The following is an excerpt from an article in Ottawa Parenting Times Magazine, which highlights the Carolyn Phillips Fund, a fund at the Ottawa Community Foundation.
When Carolyn Phillips was born with Down syndrome in 1948, her first-time parents had few options to help her.
Her father, Ray Phillips was a naval officer and constant moving was part of family life — difficult for Carolyn, who thrived in a stable and familiar environment. So at age two, Carolyn entered an institution in Orillia where the lack of care resulted in a confrontation between her mother, Beryl Phillips, and the head doctor. It was only after Carolyn was transferred to a facility in Smiths Falls that the importance of physical contact for the young girl was acknowledged and embraced, her mother says.
“For an extroverted and boisterous child like Carolyn who loved people around her, companionship was crucial with lots of familial support,” says Phillips.
Carolyn died in 1960 at age 12, but more than six decades later, her legacy lives on thanks to her mother, who went on to enlist the help of the Ottawa community to find organizations that assist individuals with Down syndrome.
Now 100, Beryl Phillips has never forgotten the challenges she encountered in trying to find suitable support for Carolyn, and for this reason was determined to help families who are experiencing the same challenges today.
The memory of Carolyn now lives on through a fund that has been established within the Ottawa Community Foundation and has benefited organizations like DragonFly, a program of The School of Dance that offers individualized programs in the areas of academics, movement and dance, outdoor education, and visual arts for learners of all ages with Down syndrome.