Background Statement
Friends of Club 21 was founded by Tim Middlebrook after a trip to South Africa in 2014. While there, he met Izelle Ells and learned about how she started Club 21, a school for children with Down syndrome. Club 21 received no public funding or government support. Tim, with the support of his wife Michelle, and their four children, started Friends of Club 21 to some alongside this special school and see their vision grow.
Tim and Michelle are proud parents of Sarah, born in 2001 with multiple diagnoses including Down syndrome. They know firsthand the support that is needed for their daughter, their family and their community.
In 2015, Tim invited recording artist Jared Anderson to join him in South Africa and visit Club 21. On that visit, Jared was surprised to find the students at the school had learned some of his songs and that they performed together at a theater to benefit the community around the Club 21 school. Music connected them across their cultures and they discovered a shared love of those with Down syndrome and special abilities.
This profound experience inspired the team to question, “What could we do to help people understand our beautiful people with special abilities right here in Colorado Springs?”
Out of this experience, the vision for "Christmas This Year" was born. What started in 2015 with a handful of performers in a small auditorium and has grown now into four sold-out shows at the beautiful Ent Center for the Arts with a cast of more than 70 performers.