Dan Casey is The Roanoke Times' metro columnist.

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Dan Casey

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Later this month, Ashton Trescott will have an enchanted evening. So will much of the senior class of Hidden Valley High School.

It is going to be a ball. Really. With gowns and suits and tuxedos and dancing and a tiered cake that looks like it belongs at a wedding.

Ashton, 18, has Down syndrome and autism. Last year she was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease. Her brain is wasting and there's not much time left.

If you've followed her through this column, you know that the past six months have been big for her in the wish department. Ashton's mom, Leah Baker, is determined to make all of her daughter's remaining wishes come true.

Back in September, the Make-A-Wish Foundation flew Ashton, her brother and mom to California to spend some time on the set of one of her favorite TV shows, "The Suite Life of Zack & Cody."

In October, Ashton's classmates at Hidden Valley voted her homecoming queen. She was feted at the homecoming game and dance.

In November, she attended a Hannah Montana concert and got the chance to meet one of her idols, Miley Cyrus.

The enchanted evening arises from another wish by Ashton: to someday get married. That will never happen, of course.

For years, Ashton has been a sucker for anything related to weddings. She pores over bridal magazines, oohing and aahing at the models in fancy gowns and the elaborate flower arrangements.

Whenever she and her mom went shopping for prom gowns, Ashton would make a beeline for the wedding dresses.

"She would always say, 'Me, me, me, me!' " Baker says.

A wedding seems out of the question, but Baker can get close. She decided the next best thing is a ball to celebrate Ashton's life.

It's going to happen from 5 to 8 p.m. Jan. 24 at Jefferson Center's Fitzpatrick Hall.

And many people in the Roanoke and New River valleys are working hard to make it an evening to remember.

Baker has invited the entire senior class of Hidden Valley High School. She figures the crowd will number 200 to 250.

Those kids have treated Ashton like a queen, Baker says with deep appreciation.

"God knows I'm not rich," Baker says. "I wish I could send them on a cruise or to the beach for a week. I can't give them that. But I can give them a night of fun -- with lots of help from the community."

Much of the help is coming from a friend of Baker's, Brandi Khounlo, owner of Beauty Bar in the Tanglewood area.

She's offered free nail designs to clients who donate soft drinks, napkins and other party materials and has rounded up some other donations.

Derik McCarty, a rep from the industrial cleaning company Zep Inc., has donated $200 for soda, napkins and other party items.

Vicky Thompson of Creative Entertainment is doing the event planning.

Pitt Boss BBQ in Cave Spring is donating some food. Rob McCutcheon from Sci-Tech Carpet Systems in Christiansburg is chipping in hot dogs, chili, buns and fixings. The father of Paola Beltran, a friend of Ashton's, is providing chips and salsa, and his whole family is helping out.

Lisa Link, owner of Cakes by Lisa, is offering a cake. A co-worker of Baker's, Christina Rouse, is putting together a DVD to show at the ball.

Mike Gardner will be the disc jockey. Others have come forth with decorations for the "Winter Wonderland" theme.

"It's just like everybody has come together to give Ashton this night," Baker says.

If you're getting a little bit weepy-eyed by this point, you're not alone. So am I.

Ashton faces many challenges over the coming months. The Alzheimer's is progressing just as surely as the sun drops in the sky each evening.

These days, she has trouble swallowing and chokes frequently. Often she doesn't go to school, or spends part of her time lying on a bed in a special education classroom.

Baker says Ashton's father, who lives in Oklahoma, recently cut off his daughter's health insurance, which has launched more uncertainty and worry.

But once again, and for one more night, at least, Ashton will be the center of the attention.

"I can't wait to see her face when she walks in with her crown," Baker says. "She's going to be excited."