‘It means you’re special’

On paper, Tessa Kniep of Mount Ayr sounds like the everyday 20 year old. She likes swimming and playing video games, works part time at Clearview Homes in Mount Ayr and is obsessed with WWE. She even has a couple state track championships under her belt. However, Tessa has Down syndrome.

Today celebrates World Down Syndrome Day, a worldwide holiday to celebrate people with Down syndrome, raise awareness and advocate for the rights and inclusion of those with Down syndrome.

Despite having this diagnosis from birth, Tessa didn’t know she was different from anyone else for more than half her life.

“We decided early on that we would not tell her that she had Down syndrome because we did not want her to use it as an excuse not to be just like everybody else,” Tessa’s mom Shaun Kniep said. “She actually did not know that she had Down syndrome until she was going into seventh grade.”

Tessa’s twin sister Jillian actually found out first, after asking why, since they were twins, the two didn’t look the same. Shaun and her husband Clint decided to explain the diagnosis to Tessa prior to entering seventh grade.

“We were telling her and she said, ‘Well, what does that mean?’ We said, ‘it means that you’re special’ and she’s like, ‘OK!’ That was pretty much it,” Shaun said.

But what is Down syndrome? Typically, a human body contain’s 23 pairs of chromosomes in each cell. Down syndrome occurs when a person’s 21st chromosome is either halved or doubled. World Down Syndrome Day is celebrated on March 21 because of this, with a majority of the people with this diagnosis having three chromosomes.

According to the National Down Syndrome Society, about one in every 775 babies born in the United States are diagnosed with Down syndrome, about 5,000 babies a year.

Though every person with Down syndrome is different, symptoms can include cognitive and developmental delays, medical conditions such as heart defects or eye problems and non-typical physical features.

Despite these possible difficulties, Tessa has never let Down syndrome stand in her way. Her parents let her know growing up that she was capable of anything.

“We told her, ‘you cannot use this as an excuse not to do anything because you are just like everybody else. You can do everything that everybody else does, and we expect you to do everything that everybody else does.’” Shaun said.

As an adult, Tessa has a busy life. On Mondays, she volunteers at the nursing home Clearview Homes in Mount Ayr, where she assists the activities director. The rest of the week, she attends Ringgold County Supportive Service.

RCSS serves adults with different intellectual disabilities, providing them with a chance to socialize, gain life skills and simply have fun.

“She goes at nine and then they do activities in the morning and then they have lunch and they will go to Creston to swim, they’ll go bowling uptown, they’ll go to the movies, they’ll go do crafts every day,” Shaun said. “It’s just kind of a day program that gets them out into the community and gives them something to do. She just loves it.”

During the spring, Tessa also joins the Mount Ayr High School track team at practices to prepare for Special Olympics.

“I’m a four- or five-time state champion for the Special Olympics. I did the 50-meter dash and standing long jump. It was so fun; I’m doing it again,” Tessa said. “I go to track practice and I get ready for that.”

Shaun said track coach Brad Elliot expects Tessa at every practice, similar to his other athletes. Tessa’s next Special Olympics will be in April, leading up to the state competition in May.

“Coach Brad called me and said that he was proud of me and he had two state champions in track, me and Ryce Reynolds,” Tessa said.

While the past year has been hard for the Kniep family after the loss of Clint in January 2024, Shaun, Tessa and Jillian have kept busy with each other, finding joy in many aspects of life.

For Christmas, the family adopted a golden retriever puppy, who Tessa named “Goose.” And in May, Tessa will be living her dream with a trip to Des Moines to see the WWE Friday Night Smackdown.

“I’m excited! It will be my second time,” Tessa said.

While there can be a negative stigma around Down syndrome, Tessa shows every day that those with the diagnosis can live a happy and fulfilling life.

“If you see somebody with Down syndrome, always be kind and always say hello,” Shaun said.

For more information on how to celebrate or offer support for World Down Syndrome Day, visit ndss.org/racing-for-3-21.