As much as 40% of people with debilitating disabilities or chronic illnesses can experience social isolation or loneliness (http://bit.ly/4eSYcCP). In the formative years, this effect may be all the more detrimental as students with such conditions struggle to forge impactful and lifelong friendships. Best Buddies is an international organization dedicated to ending the social isolation of individuals with disabilities, and the school’s chapter of this organization aims to pair such students with students in the general education program to bond throughout the year. The club also tries partnering with other organizations, like the robotics team and Sprouting Spartans, for unique activities.
“So [with] our events, our goal is to create an environment where everyone feels super welcome and accepted, and everyone has something to do and a place to have fun,” Best Buddies president Sofia Mateen said. “Whether you are in a wheelchair or whether you’re nonverbal or have whatever your disabilities are, you’re able to have a good time and make friends with everyone in the program, because that’s what everyone is there for.”
Some of the most prominent Best Buddies events are the color run, where face painting meets running, and a community car wash to build teamwork among the participants. In addition, the club will be participating in the Halloween Trunk or Treat event.
“This year, we actually have more members than we’ve ever had before, which is super exciting,” Mateen said. “With that being said, we wanted to create more community events to even grow and spread our mission even further. So we have a trunk or treat coming up, and it is a collaboration with Taylor, Tompkins, and Cinco High Schools, and alongside that, it’s open to the entire community, so everyone’s able to join. Everyone can feel included and welcome and accepted, which is our goal.”
Through these events, students can forge lifelong friendships with their peer buddies; senior Nicolas Terreros treasures many memories with his peer buddy since his freshman year.
“My most memorable experience is when my buddy Yusuf called me his best friend, because it really showed me the impact of our one on one friendship on him and how happy he was to have a friendship like that,” Terreros said. “We have been paired since freshman year, and we’ve kept that friendship now that I’m a senior. So that really meant a lot to me, because the whole impact is getting them to be more open, and getting them to have more experiences.”
Peer buddies participate in various activities outside of the club as well: junior Maya Vishwanath recalls several such events with her peer buddy, Minjoon.
“I think going to H-Mart with him was memorable, because he liked everything that was there; he’s really interested in Korean culture and Korean food and he just had such a great time,” Vishwanath said. “And I had a great time, and I ate a lot of great food, and we went with our friend and her peer buddy as well.”
Best Buddies and its events ultimately have larger impacts towards creating a world with stronger values and more inclusivity.
“I’m a firm believer in my core values–empathy, understanding everyone and accepting absolutely everyone, regardless of our differences,” Mateen said. “And I don’t like to use the word disabilities, because really, our students with disabilities have incredible capabilities, and that’s the real truth, and I want them to be able to be seen not through the lens of their disability, but who they actually are because they are the most wonderful and splendid people I have met in my entire life. And I wanted to share that joy–the friendship and getting to know them–with the entire student body [because] it’s super important that everyone has that same experience.”
