Purvis, MS (April 30, 2013) Ashley Deramus doesn’t let a little thing like Down Syndrome stop her from doing what she has been 
destined to do, bring awareness to special needs kids.
One her way to a big concert date Ashley stopped to address over 550 students at Purvis High School in Purvis, MS. It was Ashley’s first time to ever give a speech in public and she wanted to give honor to her mentor Claudene Christian.
Claudene was a mate on the ship “HMS Bounty†which capsized and sank in the middle of hurricane Sandy. Claudene and the Captain of the ship, Robin Walbridge both lost their lives in the terrible storm.
Ashley spoke about her experiences on the Bounty with Claudene. The crew of the Bounty often took special needs and underprivileged kids on short voyages to teach them some of life’s lessons. Ashley was able to take a couple of those cruises and that is where Claudene and Ashley made such a deep connection.
Ashley’s story touched the hearts of many of those high school students so greatly that they gave her a standing ovation. She was also requested to sing the Jason Crabb song “Love Is Strongerâ€.
All of this happened as she was on her way to the Singing In The Sun concert series where Ashley led the Pledge Of Allegiance on Thursday evening the 18th of April, opening the show for Jason Crabb. Over 5,000 people were at the concert which was promoted by Abraham Productions. The Ashley Deramus Foundation had a booth at the event and raised over $1,000 for the foundation which is dedicated to individuals with Down Syndrome & special needs.
You can contact Ashley through Gary Kannegiesser at 440-670-2897 or  adreamgk@gmail.com .
