History:

It all began at the home of Nancy Litteken on January 10, 2007.  Most of us had met previously in the lobbies of doctor’s offices, therapy clinics and preschools.  (Because when you recognize another child with Down syndrome, you know there is a mom who needs you – and you need her.)  WE ARE each other’s best resource – we call them trudging buddies.

Nancy envisioned a group of moms who could work together to share ideas to support our children and each other.  We brainstormed and agreed that we needed to do something to make each other’s lives easier – and the ultimate goal was that our children would benefit.  We didn’t know exactly how that would happen, but we were all “on board”.  That’s how it all began. 

Around Nancy's dining room table we planned, publicized, and hosted a one-day conference - “Tools For The Journey” that offered parents and educators literacy strategies for children with Down Syndrome .  Terry Brown of Orange County and Pat Oelwein who wrote the book Teaching Reading to Children with Down Syndrome were the keynote speakers.  We expected about 60-70 people to attend, but the response was overwhelming with over 200 attendees.  Nothing like this had ever been offered before in this community. 

In 2008, we hosted another conference on inclusive education with a turnout that included families and educators from Orange County and speakers from the PREP program in Canada.  The auditorium for the conference was packed.  The voices of families, educators, and community partners begged for more than just annual conferences.   Thus, responding to the need and momentum, Club 21 Learning and Resource Center was created as a non-profit and now serves the Southern California area as an educational resource for children and families with Down syndrome.

To date, this formidable group of mothers have hosted two major all-day conferences (Tools For The Journey), held multiple half-day workshops,  formed a Board of Directors and acquired our non-profit 501(c)3 status and held a fund raising walk-a-thon. And, on March 21, 2009, National Down Syndrome Day, we held our Grand Opening event at our new home on the campus of Pasadena Covenant Church.

We have been blessed with hard work, expertise and the commitment of a handful of incredible people who are not all “mothers”, but who all share the love of our children.  The generosity of our friends and the community as a whole has made all of this possible and we continue to work together to imagine the possibilities...