NNNNatalie Fuller strutted downthe runway with all the dazzle of herfamous supermodel aunt, BeverlyJohnson.In a very formal, silver-grayish

dress with a black lace trimmed hemthat hung just past the knees, and longlocks of curly hair coming down toher shoulders, Natalie walked thewalk. She even blew kisses to theaudience.It was exciting for 23-year-old

Natalie, who has Down syndrome, tobe in the spotlight.Johnson and her niece were part of

the star-studded fashion show, BeBeautiful Be Yourself Jet Set FashionShow, on Oct. 15 at the Hyatt RegencyConvention Center in downtownDenver. The event is an annual dinnerfundraiser for the Global DownSyndrome Foundation benefiting theLinda Crnic Institute for DownSyndrome. Other celebrities of theevening were music icon QuincyJones, actor/singer Jamie Foxx, andactor John McGinley, along with a fewprofessional athletes from the DenverBroncos and Colorado Rapids.Johnson is the first African-

American supermodel to grace thecover of Vogue magazine, back in 1974.Her fame expanded for three decades,as she went from supermodel toactress, author, activist, business-woman, and icon in the fashion indus-

try. She has a new television showcoming out in 2012, and will be fea-tured in Tyler Perry’s new movie GoodDeeds coming out in February. She isalso the mother of a now 30-year-olddaughter, Anansa.Johnson donates her time to AIDS

awareness and health issues affectinggay men. She was appointed theAmbassador of Goodwill in theFashion Industry to help eliminatesweatshops and the nationalspokesperson for Ask4Tell4, which isa campaign to educate women aboutoptions in treating uterine fibroids, apainful condition that affected her formore than 10 years.Only a year ago, Johnson found

herself wanting to get more involvedwith the Global Down SyndromeFoundation. She called her niece,Natalie, to see if she would walkdown the runway in this year’s fash-ion show.Johnson first understood what

Down syndrome meant when grow-ing up with a cousin with the condi-tion.“She was the star of the family. She

was the funny one,” Johnson said ofher cousin. “So when my sister Joannegave birth to Natalie, we gatheredaround to be as supportive as wecould. Now Natalie is our superstar.”Johnson’s sister, Sheila Wright,

added, “The one thing about ourcousin, she was never treated any dif-ferent. She was in regular school anddidn’t even know that she was differ-ent. And we did the same thing withNatalie.”Wright who works in the educa-

tional system sought out special pro-grams for her niece, Natalie, who livesin Georgia. “The life expectancy for all Down

Syndrome is less than regular childrenbut even more so for African-American children. Parents don’t getthe information to access the pro-grams, medical care, and insurance.They don’t know their child can stayin school until age 21, get placed on ajob and be trained. The programs arethere,” said Wright about the need formore awareness about Down syn-drome.

“That is what is so fantastic aboutthis program with the Global DownSyndrome Foundation and finding outour struggles weren’t unique acrossthe spectrum,” Johnson stated. “Thiskind of event helps shine the spotlightand helps get the attention of the gov-ernment.”Down syndrome is currently the

least funded of genetic diseases by theNational Health Institute, according tothe foundation.Natalie’s mother, Joanne

Richardson, said the first thing that aparent is asked when their child isborn with Down syndrome is, ‘Do youwant to institutionalize your child?’ “It brought tears to my eyes when

the doctor came to my room afterNatalie was born and asked me if heshould get the paperwork ready forher to be institutionalized. I said ‘Noway,’” Richardson said.She added that she was told so many

negative things about what her daugh-ter wouldn’t be able to do. “When Igave birth to Natalie, I was devastated,and I am not going to say that I wasn’t.My mother and father sent me this cardthat said God gave me a very specialgift, so make wise use of this gift. Fromthat day forward, I went in the directionof making sure Natalie is all that shecould possibly be.” Natalie spends a lot of time with

her family and her boyfriend. Sheattends Hi-Hope Service Center inLawrenceville, Ga., where she contin-ues her education and learns socialskills. Another superstar on the runway

was DeOndra Dixon, 27, who hasDown syndrome and happens to beJamie Foxx’s little sister. There was no doubt DeOndra knew

what to do in posing, fluffing out herhair ,and having that distinctive walkand big attitude like only models do.Her escort down the runway was MissColorado Diana Dreman.DeOndra loves shaking it. She was

seen on stage dancing with her broth-er Jamie Foxx during the 2010Grammy Awards, and was featured inhis video to the song “Blame It (Onthe Alcohol).”

Continued on page 10Denver Urban Spectrum — www.denverurbanspectrum.com – November 2011

9

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Stars Come Out At Be Beautiful BeYourself Fashion Show

Beverly Johnson’s Niece & Jamie Fox’s Sister Share Spotlight At Down Syndrome FundraiserBy Sheila Smith

Beverly Johnson and Natalie FullerPhoto by Jamie Cotton

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