BOSTON —

Jenaya Chery is nearly 2 years old, her mother Jenna Moretti said she is a spitfire.

"She has a big personality for a little person,” she said.

Moretti added that she now knows her daughter’s Down syndrome is a blessing.

"There's something inside of her that's radiant,” she said. “I feel like her extra chromosome makes her extra special, and it's a superpower."

But Moretti said when her doctor delivered Jenaya's diagnosis, there was a lot of fear.

“He made it seem like it was a terrible thing,” she said. “I was scared; I was nervous. I didn't know what to expect."

Victoria Swillum, who works for Best Buddies Massachusetts and Rhode Island, said that has been the experience of too many parents.

"A lot of people, when they hear a diagnosis, it's not always delivered with lov

See Full Page