Celebrating every new arrival: our partnership with 21 Gifts

When Ingerlise Svaleng welcomed her daughter Maia on a chilly autumn afternoon, she was as proud and joyful as only a new mum can be. Soon after, Maia was diagnosed with Down syndrome, and the room fell quiet.

“For a moment there, at diagnosis, everything went quiet. The room changed, but Maia didn’t,” Ingerlise says. “She was still exactly the same beautiful little baby. Now she’s this incredible 10-year-old, and I am the luckiest to be her mum.”

In that first week, someone delivered a red suitcase to their hospital room – a gift from other parents and their children with Down syndrome. For Ingerlise, it was everything. It became her guide to a future she was only just beginning to imagine, and the inspiration behind 21 Gifts.

Changing the opening act

Today, Ingerlise is paying that gift forward across Australia and New Zealand. 21 Gifts delivers beautifully crafted suitcases to families following a diagnosis of Down syndrome or cerebral palsy. Each suitcase is a welcome gift: a way of saying congratulations, and a reminder of all the exciting possibilities ahead.

“I started 21 Gifts because I wanted to bring hope back into healthcare,” Ingerlise explains. “The suitcases are designed to change the opening act of a child’s disability diagnosis. I want it to be a room where every single baby is celebrated for who they are, and that focuses on all the opportunities ahead.”

For Megan, a midwife at St Vincent’s in Melbourne, handing over a suitcase is a special moment. “We get to be the ones that hand them this beautiful suitcase and say, you know what, this is just the beginning. There’s a world of opportunity out there for you.”

Why this partnership matters

Carer Solutions was born from listening. More than 15 years ago, our founder Jane Morrell sat down with carers across Australia who simply wanted to choose the people who support their family. That idea grew into our Direct Employ model, which supports families to turn the relationships they already have into official employment arrangements, with people they know, trust and who share their values.

We share a simple belief with 21 Gifts: every family deserves to celebrate new beginnings, and to feel supported from day one. As Ingerlise and Jane put it, what we each do is two halves of the same thing. 21 Gifts welcomes families with hope and possibility from the very start, and when they’re ready, we support them to turn the people already in their lives into official, employed Support Workers – so their child can continue to feel supported as they grow up, surrounded by people they know and trust.

We’re proud to be covering the delivery costs of the next 300 suitcases to families across Australia, so even more families can celebrate their new arrival from day one.

A journal for dreaming big

As part of the partnership, we’ve also co-created a special journal with 21 Gifts to go inside each suitcase. Inspired by Ingerlise’s background in positive psychology and her own experience as a mum, it encourages families to dream big about the life they want, and to notice the people in their lives who bring out the best in them. Because every family needs a village, the journal also invites parents to think about the people in theirs who can continue to support them as their child grows, and who share the values that matter most to their family.

We’ve made the journal available as a digital PDF, so any family can use it. Download your copy here.

“If we’re going to give families a list of everything that can go wrong, we should also give them a list of what can go right,” Ingerlise says. “And that’s exactly what we’ve done with Carer Solutions. These journals are grounded in positive psychology, so parents can continue to dream and create the lives they want for their families.”

For Jane, the journal is a way of reminding families that support is there from the very beginning. “They have support from literally the minute they find out their child has a disability,” she says. “It tells them they’ve got a circle around them, and that they’re not going through something so significant alone.”

It’s a circle we see come to life every day. Take Anne and John Page from Birchip, whose daughter Jo has Down syndrome. One of Jo’s Support Workers, Wendy, was once the friendly face at the local post office who always made time for a chat with Jo. Today, Wendy has been a valued part of Jo’s team for many years.

A cuppa from frank green

Our friends at frank green also generously donated 300 reusable coffee cups to go inside the suitcases – because caffeine is a friend to most new parents!

For frank green founder Ben Young, it’s about more than coffee. “Coffee is a social lubricant. People can talk to each other, they can share stories,” he says. “21 Gifts really does bring about a celebration of the birth of a new human. I just think this is such a wonderful thing, and that’s why frank green wants to be part of it.”

Here’s to every new beginning

So, if you spot a 21 Gifts suitcase in a hospital, know that it’s there to welcome a family, celebrate their new arrival and remind them they’re not alone.

To learn more about the incredible work Ingerlise and her team are doing, visit 21 Gifts.