Unity Day celebrated at MCC
By Sheila Crowley
Murray County News Staffwriter
Unity Day, the signature event of National Bullying Prevention Month, has been recognized in the United States since 2011. To participate in Unity Day, individuals, schools, communities, and businesses wear or display orange to show support for students who have been bullied. Statistics show one in five school-age children report being bullied at school.
On Wednesday, October 24th, four families appeared in the auditorium to share their stories regarding their children with disabilities. The event was organized by MCC TEAM (Together Everyone Achieves More) to help others realize the importance of inclusiveness. Kelly Konechne, Lauren Biegler, Trish Grieme, along with Chad and Cari Larson were the presenters.
Kelly Konechne, a former MCC graduate, appeared before the student body to share her story of her two children, Teddy (3 years) and Joe (3 months). She opened with sharing the story of Teddy who was diagnosed Achondroplasia a form of dwarfism. She explained the average height of a little person is 4’2”. Kelly shared some of the characteristics of a little person with short in stature being one of the obvious. Teddy also has a slightly larger head than a child of his age along with shorter arms and legs and smaller facial features. Shortly after his birth, Kelly and Chris became involved in the Little Persons of America program allowing them the opportunity to connect with a community of people to learn from and bounce ideas off of.
Their son, Joe, born this past August and shortly after his birth they learned Joe has Down’s Syndrome. Children with this diagnosis have a third chromosome, 21, and leads to learning differently. One of the characteristics leading to Joe’s diagnosis was the slanting of his eyes along with a single crease deep across the palm on his hand and a flattened facial profile.
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