DENVER, CO, July 30, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Today, Global Down Syndrome Foundation (GLOBAL) announced celebrities and honorees for their 19 annual Be Beautiful Be Yourself Fashion Show – the largest Down syndrome fundraiser in the world.
The award-winning event will feature NFL Hall of Famer Terrell Davis, renowned film and TV actor, Scrubs & Rooster star John C. McGinley; beloved actress from the longest primetime TV drama on ABC, Grey’s Anatomy Caterina Scorsone; model and actress Amanda Booth; and award-winning local NBC anchors Kim Christiansen and Phil Lipof, who will emcee the event. GLOBAL expects to announce the full star-studded roster of celebrities and honorees in September. The mission-driven fundraiser, which sells out every year, will be held on Saturday, November 7 at the Sheraton Denver Downtown Hotel.
“What GLOBAL and its affiliates have accomplished in research and medical care is nothing short of remarkable,” says Award-Winning Actor John C. McGinley. “They’ve helped transform Down syndrome research around the world and changed what’s possible for people with Down syndrome. As a GLOBAL Board member and father of my amazing son, Max, knowing we’ve helped increase life expectancy and improve health outcomes is incredibly meaningful. If you want to support an organization making a real difference every day, join us at the Be Beautiful Be Yourself Fashion Show and support GLOBAL.”
Proceeds from the Be Beautiful Be Yourself Fashion Show support GLOBAL’s mission to elongate life and significantly improve health outcomes for people with Down syndrome. With financial and advocacy support from this event, GLOBAL’s work has led to a 10-year increase in lifespan for people with Down syndrome, from 50 years in 2009 to 60 years today.
GLOBAL’s accomplishments include successfully advocating with Congress that has led to the first National Institutes of Health-wide Down syndrome research program focused on co-occurring conditions such as Alzheimer’s, cancer, immune system disorders and more. Together with its Affiliates, GLOBAL established and supports the Linda Crnic Institute for Down Syndrome, which has made major breakthroughs that are improving health span and lifespan, and the Anna and John J. Sie Center for Down Syndrome at Children’s Hospital Colorado, which provides specialized care to more than 2,700 pediatric patients from 40 states and 10 countries while setting the standard in translational research. GLOBAL also created and published the first evidence-based medical care guidelines for adults with Down syndrome.
“We are thrilled that our Be Beautiful Be Yourself Fashion Show received three ICON awards last year,” says GLOBAL President & CEO, Michelle Sie Whitten. “Celebrating and showcasing what people with Down syndrome can do is important but making sure we have the funds to ensure we gain another ten years of life, and quality of life, is our ultimate goal. We couldn’t do this without the celebrities and honorees who give so generously of their time. We’re so excited to share GLOBAL Ambassador Letizia’s incredible story and to honor our Co-chairs, who are working so hard to make sure the event is a financial success. We are so touched that they have taken on this role in memory of my dear mom.”
The 2026 GLOBAL Ambassador, Letizia Napoleone, is a vibrant 23-year-old woman with Down syndrome who lives and works in New York City and is pursuing her acting education at Epic Players. An accomplished actor, model, and performer, she has appeared in campaigns for Clinique and London Fashion Week, been featured in Wallpaper and Harper’s Bazaar UK, and continues to build her career in film and the performing arts. Fluent in both Italian and English, Letizia embodies the international sprit of GLOBAL. She is also an accomplished athlete whose confidence, determination, and passion inspire everyone around her.
“I am so proud to be a GLOBAL Ambassador and to represent people with Down syndrome all over the world,” says Actor, Model and GLOBAL Ambassador Letizia Napoleone. “Fashion has given me the confidence to dream big, work hard and be myself. I hope everyone joins us at the Be Beautiful Be Yourself Fashion Show to celebrate our achievements, beauty, and capability as well as to emphasize that people with Down syndrome need longer and healthier lives to reach their true potential in an inclusive society.”
Longtime GLOBAL supporters Edit and Tamas Viski-Hanka are honored to serve as Co-Chairs of the year’s Be Beautiful Be Yourself Fashion Show alongside their daughter and son-in-law, Alexandra and Sean Swierczewski. Inspired by their cherished friendship with Anna and John Sie and years of witnessing GLOBAL’s transformative impact, the family is united by a shared commitment to advancing research, improving medical care, and creating a brighter future for people with Down syndrome.
“Our first Be Beautiful Be Yourself Fashion Show changed us forever,” says Co-Chair Edit Viski-Hanka. “The joy, love and spirit in that room were unlike anything we had ever experienced. Every year since, we’ve seen the extraordinary impact GLOBAL is making, through research, medical care, education and advocacy, and we are honored to help bring people together for an evening that truly changes lives.”
Each year, the Be Beautiful Be Yourself Fashion Show recognizes two leaders with their highest honor, the Quincy Jones Exceptional Advocacy Award, who have gone above and beyond to raise awareness and make a tangible difference for people with Down syndrome.
Past recipients include Jamie Foxx, DeOndra Dixon, Jane Lynch, Kevin Iannucci, Woody Harrelson, Sofia Sanchez, Bobby Farrelly, Madison Tevlin, Caterina Scorsone, Eric Dane, Jamie Brewer, Colin Farrell, Tim Harris, John Lynch, Zack Gottsagen, John C. McGinley, Karen Gaffney, Eva Longoria, Frank Stephens, Kyra Phillips and more.
GLOBAL’s advocacy and lobbying efforts with Congress and outreach to the National Institutes of Health (NIH) have resulted in an unprecedented increase of the national Down syndrome research budget, from $18 million in 2009 when GLOBAL was established to over $140 million today.
Proceeds from the Be Beautiful Be Yourself Fashion Show support the important work of GLOBAL and GLOBAL’s affiliates, including a team of over 400 scientists working on breakthrough life-saving research at the Linda Crnic Institute for Down Syndrome and the CU Alzheimer’s & Cognition Center; a dream team of medical professionals providing excellent medical care to over 2,700 patients from 40 states, Puerto Rico and 10 countries at the Anna and John J. Sie Center at Children’s Hospital Colorado and the GLOBAL Adult Clinic at Denver Health.
To learn more, visit: https://bebeautifulbeyourself.org/ and follow us on social media for updates: Facebook, X, Instagram, LinkedIn, and YouTube.
To sponsor a table or buy tickets, visit: https://bebeautifulbeyourself.org/be-beautiful-be-yourself-fashion-show-tables/ or https://bebeautifulbeyourself.org/be-beautiful-be-yourself-fashion-show-tickets/.
For celebrity interviews, additional information, imagery, or to cover the Be Beautiful Be Yourself Fashion Show, please contact [email protected], For more information on the Global Down Syndrome Foundation, please visit www.globaldownsyndrome.org.
- 2026 Be Beautiful Be Yourself Fashion Show in Denver on Nov. 7
- 2026 Be Beautiful Be Yourself Fashion Show in Denver on Nov. 7