Best Buddies Videos: Friendship and Jobs for People with Disabilities

Best Buddies International is a nonprofit that builds opportunities for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD). Their programs create one-to-one friendships, help people find jobs that match their interests and talents, support independent living, and develop leaders. Volunteers and people with IDD connect across schools, workplaces, and communities. This videos page shares stories from these programs, including employment partnerships and leadership events.

Best Buddies International is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to establishing a global volunteer movement that creates opportunities for one-to-one friendships, integrated employment, leadership development, inclusive living, and family support for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Best Buddies International is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to establishing a global volunteer movement that creates opportunities for one-to-one friendships, integrated employment, leadership development, inclusive living, and family support for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Best Buddies Friendship programs represent one of our organization’s five key mission pillars.  These programs build one-to-one friendships between people with and without intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD), offering social interactions while improving the quality of life and level of inclusion for a population that is often isolated and excluded. Through their participation, people with IDD form meaningful connections with their peers, gain self-confidence and self-esteem, and share interests, experiences and activities that many other individuals enjoy. The Best Buddies Jobs program represents one of our organization’s five key mission pillars, Integrated Employment. This program secures jobs for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD), allowing them to earn an income, pay taxes, and continuously and independently support themselves. The Jobs program places focus beyond the typical jobs in which a person with IDD might be placed. Best Buddies focuses on finding work that matches the job seeker’s interests and talents. The Best Buddies Living program represents one of our organization’s five key mission pillars, Inclusive Living. This program fosters an integrated experience for people with and without IDD to become active, contributing citizens who live independently in a dynamic environment where they can learn, grow, and thrive. For National Disability Employee Awareness Month, employer partner, JLL, held an event at their Chicago headquarters to celebrate their company’s growing partnership with Best Buddies. JLL is immensely proud of their integrated workforce as a result of partnering with Best Buddies. Best Buddies New York held its annual fundraiser on Tuesday, May 24, 2016, highlighting the Jobs program which began as a pilot in early 2015. Since then, we have had 7 successful job placements at the National Basketball Association (NBA), Central Park Conservancy, GreenGale Publishing, and Holland & Knight. Richard Cohen, President of Capital Properties, recently made a generous contribution towards the official launch of the ‪#‎BestBuddiesJobs‬ program in New York. A huge thank you to Capital Properties for being an instrumental part of bringing diversity to the workplace in The Empire State. We are excited to continue growing our Jobs program in New York with the help of our employer partners! Over the past 30 years the Best Buddies Leadership Conference (BBLC) has inspired thousands of leaders to be Best Buddies advocates and to bring about social change in their communities. BBLC is a once in a lifetime experience that unites Best Buddies leaders, volunteers, and community advocates from around the globe. Conference attendees will gain knowledge in order to take effective action both individually and as part of a group for a common cause, while discovering the importance of their actions, responsibilities, and energy. Learn more at bestbuddies.org/bblc. See more videos on YouTube

- Watch the videos at bestbuddies.org/what-we-do/videos to learn about each program - Sign up for the Best Buddies e-newsletter to stay informed about news and opportunities - Share the videos with a teacher, employer, or community group who might want to get involved - Look into the Jobs program if you or someone you know is seeking supported employment - Explore the Leadership Conference (BBLC) if you want to develop advocacy skills - Visit bestbuddies.org to find a local chapter or learn how to start one