Pictured are participants from a previous Buddy Walk. The Down Syndrome Information Network of the Southern Tier invites the community to attend their eighteenth annual “Buddy Walk” on Saturday, Sept. 17 at Highland Park in Endwell, N.Y. Registration is $5 per person, along with a donation to CHOW, and starts at 11:30 a.m. with a one-mile walk slated to begin at noon. (Provided Photos)
The Down Syndrome Information Network of the Southern Tier invites the community to attend their eighteenth annual Buddy Walk on Saturday, Sept. 17 at Highland Park in Endwell, N.Y., which is located off of Hooper Road.
Registration for the one-mile walk starts at 11:30 a.m. and the walk steps off at noon after an opening ceremony. The walk will follow a path in the lower end of Highland Park, and may include some side streets.
Registration is $5 per person along with a donation to CHOW (the Community Hunger Outreach Warehouse). Walk participants will also receive a tee shirt.
Festivities are planned until 3 p.m.
A D.J. will play popular tunes, and food and refreshments will be available. Face painting and caricatures, children’s games, basket raffles and demonstrations such as yoga are just many of the activities planned. Also on hand will be an information booth where visitors can ask questions and learn about Down syndrome.
An opportunity to raise awareness and promote acceptance and inclusion of people with Down syndrome, Buddy Walks were created in 1995 by the National Down Syndrome Society (NDSS) and are held nationwide.
“We invite everyone to attend,” shared Rebecca Kennis, one of the event organizers, and she added, “It’s an opportunity to get to know others in the community.”
Pictured are participants from a previous Buddy Walk. The 18th annual Down Syndrome Information Network of the Southern Tier “Buddy Walk” is scheduled for Saturday, Sept. 17 at Highland Park in Endwell, N.Y. The event starts at 11:30 a.m. and continues until 3 p.m. with a one-mile walk followed by refreshments, activities and music. A day to celebrate and learn more about Down syndrome, the community is invited to attend.
Kennis explained further, “Walk participants don’t need to have a connection to Down syndrome. We welcome new people to come out and walk with us and to learn that people with Down syndrome can be productive members of the community. It’s also a day to celebrate the things they can do.”
According to NDSS, quality education programs, a stimulating home environment, good health care and positive support from family and the community enable people with Down syndrome to lead fulfilling lives.
Down syndrome occurs when an individual has a full or partial extra copy of the chromosome 21, which alters the course of development and lends to the characteristics associated with Down syndrome. The most commonly occurring chromosomal condition, there are approximately 400,000 people living with Down syndrome in the United States. About 6,000 babies are born annually with Down syndrome in the U.S., which is equivalent to one in every 691 babies.
For more information about the Buddy Walk or to volunteer, call Rebecca Kennis at (607) 759-0759 or Meg Girnis at (607) 621-5514
Information about Down syndrome can also be found on the NDSS website at www.ndss.org.
Be the first to comment on "Public invited to attend annual Buddy Walk on September 17"