Gigi’s Playhouse opens in El Paso

It’s the first of its kind in Texas. Gigi’s Playhouse has opened in El Paso.

The center is where hundreds of Borderland people with Down syndrome can learn and play. It is a free, positive-energy educational center for children with Down syndrome and their families, according to a news release. The center shows families they are not alone but are a part of a global community.

It was standing room only inside Gigi’s Playhouse during the grand opening Sunday afternoon. The center is pioneering the way to bring about 1,700 Borderland families together.

“I was devastated,” Charlene Lopez said about when she learned of her son’s Down syndrome diagnosis. “I’m kind of ashamed to say that now that I have more experience with him. He’s brought us nothing but joy. He is awesome. He surprises us every day. He is a lot of fun, too.”

One in 700 newborns across the U.S. is born with Down syndrome. Lopez is looking forward to taking her 16-month-old son, Ethan, to Gigi’s Playhouse as often as possible so he can take part in recreational programming, health classes, educational outreach and career skills development, all free of charge.

“This is a project that I’ve been with for a year. Just to see it come to fruition, to see how excited the kids and families are, it makes me really happy,” Dana Irwin Carmona of the Junior League of El Paso said. Along with donating $60,000 to open the center, the organization provided 20 volunteers.

El Paso’s Gigi’s Playhouse is the 23rd location and the first in the state of Texas. Their motto is “One child, one diagnosis, one community at a time.”

Gigi herself made an appearance at the grand opening with her mother, Nancy Gianni, who founded Gigi’s Playhouse in Chicago. Gianni is the current president and CEO of Gigi’s Playhouse.

The goal is to have 30 Gigi’s Playhouses running by the end of the year.