Photos: Jae Frew
Mamie Rose Macdonald was out at dinner when her mum Glenda posed a precarious question. Turning to her gorgeous daughter, she said, “If I gave you a million dollars and I asked you to take your disability away, would you do it?”
And Mamie replied, “I wouldn’t take it away for any money because it’s part of who I am. Why go through everything that I’ve had been through just to get the struggle taken away from me? I think it’s really important that we accept who we are.”
The Auckland student lives with Williams syndrome, a rare genetic disorder that affects many parts of the body, and causes developmental delays and learning challenges.
People with the disorder are often gregarious and the remarkable 24-year-old is no exception. Her mum says she brightens up any room and has defied the odds of what doctors predicted might be possible.
Along with a modelling career – she’s appeared in Italian Vogue – Mamie is in her last year studying for a Bachelor of international tourism management and is working part-time at a restaurant.
Her goal is to work as a check-in agent at Air New Zealand and travel the world – and if a role on her favourite soap Shortland Street came calling, she wouldn’t say no either.
This month, Mamie will feature in TVNZ series Unbreakable, which follows Kiwis with disabilities as they pursue their dreams.
“I think I’m ready to be famous,” she laughs. “I just hope people watch the series and learn not to be afraid of disabilities. It shows us being ourselves.
The cameras follow Mamie nightclubbing with friends, heading to university and attending an eight-week self-defence course.
One year ago, someone assaulted her in the CBD while she was waiting for a bus home in the early evening. It initially caused her to retract socially and become more reliant on her mum for getting around.
“I had a lecture until 5pm and I was walking down Queen Street,” Mamie recalls. “This guy had been drinking and was clearly out of his mind. I didn’t engage with him, but then he followed me. I asked for help and no one helped me. It was traumatising.”
It hasn’t been the only setback while studying for her degree. In 2022, Mamie had to have a bowel reconstruction after eating a piece of pork “that went off”. She explains, “It turned into Yersiniosis – a type of bacteria that infected my bowel, causing it to burst open. I nearly died.
“I overcame that. But I’m most proud of the fact that when my dad, Paul, died suddenly from a cardiac arrest six years ago – and I was 18 – instead of letting it cause me to get very depressed, I found a way to move forward and be successful.
“He was Italian and Māori, and taught me loyalty, the importance of family and also a love of food,” smiles Mamie. “When he passed away, I was kind of glad that I could feel sad for once.
“It sounds unusual, but up until then, I was always trying to be happy all the time. Kids bullied me at mainstream high school and I turned being positive into my coping mechanism.”
Following her dad’s death, Mamie signed up to modelling and creative agency All Is For All, which works with brands and businesses to help them be inclusive and accessible.
“That’s when I started accepting my disability,” she says. “Meeting other cool disabled people made me realise I could accept it as part of my identity.”
Recalling Mamie as a toddler, Glenda says, “We didn’t know how she would grow up to be. But it was like, ‘Right, let’s not put restrictions on what she can or can’t do.’ Brains aren’t just born – they’re built over time based on experiences, support and development.
“Mamie is unbelievable. To not only finish high school but be able to go to university is pretty extraordinary. She’s a very uplifting person too. She wakes up in the morning and is like, ‘Isn’t it a beautiful day! What are we going to do?’”
Adds Mamie, “Yeah, I bring a positive vibe. My mum is my bestie, and she taught me to stand on my own two feet and break barriers.”
Unbreakable is out now on TVNZ 1 and TVNZ+.
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