Dougie is the second of three sons and he has grown up sandwiched tightly between two boisterous and physical brothers. He was part of the rough and tumble of boyhood and if he wanted to join in, he had to play by their rules. Dougie was diagnosed with Down Syndrome at birth and with a hole in his heart at 10 weeks. He was a puny, non-
thriver for the first months of his life.
Superb care by Prof Solly Levin, Dr Joan Wagener and Prof John Robbs saw him having open heart surgery at exactly nine months old and he hasn’t looked back. He has grown into a diminutive but physically competitive sportsman in many different sports; his highlight currently being third in Table Tennis at national level.
Shortly after he was born, I joined a group of parents who also had newborn Downs. We started stimulating activities with them and invited well well-known Rex Brinkworth from the UK to visit and guide us. Dougie started going to Sunshine Centre, a pre-school in Johannesburg funded largely by the Anglo America Chairman’s fund, when he was 19 months old. There he got one-on-one attention from professionals and a team of wonderful volunteers. His early years were rich.
His very first encounter with Sunfield was when I sent him to board at Sunfield School in Verulam at the age of 7. There were a number of young children there at that time and he thrived. There he met lifetime friends Benji Worrall, Aimee Dell, David Jones and others. The annual concerts were a treat and Dougie, with his grin and shock of light blonde hair, took to the stage like a natural! He still loves performing and being in the spotlight: give him half a chance and he’ll grab the microphone and deliver a speech.
He loved Sunfield School, but sadly circumstances forced me to take him out and place him at an Afrikaans school, Eureka, in Vereeniging for the next ten years. The best thing to happen there was his improvement in sports as most of the pupils were able-bodied and very competitive. But his speech development was affected because of the different language, and I was delighted when I relocated to Durban and Dougie returned to the haven of Sunfield School. He reconnected with his friends and life was happily back on track for the next three years.
When I got the call from Sunfield Home Howick when Dougie was 21, I was apprehensive. It’s a big move to adult care. This is conceivably where he will spend the rest of his life. I needn’t have worried. Dougie didn’t even look back when I drove out of the gates and has been extremely happy to be part of the Sunfield Howick family since then. The Home has gone from strength to strength over the twenty years Dougie’s been there and keeps on getting better. The structure, the home-from-home feel, the diversity of opportunity and activities delivered with so much love and care are unbeatable. Dougie’s totally engrossed in Sunfield and the people who are part of it, and he couldn’t be happier. Neither could his brothers and I. We all thank Sunfield for producing such a well-rounded young man, happy in his own skin and living his best life.
When Dougie was born, I thought my world had imploded and my life was over. How wrong I was. Dougie is a light in my life. His laughter means everything. He’s travelled the world with me and the family and is a wonderful ambassador for Down Syndrome wherever he goes. And he is loved and cherished. Deeply.
Thank you to all who’ve done so much for him along his journey.
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Have any questions? Call or email our General Manager, Don Tully.