Meet The Maximizers

Charlie French is a 29-year old abstract artist currently living and working in Dallas, TX. 

Zoey began to draw when she was about three, but by age six her skills were really blossoming!  Now nine, she spends most days drawing in her art notebook quite a bit - always eager to show us her latest works of art!  She also loves to color, paint, and do crafts - as well as play barbies, go to the park, swim, see movies, spend time with friends, and so much more!!

Adam Arnsten Delli-Bovi was born on June 5, 1981. He has Down syndrome.  He lives in Ithaca, NY with his mother and stepfather and two cats.  Adam works in a supervised work setting.  He is currently involved with a self-sustaining flower bouquet business called Ability in Bloom.

Gabe has been diagnosed with NPC (Niemann-Picks Type C). NPC symptoms include: gaze palsy, loss of cognition, swallow/speech, motor control and balance. When he was in high school he held quarterback sack records in same school as a famous NFL player of today. Gabe also enjoyed skateboarding. The disease took this from him. He wants to create a legacy with his art that will inspire and persevere. 

“WooHoo!” Words to live by, and our son, Caleb Prewitt, certainly takes them to heart each day. Living life to it’s fullest is something we all strive to do, right? Caleb might just have the answer, along with others, it seems, who happen to have his condition, Down syndrome.

Rosemary is 13 years young, born on May 4, 2004. Although she had a normal pregnancy, ultrasound, and delivery, after birth she was diagnosed with multiple congenital anomalies (birth defects), and spent her first three weeks in the NICU at Riley Children’s Hospital in Indianapolis.

As many people with Autism, Joe found a passion as a young kid. It is art, especially ink drawing. Joe’s high school experience was cut short due to Epilepsy, but he did eventually graduate in 2019! In 2020, while COVID kept everyone at home, Joe’s mom and he designed an art studio out of a bedroom, creating Artfully Joe. He is selling his art now! Joe’s mom, Colleen, is his manager.

Mark is twenty-four years old. He has overcome many obstacles in his life and continues to grow everyday. Artwork is a way for Mark to be expressive in his ideas and way of thinking. With the help of Jake Max, it furthers his outlet to do so. Mark is always eager to make new friends to share his stories with!

What defines Kelly is not her disability, but her ability to love and be kind to others.  She is able to do what so many of us struggle with, which is telling people how much she loves them; Kelly is the definition of unconditional love. All of these traits are why her classmates voted her their Homecoming Queen this year. 

Now at 16 months old, Kitty never ceases to amaze us. She’s a whole person, living a whole little toddler life, with her three brothers and parents. She has just a little extra. Kitty is full of personality and attitude! 

Charlotte, "Charlie" has always done things her way; From playing and making new friends, participating in therapies and attending dance classes, Charlie likes to do things independently. She loves the beach and will walk for hours across the sand or sit and splash through the waves until the sun sets. It's one of her absolute favorite things to do besides painting or playing with her sisters.

Ellie is a light. She radiates joy and relishes the everyday ordinary. Ellie asks everyone she meets ‘how are you doing?’, and, actually waits for a response. She is devoid of judgement. We like to say her “super power” is compassion. She can sense sadness and pain in others, and is quick to offer words of encouragement, a touch or a hug.  It was not surprising when she wrote her poem, titled, “Friends” which inspired her role as a Maximizer.