Karrie Brown, Teen With Down Syndrome, Is The New Model For Clothing Brand Wet Seal
![Karrie Brown in Wet Seal outfit](https://d.medicaldaily.com/en/full/257643/karrie-brown-wet-seal-outfit.jpg?w=720&f=9d360fa840a4bd9417c67a052c3cc82f)
Modeling for your favorite clothing brand could be a dream you entertained as a teenager, or even as an adult. For 17-year-old Karrie Brown of Collinsville, Ill., her dream became a reality when Wet Seal, her favorite clothing brand, offered her the chance of a lifetime. The teen with Down syndrome was going to have her very own Wet Seal photo shoot modeling the clothes that she loves.
Karrie's modeling gig all started on Aug. 12 when her mother, Sue, posted a picture of her daughter wearing the clothes on Facebook, the Huffington Post reports. Sue’s friends commented on the picture noticing how the clothes complemented Karrie’s look. The Facebook commentators all asked where her daughter’s outfit came from, and Sue simply told them Wet Seal.
Sue was convinced by her friends to turn Karrie’s dreams into a reality by starting a Facebook page called "Karrie Brown - Modeling the Future" to get Wet Seal’s attention.
"She immediately caught our attention," Wet Seal's Yasmin Ezaby told ABC News. "We then asked our fans to get Karrie's Facebook page to 10k likes and we would give her the trip of a lifetime. She exceeded this goal in two days."
Karrie’s page immediately exceeded 10,000 Likes and currently stands at 20,000 Likes.
The Wet Seal corporate office told the Browns that they would go on an all-expenses-paid trip to the company’s headquarters in Los Angeles for a professional photo shoot and a trip to Disneyland.
For the photo shoot, Karrie had a simple request as Wet Seal’s new model — to have the music of iconic pop star Justin Bieber playing in the background. "She asked for Justin Bieber so she could sing and dance while shooting," Ezaby told ABC News. "It was loads of fun. She was a natural in front of the camera."
"She comes to life when the camera is on her,” Sue told KMOV, a local station in St. Louis, Mo. “I was told by this geneticist to never expect anything from her." But Sue disregarded the geneticist's advice, and now her daughter serves as an inspiration for young adults with disabilities. Sue has even begun a non-profit foundation called “Karried Away” to help young adults with disabilities find meaningful employment.
"I just want people to understand my daughter is very capable of doing other things," Sue said on The Today Show, noting that young adults with Down syndrome have a difficult time finding employment outside the service sector.
Karrie’s thirst for success does not stop at a Wet Seal photo shoot. The teen also hopes to dance with Ellen DeGeneres. Karrie has uploaded a video on Facebook showing her best dance moves to Ellen.
Karrie’s photo shoot will be released on Wet Seal’s website and other media channels in the upcoming weeks.