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Spotlight on… Just Sydney (and Cate)

Simsbury teen reflects on a unique friendship

By Cindy Mindell

 

Sydney and Cate

Sydney and Cate

SIMSBURY – Sydney Winnick was just five when she and her family moved from Bloomfield to the suburb of Simsbury on the other side of Avon Mountain. The kindergartner left behind her classmates at the Bess and Paul Sigel Hebrew Academy and the family split their synagogue time between Beth David Synagogue in West Hartford and Chabad of the Valley in Weatogue. Eight years on, Sydney would celebrate her bat mitzvah at Chabad, following in the footsteps of her two older siblings.

But within a year of arriving in her new community, the little girl would become an example of tikkun olam. In first grade at Latimer Lane Elementary School, Winnick met classmate Cate Alix, who had been born with Down syndrome. One day, Winnick made a decision that would draw the girls into a lifelong friendship.

“Our desks were right next to each other but then Cate had started missing school for a couple of months,” says Winnick. “I found out she was in the hospital with pneumonia, so I asked my mom to take me to go visit a friend. Cate and I sat in her hospital room watching TV, eating, and napping all day.”

“We walk into the room, I introduce myself to Noelle [Cate’s mom], and Sydney jumps on the bed with Cate and they watch a movie,” recalls Frieda Winnick, Sydney’s mother, a nurse practitioner working at the time at Hartford Hospital. “I went to work for a few hours and came back. The girls have been best friends ever since.”

These stories and others are part of Just Cate: A Dual Memoir of Lifelong Friends by Noelle Alix and Angela Martin, published in 2012. Starting when Cate was born and diagnosed with Down syndrome, the book follows her life until age 12. Winnick and Alix are now rising seniors at Simsbury High School.

“Every year, as they got older, Noelle and I would tell Sydney, ‘If you want to be in a different class, you can,’” Winnick says. “She would cry and say, ‘I’m going to be in the same class with Cate for the rest of school.’”

Sydney became Cate’s protector. “When we were younger, there were some incidents where Cate was mistreated and when it happened, it would break my heart and I had no problem telling kids to back off,” Winnick recalls. “Even Cate stood up for herself from time to time. But as we got older, people were always kind to her. They saw our friendship and just understood and accepted us.”

The blog, JustCate.com, picks up where the book leaves off. “I believe it’s Syd’s friendship with Cate that set the stage for other classmates to see beyond Cate’s differences, to realize that they could be friends with Cate, too,” writes Noelle Alix. “Friendship just happens. And for those who let friendship happen without judgment, it’s life-changing.”

In October, the two girls started a chapter of Best Buddies at Simsbury High School, “to spread inclusion and create natural friendships,” Winnick says. The non-profit, global volunteer movement works to create opportunities for one-on-one friendships, integrated employment, and leadership development for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities.

Winnick attributes her attitude to lessons learned early in life. “I was taught not to judge and just accept people for who they are,” she says. “I was lucky enough to learn at such a young age the way Cate lives. Cate does not judge anyone; she treats everyone equally, no matter who they are. It is a perspective of life that everyone should be exposed to. I most definitely take it with me wherever I go.”

In addition to co-hosting The Syd and Cate Show on YouTube, Winnick joins Cate at Noelle and Angela’s book-signings in the Hartford area, and the four recently spoke at a children’s hospital in Orlando, Fla. They have also appeared at events around the state that focus on special needs.

“My favorite one was at Wesleyan University in January, at the Unified Sports Youth Leadership Summit of the Connecticut Interscholastic Athletic Conference and Special Olympics Connecticut,” Winnick says. “There were tons of kids from high schools around the state involved in Unified Sports. Talking to them was really enjoyable because I could connect with them easily.”

Jewish tradition teaches that one who gives to another benefits spiritually at least as much as the recipient, if not more. Winnick echoes this philosophy.

“My friendship with Cate is the best thing in my life,” she says. “I cannot compare it to any other friendship; it is so natural, fun, and crazy! I feel honored to be considered Cate’s best friend. She has so many friends but I honestly don’t know what my life would be like without her.”

 

Comments? email cindym@jewishledger.com.

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