Addi Buckley didn’t notice me watching her play with the other kids. She was too busy having fun.
The 8-year-old girl politely stopped playing when I asked to take her photo with her mother Dawn Buckley. Addi, who was born with Down syndrome, hammed it up with the cheesiest smile and then darted back to her friends, content as any kid on the planet.
Fitting in is crucial for any kid, but especially so for kids with special needs. They often have a tough time blending into society like just another flower in a garden. Some get treated like an unwanted weed.
Here, at the new center for the Down Syndrome Association of Northwest Indiana and Chicagoland, Addi is blossoming wonderfully. She’s accepted, she’s part of an extended family, and she clearly loves her home away from home.
Her parents, Dawn and Bill Buckley of Dyer, spearheaded the creation of this new 5,000-square-foot center in downtown Highland. It will help expand the organization’s inclusive-based educational programs, social groups and public events within the Down syndrome community.
I missed the center’s grand opening ceremony in May, when Addi helped with the official ribbon cutting. Too many other Northwest Indiana residents also may have missed it, according to conversations I’ve since had with several families who didn’t know about the center’s services and resources.
The organization’s mission is simple — to foster understanding, acceptance and inclusion of persons with Down syndrome so they can realize their aspirations to enjoy independent and productive lives.
“It’s all about being accepted,” said Dawn Buckley, a former art teacher who serves as the organization’s executive director.
“And to improve the quality of life for more than 500 Down syndrome families in Northwest Indiana and across the south suburbs of Chicago,” added Bill Buckley, the organization’s president.
Since the organization started in the 1980s, the group operated out of a much smaller 800-square-foot office in the same town. Its needs eventually outgrew its walls.
The new, state-of-the-art center is impressive and spacious, built through a bi-state coalition of area unions, local businesses and generous financial supporters totaling more than 80 entities.
In January 2015, the United Auto Workers and Ford community service team got things started with a group of five tradesmen working 40 hours a week from January through April. They essentially did all the heavy lifting to get the facility ready for newly designed renovations totaling nearly $400,000.
“Our organization spent about $50,000 and the rest came from donations,” Dawn Buckley said, pointing out donated plumbing, walls and flooring. “Everyone was very generous with their supplies and labor.”
There’s a game room for kids, a full-service kitchen, a lending library with books and DVDs, a toddlers’ room shaped like a carved dollhouse, and an ADA-compliant elevator. The union tradesmen’s fingerprints are everywhere throughout the center.
“My husband and I wished there was something like this when Addi was born,” said Dawn Buckley, who found out about her daughter’s Down syndrome just after delivery.
“I was blindsided and didn’t know where to turn for resources,” she recalled.
The day I visited the center, the group’s Tiny Tots program was in full gear, with little ones and their siblings happily running around. One young girl proudly rang the play room’s doorbell for me.
“This is their home too,” Dawn Buckley said.
In the lobby, guests are greeted by a welcoming wall of colorful tiles dedicated to donors and members.
“We wanted to honor everyone who helped make this happen,” said Dawn Buckley, who oversees a staff of seven, including part-time contractors. “Everything here is done through donations and fundraisers.”
The group’s next major fundraiser is a “Buddy Walk” on Sunday, Sept. 18, at the Lake County Fairgrounds in Crown Point. More information is at www.dsaofnwi.org/ or 219-838-3656.
Better yet, take a tour of the new center, located at 2906 Highway Ave. in Highland.
It will change your perception of area residents with Down syndrome and their families. You will learn that Down syndrome occurs approximately once in every 691 births, in all races and at all socioeconomic levels, affecting more than 350,000 families in this country.
You’ll find out that adults with Down syndrome have jobs, love affairs and world concerns. Some live in group homes. Others live independently. Many get married.
“Children with Down syndrome should be included in the social and educational life of the community,” the group’s website states.
Like I said, it’s all about fitting in and being accepted. This has more to do with the rest of us than with the Down syndrome community. A smile goes a long way to someone with Down syndrome regardless of age. A hug goes even further.
If you haven’t been hugged by a kid with Down syndrome, you haven’t been properly hugged.
“Thank Mr. Jerry for coming by,” Dawn Buckley told Addi before I left the center.
“Thank you,” Addi said shyly.
Thank you, Addi, for sharing your home away from home with me.
On a related note…
One of the parents I spoke with who had not yet heard of the Down Syndrome Association of Northwest Indiana was John Hart.
If you recall from my previous column, the Cedar Lake man and his wife Jill had a baby last month born with trisomy 18, a rare chromosome disorder related to the more common Down syndrome.
I suggested the couple contact the organization for support and resources after their baby, Harley, returns home from the hospital’s neonatal intensive care unit. That special day could come as early as Friday, when John Hart will update listeners of my Casual Friday’s radio show.
Tune in Friday at noon, and again at 7 p.m. on WLPR, 89.1-FM, streaming at http://lakeshorepublicmedia.org/local-programs/casual-fridays/. Call in with your questions or comments at 219-769-9577.
Twitter @jdavich
