E is for Events (part 1)-Buddy Walk 31 for 21 day 8

Today we went to Tallahassee, Florida with some of the members of our Ds group to take part in a Buddy Walk.  The Buddy Walk is an event held annually around the country and the world.  Usually this is held here in the US in the month of October as we celebrate Down syndrome Awareness month.  The goal of the Buddy Walk is to promote acceptance and inclusion and to bring awareness to everyone about Ds.  The first Buddy Walk was held in 1995.  In the past 16 years the walk has gone from 16 annually to close to 300 this year.  Money raised at these walks go to benefit local and national programs.

The premier Buddy Walk event is held in New York City each year.  Pictures are submitted of individuals living with Ds to get the chance to be on the New York Times Square Jumbotron prior to the race.  I have had several of my friends walk with them and several people have had their picture shown.  I am hoping that south Georgia (and yes I would love for Katie to make it) will be represented soon in the near future!  To learn more information about Buddy Walks, including how to find one close to you or even start your own, visit the national Buddy Walk site here.

This Buddy Walk makes the fourth one that we have participated in.  I hate that we didn’t get to walk with our friends the Zuidema’s this year as their Buddy Walk was today too.  I thought of you all though!  One of our goals for our group is to host our own here in south Georgia for those who do not want to travel the minimum of 1 1/2 hours to attend a Buddy Walk event which are held all around us here in Georgia and Florida.  I fully believe our community will step up and join us as we push forward to making this dream become a reality for our Ds families. 

Today was the perfect day to have a walk!  Cloudy at times, sunny at times, nice breeze blowing, temps in the 80’s.  What more could you ask for?  Beats the weather we experienced at this event last year for sure.   Our team had 7 of our children from the group represented.  Several of our families and friends also made the extra effort of traveling to walk with us.  I love that we got to pick the colors of our shirts from a variety of colors and that we got to have our name put on the sleeve of the shirt too.  Although Katie’s shirt (and all the other kiddos with us) is several sizes too large, I was still able to keep her looking fashionable with a little tucking.  This shirt officially becomes a part of her nightgown stash for the next two years as it reaches to her knees now!  Thanks again Amy for getting our team set up and picking the colors of the shirt.  Great choice!  Everyone loves the color. 

Again, thank each and every one of you for taking the time out of your busy schedules to walk today.  We love all of our buddies!!