A model with Down syndrome fulfills her fashion week dream
NEW YORK (AP) — Marian Avila, a 21-year-old Spanish model with Down syndrome, fulfilled her dream to walk at New York Fashion Week thanks to an Atlanta designer she met through the magic of social media.
And she did it with flair Saturday in the ballroom of a Midtown hotel in evening looks of red and gold, her parents and siblings in the audience and other models who have challenges by her side.
"I felt really happy and I really loved the runway," Avila said through a translator after the Saturday show. "I wanted to show the world that there are no barriers."
No barriers for women of all kinds is Talisha White's mission, as a designer focused on prom, pageant and special occasion outfits and as an active pageant contestant as well.