Kathryn McGee, Date of Birth, Date of Death
TweetKathryn McGee
Activist; Down Syndrome foundation founder
Date of Birth: 
About Kathryn McGee
- Kathryn "Kay" McGee (née Greene, May 6, 1920 in Chicago, Illinois – February 16, 2012 in River Forest, Illinois) was an American activist, recognized for founding two of the first organizations for the benefit of those with Down Syndrome.
- She worked seeking recognition, rights and opportunities for people with Down Syndrome. The birth of her fourth child, Tricia McGee, on March 16, 1960 commenced a decades long effort to bring parents of children with Down Syndrome together to create medical and educational options for such children.
- Tricia McGee was diagnosed as a mongoloid shortly after birth, which is what doctors called a person with Down Syndrome when Tricia was born, but is now considered an insult.
- Down Syndrome is a genetic disorder that was first described in 1866 by British doctor John L.
- Down.
- It was discovered to be caused by an extra chromosome by French pediatrician Jérôme Lejeune in July 1958, less than two years before Tricia was born.
- Medical advice in 1960 was typically to institutionalize children with Down Syndrome.
- After Tricia's birth in 1960, the family pediatrician recommended that the McGees place her in an institution rather than bring her home from the hospital.
- A few years later when he saw her functioning well at the Alcuin Montessori School in River Forest, Illinois, he explained that he had been told in medical school to make that recommendation to people, and said that he would never do so again.
- After bringing Tricia home and adjusting to the reality that such an infant faces exceptional developmental challenges, Kay and Martin attempted to learn about Down Syndrome and find similarly situated parents in the Chicago area.
Read more at Wikipedia