A Special Needs Mom Is Designing A Doll For Children With Down Syndrome

When Hannah Feda was 9 years old, she, like any other little girl, wanted a doll that looked like her. Hannah, now age 13, has Down Syndrome, and finding the right doll for her proved impossible. Now her mother, Connie Feda, is working to remedy that.

Connie has started the Dolls For Downs project - an effort to create dolls that special needs children can love and learn from.

According the project's Facebook page:

"Dolls for Downs creates dolls that kids with Down Syndrome and other disabilities can relate to and call their own. They are created with play and therapy in mind. Dolls for Downs and Disabilities promote acceptance and inclusion through play."

"Our mission is simple. Represent children with disabilities in an honest, favorable light and give kids with disabilities a friend for life."

Connie tells WPXI News in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania that the dolls are designed not just for play, but for therapy as well.

“If you don’t have fine motor skills," she says, "You’re going to develop them. The zippers are real, the buttons are large and there are things that would be on your actual clothing,” Feda said.

The Dolls for Downs project website tagline reads "Because Everybody Deserves a Best Friend". Connie is accepting donations to help get the dolls out to special needs kids and aid in designing new dolls.