About Us

Down Syndrome Association of Westchester, Inc. (DSAW) is a New York not-for-profit corporation. DSAW was formed by a group of parents who wanted to expand the resources available to persons living in Westchester who have Down syndrome and their families. DSAW also seeks to raise public awareness of Down syndrome and foster greater acceptance of persons with Down syndrome. DSAW is an affiliate of the National Down Syndrome Society and the National Down Syndrome Congress.

DSAW is not the first Down syndrome support group to be formed in Westchester. For approximately thirty (30) years, there has been an existing Down syndrome parent support group, the Parents Assistance Committee for Down Syndrome (PACDS). PACDS is a committee of Westchester ARC. PACDS was formed in the 1970's by Barbara Levitz and Emily Kingsley. Since its formation, PACDS has provided support to persons in Westchester and surrounding communities who have Down syndrome. Over the years, PACDS has run a

Down syndrome hotline, provided new parent packets, provided hospital visits to new parents by specially trained volunteers, sent out periodic newsletters, and performed a host of other services to support persons with Down syndrome and their families.

In 2004, a group of parents formed DSAW to provide further support and assistance to persons in Westchester and surrounding communities who have Down syndrome. DSAW will not duplicate the efforts currently being undertaken by PACDS. Rather, DSAW's goal is to raise funds to better support the programs currently being run by PACDS and to fund new and expanded programs for persons with Down syndrome both through PACDS and throughout the community.

In addition to fund-raising, DSAW seeks to raise public awareness about Down syndrome. Despite there being more than 350 persons with Down syndrome living in Westchester, there is little done in Westchester to raise public awareness of Down syndrome or to promote acceptance of persons with Down syndrome. Through its fund-raising efforts and through partnerships with local businesses, municipalities and school districts, DSAW hopes to raise both the awareness and acceptance of persons with Down syndrome throughout our community.

This web site is the first success of DSAW. Through this web site, DSAW is able to reach out to the community and let people know that there is a local support group and that there are numerous services available in Westchester. While this initial website only scratches the surface of what we hope to accomplish, it is an important first step in reaching out to the community.