The Down Syndrome Support Group of South Central Kentucky hopes to get another step closer to the opening of its dream facility with its third annual “Raise the Roof” concert.

“We don’t know of a place like it in the country,” support group President Scott Essler said of the Buddy House. “It will be a lifelong learning and activity center for people with Down syndrome and their families and loved ones.”

“Raise the Roof 3” will be at 6:30 p.m. Nov. 18 at Hillvue Heights Church. Admission is $5.

The concert will feature the alternative rock beat of the band Micah, the soft R&B of Tyrone Dunn and the band Hat Trick, and the rock sound of Bobby Baldwin and Wigglestik. WBKO-TV’s Chris Allen will be the emcee. The BG Rockerz, a dance troupe made up of people with Down syndrome, will also perform.

“All of the bands are donating all their time and talents. They’re not taking any money at all. The $5 admission goes to Buddy House,” Essler said. “Hillvue Heights Church has been wonderful supporting people with special needs. They’re letting us use the facility at no charge. We have countless people to thank. We want to thank the community for all the support they’ve given us over the years.”

Jane Tichenor, support group member at large, agreed.

“We are so excited with how the community is responding. That means a lot to all of us,” she said. “We’ve kept the prices low because we don’t want money to keep people away. This is a fundraiser, but it’s also about awareness.”

The concert was the idea of the band Micah, whose members all have close ties to children and adults with Down syndrome, Tichenor said.

“I’ve known them all from church since they were in junior high school. They were in support of Down syndrome and would help with awareness,” she said. “They were close to my daughter and Scott’s son. It was amazing these young kids felt so strong about it.”

The support group is more than two-thirds of the way to reaching its financial goal for opening Buddy House, a project that has been in the works for several years, Essler said.

“We have an advisory board that will be meeting in January to get some concrete plans as to their thought on when we can move ahead and get some space. We want to have a minimum three years’ operating experience. We thought it would give us three to five years’ security in the event no other funding came in. We want to open it so that we never have to worry about going backwards.”

The funding would go to more than just the building, Essler said.

“We could rent or lease a space and get a washer and dryer and kitchen appliances,” he said. “It will be run on an all-volunteer basis at first, but eventually we would love to have a manager or director.”

The Buddy House, which will serve the support group’s seven-county area, will have early intervention programs for preschoolers as well as programs for school-age children and adults with Down syndrome.

“We want to have it open so that as people graduate high school, they can continue to work on job skills and independent living skills,” Essler said.

There will also be mentoring program for parents, Tichenor said.

“We want to have this location as a central location and provide activities throughout the year that will take in all age groups and all areas,” she said. “We have a lot of ideas about how to help support parents of newborns and toddlers. We want to have mentoring programs with parents who have older children who can talk and be there for people with younger families.”

— For more information about the support group or Buddy House, visit www.dssgsck.com.