Holiday Wishes from BBCA Staff

To Our Family:

Please give yourselves a hand. Each and every one of you are the reason we continue to succeed in pushing our mission and message of social inclusion to the world and, without you, we’d be lost. 2011 has been an amazing year for everyone in the Best Buddies CA family and that was more than obvious this past Saturday at our 2^nd Annual BBCA Family Holiday Party so graciously hosted by Guess? Inc, Susan Tenney and their incredible staff. We cannot say enough to thank them for going the extra mile and making the party such an amazing experience for everyone who attended.

From the photo booth to the karaoke to cutting loose on the dance floor, we hope that all of you enjoyed the party just as much as we did. On Saturday, you would be hard pressed to find a staff member or volunteer without a smile on their face and that is a credit to all of you – your commitment, caring for each other and enthusiasm for everything that Best Buddies stands for.

With every event, we are struck not only by the remarkable supporters and family members that we have within BBCA, but how close we have all become and that’s what this is all about. Even though there were about 300 people in attendance, it felt so intimate and warm that it is easy to see how much of a family we have become over the past year. For the staff at BBCA it never goes unnoticed.

In 2011 we saw many incredible events come out of California from the Friendship Walk to the Hearst Castle ride to Bowling for Buddies and the Holiday Party with a little dash of Flash Mobbing in between. 2012 promises to be just as thrilling, fun and important for BBCA - we make it our duty to do so. This last Saturday only confirmed what we already knew: how lucky we are to have all of you and all of the extraordinary individuals we get to call our friends, supporters, family and colleagues. You are all champions!

In closing, enjoy your Holiday season, spend as much time as possible with those you love and keep warm! We are honored that you have let us become a part of your family.

From everyone at BBCA, here’s to you and yours and a happy, healthy Holiday Season!

In Friendship,

Best Buddies CA

Best Buddy Beginnings: New Friendships form between Oakes Children’s Center and International High School in San Francisco

By Shelly Helgeson

Nerves were running rampant as everyone prepared to meet their Buddy or Peer Buddy for the first time last Wednesday, November 30^th at Oakes Children’s Center.   It was the first official meeting of the newly formed Best  Buddies chapter at Oakes Children’s Center where high schools students with intellectual or developmental disabilities are matched in one-to-one friendships with high school students who attend the private academic International High School.  

There were a lot of firsts that night: the first time the schools came together, the first time Chapter President, Kelsey Boylan led a meeting of this kind, the first time Buddies met their Peer Buddies, and conversely, the first time Peer Buddies met their Buddies.  However, nerves were quickly quelled when Program Manager, Katelyn Bollenbacher led the group in an icebreaker exercise which had the entire group running and high-fiving each other when she called out interests that students had in common.  It’s interesting how quickly everyone relaxes when they focus on similarities instead of differences in people.

After the icebreaker the Buddies and Peer Buddies found out who their match was to be for the year and sat down to spend some quiet time getting to know each other and playing board games.  This time was really the most rewarding moment for me, the Program Supervisor, who has spent many hours in meetings and writing emails (since last January!!!) in attempts to start a chapter at Oakes Children’s Center and find a suitable school of Peer Buddies to partner with them.  

I watched several of the Buddy Pairs instantly “click” as they talked about what they liked to do in school or during their free time.  One Buddy Pair in particular made me grin from ear-to-ear when he met his Peer Buddy and immediately shouted, “Oh my gosh, that’s so cool! She likes to dance!!!”  His arm was around her by the end of the meeting and I got that warm feeling that usually indicates a meaningful friendship is forming thanks to the hard work not only I, but the student leadership and advisors put into establishing this Best Buddies Chapter.  

My work providing opportunities for friendships for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities in the Bay Area is far from being complete, but at least with a new chapter at Oakes Children’s Center, I’m one step closer.

An exciting first week

by Katelyn Bollenbacher, Program Manager in the Bay Area

I should begin by introducing myself; my name is Katelyn Bollenbacher and I am the new Program Manager for Best Buddies California in the Bay Area. I come from three years of Best Buddies experience as I was the president of the University of San Francisco chapter, as well as six years of working with people with intellectual and developmental disabilities prior to that. Throughout the next year, a large portion of my work will be in expanding the Best Buddies mission to four new middle schools and eight new high schools, along with working with the already developed high school and college chapters. I am so excited to continue to be apart of Best Buddies because it truly bridges the segregation between people with and without disabilities.

               In the midst of filling out paper work and reading manuals in my first week as Program Manager for Best Buddies, something amazing happened. On my first day of work, abilitypath.org released a report on obesity in children with intellectual and developmental disabilities. You may be asking why something with such terrifying statistics excites me. With a degree in Exercise and Sport Science from USF, it was always frustrating to me that people with IDD were left out of the many studies that were covered in my classes. Obesity in minorities such as women, African Americans, and Hispanics were covered, but people with IDD were not. In my experience working with people with IDD it was evident to me that they are affected just as much with being overweight or obese as typically developing people are. With the help of Best Buddies, this report was possible, and I am ecstatic to see this step forward. I am thrilled to now work in an organization that continually works along side other organizations to make social change. It is exciting to me that people with IDD are now being included in these statistics.

               With obesity levels being high in the United States, we need to make change in order to see change. The effort of Best Buddies in this report means that our programs need to promote change as well. In our Friendships program at high schools and colleges, we can easily promote healthy living by providing activities that promote physical activity; for example dancing or playing leisure sports like wiffle ball or soccer, and providing foods that promote healthy living. Let’s trade the sedentary activities for physical activity and the cookies for veggies! We can make a difference in our buddies and in ourselves.

You too can read the report at: http://www.abilitypath.org/health-daily-care/health/growth-and-nutrition/articles/obesity/obesity-special-needs-overview.html

1st Annual Bowling for Buddies Tournament Opening Remarks from State Director Patty Evans

BBCA welcomed eight of our Jobs program employers to our first annual bowling tournament, Hollywood Player Goes Bowling for Buddies, to benefit the Jobs program on Monday night, Nov. 7^th at Lucky Strike LA Live!  These were my welcoming remarks

My name is Patty Evans and I’m State Director of Best Buddies California.  I want to thank you all for being here tonight and launching our inaugural Best Buddies jobs bowling tournament, Hollywood Player Goes Bowling for Buddies.  As you know from dealing with Rachel and me, we’ve been working on this for quite some time, and we’re so excited that it’s finally the night!

In today’s economic and political turmoil, all everyone can talk about is creating jobs – why aren’t there more jobs?  What’s getting drowned out in all the noise is that the unemployment rate literally explodes when it comes to adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities.  And while it’s bad all over, in California it’s catastrophic.  We rank 38^th among all 50 states in adults with IDD being employed - 13%; that’s only 95,000 fully employed men and women out of a population of 737,000.  In Los Angeles County, only 24% of adults with IDD are employed, leaving 170,600 without jobs.

Best Buddies CA has been providing our supported employment program since 1997 and since then we have placed nearly 100 adults with IDD in companies throughout the Los Angeles area.  Today, we actively support 35 participants who work for some of the finest, most visionary companies in the southland – you.  Every time a participant finds a job, something absolutely wonderful happens.  That’s person’s life changes profoundly, as do the lives of their parents.  Something shifts as well within the companies and people start to see things differently. 

When I speak to our students in the Friendship Program from high schools and colleges around the state, I remind them that they are now leaders of social change.  Let me say the same thing to you.  You and your companies are improving the society of today and creating a better world of tomorrow.  You may not be able to lower the unemployment rate around the country, but you are changing lives here at home one job at a time.  And from your being here tonight, you are helping us to extend the same transformational opportunities to more and more potential participants this year, next year and for years after.

So, we at Best Buddies CA want to give you all a big hand of thanks and congratulations and wish you all luck in tonight’s first Best Buddies Jobs Bowling Tournament.  Let me introduce tonight’s contenders:

Fiji Water Team #1

Fiji Water Team #2

Fiji Water Team #3

Equinox Century City

ICM

Paradigm

GSO Business Management

OPI

Allan Company

Goldline International

Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart

Office of the Mayor of Los Angeles

and Burn 60

Give yourselves a hand!

I want to give a huge thanks to our Presenting Sponsor tonight, Hollywood Player, the movie-themed online gaming site, and welcome Mr. Dave Long here to tonight. Dave will be presiding over the Hollywood Player video gaming in the VIP room. 

Thank you again for coming and have fun tonight! 

Back to School Message from Best Buddies CA State Director Patty Evans

Hi everyone! I wanted to share the remarks I gave to the Los Angeles/Orange County Local Leadership Training on September 24^th.  It lets you know how proud I am of all of our buddies, peer buddies, advisors and administration personnel for being a part of Best Buddies CA.

--------

Mario Savio

Martin Luther King and Medger Evers

Gloria Steinem and Betty Friedan

The Chicago Seven

Frank Kamenny, Mark Segal and Rev. Troy Perry

Denis Hayes and John Muir

All of these people led social movements, most of them just in the last 50 years - all of them fighting for equal justice and a more humane and balanced society. 

Free speech, voting and civil rights, feminism, peace movement, gay and lesbian rights and the environment - all of this happened in my lifetime.  When I was a kid, African Americans still attended separate schools and rode in the back of the bus.  Most women didn’t work, or they worked in jobs specifically targeted for women.  Gays were in the closet or in jail and no one thought about the environment.  But it all changed when I got to college.  Everyone was protesting – arguing for free speech, the right to march, taking over entire campuses.  Anti-Vietnam protests, black power, freedom marches across the south and the right to vote; the birth of feminism and gay rights.    

As we know today, 50 years later - social movements do make a difference.  They do create change.  Today, we have an African American President; women run some of the country’s largest corporations; most Americans accept global warming as a scientific fact, and gays and lesbians serve in the congress, state and city governments all over the country, and finally, as of a few days ago can now serve openly in the military.

Social movements do make a difference.  And you don’t have to have campus wide sit-ins, or burn your bra, or march on Washington!  Sometimes, all you have to do is make a friend and honor that friendship.  For, make no mistake, Best Buddies is part of a social movement and you, my friends, are agents of social change. 

Each action has a consequence, not just on you, but on the people around you.  When you have a friend with an intellectual or developmental disability, you are sending a message that your friend is no different, no less than, and no less deserving of love and respect than you are.  That’s a powerful message.  With all the earlier social movements, despite the marches, the sit-ins and protests, it was the person hiring an African American or woman; the person having a gay or lesbian friend, or the person recycling their trash who was really creating change.  Once others started to take note, the fear went out of the change.  That’s what you’re doing.  Taking fear out of change.

But, friendships aren’t the only thing that will get us to a society where individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities are fully accepted.  Why do you think people go to church instead of worshiping at home?  Why do you think we have labor unions?  Why do we have Best Buddies Chapters? 

Because in union there is strength.  When we worship, or protest, or act together, we are bigger, stronger and louder than if we do it alone.  That’s why there’s a Best Buddies International and that’s why there’s a Best Buddies California.  Because, together, we are bigger, stronger and louder than if we act alone. 

Best buddies California can only be as big, as strong and as loud as you make us.  And, sometimes we have to be very big, strong and loud – to raise money to support and expand our programs, to attract powerful new supporters, to make a splash so that people pay attention and hear our mission.  Without you, we’re only 9 people in a state with 35,484,453 people.  But, with you, we represent tomorrow’s leaders all over the state – and not just you, but your school mates and friends, your administration, your parents and their friends, and your communities. And, that’s a pretty big group.

So, please, whenever you hear from Jessica, Shelly, Andrea, David or me, listen up!  If we ask for your help, if we ask you to post, to send, to speak - please help.  We wouldn’t ask if we didn’t need you. 

A final note:  my beloved mother passed away at age 88 in July.  Although she loved me regardless of what I did, she was most proud that I’ve devoted the last 18 years of my career to working at non-profit organizations.  She always wanted to know the cause, she wanted to get educated, and she’d even start making donations.  So, make sure your parents know what you’re doing with Best Buddies CA.  Tell them why it’s important and why it’s important to you.  Involve them in your chapters and in the Best Buddies CA fundraising activities like the Friendship Walks.  They may not tell you, but I guarantee, they’ll be proud of what you’re doing. 

So thank you for being here today, for giving up part of your Saturday.  It tells us that you’re serious about this and committed to your chapter being the very best it can be.  I predict great things from you and I look forward to seeing you again throughout the year.  Thank you.

Southern California Local Leadership Training Days

Best Buddies California held 3 Leadership Training Days this Fall for our Southern California Friendship Programs. The training days were held on September 17th at Westview High School in San Diego, September 18th at Norte Vista High School in Riverside, and September 24th at Millikan High School in Long Beach.

High School and College Student officers, along with their club advisors, were invited to attend the training days this fall. Advisors were split into a breakout group during the trainings so they could network with other advisors in the area, and discuss common challenges as well as share successful ideas.  The High School and College Student Officers met together in a large group where they participated in workshops that covered a variety of topics including: Best Buddies History, Forming and Sustaining Successful Friendships, Bullying and Empowerment, Navigating the Best Buddies Online System, and Gathering Community Support for your local chapter.

LA and OC Student Leaders

In addition, the students learned about several Best Buddies / Special Olympics join initiatives- namely the Spread The Word To End The Word Campaign (www.r-word.org) and Eunice Kennedy Shriver Day.  The students brainstormed ideas about local events they could plan at their schools and in their communities to celebrate these 2 initiatives.

At the September 24th training, students were joined by 2 Special Guests, Jeanine Mason, from last season's show So You Think You Can Dance, as well as her boyfriend Beau, from the MTV show Awkward. Jeanine choreographed a fun dance to Lady Gaga's 'Born this way'. She taught the dance during a 45 minute session at the September 24th training, and students shared excitement over the upcoming Best Buddies flash mob- which will be held at a secret location in LA mid-October.  Best Buddies and Jeanine Mason hope to spread their mission of social inclusion with this flash mob, and raise awareness about Best Buddies California.

Jeanine Mason teaching a dance to our student officers

All 3 trainings were a great success, and nearly 200 student officers and advisors in Southern California left the trainings with new resources and ideas under their belts to lead successful programs at their respective chapters this year.

Bay Area Local Leadership Training Day Hosts Over 75 Student Officers, and New Chapters

The Bay Area office was stunned by the success our Local Leadership Training Day 2012. Over 75 student officers from around the Bay Area turned out! The training presented a local opportunity to attend sessions from the Best Buddies International Leadership Conference in Bloomington, Indiana.

Sessions included material on the history of disability rights, planning a chapter calendar and budget, and providing quality match support for buddy pairs. The training also provides the opportunity for local officers and chapters to connect and coordinate with each other.

The highlight of the conference included the star performance of Buddy Director Danny and Chapter President Victoria Liu. Danny and Victoria hailed from Foothill High School in Pleasanton, CA. They volunteered to perform a role-playing scenario in which they modeled a successful interview for a potential buddy or peer buddy. Victoria asked Danny about his motivations for joining a Best Buddies chapter, his commitment and availability, and his interests. Danny stood out as an articulate and self-assured young man – surely anyone would be lucky to have him as a friend, and his chapter is fortunate to have him as a leader. As Buddy Director, Danny represents students with IDD in his chapter’s officer corps.

Another highlight was the contribution of Special Education Advisor Rami Aweti to our conversation about disability rights. Program Manager May Tulin (author of this blog piece) gave a short presentation on the history of disability rights. The presentation brought up the topics of both social justice and civil rights, contextualizing Best Buddies part of the social movement for the rights of people with IDD. Mr. Aweti reminded the conference participants that special education is a key civil right, hard-won, for young people with disabilities. Best Buddies attempts to bridge the social divide that continues to exist between students in these two departments of public schools.

Mr. Aweti also represented one of 11 new Best Buddies chapters in San Francisco. He hails from Mission High School in San Francisco. The conference also hosted students from the new George Washington High School and the new Thurgood Marshall High School/San Francisco State University chapter.

As we are every year, BBCA was indebted to the Cal-Berkeley Best Buddies Chapter for hosting the event. This year, Cal senior Hagikah Birden put in extra volunteer hours to help secure and coordinate space for the event.

Many thanks to all those who attended this wonderful day!

Rolling with it: My time hunting for ramps, jumping curbs, and waiting to park in the blue spaces

By Jessica Patton, Lead Employment Consultant, Best Buddies California Jobs Program

Last month, I fractured the fifth metatarsal of my left foot.  Actually, my doctor says I shattered it into about a half dozen pieces.  My mom always said that if I do something, I make sure that I do it right.  With very little time to digest the predicament, I found myself in a cast, prohibited from putting any weight on my foot for at least eight weeks and was told that not only was it likely that I would need surgery, but that I would need to stay off of that foot for another several weeks or even months after the surgery!   I went into a panic.  A broken foot and crutches would normally not cause a crisis in a person’s life.  Using crutches is merely a nuisance for most.  But I am a job coach for Best Buddies Jobs.  I follow around Kevin as he sweeps up in a busy warehouse at GUESS?, Inc. in downtown Los Angeles.   I coach Thomas and Alex at Sprouts Farmers Market in Culver City as they return “go-backs” to the shelves at the market and collect carts in the parking lot.  And I observe Jon as he goes on “runs” at Access Hollywood in Burbank, delivering tapes of commercials and stocking supplies in the production office.  I climb stairs, scale hills and walk blocks in one day, from one job site to the other.  I am in and out of the car, driving all over the city to different job sites and need to be efficient with my time.  In my panic, I wondered how in the world I was going to do my job if I couldn’t walk.

Everyone at Best Buddies California has been amazing as I figure out how to do my job with this new temporary disability.  Rachel Spooner, BBCA Jobs Program Supervisor, and Patricia Evans, BBCA State Director, helped me brainstorm how I could support my participants while taking care of myself.  I could spend more time making telephone calls checking-in with my participants and sending emails to their supervisors to see how our buddies are doing in meeting their goals.  I could do more work from the office and even work from home if the pain got to be too much.  

My doctor also helped me problem-solve this situation.  She gave me the form to take to the Department of Motor Vehicles stating that I needed a temporary disabled parking placard.  She also wrote me a prescription for a knee walker, which fortunately my insurance covered.  An alternative to crutches, it enables me to get around easily and independently, while I continue to coach my participants on their jobs.  Using my knee walker (or my wheeler, as I call it) means I have to avoid stairs.  If I can’t use a ramp or the elevator, I can’t get in.  If the sidewalks are broken (or don’t exist), if there aren’t any disabled parking spaces available, or if the curbs are too high for me to jump, I am seriously limited in my ability to get around.  

I have needed some of the accommodations that Rachel and Patty suggested, but I’m fortunate that I have been able to, for the most part, continue supporting my participants.  With the help of my wheeler, I can still help Thomas figure out where to put back the gluten-free cereal at Sprouts.  I can follow Kevin around as he sweeps up in the warehouse at GUESS?.  I can even go with Jon as he delivers the tapes downstairs at Access Hollywood.  It’s just not as easy as it used to be.

Even after 21 years of the Americans with Disabilities Act, there are still too many barriers for people with disabilities.  My temporary disability has given me a new point of view to some of the challenges that people with disabilities face every single day as they try to get around the city and live their lives independently.  The other day, I decided to go grab coffee with a friend at a coffee shop just around the corner from his house.  Normally, I would have made this short walk with no problem.  I would have enjoyed the exercise and the beautiful day.  But my wheeler made this day very different.  When I reached the busy intersection in Hollywood, I paused to survey the situation.  Cars in this intersection often rush pedestrians as they try to get to the 101 Freeway ramp, inching into the crosswalk and turning just as soon as they can squeeze by the pedestrian.  This always annoyed me, but I never felt scared or unsafe.  Yet on that day, I was genuinely worried.  I have to be extremely careful because my wheeler can tip over on bumps or cracks in the pavement.  I worried that I wouldn’t be able to concentrate on crossing the street, watch out for aggressive LA drivers, and keep myself upright all at the same time.  I did manage to cross the street without any mishaps, but my biggest problem came as I got to the end of the crosswalk – there was no ramp to get up over the curb.  I had to lift my wheeler (which weighs over twenty pounds) while balancing on one foot, then hop up over the curb to the safety of the sidewalk.  All this while a string of cars, attempting to turn right on red, were inching towards me.  I had to cross the road again to get to my destination and faced the same challenge.  Of the four corners of that intersection, only one had a ramp to get past the curb.  If I were in a wheelchair, I would have been stranded on the street, unable to get up onto the sidewalk.  I crossed that intersection a hundred times before my injury and never gave the ramps (or lack thereof) a thought until that day.  It was an eye-opening experience, not to mention scary.

Jessica P. on a ramp

I could give you dozens of examples of the barriers that I face as I go about my day.  Able-bodied women who use the disabled stall in the restroom because they like the extra space but don’t think about the people who use wheelchairs or other medical equipment that need the extra space.  Parking lots with only one disabled spot that’s taken by a vehicle without a disabled placard.  Buildings with one or two steps to get into the door and no ramp in sight.  Movie theaters that reserve the worst seats in the house for patrons with disabilities.  Who wants to sit in the front row of an IMAX movie anyway?  It was even a challenge for me to get into the Best Buddies California office. Before I broke my foot, I always went up the stairs to our second floor office.  When I started using my wheeler, I had to wheel around the entire building to find the elevator (there’s just one that goes to our floor).  I just hope the elevator isn’t out of order when I really need it.

  

In some ways, breaking my foot and using my wheeler has been a valuable experience for me.  The old adage says you can't really know a person until you walk a mile in their shoes.  I know this to be true.  Maybe using a wheelchair or other mobility assistive device for a day should be required training for all job coaches.  Not all of my participants have physical disabilities but some of them do and it changes how they can do their jobs.  I am an even better job coach because I see the obstacle course that is their life in this busy (and not so accessible) city and it is not easy. I believe that I will be even better at developing new jobs for participants who do have physical disabilities because I can see what some of their challenges may be and envision jobs that may be more suited to their unique challenges.

So when my foot is healed and I’m back to walking as usual, I’m going to keep these lessons in the back of my mind.  Instead of complaining about having to park blocks away from my destination and being annoyed that I have to walk up a few flights of stairs, I’m going to remind myself that I am so fortunate to be able to walk those blocks, cross those streets, and scale those steep stairs with no fear or worry.