Levittown resident Ryan Quinn will appear in the bright lights of Broadway on Saturday, Sept. 22, as part of the National Down Syndrome Society (NDSS) annual Times Square Video Presentation.
The video embodies the NDSS mission to promote the value, acceptance and inclusion of people with Down syndrome.
The photo of Ryan, who has Down syndrome, was selected from more than 1,000 entries in the NDSS worldwide call for photos. More than 200 photographs will appear in the video, which will be shown on the News Corporation Sony JUMBOTRON Screen, located in the heart of Times Square.
"I'm happy to share my amazing son with the world, in hopes that by doing so, it helps people to see that he is more like everyone else than he is different," said Ryan's mother, Laura.
Ryan is 13-years-old and currently attends middle school. He is "smart, funny and handsome," and he plays basketball, baseball and flag football. He also loves to play video games with friends and also enjoys music and movies, Laura said.
Ryan is pictured with his sisters Kelsey and Mackenzie on Superbowl XLVI in 2012 cheering on the New York Giants.
"Seeing their faces up on the Jumboton is amazing, but then to see their reaction at seeing themselves up there, larger than life, is just unbelievable," Laura said. "Photos of Ryan have been selected for the video in previous years, and it's always thrilling because the excitement never gets old."
The National Down Syndrome Society is a nonprofit organization with more than 350 affiliates nationwide representing over 400,000 Americans who have Down syndrome.
For more information on the NDSS, please visit www.ndss.org.
