A Little Something Extra alittlesomethingextra

A close friend of the podcast, Matthew Schwab, joins the show!! OMG, we are so excited about this episode. Matthew Schwab is a public speaker, self-advocate, founder of Matthew Schwab Speaks AND a fiancé! If you have never had the pleasure of meeting Matt, you have likely seen his viral engagement video on social media. He is seriously one of the most incredible individuals anyone can ever meet.
This episode is just GiGi and Franco hosting! Franco and Matt go way back, so it’s a typical buddy-buddy conversation. We kick things off by talking about his recent engagement with his beautiful Lucia, surprising his mom with the news, walking us through the whole proposal experience, his life living independently, and all of his amazing accomplishments, including starting a self-advocacy company! He drops some knowledge on us about what it means to be “typical” and the importance of seeing past a diagnosis. We love this episode because it’s all about the importance of having friends from different areas of life and the value it can bring! We hope you enjoy it as much as we did!!
“We are all typical in our own right because we have the same strengths, the same weaknesses, and the same emotions about the life we want to live. So even though a disability is something we have inside of us, and it may affect us more than others but ultimately we are typical people.” - Matthew Schwab.
Watch the video version of this episode on our website.

Father and son authors Andrew and David Olshine join the show! Andrew and his father, David, join us to talk all about their journey which ultimately led to the creation of their brand-new book, Fearless as a Honey Badger, Brave Like a Wolverine.
In this episode, David, an established Author of 16 books, tells us about his experience as a father of a son with Down syndrome and how he embraced the diagnosis to create the best life possible for his son. Andrew (who we would all want as a best friend) is a miracle in his own right! He shares his story of overcoming Gulliane Barre Syndrome and how his bravery and strength helped him overcome the virus. After recovering, his dad helped him channel that bravery and his love for animals into their latest book! We then dive into some fun conversations about our greatest fears, our favorite animals, the experience of co-writing a book together, some inspirational words to live by, and of course some great ‘Little Something Extras’! It is a super fun episode with a really amazing father/son duo. We hope you enjoy it as much as we did!
To purchase their new book, visit: Home | Fearless Brave Book 
Watch the video version of this episode here

Connor Tomlinson, breakout star from Love on the Spectrum season 2, joins the show!! Joining Connor are his mom, Lise, and brother, Ben. Love on the Spectrum did such an amazing job capturing the dynamic of this amazing family, and we wanted to bring that same energy to the podcast! If you have not seen Love on the Spectrum, it will surely be your next binge. For those who have, you saw Connor steal the show by being his most authentic self. From being a one-liner machine (which you can find all over his new merch) to his love for movies and lore, how could you not want to hang with this guy?
In this episode we talk about his experience on the show and how it has transformed his life overnight. He tells us about his perspective on autism and its “the next step in human evolution.” We walk through his experience being on the show and his plans for dating in the future. Lise and Ben give us some interesting insight into the family growing up with a brother/son with autism. Connor tells us about his interests and, of course, some perspective on the Game of Thrones vs Lord of the Rings debate. It’s a perfect episode for celebrating Autism Awareness Month and the amazing people blessed by it! We hope you enjoy it!
 
Watch the video version of this episode on our website.

The great John O’Hurley and his golden voice join the podcast in the studio!! John O’Hurley is an incredibly talented actor, comedian, author, television personality, and even a singer! You may know him as the eccentric J. Peterman in the hit sitcom Seinfeld. He also hosts the National Dog show, voices King Neptune in SpongeBob along with hundreds of other voice acting roles! He joined us just hosting the GiGi’s “I Have a Voice Gala”  
This one is a Seinfeld lover dream! In this episode, we touch on it all! John tells us about his journey into acting, voice acting, the theatre, and more! We talk about his experience landing Seinfeld and how he brought this character to life. We recap some of his favorite moments from his time on the show and hear some of his most famous quotes (literally Franco’s dream conversation)! We touch on his career in the theatre, his greatest passion. We also discuss his role in hosting the National Dog Show and his life as a dog lover! He talks about his role in hosting our gala and how eye-opening the experience was in learning about the Down syndrome diagnosis and how it changed his perspective on life. This episode is filled with big laughs, wise words of wisdom, fascinating insights into the entertainment industry, and some great tips for public speaking! 
“Then In the distance, I heard The bulls. I began running as fast as I could. Fortunately, I was wearing my Italian Cap Toe Oxfords." - J.Peterman. 
Watch the video version of this episode on our website.
 

Tampa Bay Bucs defensive back Dee Delaney, and wide receiver Deven Thompkins join the podcast in studio!! Dee and DT(Deven) have really inspiring stories to tell. While being NFL players and teammates, both Dee and Deven are also parents to kids with Down syndrome! Deven’s story begins at just 19 years old, he talks about his experience having a son with Down syndrome in college and how he embraced the responsibility to create an amazing life for his children. Dee talks about his family’s experience having a beautiful daughter with Down syndrome at the age of 25, balancing that with an NFL career and embracing the diagnosis from the beginning.
Earlier this year, both Dee and Deven participated in NFL’s My Cause My Cleats campaign, rockin’ GiGi’s Playhouse on their cleats! In the episode we discuss the campaign and the opportunities that came with it. We then dive into the impacts these young men are making and will continue to make for the Down syndrome community and beyond in promoting and creating acceptance for all! It’s a really special episode in the way you can see the realization in both these men regarding the impact they can make in this world. We absolutely loved hanging out with them and hope you enjoy it as much as we did!
Watch the video version of this episode here

In honor of World Down Syndrome Day, the extremely talented Kevin Iannucci and James Keith join the podcast!! Kevin and James are both actors who starred in the 2023 comedy Champions, A Bobby Farrelly comedy centered around a college basketball coach who was ordered to coach a special needs basketball team. Both Kevin and James KILLED IT in their roles, so they joined us to talk about it! Kevin and James are both really impressive guys. Kevin is an experienced actor who has Down syndrome. He was featured in multiple roles leading up to Champions, with this being his breakthrough role! James’s path is a bit different, being a Special Olympics athlete who took this on as his first acting role, but you would never have known! In the episode, we discussed their experience on set with the big stars, their acting methods behind the scenes, and their interests and hobbies outside of acting; we did some podcast karaoke to a certified classic, learned their ‘Little Something Extra’ and of course heard some of GiGi’s TIPPSS! It is a super fun episode filled with a lot of laughs and a lot of heart. Like us, you’ll surely want to be best friends with these dudes when it's over! Enjoy!!
See the video version of the episode here.