Annual "Buddy Walk" goes virtual for 2020

A large group of Mancheter friends joined Wil Taylor and his family for a "virtual" Buddy Walk on Sunday.

Although the annual Down syndrome Buddy Walk, sponsored by the Down Syndrome Support Team (DSST), is usually held with great fanfare and hundreds of participants gathering in Ann Arbor's Gallup Park, this year, like so many others, it saw a scaled-down "virtual" version of the fund-raising event.

About 30 Manchester families, supporters, and several dogs, too, walked the one-mile (plus!) route from Chi-Bro Park up to Dutch Drive and back down the hill, returning through the Klager bus drive to enjoy fresh Ollie's Pizza at the end of the walk.

"It's really about Wil being with friends," explained Christie Taylor, for whom it is the family's 13th year of participation in the Buddy Walk. Wil joined his first walk when he was just seven months old, and has walked each year since. This year, special t-shirts were created for the Buddy Walk, and Manchester's own SteeleGrafix set up an online store where friends could order shirts. After donating a portion of the proceeds from shirt sales to DSST, the Steeles also matched the total to give back a little extra to the community.

Christie also has served on the DSST board of directors and Buddy Walk planning committee. “My family has met some lifelong friends while participating in the Buddy Walk," she says. "It is an amazing group of people who come together to celebrate people with Down syndrome.”

This event raises awareness and funds to support local programs and services for individuals with Down syndrome and their families, including enrichment classes, speech and language therapy, and music therapy. DSST also uses the funds to provide resources to local hospitals for families with a new diagnosis, materials for a lending library, and continued research.

The Buddy Walk traditionally kicks off Down Syndrome Awareness Month in October.

Wil surrounded by special buddies, Seeger DuRussel, Ashley Bobo, Lila Harvey, and Sarah Stommen

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by Marsha Chartrand

Marsha Johnson Chartrand, a founder, writer, and copy editor with the Manchester Mirror, is a 50-year resident of Manchester. She has a long history of volunteer and community involvement.