It all started with a simple Google search when an Edmonton mother went looking for a doll with similar features to her daughter. “I think my child looks perfect, as I’m sure every parent does,” Diana Rivard said. “But I mean there’s definitely a physical difference between her and her brother. There’s a definite difference between her and most people.” Violet, who is about three-and-a-half years old, has Trisomy 21, one of the most common forms of Down syndrome. After scouring the internet trying to find a doll Violet could relate to, Rivard made a post on Facebook to see if someone locally could help. “Inclusion matters,” she expressed. “Seeing yourself matters.” Andile Pfupa, the founder of Bee You Kids and an early childhood educator, responded to the post. “She was so kind,” Rivard recalled. “She said, ‘I will bring in a doll that looks as much like your daughter as possible.’” “Every child deserves to see themselves represented in some way because it does build their self worth,” Pfupa responded. “I never realized just how much it was going to excite me to see a child that looked like mine,” Rivard added. Pfupa sells a line of dolls of all ethnicities, cultural backgrounds and abilities, including dolls with vitiligo and albinism. But what sparked Pfupa’s mission to offer children more representation actually stemmed from a shopping trip to find a doll for her niece. “We went to the local store and we couldn’t find any Black baby dolls,” she explained. “It took us a couple of months and when I finally found one, it was at the bottom of the shelf, on sale, and it was the only doll of colour there.” Pfupa said she was shocked as she felt like every child should see an “image of themselves” no matter where they shop. “That’s what I wanted to create for my niece. I wanted her to have every kind of doll, have those options.” “Even when I was growing up I never had Barbies or dolls that looked like me,” she added. Rivard echoed a similar sentiment. “I just never realized how little representation was out there until I had my daughter.” Now Pfupa sells the dolls not only to Albertans but there’s a market for them in the U.S. and even New Zealand. “I didn’t think that it would be this big. I realize that there’s a need not just in Canada but worldwide.” Pfupa noted that some parents of children without disabilities are using the dolls to teach kids about the “acceptance of others.” “Teach them that it’s OK for someone to look like that.” As for Violet, she lights up whenever she plays with one of her dolls. “She’s very motherly,” Rivard smiled. “She loves her babies and she loves her dolls.” Pfupa told CTV News she has plans on expanding her business and will continue to broaden the selection of toys she offers. “I put my heart and my ideas into this company and so I’m glad that Canada is recognizing that,” she said. “I’m happy that I’m part of the change in this country and it’s a legacy that I would like to leave here as a country that adopted me.” To learn more about Bee You Kids, click here. With files from CTV News Edmonton’s Jessica Robb
