The Chico Buddy Walk ®

The Chico Buddy Walk® started as a small idea brought together by a few parents and friends who wanted to be able to bring together our community to celebrate and learn about our children, our friends and our neighbors in Butte County with Down syndrome. This small group of people soon became the Chico Down Syndrome Coalition with a primary mission to celebrate those people in our community with Down syndrome through the promotion of acceptance, education and opportunities to thrive. There are more than 400,000 people with Down syndrome in the United States and it is the most commonly occurring chromosomal disorder, affecting people of all races and economic levels. The Buddy Walk® is a national advocacy and awareness program that was developed by the National Down Syndrome society in 1995. The three primary goals of the Buddy Walk® are to promote acceptance and inclusion of people with Down syndrome, to raise funds for local and national programs, and to enhance the position of the Down syndrome community, enabling us to positively influence local and national policy and practice. Since 1995, the Buddy Walk® has grown from 17 walks to over 250 walks across the country and internationally.

The members of the Chico Down Syndrome Coalition are excitedly putting together the 2nd annual Chico Buddy Walk®, which is set to take place Saturday, October 3rd.

The walk will take place at Sycamore Field in lower Bidwell Park, and starts at 10am with an energizing warm-up routine before we walk around the 1k and 5k portions of lower Bidwell. This year’s walk will feature over 25+ family-friendly vendors, an obstacle course, face painting, music, local food trucks and there is even word that there might be a princess and superhero sighting. Gates will open at 9am for day-of ticket purchases, but tickets will be available through Ticketleap at

http://chicodsc.ticketleap.com/2nd-walk/. Additional information can be found by

visiting our Facebook page under Chico Buddy Walk.

The funds raised by the Chico Buddy Walk® will be used to provide education in the

community through events, and to provide small grant funds for activities including,

but not limited to: music classes, swim lessons and animal therapy for children and individuals in Butte County with Down syndrome. The

committee is also working on creating “Welcome” bags for new families of babies

born with Down syndrome in Butte County.

We look forward to seeing people of all ages and abilities out at Bidwell on October 3rd celebrating our diverse and beautiful community.

For more information, contact: Katrina Gossage, CDSC Chair, at 530-591-2792 or

email at:

ChicoBuddyWalk@gmail.com

.