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A Special Student

Born with Down syndrome, Danny Friedman
thrives at JAM-D.

RHONDA SPECTOR
Special to the Jewish News

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ven though it is obvious that
Danny Friedman is different
from his classmates at the
Jewish Academy of Metropolitan
Detroit (JAMD), it is not necessarily
his special needs that make Danny
unique. In order to fully understand
who Danny is and what makes him so
special it is helpful to know a little bit
of Danny's history.
Before Danny was born, he was con-
sidered to be extraordinary. Unfortu-
nately, his unique disposition was due
to the fact that while in the womb,
Danny had water around his heart.
When Danny was born, he weighed
only three pounds. The medical staff
informed Linda, Danny's mother, that
because of her child's fragile state she
would not be able to see her baby
immediately.
After much insistence, Linda was
permitted to visit her tiny child in the
intensive care unit..The nurse who was
responsible for Danny's care quietly
explained that she could "do the
humane thing" and "pull the plug" on
Danny as she was certain that Danny
would never be able to walk, talk or
function normally.
Despite the fact that Danny's moth-
er was out of sorts having just had a
baby, she could not believe her ears.
No matter what the cost, Linda
would never give up on her child.
Seventeen years and some odd months
later, it is miraculous to look back on
Danny's progress and to not only see
him walk and talk in English, but to
watch him sing, act, have meaningful
conversations about religious matters
and learn Hebrew.

Rhonda Spector of Oak Park worked as
a paraprofessional with Danny
Friedman when he was a part-time
student at the Jewish Academy of
Metropolitan Detroit during the past
school year. She is working on a mas-
ter's degree at Columbia University
Teacher's College in New York. Danny
started as a full-time student at JAMD
last month. This story is reprinted from
the June 10 issue of Sof Shavua, the
JAMD newsletter.

Being With Danny

It would be negligent to pretend that
Down syndrome, which occurs when
there is an extra chromosome in the
21st pair of chromosomes, doesn't
distinguish Danny from others.
Physically, Danny has all of the char-
acteristics of a person with Down
syndrome, including upward and
outward slanted eyes and a wide
•
bridge.
Furthermore, on a cognitive level,
Danny processes information at a
slightly slower rate. For example,
when someone says "hi" to him in the
hall, it may take Danny a full
moment to first grasp what the person
has said, find the appropriate response
and then figure out the means to
express it verbally.
Although communicating is
arguably one of Danny's biggest barri-
ers, his interactions are what keep him
wanting to come back to school each

