Project sows a path of hope for Down syndrome adults

Helen O’Callaghan looks at an innovative horticulture project which aims to give work experience to people who have Down syndrome

IT BREAKS his heart when Ray O’Callaghan considers that his 11-year-old daughter won’t have the same opportunities as his sons.

Grace has Down syndrome. She is an amazing child — magical, he says. “If you spend just 10 minutes with her, you’d see it. She has ability.” But the hard reality is that limited choice faces young adults with Down syndrome as they leave child services. “They get so much from the State and various organisations up to age 18 or 20. Then it begins to dwindle. Services drop. Their future is difficult, really tough, as avenues start closing.” It’s not a future the 48-year-old dad and chairman of Down Syndrome Cork wants for Grace. “She is as capable as society wants her to be,” he says. He and wife Brenda have two sons, David, 18, and Harry, 14. “We don’t have to worry much about our two lads. There’s a path for them. In many cases, there’s no path for adults with Down syndrome.” This, he says, isn’t “fair, right or human”.