capable of reaching the stars, just like anyone else. Ruby’s Rainbow! Let’s GO!