A popular magazine recently devoted a four-page spread to Christina Mailhot, a Lewiston-native. Mailhot has Down syndrome, but the article praises her achievements. That she counts me as one of her friends, despite the 57-year gap between us, makes me proud and grateful. She calls herself my “special angel.”

Mailhot is not good at math, but her verbal skills are above average. Quick and insightful, she often comes up with catchy, colorful phrases that are part of her talent as a rapper. She is said to be “high-functioning,” an attainment that did not occur by accident. From the day she was born, I’m told, her mother spent hours stimulating her, challenging her to be the best she could be, asking no more than the angelic smile the baby gave in return. Later, the Lewiston school system and some dedicated teachers joined to give her the best education she was capable of, from kindergarten to Lewiston High School graduation in 1998.

Parents are not given their due when their developmentally disabled children attain high levels of performance. Such parents devote themselves tirelessly to the growth of their handicapped son or daughter. In return, the relationship between parent and child becomes an experience of untarnished love and intensely close bonding.

A sad commentary on our culture is that an estimated 80 to 90 percent of Down syndrome babies are aborted when prenatal screening reveals the possibility or probability for the condition.

Maurice C. Fillion, Lewiston