Unbreakable Mamie - 'I'M READY TO FAMOUS!' BE

The TV star and model is excited about what the future holds

- Fleur Guthrie

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.