She writes the songs: “I want people to understand the things I can do and not focus on the things I can’t,” says Melissa Riggio, 18, with her father, Barnes & Noble CEO Steve Riggio.
By Ryan Holeywell, USA TODAY
Steve Riggio’s daughter Melissa is a senior in high school who works at the YMCA, sings in the school chorus and is a member of the swim team. She’s just like millions of students nationwide, and that’s exactly what Riggio wants others to understand.
Melissa, 18, has Down syndrome, and her father, the CEO of book retailer Barnes & Noble, has helped launch a campaign aimed to show the public that people with the disorder aren’t that unusual and can lead normal lives.
“We’re trying to show young children … that individuals with Down syndrome are more alike than they are different,” he says. “They have the same interests … the same hopes and dreams.”
Down syndrome occurs when a child is born with three copies of the 21st chromosome instead of two, which alters the course of development. People with Down syndrome have varying degrees of mental retardation, generally from mild to moderate, the National Down Syndrome Society says.
Down syndrome occurs in one in 733 live births. More than 350,000 people in the USA have it.
More than 500 Barnes & Noble stores have scheduled events in February and March for children ages 6 to 8. The Lincoln Triangle store in New York hosted a reading Monday of a children’s book about Down syndrome; a talk from Melissa; a singalong with Bob McGrath, one of the original hosts of Sesame Street; and a performance by British singer/songwriter Rachel Fuller, who has recorded two songs featuring lyrics written by Melissa.
Fuller is working on turning Melissa’s lyrics into a third song, which she says might include a guitar solo from her partner, The Who’s Pete Townshend. Fuller says Melissa is one of the best lyricists she has ever worked with.
Melissa’s lyrics “blew my mind,” Fuller says. “They’re deep, they’re inspired and incredibly moving.”
Melissa says she hopes to inspire others who have Down syndrome while promoting acceptance of people who have the disorder.
“I want people to understand the things I can do and not focus on the things I can’t,” she says.
Riggio says he encourages parents of people with Down syndrome to try not to impose limitations on them.
“They can achieve a lot more than anyone would have thought 20 or 30 years ago,” he says. “And there’s more to come.”
The Ring
I’m in the Ring outside
I’m following my belief
I’m looking at the sky
I saw God following my heart
I’m an ordinary woman
The Ring is falling down my way
The wind is blowing me away
The Ring is falling down, down my way
The wind is blowing me away
And so I came back to
The center of the Ring
Am I just a broken angel?
God has sent me here to heal
To be an ordinary woman
Poem by Melissa Riggio
Set to music and recorded by Rachel Fuller
