50 States

A few weeks ago I posted on FaceBook that I would like to have a Buddy Walk shirt from all 50 states.  At the time I didn’t give it much thought except for the fact that I just completed my first Buddy Walk in Allentown, PA.  The Lehigh Valley Buddy Walk was sponsored by The Eastern PA Down Syndrome Center and I found myself wanting to wear my new Buddy Walk tee shirt every day.  I also found that when I wore the shirt people would ask me about the walk and this allowed me to not only mention my twin boys, Shane and Wyatt, who both have Down syndrome but more importantly allowed me to talk about Down syndrome awareness.  I find this to be very exciting.  Since then, a number of people have contacted me and the shirts started arriving.

So now what do I do?  Well, I will proudly wear each shirt as often as possible.   I will also write and tell you a little about the organization or the family that sent me the shirt.  All that I ask in return is that, hopefully, you read the blog and visit the sites of the organizations that I write about to learn more about them.  If you can assist them in anyway, please do so.  More importantly, if you or anyone you know can benefit from them, please contact them and use their services. 

I would also like to stress the fact I am not a professional writer (that may be obvious by my writing) but a dad of 3 kids, including twin boys with Down syndrome.  My goal is to say thanks to those who have helped me or prayed for our family and to spread awareness for Down syndrome related issues.  I also want to help as many other families who are seeking help and don’t know where to go.  If you are reading this and have never spent time in a Children’s Hospital or don’t have experience with special needs kids, please take a moment and learn more about it.  I never knew what families had to go through until my twins were born and my life will never be the same.  This IS a good thing.