From gold medalist to runway model, Sailor Tracey is having a heck of a year — and she’s only 12.
A sixth grader at The Basilica School, Sailor and her sister, Sloan, just returned from the Special Olympics statewide games in Ocala, where they earned gold medals in a unified swimming relay that pairs a Special Olympics athlete with a partner without intellectual disabilities. Sailor also earned silver and bronze medals in individual swimming events.
Sailor has Down syndrome, but it doesn’t define her. Not at all. She’s a fiercely competitive athlete, an avid reader and a talented swimmer. She’s also an advocate for people with Down syndrome, although she didn’t mean to be. It’s just who she is, an example of what’s possible.
Every day, Sailor shows what inclusion looks like in the classroom, on the field and in the pool. She has also helped raise more than $150,000 through Ruby’s Rainbow, which provides scholarships to people with Down syndrome who want to attend college, like Sailor.
Her compassion, optimism and determination quickly caught the attention of the Global Down Syndrome Foundation, a nonprofit organization dedicated to improving the lives of people with Down syndrome, which is the least-funded genetic condition in the United States, making the foundation’s fundraising and government advocacy efforts crucial.
The nonprofit’s annual fashion show, Be Beautiful. Be Yourself, is the single-largest annual fundraiser benefitting people with Down syndrome. The event is designed to highlight the funding disparity in Down syndrome research while emphasizing the abilities of people with Down syndrome.
Since 2009, the show has raised an estimated $33 million — and Sailor Tracey will be one of this year’s 21 runway models, young men and women of varying ages, all of whom have Down syndrome. She was chosen from among several hundred applicants.
“Sailor is a kind and brave 12-year-old from Key West, Florida, fearlessly pursuing her dreams,” states the bio that appears with her photo on the foundation’s website. “Sailor loves her family deeply and has the superpower of making everyone feel seen and valued. Sailor is thriving in full inclusion where she is a tenacious learner and passionate reader, who loves learning about inspirational women. She is also a highly competitive athlete, competing alongside her typical peers in several sports and dreams of winning gold in swimming at the Special Olympics.”
Sailor is awaiting the arrival of three dresses that she and her mom ordered for her runway debut.
“I really hope she likes the yellow and blue one, because those are the colors for Down syndrome advocacy,” Tracy said, adding that October is not just for breast cancer awareness. It’s also Down Syndrome Awareness Month.
The Be Beautiful, Be Yourself fashion show takes place Nov. 7 in Denver, Colorado, a place the Tracey sisters have never seen, having grown up in Ohio, then Texas and now Key West.
Visit bebeautifulbeyourself.org/ for details about the foundation and fashion show. And stay tuned to keysweekly.com for photos of Sailor Tracey’s runway debut on Nov. 7.
