Catina Cummings said her life was “boring” before she joined the LSU chapter of Best Buddies. Cummings met her “College Buddy” Emily Ardoin, a member of Best Buddies, for the first time last night at a Best Buddies “Chapter Night Out,” bowling at Circle Bowl.
“I met my buddy for the first time last night, and I already know we are going to be friends,” said Ardoin, a mass communication freshman. “We made plans last night to go to a movie next week.”
Best Buddies is a non-profit organization founded in 1989 by Anthony Kennedy Shriver, now the CEO, at Georgetown University. It is dedicated to providing opportunities for friendships and employment for people with mental disabilities.
There are Best Buddy programs in all 50 states, and there are many other program chapters around the world.
“By 2010 we hope to expand the program to 50 countries, have an international participation of 500,000 and establish Best Buddy offices and staff in all 50 states,” Shriver said.
Middle schools, high schools and colleges around the world have thriving Best Buddy chapters, and College Buddies and Best Buddies have the chance to develop their relationship through individual and group activities.
“I originally joined to make an impact on someone’s life, but Trish, my Best Buddy, ended up making more of an impact on my life,” said Lindsey Kobetz, a biology junior and a College Buddy. Kobetz said Best Buddies helped in “sparking” her interest concerning medical treatment for people with disabilities.
Shriver traveled to Baton Rouge Tuesday night and attended the Best Buddies group activity at the Circle Bowl bowling alley. Shriver is participating in a Louisiana Public Broadcasting documentary on Best Buddies and did an interview in New Orleans Wednesday. The documentary will run statewide in the fall and then may be syndicated.
Shriver played games in the video arcade with members of Best Buddies and observed the packed bowling alley.
With shirts that said “Hi Rollin’ gals and guys,” and bowling gloves, the Best Buddy bowlers, some of whom have formed a bowling league, are tough competition.
Shriver said he always did volunteer work, working at Special Olympics, begun by his mother Eunice Kennedy Shriver, soup kitchens, and other community service organizations. He established Best Buddies in college to “give students a focus” and inspire them to better the community.
Shriver received the 1999 Jefferson Award For Greatest Public Service By An Individual Thirty-Five Years Or Under, the 1998 Social Entrepreneur of the Year and an Honorary Doctorate from Loyola College in Maryland.
Shriver said the worldwide impact of Best Buddies has helped greatly to bring opportunities to people with intellectual disabilities. The process “takes time” and the Best Buddy program is dedicated to helping people with intellectual disabilities become a part of society.
According to the Best Buddy international Web site, 14 million college students in the United States and 77 million college students worldwide participate in the Best Buddy program.