How singing superstar Wendy found her calling
Meet Wendy, opening act of our 25th birthday advert. Growing up, Wendy, 27, and her twin brother David were inseparable. Their mother Wanda explains she always had high hopes and dreams for her children, but with Wendy’s Down’s Syndrome, she wondered if these might have to be scaled back.
When her twin brother went to university a gap was left in Wendy’s life, so her mother took her along to The Music Man, a National Lottery-funded project supported through Southend Mencap that provides music education for people with learning disabilities.
After her first lesson, Wanda went to collect her daughter, but she couldn’t find her in the classroom. After much searching, she found her in the main hall, sat on the edge of the stage. She looked at her mum, with a smile on her face and said “This is me”. She’d found a place she could be herself.
From that moment on Wendy has flourished. Being part of The Music Man gives her a purpose: she sings, she’s developed her music skills and as an ambassador for the group, she travels all over the country, helping other people with learning difficulties see what they can achieve.
And ‘achieve’ is something she’s done by the bucket-load with her fellow Music Man members – from performing at the Royal Albert Hall to securing a world record for the most triangles played together, and now she’s starring in our very own 25th birthday commercial.
26th October 2019
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