So, what is 22q? That was the question posed to me this past Friday evening, as I was getting myself settled to enjoy an evening with friends and acquaintances at one of Chicago’s bars. At first, I couldn’t figure out why this guy would know to ask me about 22q; then he pointed to the red button that I had on my purse. The pin reads “Ask me about 22q.”

As the night went on, I smiled just remembering that awareness can take place anywhere and at the strangest of times. My one-woman 22q awareness campaign all started two years ago, while reorganizing the Dempster Family Foundation’s storage unit. I found a bag of large and small red buttons with the message “Ask me about 22q” in one of the many bins and boxes that occupied our unit. I grabbed a handful figuring that I’d use them with 22q families at an upcoming event. I have no idea when it started, but I began to occasionally put a button on a purse or tote bag before heading out on errands or to large community festivals and events. After a while, I just left the pins on some of my bags. I figured, what the heck, maybe someone would ask me about 22q; or at least they might look it up on their smartphone while we were in line somewhere. But I never expected to be asked about 22q in a bar!

The red 22q button on my purse has led to my being asked about the syndrome in some interesting and not-so-interesting places. I’ve been asked while standing in line to vote and at the grocery store. I’ve been asked while standing in the middle of my church after Mass. I’ve even been asked at youth baseball games and at the Starbucks in my neighborhood. That red pin has gone to Girl Scout activities, school board meetings, the pumpkin farm and countless shopping malls. It has traveled to northern Wisconsin, Phoenix, Los Angeles and New York. Regardless of the location and time of day, someone learned about 22q11.2 Deletion Syndrome because they saw that red pin and felt the need to ask about 22q.

What is your “red button” for 22q awareness? Did you paint your car windows with “22q11.2 - Google It!” for a youth football game, as one of our 22q families did recently? Or do you have a 22q magnet on your car? With the fall and winter holidays fast approaching, how will YOU spread awareness for 22q in your everyday life?

I’ll continue to wear that red button on my purses and bags, and you just might see me one day in a 22q T-shirt or sweatshirt. Don’t be surprised when someone asks you “So, what’s 22q?” Just smile and tell them a bit about the syndrome, and then pat yourself on the back for raising awareness. I can promise you, the “ask” never gets old and it always leaves a smile on your face!

Mary Dosek is the director of fundraising and special events for the Dempster Family Foundation and resides in Chicago.