Four-year-old girl with Down syndrome who was adopted from a Colombian orphanage and brought to live in the US as a baby stars as a child model in new Target campaign

  • Kayella Aschoff was adopted by Ted and Jodi, from Minnesota, in 2011
  • The couple have adopted another orphaned child with Down syndrome, Leo, who was born in China 
  • Kayella appears as the face of Target's new training pants 

By James Gordon For Dailymail.com

Published: 10:11 EST, 1 October 2015 | Updated: 10:50 EST, 1 October 2015

A four-year-old girl with Down syndrome, who began her life in a Colombian orphanage has had a remarkable change in fortune after being picked by Target to be a model for a new product in the retailer's children's range.

Little Kayella Aschoff, who was adopted by Ted and Jodi from Minnesota in 2011, was hand-picked by the company to be the face of its training pants, after she attended an open casting call in 2014. 

'Kayella loves being in front of the camera,' proud mom Jodi told The Mighty. 'She’s quite the ham. When you take a photo though, she has to check it and then says ‘cute picture’ or she’ll tell you to take another one!'  

Model of the moment: Kayella Aschoff, a four-year-old girl with Down syndrome, is the face of Target's new training pants 

Model of the moment: Kayella Aschoff, a four-year-old girl with Down syndrome, is the face of Target's new training pants 

Lights, camera... The young girl's mother Jodi says that her daughter loves being in front of the lens

Lights, camera... The young girl's mother Jodi says that her daughter loves being in front of the lens

Happy families: Parents Jodi and Ted, from Minnesota, adopted Kayella from Colombia when she was just nine-months-old

Happy families: Parents Jodi and Ted, from Minnesota, adopted Kayella from Colombia when she was just nine-months-old

Kayella's new campaign comes months after her parents first put her forward to star as a Target model, with Jodi explaining that the family had no idea the little girl's images would be used until a few weeks before the products were released. 

But the couple had no doubt about their daughter's potential - and are thrilled that Kayella's appearance in the campaign might help to spread awareness about Down syndrome. 

'We wanted to show Kayella and others with differing abilities that they can do what any other child can do,' Jodi added to The Mighty. 

'Every child can be like other kids and have the same opportunities. We are all about inclusion and will not let our children’s disabilities define them.' 

Kayella, who has an adopted brother Leo, who also has Down syndrome, was brought to the US by her devoted parents when she was just nine months old. 

Her brother, Leo, who was adopted from China, joined their family three years later, in 2014. 

Sweet siblings: Kayella has a younger brother, Leo, who also has Down syndrome. He was adopted from China in 2014

Sweet siblings: Kayella has a younger brother, Leo, who also has Down syndrome. He was adopted from China in 2014

Taking a stand: 'Every child can be like other kids and have the same opportunities. We are all about inclusion and will not let our children’s disabilities define them,' Jodi said of her daughter's campaign

Taking a stand: 'Every child can be like other kids and have the same opportunities. We are all about inclusion and will not let our children’s disabilities define them,' Jodi said of her daughter's campaign

Loving family: Ted and Jodi explained about their decision to adopt a child with Down syndrome that it was a 'curve ball that turned out even better than [our] dreams'

Loving family: Ted and Jodi explained about their decision to adopt a child with Down syndrome that it was a 'curve ball that turned out even better than [our] dreams'

'When we first began the adoption process, we did not intend to adopt a child with Down syndrome,' Kayella's father Ted explained in a blog post written for the Children’s Home Society of Minnesota. 

'As with most parents, the child in our dreams was a healthy child with no significant medical issues. But sometimes reality, especially in the adoption world, throws you a curve that turns out even better than your dreams.'

He explained that the couple knew they would be able to give a far better quality of life to a Down syndrome child born in a country that does not have the same level of care and understanding with regard to the condition. 

 'We knew that, living in the U.S. we were at a unique advantage. Our country’s understanding and acceptance of children with Down syndrome and other disabilities has come a long way from the days of secrecy and institutions,' he wrote.

'We now have an abundance of resources and assistance to help our children with special needs live their lives to the fullest potential. Unfortunately, this is not true in the rest of the world where there is still stigma and shame in having a child with Down syndrome. 

'This is why special needs adoption, both domestically and internationally is so important. Without it, these children could be relegated to a difficult and frustrating life, wanting to flourish but not having the opportunity to do so.'

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