Kewanee-area residents will visit Windmont Park next month to raise awareness and money for Down syndrome children.

The Buddy Walk is scheduled on Saturday, Oct. 14 from 8 a.m. to noon. Visitors will be able to walk around the park’s lagoon and visit at least 16 attractions.

These will include painted cupcakes with face paining, a booth by Daily Fix, popsicles and face painting by Braveheart, cotton candy, Buddy Bracelets by the Kewanee High School Key Club, snow cones, giant Connect 4 and booths by Entwined and Let’s Link.

Kali Stoops, chairman of the event, told the City Council Monday that the event will feature a variety of activities and a raffle with more than 30 prizes.

Held in partnership with the National Down Syndrome Society, the Buddy Walk is held “to honor and celebrate individuals with Down Syndrome ands children with other disabilities in our community,” according to literature Stoops presented to the council.

In a letter to Deputy Police Chief Stephen Kijanowski earlier this month, she wrote that since there is no summer school for children with Down syndrome, there is a need in the community for summer programming for the children.

She wrote that it is difficult to obtain summer special education services from the schools, so the goal of the local Buddy Walk is to raise $15,000 to fund these programs. Stoops said at the council meeting that $5,600 has already been raised.

“Summer programming provides a safe environment for friendship to blossom, and it allows children to work on their social skills with other children who might understand their challenges,” Stoops wrote.

Registration to participate in the event is open and can be done online at https://charity.pledgeit.org/Kewanee. For those registering online, the fee is $5; registering at the park on the day of the event costs an additional $5.

For more information on the National Down Syndrome Society, visit ndss.org.