Best Buddies

What do Kevin Spacey, Arnold Schwarzenegger, America Online, Muhammad Ali, Cindy Crawford, and Volvo have in common? They are all supporters of Best Buddies, a non-profit organization “dedicated to enhancing the lives of people with intellectual disabilities.”

Founded in 1989, Best Buddies pairs students-from middle school and high school- with intellectual disabilities with other students to form real one-to-one friendships. These programs are invaluable because even when they attend the same schools, intellectually disabled kids often are excluded from active social activities. There is even a program for college students to link up with intellectual disabled peers in their age group. Best Buddies also has an e-Buddies program to facilitate electronic friendships and a Jobs program that secures jobs for the intellectually disabled.

Today Best Buddies programs touch over 250,000 people a year and are in every state and six continents with a number of new countries coming on each year. Click here to donate click here to volunteer your time or your child’s.